What I made sitting on the porch!

I took the day off on Friday to have a long 4 day weekend.  Everyone needs one of those once in a while.   I went out with my friend Kim.  She does scrap booking, holds the title of a ceramic maker proudly and is a fantastic cook.  She is the one I took the cake decorating classes with.  She is a great inspiration for my crafty goodness. She is currently into making dog collars and leashes.  She can do anything she sets her mind to and does it well.   Our styles are so different but I let her passion for crafts motivate me.

We went out to lunch on Friday and then we were off to the Quilt stores.   First was Quilting Delights where I signed up for the 5.00 block of the month that is now costing 135.00.   I wrote about it in my last post - so check it out.  I have been going there about 8 years I think.  On and off.   I first heard about the store from a temp that worked in my office for 2 days.  That's when I signed up for my first Block of the Month and it really got me back into quilting.  I never saw that temp again.. So i always have thought of her as a guardian angle.  The store has 30's prints, bright colors, and big quilts.There is a lot to choose from of a wide space.

Then on to Pioneer Quilts.   A totally different store then the first.  It's small and cozy and is full of wool patterns and quilts, some Kaffee Fasset bolts and civil war prints.  This is the store I found the Farmer Wives book way before the quilt-along blazed a trail through the Internet. I was looking at their classes and they have a group that meet monthly to work on wool quilts.  I might just have to look into that. 

While we were there I picked up a pattern for a cute pattern to store my sewing tools when traveling or whatever.   After stopping at Joanne's to pick up some batting, Kim and I went home to sit on the poach enjoying the beautiful day  and spent the  rest of the afternoon  sewing up the pattern.  We alternated between talking outside and going inside and sewing on her Brother Embroidery Machine.  I loved it.  I want one.  ;-)   Now if I only had enough money for everything I want.   That's another blog post.
Here are photos of my attempts.  We gave our selves new names.  Stupid 1 and stupid 2.   lol    We shared the sewing machine but were using different colored thread so we took turns.  Well I got to the completed stage first and when I went to turn it inside out guess what happened?   This:

Yup,  I  sewed it inside out.  All of the pockets were on the inside. So then there was a lot of this going on.

Yup ripping.    But I reread the directions and then this happened.

Yes.  a completed carrier!!!!  ;-)   It has 3 pockets and flap that comes over the top.
When my friend tried turning hers out the first time she thought she made the same mistake but it turns out she just had the pocket turned inside out and once she fixed that it came out awesome.  Forgot to take a photo of heres.  When mine  was completed it just felt like it was missing something.  What I did then was play with my friends machine.  I got into some of her cute stitches and ending up putting a half circle bunting  stitch on the front of the flap.  The perfect touch.
We then looked around her stash and found some neat fabric and we made another one. By the time we were done with that one it was dark.  So no photos of those.  Good thing to - because I was trying to be fancy on the stitching and guess what.  Yup..  back to the seam ripper.  So I will post the completed on another day.

What I will be doing monthly for the next year.

Well I did it.  i went over to Quilting Delights and signed up for their Block of the Month that starts in Nov.   

The store  goes back and forth between a quilt the shop owner designs and one they get through Maywood Studio’s.   This year it is through Maywood Studio.  The quilt is below and we have 4 color options. 

 

 

The first is in black and pinks and whites that has long stemmed pink roses and black backgrounds.  I have tried to find photos of it but I can’t find a photo out on the web and i can’t remember the name of the line.   The next three are color variations of the  Memories of Provence line.  The color ways we had were black, red and blue.     In the photo below  its the second,, third and fourth in the stack to the left.

I chose the

RED

of the Memories of Provence line.  It just spoke to me.  I am so excited.

 

 

Here is a  blog that describes another blogger  starting the quilt.  That is where I also got the 2 photos above.  Thank you Open Gate Quilt Blog.   I had trouble getting on the Maywood Studio website so I used the two I found.  Dang virus protectors.

 

It’s been  2  or 3 years (or has it been more?) since I have participated in a Block of the Month.  i did get a little burned out but I also was at a time in my life with school full time,  graduation, then losing my job, having no money, looking for a job and then finding one but trying to impress the company so I would get hired on from my temp status that I didn’t sign up for one.   

I start on Nov 10th but the store said that in a few weeks I will be getting the fabric and a cutting list so i can set up my little packets for each month with all my cut up fabric.   I can’t wait!

Today I also bought a cool pattern and made a cool little satchel to hold sewing supplies.  I will update you soon.

Have a wonderful day.