My Highnie grew--- i just know it

I think that my highnie (i have no idea how to spell that one) has grown a good inch or so. i have sat on it alllllll dayyyyy. And in the car no less.

Do you have a day where you just spend the whole thing in the car? Only to get out when you have to go to the bathroom, pick up a kid, drop something off, or eat? Today----that was it.
This morning i spent with the family (honey and kids) at my grandma's home. She moved into a retirement place and is going to list her home--with me! yay...so we chatted, gabbed, and signed things. Then we headed on over to her empty home and searched. See, everything left there is for the taking. So we took! Of course the kids ended up with ...who knows what! it is sooo interesting to see what they just l-o-v-e. Ohhhhh, they were in heaven though...free garage sale! What more could you ask for?

So now we have some extra stuff hanging around here. I cannot complain though because of my own giddieness as i searched through the sewing area. Check out my findings: sorry some of these pics didn't get turned.





1 shoe box full of felt leftovers. And to think that i was needing to go to the store and stock up again. yay for me!





A small stash of hankies, pillowcases, and sheets. My grandma's favorite color- purple. purple bedding, purple shirts, purple curtains, and the favorite---purple hankie.





A crocheted little hot pad. A flower pot one. It hangs with a few crocheted dresses hot pads that i have. I am pretty sure that she made this one. I think i'll ask though, because it might be my great grandma price who did??? hmmm..

A box of thread. I know that some of this stuff is pretty old and maybe not the greatest condition, but they might work for some small projects that won't get a lot of washing. Still, thread, big box, every color imaniable, and color coded---wow.




Not sewing item but fun still the same. A tea set. this is from portugal. We used to live in Spain when i was growing up and here we have some memouires. I of course was at the age that i didn't collect these things. Lucky for me i can collect others collections!





A pair of salt and pepper Hen and Rooster shakers. Aren't they just lovely? they will of course be residing in the transom window with my other little collections.
ok so we got home. Then we went to lunch (at 3 pm i think we called it dinner) then back home to drop off 2 kids. Then i drove back to ogden to drop off the quilts that were overloading my suburban. Then came back, picked up some milk, picked up jerika for soccer practice. Waited for her to be done (did some stitching too) and then back home. So now, i have to figure out where to put all the new stuff. I seriously have to organize my sewing area. It is a BIG mess and yikes...when i try to find anything.
Well, so maybe tomarow will be a sitting day ---again...but on the highnie to organize something.
We'll see how that goes.
Until then, I will be looking over my goodies.....thanks grandma

Such a Busy Gal

This might be a long one. I have been busy and haven't been sharing!
Thursday i went with the girl scouts to Kennecot Copper mines. Fun Stuff. HAve never seen a dump truck so large in my life! monster big!
Check out this sign...

I also got in the mail one of the two buttons from swappers! yay...








These were my favorites...oh, what to do with them....

Thanks Linda!!! i love them all!!!
On Friday I met my mom in Ogden and went to the Annual Meeting at the Hilton Hotel. It is for Utah Quilt Guild. This year the theme was a hawaiin theme. There were a lot of fun stuff!! Before i get to those great things that i saw let me tell you----the quilts that they have been collecting for the Quilts for Cancer, for clinics for cancer rehab. anyways...they have collected 1200 and something quilts!!!! Can you even believer? Crazy stuff!!!

So here is the favorites of the quilt show:



What a cute and simple cut up 9 patch. might have to try me one of those. Very scrappy too.


Kaffe Faucet. Met him, love him....and all his quilty goodness. This seems to be one of his less complicated patterns. Of course my mom -- who has all his books, doesn't have the one that this one is in. We might have to wing it. I have a little fat quarter stash and this might do the trick!





Just one block for the Breast Cancer Quilt blocks. People buy the fat quarter, make a cute block, turn it in and then they are put into quilts and auctioned off.
Check this out though.... wouldn't that make the cutest quilt all over? Might have to try me one of those...did i already say that?!




You might have to blow this baby big to really 'see' it. It is these wonderful Japanese Woven fabrics!!! They would be of course $19 per yard! yikes! but it really is stupendous!!! The tectures, patterns and overall look of it. WOW --- oh, this was in the vendors mall and not in the quilt show, but sooo worth the picture.




Dear Jane inspiration.




Love the outside border.





Amish quilt. This was still stunning from far away.

just plain 'ol cute.


I just love the little snails. See them?




If you look just right you can see the stretched star. Fun. and scrappy too.





Lastly: Why is this here? It was in the springville quilt show too. What are people thinking? You definitly need to blow this big....because.....it is sewn with CAT fabric. It's the Cat Chicken Quilt. No kidding. What?! Who?! Oh, my....
I don't want to end the quilt show on a sour note so here is some good eye candy and inspiration:





Isn't she just the cutest?
We had a little quilt group at my home on Friday night too. Boy it was just one great quilt day!! We dyed some fabric and then made some cute pin cushions. We dyed the doilies to go with them too. Then we stuffed them with crushed walnuts and tied them with skinny jute string really tight.








I also just changed out the quilt in my living room. I thought that maybe the summer one needed to become a fall one. So here it is:




This was an 'ugly' quilt challenge. You buy a brown bag with 4 --1 yard fabrics-- inside. Then you make a quilt and turn it in. It is judged, favorited, and then they have an award night. They haven't done this for 3 years now :( i really like doing it. Boy, there were some horid fabric, but it definitly was a challenge and put you out of your comfort zone.
The four fabric are---the outside orangish border, the batik that has little X is in, the inner brown striped border, and the dark brown brickish pattern one. My technique for applique has drastically improved since then. But i still love the log cabins and everything looks pretty good together.

I love the 'i had no idea it was 1/4 inch scale' comment and will leave you with that!

Altoid Tin Makeover

I thought i would do a quick (ok, i just got done and it isn't quick. there are a lot of pics.) tutorial for the tin makeovers. They were easy and pretty quick once i got the hang of it.

I am wishing that i had a few more. Maybe for little presents or something fun like that.

Here are the tins i started out with.Before

You need to just lay it down on a white sheet of paper and follow closely the bottom edge with a pencil and make a pattern. Use the bottom because it is a tiny smaller that the lid.

Trace this pattern on the back of your inside lid fabric and cut out. then glue to the top of the lid. I used Aleenes no sew fabric glue. it seems to work great. Dried quick enough to just keep working and held to the tin and the fabric. I got it at Joannes.

Trace the pattern again on the wrong side of the little blankie fabric. then layer - thin batting, back fabric and front fabric right sides together. Sew just inside the drawn line (you want it just a tich smaller so it will fit into the bottom without puckering) leaving a space for turning right sides out.

Trim selvage to 1/4" and then turn out. Smooth out the edges and hand sew the opening shut.

Now you need to tie the little quilt. I used 3 threads of DMC embroidery floss. Use a Co-ordinating color.

To start.... Do one stitch and then do another stitch in the same place. Just like above. Get it?

Continue tie-ing the whole top. I did an off set pattern so if i went crocked you wouldn't notice. I suppose you could also mark the stitching spots. I didn't. As you can see just keep going. Don't cut the threads until you are all done.

Cut the connecting threads. When the loose threads are pulled they only tighten the stitch. Snifty....

Here is the back.

Here are they all finished. how cute.

Now for the outside of the tin.

Pin the pattern on another piece of batting and cut out. Glue to the top.

Lay the pattern on top of the fabric that you are going to use for the lid. Cut out around 1" larger than the pattern. It doesn't have to be perfect. If you tin is bigger on the sides than pull the fabric over the edges and eye-ball it. You just need enough to get to that edge. Glue this to the batting. Now pull the sides down and glue right above the edge. At the corners just kind of fold,gather, pucker...whatever and glue. See how much extra i have still? Now take your scissors and trim it back. my tins have a little lip and i trimmed it to that.

Now to the trim. Cut a piece of trim....ric rac, ribbon, whatever you would like...that will go all the way around + a little overlap. Then just glue away. Dot the glue on the edge and then put the trim on top. I pulled mine just a little taught to keep it all smooth. overlap just a bit at the ends and glue in place. by the way i started in the back so the overlap was in the back too.

Viola!! nice......

now for the bottom

The bottom is very similar to the top. Cut out the bottom fabric larger than the pattern (wrap it up to make sure it covers) and glue the bottom in place. Then wrap up the sides again making it a little tight and pucker, pinch, gather at the corners and glue down. THen trip it up to the top edge.

I used a larger piece of trim for the bottom ----because---- you can't just go all the way around. it shifts just a bit in the back because of the hinges. so watch that!!

They are all finished!!! Dry it for a while with the lid open---you never know---

Load up the quilt in the bottom (really you could cover the inside bottom if you would like too)

Now I just need to fill them with a few goodies and they are ready to go!!

If anyone makes some you have to share some pics.

Sewing Fills my days.....and....

I just thought that i would show off a little of my garage sale finds. They aren't anything spectacular or worth any great amount of money, but they work for me.

I got these little tin containers. Sort of like an altoid container. This guy had a bunch of promotional stuff at his sale. My sister had given my mom one for her birthday just a few weeks ago. way cute. She had put a little mini scrapbook inside of it. The pages fanfold out and everything. The top decked out with cuteness. So when i saw these i thought that I could try that, but in the quilting world of course. A new craft magazine (i read these at check out) had one of these that had a mini quilt inside. Very cute and tiny. I am thinking that i have the button swap coming up and need a container for the buttons! I know, great idea. Can't wait to mess around with it and get them all 'souped' up.

This i picked up for 10 cents!!! boy, i love it when others are ready to get rid of their unfinished stuff. I myself have had two, yes 2 classes on Needle Punch. Still, i have no project finished to show this. Do you think this will pass? I am not sure if i will keep the life is good bit......maybe, maybe not. It even came with the frame. score.....just as long as i don't keep it and then sell it because it was an 'unfinished' project.

This cute thing i got also. The old man was having a garage sale...he sat in the garage with his head in his hands. He wasn't sure about getting rid of his stuff. I took all of his tools out of it and paid him for just the box. I have set it in the center of the table in the piano room (that is where we homeschool) and conveniently i had these ice buckets and they fit 4 across PERFECTLY!!! they even have the little handles so you can take them out and 'carry' them anywhere you need. How great is that? One for accesories- calculator, dry erase markers, erasers, pencil sharpners, then one for crayons, colored pencils,and markers. PERFECT!!

Honey asked.....weren't you going to paint it? um, no. i love the dings. plus, it's for the kids and what are they going to do? ding it. yup.

These were sent over by AMy -my neighbor- hi amy....I thought they were pretty funny. Scary how much i can relate to them.....why is it an illness though?