Friends and get togethers

Every year or so, I travel to visit with a bunch of friends and have a long stitching get together.
I didn't go last year because I was new at the job, and although I could have, I didn't want to take time off without having accrued leave (we have an abysmal PTO policy), and I always feel weird taking time off within the first 6 months of a job... Even though I'm at the level where no one thinks twice, it just feels weird to me.

So anyway, I went to visit friends and had an absolutely lovely time.  We got some good laughs in, and other than a horrible trip home (I'm still waiting to see what Southwest says about that - I got home a day late! ), I'm very happy I went :)

So here are some of the goodies:

At Attic Needlework, I didn't purchase much (I feel like I'm pretty saturated now, and the things I'm really after haven't come out yet), but I did get:

Key to Home, which I'd really like to stitch and put an old key on (instead of the stitched one).   I'm also tempted to do them for all of the major places I've lived.  I won't, but it's a nice idea ;)   I do like the way the chart is made, there's a separate chart for you to figure out how to center your numbers (unlike some others that just have a blank line in the middle of the chart).

Judge Not by Plum Street, which I saw at the Silver Lining when I was at the Houston Quilt Show, but they were sold out of.  I was super excited to see this one!    I love the sheep on the top row that's up on two legs, he just cracks me up.

And another Sweetheart Tree -  Pretty Pyramid #2.   It's the only one I have (and the only one I saw).  I just love constructing 3D finishes.  So I grabbed it :)

I also bought a pair of copper scissors.  I don't have any that color, so why not?  Unfortunately I totally forgot to take a picture of them.

We also went to Mulqueens, and I gotta tell you, I LOVED that store.    They had tons of fabric, but even better they had TONS of notions, tools, threads (Aurifil, which is my favorite, is not one I see "in the wild" very often, and I bought two spools I knew I needed) and other stuff.   They also had a huge room full of used/older model machines.    I am saving up for a new (to me) machine, and if I was ready, I would have definitely gone ahead and taken one to be my carry-on :)

Anyway, other than some chalk markers (blue and yellow!) and a few other notions, I picked up fabric for a project.   I mentioned yesterday that I wanted to finish a cross stitch piece using Bonnie Hunter's Diamond Tile, and these are the fabrics, I picked up:

The white fabric on the end is actually a green/white grunge, and picks up the bit of green at the edge of some of the blended threads.   This finish will definitely not be something I would have chosen for myself, but the person I'm making it for will love it - and isn't that what really matters?

I'm super glad I found the fabric that matched so easily, and I look forward to getting that piece finished (this weekend?!)

I found new, better(!) fabric for my Hearts of America - California piece.   I keep buying new fabric for it, not really loving anything (but hey, at least previous versions have been "acceptable."
This one was in the BOGO bin, and it's perfect.   When I lived in California, I was a wee kiddo, and I remember loving my books, so I'll definitely stick to this one.

And this is the precut kit I posted partial pictures of yesterday.  I realized I hadn't taken a picture of it before I started sewing on the center tile, but this is what it looks like!    The example is what it looks like if you finish it into a 3x4 block solid piece, but there are tons of layout on the back (in case you can't lay them out yourself, I guess?)  I just really love the colors. It's also crazy easy to sew together.

And finally, we all got little gift bags from various friends.   Many people brought something from where they were from (I brought a Moravian Sugar Cake from Dewey's Bakery as well as Moravian sugar cookies), and our hostesses had great little gift bags with tools  that we won by playing "stitcher's bingo"  - it included a 2x2" and 3x3" acrylic blocks for checking your start at the corner, a snagnabbit, and other little things, and in my bag I got these two kits as well:

I'm so looking forward to adding this to my Mill Hill magnet collection.

And this adorable little ornament!

And for "one of those things that will be funny one day,"  I meant to bring some veggies with me on the plane to snack on (I'm trying to spend less money and airport food is SO expensive).  I brought most of them but managed to forget a container of cauliflower when I parked at the airport.    I was annoyed, but then totally forgot about it.   When I finally got home (a day late, and wearing the same clothes I'd had on for more than a day!), I opened my car door and gagged.    Rotting, hot cauliflower is in the top three most disgusting things I've ever smelled.   After throwing my backpack into the bed of my vehicle (90% of the stench was there) and blasting outside air on the way home (2 hour drive!) I made it home and took everything out of my car to either trash or wash.

On the back floor boards, inside a reusable grocery bag, I found a pair of Bohin scissors I TOTALLY forgot about buying nearly a year ago! (at least it was a year according to the receipts!)   So I guess occasionally rotting veggies in the car isn't a total bad thing.

(And yes, after 4 runs through the wash, a soak with Nature's Miracle, AND a soaking in OxyClean, the backpack does not stink any more... sadly, it's one of my favorites and one I can't easily replace here on the East Coast, so I was very determined to save it!)

International Quilt Show - Houston

This past weekend I went to the International Quilt Show in Houston with my friend Melissa.  I've been a few times in the past (when I lived in Houston), but decided to take a trek back to hang out and check it out.

There were many, many pretties, but unfortunately, they are also kinda strict on pictures.  It's understandable, most quilts can be deconstructed by people who are good quilters.  I am not an awesome quilter, so I did take a few pictures, but mostly just bought a few things.

We didn't get into the actual quilt show area - it took us an entire day just to walk the floor, and we didn't feel like coming back the next day.  

Fortunately (?) the 'Stros were kind enough to win the World Series, and there was a huge parade downtown as well.  The George R Brown Convention Center is just down the way from Minute Maid Park (the baseball stadium/park), so the parking/driving was a bit of  a mess, but the attendance was lighter than Thursday (we're spit-balling the idea that people either went to the parade instead or just stayed away from downtown).

We got to look at quite a few things and venture into the booths and there weren't too many problems with bumping into people.

So here's my haul and/or entertainment:

One of the things I suck at with regards to fabrics/sewing, is changing colorways.  It's funny how easy it is for me in stitching, but quilting breaks my little brain.  So I found this pattern I liked in another color scheme and took a picture for reference (not that I'd use the aquas, but I like the idea better than the original).

These are two quilts I just really liked.  I'm not sure I'd do them, though.
The "Wrented" one just gives me a giggle, and I found the preponderance of raccoons somewhat surprising at the Festival.  There were a lot of raccoon quilts, but I really liked these guys best.   I thought they looked like they might mug you for your Christmas prezzies.


This quilt I straight up bought the kit for... Ok, I didn't.  I thought about it for an hour or two and went back to it, hoping it was sold out because I really love the colors in it.  It's in a very different color way than the pattern (Poppin' In).  I loved it in the hot pink and I have a great place to display it in the Lady Lair.  Plus, I thought the kit was more than reasonably priced, especially because I wouldn't have to go hunting for the fabrics myself.
It was at a booth that sells those crystal bits, and while they were really pretty and sparkly, I won't be embellishing my own quilt.


Oh heck, here's the pattern from the interwebz:
There's a "Poppin' Out" pattern that is it convex instead of concave, and I nearly bought that one, too.

There was a booth with a lot of pincushions: Cats, Mice, Dogs, Pigs, etc.   They came in pretty small and fairly large pieces, and I just loved this mouse so I got it.   He's huge.  And all mine (and added more than a little weight to my overly burdened bag!)

I stopped by the Missouri Star Quilt Company booth, because I had to.  If you haven't been to their site, or checked out their youtube tutorials and you're into quilting (or want to be), they're my favorites.  So easy and not annoying ;)

This is Tula Pink's "Spirit Animal" layer cake.   I just kept saying "SPAAAACE OTTERRRRS!" because they make me laugh.  I have absolutely no idea what to do with it, I just wanted space otters.

I didn't pick up much in the way of fabric, because it's heavy, and to be honest, I wasn't seeing a whole lot that was so unique I had to have it.   Plus, the quilt show is a little pricey and I come from a state with tons of quilt stores (and FQs that are typically 0$.50-1.00 cheaper)

But there was a nice place that had really pretty metallic fabrics, and I thought these would make a fun table runner for Christmas:

The very first large purchase (so clearly my camera roll isn't set to chronological) is this quilt, Weeds in the Sidewalk.   They had this one displayed and I HAD to have it.  They had it in the pure black and white, and another with a yellow splash of color.  Melissa is a bad person and found the very last kit and presented it to me.   And of course I bought it.   At least it will go well with the white fur from Mona.

Oh heck, I'll stick them in here, too:  The two colorways.  I think the yellow is pretty, I just like monochromatic designs a lot more.


And then we stumbled upon a shop that does a lot of dish towels and pot holders and the like
A lot of them were really cool, and a lot of them were also Texas themed.

First off - I grabbed their very last UT dishtowel.   Of course they were the first school sold out ;)

And then I grabbed these three pot holders - sorry they're a little fuzzy.  I thought they were all cute, and I got duplicates to give out as Christmas gifts as well:

We swung by a shop called "Treasures of the Gypsy" that I remember from even my first quilt show in Houston.   The show sells 'exotic' fabrics and dolls (and patterns) by Arley Berryhill.  His blog/sale site is here.    Treasures... doesn't have a website, and it's full of really cool soft-sculpture dolls.  My only complaint is that the owner can be really rude sometimes.   They could also improve their signage re: not touching anything, because they're soft sculptures, people touch, and their signage is crappy.  More than a few people came away from that shop muttering/talking about 1. rudeness and 2. the need fore better signage.

*ahem*

Anyway, I saw a doll with a raven's skull, which I would have loved to purchase, but was priced for more than I was willing to spend. 

And I had bought a lot of the patterns for the dragons back in the day and they were lost or stolen, or who knows what, so I was looking to replace them.  But you know what?  I suddenly didn't feel the need to really sew them, and then I saw the firebird:

You can check out more/better pictures here - scroll down - (because again with the no picture taking), which I highly recommend.  I'm looking forward to using fashion fabrics - dupionis and jacquards to really make this special.  I love it.

And I also grabbed this six image panel - part of Fabric Fiesta by Dan Morris.  I'm thinking about cutting and sewing it into a long panel as as a dining room table runner, and embellishing them.  If there's a panel left over (size, y'all) or something, maybe I'll make a super blingy, embellished wall hanging.

And finally, a couple of patterns - this one is a sloth pattern;  I have a lot of friends who are obsessed with sloths, so I thought I could make a single panel Sloth Pillow for them - the pattern is fairly easy and straightforward and I think it looks like fun.

And the last of the quilt patterns - "God Bless Texas"
I've seen this one around quite a bit, and I was happy to grab this.  Fairly easy again, and I think fun for a smorgasborg of fat quarters.  I think I'd go with something other than white for the background because that section of the "supposed to be white re: the flag" is already so close; maybe a nice light blue.   It's hard to see in this photo (or the pattern itself), but they've actually quilted the Alamo, roses (presumably yellow roses ;) ) and other Texana into the backing.  Quite pretty.

I went by the Silver Needle, but sadly, they did not have what I was looking for in stock.  Their booth was in an odd location and seemed kind of small this year, but it's been a while since I've been there.

We also swung by the Bohin booth (on purpose!) and in fact, had cash in hand because they do not take cards.  I bought a few packets of needles - I usually buy them in bulk but have not found my bulk needles to take with me to Houston, and I grabbed a pair of bunny (er... "hare...") scissors.

They also had some hand made scissors for more than $500, but I managed to stay away from those, though they were STUNNING.

So that was the one day quilt show extravaganza.

The next day we swung by ABC Stitch Therapy, a stitching store on the NW side of Houston (fairly close to where I grew up, actually, though they weren't there back then).    They are pretty close to where 3 Stitches is, but since I've had nothing but bad experiences at 3 Stitches, I never darken their doorway any more.

Everyone was super nice at ABC, and lo'!  They were having a Primitive Hare trunk show.   I really LOVE her designs, but I know I'll never get around to stitching them, so I haven't bought a lot.

But I did find this, which I think would be perfect for the kitchen:

While I was at it, I went ahead and grabbed Dog Pile from Ink Circles, which I've been meaning to grab for a while (I always try to purchase from Brick and Mortar stores, and tend to get my yearly's wish list at the get together every year at Stitcher's Paradise in Vegas, but since I was here...)

I found this older Sweetheart Tree April sampler - I was actually looking for a biscornu to grab me, but this did instead :)

And my last grab was this:
They had different gates, but I liked this one best of all.  And it fit within my rule which is now: "Will this work with any of the mountains of fabric you already own"  haha.

So that's my Quilt Show weekend extravaganza/purchasing fest.  It was a lot of fun, and I hope to go again in the future (though not as soon as next year).

And one last final thing:  The scrap metal sculpture I picked up at the grocery store.  Because who doesn't need a longhorn santa that you then have to figure out how to transport home ;)

Long weekend with friends

So this weekend is one of the two I look forward most to during the entire year - I hopped on a plane and flew out to Arizona to visit with friends.   Now, one of the places I lived while growing up was Tucson, and I've always wanted to go back, so the trip is always a little hard, because I just need someone in Arizona to hire me, so I can stay out there, and then I could sometimes stitch with local friends.

We did a lot of eating, a bit of drinking, maybe some playing, but definitely some shopping, sharing, and stitching!

First, my purchasing spree:

I got the newest Just Nan mouse - Romeo the Bridegroom and the Block Party - Vino from Hands On Designs.  Not much, but I am not feeling the need to purchase as much as I used to, especially with the thousand and one WIPS.    I think the Vino party block might qualify as my year end biscornu, because my ort container is getting quite packed!

The things I really wanted were more scissors, that that I got down to a science.

This is my first pair of Bohin scissors (I'm a Bohin needle junkie).  They're larger than standard embroidery, but that polka dotted stork!  I had to have it!

A swordfish? HECK YA!  They feel/cut awful, but let's be honest, I don't care.

And my new favorites - these are Premax, which is one of my favorite brands.  I have three or four pairs of premax and you cannot go wrong with them (my very favorite are from Fine Science Tools, followed by Dovo, of course, and I have a few others like Tres Claveles... in fact I think the only brand I don't like is Gingher).  So shiny, so pretty!  I love that darker silver.

We also hit a bead store, which I wasn't going to purchase anything from, but I decided making some needleminders might be fun.  Especially after I cut off the loops with my dremel.  I'm excited about the heart locket, because when I get the hinge off, I think that's going to make a riotously good needleminder

One of our hostesses and a friend made needleminders for us as well.   I have these nifty initial needeminders made from tile (the glare is covering that s there)!  And that nice little embossed button thingie :)  And that button!  And the octopus!

I also started Tapestry by Ink Circles

She also had a little contest/drawing, and I won second place.  As far as I'm concerned second place is the best!
That top thing is a magnetic tray, which was designed for tools/nuts/bolts/etc, but works just as well for scissors, needles and other goodies.    Heck, as much DIY as I do, it might be used for nuts and bolts anyway ;)

The Mill Hill kit is a cutie as well, and there were those Frixion erasable highlighters and that super bright/awesome LED light (I wish I had that when I was stitching on all of those dark fabrics!!!)

There's also the organizer thing, which might be my favorite thing ever.  I started to unpack yesterday, and then realized I'm flying back out on Friday, and just started organizing with that pouch instead. Magic!

There should be a blue highlighter in there, but it's hiding in my stitching bag

And then, the crazy generous hostess friend *also* had goodie bags for everyone.   I ADORE that Sweetheart Tree piece and will definitely be stitchin git.   There was the emoji note pad, the frog, some hand dyed threads from a place in England, and probably other things I missed taking pictures way too late last night ;)

Ribbit

 And while I was on the trip, someone was showing off a kit she'd gotten from the Bay of Evil, and of course I had to buy one, too.   The funny part was - I paid a little less, and the lady who posts them apparently only posts 2 at a time, and not so often that they're "easy" to get.  I got the last one!

It's a Russian kit, called "Kingdom of Books"
I am thinking of not doing the background, and just doing it on an overdye, I will probably change the book names (they're in Russian/Cyrillic now) to my favorite books, and I'm *also* thinking of going over one for this.. not sure yet on that one, though.

The kit materials are pretty nice, so I'll probably use the floss for it.  Can you imagine how nice it must be to just stitch a book at a time? Nice bite size nuggets to celebrate?

Kingdom of Books!

I think that's it for the purchasing.   Other than not really "feeling" the need to buy lots of stuff, I was very concentrated on getting a couple of more pairs of leggings from Fractal 9, the greatest leggings ever, who was having a big sale on Saturday and I also kickstarted a yoga mat that looks really cool.

We had some really fun times, and some really good discussions.  One of the things we were talking about was letting go of WIPs, and I realized that there are a couple I should just admit I'm not going to do.  One of them - well, I'm not quite there yet, but I did decide to un-WIP/UFO Dracolair's Phoenix, and in fact, I'll probably sell my Dracolair patterns.  I just don't think I'll ever get around to stitching them, and I could use the fabric I started Phoenix with for something else (it's a Picture this Plus, so that's good).

I also had another WIP that I never quite listed that I'll let go of, and I've already picked a pattern to use that fabric for!  I only had one band on the sampler, so it doesn't hurt to let it go.   I think after I knock out a few WIPs, I will start Ink Circles's Namaste on it.

And!  Here's the newest used-WIP that I purchased and put in the mesh bag that Phoenix used to live in!  It's called Russian Fairy Tales and it is a class kit by Joan Thomasson that came out in 1998.  I have been looking for it for AGES and it finally popped up on the Bay of Evil and I snatched it up... if by "snatch" you mean that I put in a disgustingly high bid and just let the 10 day auction ride itself out :)  But it's mine, and I didn't pay as much as I was willing to pay for it, so we all win.

Russian Fairy Tale - my long hunted lemming

My newest WIP is a stitch along I started with friends, it's the one that was pictured up above with the needle minders - it's Ink Circles's Tapestry and I am stitching it on Platinum Murano (30ct), and I am loving it so far.

As for Zodiac, I finished the last two - now I just have to take a picture of the whole thing!

Cancer!

Leo!

And for the final bit - I decided I wasn't totally pleased with my ort container, and I needed to put the orts that I collected over the weekend away, so I made a new container, took a picture of it with the current orts and then stuffed it (and I mean stuffed, because I put all of the left over floss from the Zodiac kit in there!).  It's a wine bottle I cut down, and I'm very pleased with it.  I think it will look like a core sample as I get more orts in there ;)

I kinda smooshed it all down there

That's it for now!  It was a terribly fun, full weekend, and I just love being with my friends.  Our hostesses were the best ever, and I already miss them terribly, but will think of them every time I stitch or see Tapestry.

January Friends

I went out of town in January and visited with some friends. And of course, we did some shopping! Check out my cool new things! :)

I visited Stitcher's Paradise and Quiltique while I was in Vegas and I found a few things.

First, I was just going to slow my roll at the stitching store, because OMG, I went crazy last year and I still haven't stitched a thing, so *clearly* I did not need anything.

Or did I?

I was looking through their "old" stuff in the back, digging through the Glendon Place stuff, because I really do like her desserts, and I found this LE kit!   I had looked everywhere I could think of online to find it, and couldn't; *everyone* was sold out!  But lo and behold!

My only issue is that I hate the color of the fabric.  It's a pale baby pink and I just don't want to use it.  I want something that is just this side of white, either in grey or cream, but I'm not happy with what I've found so far.   But I'll get there.

These two adorable snowglobes weren't badly priced (so much overseas stuff is expensive!), and I snatched them up.    A friend gave me Elegant Squid, and I bought fibres for it, not realizing that she'd left her extra fibres in the package.  Oops.

And a piece of fabric.  Because.

At the quilt store I found some patterns.   The half-moon cases are something I think I will adapt.  Instead of having zipper pockets or holders, I might just line the whole thing in wool/felt and make half moon keepers for all of my different wips, so that way I'm not re-using the same one over and over and leaving threads in the wrong place.  I think it would work ever so much better that way.

The small design above the half moon thing is a pouch for carrying nail polish bottles and accessories, and that would be fantastic for travel, because right now I just chuck them in whatever bag.

The professional Tote is something I found online some time ago and have been meaning to order, but since they have it!   I hear it can be complicated to sew, especially because there are so many layers, but I'm confident I can pull it off.   There are a few things I would change about the design anyway, which would help.

Right now I'm using Vera Bradley diaper bags for work, which I love, except that they are low on pockets, and this thing seems to have about a thousand of them *and* the footprint I need for hauling things like lunch (I hate taking two bags)

I tend to pick up fat quarters in pairs.   I don't know why, maybe just to make sure I have something complimentary?
I got some pretty pink & red for a mouse I want to make. And skulls.  Because skulls.

I love this skull fabric because it's not obvious skull fabric?  It's from a Folklorico line, and I keep thinking that I might want to make my fancy work tote out of this.  It would be so fun!  (there is no reason to be full bore "professional", that's not the kind of work I do)

Lobsters.  Because Lobster ;)

This is the yardage I picked up for the professional tote.   There's another coordinating fabric I can buy (hearts and bees) for lining, they just didn't have it in.   There's something about these partridges I just adore.  I think it'll make a cute bag :)

So that's about it for all of the stuff I bought.   I did buy some new Vera bags.  I got a baby bag in Heather, which is awesome for work.  What I really like about these bags isn't just that they're the perfect size to haul my work crap, but that there's a pouch for two bottles, which fits my coffee mug and umbrella perfectly.

I also grabbed a pill holder thingie that I put my vitamins in (because I always forget to take them first thing in the morning) and a bathroom organizer travel thingie, because my old one, which is nearly 15 years old, is looking pretty sad.