Five Shadows

Liz is offering these snazzy earrings in her “Keep the Flow Going” giveaway. Go throw your name in the hat! Very Pretty Earrings!  Hope I win!

I’ve been busy flying on my Magic Carpet around the world in Blog Land! I’ve met so many wonderful people and am admiring their creativeness! This all through One World One Heart hosted by Lisa of A Whimsical Bohemian. Check it out! And you can join in through Feb 8th!

I finished this tote today.

It is going to a friend I will visit with later this evening. Shanette, director of Kibbutz El-Shammah, is here in the USA visiting from South Africa! Friends and I have made several quilts for the staff of the Kibbutz, and I wanted to give her a little something at our visit tonight. If I find an updated link to the Kibbutz – I’ll update this post.

Last week I finished this pillow – another one for my daughter. This is a Pink Chalk Studio Pattern – free download. (Thank you Kathy!)

Next up is a braided table runner. I really need to clean the kitchen so you can see how great it looks on the counter! My DH remodeled the kitchen two summers ago. We did a good job of taking the during pictures – but not good at posting or showing the completed job! Must put that on the ‘to do list’!

And here is my Block of the Month (BOM) hosted by 3 Creative Studios. Pop on over if you are interested in joining in! Plus they have lots of other goodness offered on their website! Check ‘em out!

Girls are away on a road trip to DC for the March for Life so Hubby and I ate out at Taste of India last night. I was not sure how we would fare but everything we ordered, with the help of our waiter, was excellent! I had only eaten Indian cuisine maybe twice before and had help selecting items from friends. And some of the items I did like and others ….

Last night I started with a Lassi drink – the mango flavored one – delish!

We ordered an appetizer sampler: Samosa (highly recommended by one of my daughters), pakora which is a vegetable fritter (our favorite on the platter), and a vegetable cutlet (not sure of the name.)

Next we ordered tikka masala – very good! And an other sampler – with three chicken samples, lamb and the best ever shrimp. Saying ‘best ever shrimp’ is really saying something girls! Because I grew up near the Chesapeake Bay area – and we are picky about our shrimp and crab! We also ordered a bread basket with several flavors/spiced Nan and some stuffed with lamb or potatoes like in the Samosa. Not sure what the stuffed flat bread is called. We did not have room for dessert. Maybe next time, because we will go back! And can you guess we took lots home in a ‘doggy bag’? Yum! We had a nice lunch today from the left overs. (The Nan warms up well in the toaster!)

As posted earlier, I’ve joined the group One Project a Month (OPAM) as incentive to myself to create and blog about it. I have two new projects to show so far for January.

This is called Wonky Half Log Cabin Pillow, from a tutorial on Jacquie Gering’s blog,  Tallgrass Prairie Studio.  (Jadquie has lots of tutorials available, and I must say, this one was very well written! It’s the only one I’ve used so far.) I love this design! I made a quilt similar to this years ago and donated it to an auction. Years ago as in before my blog existed! This pillow is for my daughter. I have a Chevron quilt in progress for her, and used the left over strips for the pillow.

This is the front cover to a little tote that opens like a book. I made this as a gift for the OWOH project that starts January 25. Come back to my blog on the Jan 25 – Feb 15 for a chance to win it! The design could also be altered to create a journal cover – I’m thinking of future projects here.

I can’t count this one for OPAM, because I finished in back in July. That was when I planned on being busy making Christmas gifts for 2009 – my personal Christmas-In-July-Sewing-Event! But this is the only one I completed! LOL I still plan to send it to my MIL as a thank-you for the Christmas gifts she sent our family. I think the snowmen can be displayed throughout the winter season.  It is small, 8″ across, and I think could be used as a candle mat, coffee mat or just a decoration. And if it gets used as a pot holder – I’m OK with that too!

There is a link on the side bar to OPAM if you are interested in seeing what the other 199 ladies are working on this year!  And do check out Lisa’s OWOH Event to join in the blog hopping to see what hundreds of other creative people are up to and consider joining too! All the rules are posted on the event page.

I saw the badge for OPAM, One Project a Month, on Melissa’s blog. And I got to thinking – I could do this – I have a long list of WISP, Works in Slooooooow Progress! – I have another list of projects I’d like to complete this year – I have a list of projects I’ve unearthed as I moved and organized my ‘space.’ So, I took the jump and signed up! It is all for fun. A kind of motivation to complete projects. Hosted by Kris and Peg. Read all about it on their blogs or the OPAM blog.

On New Year’s Day my two teen daughters woke up with the question, “What are we doing today?” I answered that they had the go-ahead to swap rooms. Youngest gets the room left vacant by an older sibling moving out. Next-in-line gets to move into the spare bedroom we have set up as a library/sewing room. Library moves into the room the girls are leaving, called the bunkbed room. It has two sets of built in bunkbeds, two built in desks and a built in dresser. Three closets, one a walk-in. I get just over half of the space in the bunkbed room as my sewing room! Should I call it my quilting studio?! The upside for me is my former sewing space was 6′ x 6′ in a 10′ x 16′ room, and it will be a 13′ x 13′ space in a room that is 13′ x 24′.  True it does have the disadvantage of two sets of built in bunkbeds. But hmmm. That could be more storage space, right?

Here is my former space.

There is usually a love-seat in front of the bookshelves full of fabric – but it moved with elder child moving out. So I just counted the 6′ x 6′ square of space of the white cabinet and desk that my sewing machine sits on.

Here is half of the vacant bunkbed room waiting for all the library stuff and my quilting stash!

There is a built-in dresser to the left of the desk and then the room is a mirror image of this photo. You are looking into the room from the doorway. At first I thought I’d set up the quilting in this right half of the room. But sons want this half for the computer desk. I get the other side of the room. I’m not showing my new space in all its disarray right now, but I will show the new set up once it is organized!

Melissa has received her gift and is pleased with it! I can’t wait another second to show off the gifts because I’m so excited about them!  So hopefully Lenna has received hers as well!  I really like them and will be making more as gifts. In fact I made one yesterday to be my One World One Heart gift. Here is what I made for Melissa:

And this one is for Lenna – she just moved to Florida so I went with the palm tree theme:

These are 12″ x 12″ totes, with a fabric  collage of my own design as the cover, and then on the inside are plastic baggies to hold your art/sewing supplies. I suggest NOT storing scissors in the baggies! There is ribbon to tie the tote closed. No matter what your art/craft, I think these are good for traveling. I have kept my hand quilting supplies in one for years. I just grab it to travel on trips and to take classes. Mine was a gift from a quilting friend years and years ago. If a baggie blows out, just cut it out. If they all get worn out, cut them out and add more in by sewing another center strip of fabric in place.

Happy New Year all!  2010  A new decade!

I’m not doing a ‘resolution’ this year, not even claiming a word or phase to live by for the new year. Last year I decided to live ‘guilt free’ by not taking on projects that I really did not want to do – by not letting people ‘guilt’ me in to doing things, and I can say I’m pleased with how the year turned out!

Here are some of the things I did take on and am pleased with the results: participated in Swaps hosted by Creative Lenna,  took part in Lisa’s One World One Heart project, hosted a five day quilting retreat for 20 some ladies with two other friends, directed the planning and hosting of a formal dance (the kids call it a prom) for 179 teens, taught Sunday School for 5 year olds for two months (what a fun age!), organized a canvas bag swap with a group of 12 quilting friends (results should be up soon, this ended up being a true challenge just getting the bags swapped out!), went on a summer quilting retreat with 4 friends (that was a blast!), offered a generosity project, organized an on-going community service class for the teen group, moved one adult child out and one back home (the eldest ran out of money while in grad school – he is responsible and this is only temporary – that is   what I keep telling myself! LOL!), helped a friend organize her house, pack and prepare to move to SC. I signed up with the paper/cloth group with Belinda (but alas, have not enjoyed the process – ME, not the group! I love looking at what they have created!), took part in 3 Creative Studios BOM.  That’s the list I can come up with  for last year. I’m thinking it looks pretty good!

For the New Year, I’m continuing the 3 Creative Studio (3 CS) BOM, have signed up for the 3 CS Quilt Challenge (first word for the challenge was revealed today!), have promised to teach two months of 5 year old Sunday School, will join the One World One Heart Project, am planning another formal dance for the teen group, and have joined a collage group. Tis it for now!

But lurking in the background is a possible out of state move. My hubby’s job ends in mid-May. Who knows where we will end up!

I hope you will all have a prosperous, guilt-free, and happy New Year!