Fat Quarterly Retreat '13

Just 2 more weeks!

It's official - besides getting my class list email, I finally got my Name Tag out to my partner and I received mine the same day! I had in mind that I wanted to incorporate a pouch in some way, so I consulted some tutorials and found this one really helpful. The colors came together on their own, and not necessarily in a good way! I had to apologize in advance if Mammafairy gets people staring at her chest (or belly since it's so long lol) cause of my thread color - oops!

and here's the one I received from Sarah @ Sarah-lou-sews!

isn't it sweet?

I've noticed that many retreat goers already have their supplies bagged up, so that's next on my list! I'm taking -
Photography w/ Judith Damen
Improv w/Lu Summers
Hand Quilting w/ Mandy
Precision Piecing w/ Lynne Goldsworthy

and I'm staying at the Raddison!

I'm so excited!! I've already studied my London guide:

Hugs, FMT




























linking to

Swapping and BOOOOO Bloglovin'!

Hello friends! I just noticed that I lost half my followers in the switch over to Bloglovin'!! Say it with me now: booooooooooooooooo.  Ok, hopefully I'll get 'em back someday.

Remember when I was whining about my machine and the girl that was mean cause I was late for DQS13? I totally forgot to mention that I made & sent my partner's doll quilt, she received it and was super gracious and grateful!! Yay! Here it is:

A little churn dash action!

and look closely

look closer..

notice anything?

get it?

 I totally and accidentally did a super cool matched binding - yehaw!

Wonkiness & some hand stitching

Mini washi tapes, notepaper napkins, thread & FQ's

linking up to:

Peace out!
FMT

Buh bye Google Reader!

 Hola! I guess it's finally July 1, and I'm being pulled kicking and screaming from my beloved GR.. I did get a chance to get thru all my subscriptions before I officially changed my home page to Bloglovin! I hope you'll join me there - lawd knows I don't deserve it with my spotty posts, but you never know when I'll finally have something good to share! :)

A little catching up from late May/early June..

 I've had this stack of 4" Amy Butler charms for AGES, and when I saw this quilt from Katy at I'maGingerMonkey, I thought I'd give it a try. Love it! No idea how to quilt it, any suggestions?

 I also finally got around to turning this fq bundle into an equilateral triangle quilt. I've been wanting to try this, and I cut off many points, but it was fun. Now I just need to finish it up and get it sent to its intended recipient before he gets too big for it!

 Also did some swaps and blocks for June..

 Tribute Star doll quilt for Patty using Moda's Breath of Avignon for Doll Quilter's Monthly - which is always open to new members!

 Broken dishes for COMFORT at do.Good Stitches

and the requisite 4 blocks for the Japanese X and + Quilting Bee! 

Bored yet? 

Ok, I'll break it up with  some pics from the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. It's my family's first time participating and we had the great fortune to be with my husband's colleagues, which made for an awesome day!

FedEx was the BIGGEST group - yehaw!

Face painting fun

My crew

Sweaty, tired, full of dinner and ready to head home!

chat with ya soon!
FMT

Linked up to:

Colour Swap

Despite my sewing challenges, I managed to keep clicking "join" to various new bees, and swaps.  One such swap was run by Cheryl over at Gone Stitchin'. The Colour Swap required each person to send 4 things in the color of our secret partner's choosing: something smelly, something for a room in the house, something edible and something personal. One item had to be handmade. This sounded like fun, so I joined in and my partner chose ... aqua. What a challenge!! Here's what I came up with:

little aqua TV shaped beaded coin purse (personal)

Partylite Votives (smelly) & espresso (or shot) glasses :)

Placemat with heat resistant batting (handmade)

aqua fabrics (for the sewing room) & chocolate

I think I see some aqua in this candy necklace (edible!)

My new discovery - note taking napkins - GENIUS! 

As for me, once I entered, I promptly forgot the color I'd chosen so I had an extra nice surprise!

my beautifully wrapped items

I chose GREY! Soap, candy, sachet, heart and

Beautiful organizer with pockets and... 

AMAZING embroidery!!

such sweet details

I would definitely join this swap again - such fun!

Hugs!
Also, if you're interested in some Pay it Forward goodies from me, I still have a spot open! Just leave me a note!
FMT

Pay it Forward

Hallo friends! That's German, by the way. Have you heard of Pay it Forward?

Last October, I had the good fortune of having good timing as I visited Amy's blog -  Amy's Crafty Shenanigans. Apparently, Pay it Forward has been making its way around the blog-o-sphere for a couple of years. Want to play? Here's how it works:

Rules

1. Anytime within the next 365 days, I will make a crafty little surprise for the first 3 folks who comment on this post and meet the rest of the requirements.

2. In order to join and receive something from me - you have to play along! This means that you promise to send a small handmade something to 3 readers of your own blog. It doesn't have to be quilty - just handmade. 

3. You must have an active blog & be willing to ship internationally.

4. Once you receive your package from me, you post about Pay it Forward on your blog and keep the fun going 

5. Please be sure you're not a no-reply blogger so I can reach you! 

I received a great P.I.F. package from Amy a couple of days ago!

Pin cushion jar - cute!

Notions, washi tape, etc!

Still want to play? Just leave me a comment saying so!

Sewing..

Hey friends! A few weeks ago, I got a notice in the mail from customs. I didn't know what the heck it said, but when I saw the sender's name, I realized it was finally the foot pedal and power cord I'd ordered for my precious machine 2 months ago... Off I raced to the customs office, with little butterflies and a small bit of unease - not knowing if they'd speak the language or even be nice about it...

side note - most folks here are really nice when asked if they speak English. 90% of the time, they answer humbly "a little" and proceed to speak great English. That other 10% though.. good grief! Americans have such high expectations for customer service, that it's hard to react like a Christian lol. I know - I need to learn German. 

Anyway, I paid customs, headed home home and look:

I almost cried a little - it's been such a long ordeal getting this baby back to sewing. I didn't actually sit down to sew until a day or 2 later and the first thing I wanted to do was fill a bobbin.. Um, it didn't work. The power is on, the motor runs when you press the pedal and it doesn't move. None of my shouts prompted a response either - and I tried several colorful words and gestures. So, I had to do what I should probably have done 2 months ago - find an authorized dealer. On Saturday,  the kiddos and I trekked it over to a little town called Moers to drop it off. The service tech thinks that it could be as simple as a voltage issue - my machine can handle the voltage here, but it may not be able to switch over automatically/internally/ whatever. He promised to call Monday and it's Wednesday now, so I'm beginning to wonder if the issue was so simple after all.. It doesn't help that even though it was serviced just before we left the states, remember it traveled all the way here, back home and then here again - and it's heavy- so anything could've happened. Good thing I hadn't returned my friend's machine yet ;)

I came across this the other day 30 Shocking and Unexpected Google Street View Photos  - check it out!

Hugs,
Francine

Happy Mother's Day with Love

My sweet mama, daughter and I @ my 40th bday fiesta - Miss you mom

Best Stepmama ever and the Beans!