More Mail

 The mailman has been very nice to me lately.

I received another package,

 this time a beautiful zippy pouch from Vicky (patchwork queen) 

for the Mouthy Stitches swap.

front

Look at this, isn't it wonderful? 

I love the wonky star and grey linen.

Wait till you see the back.

back

back close-up

On the backside, Vicky did some beautiful hand stitching on the center flower

(which one of my favorite parts)

and the zipper.

Its 9" X 10", the perfect size for a small project. 

Don't you just love the lining? 

AND, look at all these goodies she included. 

An abundance of beautiful fabrics, 

trims and two adorable little buttons, a little blue bird and a red kitty.

I don't have any of these fabrics and I can say I love every single print.

Thank you Vicky,

I am one happy girl. : )



In case you were wondering

My Mouthy Stitches gnome pouch was sent to Ireland for Eva of Pippablue.
Go check out her blog post about it.

My Sew Modern Swapper owl pincushion was sent to Jodi in Florida.

I've Got Mail

Yes, that's right I came home from work to find a package for me.

Was it my Mouthy Stitches Swap or my Bee a {Modern} Swapper pincushion swap?

I couldn't wait to find out! 

 Receiving a package is exciting enough,
but not as exciting as what I found inside! 

Look at this awesome pincushion made especially for me 

by the lovely Heather from my Bee a {Modern} Swapper group.

This is just the kind of pincushion 

I need, large, beautiful and with it's own thread catcher! 

The fabric choices are wonderful, the workmanship exquisite, 

and its my favorite colors...red and grey!

Yes, that's my inittial on the front.....hehehe.  I love it!

Look at these cute little pins. 

The photo doesn't show it but they are pearly and so pretty.

Heather didn't stop there.

She included everything red,

 a zipper, vintage ribbon, an assortment of 

lovely buttons, fabrics (I especially love the one in the front) 

and a beautiful hand stamp card and envelope. 

She even included red candies, I took a photo, but it didn't turn out.

Oh heather, you out did yourself!

Thank You : )

Mouthy Stitches Finish

The Mouthy Stitches Swap is coming to a close very soon.

I'm done!

I'm ready to send this little large project pouch to my partner. 

I've done a little stalking and 

I'm pretty sure she will really like it.

 front

Although I don't know her favorite colors, 

she does like gnomes and I always think gnomes should have a red hat.

I went with red, aqua, a touch of orange, tiny bit of yellow and black & white

The gnome home is around the corner, on the back side.

back

I topped it off with the linen to tie in with the Gnome and a red zip. 

My aqua zipper didn't quite match, so I went with the red and I'm glad I did.

pouch guts

The pouch is lined with some Echo and has blue dot pockets.

Gnome small project pouch

Finished size  9 X 11

 Granny square quilt blocks are very popular right now. 

I got to work on a couple this week.

 I was sent red and aqua fabric from one of my bees. 

Don't these look great side by side?

I love them!

I left them untrimmed so they can be squared up 

with the other February bee blocks. 

These were fun, great for scraps, adorable and addictive. 

This block looks great with any fabric.

I might have to start a quilt with my scraps.

Check out the Old Red Barn Co. Quilt Along flickr group 

for some beautiful granny squares. 

It's not to late to join in.

My pincushion swap is also coming to a close soon. 

I knew right away what I wanted for my partners pincushion, 

but I didn't have a pattern. 

This past weekend I finally had time to work something 

up and made a practice pincushion for me.

Ms. Hootie stands six inches tall, is stuffed with rice and made from scraps.

I went with rice because I had a bunch, but my partner's will be filled with little plastic pellets.

She turned out exactly like I had hoped she would. 

As soon as she was done, my granddaughter ran off with her 

and said it was her owlie. 

She has a soft spot for creatures and talks 

with them as if they are real. 

I think Ms Hootie is kinda cute and I hate to stick her with pins. : )

The Year Of The Swap

Last year I was in two flickr quilt bees. 

One has ended and the other will end within a month. 

Two of the bee members from this last group, 

Katherine & Manda started a new bee/swap group called Bee a {modern} Swapper. 

A bee/swap combo. I really like that idea, so I joined.  

This month we are swapping pincushions.

I love my pincushion. I only have one.

Not long ago my little 2.5 year old granddaughter was playing with the pins. 

She grabbed a handful of pins at once and now my chicken is shredded.

She popped a seam, shredded next to the seam and is losing her beaded stuffing.

This is sad, as she has been with me a very long time, 

but I am looking forward to a new pincushion 

at the end of the month, made especially for me.  Yay!

I don't have any photos of the pincushion 

for my partner because.......I do not have mine done yet. 

Yikes! I know the deadline is coming up soon.  

The idea is in my head, but thats as far as I've gotten.

I joined two other swaps. 

Mouthy Stitches is swapping zipper pouches this month. 

Who couldn't use a zip pouch? I could use several and don't have any. 

I have a button in my side bar and there are some fantastic pouches being made. 

Take a peek.

I've been working on this one for my partner.

I'm not a gnome person, but my partner is and 

I really like how this is turning out. 

Hopefully she will love it. 

I also joined Doll Quilt Swap 12

I already have several ideas floating around in my head, 

but must finish the pouch and pincushion first. 

I've also been working in my Orca Bay Quilt. 

It's a Bonnie Hunter QAL that was started in November. 

I haven't said much about it because the last Bonnie Hunter QAL 

I did looks like this

Just blocks. 

Actually, these are only half the blocks. 

I didn't even make the string blocks.

Now that I look at these again, maybe I'll just put these together 

without the string blocks. I am liking these together. 

I've gotten a little further on the Orca Bay Quilt. 

The blocks are all made, put together and it just needs the border. 

I've renamed it "My Man Quilt", because its for my man. 

He really likes it and I've been wanting to make him a quilt.

up close and personal

I really like it too. I wonder if he'll share. : )

2012 is already off to a busy start. 

What Next?

Well, it's about time to move on past those Christmas blog photos, don't you think?

 I was hoping to get to this space sooner, but right after 

Christmas I got a nasty cold, then we had a birthday.  

My Emili's birthday always marks the beginning of a new year.  

I try to get the Christmas decorations and house all cleaned up well before her big day.

 She arrived 27 years ago with a quietness, sweetness and gentleness about her.  

I'm so glad I get to be her mom. 

After her birthday is really when we can settle in, relax and get back to our norm. 

Actually she kicks off our birthday "season". 

We have six birthdays within the next nine weeks in our immediate family. 

Its a wonderful, but busy time.  

Are you swooning? 

Katy over at I'm a Ginger Monkey started a Swoon Quilt Along. 

I am having such a hard time resisting. There are some wonderful blocks popping up. 

I love everything about that pattern, the large block size, the simplicity,

its roundness (I love circle blocks), and
its the close cousin of the Carpenter block, which I also love.
It has vintage roots and is the almost perfect size for a bed. 

So Swoon was on my "wish to do" list for this year, 

but I feel like I should finish up a few things first. 

I don't have a long list of unfinished projects, which is a good thing because 

I am not very fast and quilts always take me a few months to make.  

None of this done in a day or two or even week for me.  

Here are the two most pressing quilts I have to finish up. 

These two quilt are out of Batiks for two

 of my daughters and they have both been very patient. 

I started these a long, long time ago. : }     

One needs to be layered and quilted the other needs borders.  

Do I dare Swoon? 

Great day to you all : )

December

December is always a busy and delightful time of year for our family, 

filled with holiday music and movies, plays and musicals, 

goodies, and time spent together. 

This year Christmas was at our home 

and I decided I wanted to slip a little something

 into the stockings of family visiting our home. 

I needed seven stockings, we have five. 

So kind of late I decided to make seven quilted stockings, all different.  

 

This is the first one, with the half square triangles finishing a 1 inch. 

I had to go bigger, it was taking too long with so many pieces.  

Here is a peek at the back

Once I decided to go bigger, they went together quickly.  

All seven, nicely hung upon our ladder. 

They were a hit and I love how they turned out. 

A wonderful new addition to our Christmas celebration.

A few family photos from the end of year.

 Three cuties waiting patiently for stockings and gifts : )

Its that time again, to say goodbye to the year and embrace the new year. 

Fresh starts, renewed determination and new beginnings. 

Welcome 2012, may you be filed with lots of love, warm hugs, and laughter.

Hope you all have a fabulous 2012

xo, Wendi

Thankgiving

             This photo was graciously lent to me by a very special lady Betty Nybakken. Photo taken in Pacific Northwest.  

Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness!

Morning by morning new mercies I see.

All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;

Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

I love Thanksgiving. A time of reflection. This chorus sums up all I am thankful for. 

His faithfulness, His mercies anew, His provision. His blessing in my life. 

May this season be full of Gods blessing for you and those you love.