Game time . . . . .

Here is a little word search for you to play.  Test your brain and rest your eyes from your long day of quilting!

Click on the puzzle to enlarge and print it out.  When you are finished, email me at quiltmarket@comporium.net and tell me that you are finished.  Sometime this week, one of Santa's elves will deliver a special gift to your email mailbox!

Blessings, Cathi

Christmas past . . . . .

I use the same avatar 

for all of my techie programs and forums that I belong to.  

I thought I would show you the big picture now.

See?!  It's actually a Christmas picture from 1960.  I'm guessing the year.  My birthday is in January and I look about 2 years old here - maybe 3 - definitely cute!  Remember all the tinsel?!  This is when I was still an only child.

Then others came along and I had to share . . . . . 

1963

And then more . . . . .

1969

Yup, that's me on the end with the fishnet stockings.  My first sewing craft project?  Those cute little stockings hanging on the mantel.  I should have been diagnosed as a fabriholic at this age!  Mom sewed the stockings from felt.  I cut out the green appliques from felt and glued them on but still . . . . . a budding applique-er in the making.

Do you remember when you were bit by the sewing/crafty bug?

Blessings, Cathi

Special Christmas sewing . . . . .

All of the directions you need to finish your Scatty Christmas Quilt is already in your hands.  This would be the part in the directions that would read "quilt as desired".  As far as I can tell, the only ones that write those words are those that are very good at quilting.  I am not.  I think that is the hardest part.  Not the actual quilting but deciding how to quilt it.  So I guess my real answer would be that my desire would be for someone else to quilt it!!  Like I said in one of my very first posts three years ago - I am a top maker, not a quilt maker!  I'm sure you will find a great way to finish your quilt.

So now to the post title.  One of the most special sewing projects I have done are the 4 stockings I made for my children in 1987.

This is the second set of stockings I made.  My oldest (the Married One) was in 3rd grade at the time.  She wanted to take her stocking in to show her teacher for show and tell.  She must have been very proud of her mommy!  The teacher fell in LOVE with the stockings, sent a note home with the Married One asking if she could buy them.  She paid $30 a piece for them!  Big money back in 1987.  So I made a second set that the kids have used every year since.  I hang all of them but Santa doesn't fill the Married One's stocking anymore.  The other three get the same thing every year in theirs - a box of Cracker Jacks, a Christmas Pez candy dispenser, socks, lots of gum, candy and sometimes something special (depending on how much money Santa has that year).

What special sewing item that you made for Christmas do you still put out every year?

Blessings, Cathi

Welcome to the 2nd to last CQAL of 2011

It's the second Saturday in October and that means after today, there is only one more Christmas Quilt Along of 2011!  As for me, I have had a wonderful time visiting with you since February.

You might remember that about a month ago Sue and I asked you all to fill in a survey about the Christmas QAL and the future. Thanks to all of you who filled it in. Thanks too for the lovely comments and compliments you included. As a result of the survey we have decided that we will be running it between February and November again, on the second Saturday of each month just as we have done this year, but there are some important changes.  

One of the questions we asked was if anyone would be prepared to act as a guest host for one of the days, and about 12 of you were foolish brave enough to put your hands up. So, now, we need to know who you were. If you would like to host one day, please email Sue at sue.abrey@gmail.com with your preferred month. The other difference is that instead of offering a block of the month pattern, next year we will be doing a mystery quilt instead. As this year, it will be free, but we will post the instructions on our blog instead of sending them by email. That way, if you can’t join us one month, the instructions will still be available.

I'll be back later this morning with more news and updates.  Off to breakfast now (and half of you are fixing lunch or starting your afternoon nap!).

Blessings, Cathi

Composition cover-up . . . . .

I just love composition books.  It reminds me of elementary school.  But it really hurts my eyes to look at the cover so I started covering them up.

I started with something simple like this . . . . this is the book that I write all my dye pots in.  I write a lot of my mistakes in here, too!

And I have a book for my business . . . .  thoughts, things I need to do, things I want to do . . . . .

I decided I would like to teach this as a class at the Pieceable Retreat at the end of October so I created this one for the class sample back in March.

It turned out cute.  I even put some pockets on the inside cover.  I had read about every pattern out there for journal covers but there wasn't one individual pattern that I liked.  So I decided to make my own.  I didn't like how this one went together.  The pocket section inside is VERY bulky and I really didn't like the topstitching around the outside edge.

So one last try and I came up with this . . . . . .

The pocket section is much less bulky and I was able to write the directions as I went. There are 4 pockets on the inside for business cards, pencils, receipts, papers, etc.

And I included a page marker just 'cause it's easier.

It still needs a little tweaking before the class starts in 2 weeks but I am finally happy with how it turned out.  After all the renditions . . . . FINALLY.


Blessings, Cathi