I feel so special...

when I get packages in the mail!  

Today the mailman delivered not 1 but 2 packages addresses to me!!!

First was a sweet package from my Pin Cushion Swap partner, Kelly!  I 'met' Kelly through the Charming Girls Quilt Club which she organizes and runs! I have so much respect for all she does. She pays attention to all the details...even wraps with fabric and pretty ribbons! 

Look at all the goodies she sent! I absolutely love, love, love the pin cushions! Beautiful fabrics and beautifully made! 

Kelly also sent 2 charms of Lovely by Sandy Gervais 

{I really love Sandy Gervais' fabric designs}, 

2 Schnibble patterns...Joy Luck and Jacks by the ever popular Miss Rosie's Quilt Company, 

and a bag of extra fine glass head pins! I will put these to very good use!  

Thank you so much Kelly!!! 

A thanks to Kris at Dandelion Quilts for organizing the swap 

{even if I didn't do such a good job at keeping the dates correctly in my head}.   

The second package of goodies came from Susan at Super Mom - No Cape!

On March 12th, she was celebrating her third blog anniversary with a give away and I won!  She made this lovely little gift bag and said that she would fill it with goodies! 

Oh boy! Did she ever! 

And she customized the goodies to things she found on my blog!

I had recently posted about my love of buttons...and she included a little fabric bag of lovely buttons! She took note that I enjoy stitchery and included several skeins of embroidery floss.  She made a lovely scissor and needle holder...with my Word for the Year...JOY! She also included a journal and matching magnetic pad of paper, and 2 boxes of chocolates {one with raspberries my all time favorite!}

 Thank you so much, Susan!

I do feel special today! 

FNSI Results!

Although I sewed most of the night, I can't show much...  

The evening started with making this little strawberry pincushion/scissors FOB.  It was simple and easy to make...and just darling! The free tutorial is from Vanessa of V and Co.

I did spent most of the evening quilting my daughter's wedding quilt.  I only had the border left to quilt as I finished quilting the blocks about a week ago.  Here's a little peek. That's all for now!

The top picture show the outside border with the single cable pattern quilted.  You can see the quilting better from the back (bottom left picture). On the bottom right, you can see the quilting on the blocks. The inner border (yellow) is stitched in the ditch.  

I was also excited about...buttons!  

A friend from work had 3 jars and a tin of buttons and told me to go through them and take what I could use.  Really!!  I love buttons!

 I think it goes way back to my grandma and mom who each had a button box that I loved. I would play and sort and examine the different buttons! 

I have a small collection myself...any chance to expand it...YES! 

Here are the ones I chose...after playing sorting for awhile.

Aren't they sweet?

So what did you do for FNSI?

The last 2 blocks...

for Block-A-Palooza were released this week (Monday & today)! I have been really good at keeping up and here are the last 2:

Next week we will be putting it all together!  I think I may remake a block or 2 as I'm not completely happy with a few.  I didn't take a picture of all 16 blocks together yet. I'll have to do that soon as it always helps in seeing how they look together.  

I also finished my March block for the Birdie Stitches BOM.  

Isn't it cute?

Back in the early part of February, Cara over at Cara Quilts sponsored The Basics Charity Challenge.  You can read about it here.  There were several prizes for incentive but the challenge was an easy and not expensive act to do.  Although my DH and I volunteer at our local homeless center, I accepted the challenge and went out to buy some twin size fitted sheets and dropped them off at the center.  

Just last week, Cara notified me that I had won one of the incentive prizes, Bari J's new book Inspired to Sew! I love it...it has beautiful illustrations and I can't wait to try a project.  I especially like Bari's Chicago connection...my hometown! 

I have been thinking of ways to repurpose things and here is one that I recently made.  

Instead of dog-eared corners in my books to mark my place, I now have these easy to make corners.  They remind me of photo corners and neatly fit over the corner of the page.  And they are much prettier! 

What do you think?

Do you remember my extreme wedding dress makeover?  Well, I promised to make the bride her wedding veil.  She wanted a simple, single layer veil.  I used some lace from the original dress to cover the comb.  

I leave you with another challenge.  Rachel over at p.s. i quilt has joined Moda in their Just One Star challenge.  They need 1800 star blocks by May 1st.  Rachel has challenge us in making just one star this week...in the mail by Monday! Quilters Unite! We can do it! They are so easy to make...I made 2!

{name blurred on purpose}

Have you made yours?

Back on Track

It"s amazing how 2 days of being too sick to do anything can throw you off balance.  I am not one to lounge around in my pajamas all day.  I'm up and dressed fairly early.  I like need to keep busy.  Truly, I can't remember a day, much less 2, that I didn't get up, slept the day away and/or stayed in my pajamas until this past week.  My plans were out the window.  

I have been trying to stay on top of the Block-A-Palooza blocks since I played catch up for the first 3 blocks.  I was doing real good until Monday's release.  

I didn't have time on Monday but I only worked a half day on Tuesday so my plan was to sew the block then [before the Thursday block arrived.] 

Getting home from work, I felt exhausted. Ate a bit of lunch...didn't feel any better.  Took a little nap that lasted 21/2 hours [unintentionally]...didn't feel better but headed to my sewing room.  Looked at the pattern release for block 13 and my fabrics and couldn't decide what to do.  

Since when does playing with fabric exhaust a quilter?  I knew I was sick! 

I headed to the sofa and that is where I spent the rest of the day.  My wonderful DH made me chicken noodle soup, brought me meds and water. Wednesday morning I was not any better, maybe even a little worse.  

Happy that I was off on Wednesday, I stayed in bed the entire day...sleeping.  

Not reading, playing games or watching TV...just sleeping.  

By Thursday I was feeling better [not 100%] but was off to work.  That night I picked fabric for Monday's block and sewed. Ahhh! 

Friday night I worked on Block 14

Here are all 14 blocks! Only 2 more to go.

I am surprised on how much I like how this is all coming together. 

{Some blocks better than others.}

These bright colors are a little different for me.  

On Monday, I got my package off to Kelly at Charming Chatter, my pincushion swap partner.  She let me know that she received it and she likes it!  So now I can let you see what I made.

This cute heart pincushion...

where I embroidered Kelly's word, Rest.

   

I also made this needle case...

and my first attempt at special pin heads...

I will try again but realized that I need to get some green.   

{and some chocolate of coarse}

I finished a few more knitted headwraps...

for some friends.

There are few more things I've been working on [I'll show you later.] 

Been slowly stitching my birdie and give thanks BOM.  

What have you been working on lately? 

What I've Been Up To

Well, I really can't show everything yet but I can show some.  

I have been keeping up with the Block-A-Palooza quilt along...2 blocks a week! Blocks 11 & 12 were released this week.  You can see more at on flickr.

I made my pincushion for my swap partner, Kelly, but no peeks.  It will be in the mail to her next week...maybe a surprise or 2...not saying.  Hope she likes it.  Pictures soon!

I also made this pincushion.  

I had to chuckle when I saw it here and just had to try one for myself.  Here is my version.

I also received a very nice package in the mail from Jane.  I won her Domestic Diva charm pack giveaway! I am a lucky girl.  Thanks Jane!

I was asked to show some close up pictures of my Happy Camper quilt.  There are 12 different campers fussy cut and centered in each block. 

The fabric is Happy Camper from Clothworks.  

Here are a few of my favorites.

The pop-up...

vintage...

VW van...

We have had quite a bit of rain and grey days...today was back to snow...Argh! I'm so ready for Spring and some sun!  How about you?