Summer of Organizing, Reading, Researching and Dresdens!

Its been so long since I've blogged on here - i'm not sure where to start to catch up!  I decided this summer, I will focus on organizing my home, reading 12 books, catching up on family history and spending more time in my sewing room. Three outa 4 isn't bad....reading, researching and sewing Dresdens!!!

Have sewn quite a bit, but thought I'd share my Dresden's today...the first one here, I made for my sis for her birthday, just made up my own pattern.

Just plain scrap fabric here, so used my dresden ruler and thought this looked cute on my painted milk stool.

A lone dresden, with no home yet...but think this one would be adorable on a pillow...love the colors!

This used to be a piece of scrap fabric that covered an ugly printer and its cords in my sewing room. I repurposed it into a cute apron and added a signuature dresden to the linen flap. I will have to add an upcycle/repurpose section, as there are several projects I'd like to share.

This is probably my favorite Dresden....not fancy quilt fabric, saw this at Joanns and bought several different varieties and it was waiting to be used. I sat outside and decided to hand quilt the top. This one is a true hotpad with the insul-bright sandwiched in!

Adding a side link to follow my 12 Books of Summer, but also excited about starting a monthly book club for our DAR Chapter! Some of my favorite summer readings so far...the Amish series by Linda Castillo...these are great and even listened to a few on audio as a travelled to my folks this summer...and I never figured out the ending once! Audiobooks make a great stress reliever as your driving home from work. Currently reading JLBs 'Wayfayering Stranger'...this is the Holland series..and of course its amazing. Picked up a Nelson Demille book 'Night Fall' about the TWA flight 800 tragedy back in 1996, and the conspiracy theory that it was downed by an STA missile. Really enjoyed this book too, except for the ending...hated it. Interesting that a book almost 20 years old makes you think 'how could that ever happen?', and it just did last week in the Ukraine. One last amazing author to mention, great summer reading series...Karen White and her Tradd Street Novels, set in Charleston...became obsessed with those too! I'm counting my twelve as from Memorial Day to Labor Day...12 books should be a breeze, I think I'm almost there!

Quilt Shops - my newest Obsession!

I remember when I had just learned to crochet back in 2002, I was OBSESSED with yarn and going to yarn stores, and buying yarn online.  Now 11 years later, I don't have a linen closet, I have a yarn closet....I also have 2 big bins in my sewing room full of yarn!  Love yarn.

Now that i'm learning to quilt, my new obsession is fabric.  But unlike with crochet, i'm actually using the fabric to make quilts!  I have 4 started....

• Tumbler (Moda Winter Elegance) - top finished - working on binding
• Apple Core (Riley Blake Sweetest Thing) - 2 charm packs cut out - waiting on more fabric
• Fussy Cut Bird Quilt - trying to make sure I really know what i'm doing!
• Friendship Braid - One jelly roll cut out (laundry basket) - 2nd roll just arrived!

I bought fat quarters to make the adorable Swoon Quilt - but I'm not starting until I finish at least one of the above....quilted et al.

I was in Oklahoma February 1st and on the way, I stopped in Whitesboro, TX at the Kaleidoscope QuiltShop.  This shop is adorable..its owned by two sisters.  They have a great bin in the back that has lots of sale items.  I like to shop for fat quarters in their sale bin - they are only $1.49 each!  Here's my haul...(the bobbins are for my bias tape i've been making...and from the Antique store a few doors down)

 

Whitesboro is a quaint little town just south of the Oklahoma border.  Adorable downtown with great little antique shops and yummy restaurants. 

Moma and I decided to go have breakfast Saturday morning at the cafe where JoHannah works, so we could see how cute she is waiting on everyone.  After breakfast, mom and I headed to Nancy's Trunk Quilt Shop in Ripley, OK.  What's great about her quilt shop - is all her quilts hanging from rafters - and she really does have trunks full of quilts to pull out and show.  Nancy is so friendly and helpful.  She and her husband run the quilt store, he works on antique sewing machines and they offer them to sell there, along with fabrics, patterns, kits, etc.  I'm saving for a featherweight as we speak!  I managed to score a Christmas jelly roll for our jellyroll race coming up next weekend.  Nancy showed us her race quilts and she added large appliques to hers...and i'm so gonna steal that idea!  

Moma looked so pretty too!  She had her Valentine's outfit on.  I snapped a pic of her in the car.

After shopping at Nancy's we went to Perkins to Sasser & Co and I found a few jars for my sewing room....love that place too!

Great blue jar (from the Liberty Church thrift shop for my crochet hooks) and the Ball jar filled with antique embroidery threads from Sasser & Co.  The rolling pin is so unique, its cut in half with slots for recipe cards or old photos.  Can't wait to hang it in my kitchen.

I started my love of quilting, after I bought my Singer 160th Anniv edition.  I started looking at You-tube quilt tutorials and discovered...the tutorials of The Missouri Star Quilt Co.... I was hooked.  I started watching the videos, shopping online.  They have great prices, awesome daily deals, reasonable shipping and best of all - great tutorials!  This month there is a quilters magazine totally devoted to the MSQC, their family and their followers.  I probably order from them a few times a month....and with every order there's a short personalized thank you!

I knew I loved the MSQC since my first package arrived from Hamilton, MO...but guess what - I just found out - they love me back! Ahhh!!