HONEYBEE RETREAT

Here I am at the Honeybee Retreat with teacher, Harriet Hargrave. I'm the old, tired, perplexed looking one, seated, trying to wrap my brain around these ideas. Harriet is the younger, perkier one, who quilts expertly on a home sewing machine.

Honestly this is the most intense class I've ever taken. Harriet is a slave driver! We start half an hour earlier than posted, take half the posted lunch time, and no breaks unless you sneak out!

Mind you, I'm not complaining. The class is excellent, and Harriet gives 200% and expects the same of her students. But, phew! I'm tired. And I'm with her for a third day tomorrow!

Carol, my dear friend who's here with me, had a hard time getting this picture, as Harriet is glad to take a photo, but she is not happy when anyone wants to take their mind off the quilting. Keep your mind focussed! Pictures distract. Yikes! Retreat has always been fun. This is intense! I've barely seen Carol, and I don't think the fun will start until after 5:00 tomorrow, when Harriet releases us. Well it will be more like 5:30 or 6:00 or whenever the guild comes in and says the next group needs the room!

I'm not complaining! Really the class is EXCELLENT! She just has so much to offer in so little time, my brain is spinning!

Off to enjoy a glass of wine in my pj's.

INTERNATIONAL SIGGIE ARRIVES

This wonderful siggie arrived in the mail from Australia yesterday. Helen hand embroidered the koala on a limb, and used an Aussie print for the block. She also included a letter and this wonderful card depicting native Australian designs. Just when I was thinking maybe I was done with the International Siggie Swap, this one arrives, and of course I'm staying in now. If you are interested, there's a link scrolling down on my sidebar.

AUTUMN LEAVES SWAP

The last of the batik Autumn Leaves Swap blocks arrived from Canada in today's mail, so I had time to swap them out before leaving for Honeybee. Here are all 61 sets. I'm eager to get going on my quilt. I have the pattern all picked out and the coordinating fabrics are ready to go. Now a quick trip to the Post Office tomorrow to mail these out to their owners.

PACKING FOR HONEYBEE

The theme for the Honeybee Quilter's Retreat this year is 'Quilt Safari'. I'm getting ready to leave on Wed. morning, and today rounded up some of my gear -- my ape, Hairy, my Sigfried and Roy tiger, 'African' noise makers from Disney's Animal Kingdom, and of course my blue pith helmet! You never know what you might encounter on safari so the helmet might come in handy. Now to get the quilting stuff ready..............

FINAL LEAVES FOR SWAP

Finally finished! My last sets for the swap are on the top and right. The left leaf is a loner, I'm keeping. Fortunately they don't have far to travel, because I barely made the deadline! But since I'm the hostess they've arrived here in the nick of time, LOL! No mailing needed.

MORE LEAVES FALLING

And another 4 sets. 2 more sets are all cut and waiting to go.

FLORIBUNDA

The One Piece at a Time blog is offering free applique lessons, with great photos, as well as a free BOM, Floribunda, using the techniques. This is the first block. The generosity and talent of quilters never ceases to amaze me. There will be 12 blocks in all, and Erin has also designed a center medallion. I've added this to blogs I'm following and also a link on my sidebar.

AUTUMN LEAVES

Today I'm working on 6" autumn leaf blocks for a swap. We are making sets of 5. So far I have 5 sets done, 4 shown here. We're using batiks in autumn colors for the leaves and batik off-white/cream/etc. for the background. I already have a quilt picked out to make from the leaves, so I hope to get 10 sets done soonest, before the deadline. That would give me 50 different leaves to work with in the quilt.

WHAT IS LOVE? stitchery

Designer, Val Laird, has been publishing a free BOM timed to end Feb. 13. I just found it today, but all the patterns are still up until 2/13/10. It is so sweet, and I think it would make a super wedding or anniversary gift. The stitcheries are very small and there's only eight of them. Val used them as a table runner, and gives directions for that too.

You can link from here and I'll place a link on my side bar too.

St. Patrick's Swap Arrives

I had literally just finished packing up my candle mat to put in the mail for the St. Patrick's Day Candle Mat Swap on The Quilted Table group, when I went to the mailbox to retrieve today's mail. Hmmm............a box from Barbara B. .............hmmm...............do I know her?................what is this..........

Upon opening the box, I realized that it is my St. Patrick's Day candle mat swap! Then, WOW, knocking off my socks (which I didn't have on with my flip flops here in FL), it is amazing...............it is gorgeous...............it is beautiful Celtic knot applique! Something I would love to learn to do! Oh my! I LOVE IT!!! It wraps in/under/around/through all in perfect curves! Thanks so much Barbara! You sure made my day/month/etc.! She even included a St. Pat's FQ and Favorite Findings. Doing the Happy Dance here, and feeling very Irish!

DEAR JANE HOLIDAY SWAP BLOCKS ARRIVE

Look what arrived in the mail today! These tiny 4.5" Dear Jane blocks are from the holiday swap and have come from as far as Belgium and Norway. Some need a trim (many of us make the outside edges larger and then the receiver trims), and then I'll get proper pictures posted, but I just couldn't wait for that. Ooh, what wonderful ideas are dancing in my head for these 25, plus the 5 of my own that I kept. Ooo, La, La!

SYLVIA'S BRIDAL SAMPLER PROGRESS

SBS block of the week is up and running after taking a break for the holidays. This is the current BOW, C-5, Lady of the Lake. These are 6" blocks and the quarter is for perspective as to how tiny those triangles really are. There are 34 pieces in this one. Blocks like this are why I love paper piecing.

IRISH PLAID

This afternoon I tried out this Irish Plaid block. It's paper pieced. I'm not sure if I have the patience to make an entire quilt of this block, but it would be stunning the way the plaid weaves together in a single block, let alone when you put blocks together. It's a free pattern on Quilter's Cache.

I've always been fascinated by all things Irish. After all, my name is Patricia, and I do have a smidgen of Irish in my heritage.

FROZEN FLORIDA

If you are freezing up north and are thinking a trip to Florida might be just the thing, think again! My husband and I took these pictures of an orchard just north of Disney World this afternoon.



The farmers keep the irrigation spray going to try to insulate the fruit. Mother Nature takes over and presents this amazingly beautiful, albeit absurd, landscape.

VALENTINE CANDLE MAT

This past weekend I finished this candle mat challenge for The Quilted Table group. It's a free pattern located here. But I switched it up and used the same fabric for all 4 backgrounds and added sashing. It's fun to take a pattern and make it your own.

ANOTHER NEW FREE BOM QUILT

Sindy, over at Fat Cat patterns is offering this wonderful row by row quilt pattern this year. Isn't it wonderful? I love 'cute', I love applique, oh dear, so many quilts, so little time.

QUILT BARNS

The 2010 BOM from The Golden Thimble is a quilt featuring barns with quilts on them. I love to see those barns when I'm driving in the country 'up north'. The barn remains the same each month (with different fabrics, but the same block), but the quilt on the barn will be different. Can't wait to see these tiny quilts on the barns! I'm not sure I have time to start anything new just now, but we'll see. I will definitely save the patterns and have added a link on my side bar.

FALL FANCY, STEP 1

I finished Step 1 of Fall Fancy BOM this morning. I'm giving myself a little pat on the back here, as I was afraid with the holidays and guests, I wouldn't finish before the next step is posted. So far, so good. I posted my fabrics, which are all from stash, a few posts back.

This is a free BOM on the Burning the Midnight Oil yahoo group, which can be found here. The pattern is by Heather Finnell. The directions are probably the clearest, easiest to follow, that I've ever seen.

SNOWBOUND

Bunny Hill is starting a new BOM for 2010, called Snowbound. This is just how I like my snow -- in fabric only, LOL! Here's a link to it. There will be a new block on the 5th of the month all year. I added a link on my side bar.

LAST PROJECTS OF 2009

My last project completed in 2009 was making chenille potholders. I've had the chenille cutter forever but never got around to trying it out. The tops are above and the backsides below. I love how the plaid of the homespun barely shows on the chenille. These were very quick and easy to make, and I can see using them as small gifts for folks. Everyone uses potholders.

HOW DO YOU JOIN BLOCK LOTTO?

Several have left this question on my blog, but with "no-reply" email. I'd love to email you the answer, but I can't, due to a setting you have selected to not leave your email addy with your comment. Frustrating!

But, I don't want you to miss the joy of the Block Lotto Blog, so go to my previous post, click on the title, or the different colored words in my post, and it will take you to the blog. Anyone can join. Just make some blocks!

Hugs to all my readers,
Pat from FL and MI

BLOCK LOTTO FOR JANUARY

The Block Lotto group is planning to offer "Liberated" blocks for 2010. I took a class with Gwen Marsten on Liberated Stars, and it is really fun to not worry about everything being just 'so'. In fact with liberated blocks, the idea is to be wonky in the block construction, varying how each block looks, but you need the blocks to end up the correct size.

The January block is Tick-Tac-Toe. Picture x's and o's in the quilting. I think it would make a wonderful child's quilt. The blocks go together very quickly, and I made my nine completely from stash.

FOUR MORE POLKA DOTS

Today I finished stitching down four more polka dot blocks. Actually I did five, but one was an exact opposite of one of the ones I made the other day, and you can only use a fabric combination once. So I will enter 8 blocks in the lotto this month.

MERRY CHRISTMAS, DEAR FRIENDS!

On Christmas Day, at half-past three, brew yourself a cup of tea.
I'll think of you, and you'll think of me, while sitting around the Christmas tree.

Merry Christmas to all my quilting friends all around the world!

My dear friend, Carol, and I often say this little saying to each other -- leaving out the Christmas bit. I'll email her, "Hey Carol, it's half-past three. I'm thinking of you. Are you thinking of me?" and vice-versa. It's nice to see this sweet poem surface on the SBS list this year, coming from Connie.

Oh, and proper tea drinkers, I know that cup is turned wrong, but I wanted you to be able to see the "Family and Friends". The other side says, 'The stories never end." It's perfect to use for half-past three tea during the Christmas season.

BLOCK LOTTO

While blog hopping, I noticed a link to Block Lotto Blog. What fun! I always enjoy joining in-person block lottos. But I didn't realize there was an on-line group doing it.

In 2009 they have been using traditional blocks. I have never seen the block before. It was first published in 1958 in a pamphlet called Easy Quilts by Aunt Martha Studios. I can't imagine getting perfect circles was easy with cardboard templates in 1958, but it is easy with KK Buckley Perfect Circles! And all done by hand -- love it!

These are my first 4 blocks. They are 6" finished size with 4" circles. You can make up to nine blocks this month, so I may do five more. It's very quick.