It's Like Magic!

My mind works kinda weird sometimes and here lately it's been bonkers!  I've been cutting a lot of fabrics! 

How many of you remember Joan Rivers and her famous comedy line....."Can we talk?"  

Well, let's talk a bit about the progression of the quilting and sewing industry. 

When I stop to think and reflect on how many years I've been sewing it rattles my poor little pea-sized brain.  (yes...I think my brain has been shrinking a size or two.  Remember, I'm still on my new eating plan for losing weight).

Let's talk!   What that's you say??   you want pictures??   

Ok, ok, don't nag me.......we'll get to that.   You can go ahead and skip all "this talk" if you want to and just look at pictures....it doesn't matter to me.  You might learn something if you read all of this.  I didn't just type to keep my fingers limber, ya know!  (Boy, I'm feeling a bit sassy today!)

1.  Fabrics - oh my how they've changed; the fiber content, the colors, the prints, the manufactures, artistic designers, fabrics made from recycled plastic, organic??    I remember sewing with cotton (organic)  fabrics that weren't color fast and they faded when you washed them.  Also used left over feed sack scraps for my dolls. 

2.  Patterns - did you know that tissue paper patterns were not always "printed" and there were little holes in them for your markings?  Clothing sizes....you had to really measure and adjust the patterns a lot.  Quilt patterns that were simple compared to what's available for today's busy sewers?  That was yesteryear....for sure! 

3.  Sewing machines - we all know about the treadle machines, right?  I loved sitting on the floor watching my Mom work that floor pedal with her feet.  Yes, I learned to sew on a treadle machine.  Now, we have machines that embroider, cut your threads, have built-in fancy stitches, thread your needles for you....just push a button. (I like my modern sewing machines!)

4.  Threads -  wooden spools, mercerized cotton, boilfast.  mmmmh! now we have every color, kind, fiber, size....even invisible and wash away thread, and we have to have special storage racks and thread bins to hold it all.  (When I used to shorten a store bought skirt or dress, I remember saving the thread from the hem seam to re-sew the shorter hemline....what?)


Do you ever stop and take a look at all your tools and gadgets we have today for our sewing and quilting?   How about your rulers? 

I've been on a "cutting frenzy" the last couple weeks.  I think there needs to be a number 5 on my list up there; rulers and templates.    I don't even use 90% of those rulers in that picture anymore, and forget templates.....yikes!   

Talk about progress in the quilting world?  How about this for Magic? 

Me and my AccuQuilt GO cutter......cranking out 6 fabric strips at a time.... magical progress at its finest!   And it doesn't even use any electricity.

Here's a peek into the Magic my GO cutter does for me.  It can turn yards and yards of fabrics ......

into this..................

Time Saver Kits for  my Etsy Shop.

or this.....

or this........

Or even this......

and this.......

Sorry, I can't "talk with you" anymore.   Gotta GO cut some more fabrics!

Thanks for visiting.

Small Quilting Means BIG FUN!

Bet you think this is GOing to be a post about Free Motion Quilting really small like tiny stitch stippling, huh?

Bzzzzzzzzzz!  Wrong Answer!    (that's supposed to sound like the buzzer from the old tv show Family Feud)

What?  You don't know about that TV Show??   Well, then, just read on.......


I love to play with the small 2 1/2" squares of 30's Reproduction Prints, and I keep a bin of them cut with my AccuQuilt GO cutter ready to sew.

Then when I get a few minutes,  I sew them into rows.  

"Awww....lookin' good.....this is a good assorted layout of colors & different prints."   (as she tells her Cat Quilting Supervisors).   Now,  I'll  have to sew the rows together, matching all those seams......."no, don't grab those pins".   

 My bin of the floral 2 1/2" squares are fun to play with too. I  ended up with 3 different pieced small  quilts.

It's kinda like eating Lays Potato Chips......you can't eat make just one.

and as she keeps sewing, she says....... "yes, you can sniff them & inspect the sewing, but they are NOT new quilts for your cat beds." One of them always talks back a bit...'meow...meow'.....'cause they are a bit sassy too.


You can always end up making  something fun from 2 1/2" squares cut with an  AccuQuilt GO cutter. 

Here's my latest finishes for a custom order from my Etsy Shop. 
My buyer asked for  a specific size (which is a little smaller than I usually make) and  matching square pillows.   

as she was saying...........("You Quilt Supervisors get outta here and go eat some catnip 'cause you  can't inspect these.")  ....where was I? 

Oh Yeah!  Now I remember.

AND.......just in case you're wondering.............   Yes, you can buy sets of these 2 1/2" squares in my Etsy shop.

Which one do you like the best......green or red?



Thanks for visiting.

I'll Never Get It Finished... But My Sister Will!!

Seems like life and things keep getting in the way of my finishing up my kitchen.  Some of you might emember when my kitchen was all torn up 'cause I was getting new Pergo flooring laid.    You can read it here.

My sister loves to re-decorate and is constantly changing things around or changing colors in her house.  She's fast and doesn't mess around or procrastinate like I do.  She was over here visiting one day and my windows were still bare.  She told me to go get my big bin of 30's reproduction prints and she was taking them home.



(Yes...sometimes she's bossy, but hey......she's my big sister, and sometimes big sisters get a little bossy.)


Here's one of the windows with my 30's Repro Prints valances she made.    Sorry the sun shines in that window and the picture's not very good.......but you get the idea.

So...here we go again a couple months later (we live about 1/2 block from each other) she's here again  asking me "when are you going to hang those things on the walls and at  the ends of the cupboards like you planned??"

DUH??   I never have an answer for her.

 "Go get the hammer (yup!...bossy again.) and some nails"   I always do what she says. (Well....almost all the time.)   Bossing me again, she then told me to go tear a few strips of fabrics to match the valances. 

Here's what she did that day.

and



I now have two of these orange daisies on the sides of the cupboards....just like I planned.   I love the little crocheted dishcloth dresses. 

and.....

This kitchen cart sits under one of the cupboards, so she plops down one of the old yellow & white crocheted dishcloths that was with the crocheted dresses and puts my little watering can on it.

Wonder what she'll do next? 

There's a couple more places  to hang some things........or

maybe she'll come back & clean out the cupboards??

Fabric Diet Warning!

Warning!  Never go to a quilt show when you're on a "fabric diet!"   It's worse than going to Baskin Robbins when you are trying to lose some weight.



I really enjoyed seeing the quilts and taking all those pictures, and was actually feeling a little smug about not visiting the vendors booths.  Ahhhhh  haaa!  I can do this.......get out of here without breaking my "fabric diet".......sure!

Then one of our Tied Together Bee members, Connie,  asked me to come with her to a vendor's booth to see a new scrappy template idea to see if she should buy it.  She is totally into doing scrap quilts and using up her stash;  there are foundation string quilts all over her house, and she's even making Christmas fabric ones for 35 Christmas stockings for the Elk's Lodge Christmas party for kids.  She's had a drought of sewing/quilting here lately 'cause they have been laying ceramic tile throughout their house for a couple months now.  I think she's ready to get back to it.

Ok...so we go to that booth, and watch the demo for the scrappy template ruler thingie (I forgot the name of it) and this new gadget is perfect for what she likes to do.  "Get it" I tell her....and "buy the book too".   I walk away.

Well, mmmhh....maybe I'll just make a quick walk around and there will be  some variegated quilting thread on sale.   BIG MISTAKE!

Oh....no....is that 30's reproduction prints fat quarters on sale?   MY FAVORITES!  But, I'm on a 'fabric diet'....... "Walk away"...I tell myself.  But, my feet took me right over to them anyway.   "I'll just get a couple of them".   They were all arranged so pretty....by color.  They looked like a garden of flowers.   My 'buy fabric trance' took over!  That's what I'm doing....picking flowers.

By that time a couple  other Bee members had come over to that booth to see what I was doing.   "Look at these......on sale....and I'm on a 'fabric diet'.   "Just buy a couple of them......that's not too bad",  Marilyn said.   (She bought 3 yards of fabric at the same booth.)


What's a gal who's on a 'fabric diet' to do?  The "buy fabric trance" is in full force!

Buy 12, get 1 free........BUY A COUPLE?  ..........sure!

Here's the 1st four I chose.

Here's the 2nd 4.  Love the yellows.

Last 4..... that makes 12.

And here's the one I got for 'Free'.....red, naturally.

I blame Connie and Marilyn for this.....it's their fault, not mine!

Well.......back on the 'fabric diet' again.........until the next show......or the next time I need some quilting thread.



Thanks for visiting!

Have you seen the BOM from Fabric N Quilts??

If you haven't seen these Block of the Month kits out of 30's Reproduction prints, you just have to GO and take a look @ them......then sign up to start getting them.  These are from a shop in TN called Fabrics n Quilts.  Just click on my title to GO there.   You're not GOing to believe the price either!  It's the best deal for BOM's you are GOing to find anywhere! 

Yup!  that's right.......she cuts these with her GO cutter from AccuQuilt and they are cut perfect and SEW much fun to SEW them up......easy, pretty......and everything! 

Am I in love with my GO cutter........for sure!  Thanks again, AccuQuilt!   I have been using it everyday to cut more strips for jelly rolls and more squares for charm squares all available in my Etsy shop.

Here's a few of the ones I've completed!

I'm a big fan of the reproduction prints and these fabrics are some of the prettiest ones I've seen.  You will love this shop's Block the Month kits and she has good prices on yardage too. 

Well....what are you waiting for???  GO see them.

Great Fun to meet Barb from Bejeweled Quilts Blog

You meet the nicest people when blogging!    My sister and I had a great opportunity to meet Barbara from Pago-Pago American Samoa this week 'cause she was in San Antonio for a few days.  We met at the Red Robin near Six Flags Fiesta Texas and had such a wonderful time.   She is such fun and pretty too!   She brought us the cutest little bags she made with beautiful tropical fabrics tucked inside.   Thanks, Barb.  Her blog is http://bejeweledquiltsbybarb.blogspot.com/   and if you don't follow her, you are really missing out.  

We thought it would be fun to take her fabric shopping, so off we went to Jo-Ann's Super Center to spend some money.  

All the pretty silk flowers made a great background for picture taking.  Barb's on the left and my sister, Jerre, on the right. 

What a wonderful time we had!  And all thanks to blogging! 

HAVE YOU SEEN 'EM YET??

Have you seen my fun little DOLLY QUILTS yet??  Snuggly warm for all the "babies"!

Go to my etsy store to see all 5 of them:  http://sewfunquilts.etsy.com/  They are all different and there are a couple of tiny ones from 30's reproduction prints too!