B is for....................

B is for Burrrr.................

It was so cold that this is what we were greeted with this morning

It was 27 degrees when I got up, and apparently we had a pipe burst :-( We do not usually have this kind of problem in Central Florida.

Hubby and BIL had to turn the water off at the well as the valves would not shut off in the house!


What a way to start the day.

Be sure to sign up for my Sew Mama Sew Giveaway here.

Guess I won't be doing much quilting today. Stay warm :-)

Sew Mama Sew Giveaway

Today is the day. Today starts the Sew, Mama, Sew! Giveaway day. This is such a great way to meet so many new people and visit their blogs. If this is your first visit to my blog, welcome!

Today I am giving away a Christmas Table Runner. Right in time to decorate your Christmas table.


Actually it's not quilted yet, but it will be by December 17th, which is the last day to enter this giveaway.

So here is the what you need to do to enter:

1. Please leave a comment on this post for your name to be put in the drawing.
2. Because I love hearing from all of you, I am also going to include your name a second time if you are a follower or become a follower. Please leave a second comment.
3. Giveaway open to any and all who comment.

Please be sure I have a way to contact you. Leave me an e-mail address if you are no-reply.

Enjoy visiting all of the participants in the SMS Giveaway Day!

A little bit of............

Red .......and a little bit of......Green.

What can it mean??

Check back on Monday :-)

The Cutting Edge

Thanks for all the positive comments about my product review. I found it interesting that a couple of the comments mentioned that the sharpener can actually wear the blade down. It was something that I wondered about myself as I used the ruler. Being that I have various sizes of rulers that do their own little jobs, I don't think I would use The Cutting Edge for every project. But it most certainly did make a difference in the performance of my blade.

I did find a website if you are interested in more information about the rulers and Sullivan's other products.

One other thing I'd like to mention is my cutting mat. I have always used an Olfa cutting mat. I have found that the Olfa mat and my Olfa Rotary cutter appear to compliment each other. I get a much longer life on my blades by using them as a companion. I've used Olfa for over 25 years of quilting. I have three mats, all different sizes. I could not be happier with their product.

And guess what the mailman brought? A little surprise package!

That sweet Carrie from "A Passion for Applique" sent the cutest little Christmas present. And YES I did open it :-)

Thanks Carrie. Your thoughtfulness is always appreciated.

Have a Happy Quilting day!

Product Review

Where does the time go? How do the minutes, no the hours slip by so quickly. Doesn't it seem like we should have MORE hours in the day to work our craft??

One thing I did recently was try out my new ruler The Cutting Edge. This ruler sharpens my rotary blade as it cuts my fabric.

I could actually tell the difference after the very first cut. I was able to cut four layers of fabric with ease and no tags.

I found there were some good points and some not so good. First, like I mentioned, the rotary seemed to cut with new life. Like it was a fresh blade. Which is a wonderful thing, as the blades can be quite costly.

The ruler is well marked, however, I had a little bit of difficulty with the frosted background. Cutting into the light fabric was not a problem.

I could see lines and numbers clearly.

But when I needed to cut into darker fabric, I found the frosting on the plexi to be difficult to see the squaring up lines.

Is it a good ruler? Yes. Could the manufacturer make any improvement? I think yes. If there is some way to make the plexi clear I think it would be a much better tool. Would I buy it again? YES! I love the idea of sharpening my rotary blade as I cut my fabric.

Have you tried these rulers? I bought a 6 1/2 x 18 1/2 as this was a size I did not already own. Most of my rulers are only 5 or 6", so the new one gives me a little more width to work with. And I like the 18 1/2", as it is not too long, and not too short. A good all round size for many different projects.

Let me know if you have tried these rulers, and tell me what you think about them.

And in the meantime........ Happy Quilting.

Need a quick gift idea??

There are so many wonderful tutorials out there in blog land. If you have one that you enjoy, I'd love to hear about it.

But for today, grab your cuppa of coffee or hot tea and visit these interesting and informative blogs.

As always we love to read Karen's very creative Tool Time Tuesday. And today is no exception. Check out her repurposed gift tags. I just might have to get one of those big round punches.

A while back Sew Prim Khris did a very cute tutorial on making a Needlecase. What a great gift idea for a hand quilter.

This is one of my all time favorite Travel-sized Tissue Cozy patterns. Last year I made a ton of these. Kim shared her easy tutorial on "an oft traveled road".

This pattern has been around a while, but the Pink Penguin shared her tutorial for a sweet Fabric Basket.

I have all the fabric ready and waiting for this pattern by Tea Rose Home. It is a Modern Square Garden quilt.

Who couldn't use another purse in your choice of color. Bola Chica offered a tutorial on a very cute Pleated Purse. You could certainly make one for every outfit. And who wouldn't love and use this adorable Friendship bag courtesy of "p.s. I Quilt"?

Have you got a little buddy to make a gift for? How about this TOO cute Softie doll from "60piggies".

And for all my tea loving friends, a Tea Wallet Tutorial (Is It Naptime Yet?). Perfect to stick in someone's stocking this year.

Sigh...... zippers............. Noodlehead shares a tutorial on a sweet Lil Cutie Pouch. Make them by the dozens. For teachers and friends. And add a Notebook Cover from "My Patchwork".

And here is a library of Free Quilting Patterns and Projects from the Quilting Gallery. All in one quick place.

I've got dozens and dozens of these tutorials bookmarked on my computer. But my purpose today was to give you one post that you can bookmark and go back to visit whenever you need a quick little gift.

Go forth and SEW :-)

Food

Food. You can't think of the Holidays and not think about food. After pushing yourself away from the mountains of food at Thanksgiving, it soon becomes necessary to think of food for Christmas.

Do you have a special menu for Christmas? Is there a certain dish that is a tradition in your house?

Do you set a special table for your Christmas meal?

Perhaps you start with soup? It's usually cold this time of year in the US. Do you have a favorite soup recipe??

After the Thanksgiving Turkey, do you serve turkey again for Christmas?

And desserts. We can't forget desserts. What special treat do you make for your Christmas dinner.


Do you travel and spend Christmas with family and friends??

I would love to hear what you do for Christmas dinner. If I knew how to do the linky thing, we could have a Recipe linky with all of your special and delicious recipes. But for now, please share your best dish.

Have a great day!