Quilt Raffle

Hi All. It has been a low key week for me without much sewing going on. I went in Tuesday morning for my gallbladder surgery and I was back at home by 1:30 that afternoon. The surgery went well and so far, so good. I have some pain around my belly button, but other than that, no other problems. They went in through my belly button and I have one other small incision on my right side. Pretty amazing they can do that through your belly button. I'm really trying hard to take it slow for the next few days. I have some hand applique to work on and keep me busy. I want to let everyone know that I do have everything ready for the raffle quilt and I am going to take it to Karen Gray Design in the morning. She will have plenty of raffle tickets on hand, so please go by and visit her beautiful shop and buy some tickets for The Rally For The Cure. They are 1 for $1, 6 for $5 and 15 for $10. My mom very generously donated the funds for the quilt material and tickets. That means that ALL of the proceeds from ticket sales goes to The Susan G. Komen Foundation. If you are not local and would like some tickets, please contact me and I will be glad to send some your way. Thanks so much for all the well wishes this week and for helping to support this raffle.

I really appreciate it!

Also, if you haven't already, leave a comment on my last post for a chance to win 1/2 yard cuts of each of the three fabrics.

Giveaway!

Well, I'm going to take a few days away from crafts and blogging, so I thought while I was gone I would have a little giveaway. What do you think about half yard cuts of each of these three fabrics. They would be great for your stash, right! Just leave me a comment between now and Wednesday, August 4th and I will draw a random winner on August 5th. Good Luck and I'll be back soon.

Please Excuse This Post

Okay, so about a month ago I had some seriously bad attacks and as a result discovered that the cause of the attacks are gallstones. It appears that the only way to get relief from gallstone attacks is to have your Gallbladder removed. Yes, that means surgery. And here is where my rant begins... I waited a month for an appointment to meet with a surgeon (suffering from milder attacks during that month.) Finally, Thursday came and I showed up to my appointment at the suggested 20 minutes before my scheduled appointment time. I payed my $30 co-pay and then waited ONE AND A HALF HOURS after my scheduled appointment time to meet with the surgeon. (Question: Why bother making an appointment in the first place if you are just going to see me whenever you want? Apparently, my time is not as valuable as theirs.) I guess you could call it a meeting. It lasted about 5 minutes. If this had been any other business, this stuff would not fly, would it!?! I feel I should have at least gotten the 30 bucks back. (yeah, right) Okay, I know it could be worse and I should not complain, but I am. So, now I know that my surgery will be some time on Tuesday. They can't tell me exactly what time it is, but they have called to tell me exactly how much it will cost and inquire how I would like to pay for it. (Of course they did. ) To say that I flipped out at hearing the grand total is a slight understatement and the subsequent rant to my husband, mother and sister about the state of our Health Care system, what my suggestions would be to fix it and where exactly I feel the insurance companies and government can stick it, I will spare you from. I'll just say...WHATEVER! Okay, now that that is out, I'm going to let it go. I am accepting that this is the way it is and I am letting it go. There, I'm putting good things out in the universe. Relax, relate, release....

I will now resume blogging about crafty things. I want to start a quilt for my little boy and I have some cute robot fabric in my stash with his name all over it. I'm thinking Wonky Stars. Maybe I'll get a block or two done this weekend. I have a couple of purse orders to fill and I would like to get those done before Tuesday. I have the treat of babysitting my little 2 month old niece tomorrow and Fletcher could not be more excited about it. Good times. Have a great weekend everyone. Thanks for allowing me to vent. (again...letting it go)

Rally for the Cure Breast Cancer Quilt

The Rally for the Cure Quilt is done! I'm so glad it is ready because now we can start selling raffle tickets. All of the proceeds from the sale of the raffle tickets go to the Susan G. Komen Foundation. The drawing for the winner we be on October 14th. Tickets are 1 for $1, 6 for $5 and 15 for$10. Karen Gray has graciously offered to display the quilt in her shop, Karen Gray Design at Reynolda Village, until the drawing. You can also buy the raffle tickets there beginning sometime next week. (I will let you know the exact date.) Please stop by her beautiful shop to see the quilt and buy some tickets! (All of the fabrics in the quilt came from her shop.) If you are not local and would like to purchase tickets to support the Rally for the Cure, please contact me at ginabean@yadtel.net and I will be glad to get some to you. Also, if you are interested in selling raffle tickets you can contact me, as well. It is for a great cause and I feel fortunate to be involved in this way.

Get'er Done

The Breast Cancer Quilt is almost done. I got it on the frame and quilted yesterday. I also got the binding sewn on and now I just need to hand stitch it down. I just did a little swirly thingy for the quilting (because that and random stippling are really the only two things I can do right now.) I got some pantographs and hope to get practicing on those soon. I have been really focused lately on getting things done. I have several things to make for customers and some personal projects to do and I have been sewing like a mad woman. I think I am hitting the wall and that it might just be time for me to take a little break. I say that, but I never seem to bring myself to that place where I feel I can take a break. I might need to have a personal little intervention.

A Little Weekend Sewing

This weekend was busy as usual. I finished an order from a customer for these hats. She and her two sisters are going to the beach and she wanted these hats made for the three of them. I made them using Amy Butler's Big Sky Hat pattern. They turned out really cute. I might have to make one for myself.

Save the Bubbies

(if you watch the Real Housewives of NJ, you get it) So, you know I was debating on what project to start next and then my mom asked if I would like to make a quilt to raffle off for the Rally for the Cure Golf Tournament that her ladies group hosts in October. Why, sure I would. And now there is the Save the Bubbies Quilt! I know I said yesterday that I would have it pieced today. I was just kidding! I didn't get it done, I went to bed. I hope to get it pieced today. I have four more rows and the border to put on. It could happen. Laundry can wait. I just love this quilt by The Sometimes Crafter (it is the one my friend if going to make) and it was just how I wanted this one to look. So cute. When I get it all completed, I'll post all the details about the raffle. Hope everyone has a perfect weekend. I woke up thinking about getting a pedicure today and I just might have to make that happen. (once the quilt is pieced, of course.)

Got To Be Starting Something...

(My little nod to MJ.) So, I couldn't decide what to make next and instead of finishing what I have already started or possibly using fabric out of my stash, I, of course, went and got new fabric to start a new project. I have no control. I am really excited about this one and I have big plans for this quilt. I almost have it pieced and when I do, I am going to give you all the low down on it. Can't wait. Check back tomorrow.

Oh Thank You, Mr. UPS Man.

Look what I got in the mail yesterday. My new labels! I finally have pretty woven labels to go in all of the purses I make. They make me feel so "Big Time".

What's Next?

I still have not decided what my next project will be. I am itching to do something, but I just can't decide what. I have a few projects to get done for customers and I would like to get them done before I meet with the surgeon next week. I am hoping that they can do my surgery soon after meeting with him and put me out of this misery. I have all my applique blocks ready to go, so that I can work on them after surgery. I am going to decided very soon what quilt to do next and I will let you know. In the meantime, this is a quilt that I also made for my sister's baby. It is a little nine-patch. I never took a picture of it so she brought it back to me the other day so I could. I thought I would share it with you.

I'm open to suggestions about what to make next if anybody has any.

The Pinwheel Quilt is Done!

I got the last stitch put on the binding last night and I got it all washed and dried before I went to bed. I am so please with how this quilt turned out. I used Heather Bailey's Freshcut fabrics and the pattern, Tessellation from Sandy Klop's Quilts for All Seasons book. The book is very good. Her patterns are easy to follow and it has several good quilts in it. I have an American Jane Recess jelly roll and I think I am going to make my next quilt using that. I made one out of her Wee Play jelly roll and it is my favorite. I just need to decide which kind of quilt to make. Decisions, decisions. What I really should do is work on my spiderweb quilt and get some blocks done on that before I start another quilt. And work on the Dresden quilt before I start another one. It is just so fun to start a quilt. My friend is making this quilt and I want to make it too. (Focus Gina, Focus.) It is amazing to me that I get any quilts done at all. Everyone around me continually inspires me with their quilts and I want to make them ALL. I hope everyone has a great weekend and enjoys a little sewing time.

A Little Summer Reading and Some Country Sunshine

I love to read, especially in the summer. I used to spend a lot of Fletcher's nap times and evenings reading, but then my sewing obsession took over and I have done very little reading. (unless you count pattern books and quilting magazines) I'm an all or nothing type of gal, and when I get into something, I go at it hard. I have been spending all of my time sewing, but I am trying hard to put a little more balance back into my life so, I decided that it was time to get into a good book. I went yesterday and picked up a few: Wuthering Heights, because I feel like with my limited time to read, I should be reading something worthwhile, Nikon D60 For Dummies, because I really need to figure out how to get the most out of this camera I have, and I couldn't resist, a new quilting book.
I am also wanting to get WIP's done and my applique project is something I really need to focus on. I am NOT an applique quilter, but I wanted to get out of my comfort zone and work on one. I am in a little applique workshop and we are making a beautiful applique quilt called "Country Sunshine". (I am too lazy to look and see what book it is from, so I'll tell you later.) To say that I am a little behind on this one is a huge understatement. It is 9 large blocks and I have four done. (well, almost done) This is block #5. I have three more like this to do and then the center block. Did I mention that it has a huge applique border? Yeah, huge. HUGE. I might get this quilt done in about 2 years. What was I thinking?!?

Update: Pinwheel quilt is quilted and binding needs to be sewn down. I'll have pictures soon.

Quilting is Crazy!

If you think about it, it really is crazy. It is crazy to take perfectly beautiful fabric and spend hours cutting it up into little pieces. Only to take those little pieces and spend even more hours sewing in all back together, pressing it, pinning it, pressing it some more, and sewing some more. But by doing all these crazy things, I get to create things that look like this and I think, well ...maybe it would just be even more crazy for me NOT to do it. I love when I finish piecing a quilt. I could sit for hours after it is done and stare at it, studying all the little pieces that went into it. It always makes me feel like I have completed something really special. The Pinwheel quilt top is done! and I am lovin' it! I can't wait to get it quilted and completely done. Hopefully, by the end of the week it will be. Hummmm... what's next?

Happy Fourth!

I hope everyone had a Happy Fourth of July! Our family enjoyed the nice weather, a parade, good food, swimming in the pool, cake and of course... FIREWORKS!

We Tweet!

Tweetsie Railroad that is! Yesterday my mom, husband and I took Fletcher and my two nephews to Tweetsie. We had a great time, the weather was perfect, no crowds and the boys were very well behaved. Today we head to the movies to see Ice Age with the boys. It has been a busy week and we have a lot of Fourth festivities planned, including a parade with decorated bikes, lots of food and some fireworks. I haven't had a lot of time to post because of all the activities, but I'll catch back up after the holiday. I have been trying to get the Pinwheel quilt completely pieced and it is getting there. Hopefully, I'll have something to show you on Monday. Until then... I hope everyone has a safe and happy Fourth of July.