Make-A-List Monday - Summer Quilting is Fun!

Hi, all!

Hey, I remembered it's Monday!!  It's been a little crazy around here because my grands were out of town last week.  They didn't get home until Sunday morning (after an eight hour flight delay and a night in the airport), and we are going out of town on Wednesday, so we had dinner tonight instead of Wednesday night.  All of which conspired to make it easy to forget it is actually Monday - but here I am!  So let's take a look at last week's list and see how it went....

1.  Mail those packages!

Done!  And I've been getting thank you e-mails already, so I know they are arriving!

2.  Work on a couple of commission t-shirt quilts.

It's a work in progress, but progressing!  I didn't take any pictures yet, but the blocks are all prepped and ready to be sewn together.

3.  Draw up a plan for some vintage quilt blocks.

I haven't gotten to this one yet.

4.  Quilt four full-size quilts.

5.  Bind two ministry quilts.

Well, I managed to quilt two of the full size quilts, and did the binding - here's the stack I have to take back to church tomorrow, including two that I bound at church and brought home to wash.

6.  Cut out the 12DCIJ prototype quilt (and TAKE PICS!)

Done!  I'll be taking this with me on our trip this weekend, and hope to get the top assembled before we come home.

So while I didn't get everything done, I did get to a good bit!  This week is short because of our trip, but I do have a list, so here goes...

1.  Gather up all my sewing supplies for our trip.

2.  Give Lilli some driving lessons!

3.  Work on assembling the 12DCIJ prototype quilt, and TAKE PICTURES!

4.  If time permits, lay out the first of two t-shirt quilts.

5.  Meet with another customer about a t-shirt quilt commission.

So that's what my week looks like!  I'm kind of excited about this trip - it's a short trip to Sevierville, TN - but we are taking Bree with us for the first time.  I'm interested to see how she handles travel and new surroundings.  Plus she'll be good company for me as I work on my quilt while my husband is off working!

And one other thing - I am looking for bloggers who want to be part of the 12 Days of Christmas in July Blog Hop, so if you are interested, please email me at salliesue57 (at) gmail (dot) com!

So now I really want to know - - - what are YOU working on this week?

Hugs!

Sarah

Christmas Is Only Six Months Away!!!

 

Hi, all!

Yes, I did it - I said it out loud. Officially, today, Christmas is exactly six months away!  And that means that today is the perfect day to put out the call for participants in this year's 12 Days of Christmas in July blog hop!!

Many of you may already know about this from past years, but for anyone new, each year from July 14th to July 25th, we celebrate Christmas in July by sharing all kinds of  Christmas ideas - quilty things, gift ideas, decorations, decor, recipes, traditions, almost anything you can think of!  So if you are an active blogger and would be interested in being one of the stops on this year's blog hop, please email me directly at salliesue57 (at) gmail (dot) com.  And while all that is going on, I'll be hosting a quilt-along on this blog, sharing a Christmas quilt that you can complete in twelve days, following some easy steps.  I'm excited about this year's design - it would be easily adaptable to other holidays or seasons, too - so plan to give it a try!  I'll be posting a picture and fabric requirements prior to the start of everything so you can have it all ready to go on the first day.

I can't wait to hear from you, and see who will be helping host this year's 12 Days of Christmas in July blog hop!!

Hugs!

Sarah

Can I Get a Whoop Whoop? Ministry Quilts Everywhere!

 

Hi, all!

Friday has rolled around once again, and we all know what that means - it's time for us to get our whoop whoop on!!  Are you ready?  Let's get started!

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It's been hard getting back into the swing of things this week, following my time in New Orleans, but I did manage to get some things done!  We are working on another big project for the quilt ministry - not as big as the last two, but still substantial - providing bed quilts for a local women's shelter.  They need five full size quilts, thirteen twin size quilts, plus we are going to send a large stack of kids' lap quilts for extra snuggling.  You may remember that I put together five full size tops, and I've been working on quilting those...

I've quilted two of them, as you can see above, and I've put binding on the top one and finished it, as you can see below!

I did a LOT of binding this week, finishing two at church Tuesday night and three more at home on Wednesday.  The three on the left are for general ministry use, and the two on the right (a twin and a full size) are for the women's shelter.

I also managed to get all the pieces cut out and labeled for the prototype for this year's 12 Days of Christmas in July quilt-along.  And amazingly enough, my calculations turned out to be correct, and I had figured out the right fabric requirements!  I'll be working on this next week when I'm away for a few days with my husband for his work conference.

And I wanted to share this cute little doodle that my youngest granddaughter Emmy did on a napkin the other day - her drawing skill always amazes me, and I love the amount of character these two little guys have!

So - - - can I get a whoop whoop?

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And now it's your turn!

What's got you whooping up this week?

What's making you do a little happy dance?

Share!  We want to dance right along with you,

And it's always more fun to dance with friends!

The party will stay open until Sunday midnight.

Hope to see you there!

Hugs!

Sarah

Make-A-List Monday - Because Tuesday Is The New Monday!

 

Hi, all!

Well, it's been a hot minute since I last posted - summer is hard on regular schedules!  And since my husband was off from work yesterday, I completely lost track of my days and forgot that it was Monday.  Oh well - I guess Tuesday is the new Monday!  

We had a great time in New Orleans - while hubby was working, I managed to get a design drawn up for this year's 12 Days of Christmas in July quilt-along, and even figured out the fabric requirements using (gasp!) pencil, paper and calculator!  

We'll see how accurate it all is once I get started cutting it out!  We also ate a lot of good food - check out these fabulous onion rings we had at Deanie's Seafood in the French Quarter...

Try as we might, we couldn't eat all of them!  New Orleans is a great place for food and we didn't even scratch the surface.  It was hot, though - the heat index was near 100 degrees the whole time we were there.  Tennessee feels cool by comparison!

Once I got home, I did work on packaging up all the remaining prizes for Hands2Help...

You can see my little assistant there - although I did have a larger one, as Lilli helped me get these together.  She's good company!

So now for this week - here's what's on my horizon for the week...

1.  Mail those packages!

2.  Work on a couple of commission t-shirt quilts.

3.  Draw up a plan for some vintage quilt blocks.

4.  Quilt four full-size quilts.

5.  Bind two ministry quilts.

6.  Cut out the 12DCIJ prototype quilt (and TAKE PICS!)

I have a bunch more stuff I could add to this list, but I'm going to stop there because I'm not even sure I'll have time to do all this - but I can at least make a good start on it!

So now, I really want to know - - - what are YOU working this week?

Hugs!

Sarah

Hands2Help Comfort Quilt Challenge 2023 Is In The Books!

 

Hi, all!

We've finally arrived at the end of this year's Hands2Help Comfort Quilt Challenge, and you all did such an excellent job!  At my final count, we had 106 active participants (those who made it all the way to the end of the Challenge), and you all created an amazing number of quilts!  Do you want to know how many?

Isn't that amazing???  Just think of all that love and comfort spread across the world!  I had a sticker on my computer case at one time that said, "Changing The World One Quilt At A Time".  That's what you all are doing each time you donate a quilt to someone.  It feels good, doesn't it?

I have a few more quilt pictures to show you, but before I get to them let's do some housekeeping!  I have a few giveaway winners to announce:

For Emily Bailey's guest post giveaway, which went awry - Connie T. is the winner of a copy of Emily's book!

Karen M. has offered up three prize bundles, which are going to Sheryl K., Rebecca B., and Nancy C.

I had offered up two panels in a previous post, and the two winners are Kathryn L. and Jane S.

And finally, I have eleven more prize bundles, which will be going to: Jamie E., Ann S., Cindy M., Melissa B., Liz H., Ruth C., Diane F., Kathy D., Kathy W., Charmaine T., and Carolyn Br.

Congratulations to all the winners!  Please be patient with us as we get these packages in the mail - I can't testify to Emily and Karen's schedules, but I am out of town until Thursday of this week, so I will be getting these in the mail after that.  

And now for those pictures I promised...

Carol O. made these three beauties - the first one is going to Quilty Hugs, and the other two are being sent to MCC.

And the last of this year's quilts were made by Sandy T., and are all being sent to a group called Wrap The World With Quilts.  Isn't that a great name (and goal)?

And that's a wrap!  Thank you to each and every one of you who participated this year, and to those of you who wanted to, but had life happen and weren't able to.  Remember all the inspiration you've seen and keep making quilts - you are changing the world one quilt at a time, remember?

Hugs!

Sarah

Can I Get a Whoop Whoop? The Last Pictures For H2H 2023....

 

Hi, all!

Well, I only had one more batch of pictures to share, and not much progress on anything of my own to whoop about, so I thought I'd just combine the last H2H pictures with Whoop Whoop Friday!  

Additionally, two things to remember - you can still link up your own blogpost for H2H on last Sunday's blogpost through midnight on Friday night.  And please fill out this very short survey (if you haven't already) to help me be sure I know all the participants and total number of quilts!  It's only three questions, but it's a huge help to me!

And here we go with the last of this year's quilts!!!

First up, is Sherry B. with the two quilts she made for Little Lambs of Utah...

Beryl R. really went to town with her quilt making this year, and has sent these fifteen quilts to Quilts For Kids!!

Isn't that a great collection of cheerful, pretty quilts?  I know that these and all of the quilts donated as part of Hands2Help will be well-loved and bring much comfort to the recipients!!

So - - - can they get a whoop whoop?

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And now it's your turn!

What's got you whooping it up this week?

What's making you do a little happy dance?

Share!  We want to dance right along with you,

And it's always more fun to dance with friends!

The party will stay open until Sunday midnight.

Hope to see you there!

Hugs!

Sarah

Hands2Help Comfort Quilt Challenge 2023 - More Quilts to Share!

 

Hi, all!

And the quilts keep rolling in!  I've got a bunch more beauties to share with you today, but just as a reminder, you can still link up your blogposts by clicking here and scrolling to the link party at the bottom of the post (open until Friday at midnight CST).  Also, if you haven't already, please fill out this quick 3-question survey that will help me track participants and the total number of quilts donated....

And now let's get on the the best part of the post - today's beautiful array of quilts!

This lovely bright sampler quilt was made by Sue S. and gifted to Quilts for Kids...

Marsha P. made this cheerful alphabet quilt for Little Lambs of Utah...

Lisa S. made the next three, two for Quilty Hugs and one for Little Lambs of Utah...

And last but not least, the next ten were made by Diane F. for Hills & Hollers, a local charity!

That's all for today - I'll be back tomorrow with one last batch of eye candy to inspire you for next year!!

Hugs!

Sarah