the latest stuff.....

I'm in a block exchange again. 

My blocks are called Maple Star.

My 12 Electric Fan blocks.

I needed to make one more 6 inch block for my layout and I added some red to the corners of one of the other blocks. 

We made 12 inch star blocks and a 6 inch block that could be any block we wanted. Our exchange blocks are all red and white. I'm adding this blue fabric. There was some discussion on the "rules" for the quilts. 

Were they ONLY red and white quilts? Several people said they had already started adding another color, me included. In the end it was decided that they were our blocks now and we could do anything we wanted with them. It will be fun to see how they all turn out.

Last morning to get January's Block Lotto blocks posted. This year all the blocks will be 6 inch blocks. There is a mystery sampler too. I decided to participate. Sophie dubbed it old McDonald. The name alone made me want to do it.

I went scrappy with mine. We needed 6. 

Two of my sisters came down for Christmas. We went painting and made snowmen. They could be personalized to what ever team we chose. Jane and I did the Minnesota Vikings. Jenny didn't do a team. She took hers home to finish. She wanted leopard spots on her scarf and hat.

And I won!

These are the wonky strip blocks from December at Block Lotto. The majority of them have arrived! I'm thinking they will be laid out in horizontal rows, as I can't think of anything better right now and I like this. The fabric between the block will be a bright green. Sort of a lime color.

We are in a BLIZZARD watch. Not a storm, but blizzard. It is expected Tuesday. 

tula pink goal met for today....

I am part of a group making the blocks from Tula Pink's 100 modern quilt blocks.

Today I wanted to get the january group done, and I did!

Only 8 more to go.

I had to lay out what I had so far.

I'm liking it a lot.

Plan right now is to get some medium gray to use for sashing and border.

Lets go back to October....

 I went on my first retreat ever in October.

It was pretty nice for sewing. I got a lot done.

There was lots of room to spread out for cutting and sewing and pressing. I worked on my row by rows. I haven't worked on these since. I pulled them out one Saturday, looked everything over, but was overwhelmed by it all. I didn't know where to start back up. It sat out all day and I ended up packing it all back up.

There were 10 of us. Some were sewing, some were scrap booking and my mom was knitting.

She was making mittens. But she kept telling everyone that came down to the kitchen that she was making warmers for a certain male body part!

Really Mom?!

Fast forward.....

I sew at a machine behind the sofa. It is a 1948 Singer. I like sewing here, right next to the kitchen. I can easily go back and forth when cooking. Not that I cook that much, but it is handy.

I was finally putting on some binding for a Christmas gift. There was pressure to get it done and close up the machine. A lot of work was going on behind that wall.

We are taking out the door in the kitchen so a new "front" door was needed. The door in the kitchen was rarely used and this one will probably get the same amount of traffic.

I closed up the machine and they started cutting out the wall. And then they hauled the cut section outside through the.....

new front door! The space! The light! It was all so wonderful!

I asked them to put an outlet in there.

Because....

Well, you never know.

But just in case....

I wanted to put the ironing board in there if I am sewing a lot.

Tractor joe just shook his head. 

I made this some time ago. I'm not sure I have ever shown it.

The strips are 1 1/4 cut.

I wanted to show the quilt that was getting its binding at the last minute, but now I can't find it.

I found this one and can say.....

Merry Christmas to all of you!

My pictures are all so disorganized. I'm going to go see what else I can blog about!