Here A Giggle, There A Giggle

It's Friday!!!!! That in it self is is worth shaking your pom poms. :) 

It's nearing step two of the Charm Pack Quilt Along! How far is everyone? Didn't know about the quilt along? No worries. You can join in at any time!! Just click on the link and it will take you to all the information, including a PDF copy of the first step!

The next step will be posted on Sunday, August 1st! Be there or be square, or round... hee hee ;) 

I couldn't very well be behind on my own QAL so tonight I trimmed all 150 of my half square triangles. Let me just say, my arm hurts like a bugger! LOL! That's a lot of trimming! So worth it though. I wouldn't do HST any other way. They will match up so nicely!

Hopefully some of you will have piles that look like this now:

Don't forget to add your photos to the Flickr Pool if you'd like so we can see how everyone is progressing, because we will all progress, right? ;)

Ok, I have two videos I'd like to share. The first is very short, but I laugh everytime I see it. The video capability on the iPhone 4 is one of my favourite features. :)

It's a video of one of the kittens I rescued. Her name is Odyssey. Yes, that's me in the background laughing..LOL!

This next video. It just makes me smile, and as of right now, this is my favourite song. It's even my ringtone. :)

We all have something beautiful in our lives.....


Needtobreathe - Something Beautiful


Much Love!!!

You're An Apple

Today was just one of those days. Bug. Windshield. Same thing. I'm just glad it's over.

So, who couldn't use a good laugh after a tough day? I went hunting.

I found this. I'll be honest. I don't know why I find it funny, but I laughed so hard I had tears, and even snorted a bit...LOL



We all know someone like this, right? LOL

Watch a few more...have a few laughs. :)

Much Love!!!

WIP Wednesday #1

I've seen a lot of people doing Wordless Wednesdays on their blog, or Work in Progress Wednesdays and I thought I'd try and join in. Granted, anyone who knows me, knows I'm not really wordless so that wouldn't work...haha! So let's go with door number two, Bob, and I'll choose Work In Progress Wednesdays. 

I'm secretly hoping this will keep me on task too! :) 

I'm still plugging along with my hexagon quilt. I am in love with the design, I'm just not as in love with the fabric I chose to do it in. I was really excited about Freebird when I first started working with it, but now when I look at it I just groan. It's not the fabric, because I still like Freebird, but I just think there is so much going on with it, and in small spaces like the hexagons, it just makes my head spin. 

I don't know. Maybe this is one of those quilts I just have to see as complete and then I'll fall in love all over again. That happens a lot with me. So....this will get finished. Promise Julie :)

Next up, I can't show you too much. I know...groan groan groan on sneak peeks..LOL. Honestly I haven't decided exactly what to do with this. I might submit to Moda Bake Shop, or maybe a quilt a long #2 or maybe even make it into my own PDF pattern and sell. I'm not sure yet, but keep your eyes out. I think this one will be a beauty. :) 

Then today I received the fabrics I chose for another bee I am in called Putting the Bee in Christmas. Miss TraceyJay has put this amazing bee together and I couldn't be more pleased to have been invited! My month is September and I think I've settled on a design, but I'm not 100% yet and still have plenty of time to change my mind 100 more times...haahaa!

Last but not least, and sort of a work in progress, but more of a REALLY BIG wish in progress....

I want one of these. An AccuQuilt Go! Fabric cutter. A lot.

I keep seeing projects put up everywhere and they are amazing. When I first saw it, I convinced myself that I didn't need one. Thanks to blog land, I've unconvinced myself. Thanks. A lot. You know who you are. ;)

So, for any of you with extra moola laying around and want to get me a birthday present (*whispers* It's in September) I would love you forever...LOL! Or....Maybe I'll win one of those giveaways that keep popping up! Yeah! **crosses fingers, toes, eyes, arms, legs....tips over...oops** ;)

So...what have YOU been working on? 

Much Love!!!

Tidbit Tuesday #12

This is a tip brought to you from experience. 

This is a REALLY great tip, especially when you are using your very last piece of that one fabric you love and you're not sure if you can get anymore. 

Ready? 

Measure TWICE, and then once more. Then recheck your pattern to make sure you have the right measurements. Once you've confirmed, check two more times, then you're ok to cut. 

I know that sounds like over kill, and if you are using fabric you have tons of, you won't have to worry as much but when you only have one little piece left and you only have one chance to get it right....I highly recommend the steps above. :)

I've been getting in a few more blocks for my quilt for Fresh Modern Bee!! 

This lovely block came in the mail to me from Janice of Sew Girly! Love the flying geese and that little stinker of a renegade goose..! ;) Thank you Janice!!

Next up is this amazing block from Shelley at Elsie's Girl. I just love that pinwheel in the center! Thank you Shelley, for such a wonderful block!

This photo with this block just makes me grin from ear to ear! I received this block (sadly I could not convince her to send the wee one with it..hee hee) from Tammy at Karamat Designs! Isn't it wonderful!!?? I love it! Thank you Tammy!!

There are 15 of us in our Fresh Modern Bee and my quilt will consist of 16 blocks that are 16" finished so I needed to make one as part of the group, and will need to make one more to get to 16. Here is my first block. I really liked how it turned out! Even more so because my daughter helped me choose the placement of the fabrics. :)

Ok, here is where my begging comes in. Please, oh, please send me your tips. I'm not sure I have many more up my sleeve...lol! Email me HERE with your tips.  Please! ;)

Much Love!!!

Adventures In Babysitting

This weekend we traveled to Des Moines, Iowa to help out my sister-in-law and her hubby with their kids while they went to a wedding and attended all the other functions that go along with a wedding. 

My niece is 2 1/2 and my nephew is 5 days away from being 1.  It's been a good while since I've had children at this age and just let me say, I'm even more appreciative of my own kids independence. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely loved spending time with the wee ones, but I had forgotten just how much work they were and how much they required 100% of your time. Granted, this was a bit more difficult to do when staying in a hotel and having to eat out for meals and with my niece getting sick (ew) but we managed and had fun too. They had to fly back home to Arizona today and even though I'm beat, I miss them already and would do it over in a heartbeat. 

What's even better, I get to see them again in 2 weeks. Yay! 

In other happy news....lookie lookie!!

Tracey from Quilting in the Pacific Northwest made a quilt using my Random Reflections pattern from Moda Bake Shop!! Woo Hoo!!! It's just beautiful Tracey!

And....

Diane from O'Quilts emailed me tonight letting me know she has also made a Random Reflections quilt and I just adore it! I LOVE that red binding and the vivid colors!! 

 

I am so excited and thrilled to see these quilts popping up!! It just warms my heart. :) Thank you so much for sharing your quilts with me.

Also, don't forget,  if you make a Random Reflections quilt or anything else seen here on my blog, please feel free to add it to the Freckled Whimsy Flickr pool. :)

I hope everyone had a great weekend!!

Much Love!!!

Tidbit Tuesday #11

Soooooo.....it's tidbit Tuesday!!

One of the questions new quilters ask, and sometimes experienced quilters is...Do you pre-wash your fabrics?

This is a really difficult question because I think it's a personal decision on what works best for you.

Personally, I do not wash my fabrics. I don't for two reasons. 

     1.  My favourite part of a quilt is how it scrunches up after you wash it for the first time. If you pre-wash your fabrics, this is not as prevalent. It's less smooshed up. 

      2.  I buy all my fabric from quilt shoppes, whether it be a brick and mortar or an on line shoppe, so I know it's a really good quality fabric. I've never had an issue with bleeding. That doesn't mean I won't, but I'm confident enough not to worry about it.

I guess you could say I am a fabric snob. I used to (a looooong time ago) buy fabric from JoAnn Fabrics or Hobby Lobby, but after bad experiences, I just can't bring myself to use it anymore. Unless it's Kona. They do sell that which makes me happy! :) 

I also do not wash OR soak my batting. My favourite is Warm and Natural, which I do get at JoAnn's. I prefer it as it is easy to quilt with and it doesn't leave much lint. 

I guess I kind of got away from my tip..lol! 

If you do happen to wash your fabric first, to help prevent the fabric from fraying horribly in the wash, take a pinking scissors or a rotary cutter with a pinking blade in it, and trim your edges, selvage to selvage. Works great! 

In addition, add a DRY towel to the dryer with your fabric when drying. This will help prevent all the twisting and scrunching which causes wrinkles. Yuk! 

*****

In other news...I'm starting to get my blocks in the mail for the Fresh Modern Bee that I am in!! Sooooo excited here!! I asked the ladies, and gent (Hi Charlie!) to make me a 16" finished block using only half square triangles (or the like) and lookie what I've gotten already!

This fabulous block is from AllieKatMom! Thanks Amy!!! Love this block sooo much!

Melissa sent this block to me! Isn't it fabulous!!?? I surely think so!!  Thanks Melissa!!!

This one came from BlueElephantStitches! Look at all those geese!!!! Love Love! Thanks Jolene!!!

Speaking of Jolene at Happy Modern Quilts, she posted a quilt on her blog yesterday. I want it. I want it like I want chocolate ice cream. That means really bad! LOL! Of course I can't have that one...but I DO want to make my own!! She made it when she was 19!! Holy Smokes Charlie Brown! Isn't it a beauty!? I've asked her if she had a pattern but if she doens't, I can be sure that I will make one of my own! :D Stay tuned....

I can't stop looking at it! :) 

Remember, if you have a tip, email it to me! I'm gonna need some help here soon....LOL! 

Much Love!!!

Charm Pack Quilt Along - Step One

Ohhhhh...It's time! Are you ready? Do you have your charm packs and your solid to match? 

Yes? Alright! Let's get started!

**Edited to add the link to download the PDF if you'd like: Click HERE. :)

We need 75 charms in a print, and 75 "charms" in a solid. 

1.  First you need to cut your solid fabric into 5" strips. You will need 10 strips for this first step. (If you are using charm packs in the solid, you can skip to step 3)

2.  Now sub-cut these strips into 5" squares. Once you are done cutting, you will have 80 squares. You only need 75 for this step, but put the extra 5 aside because you will use them in the next step.

3.  On the WRONG side of your solid fabric, you will need to draw a line from corner to corner. 

4.  Next, place a white square RIGHT SIDES TOGETHER with a print square and sew a 1/4" seam on either side of the line you drew on the white square. 

5.  Now cut along that line you drew. 

6.  Press to the dark side. Yield two Half Square Triangles. (HST)

7. We need to get these HST trimmed down to 4.5" square. Don't be afraid. I'm going to show you how :) It's easy! 

8.  You will need a ruler that is at least 5" square. If you have a larger one, that will work just fine. It doesn't have to be square either, just so that you have two sides that are at least 5". 

9.  Position your HST as shown below and line up the 45 degree angle line that is on your ruler, with the seam line on your HST. 

10. Looking at the photos as reference, you will need to make sure of a few things before you start cutting. We want to trim these HST to 4.5". To do this, you need to make sure that you have part of the fabric that extends a touch beyond the 4.5" marks on your ruler to the left side, and on the bottom, as well as over hang beyond the ruler on the right side and top. 

11. Once your HST is set up like the photo above, you can go ahead and trim the extra fabric on the right side, and at the top. 

12.  Two sides down, two more to go. Rotate your block 180 degrees. In other words, when you rotate your block, the corner that was originally at the top right, will now be at the bottom left. 

Line up the fabric on the left and the bottom with the 4.5" marks on your ruler. Trim the right and top again. 

13. You should now have a perfect 4.5" HST. :)

That's it!! Do this for each of your 75 pairs, which will yield 150 HST. 

The quilt I am making will end up approximately 72" squared and has 25 blocks. Each block for this quilt needs 6 HST, so if you are making your quilt larger or smaller than I am, you can make as many HST as you need. Just take your total number of blocks multiplied by 6 to find out how many HST you will need. :)

This sounds like a lot, but it goes quite quickly, especially if you chain piece when  you are sewing your two squares together. 

Even so, I will give you all two weeks to complete this step before I write out the next step. I will see you back here for this quilt along on August 1st. 

I also have a Flickr group. Feel free to add your photos of the fabric you are using and/or your finished HST. :) I'd love to see everyone's progress. You can find the group by clicking HERE. 

Always know, if you have any questions, please feel free to ask in the comments (please include your email so I can respond to you) or you can email me directly HERE. 

Don't forget...have fun with this!! :D 

Much Love!!!

I Will Not Say Goodbye

Every year, in the itty bitty town I live in, there is a "festival" that brings in musicians.  Sometimes they are local or just starting out but sometimes they bring in great well known bands!! Last year it I got to see Zac Brown Band who was a lot of fun. However, this year they brought in Danny Gokey! {Be still my heart!}

I've followed Danny since he audition on American Idol. I remember getting chills when he sang that first time for the judges and making the statement that I knew he would go far. His story choked me up and despite his hardship, he stood strong, he held his head high and he was true to who he is. Even now while he is in the spotlight he hasn't lost what is important. He's true and he's real and such an inspiration and I adore him for that. Someday, I will meet him and give him a big hug. :)

I Will Not Say Goodbye is one of my favourite songs and he performed it last night. It gives me the chills every time. I can relate in so many ways....



Much Love!!!

Tidbit Tuesday #10

You all thought I forgot about tidbit Tuesday, didn't you? ;) 

Nope. Just busy running around to my kids baseball/softball games that happen to be playing at the same time. I'm telling ya, I need a cloning device. Ha!

Ok, so today's tip is pretty simple but useful. 

How many of you, when you're at your sewing machine, find yourself chasing your machines pedal all over? You're sewing along with your knee nicely bent and comfy, and then the next thing you know, you're reclined in your chair just to reach it?

I found myself moving my pedal more than I cared to. I'm still trying to figure out why no one has figured out to make these so they don't slip. 

So....here's what you do. One of two things actually. 

1. Get yourself some of that rubbery shelf liner stuff.  Not the plastic-y kind that is slippery, but the kind that has that "stick" to it. You know you have the right stuff when you put it against the floor and it "sticks". Cut a piece of that that is just bigger than your pedal and there you go. No more chasing your sewing pedal all over. :)

2. Another thing I've heard is that you can use an old mouse pad. If you use this though, you will need to peel off the top of it so it is "sticky" on both sides, otherwise the pedal will just slip off of the mouse pad. I have not tried this, but I've heard it works.

There. Now we can all happily sew along instead of cursing yelling quietly at our machine's pedal. ;)

If you have tips to share, I'd love to hear about them! 

Much Love!!!

Proud Owner!

Two posts in one day...I know... I normally don't do that but this warrants a double post. :) 

I've been debating for a bit now, about getting my own domain name. 

Part of me chose not to because I didn't really know the in's and out's of doing it and I was afraid I'd screw something up. I've worked too hard to lose it all.

However, today I was cleaning up my blog, organizing it a bit better and such,  so I thought  "why not?".  

Sooooo.... I am now the proud owner of www.FreckledWhimsy.com! Yay!! 

Blogger should automatically redirect you, but please update readers and such, just in case, as the redirect will only last for so long. I would really miss you if you didn't come back! :D

Over and out for today....

Much love!!!

Charm Pack Quilt Along - Cutting Your Solid

Just a quick update and some more information on the Charm Pack Quilt Along.

There is still time to do your shopping as we will not begin with instructions until NEXT Sunday. 

You can still get your 10% off your total purchase over at Crafty Girls Workshop by using the coupon code CHARM.  This is good until the end of July! 

Some of you have asked me about cutting into the white, or solid, fabric if you are not using charms. 

You can get a bit of a head start if you want to cut out your white (or solid) "charms" now. 

You will need 75 - 5" squares for the first step. This will be cut from the yardage you purchased, whether it be white or a contrasting solid to your charms. 

From your yardage, cut 10 strips that are 5" wide. From those strips, you will sub-cut into 5" squares. You will get more than 75 out of these, just put the extras aside, we will use those later, in addition to the remaining yardage. 

I'm really excited to see all of the participation with this Quilt Along! 

Please let me know if you have any questions. Remember to leave your email address in the comments form so I can reply to your questions. :) 

Much Love!!!

Everyone Loves A Parade

Oh how I love parades!! When I saw that In Stitches was going to be doing the Finished Friday parade, I knew exactly which quilt I was going to send her! Can you guess? :) 

 

Want to participate too? I know you do..!! Head on over and check out the deets and send an email with your submission. Easy as pie! If it's strawberry pie, please save me a piece..hee hee :) 

Another little somethin' somethin' I wanted to share....Anna over at Crafty Girls Workshop is going to kit my Random Reflections quilt!!! You can pre-order Fandango from her if you want to do it in that, or you can choose from any of the other Jelly Rolls in her shoppe! Yay!! Thanks Anna!!! 

This has been a very exciting week and I'm lovin' it! !!

Much Love!!!

Did Someone Say Shopping?

I know it's Tuesday and normally I would do a tip for you all....

....but...

I'm not going to because I have some more exciting news for you!! *whoop* 

I received an email today from Anna at Crafty Girls Workshop who was pretty excited about my Charm Pack Quilt Along! Guess what!?? She was so excited that she is going to offer all of YOU 10% off any of the charm packs in her shop!! **Whooop** 

Guess what??!! Her charm packs are on sale right now too!! So....you get the charm packs for $6.50  each, PLUS the 10% discount!! **Whooop**

Guess what??!! Yep...there's more!!! Not only is she going to offer you 10% off the already on sale charms, she is going to take 10% off your ENTIRE ORDER!!! Anything in her shop!! Go ahead....give me a *whoop*whoop*!! LOL!

This means that you can get ALL your supplies for this quilt along ON SALE!!  Here are the direct links for Charms and yardage!! 

This also means if you want to get the jelly rolls to make my Moda Bake Shop quilt, you can get those on sale too!!!! I can just see this quilt in 12 Days of Christmas!! Ohhhhh.... :) 

So here's the deets: Head on over to Crafty Girls Workshop, fill up that cart till it's overflowing and at check out, use the coupon code CHARM to get your 10% off your ENTIRE cart full of goodies!! You have until the end of July to use this code at Anna's store. THANKS ANNA!!!! 

Let's all give her a **WHOOP**WHOOP**...hahhahah! :)

If you have any questions, feel free to email Anna or me.

Have fun shopping!! 

Much Love!!!

Oh Happy Day!!!

I never thought today would get here! Oh happy day!! It finally has!!! **jumping up and down**

You know when you have a secret and you really really really want to share it but you really can't. Well...I can FINALLY share my secret! Even though some of you may have already guessed! =P

I would say, back in January 2010 was when I really got back in to the quilting scene. I've known how and dabbled in it for 12+ years but never really got hooked, so to speak. That is until I found Moda Bake Shop. It started with Rachel's Scruffy Quilt. Here's mine. I still love that quilt! Then I found blog after blog after blog of inspiration and I was hooked. The designs. The fabrics. It was all I could think about for a while. Sometimes it still is.

I have always followed patterns though. Always. I never thought I was good enough to change things up and if I tried, I was afraid I'd mess it up and all that work would be lost. 

That all changed. I'm constantly playing around with designs now. I usually start with a pad of graph paper and a pencil, and once the idea is formed I take it into EQ7.

I learned one day that anyone could submit designs to Moda Bake Shop. It wasn't just limited to those that had already posted tutorials. It couldn't hurt to try.....could it? 

May 13th, 2010 I submitted my very first design. 

May 16th, 2010 they said yes to my design. **heart still flip flops at this thought...lol**

First I freaked out on Twitter. 

I re-read the email just to be sure and then started freaking out on the couch. 

It may have looked and sounded like the men in white coats needed to come get me...hahah! 

Needless to say, I was extremely excited! 

My very first design. 

My very first submission to Moda Bake Shop....

I introduce you to.... Random Reflections....

In Eva by Basic Grey 

In Fandango by Kate Spain

I can't help but toot my own horn on these babies! I love them so much! 

Do you love them too? If you want to make one, head on over to Moda Bake Shop to see my tutorial!! Then make sure you add yours to my NEW Flickr group ( Freckled Whimsy - Show & Tell ) so I can give them some lovin' too! :)

Psst....This is my first project idea....but I promise you it won't be my last! *wink*wink*

Much Love!!!

Charm Pack Quilt Along - Supplies

I hope everyone is having a relaxing 4th of July so far!! Please remember to stay safe tonight and enjoy the fireworks!

I am really excited about this quilt along and happy to have you join in with me! If you have any questions along the way, please let me know. I will go step by step so even beginners can join in! 

The supplies listed will be for a quilt that will be approximately 72" X 72" before washing. You can make it smaller or larger depending on your own preference. However, going smaller will limit you on layouts.

Supplies:

• 3 charm packs (minimum of 40 charms each)
• 3 1/2  yards in a solid. This will be for your blocks and the 1st 2" inside border. OR you can also use 3 Moda Bella Solid Charm Packs and get an additional 2/3 yard for the 1st inner border.
• Border 2 - 1 yard in print of choice
• 4 yards backing
• 5/8 yards for binding (includes enough for bias binding)
• batting

Note: You have multiple options here with out using charm packs. You can use a layer cake cut down to 5" pieces. Or you can use fabric in your stash. You will just need to cut your fabrics into 5" squares first.

If you go with one of these options and want to have your squares cut before I post the first set of directions, start off by having 75 "charms" cut out. You will need more than that, but for step one you will only need 75.  

Here are a few of the layouts I came up with using just this one block. Pretty cool huh?

So, gather up your supplies, cut into your fabric if you need to and I will be back in two weeks with the first set of directions. Hopefully two weeks will be enough time for everyone to obtain the materials needed. 

Want a button for your blog? Just grab the HTML code below and add it to a gadget/widget in your blog layout settings. :) ***I hope this works. First time I've tried. Let me know if you have problems with it.***



<a href="http://freckledwhimsy.blogspot.com/search/label/Charm%20Pack%20Quilt%20Along" title="Charm Pack Quilt Along on Freckled Whimsy"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4114/4759025207_dc8dcd6a86_o.jpg" width="150" height="145" alt="Freckled Whimsy" /></a><br />

Much Love!!!

Quilt Along Anyone?

Yesterday I was making up blocks for Sarah for our Bee Splendid group and I fell in love with the block.  It's similar to Jacob's Ladder. Or maybe just a different version of it. I can't keep track of them all. I know I've seen it before but making it and visualizing how the quilt would come together had me sold! 

The more I thought about the construction, I realized that it could be made using Moda Charm packs.  This was even more exciting because I have 3 Nest Charm packs just begging to be used!! I just had to figure out how to make this pattern using only 3 charm packs.

I started playing around on EQ7 but could only come up with a quilt that was smaller than I wanted or I had to buy more charm packs. These puppies are hard to find. 

Hmm....

I decided to change the block just a bit. I changed two solid pieces into half square triangle pieces and the numbers came out perfect!!

Then I got to thinking maybe I could do this in parts, post it here, and see if anyone wanted to make a quilt with me? There are so many layout possibilities that we can all have a different quilt when we're done. Each block is the same, it's just how you position them when you put it together that gives it a different look. 

It's an easy block. Basically a 9 patch consisting of half square triangles and 4 patches. Easy peasy! 

I'd love for you to join me! I will be doing this in weekly increments, posting on Sundays.

Tomorrow I will post the supplies and fabric requirements and I will also post some of the layouts you can choose from so you can decide if you even like the quilt before you commit. Uh...you wouldn't be committing to me, but to yourself to finish. :)

Here's the block to give you an idea of what I'm babbling about! Hahah!

Check back tomorrow for all the details!! I know you all have charm packs laying around!! They are begging to be used! :D 

Much Love!!!

Line Up

On Wednesday, I went to see this...

It was the best one so far. 

In the books, I was absolutely Team Edward. 

Watching this...let's just say I'm giving Jacob a second look...and a third..and a fourth..and about a thousand more!  Heh! He's just soooo nice to look at. Just a puppy....but... 

ok...onto other things...lol

I can't wait for this to come out....looks so darned cute!

I love those little yellow guys...and the "dart" gun...LOL! 

On a more serious note...I also want to see this! Bad! 

Christopher Nolan is brilliant and I have no doubts about this movie either. Especially with Leonardo DiCaprio and Ellen Paige being in it. Definitely a different role for Ellen Paige, compared to Juno and Whip It, but I'm not worried she'll be fantastic! DiCaprio, he is such an emotional actor which makes him great and he's not too bad to look at either! :) 

So that's the line up.  For the next few weeks anyway. 

What are you wanting to see?

Much Love!!!