Will work for Fabric...

you know those signs you sometimes see people standing at the edge of the road holding...



I think mine should say... "Will Work For Fabric"...because I have been known to do this in the past!



Last year I swapped my labor for the giant roll of batting you see in the photo above. I did some sewing for Roc-Lon Industries for quilt market & in return I got the batting...only problem was, I didn't quilt!

I have long drooled over the new movement in quilting - modern colors, traditional patterns approached in non-traditional ways, the use of solid colors to complement the prints and decided just before christmas that I wanted to give quilting a try and made some table runners for gifts.

Then I stumbled upon a friends blog post announcing season 2 of Project Quilting! This was just the inspiration and challenge I needed to try my hand at quilting!

here are a couple of pics of my work in progress..






and the description of my piece for the challenge - inspiring friendships

20"square pillow cover

named for Friendship, NY

driving through the hills of allegheny ny this summer I passed a roadsign for Friendship NY and thought that would be a great place to say that you were from ... when I spotted this challenge on your blog I thought it would be the perfect place name from which to draw my inspiration.

so... friendship...my online friendship with you brought me to this challenge, the fabrics I used are from other "friends" I have made both online and in real life while pursuing my creative endeavors...Patty Young and I started out together in the same boutique group on ebay, I met Sandi Henderson there as well, Jennifer Paganelli and I became online friends and later met in real life when I visited her home in CT for one of her fabulous home shows(turns out she also has inlaws in my hometown!), and I snuck a little Valorie Wells in there as I had the good luck to meet her at quilt market!

the nesting dolls fabric represents the friends we made while living in Poland too many years ago!

the fabric used for the border came from my stash - the outermost print reminds me of the hills where friendship, NY is located

I started with a log cabin block that I cut into quarters, shifted around and sewed back together, made the stripwork heart applique, added batting & backing and quilted it all free motion (?) ... as I may have mentioned this is one of my first forays into quitling and I don't know all the correct terminology yet! I then added an envelope back to the front so it could be used on a 20" pillow form

thanks for inspiring me!

breakfast treats....

it has been awhile since I shared a recipe so I thought I would share one of our favorite breakfast goodies that our neighbor introduced us to - also makes a great afterschool snack...

cream cheese & jelly paninnis!



heat up a skillet or if you have a george foreman we love to grill ours!

2 slices of bread, cream cheese (we use strawberry or cranberry orange) & your favorite jam or jelly.

butter the outside of the bread slices, spread cream cheese on the inside of both slices and spread a spoonful of jam between the slices - grill until golden!




let cool a bit before you enjoy!

sometimes for a special treat I get fancy and use my pampered chef circle cutter!

Facebook Fanpage Special

time for another facebook fan page special!

op over and check it out!

Facebook Fan Page Specials...

After seeing a variety of promotion ideas on facebook I have decided to try offering some specials available only through my fan page for a special price.

Tonight I posted the first deal....



this dress is a one of a kind - ready to ship in a size XS (4/5/6) for $30 shipped priority in the US

if you are interested in any of these deals on my fan page, message me with your paypal addy and I will invoice you directly!

if that is not your size or style I have listed a couple of new skirts in my etsy shop

Sunny Days




and Mikayla

Petition ELLE magazine!

I received this email today and felt it was something important to share with you and hope you will take a moment to read it and if you feel so inclined...fill in the petition located in the right hand column on my blog......

It looks like Elle had quite the white Christmas.



Bollywood actor and former Miss World Aishwarya Rai Bachchan is featured on the cover of Elle Magazine looking far paler than she is in real life. Most fans are up in arms and an appalled Ms. Bachchan is considering a lawsuit against the magazine.

Consumers have long been inundated with ads that use prominent Bollywood actors to promote skin-lightening products. In a country that produces gorgeous women of color, it is sad that Ms. Rai-Bachchan, who is relatively light-skinned, is one of the very few with some cross-over appeal. To see magazines like Elle further enforce the color hierarchy of crossover appeal by making Aishwarya appear lighter-skinned is a slap in the face.

This is the second racial debacle surrounding Elle. The American version was criticized for its October 2010 issue, which featured actress Gabourey Sidibeon on one of its four celebrity covers with noticeably lighter skin than her natural complexion.

Lets tell Elle Magazine to make a commitment to moving away from using white as a standard for beauty, and demand a public statement and apology.

Comfort Food...

this time of year makes me want to snuggle up under a blanket and enjoy my favorite comfort foods....

I think the top of my list in winter must be toast dunked in a cup of hot cocoa



this was definitely a favorite from childhood...which brings me to a few others I remember form days home sick on the couch...my mom would serve up lipton noodle soup and pb&j on saltines!





I thought I had died and gone to heaven! when I am feeling a little nostalgic these days I will pull out the saltines and serve my kids pb&j for snack after school!

BUT... a favorite childhood treat that can be rather hard to find today were chick o'sticks!




what are some of your comfort foods...childhood favorites...do you still eat them today!

Wear it Wednesday!

A sweet & funky skirt for valentines and beyond! Hearts and ruffles, a rainbow of colors



available in 12months - 12 years in my etsy shop or leave a comment on the blog or my facebook fan page!

Tasty Tuesday ....

thought I would share a dinner idea with you that we tried last night to much success.

We set up a baked potato bar and each person got to choose their own topping for a tasty baked potato!



some of the toppings we tried included...

chili
shredded cheese
melted cheese
broccoli
asparagus
stir-fried pork
sour cream
bacon
salsa



all in all it was a huge hit - a little something for everyone! What else would you add for toppings??

My Little Monkey....

my youngest never ceases to amaze me....after a crazy week skiing every day of break and a dual slalom race on the 31st where he placed 4th for boys who are 9 & 10 years old (he is 8)...he couldn't sit still on New Years Day and just relax....

no, he talked his dad into Rock Climbing!!! Crazy!







wish I had just a little bit of that energy!