Life loves to be taken by the lapel and be told:
"I am with you kid.Let's go."

-Maya Angelou

Reading vs Sewing such a problem. If I'm reading (at least during the day) I feel guilty cuz, well... duh sewing is my job! If I'm sewing I'm thinking about squeezing in some reading time...which also includes squeezing in blog reading time all 4 zillion of them on my Google Reader.

Some people are out there trying to solve huge problems in the world...me...I'm trying to figure out how to get more sewing and reading time in. Maybe I should put it this way. Quite possibly the people who are trying to solve the worlds problems should sew a little more or just read a dadgum good book and some dadgum great blogs. What do you think? Maybe there should be a reading and sewing summit. I'll volunteer to head it up and we will play a side splitting game of Left, Right, Center you can count on it! POOF BEGONE.... NO MORE WORLD PROBLEMS.

Reading this book now. It is this months pick from Mary Carol in our book club. She always picks great books and has great snacks. We were pregnant together with two of our children. You know what I mean..right? Our husbands play golf together. We have known each other a long time and raised our kids together too. I better go read this book don't want to make her mad at me.

I get to choose the book in two months so I'm going to pick this one but I'll read it first...I don't want any of those book club people on my back...I have standards ya know.

As long as I am rambling about reading (on a mostly quilting blog) I have a question. Is reading a hobby similar to quilting which is a hobby (for some people for others it is a job)?? I don't think of reading as a hobby...it is part of life...just as easy as breathing or just something you do... something really natural like that. I'm really rambling here...I think I'll go read, or sew, now I can't decide. Sorry to bore you with my reading vs sewing diatribe.

Silver Comet Stitchers and Gwinnett Guild Mtg.

If you put a small value on yourself, rest assured that the world will not raise your price.
-annoymous

Yes, dad blast it....It has been one of those weeks. Out of the house and busy(I hate the word busy) everyday was totally fun in itself but busy nun the less. I'm fixing roasted cardboard for dinner because that is the best I can do with what is in my kitchen pantry and fridge. I need to go grocery shopping and buy one of everything. Guess what I'm going to do instead? Sew. Why? Because I have some deadlines looming that cannot be put aside. So it is Roasted Cardboard night.

I spoke at the Silver Comet Stitches Guild Monday night. Great group of quilters! They are a small and very happy group. I am a member of a large guild so it is fun to visit a group like this. I enjoyed my evening so much and feel like I made some new BFF's. On Tuesday, my guild met and boy what eye candy they produced..(as usual) so I will stop yappin and let you enjoy the show!

There is not a dead body under there...60 quilts for the guild lecture. EYE CANDY FOR SURE!

You could prick your finger on those points! Nicely done don't cha think?

These children made me happy. So I took a picture! But then all children make me happy. I want to have more children. Sadly...that ship has sailed.

I let out a little squeal when this one came out. STRAWBERRY PIE it was totally unexpected.

I love diagonal set quilts.

Ok I know I have shown this quilt...I know I have shown photos of Debbie (she just left my house and approved this photo..but then I would have posted it without owner approval anyway. This is a special quilt for a special secret person, I'm so honored that she chose my Scrappy Nines Pattern! sniff sniff.

Dramatic, dimensional...depth...dang good I say

Ok so blurry but the little quilt was flying around so fast I'm lucky to have snapped a photo. It was a really good small quilt. Lots o Workie.

I believe they said this quilt was going to be for the Quilts of Valor program. Fabulous!

Or maybe it was this one. I was concentrating on focusing the camera.

Susan's door decoration for her mom who is in assisted living..She is a good daughter!.

Elly completed her Christmas Quilt. Hand appliqued, hand quilted. I wet my pants!

Ok off to sew, the todoooo list looms large. The cardboard is defrosting nicely in the kitchen.

The Karinanator

It always comes back to the same necessity: go deep enough and there is a bedrock of truth, however hard.

-Mary Sarton

Another weekend of club meetings and sewing with friends. This weekend is the annual Greater Atlanta Shop Hop so tons of people were reporting in on the goings on. I talked to friend and she said they made 900 goodies bags and they were all gone with one more day to go. HOLEY TRAFFIC JAM IN THE SHOP!!!! I'm planning to visit one shop with Debbie, Kristie and Becky today but after that I'm still better off just sewing at home. The thought of going to 12 shops just makes my credit card start to sweat.

I want you to meet Karin aka THE KARINANATOR so named by me because she is nuthin but trouble. This is what I did to the Karinanator during my class on Saturday. Now, most of you know I try to conduct myself with some degree of style and grace as is deep in the custom of my southern lady roots. But some days a girl just has to do what a girl has to do when teaching a class with CONSTANT interruptions. This was my solution. What do you think?

After Karin was properly silenced. Julie decided to use my Pink Duct tape for exfoliation purposes. After all it is springtime in Atlanta...time to bring out the Capri pants!

I love my pink duct tape! It is so useful.

What is it that you expression your eyes? It seems to me more than all the words I have ever read.

-Walt Whitman

Errands to run and sewing to be done, I wanted to send you some eye candy today. I still have un-posted photos of my Ellijay retreat and Thimbles weekend. ENJOY and hopefully find inspiration. To be inspired and to create isn't that the best thing EVER!!!

We all brought quilts to put on our beds...Here are a few of them and some other projects, we sang "Celebrate" for the quilts and whooped and hollered too. I certainly hope you will whoop and holler along with us. It's a guaranteed endorphine release!

Maddy's first quilt...you should see my first quilt. Dang it doesn't look that good.

Holey Delectable Mountains in the borders by the absolutely fabulous Sandra.

Cutie Pie Sue had this one on her bed. So restful don't cha think?? Love those borders.

Here is Kim's Mandella quilt. AKA Drunkard's Path quilt. SUPER DOOPER and CURVY.

Karin finished her Hunters Star quilt.

She was so happy she passed out.

Kim again (busy bee) with her White Chocolate quilt..You dooo me proud girl.

OK this is Debbie's Honeyberries quilt. If you haven't made this quilt yet. YOU SHOULD..from the book "40 Fabulous Quick Cut Quilts" by Evelyn Sloppy. I have made it in blue for my SIL and Back and Tan. I have seen it made in reds and purples and civil war fabbies...I'm tellin you this quilt makes my skirt fly up! It may be my favorite quilt. Make one people it will do your heart gooood.

Sue is almost finished with her Road to Romance quilt...she is making the borders now. It is terrific. A lot of people were trying to get her to give up that green batik fabric..

Dianne gets the award for the cutest PJ's..she even has a yo yo pin and earrings to match. I could just pinch her she is so sweet.

And look at Mary Agnes a two time Left Right Center winner....she is out buying lottery tickets now. Wearing the princess tiara.

Precious Maddy wearing my tiara so well. I think I gave myself a hernia laughing at her...what a chick.

Susan's bed quilt. Now that will wake you up.

Later my friends..there is sewing to be done.

"Its not so much where you live, but how you live." -MaryJane Butters

Remember my post yesterday??? Well here is the best news of all. Sue inspired me to think about those long lost blocks. (She has a way with me for sure!). I came up with a whole new design and I love, love, love, it. Not only am I going to make it with the Left Right Center blocks I'm going to use it as a new edition to the Silver Thimble family of patterns. YIPEE. So sorry I can't show you now but you will see it later (much later)...I think I'll just show it to Sue...she can keep a secret! Now for a name...hmmmm.

Here is the real photo of Sue. I wuv her more than my self cleaning oven.

Gratitude helps you to grow and expand; gratitude brings joy and laughter into your life and into the lives of all those around you.

-Eileen Caddy

Enjoyed my day of sewing and quiet so much I think I'll have another dose today. I finished a UFO which is a Christmas quilt I think I posted a couple of months ago. The quilt has been on my design wall and I need the wall so I diverted from designing to this particular UFO. I really want to get rid of some of these projects that have been laying around. The problem is....I need to be working on pattern development not UFO's. That being said I have decided to spend one day per week on UFO's and the rest on workie stuff. Today is workie stuff!

ON TO MY STORY.....

It all began with a harmless game of you guess it..Left, Right, Center!


The tradition isssss. If you win the blocks you must make a quilt with said blocks and bring it back to the next STITCH IN. Here begins our problem...........

Sarah (I chopped her off in the photo..hey the quilt was my focus okay?) brought her lovely quilt that she made from her winning blocks. She brought them BEFORE the Summer Stitch IN... so she is ahead of schedule! After I took this photo I went and hid under a table so as NOT TO BE NOTICED.

Then Sue (on right looking quite harmless but don't let that sweet smile fool you) said..."Hey Pat you won the blocks last time are you going to bring your finished quilt to the Summer Stitch IN THIS YEAR??? (insert PSYCHO shower scene music here!) Actually it was two stitch in's ago but I was hoping NO ONE WOULD REMEMBER!!! Holey UFO infraction. I'm in trouble NOW...thank you soooo much former friend SUE!

So here they are in all their glory...80 nine patch blocks, the little suckers staring at me...Screaming at me...Challenging me to be a good leader and honor the tradition of creating a quilt with the blasted things....Did I mention that I have a business, quilt market, Paducah? Did I tell you I'm slap run over with stuff to do?? Has Sue listening to me ... OH NOOOOOO..... She had to get the whole room involved with my commitment to them to get this quilt made. Yes sir now I have all those quilters on my back about this quilt. I'm THRILLED!

Here is another photo of the blocks with a photo of DEAR SUE. This is also where I would have to recall the Crow Retreat in September and the polka dot quilt the Crows (former friends as well) who made me hang my head in shame. (remember this post?). Further proof that I need to be locked away for a very long time!

So dear friends if I have promised to make you a quilt...participate in a swap, trade, change or win a bunch of blocks GET IN LINE........take a number....I'm working on it is the phrase of the day,week, month,year. Sandy S. if you are reading this blog I'm aware of the Alphabet Quilt..don't call me.

Pat

Be grateful for the home you have, knowing that at this moment, all you have is all you need.

-Sarah Ban Breathnach

Grateful to be home and able to work on some new designs and projects. Wheww I need the quiet of my home today. All forms of media are in the off position. Just quiet...That is a good thing right now.

What a weekend we had at Thimbles. I got the sweetest gifties from two special ladies, flowers from Cindi and a Jim Shore "Quilter Bee" from Sarah, totally unexpected and so meaningful. I love these ladies and am so grateful to have them in my life!

The quilts were wonderful as usual. Show and Tell kicked some butt again! I had some lovely and very special moments with friends that were in Ellijay last weekend. They had a wonderful time and shared their adventures with the group.

Marie brought four quilts to show,she has been very busy! She is so cute, and her quilts are faboooo.

I love this quilt...Teresa's excessive use of half square triangles...bad photo angle You have to be fast with the camera at Thimbles cuz the girls a whippin the quilts out faster that Lindsay Vonn can ski down a mountain.

This quilt makes me want to go live in the woods! With a pet wolf.

This quilt was from a class several years ago...I love it...my daughter took it to live with her. I hope she is taking care of it cuz if my grand dog is sleeping on it I'm not going to be happy.

Barb's log cabin, photo does not do it justice..I love a tiny rail log cabin almost as much as my cheetos.

My Scrappy Nines pattern in black and tan by Sandra...ooooh baby baby, and check out that giant paisley backing. This quilt sure makes my skirt fly up.

Sarah's blue and yellow stacky slashy..goody goody.

OK I'm drawing a blank here (who is behind the quilt) Ok we will name this on Where'z Waldo!

Look at this pretty picture of my tulips and think of how happy I am to be on my way to the sewing room I'm taking the flowers and sewing bee with me too... (with quiet..I think I'll even turn my cell phone off so don't call me ok).

Pat
Next post......The good, The bad and the very ugly edition of weekend Thimbles...stay tuned.

There is no duty we so much underrate as the duty of being happy. By being happy we sow anonymous benefits upon the world.

-Robert Louis Stevenson

Happy is one thing my problem is combining happy with BUSY. For me, BUSY is the new four letter word that is spoken wayyyy to often. But dang I sure am B@#$%^&YY. It seems I run from one thing to the next with always more than any normal human being can do in a 24hour day. I'm basically an on task person, fairly organized and a list maker, goal setter. Holey Moley I am now in a position that I'm killing myself keeping up with my daily, weekly, monthly..and yes yearly goals and lists. I have decided that the solution is to check myself into either a convent or a padded cell. Perhaps I should rob a bank the law will take care of any choices I might have and make the decisions for me...what do you think??

Here are some more photos of our glorious retreat last weekend. I have gotten so many emails, phone calls and thank you notes about the weekend. It has meant so much to me to hear from so many of the attendees. This was my first time to host such an event so I have spent sometime reflecting on things that I can change and make even better for the next retreat! OK I admit I made a list...see what I meeeeen?

My friend Julie that was helping me with the food...no I take that back SHE HANDLED THE FOOD cuz I was slightly busy...anyway...I made a crack to her about finding the dang can opener every time I turned around and THOUGHT I had put it away (i like a tidy kitchen..see first paragraph above). Julie invaded the sacred Cheeto bag with the can opener... Well, thus began the can opener wars. We were sticking this thing everywhere and hiding it from each other. The best was that on the last night the darn thing was UNDER my pillow. I found it at 3:30 am...me thinks the war is NOT over.

This is the Koi pond outside the sewing room. Those fish were UNDER the ice...ALIVE...I want to talk to them in the spring to find out if they would like to consider a move to Aruba or something. We decided if we got snowed in and ran out of food (it would have taken quite sometime for that) we would serve Mountain Koi for dinner....

Suzanne showing everyone how to make a darling needle roll/project roll/VERY CUTE!

Here is Carol serging PJ's for everyone. If you stood still SHE WOULD SERGE YOU...I don't speak serger..din't know a thing about sergers, never wanted to own a serger. Watched Carol serging. I'm picking up my new serger this weekend. Now...I don't speak embroidery machines, don't want to know about them....don't need one....nuff said if you own one stay away from me please.

This is Mercedine in her "Quilt Diva" PJ's you should have seen that booty shakin and dancing. It was fabulous. I love her more than I love my self cleaning oven!!!

Another quiet, sedate, boring game of Left Right Center. Gotta go now I'm being fitted for hearing aids today.

Later my friends,
Pat