This & That Give away

I bought this pattern earlier this year. I liked the box shape of the bags. I made a couple of these bags and they are quick and easy. Now I want to pass it on to one of you to enjoy. Leave a comment to be entered to win.

I'm having surgery on my right shoulder Monday afternoon. It is an exploratory surgery to see what is causing the constant pain. This will be my third surgery on this shoulder. I have therapy on Tuesday afternoon so I will draw the winner sometime after therapy.

Leftovers

Not a very exciting title for a post but it is what it is. Actually, that phrase (It is what it is) is the way I have been living my life lately. There are some things that you just can't change and you have to accept them for what they are. It is what it is. I keep telling my kids you can't change what other people do or think, you can only change how you react to them. It's a hard road to ride but it can be done. You can't let negative things or people weigh you done. OK, not what I had planned to say but sometimes you just gotta go with the flow :)

Earlier this year I contacted a few of DI's followers to donate blocks for memory quilt for her dear friend Mary that passed away earlier this year. I knew there would be two extra squares arriving after the quilt was finished. I ended up receiving three blocks. I was planning on making a pillow for Di's rocking chair because she seems to enjoy changing out the pillows based on her mood but a third block threw me for a minute or two.  I held onto these blocks trying to decide what to make with them. Then one day while in the shower (where I get lots of good ideas) I realized a tote would be perfect for Di. She likes to walk around town with her sister and go thrift shopping. She also travels to the library on a regular basis so I think a tote will come in handy.

I love the front...

The back looks pretty good too...

A nice roomy inside...

The third block became a mini table topper that Di already found a home for. 

...and the back of the 12" mini topper.

Now, since I received so many wonderful blocks and I ended up shuffling them around so much I'm not sure who made these blocks. Ladies, if you made these blocks please let me know which one is yours so Di can thank you personally?

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care...

Not only did I do the Halloween block swap with Aunt Pitty Pat but I also joined in on the Christmas swap. Once again we were able to choose our theme. I had a plan in mind so I went with stockings.

Not sure how well the colors show up in this picture but the light colored squares are a light pastel purple. For the stockings I started by cutting out a stocking shape from regular lined school paper. I like how easy it tears when it is time to remove the paper. Then I grabbed a bunch of my Christmas strip scraps and went crazy at the sewing machine. Trimmed the stockings, removed the paper and Viola! mini stocking appliqués! I used the same stitch to sew them down as I used on the candy corn. It's kinda like a bunch of Xs and I like how it covers the edge but it isn't as dense as a satin stitch.

Another swap done. Two more left.

Candy Corn on the Go!

Once again I joined everyone over at AuntPittyPat's for a Halloween block swap. This year I chose candy corn, mainly because I love the colors. Now the candy...it's OK but not one of my favorites.

I know my colors are in the wrong order but I think they still look great. I like how the colors go from the darker orange to the white. That's my story and I'm sticking to it lol.

I made these with my Go! cutter using the tumbler die. I used scraps so I cut my strips 7" X 2.75" then sewed them into sets of orange, yellow, and white. Ran them through the Go! and Viola! Candy Corn. I used a fancy smancy stitch from my sewing machine to stitch them down to some 12.5" squares of fabric also from my stash.

Only 5 days left until my shoulder surgery (Monday, August 30th) and I still have a couple more projects to get finished. Be on the lookout for a quick little give a-away on Sunday.

More swap blocks

These are the six blocks for the 3rd quarter of the 3X6 Bee. I used the charm packs of Canning Day that I picked up from Connecting Threads. I really like these colors so I think I might need to buy some more. I love the look of these blocks but they do take some time to make. I'm thinking a quilt with some of these 36 patches with alternating solid color blocks would make a nice quilt.

Butterfly siggy blocks

Over at the Patchwork Posse we are doing a siggy block swap. Aunt Pitty Pat is hosting. APP is the Swap Queen! I am in 3 swaps that she is hosting. I still need to add the signatures to these blocks but otherwise they are ready to ship. We are using this pattern. These were quick and easy to make and fun too. I think I might need to add this quilt to my to do list.

August is for Octopuses

This month over at the YOE swap the theme is octopus. My partner this month is Michele over at Something Special. You already saw the crocheted octopus stuffie...

I also made these ornaments. I used Future Girl's tutorial. I love working with felt :)

I'm still here

Our little girl is all grown up and on her own (sort of) now. Mandy left last Sunday for Basic Combat Training (BCT) for the Army. She is now stationed at Ft. Sill, Oklahoma. She will be there for about 10 weeks and then she transfers to Ft. Jackson, South Carolina. It has been a week of changes for everyone. Mandy has to get used to a whole other life/routine and we need to adjust to a house without her. It's been strange.

Even Suzi has been thrown off balance by the changes. Mandy has been able to text us each night and she seems to be adjusting well. It's hard when you have to sleep on the top bunk in a barrack full of other girls. When you put a bunch of girls together you know there is going to be lots of talking and giggling no matter their age or where they are.

I've already been given the list of things to send to her. All the girls are complaining because the only underwear to buy at the PX are "granny panties" lol. Now that the blisters on their feet (from breaking in their boots) are healing the girls biggest complaint is undergarments. I can handle that lol. I like that Mandy still needs her Mom. Mommy to the rescue!!

GO GO GO

Another GO! Cutter give away.

and another chance at Sweet P Quilting and Creations!

More Elephants

When my step mother saw the owl backpack I made for the birdie swap she loved it and requested one for herself. I knew she liked elephants so when I saw this fabric at JoAnn's I knew it would be perfect. I also love the aqua and brown as you can see here. The drawstring is a shoelace. Perfect color and nice and sturdy. My step-mother will be taking her new backpack to Bristol next weekend for the Nascar race.

I used the aqua dots for the lining. I added some pockets and now it is good to go. I struggled with this backpack from the very first cut. The first cut made the elephants run around the bag sideways. Then I struggled with the straps and sewing in the lining. Then the drawstring gave me trouble. The bag looks great but I am so happy that it is done. Do you ever have one of those projects that gives you trouble from the start?

A new friend

This month's theme over at The Year Of Enchantment Swap is Octopus. I've always liked this pattern so I thought I would make him up in rainbow colors. The pattern is from an old Crochet World magazine. Once again the poor guy has lopsided eyes lol.

New Arrivals

I had a little "found" money recently so I place an order with Connecting Threads. Of course I went straight to the Clearance "aisle" to see what goodies I could find.

Some pre-cuts...sweet and sour strips and charm packs, and some canning day charms. Do I have any plans for this fabric? Of course not lol.

A table runner kit that makes either the sunflowers or snowmen. Based on the colors I'm thinking of doing the sunflowers but will make the snowmen in different fabric. I like my snowmen in the traditional blue and white colors.

I LOVE these owls! I think this would make a nice wall hanging or baby quilt. 

Table Cloth Finish

I finally finished the table cloth a family friend ordered. I used my Go! cutter to cut the squares. I used the 4.75" die and fat quarters. The way the fat quarters were folded made it very easy to run through the Go!  It measures 81" X 48" and has no batting. It was a bit different to work on than the usual quilts I make. Some of you may notice it is also not my normal colorway but I think it looks nice anyways.

Back

I had my daughter help me with the photos. I thought this one was kind of fun. The backing fabric was the one that Ramie helped me find. Who would have thought brown paisley fabric would have been so hard to find? Not me. Thanks Ramie!!

New potholders

Front

Aunt Pitty Pat the Queen of swaps recently hosted a potholder swap. My partner was Melinda and she sent me these wonderful potholders.

Back

The one on the left was from an estate sale that Melinda attended a bit ago. I will most likely use the crocheted one as a doily. I love the orange one and we have already tested it out a few times. Works beautifully, thanks Melinda!!

S'Mores anyone??

A month or so ago I found these little charcoal throw away grills in the clearance section of my local Publix supermarket. They were 2/$3.99 so I grabbed the two they had on the shelf. I thought they might work for making s'mores. I did feel a bit redneck-y out on the front porch with a charcoal grill on top of a gas grill but it was the perfect height and heat resistant. The marshmallow extend-able sticks were from the dollar section at Target. Love that section!

We used to make s'mores in the microwave but the kids love getting all gooey outside. We used to have a fire pit at our old house and it was perfect for roasting marshmallows and hot dogs on sticks. The extand-able sticks are nice but nothing like cutting a branch and making it pointy yourself.

As I was taking pictures I was careful not to get one of Mandy's face because she always teases me about putting her mug shot on my blog. This time, she says aren't going to get a picture of me eating a s'more? Kids, gotta love them, huh?

This picture was snapped just after Robbie put a marshmallow in his mouth. Of course he cooked two marshmallows at a time.

I think they had a good time :) I won't be buying anymore of those little gills though. They put too much lighter fluid on the coals. Way too stinky and probably not the healthiest thing. At least they only cooked a few marshmallows each.

June YOE swap goodies

Box of goodies

Kim was my June partner for the YOE swap. Unfortunately her mailman wanted to join in and "misplaced" the package she sent me. Eventually they tracked it down and it finally made it to me.

A fun box of goodies was waiting for me when I got home from my most recent MRI/arthogram. It was a great thing to come home to after a long day of being tortured. Even the box is fun!

Our theme was Gnomes. I think of these like the Hansel and Gretel of the Gnome world. They even have a nice tree home to live in.

Gingerbread people doilies

Snowman pine cone ornament and painted pine cones

ribbon, beads, and buttons

train ornament, cork bottle caps, and curling ribbon

scrapbook signs

some kind of cards (I think)

Teeny, tiny adorable crocheted Mr. and Mrs. Claus. I know alot of work went into these. The thread is so thin and the crochet hooks are teeny, tiny.

and a fun apron. I think the universe is trying to tell me that I need aprons because Kim is the second person to send me an apron.

Posse BOM almost finish

This is my almost finish from our first BOM over at the Posse. I say almost because the pattern calls for another row of green around the outside but I ran out of green and wasn't sure if I could get anymore. I found some more today so there will be one more border and then I can call it a finished top.

A fish out of water

Cape Coral, Florida (where we live) has more miles of canals than any other city on Earth. There are lots of things that live in these canals including alligators, snakes, and turtles. You never know what you are going to come across when you are near a canal. 

With all these canals everyone lives near if not on a canal. We are about 9 houses from a canal in one direction and about a 1/4 mile from the one behind us. The other day I was taking the dog out back for a potty run and came across something interesting....

This CrawDad was sitting in the grass staring at us. I was the only one in the house awake so I scooped him up in a recently emptied ice cream bucket to show everyone when they finally dragged themselves out of bed. The kids were thrilled to see him. Doesn't he look like a little lobster? CrawDads are delicious too. The kids touched him then it was time to do some online research to see if he would make a good pet. Nope, too much work. Thank goodness lol. After looking at him for a couple hours I had the kids take him down to the canal to set him free.

Now the million dollar question is how did a water creature end up in my backyard? As far as I can figure, a bird must have been doing some fishing and dropped him as he was flying by. You never know what a bird might bring in the yard. Hopefully the next thing will not be alive (or recently killed).

Twin Elephants

When  I saw this elephant fabric at JoAnn's I knew it needed to be made into a baby quilt. I used my Go! to cut a bunch of 6.5" squares. I ended up with enough to make two baby quilts and still had some left over.

I thought they might be fun for twins. Not that I know any but when they are finished they will go in the shop.

Aren't these guys adorable?

Plan C

August is the last month for the Year of Schnibbles. It has been a fun year! This month we were able to chose from two patterns. I chose Plan C because I have grown fond of star designs. I had the hardest time getting those the pictures of the patterns on this post. Blogger has been a bugger to work with lately.

I found this pink fabric with red hearts and the Valentine's fabric with all kinds of love sayings on it. I also had a little bit of the red and red/white hearts buried in the cabinet.  I don't think my camera picks up the colors very well though. I think it was too bright outside when I took the pictures.

I also knew I wanted to make the blocks bigger than the pattern called for. I was aiming for 12" blocks thinking it would turn into a 36" X 36" baby quilt. I started cutting without planning again. I made the centers of the stars 12.5" and the four patch blocks 12.5" not thinking about the star points.

It now measure 61" X61". Now instead of a little baby quilt, it will be a toddler/lap quilt. Works for me!