My 1 on 1 CQ Block Swap with Judy

Ever work on something that you just had so much fun that you wished you hadn't finished it?

A few months ago I met and became quick friends with Judy, apronstringsandothertiesthatbind
Judy was just getting into Crazy Quilting and me being a CQ Pusher, was drawn to her.   For some other unknown reason I felt a special closeness to her, like maybe she was brought into my life for a reason.  Lately I have been a little down  about one thing or another ( mostly health problems) but also I felt like I had lost my creative mojo.  Judy enthusiasm for learning CQ put a little spark back where it belonged.    Please take a minute and read Judy's post she made today on her Blog - her beautiful story reflects the type of person she is and I am so happy that even though strangers, I feel we have become good friends.

Judy and I decided that it would be fun to do a one-on-one CQ block swap - one with no restrictions and no time frame.  NO time frame?  That is the best!  I let her block sit around for a few days and then slowly began working on it... a little bit each night.  Funny how you think one minute you are going to do one thing but the next day, you change your mind.  The fabrics in Judy's block are vibrant in color and were so much fun to embellish.  This one's for you Judy and will be on it's way home to you tomorrow.

My very first attempt at Bullions! 
For some reason I could never wrap my brain around this stich!
Thank you Mary Corbet for your wonderful Videos Tutorials!
needlenthread

 

A Little Summertime CQing

Can ya'll believe that it's getting close to the point we are saying "summer is almost over?"  Where did it go?  I hope you all have been having a great summer and enjoying the warm weather.  We up here in MA have been having one heck of a hot sunny summer and I for one am loving it!

A while back I mentioned that I had hurt my shoulder while walking Lily.  Well, after month of being in pain and 4 weeks of PT, it has been determined that it's now time for an MRI.  So... here I sit waiting again for an appointment and then I'll end up waiting for the Dr. to schedule a surgery date.  Seems like a long time to have to put up with pain and most of all put up with the fact that I wasted a whole summer not being able to kayak.  Boo hoo.  Well one thing for sure it hasn't stopped me from CQing and it won't stop be from enjoying my grand babies when they come out in another couple of weeks.

I am currently hosting a CQ RR on the HGTV Quilting forum.  15 ladies split into 3 groups.  I have completed 2 blocks so far and am now waiting for my next set of blocks to come my way.

This is one of Ann's blocks - I chose to use the chain stitch to outline the leaves and also added some bead and SRE:

Another Block I finished was for Nancy - I loved the vibrant gypsy colors and used a piece of my dyed lace along with a pretty beaded up heart shaped you yo as the focal.

Of course summer in my back yard would not be complete without me playing in my dyes.  I preparation for my upcoming shoulder surgery I decided to spend 3 weeks dyeing laces - YES, you can say I am hoarding them... it's a severe addiction that there seems to be no cure for.  I am, and I will admit "a hoarder of laces".  While I'm down recooping, it'll give me plenty of time to start uploading lots of pretties to my Etsy shop for the Holidays.  Here are a few to tease you.

 

And the Winner is........

Thank you all for taking the time to participate in my Celebration Give Away and taking  a wild guess at how many laces were in the lace bowl.  Some guesses were high, some were low ... the actual number of laces in the bowl was 473!   The person who came the closest to guessing the right amount without going over with a guess of 470 and the Winner of a $30 Gift Certificate to

Raviolee Dreams

is:

Lisa Fiber Creations!!!!

Congratulations Lisa!

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Hang in there ladies... I just realized that this is my 150th Blog Post!  Well you know what that means - another little prize needs to be given out.  The next guess that was close to 473 without going over was 463 - made by:

Denise - Paper Pals

Denise, I will be sending you a pack of my Middie Motifs

*******************

Today was a another beautiful day spent on my back deck dyeing up more pretties.  Hubby bought me a new camera for my birthday so tomorrow I will spend it taking pictures of lots of goodies for my Etsy shop.  Please stop by and take a peek over the next few days.

Celebration Give Away! Come play!

Time to celebrate!  In honor of my 1,000th Etsy Sale and my 60th Birthday on July 4th, I have decided to host a little Give Away Contest.  All you have to do is leave a comment and take a guess as to how many laces you think are in this bowl.  Be sure to leave your email address if you do not have a blog to link back to so I can contact you.  By the way - this bowl is pretty big - it measures 4" deep and is 13" round....that's a whole lotta lace!

Pretty easy contest!   I will announce the winner at Midnight July 4th.  The person who is the closest to the right number of laces WITHOUT going over will win......

A $30 Gift Certificate to my shop: RavioleeDreams   You can spend the $ at any time before the end of the year be it for laces or CQ goodies or even have me custom dye some laces for you.

I've been spending a lot of time on the back deck dyeing up a storm latley and have been playing with some new colors - check them out!  All I need now is to find the time to upload them into my shop - stay tuned!