Open Windows Finish & a new WIP

Just out of the dryer is Open Windows:

Open Windows - finished March 2011

The above was my best attempt at "staging" this monster.  Here is the gratuitous on-the-bench train wreck.  Design is not my forte.  

This is what my son will see when he gets home from school today.  Hope he likes it!  

While anxiously awaiting how this quilt did in the washer/dryer, I pulled out my Anna Maria Horner stash and decided on various Garden Party FQ's to use for the Supernova Quilt Along with Lee at Freshly Pieced.  So excited!  

My non crafty WIP:  Made a run to my favorite nursery yesterday to load up on these:

Tomatoes (my attempt at growing seeds this year was dismal), Onions, Peppers, Potatoes, Basil and Butternut Squash.  

Go check out Lee at Freshly Pieced to see amazing things that people are posting today.  

Off to the garden,
Ciao!  

A very stylish WIP Wednesday

I received a very humbling e-mail on Sunday from Mary over at Piece Garden telling me that she had nominated me (along with two others) for the Stylish Blogger Award.

I almost don't know what to say about this..I'm just humbled.  Before I tell you more about this award go to Mary's blog at Piece Garden and check out her Monochromatic Quilt she just finished.  GO NOW!

Alright...you've seen how amazing she is, right?  Did you see the Monochromatic Quilt, the Picnic Blanket, the pillow she made back on Feb 25th?  What about that darling raincoat?  Did you see the Hideaway?

Yes, Mary is the one who got me started on Hideaway!  I just received some in the mail yesterday and it is even cuter in person that it is on my computer screen.

Here are the details about the Stylish Blogger Award:
1. Thank and link back to the person who gave you the award.
2.  Share seven things about yourself.
3. Award six recently discovered great bloggers.

Seven things: (in no particular order)
1.  I'm starting to go grey but my husband hasn't noticed.  LOL
2.  I was adopted when I was three weeks old by the two best parents a girl could ever have.
3.  Have been inside the Taj Mahal in Agra, India.  Would go back again in an instant.
4.  My favorite sandwich is Fresh Mozzarella Cheese, Tomato and Spinach on a crusty roll.
5.  I watch The Real Housewives of OC and NJ but none of the others.  Can't help it - it's like junk food for my brain.
6.  I subscribe to 179 different crafty/quilting and food blogs.  I have 254 unread posts right now.  Eeek!
7.  Sometimes I think I'm a terrible example of being a girl...I look in the mirror maybe twice a day, wear my usual blue jeans/tshirt most of my waking hours (not the same jeans/shirt!) and don't wear any makeup.

My nominations for the Stylish Blogger Award:
I have 35 Google Friends and about six more if you count those who show up on Google Reader.  I feel like those bloggers are "my people" as they (YOU) have taken the time to read what I have to say so I in turn do the same.  My six choices from among those 35 are:

Jenniffier's Sometimes Creative Life.  Jenniffier is a super cute fellow CA girl who makes some lovely quilts.  I'm diggin her Posh Quilt Top right now and can't wait to see how it turns out.

Quilter in the Gap.  Just found Rhonda last week and have already enjoyed a few e-mails back and forth.  She's doing Lily's Quilts QA and her Dresden plate fabric choices are very informative for me as I can watch along and learn.  Go check out her survey!

Fluffy Sheep Quilting.  Cindy is blogging from Ireland and was nice enough to comment on my History Quilter podcast so I found her blog and began to follow.  In her Year of the Craft post she shared with her readers a quilt she had made for her mother. It's gorgeous - go check it out.

The Rebel Homemaker.  Seriously Shelley is my newest gardening guru and she quilts!  Check out her Flickr page - amazing!  Did you see that Star Wars pillow?

Marilyn's Maze.  The lovely Marilyn Pond seriously lives within walking distance to me and I'm hoping in 2011 to get the chance to meet her at a Quilters by the Sea guild meeting.  You might have seen her recently profiled by Sew Cal Gal with her Two Wacky Women quilt retreats she puts on with her friend Robin.

Becky's Blabber. Love this gal - would have loved to have a sister like her.  She is doing her best to be crafty in a houseful of males, just like me.  :)  Love her Mardi Gras Quilt and don't miss her Medical Lab Quilt.  So cool and so creative!

Now for the WIP:

Open Windows with machine binding attached

Only going to show one...the Open Windows quilt for my son  is almost done.  I attached the binding on the front by machine this morning and will begin the hand stitching of the back tonight.  This quilt is so big I'll have to take it to the local Laundromat to wash and dry it.

Now I've got to run and study for an Economics exam at 2pm.  Wish me luck calculating GDP, but first go check out the other WIP's at Lee's Freshly Pieced!

Ciao!

Work-In-Progress Wednesday & a finish

Work in Progress first:
#1 First is the Sliced Coins QA.  Dreadful photo - I should have put these down on a sheet or something as my carpet is bluish/green (seriously - came with the house) but in person these coins look great!  Didn't lay it out with the sashing yet.

Sliced Coins QA

#2 Working on something fun for a teacher friend of mine.  I had a charm pack and honey bun of the American Jane Punctuation line and I am making a quilt using the Square One pattern from Camille Roskelley's Simplify book.  It is coming along nicely but I forgot to take photos while I had it out.

#3 About to start a XL Twin sized quilt for my older son.  We finally bought him a XL Twin bed (the boy is way too tall for a Twin sized) and he has requested a quilt made by me!  I'm actually thrilled and can't wait to make it happen.  

#4 Blockapalloza QA - completed block one, cut out fabric for block two and looked at block three.  Hmm.

#5 Fat Quarter Shop BOM - behind by three/four months.  Another hmm.  

#6 - organizing all of the above into an area the size of a shoebox!  

Had a pretty rotten couple of days last week.  Last Thursday night was my first education class for the SS Teaching Credential and so during the day I was a bit nervous - I always get a little anxious before first classes but then it passes and all is fine.   What then added to that minimal stress was a texting fight I got myself into with a family member at about 4pm - two hours before class time.  Not enjoyable one bit.  Do any of you have a sibling that you have practically no connection with, but have always wanted to?  Have always tried to but whatever you do it seems to never be right?   

Two hours later at approximately 6:30pm, as the teacher is telling us how MUCH work it is going to be not only this semester but the entire credential, I started having doubts.  Doubts about whether I should go for it, whether I could do it, etc.  When I got home from school that night I burst into tears on the couch with my husband and poured out all of my thoughts.  How can I put this credential program before my family whom I've put #1 for almost 15 years?  Most of the classes are at night - family hates that.  I need new clothes for observing in the classroom and student teaching! (Stay at home mom uniform for almost 15 years - do I have any work clothes?  No.) 

My husband was very supportive and helped to calm me down.  Had another good cry Friday morning after the children were off to school and then righted myself.  It was hard to have both of those events mingle in my head - I'm very sure that if I had not already been stressed out by my sibling then what I learned in class would not have mattered so much.  Almost a week later now and I'm full steam ahead with the credential program and no where with the relationship with my sibling.   

If you read all of that, thank you.  I appreciate it.  Here is a bonus for you:

I finished the That Girl QA!  Well, almost - I'm too scared to wash it! What if the Kona Red bleeds?  Please any ideas on what kind of detergent I should use would be appreciated.

If any of you listed to my first History Quilter podcast, then Thank You!  I am planning on recording another one this week and upload to iTunes.

Don't forget to check out what others are doing with their WIP's at Freshly Pieced.  I know I will!  

Wednesday WIP and a Backache

Looking at fabric, fun

Dreaming up what to do with fabric, fun

Cutting up fabric, also fun

Backache from cutting up fabric, not so fun!

But I muddle on determined to ignore the pain and continue on with my busy life.  

First on my WIP list: 

I am participating in the Sliced Coins Quilt Along hosted by Elizabeth D. of  Don't Call Me Betsy.  I decided to go outside of my creative and rather comfortable box and use solids  in order make a decorative quilt for the end of my bed.  I am using Kona Champagne, Basil, Curry, Honey and Butterscotch.  Having a Kona card has been such a big help as I was able to sit on my bed and match Kona colors to the colors around my room.  I look forward to the outcome.  

Various Kona Solids for Sliced Coins Quilt Along

Second on my WIP List:

I also started cutting into the Sunkissed by Sweetwater fabric that I received last week to make the first block in the Block-a-pallooza.  I wish the directions could be a little more clear on what fabrics we should or could use.  I ordered the entire Fat Eighth as recommended and don't know if I want to use exactly the same combinations that the block host designers illustrate in the directions.  I guess I'll just have to wait and see.  

Sunkissed fabric for Block #1

Third on my WIP list:

Last week my quilt using the That Girl Quilt Along came back from the long arm quilter.  I am still blown away with what a great job she did with the quilting.  I shared with you all before that I had such a tough time myself when I tried to quilt it so sending it out seemed the right choice, and boy was I right.  

I was right, don't you think?  I just love how Maria from Nena's Quilt Shack did her magic on my quilt.  I'm working on the binding at night and should have that done within the next few days.  

My remaining WIP:  school!

I'm back in school this week working on my Teaching Credential.  TB test, Fingerprint Scan, sign up for the CBEST test are just a few of the tasks I need to complete this week.  I was warned that the first class of the teaching credential was the paper-pushing class and they weren't kidding.  My other class is ECON 300 - Econ for non-majors and as usual I was the oldest person in the classroom of 100.  In the introduction class yesterday the teacher kept talking about some kind of disgusting frozen pizza (sorry - admitted food snob here) to illustrate the labor supply, so I substituted that example with a quilt. Made me smile and worked very well.  

Go check out Lee from Freshly Pieced to see what other creative people are working on this week! 

Work-In-Progress Wednesday & Don't you forget about me.....

Kind of a catchy tune from a seminal movie from my teenage years.  I was more of a Sixteen Candles/Jake Ryan fan than The Breakfast Club but I was humming this tune to myself last night while washing dishes and thinking about you all..

I'm still here!  


I'm crazy busy with my research paper but I have had a few moments to come up to breathe and craft.  Love those moments.  So here is my current WIP.  This is the MIL Christmas Gift Quilt Version II.   Please go check out Lee at Freshly Pieced to check out more WIP Wednesday's.

Blocks laid out but not sewn together

Took these photos last night in the awful lighting...I'll have this pieced together by the weekend and get a photo outside.  The fabrics are beautiful but I still don't know if they go together.  Remember I'm color challenged!  

Time to get back to research and writing.  Eight more days until I can craft all day!