It was interesting........

I found it very interesting that many of the comments that were left concerning how to display your quilts, don't actually use the quilts you make. I like to use my quilts as a part of decorating. As a landscape in my home. I change them as the seasons change, or the mood, whichever comes first.


They are in baskets, on tables, as well as hanging from the walls. Looking at several art quilters websites, they show displays of their homes, and how they use their quilts to enhance a room or a bed. Funny thing is that I don't use the quilts on my beds. My youngest son is the only one who uses his dinosaur quilt every night.

We used to have a quilt rack in our living room, but I found that it took up too much space and did not really display the quilts as much as I liked. So I have enjoyed rotating the quilts for the different seasons of the year.

With no grandchildren in the near future, and a sister in love who makes some very beautiful quilts, there are few family members that receive quilts that I make. There was a time when I made a lot of charity quilts for Operation Home Front Quilts, and for the local children's hospital, until I kind of burned out on them. Now I try to make projects that are enjoyable during construction as well as becoming a part of my home. There are a few gift items on the burner right now, and hopefully I can get back to teaching beginners. It is always such a delight to watch a beginner toddle off and blossom into a quilt fanatic. Many have far exceeded my abilities.

What a fun day!

We were on the run for 10 straight hours! Started the day at Starbucks for some java. Then headed to a new gift store called Robin's Nest. Such a cute place, with all kinds of really neat things. Then we were off to the quilt shop. I found this little piece of pretty pink fabric on the sale rack. Of course I could not pass this one up.


Then a quick lunch at Panera, and off to the next quilt store. this pretty quilt graced the window!

Don't you just love it! It had a few Dick and Jane fabrics but the rest were bright and cheery.

We found another really neat gift shop in the same shopping center, and we marked it in our books, as we will return.

Our final quilt shop destination was at the end of the rainbow.


What an incredible store. I believe they are the largest quilt shop in Florida. You would not believe how many bolts of fabric they carry. And a sale wall with hundreds of fabrics for about $4 a yard!

I love digging around in antique and thrift stores. These bags were my treasure find today.
The bag on the right was full of some doily/lacey things. It was stapled close so I could not check out the contents. It was marked $1.00. So when I opened the bag, it was quite a surprise to find all of these inside.......


Seven doilys and one lace strip. Wow! That was certainly my "find" of the day!

We finished the day by treating ourselves to supper at GrillSmith. What a delicious meal. I had never been there before, but it is certainly worth a return visit.

We picked up the Country Register in one of our visits. There was a free embroidery pattern on one of the pages. If you go to The Noble Wife website, she has other free patterns for you to enjoy.

Hope you had a wonderful day too!

How do you..........

.... display your quilts? It's fun to find different ways to display my quilts. There are several different wall hangers that I have used for displaying my quilts.

This quilt hangs in my bedroom. I love the roses in this quilt. It was made and hand quilted by my sister in love. She is a very good quilter and we have a lot of fun together. I found this quilt rack at Wally world on clearance for a whopping $10!! I bought 3 of them.





This quilt hanger was found at a local quilt shop.
I thought it was so perfect for this spot. I made
this quilt from a magazine pattern, but I only
made half of it! It fits in this corner perfectly, and
covers the electrical box.

This hanger is displayed in my dining room. My sweet sister in love gave me this bow shaped hanger one year for my birthday. Did I mention that she is a great quilter?? I love the pattern for this quilt because there is no pattern! We just got together and sewed strips, cutting them apart and sewing them back together. It was so much fun. And a great way to use up some stash.



Last year at Paducah, I found this wonderful hanger. I love this hanger because it does not damage your quilt in any way. It has a clever device to open the hinged pieces.


It has a soft touch grip and keeps your quilts away from the wood. They come in all sizes and beautiful wood finishes. They can even add a strip of your fabric to the front panel to match the quilt that is hanging. It is made right here in the good ole US of A by Lorie's Little Quilts.


They do have a website, if you are interested in taking a look. I don't know if they will be in Paducah this year, because Lorie told me last year they were adopting two little children, so that may hinder their traveling to shows. Here is their website - www.LoriesLittleQuilts.com. It's so fun to find something new, that will enhance your quilting.

Happy Quilting!

A is for Apron

I have been thinking, and pondering, and figuring, and wondering about making a vintage type apron. I use an apron when I cook, but the only full size apron that I have is a red and green plaid which looks very Christmasy. As I am not a garment sewer, I was thinking about the investment of time and fabric. I am very protective of my fabric.

So today, when my dear daughter and I were out and about on a shopping jaunt, I found this pretty little thing......


Now I know it is not really a vintage apron, but I just fell in love with the bright cheery flowers. The apron has a nice little scalloped edge that could easily pass as an apron from the past. The really wonderful part was that this little apron cost less then 1 1/2 yards of fabric.

My fabric have all sighed a sigh of relief, and they are safe once again.

Sunflowers and tulips

Spring time is all about flowers. Exploding with color, they bring the renewal of life to the earth. I love to see buds appearing on the trees and plants as they are ready to pop open with their springtime greeting. I love to inhale the fragrant smells of new blooms.

This is what greeted me this morning at the breakfast table.


Such sweet beautiful tulips. And as I was talking on the phone with my BFF, the doorbell rang and this appeared....


My dear sweet husband, who is out of town today, sent me this incredible bouquet of flowers.


Now what would warrant this showering of flowers today?? Well it is a day that only comes once a year. A day we all enjoy celebrating with our family and friends. It is a day we like to kick up our heels and dream about soaking our toes in a spa somewhere and leave all of the daily grind behind.

What day is that?

Why my birthday, of course :-)

Have a wonder filled day.............

Blog Central

I have only been blogging for a short while. Meeting so many delightful quilters has been a bonus to blogging. If you have a chance to visit some of these wonderful ladies, please stop in here, here and here. When you visit Valerie's blog, be sure to take a side trip to her Mom's blog. She is such a precious and beautiful lady. How about one more. If your style leans towards shabby chic, check out Under a Blue Moon. She is a very talented lady and her sister is an incredibly wonderful quilter too.

As a side note, I have found some very talented local folks too. I recently ordered a purse pattern from Purse-O-Nalities of Palm Harbor. I ordered the "To Patch or Not to Patch" purse. It has 5 different looks. I am so excited to make a couple of these purses. She has a very nice selection of purses in all sizes. Another very crafty lady is from Piney Patch Quiltworks
Have you ever seen a quilt in a jar?? I found Linda's website from my friend Patti. Patti writes some really insightful blogs. Some are on crafts, and others are on homemaking.

Well I have shared a few of my finds. If you have a little time to browse through and visit, I think you will enjoy the company of these very talented creative ladies. Please also check out my blog roll, as there are more inspiring crafters then I could list here. They do not know that I have shared about their blogs, but I hate to keep a good thing to myself.

These are a few of my favorite things.......

There are a few things that I have a weakness towards. Hearts, tea cups, fabric, pretty dishes and baskets...... I love baskets. I have quite a few around our cottage. We use them to hold all sorts of things.

I found a little basket at the thrift store one day. It was very reasonably priced, and I loved the colorful little stripe that runs through it. It was the perfect size for Easter eggs.



It is just the right size for the little bunny. She is holding her little Easter basket which is actually one that my son made from clay many years ago.

This basket belonged to my Mom. I can remember she would lay a napkin inside and serve bread in it when I was a little girl. It has a plastic type rim around the top. It is very fragile so I display it on a rack in my kitchen.





This is an old wire basket. It is such a fun looking basket.


I don't know if it is terribly old, but I have enjoyed the cute shape.

I found this adorable shabby chic white basket today at Target.


Of course I had to fill it with sweet treats.

We have so many baskets that are filled with magazines, books, yarn, even soaps and lotions.

But I think my very favorite basket is not really a basket at all.