Sunday, January 31, 2016

New Puppies and Treasured Quilts

Good news on my sister! Looks like she will be coming home tomorrow. I'm sure she will be super happy about that. She said she hasn't been able to sleep much at the hospital.

I don't usually "fix" quilt tops, but this quilt was dear to my heart. It was made by a very good friend of mine who lost her battle with colon cancer. She gave the quilt her niece. Long story short, her niece got a new puppy and the rest is history. This picture shows the damage that a frisky little puppy can do to a quilt that you treasure.

With a little help from my friends and a few scraps from my stash, I was able to match most of the fabrics and made a repair that wasn't too noticeable.

The above picture is before any replacement quilting was done. My friend, Amy did an amazing job making it all look like there was never a tear in the quilt. The tear did go clear thru to the back, and fortunately I had a little of the backing fabric in my stash. All in all, it was a great save!

Have you ever tried to repair a quilt? Would love to see your pics!

Have a great week!

Joyce

Tuesday, January 26, 2016

Taking It One Day At A Time

Today was another busy day. Where does the time go? I was out the door by 8:45 am and didn't return til 8:45 pm. It's no wonder I can't get caught up on my housework. (Oh, wait....do I really want to do housework?) Um I'll let that up to your imagination.

So I found the cute pattern that I was looking for in yesterday's post. I called the quilt shop and they had the pattern! The reason I didn't find it online is that it was mislabeled in the gallery.


Found these wonderful nine patch blocks in my basement cutting area. They were leftover blocks from a nine patch queen size quilt I made last year. Will get them put together soon. I love getting things finished. I hope this year will be my year of finishes.


My sister will be having quadruple bypass surgery tomorrow morning around 8 am. Please keep her, my family, and the heart surgeon in your thoughts and prayers.

Sew, Sew, Sew!

Joyce

Monday, January 25, 2016

Busy & Stressful Day

Today my sister, Sue and I woke up early and drove to a nearby hospital to lend support for our middle sister. Patty was scheduled for a heart cath at 8 am. Of course in hospital fashion, they didn't actually take her to the lab til 10 am. After the cath, the doctor called to let us know that he wanted to consult with a heart surgeon. We waited til 7:10 pm for the surgeon to show up. I really liked her doctor, he was just so kind and generous with his time. Patty is now scheduled for bypass surgery on Wednesday. Please keep our family in your thoughts and prayers as we take this journey together, one step at time.

While checking emails on my phone, I received an email from a lady that I had emailed the night before. She had posted a really cute quilt that I wanted to find the pattern for. The pattern is called "Touch of Vegas" by Debbie Allen. Mary went above and beyond helping me track down an email address for Debbie. I now have a plan for getting this pattern! Thanks to Debbie and Mary...aren't quilters just the best?

She even included two pictures of two different colorways!

Though there was no sewing today, I'm excited to get the new pattern.

I am also searching for a pattern called Diamonds in the Rough. I'm not sure who the designer is, and I have sent an email to the shop where the photo was taken. The shop is in Boone, NC and I didn't hear from them today....wonder if maybe they are snowed in? If anyone knows where I can find this quilt pattern, please leave me a comment. Thanks!

Keep your sewing machine humming!

Joyce

Sunday, January 24, 2016

Christmas at My House

Let's see if this poor ole blog can be resurrected. I can't believe my last post was 2014. I truly don't have a good excuse. I have been busy...still quilting and loving it!

My last quilt was for my annual Christmas Quilt Lottery. I give away a quilt each Christmas to a member of my family. You must be 18 to win and you can only win one time until everyone has won (that's what they decided). lol This year we had a new entrant in the quilt lottery and imagine my surprise when she won the quilt! First time in and first time winner. Congratulations to Karley!

This month I am working on the Swoon block by Thimble Blossoms. I meet with a group of ladies every Tuesday night and we have decided to make this quilt as a swap. Each participant will make nine of one colorway then we will trade with each other. Seems like a fun way to make a quilt! We have done this before, if I can find the photos I will try to remember to post them. For now, I will post my block.

These two cuties make my heart smile. The big one is my daughter, Sara (lots of changes in her life since 2014) and my great niece, Sydney!

Please leave me a comment, and let me know what you are working!