Lemon Auditions

One of the fun parts of applique is auditioning fabrics. Tonight I started the 'auditions' for the lemon block I need to redo. Just because I used certain fabrics in the first one doesn't mean I need to use them in the second one! So here are the original fabrics (nothing is cut - everything is just folded to an approximate size)...

or perhaps a blue bowl...

then add some green for leaves...

or maybe switch the original ones around and add some green for leaves...

I'm still playing around with them and still don't know what I'm going to do...very possibly something completely different, but that's all part of the fun!

Happy 4th of July!

I hope you are all having a great Independence Day! As I write this, I can hear fireworks banging in the sky outside. It was questionable as to whether or not there'd be fireworks tonight. Just an hour before dark this is what was happening outside our house...

We sat in the garage, set up chairs and a card table and played Bananagrams with the garage door open watching the torrential downpour and the kids playing in the rain. It did stop raining in time for fireworks though, so we crashed our neighbor's party and watched their fireworks, then watched the city fireworks. We have a perfect view of them from our street!

Some of my hubby's family is visiting from Salt Lake City so they got to join in the Bananagram fun too! We have a lot of fun things planned with them, but I'm still managing to get some quilting done. My tomato block is all appliqued down now.

I just have to do the strawberry block and redo the lemon block as it's the wrong size. So you haven't seen the end of it just yet!

Seen-It-Sunday

Today's Seen-It-Sunday is all about things that are free!

We all love a bargain and free is the best bargain around!
First up is a free pattern for an I-Pad cover.

I was reading my friend Shannon's blog yesterday and she had posted a pattern she made for an I-Pad cover. Shannon is a whiz at all things technical including computer drawing programs so she even has a fancy instruction sheet you can print out.

You can go check it out HERE.

Secondly, I wanted to share a site I use on a daily basis. It's called Freebies 4 Mom.

Heather, the owner, posts all the free offers out there and I get things in the mail at least weekly that I have signed up for. I receive products in the mail for anything from makeup to laundry soap, to cans of paint, and I get coupons all the time for free things like Hair Dye, (gosh, did I really just tell you that?!), shampoo, and grocery food items. I get nothing for telling you about it - I just get a lot of free stuff and want you to get free stuff too! I have also joined the Freebies 4 Mom Facebook group so I get alerts throughout the day to what is free.

Now thirdly, just because we have family visiting and my sister in law just triple-double- quadruple-dog-dared me, I am going to leave you with this final image. Be warned, you may be offended! But you WILL laugh! Anyone in need of a birthday gift?

Please don't send me hate mail - when you are triple-double-quadruple-dag-dared, you have no choice but to do it.

New Fabric

While my friend Laurie was over the other day, my kids bought in the mail and included was this package...

I think you need a closer look so you can see who it was from...

As soon as Laurie saw the package she knew it was quilt fabric. I didn't even have to tell her. She could smell it out!!

We immediately opened it right there on top of the quilt she was in the middle of quilting to see the goodies...

I ordered half yard pieces (my cut of choice) including some of the brand new Valori Wells fabric which you can see on top in the photo below, and some Anna Maria Horner Loulouthi which isn't visible in the photos. I also got a few good basics that can be used in multiple projects.

A got a few other half yard pieces and also one of their scrap packs which are always great value.

Hawthorne Threads had super fast delivery and great customer service. No they don't know I'm saying that - I just love them!

Tomato Progress

When I posted the tomato block the other day, I had lost the correct background for it. The background they were laid on was a different piece that was too small. I have hunted everywhere for the lost piece to no avail. I wasn't looking forward to trying to piece together another background like I did for the squash HERE. Two days ago we were getting groceries at a supermarket that happens to be next to Joann Fabrics where the Denise Schmidt background is from. (Denise Schmidt is the ONLY quilt fabric I buy from Joann's!) I popped in "just in case" they had some. I went to the aisle with her bolts and was so sad that they still didn't have any. Then I glanced down the the lower level of the aisle and just about screamed! It was there hiding with a bunch of completely different fabrics! 1.5 yards of it! Of course it came home with me, and now I have a new un-pieced background for my tomatoes!

Tonight I appliqued the tomatoes and started on the vine. You can see the difference in how the shape looks before and after the edges are turned under.

First it's a big blob, then all of a sudden it's a tomato vine! I should finish it up tomorrow.

Machine Quilting

Yesterday I had a friend, Laurie from Dodging the Butterfly come over and spend a few hours on my machine getting one of her UFO's quilted.

We met over a year ago at the Boston Modern Quilt Guild and have become great friends! She had the loveliest quilt to get done - it was all done in modern fabrics in hues of pink and orange which is one of my favorite color combos.

It took her a couple of hours longer than it normally would have, because I hung out with her and talked her ear off. Poor thing! Every time I talked she had to stop quilting! I think that's what happens when you spend all day every day with your young children and suddenly you have an adult captive audience! Note to self - next time a friend comes to quilt, just leave them along to get the job done!! We had a blast and I hope we can do it again!

*Almost* Wordless Wednesday!

I couldn't help myself - I have to talk! It was my middle boy's first night at cub scouts:)