Cheers and My Jane M-7 and M-13

Encouraging words of the day:

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever. ~ Psalm 106:1, NLT

Here are the last two of “My Jane” blocks completed on our last road trip. They are both all appliqué and were not hard, although both are time-consuming. 

M-7

 M-13

The “Novelty and Solids Layer Cake Swap” that my sister and I coordinated is over.  We had a wonderful turn-out, all 24 slots were filled and packages of layer cakes have been mailed to all participants.  Check this photo out to see a representation of all the wonderful fabrics in the swap.

Thanks to all who participated and since everything went so well we may just decide to try it again sometime.

What else is going on?  Well, not a whole lot of sewing this weekend since I spent most of the time at a local wine fest…cheers!

That is all.

One-Flower Wednesday and My Jane J-5 and M-6

Encouraging words of the day:
People may be right in their own eyes, but the LORD examines their heart.  ~ Proverbs 21:2, NLT
People can find an excuse for doing almost anything, but God looks behind the excuses to the motives of the heart.  We often have to make choices in areas where the right action is difficult to discern. We can help ourselves make such decisions by trying to identify our motives first and then asking, "Would God be pleased with my real reasons for doing this?" God is not pleased when we do good deeds only to receive something in return. 
Once again, it’s “One Flower Wednesday” when Karen (over at Journey of a Quilter) provides a linky for all of to share our hexagon flowers.  If you would like to see more flowers out there in Blogland, just click HERE.  The flowers I’m posting this week are flowers I made for my swap partner in the "Inchy Hexagon Flower Swap."  Talk about “killing two birds with one stone.…”

Here are two more of “My Jane” blocks completed.  J-5 was ok.  It was actually tedious sewing those little appliqué shapes in the corners just because they are so small.

J-5

M-6 was hard because I sewed it all by hand on our road trip.  It’s difficult for me to sew straight for some reason so I ended up with “ripply-looking” strips on the sides.  I guess I need more practice but I will stick to my sewing machine unless I’m traveling.  The only thing, I think I’ve completed most of the appliqué blocks already and all I have left are the paper-pieced to sew on the machine.  Maybe some of the triangles on the sides are appliqué.  I’ll need to check.  Here’s M-6.

M-6

That’s all I’ve done lately.  I’ve actually been doing a little, very little, spring cleaning.  I decided that I’ve done all I’m going to do so I’m back to sewing.

Giveaways:
"Lisnaweary quilts" is giving away 4 fat quarters and a copy of the latest issue of Sewing World Magazine. - ends April 30th.

That is all.

Beautiful El Paso Saturday and My Jane G-10 and I-5

Encouraging words of the day:
Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. ~ Philippians 4:6, NLT

It's a beautiful Saturday in El Paso. I'm sitting in the back yard with my husband doing yard work. He loves it and just likes for me to sit out here and read or blog as he putters. That works for me. Our yard is looking beautiful.
You've seen where I've posted about how happy I am sewing "My Jane" blocks following "Aunt Reen's Quilts." (http://auntreensquilts.blogspot.com/ ) instructions. I've now made 8 blocks and 2 triangle blocks using her cutting instructions. Here is the pile of "My Janes" completed. I'll be posting them in the days to follow.

For right now, here are a couple that I made on our recent road trip following my cutting and applique technique. G-10 was no problem. Nice.

G-10
I-5 is another story. I think it looks goofy. I am just now beginning to realize that "My Jane" is going to have a lot of wonderful blocks mixed in with another lot of "good enough" blocks. It's going to be an interesting finish one day :)

I-5
Giveaways:
"It's So Kiki" is having a terrific giveaway for the "Colonial Needle Blog Hop."She has and assortment of notions, books, thread and rulers all for one winner. - ends April 25th.
"Love Affair With My Brother" is also having a terrific giveaway for the "Colonial Needle Blog Hop." She has an assortment of notions for 3 winners. - ends April 25th.
I'm trying to learn how to blog from my iPad and I haven't figured out how to change all these colors. I change my old post to orange-colored font so I know that I've already posted that but I don't know how to change the orange to green (the current post color) on my iPad. The giveaways I've found are usually red.So, that's why all the different colors are appearing. Yes, I'm having a difficult time. Between learning the "new and improved" Blogger and now how to blog using Blogsy on my iPad...
That is all.

One-Flower Wednesday and My Jane E-4 and H-8

Encouraging words of the day:

Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him. ~ Colossians 3:10, NLT
What does it mean to "put on your new nature"? It means that your conduct should match your faith. To be a Christian means more than just making good resolutions and having good intentions; it means taking the right actions. This is a straightforward step that is as simple as putting on your clothes.

 Where does the time go, for crying out loud.  I missed “One Flower Wednesday” last week and here it is “One Flower Wednesday” again.  I’m ready with my flowers though. They are both for the hexie quilt lay-out I’m planning so one of them looks a little weird.  The other flower I will fit in somewhere just because I think it is so pretty (patting self of back : )

I’ve been working diligently on “My Jane.”  I found a cool blog called "Aunt Reen's Quilts."  This wonderful lady has figured out the measurement for cutting the fabric for paper-piecing.  Talk about a time saver.  Yes, I could figure it out myself but I usually just cut out a strip that looks big enough and jiggle it around, sew it on wrong, un-sew, try again, etc. so knowing what size to cut the pieces beforehand is great!  Thanks so much, Doreen, for doing all that work.  I KNOW what a big job that is.  I made 3 blocks in the time it usually takes me to make one.  Anyway, here are a couple of blocks I completed before running into "Aunt Reen's Quilts."  I made these on the road trip back to El Paso.

E-4

E-4 has crazy crooked sides so I had to hand-sew the sides. I’m always amazed when a block comes out looking so good.

H-8

H-8 was just tedious and came out just okay.

I won this beautiful giveaway prize from Lynn at "Heartstrings and Heirlooms."  The fat quarters are gorgeous in beautiful turquoise blues, my favorite color.  Another has flowers, butterflies, and dragon flies, perfect for my hexie flowers.  Also included was a cute crocheted pot holder.  Thanks so much, Lynn.

That is all.

May for Me Bingo and My Jane C-2

Encouraging words of the day:
Never let loyalty and kindness leave you! Tie them around your neck as a reminder. Write them deep within your heart.  ~ Proverbs 3:3, NLT
Love and kindness are important character qualities. Both involve actions as well as attitudes. A loving person not only feels love; he or she also acts loyally and responsibly. A kind person works for justice for others.  

"May for Me BINGO" is being hosted by:

Tonya@ Hillbilly Handiworks  
Sharon@ Vroomans Quilts 
Snoodles @ Lily Pad Quilting
Marcia @ Marcias Crafty Sewings

You have until April 22nd to link up your "May for Me BINGO" card.  I'm not too sure on all the rules but it sounds like fun.  Check any of the blogs listed above for more information.  So, here's my BINGO card:

B- teapot, yarn, bear(s), snowflake, fish
I - bee, telephone, letter Y, Sponge Bob, flip-flops
N - apple, fire engine, free space, bird, mitten
G - green pepper, magnifying glass, helicopter, tennis racket, sushi
O - butterfly, dog, Easter egg, jack-o-lantern, birdhouse

 Here’s another of “My Jane” blocks I finished on my recent road trip..  Here is B-5.  It looks hard but was easy paper-piecing and appliqué. 

C-2

That is all.

Back in El Paso and My Jane B-5 and B-9

Encouraging Words of the Day

A gentle answer deflects anger, but harsh words make tempers flare. 
Proverbs 15:1, NLT
Have you ever tried to argue in a whisper? It is equally hard to argue with someone who insists on answering gently. On the other hand, a rising voice and harsh words almost always trigger an angry response.  To turn away wrath and seek peace, choose gentle words.  

 Where has the time gone for crying out loud?  I don’t know why I didn’t post anything on Monday.  I was prepared to post something on Wednesday for One-Flower Wednesday.  That was the day we drove 7 hours from our ranch in the Texas Hill Country to New Mexico where my parents live.  They were at the ranch with us so we drove them home before continuing our trip the next day back to El Paso.  I had my hexie flowers made but just did not ever post anything so that’s what happened to Wednesday.  Then yesterday I just didn’t get to my blog at all so here I am on Saturday.  We had a pile of mail but the best part was the packages waiting for me.  I received my hexie flowers from my March partner in the "Inchy Hexagon Flower Swap."  Larissa from Australia sewed these beautiful flowers for me.  She also included a cute, crocheted heart and a lovely card.  Thanks, Larissa.

Another package in the mail was a giveaway I won from "Kenna Quilts Leap Day Giveaway" way back on February 29th.  So Kenna’s family all came down with something and were sick and that delayed the shipment of the package.  I understand completely.  No problem.  In the meantime, I was on my trip and the package arrived at my post office but I didn’t receive it until I returned and “Wow,” was it worth the wait.  Look at these 7 beautiful fat quarters.  Kenna, thank you!

I did a lot of prep work for “My Jane” blocks before leaving on our road trip so I was able to complete a few on the drive out.  Here is B-5.  It was easy paper-piecing and appliqué.  

 B-5

And here is B-9.  It looks rather “goofy” for some reason.  That little white square in the middle looks so tiny and lonely.  I’m thinking that I probably made it the wrong size but I’m not doing any of these blocks over unless they are absolutely wrong.

B-9

Then I sewed two more Little Houses for "Little Dutch Houses from Scraps."  I have a total of 9 now.  These last two houses were all hand-sewn.  Man, is that ever hard.  Well, I paper-pieced them and it’s hard to sew through the paper with a hand-needle so maybe that was the problem.  Maybe I should have just cut out the little-bitty pieces and done it that way.  I’ll try that next time or maybe just continue to machine-sew them.  Here are my little crooked houses:

That is all.