Varrroooom.... Varrroooom.....

 Hi There!

I think I mentioned before that I had finished my many, many scrappy pieced quilt, from my Bonnie K. Hunter book.

Too tired to remember the name of the book or the pattern, right now, but I've since renamed MY quilt, "Tequila Sunrise" 'cause I liked the small, yellow strip against the red border.

*s*

 

Bonnie DID say that this quilt was HUGE and she was right!!!

*VBG*

And, after spending a couple hours these past 2 days, cleaning up and sorting my leftover scraps, I decided to pull out a "newly acquired" UFO (UnFinished Object).

My Aunt had painted these blocks.  There are 7 antique car blocks and I plan on framing them with black or red, and adding some print blocks and, and...

Well, honestly, I'm not sure yet but I AM sure that I'll figure something out...

And here's another close-up of her painted cars.

I'll keep you posted on how this turns out.

*s*

Rosa

Oh What a Cyn!

My friend, Cyn, sent me 2 adorable fat quarters...

And, another friend, Frummie, sent me some chicken coop fabric. Lots and lots of chicken coop fabric, in fact!

What a sin not to cut into these gorgeous fabrics and DO something with these, eh?

So, table topper flimsy - DONE!

Next? Making kitchen curtains with chicken coop fabric and probably a few appliqued chickens, here and there.

Thanks my friends!!!!!!!!!

Rosa

Meet Herbie and the Boys

 Hi There!

I can't remember if I shared this with you, but I was on "V-A-C-A-T-I-O-N", this past week!!!

I pulled out my Aunt's yellow rose blocks, this week, and started putting them together.

As of 5h30, this afternoon, Gilbert finally finished our Baby Barn!!!

Yes, there's still a few things to do but the building is now "enclosed".

He still has to do the "caulking" and paint the exterior.... It comes with a base - ivory color - primer paint on the outside of the building.

He will be making shelves inside of the barn and transferring all our "stuff" from the old baby barn - on the right hand side - to the new one.

THEN, he will be demolishing it and putting it to the curbside for garbage pickup.

This afternoon, I decided to go to the "Pumpkin Patch" and pick up a few flowers, for our deck.

This was an empty planter and I selected 3 begonias and a heliodrum or heliotrump or some kind of "helio" plant.... Apparently, once it starts blooming, the smell is INCREDIBLE!

Can't wait...

This planter was already filled and "ready" to hang.  It's got TONS of reddish/orangish flowers!!!

This one has black-eyed Susans and some purple flowers.... but I especially loved the "Welcome" sign, on the hanger, itself!

And finally, let me introduce to you

"Herb and the Boys"!!!

From front to back....

Italian Parsley, Spicy Oregano, Basil, Garlic Chives and Frilly Parsley.

(their names as best as I remember them...)

Tomorrow is "Victoria Day", here in Canada and some of us are lucky enough to have the day off.

I'm one of them.

:-)

I plan on hiding in my Sewing Studio, tomorrow... 

Two days sitting on my deck, watching and helping Gilbert and I'm EXHAUSTED!

I need a break!

LOL

Rosa

Meet Me in the Middle

Gilbert now only has to put the middle strip of shingles!!!

Rosa

Hunkerin' Down

Gettin' ready to hunker down and do some serious sewin'...

Breakfast - yogourt
Check!

TouchPad - to check emails, during breaks
Check!

Telephone
Check!

Laundry done and on the line
Check!

Container with wool pieces for hand sewing and appliques
Check!

Sunshine and no wind
Check!

Looks like I'm all set!

Rosa

The Old and the New

Gilbert, working on the roof.

LG (as per Elaine)

Hi There!

Remember my 9 Patch scrappy quilt?  The pattern, "Rick Rack Nines" came from Bonnie Hunter's book called "Adventures in Leaders and Enders" ?

Well, the top is finally finished and I pieced the back, as well.... a-la-Bonnie-Hunter!   I added 3 or 4 orphan 9 Patch blocks and pieced reds and yellows and beiges.... all together!

Gilbert made the label, yesterday evening and it was pieced onto the back, as well!

 Having put that quilt aside, it is now patiently waiting for it's turn with Bertha, our longarm machine and with Gilbert.

After "Tequla Sunrise" was (temporarily) put away, 

I dug out these blocks.

My Aunt asked that I put these blocks together and have it quilted.  She wants to give this quilt to her niece, this summer.

As you can see, I made some progress, by late afternoon.

My Aunt painted these roses with fabric paint, called "Cameo".  

She used to be a "Cameo" representative.

 

As you can tell, I've been a busy and happy camper!

Got this whole week off -

LG - Life is Good!

(as my friend Elaine says... )

Rosa

Inklingo FAQ's

Hi There!

Can you imagine if you were still using your scissors and cardboard templates to make your quilts and someone tried to explain to you, by blog, how easy and simple it was to use a rotary cutter and mat?!?!?

You'd probably STILL be sitting on the fence, with your scissors and collection of cereal box cardboard templates, wondering what the fuss was all about!!!

*s*

In my week's effort to show and share how much fun and how EASY Inklingo can be - how VALUABLE a tool this can be, to make incredibly complicated looking quilts - which are truly very easy to make..... today I've taken the liberty of copying Linda Franz's Inklingo FAQ's, for you.

Here goes....

WHAT PRINTER?
Any ordinary Inkjet printer — like yours! Print shapes on the wrong side of the fabric with the Inkjet printer and color ink cartridge you have already. Fabric feeds smoothly through an Inkjet printer when it is ironed to freezer paper. It prints just like paper.
Any ordinary color Inkjet printer will allow you to print custom sizes to use fabric efficiently.

DO I HAVE TO LEARN NEW SOFTWARE?
No! Pages of Inklingo shapes are organized in PDF files which open with Adobe Reader. There is no software to install. Just enter the page number (or use the bookmark feature) to print the page with
the shape and ink color you need. It’s simple but you will want to read our tips too.

WHAT COLORS?
There are 20 Inklingo colors which are designed to wash out — but even if they don’t, they do not show in the finished quilt. It is simple to choose the page with the best color of ink.

IS THIS JUST FOR HAND PIECING?
No! Sew by machine or sew by hand with a running stitch, or combine hand and machine stitching for a “hybrid.” Inklingo introduces new, simpler ways to stitch. There are instructions for piecing and appliqué on the web site and in the Inklingo Handbook.

CAN A BEGINNER DO THIS?
Yes! Inklingo is perfect for beginning quilters and for children too. Cut with a rotary cutter or scissors. No measuring! Just cut and sew along the lines. There is straight grain on every piece. Inklingo makes it easier than ever to start quilting.

What am I doing today?


Heading off the the fish market to pick up a few lobster and then, heading off to visit my parents and have a lobster feast - my treat!


Wishing you all a

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!!!


Rosa

May e-Newsletter

Hi There!

*wiping her hands*

I've finally caught up with my e-Newsletter sharing!  *grin*

Here's the latest one:

******************************

Hi Everyone!

This is taken from the WesTide magazine:

“The 3^rd annual Quilt Show, Sale & Meal will be held on Saturday, May 5^th at the Wirral Community Hall (6772 Rte 101 Wirral), sponsored by the Wirral Hospital and Community Aid Group. The Quilt Show & Sale, consisting of quilts, jewellery, white elephant/bake tables, will be held from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. Tickets will be available on the May Day basket and a Quilt draw.

The meal will be served from 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. and the menu will include: potato salad, beans & ham plate, rolls, strawberry shortcake and/or apple crisp, tea/coffee.  Tickets are $8/adults and will be available at the door. Take-outs will also be available. 

For more information on the May 5^th event or the mission of the group, please email: gwillis@nbnet.nb.ca or phone 687-4511.”

NOTE:    To get to Wirral, you drive to Welsford. Turn at the Irving garage and head towards Fredericton…. On the old road.  Wirral is just past Clarendon.

The Kingston Farmer’s Market opens up again for the season…..  May 5^th -  this Saturday, as well.

Here’s their FaceBook page:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kingston-Farmers-Market-Kingston-NB/212843998745952

There’s supposed to be live entertainment, plenty to eat, homemade soaps…. Hopefully lots of crafty items.

A fun time for market goers, I’m surell!

I can’t remember if I shared this recipe with you, before, but here’s a great recipe to remove pencil lines from your quilt top:

1/4 cup water
3/4 cup rubbing alcohol
7-8 drops of Palmolive liquid detergent

Mix and apply with a toothbrush

Apparently, no other liquid detergent will work as well – you truly DO need to use Palmolive.

Gilbert and I safely and easily removed the pencil marks from one of my quilts… no problem.

  

A quilter is:

Someone who assiduously clips coupons and hunts for bargains at the Supermarket, but buys untold yards of fabric, regardless of price.

Someone who pays to have her ironing done, but thinks nothing of standing for hours pressing twenty yards of fabric for a quilt.

Someone who sees life through the eye of a needle, and that is a very special thing.

Someone who is bored silly hearing about other people's dumb hobbies, such as sky-diving, motor cycling or stamp collecting, but constantly fascinates
everyone she comes in contact with by sharing her quilts and quilting experiences.

Someone who has not been able to balance her check book since March 1979, but can figure the yardage requirements for a Log Cabin Quilt and have just
enough left over for a pin cushion.

Someone who enjoys sewing a quilt, but hides the mending until the garments are either outgrown or out of style.

Someone who cannot see cobwebs hanging from the ceiling, dust balls under the bed or a sink full of dirty dishes, but can thread a size 10 needle in
the dark.

Author Unknown.

Have you ever considered doing mitered borders on your quilt?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-yGwCdfjQys

NOTE:  The video hit a “burp” towards the end…. But I was still able to figure out the end.

If some of you have received a weird email from me with just a link…. PLEASE do NOT open it!!!   My email has been hacked and I “think” I’ve fixed it….  And please accept my apologies.

With this note, I’ll finish my e-Newsletter with a …..

Have a very, VERY Happy Mother’s Day!!!

Rosa and Gilbert

 

At the beginning of each month (or there abouts), I will be sending you an e-Newsletter.  If you no longer wish to receive it, please reply to this message and ask to be removed from the list. I will gladly remove your name.

April e-Newsletter

Hi There!

Here's April's e-Newsletter:

********************************

Hi There!

Sorry I’m late sending out April’s e-Newsletter.  Time ran away from me and I’m slowly trying to catch up with it!

Do you love pincushions like I do?  Here’s a web site with LOTS of heee-zeee smeee-zeee tutorials for pincushions:

http://www.rileyblakedesigns.com/cutting-corners/category/pincushions/

Did you ever see something and think, “Duh!  Now why didn’t I think of this?!??”

A practical and easy way to make pincushion!

http://icanfindthetime.blogspot.ca/2010/07/sewing-machine-pin-cushion.html

  

My blogging friend, Pat, wrote about cleaning your cutting mat:

http://patspattering.blogspot.ca/2012/03/cleaning-your-cutting-mat.html

Didn’t even think about cleaning it…. Makes sense, though, eh?

For the chess players out there:

http://www.stashbooksblog.com/2011/12/when-a-bobbin-is-just-a-pawn/

And because I like to add an off-topic link, here’s a great way to convert a bar of soap into liquid soap. It apparently takes about 20 minutes and can save you oodles of money!   More money = more fabric and sewing notions, right?!??!

http://www.thefarmersnest.com/2011/11/liquid-hand-soap-diy.html

I received this link, this week.  A ONF/NFB film that I had seen a while back but it still fascinates me!

http://www.nfb.ca/film/quilt

I can’t remember if I mentioned this before, but I’ve been following a free BOM (Block Of the Month) with adorable, wool appliquéd rabbits. The blog and BOM designer said that she will be removing the BOMs off the internet as soon as they’re posted…. But so far, the 1^st three are still there. Today, she published BOM #4.  If you’re not interested in making them right now, I would recommend that you save or print the BOMs for a future date.  She publishes them on the 15^th of each month.

The BOM is called “The Adventures of Harrington and Hannah”:

http://theraspberryrabbits.com/dynamic/?page=5

Remember my newest idol – Bonnie Hunter?  I call her the Queen of Scraps.  Bonnie writes that you can get an XXL (cotton) man’s shirt for 25 or 50 cents at yard sales…. And there’s much more fabric in a LARGE man’s shirt than in fat quarters!  LOL

Here’s Bonnie’s first(?) video on how she de-bones a shirt::

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zS-09AYE0fM&feature=player_embedded

I just found another easy-to-make quilty project that I was supposed to share with you, during last December’s e-Newsletter but I completely forgot!  Sorry ‘bout that but, on the bright side…. You now all have an early start and can make a bunch of these for Christmas, eh?  LOL

For Ear buds:

http://erinerickson.com/2011/11/circle-zip-earbud-pouch-tutorial/

And these look pretty nifty, as well…

http://www.etsy.com/listing/62485800/earlaces-lime-forest

(sssshhhh…. These should be pretty easy to make…. Just sayin’….)

Now, if some of you are looking for my previous e-Newsletters, I am slowing adding them to my blog:

http://www.robich.blogspot.ca/

Scroll waaaay down and on the right hand side, you’ll see “e-Newsletter” listed under Labels – click on “e-Newsletter”….. or you can do a Search for

“e-Newsletter”.

Hope you all had a wonderful Passover and Easter!

Gilbert and Rosa

http://3aquilting.no-ip.biz/

 

At the beginning of each month (or there abouts), I will be sending you an e-Newsletter.  If you no longer wish to receive it, please reply to this message and ask to be removed from the list. I will gladly remove your name.

March e-Newsletter

Hi There!

As promised, I told you that I would be trying to catch up on sharing our "e-Newsletters".  Here's March's e-Newsletter that I had emailed to our subscribers...

**************************

Hi there!

(time sensitive topics have been removed)

Also, just today, I received an interesting web page from one of my email friends.  This web site has different antique quilts for sale.  S’nice to browse around and view them.

http://www.stellarubinantiques.com/

Keep in mind that some of these quilts, made in the 1800’s, for example, didn’t have shop quality fabrics and 100% cotton thread and HEY!  These quilts are still around…. Just saying…

Rosa and Gilbert

http://3aquilting.no-ip.biz/

Rosa’s Personal blog:

http://www.robich.blogspot.com/