Yay!!!! A finish!!!

In the midst of all our preparations for the Pet Show, I managed to finish my Apple of My Eye table topper! 

Yay!

You may remember that this is from Jolie Maxtin's pattern (she was so sweet to even send me a template!) from the Mug Rug Hop....and I had even more help from Jackie when I needed some fabric for the bias binding!  Thanks, ladies!

Here is my finished topper:

Here is a closer peek at the bias binding:
 

I'm loving the back just as much as the front!

I love polka dots!
 

What have you been up to, this weekend?

More merriment and mayhem coming up this week, and the Pet Show begins on the 11th!

Love,

Apple of My Eye!

Yep, some of you sharp eyed quilters guessed it correctly . . . my scrappy project is utilizing some pieces of Apple of My Eye by Amanda Herring of the Quilted Fish!

I also promised to point you to the tutorial that I found my inspiration in -- the oh-so-talented Julie at Jolie Maxtin participated in the April Showers mug rug hop recently organized by Madame at SewWeQuilt. I loved her mug rug, and she offered a lovely tut for her readers.

I asked her about the template that she mentioned in her tutorial, and she is such a sweetheart that she made me one and sent it on to me! I swear, you meet the nicest peeps in the quilting and blogging community, don't you? 

This was something brand new to me, and I also was kinda stretching a bit to go a little more modern in this design. I'm really happy with the results!

There (above) is a picture of the template.

There is my mug rug ready for some quilting. I quilted about 1/4 inch from the piecing seams. 

Then I got out my "thread buryer" and went to work . . . I had some questions on my tool, so I thought I would show you a close up. It is from Clover, and it's called a Soft Touch Thread Pic, and I seriously love how easily it pulls my threads under the fabric, and doesn't leave a tell-tale hole!

It also comes with the cover for the pointy end, that you see above. That's very important for bleary-eyed quilters who are up late at night and into the wee hours . . . (Grin)

I realized when I got the quilting and thread burying completed that I didn't have enough of that lovely blue to make my binding. Oh, the angst! The stress! Whatever would I do?

Enter the heroine -- Jackie over at Jackie's Art Quilts came to my rescue! She had some Apple of My Eye left over and is sending me some! (Waving) Thank you, Jackie! You're awesome!

When I complete this mug rug, I'll post and show you!

I almost forgot....I'm linking up this week with Katherine's Thursday Favorite Things hop, and with Lesley's Create It Thursday hop, too!

Love,

A Finish and a Giveaway!

This giveaway is closed now......
Whilst my sister is still looking the other way, I'll show you her present that I finished! Yay! I love getting presents ready early! (Grin)

Here it is:

It's the Pack and Press bag, from the "An Apple A Day" book --- using the wonderful "Apple of My Eye" fabrics from Amanda at the Quilted Fish, and the pattern designed by Julie (of Intrepid Thread fame) that is included in the book.  Oh, these fabrics are to die for . . . so cute; I love all of the colorways that she created!

I'm telling you, it's a wonderful book --- there are nine different projects in it, and they are all great! From necklaces to placemats to quilts and much more!  Amanda has assembled the Creative Design Consultants, a group of talented women that come up with super ideas and then have the skill to translate those into instructions for folks like you and me!

I'd like to show you how the Pack and Press bag works; there is an ironing surface that folds up and becomes the front of the bag, like so:

See the large green and yellow buttons there? (I was so wanting apple-shaped buttons, but I don't have a local quilt shop near me, and the big box store that I went to didn't have any . . . (Pouting) I guess these will have to do. 

Anyway, there are fabric ties that loop and tie around those buttons. The bag itself can hold a nice large cutting mat, or a big "square 'em up" ruler. And of course, there are all these pockets for supplies that you must carry with you. (You know, the coffee or tea bags, the chocolate, the cookies . . . Ahem.)

This is a perfect project (or gift!) for someone who travels to their LQS or to their guild meeting to do some sewing. 

No more standing in line to use the iron and ironing board . . . just open this baby up, and spread out your own personal ironing surface. The Insul-brite inside will protect the surface that you lay it down upon!

Personally, I just love these fabrics --- I gotta show you one more close-up:

I know, I know . . . I heard some of you squealing --- don't be embarrassed; I feel exactly the same way about these adorable prints!

I happen to know that Julie still has some of these in stock, so you might want to hop over there and check it out, before they're gone!

Now, how would you like to have a book giveaway? Applause, applause! One of the talented designers featured in the book  (well, actually her picture is in the book, but her project and the pattern are the things that are featured!) is the lovely Mistress Brooke, of Silly Mama. She does fabulous things with fabrics, and you should check out her blog, and her Etsy shop. 

Brooke was gracious enough to send me "An Apple A Day" to review, and will provide a copy of the book for one of you lucky peeps!

Let me tell you a little about the book . . . this has to be one of the most inspiring books that I have ever looked through. These ladies dreamed up lovely projects that really let Amanda's fabrics shine. Let me show you just a couple of examples:

This cute quilt is Brooke's project -- scallops and apple appliques....how can you not love it? 

Jackie from Jackie's Art Quilts designed this necklace . . .who wouldn't love to show up at their next guild meeting wearing this stunning piece of art?

And this is Amanda's "Inside the Box" project -- wonderful! I am going to make some of her 3D pincushion flowers to adorn a project that I'm working on. 
I was really impressed with the instructions (easy to understand), the photos (crisp and clear), and the templates (full size, included in the book). This is truly a book that you will get use out of --- it won't just sit on your shelf, I can assure you!
Leave a comment here telling me what your favorite fruit or veggie is. And no, I won't give your comment special consideration if you say "apple." (Grin)
We'll leave this open until Friday, July 27th, then ask Mr. Random to choose, and announce our winner on Saturday. Brooke will ship the book directly to the winner. 
And do me a favor, won't you? If you think there is ANY chance that you might be a no-reply blogger, (like if you are on Google plus or something that doesn't show an email addy) then PLEASE leave me your email as part of your comment!! You can disguise it from spammers by doing this: name(at)domain(dot)com !!
Come on, now, don't be shy --- what's your favorite fruit or veggie?


Love,