Webshots Quilts

If you enjoy looking at other people's quilts for inspiration, check out Webshots, a searchable photo album site that has thousands of pages of the most awe-inspiring quilts. I can spend hours just surfing and drooling.
If you have read some of my earlier posts, you know that I do make quilts--rather, I make a quilt now and then. I piece by machine and hand quilt. It takes months to hand quilt a king-size piece. The quilt I am doing now was pieced in 1999--the blocks sat all neatly ironed and stacked for nearly 4 years before I was inspired to sew the top together and quilt it. It will take 100 hours (one hour per block to hand quilt). I started in November and I still have about 35 blocks to go. I don't even know how many hours it took to piece those 1-inch logs.
When I look into some of the personal photo albums from Webshots, I just cannot believe the number of quilts these ladies (and ocassionally men) produce in one year. It just boggles my mind!

Thank you, Mel!

Someone found me! Thank you Mel in the UK for the comment. I would love to know how you came across my blog, so if you wander in again, please let me know. I spent some time today looking for garden blogs. Did a google search and found a couple. There is just not much garden action this time of the year. I like to see pictures of other people's gardens--long shots, not close up flower pics. I want to see how they have integrated their gardens into the overall landscape. If anyone has found a good site , please let me know. If I ever get time, I will attempt to figure out enough html to get a sidebar with links to the blogs I visit. What is the proper netiquette for doing this? Do you ask the author's permission or just post it?

Your never too old to learn

Tonight I have a computer class (Excel)at my local community college. The class is three hours long on Tue. and Thurs. nights. I get home from work, make a quick dinner (left over Chicken Florentine from below), a quick clean up and off I go. I am in bed within half an hour of getting home. It makes for a long day. I am glad this is only a 6-week adventure.

Stuffed Chicken Breasts

I am enjoying just staying inside this cold, snowy weekend. Weather like this always inspires me to cook and bake. Dinner tonight will be stuffed chicken breasts (stuffed with cream cheese, spinach and ham). I made extra so we will have them again later in the work week. While I enjoy cooking on the weekends, I do NOT like to come home from work and cook dinner, so I always try to make extra on the weekends so that I only have to reheat on at least two of the five work days.

Fabric Covered Wastebasket

I also made a matching wastebasket by covering a ho-hum one with the same fabric as the shower curtain. It is a fun, easy project. The fabric is attached by slathering on a decoupage glue (I used Mod Podge) and wrapping the fabric around the container. Once all the fabric and embellishments are on, put a nice layer of the glue over top and let it dry. Apply two or three more layers of the glue. This gives a nice water resistant finish. I found it easiest to put a glob of glue in my glove-protected hand and just rub in on.

Prairie Points

For those who do not know what prairie points are, here is a picture of a shower curtain I made using them. They are the triangle thingies on the edge of the shower curtain.

Log Cabin Quilt Progress

I have been steadily working on my hand quilting since November. So far I have 60 blocks completed and have 40 blocks around the edge to finish (only 40 more hours and the quilting will be done). I was contemplating finishing with prairie points, but after trying it out on the bed today, decided that the length is perfect as is. The prairie points would make it too long. So now I just have to decide on the binding color.

Winter Doldrums

I am so tired of SNOW. We are getting 5 - 6 inches today. It has been bitter cold all week. I am spending my Saturday inside cooking, cleaning, quilting and counting the days until I can enjoy my flowers again.

Flowered Filled Deck

This is the same space a few months ago.

Missing my garden

Holiday Table Setting

My holiday table setting. Those yellow/gold pears do not photograph well. They are not nearly so bright as they appear here. I have gold stockings with elves hanging on each chair. My husband and I had a romantic breakfast here yesterday morning.

Christmas Elf

Closeup of the elf in the stocking.

Snowman Quilt

Christmas Quilt
I put my Christmas quilt on my bed. It is thick, warm and oh, so snuggly on a cold winter night. The center snowman block is made from Christal Carter's book, Holiday Happenings. It is fun to play with log cabin blocks. I think I may make an Easter Bunny one next.

Close up of the snowman center made from 3-inch log cabin squares.

I have not bought one Christmas gift yet--not a single present. I probably should drag myself out shopping today. Yesterday I baked some cookies--chocolate thumprints filled with caramel. I made 4 dozen, which took about two hours. Last night my husband accidentally knocked them over and spilled every one onto the floor. Now I have no cookies as he threw every one in the garbage. There is no way he would eat anything that touched the floor. I am feeling just a tad discouraged.

I am also discouraged because NOBODY is reading my blog! How do you get readers????

It's beginning to look like Christmas...

I am TOTALLY exhausted. I spent most of the day putting up my Christmas trees. I must have made 20 trips down and up the stairs to the basement hauling box after box. Yesterday I swapped my dining room/living room. Yes, hauled two sofas and a large table - pushing, pulling, huffing, puffing. I have wanted to do this for a long time and on the spur of the moment decided to go for it. We never use the living room and I felt the space could be put to better use by enabling me to keep the dining table extended.

Got Some Throw-A-Way Jeans?

I made 12 of these jean stocking ornaments yesterday. They are so cute and easy to make from old blue jeans. The mouse inside is made from felt and handstitched (I made him many years ago).

Country Sunflower/Jean Tree

Poinsietta Tree