MEOWALOT

Who is that sneaking through your neighborhood? Yeow! It's a cute little black kitty cat! Yes, it is my own dear little Plumpkin! This is one sassy little kitty, I can tell you that! Kids love to dress up, don't they? I hope they all have fun on Halloween!

I wonder what Rembrandt, Karen's kitty on the left, will be doing for Halloween? I had to post his picture because I thought he and Plumpkin look related. Maybe he will dress up as a little girl again!

I have never had anyone ring our bell on Halloween for as long as we have lived here. We don't have any children in our neighborhood. And NO, I don't live in a Senior Center--yet! I bought a big bag of candy at Sam's Club. My favorite kind, of course, because no one comes here to Trick or Treat. So it is mine, all mine! If you are thinking that I just might be a chocolate addict, you are so right!


Have a safe and spooky night!

SHE IS SEW PRIMITIVE!

You know that Karen is SEW PRIMITIVE, and she is also SEW CLEVER! She dove right into the Christmas Sparkler project (see previous post) and using homespuns, she created her version of the quilt. Her muted colors give it a totally different look! I love it! And I know it was a breeze for Karen to make after stomping and kicking on her Dear Jane blocks, which are so complex. In fact I bet she whipped this up in half the time a DJ block takes! Knowing Karen the way I do, it probably took effort on her part to attempt such a simple project. She loves complex projects. Which is why I was slightly surprised to see her design this next quilt.

I love house blocks, and Karen does too. This is one of her easier designs, I think (which explains why I made it!). She calls it Log Cabin Settlement. You can find the pattern on her blog on the sidebar. She cleverly used stripes going horizontally on her quilt to replicate the logs in the cabins. I had her pattern on my cutting table sitting next to a few FQs from Barbara Brackman's new line, Civil War Crossings, from Moda. I should have taken a picture of the fabric when I got it, but instead I cut it into log cabins and made my own little settlement. Somehow new fabic and new patterns call to each other. I was happy to find the fabric for the setting triangles in my stash and it coordinates well with the colors of this line.

Also in blogland I discovered that Kim is having another adventure with a wonderful tutorial on her blog. It is scrappy and really cute! Check out her Scrappy Stars!

FRIENDSHIP STARS COME OUT AT CHRISTMAS!

You better not cry, you better not pout, 2008 freebie is finally out!

Here is my free CHRISTMAS SPARKLER design for this year! Last year I was blown away with the wonderful response to the pattern I designed for you. I hope you will be as excited about this one! It is easy to make, colorful and fun! My quilt has the colors in it that I like, and I would love to see what colors and fabrics you choose for yours. Last year I posted the quilts that YOU made on my website. I would love to do the same this year, so start digging through your scraps, or take the supply list along with you to the store. The fabric amounts are generous, but were difficult to break down into smaller units. I bet you have everything you need in your sewing room!

Fabric needed: Blue print or tone on tone -1/2 yard; Green- 1 FQ; Red print- 1 FQ; Red tone on tone- 1 FQ; Gold for stars- 1 FQ; Binding- 1 FQ; Backing- 3/4 yard

Just picture this 23 inch square quilt on a table, or tucked in a basket for decorating! Easily reduce the size to just nine blocks, or make it into a runner.

If you wish, you can copy the little Friendship Star block on my sidebar to post on your blog with a link to my web site: www.patchalotpatterns.com

Have fun, and thank you for your FRIENDSHIP!

I LOVE BROWN QUILTS

Look at this darling picture of my mother! And to surprise you further, this is not my work, it is Susan's quilt in progress! Susan has so many blogs going that I never know where to find her. You may know her as Susan from Desert Sky Quilting. She began this quilt a while back and requested a photo of my mother when she was in her early 20's. Susan reads my Dad's blog and got a kick out of some of his stories. She particularly liked the one about a piano, and The Girl Next Door. Those are posted on Dad's old blog, which we are no longer able to access, so he has a new blog, The AZ Penguin 2, which he has been posting on more recently. Lots of good stuff on his old blog though, in case anyone cares to read it. If it happens to be a rainy day where you are, this can keep you busy for a while! For sure check out Susan's blog, Crazy Quilting for Fun, and see this cool project she has going. Really nice work Susan!

Recently I mentioned that my little brown quilts look nice with fall decor, so I took a couple pics to give you a glimpse. I actually placed the wrong photo in here, because I stuck some fall leaves (ala Michael's) behind the birds nest in the churndash picture, so it has more of a fall flavor now. Those cool pears on the penny rug are not real, but they sure look it. I love brown quilts.

I am really enjoying the fall season around here in Virginia. We don't get the brilliant colors, like you get in the north, but is isn't freezing and snowing here either! So I buy my fall color at Michael's. They have awesome stuff there and often it is half off, or you can get a coupon.

That said, let me ask if any of you are interested in a small Christmas quilt pattern again this year? I don't mean to rush the season, but it doesn't hurt to start preparing little gifts that you like to make. I have a small quilt finished, and will be sharing the pattern soon! Come back and check it out!

Addendum: Joan at Keeping You in Stitches liked that hexagon taple topper so well that she whipped one up last night! Can you believe it? She has been showing lots of fall decor on her blog. go take a look if you haven't been there.

IT IS BEAUTI-FALL!

Today, camera in hand, I went on a little field trip. I wanted to find a place to photograph my Leaves in the Air quilt enhanced by some fall colors. I headed down First Colonial Road to an outdoor produce market called Stoney's. Everything looked so awesome there! Look at these neat pumpkins with warts!

I really was just looking for a place to snap a shot of my quilt so it would look appealing. This place was perfect! They had goofly little gourds, and Indian Corn, and pumpkins and squash in all shapes and sizes. They also had homemade peach jam that I had to buy. Not being the domestic goddess I once was, I no longer make homemade jam.

Look at all the cool pumpkins! Doesn't my quilt look happy there? I was able to find this spot with nails perfectly aligned so that I could hang my quilt. I brought the rod that I hang it on, and I was so glad that I did. Honestly, I wonder how many patterns I could sell with that display? I haven't made lots of cute fall quilts like so many of you have. In fact, I have only made this one, and I am excited to be able to display it for a while this time of year. Actually, I would kind of like to frame this photo! This is what I call beauti-fall!

FALL COLORS

Everyone seems to be captivated with the wonderful fall colors and decorating is in full swing. I have really been enjoying the many blogs with fall decor and homemade items. Our friend Kim, who has Big Quilting Adventures daily, has designed a darling pumpkin quilt and has provided instructions for anyone who cares to create their own. Go to Kim's blog and look on the side bar for the Happy Jacks tutorial. I love the way these cute pumpkins bounce around on the quilt! I am a little slow mentioning this and Kim has moved on to other adventures, but it is not too late to get in on the action!

I have been decorating a little bit myself. This little display is sitting on the hearth in our living room. I picked up the decorated pumpkin last year on sale and am excited to finally be able to display it for a couple months. My little brown quilts that I love are scattered around the house and look really nice with the orange tones of fall.

Also, I just completed a little stitchery thing that I framed. Here is a little word to the wise: pick up pieces of orange wool whenever you see it, because you won't find it in the shops when you need it!

BUNDLE OF JOY

Last week I drove north across the James River to Newport News and went to Nancy's Calico Patch. They have the new Windham line of fabric in by Nancy Gere. It is called COLONIES: CHEDDAR AND POISON GREEN. 1830-1860. I may have bought a little of one bolt or another, but when they pointed out the Fat Quarter bundles I was hooked. What is it about those beautiful little rolls of coordinated fabric that speak to me? I have a few bundles waiting patiently on the shelf in my sewing room nestled in with a dozen charm packs. I haven't opened them because I have so many "scraps" that I should use first. I really don't want to turn them loose in my cluttered sewing room. They are so tidy and perfect. More like a decoration, really. Or maybe a very well behaved pet! I do caress them and even play with them. I may even talk to them on occasion and say, "you are so pretty"! Yes, a very well behaved pet! You can see why I don't want to turn them loose in my sewing room. The other inhabitants are so untamed and wild. I don't think my lovely fat quarter bundles are quite ready to fend for themselves yet. I'll just coddle them a while longer.