Thanks for your opinions & comments on the Star block, girls. I truly appreciate it!

For next week...
Cathy - if you could have your large cutting mat available & flipped to the unmarked side, that would be helpful. We're not going to use it for cutting... ; ) We'll also need to use your ironing board & an iron too. Thanks!

If anyone else needs to check the old blog post where the applique supplies are listed it's in the 5/14 post.

Also, could you guys tell me who's in & who's out for learning hand applique, please? It would also help me to know if you're in - are you right handed or left...?! Thanks!!!

Enjoy your weekend!
Piecefully, Pam

Morning!

If anyone is "on" & willing to give opinions, I'd appreciate it. Everything but the leaves has been stitched in place. So, I'm looking for leaf placement opinions/suggestions/ideas. Here is a photo of my block...

& here is a link to Kim McLean's Flower Pots quilt. You can click to make it bigger & view things in greater detail.

Thanks for your help, girls. TGIF!!! ; )
Piecefully, Pam

Good Morning Girls,

Thanks for Bee last evening! : ) Thanks for hosting us Mama's, Jean! It was a fun time, as always!!!

Jean - do you get ANY sleep?! You've made & are working on some terrific projects!!! LOVE the little Tuscan house. Also, the Irish wall hanging is WAY cool! Your Bunny Hill BOM #5 is cute. : ) I REALLY like the background color! The stitcheries you're doing are sweet! Way to SEW, girlfriend!!! Did I miss anyting...?! Can you give us the sports camp dates in June or pick the day that works best for a Sew-In a la Burke?

Dolores - your jelly roll book is AWESOME!!! LOTS of good projects in there. ; )

Marianne - thanks for sharing household stories. : ) I can only imagine what it might be like to live there. We are SO sedate @ Mt. Pleasant! You & Joe are hitting MANY milestones this year what with graduations, a wedding, kids moving out & such. ENJOY every bit of them & it!!! Take a few stitches whenever you can!

Lois - your Pink quilt is beautiful! Nice job. : ) Judy will just LOVE it!!! How are those grandchildren doing? How's your garden? Do you still have frogs, & if so, how are they?

Lori - the class quilt turned out REALLY nice! The school fabrics are neat-o. And, reading the things the kids wrote is touching. Must be a VERY special teacher! He's going to LOVE the gift. : )

Peggy - thinkin' of you, girlfriend! Hope all is well! When's school OUT!?

Cathy - how was Kerry's banquet? How did her team do? What have you been sewing lately?

LA - heard you had a memory stick fry... Scott say's there is software & companies that can be used to retrieve the data. Have you looked into that? Does you work place contract with a tech company that could handle it? And, how's that Kevin doing? We understand he's going to have his adenoids removed. He'll feel MUCH better I bet, & YOU might get some sleep!!! ; ) We're ALL thinking of you. If you need anything, please give a shout! I'm off for the Summer now & available to lend a hand!

Mo - enjoy your visitors! How long will they be here yet?

Have a nice day. Take a few stitches if you can. Enjoy some out of door-ness!
Piecefully, Pam

Piecefully, Pam...& Shelby too! ; )

Memories

Morning Girls!

Didn't we have the BEST weekend weather?! Glad to have this yucky stuff now instead! Thanks Mother Nature!!! ; )

I was River Dancing yesterday. Well, maybe more like Break Dancing. OK. Honestly, maybe I was SWEPT off my feet. Yeh, by J-I-N-G-L-E!?! But, did it HAVE to be RIGHT in front of Mr.*hot* Personal Trainer?! All fit & buff?! Tanned AND toned! Standing there across the street holding the leash to TWO boxers while sipping a mocha-latte-chino thingy. Grrrr. It's humiliating. Slow motion...WOW, look how high my feet are...they're @ eye level...I had NO idea I could kick THAT high...next thing ya' know..I'm on my a$$!!! Sack o' dog poop flying through the air. Hair bandana?...yep, that's airborne too! Ouch!!! Which hurts more...my body or my ego. That dang dog! He's gonna kill me!

We had some good laughs, good FUN, good food & got stuff done too! Not bad for a 3 day weekend! Hope you enjoyed yours too!

Looking forward to Bee @ Jean's this week! : ) Can't WAIT to fondle those winning FAT quarters!!! And Cathy - a real teaser for next week's Bee?! Can hardly wait to see your Show 'n Tell...

Stay tucked in today. It's blustery! Sip a tea & sew.
Piecefully, Pam

Good Evening Girls,

Such a glorious day!!! : ) I can not begin to express just how pleased I was that it was Saturday today! And then we had such gorgeous weather too! My washline was FULL!

LOTS of graduation parties, etc going on. What a great day for it! Family picnics too. Loads of FUN in our neighborhood. ; ) Yours too?!

I did some stitching throughout the day. Been working on my Santa's Blessing project. Some other stuff too. Are you getting any sewing done?

Tomorrow I have some gardening to do. House chores too. Momma Barb is coming for a visit next weekend! : ) I need to get things organized & do some cleaning!!!

Enjoy your long Holiday weekend...sporting events, beach, picnic, graduation parties, bbq, family, friends, stitching, napping whatever...I'm thankful for my freedom & remembering those who have served or are serving our Country.

Piecefully, Pam

Morning Girls,

It's day 4 of 5 here & I'm hanging by a thread... Say a prayer & send some + juju if you have any to spare! Tomorrow morning I meet with HR... Meanwhile, I did complete an on-line job application for Lankenau.

Hope you're having a nice day & able to get out to enjoy the gorgeous sunshine!!!
Piecefully, Pam

Girls,

GO to the Hayloft without me!!! Go early & shop 'til you drop!!! Since LA has been sew quiet...swing by her place, stick her in the car too & just go!!! You may need to stop by the Winery first though! ; )

Meanwhile, we'll be-e home tomorrow evening. If anyone wants to drop by for impromptu Bee feel free - you're more than welcome!

OK. I'm having trouble keeping ALL the kids straight...Dolores - a BIG congrats on Ryan's graduation!!! Mare - glad to hear about Nicole. And Cath - I hope Kerry's team WINS!!!

Enjoy your evening, girls. Take a few stitches when you get the chance!
Piecefully, Pam

Happy Monday Girls,

We survived a trip to York! And, I survived day 1 of 5 working days this week... It does feel REALLY good to be home though!!! ; )

Jean - did that AWESOME fabric arrive yet...?!

Mo - thinking of you & hoping your family visit is going well. How was the Regatta? And, what about Track too?

Mare - congrats to Jimmy!

Lois - did your travelers make it home safe & sound? I bet you ALL had a LOT of FUN!!!

What else is going on, girls...?!

LA - how are the kids?

Lor - How's John doing?

Cath - what have you been stitching lately? Did Kerry's team win the championship?!

Dolores - don't be-e afraid of me...

Peggy - whaz upppp...?!

Time to make popcorn for the Game Guys!

Piecefully, Pam

Girls - Happy Friday!! Check out the Sis Boom blog - yahoo!!!!! Piece...

Good Evening 'Mama's!

ATTENTION - I edited this post 5/15/09 around 10:00 A.M.

Jean - thanks for recapping last evening's Bee. Wasn't it FUN?!?!?! EXCELLENT time girls (and little boys too!) - thanks again!

OK, now I'm free to discuss the Aunt Millie's applique block. ; ) Click on the link, go to the Piece O' Cake website & check it out!!! The bottom middle block with the Blue Flowers is the block that was selected. It has the most hand applique techniques to teach/learn. It will be-e AWESOME, girls!!! : ) I don't want you to feel intimidated. These are big blocks with large repeating shapes. You CAN do it! I will show you how & help you along the way!

There is a fairly extensive list of supplies you will need. Perhaps amongst yourselves you will want to decide who is bringing what & share some of the notions & things...

Fabrics:
>Background square cut to 16 1/2 inches x 16 1/2 inches square
>for the applique shapes you will need an assortment of fabrics (there are no measurements given in the directions, but I think fat quarters will be fine, 1/2 yard cuts if you want to be certain...
*dark blue print
*light blue print
*another dark (more solid) blue
*medium (sort of lime) green
*light green print

Notions:
>thread to match your applique fabrics (grey or beige can work too)
>sewing needles
> a soft, pliable thimble (leather as opposed to metal)
>freezer paper
>paper scissors & a small, good pair of fabric scissors
>Templar - 1 sheet (available @ Cloth & Bobbin)
>a mechanical pencil
>an extra fine point black Sharpie marker
>poster putty
***IF you use a dark fabric as the background you will need to bring upholstery vinyl. This is sold @ Jo-Ann's on the long rolls. It's pretty cheap stuff. You will need a piece the same size as your background...so, you will have enough to share with another person if you want.

I will bring:
>Thread Heaven for you to use/try.
>Perfect Circles
>Bias bars
>"fancy" : ) tooth picks
>Elmer's School glue with a fine tip
>a fine grit sand paper folder (Cathy - if you could have your large cutting mat available & flipped to the unmarked side, that would be helpful too!)
>Magic Sizing & a small paint brush
>stapler & staple remover

Alright, that does it! Take a deep breath. Breathe. Relax. : ) We'll stitch together, share supplies & LAUGH! Ask ANY applique questions ahead of time for clarity. And, if I've missed anything I'll post it on our blog! You eat an elephant one bite at a time...we'll applique one stitch at a time too! ; )

Piecefully, Pam

P.S. I removed & edited portions of this post. You're right - TMI! Sorry. ALL that information is just TOO much here. So, I will paste it into an email. If you'd like me to send you the email, just let me know. Otherwise, we'll discuss this stuff when we're together stitching! ; ) I appreciate your honesty & responses. Thanks for your patience with me! I apologize if I scared anyone off because I'm a zealot.

Hiya Girls,

THANKS for Bee last evening!!! Thanks for hosting ALL of us, Cathy...and Tim...and Kerry...and MIKE! ; )

Such FUN!!! Good to see the "guests!" Gotta run!
Piecefully, Pam

Just a few pix from our Mt. Pleasant weekend...

The Susan G. Komen gerbera daisy. Isn't it awesome!?

Puppy KISSES for everyone!!!

Good boy!

It won't look like this come July...

See you Wednesday! ; )
Piecefully, Pam

P.S. Jean - what did you stitch yesterday?!

Good Morning Girls,

I was thinking of each of you yesterday! I hope your Mother's Day was just what you wished for. ; ) I'd like to believe that you were pampered & had some time to stitch.

How was the Graduation Party? A bit windy, no? Scott & I were taking our Sunday snooze, & I fell asleep thinking about Jimmy's party. Hope you had a nice time. : )

Lois - I planted the holly hock seeds on Saturday. Do you know what color they will be? I'm not sure what a holly hock seedling looks like, so I may cultivate some extra weeds in my garden while waiting & watching! How is Kara? And, how 'bout those grand children too?! Hugs to all. ; )

Lor - I got a DELICIOUS cantaloupe @ the Giant last week. It's gone! Thanks for the tip.

I gardened a lot this weekend. We made a fun seafood dinner on Friday evening. We went to a work picnic Saturday evening & survived. Barb spent Saturday night in the ER with Grandpa, then got pulled over by a cop on her way back home. All is alright. Her brother & sister-in-law are out of the country, so Barb has her hands extra full!

Cath - thanks for offering to host Bee this week. : ) I'll see you on Wednesday! Who else will be-e there?!

Enjoy your day!
Piecefully, Pam

Happy Mother's Day!!!

May each of you have the BEST kind of day!!! : ) Enjoy the sunshine & lovely breeze. May you have a bit of time for stitching.

Piecefully, Pam

T (is for ta-tah's...)GIF...! ; )

Girls,

Lordy-loo! How 'bout ALL those bras hanging from the trees & such?!?!?! TOO funny!!! All I can think of is, "My cups runneth over...!?" ; D Have any of you seen the Art Bra Exhibit anywhere? Jeans' post made me think of those too. We women NEED a sense of humor, don't we? Regardless of age!

Thanks for the last minute Bee on Wednesday evening, Jean. : ) Once again, it was "just right!" You girls provide a dose of laughter & estrogen in just the right measure!!!

Jean - your Bunny Hill block is CUTE! I like the batiks & sherbet colors you're using! Glad to hear the lucky quilt recipients liked their gifts!!! Your grocery sack is SMART!

Dolores - you are doing a SUPER job sewing & quilting!!! And, you are SO/SEW, WAY excited with your Flannel Hexagon quilt project. Seriously, your eyes LIT UP!!! You SEW, girl! ; )

Mare - your SW quilt turned out gorgeous! Check another one off your un-FINISHED list!!! ; ) Hooray!

Lois - your Yellow TATW quilt is sunny, cheerful goodness!!! Enjoy it! : ) And, enjoy those kids & grand kids too!!!

LA - it was good to see you! : ) Give that Kevin a SQUEEZE from me!!!

Lor - glad you (& Lindsey) stopped by. How's your Bunny table runner coming along?

Peggy & Cathy - you were both missed!

MO?! I almost forgot about you & your BIG quilt-y book!!! You have a LOT of reading to do...or picture gazing! ; )

Thanks for looking @ my Santa's Blessings project, girls. It's coming along & I'm enjoying it! Back to it again now that I did my Bunny Hill block! ; )

Mama's have a nice weekend. And, ENJOY your Mother's Day!!!
Piecefully, Pam

; )
Piecefully, Pam

Who is the next one to turn 50? Check out this blog - http://thimbleanna.com/ - about the third post down......beware!!! This is hilarious! Piece...

Rainy days on Mondays always get me down...

Does anyone remember the Bill Cosby skit, "It's the Lord, Noah?" That's what this weather feels like... Last Monday we had the A/C on. This afternoon we turned on the heat. I'm with Jean about the locusts! ; )

Lori - I SO thought it was Jean who "commented" the applique questions. Sorry about that! My allergy eyes (& brain) are a bit fuzzy. ; ) Glad if you're having some success with the leaves. Did you watch the Karen DVD I have? If not, let's ask who has it & if you can borrow it too...?! Thanks also for the fruit update. I need to go to the Giant sometime this week.

For those who have tried my steel cut oatmeal recipe. Last week I tried Splenda in place of the turbinado sugar & it worked just fine. I wasn't sure how it would be "baking" in the crock pot for 10 hours. You couldn't tell the difference!

Quilt Market is gearing up in Pittsburgh. Everyone is all a-buzz over it...new patterns, new fabric lines, new notions, etc, etc, etc!!! Karen & Joe will be going as vendor's for their first time ever. I am wishing them good luck! Johanna is going too - as a spectator & buyer! Such fun. It must be like being a kid in a candy shoppe...!?

Jean - thanks for the blog post & links! Purl Bee has had the Sew Green book on their blog. Neat-o, huh?! Now more than ever GREEN seems to really be "in!" How are your shopping bags coming along? Glad to hear you finished the "Student" quilts! I can hardly wait to hear what the Kaffe lover said?! ; )

Dolores - what were you sewing over the weekend? Glad you & Gracie had some quality time together!!! : )

Over the weekend we hung pictures in our *new* bedroom!!! Hammering in a nail was like - YIKES!!! It's starting to feel more like our home! ; )

Here I am "auditioning" greens to use as a vine & for leaves too. We'll see what works best.

Over the weekend I got the snowman & Santa pretty well done. Santa needs eyes yet. Maybe tonight...


Let's "talk" about Applique Class. What day of the week would work best? And, what time of day? Where would be the best place to gather? A Saturday? Morning, afternoon? A Friday evening? Here, Jean's, Cathy's, a rotating home schedule... Let's plan!!!

Alright, I think that does it for now. Time to walk Jingle! Keep dry!
Piecefully, Pam

Hey, girls.....check out this site - so many cute crafts! http://www.oneprettything.com/ And Pam, while reading this blog: http://houseonhillroad.typepad.com/ - she interviews a woman named Betz White who wrote a book called Sewing Green - and I immediately thought of you! Check it out - it sounds really neat. Hope everyone is surviving the dampness - it looks like Ireland out there - the greens are brilliant! Piece....

Hello Mama's,

How is everyone doing? We're good. Glad it's the weekend! : ) We've been enjoying it!

I got up early this morning. It was quiet in the house. I started a pot of coffee, threw in a load of laundry & took a steaming mug of java into the studio, where Miss Shelby Puss met me. ; ) Such a purr-fect start to my day. It doesn't get much better.

Scott & I did some errands yesterday & some more this afternoon. But, I took time to sew this morning & it felt GOOD!!! I made "Karen's Perfect Circles," & then worked on my snow man. He's turning out SO cute!!! I have my Santa prepped. Maybe after I finish this post...

Scott made salmon on the grill for dinner. I accompanied it with brown rice with vegetables, plus steamed bok choy. YUM! For the Love of Cooking blog recently had a yummy sounding Asian dish which used brown rice. I want to re-read her recipe. Do you make brown rice? I have been "baking" mine in a cake pan & ever since it's been turning out DE-lish!!!

Also this week, we came home to a crock pot of steel cut oatmeal. Has anyone else been making this? I can not find a way to decrease the sticking in my crock pot!? I've tried cooking spray, margarine, olive oil...

And, Dolores, I owe you a BIG thank you!!! I just started making my own yogurt-fruit-granola parfait this week. Thanks for introducing me to this in Houston!!! I used ingredients from Trader Joe's & it became an instant household hit! ; )

We've been getting some very yummy blackberries. : D From Market & from Trader Joe's too. I'm soon ready for cantaloupe & water melon!!! The strawberries have been pretty good too.

I hope you enjoy your weekend too. Sew if you get the chance. Make a quiet moment to sit & stitch - you are SEW worth it!
Piecefully, Pam
; )

P.S. I did some sewing...