Flower Fairies

Yesterday in a group I was in on the internet discussing tatting and tatting techniques. I ended up talking about some fairy costumes that two of my daughters have worn that I made many years back. The costume on the youngest daughter in the bottom photo, who is actually my middle daughter, has a tatted bonnet on. Since at that time the class I was going to take for beginner tatters wasn't going to start for one week and Halloween was in three days, I decided to teach myself to needle tat to have the desired look for the cap for the baby fairy. So, in less than two days, I did just that. When I went to class for the first time the other students said, "Why are you here? You know how to tat." My response was, "Yeah, but not very well and not with a shuttle."

At the time I had a book by Nina Libin and really wanted to do some things like hers, but I wasn't skilled enough, so I embroidered beads on the bonnet in stead of tatting them into it. I wish I had been a better tatter at that time because it would have been real cool to have the beads tatted in. In the same breath, I probably would not have been able to finish it on time since I was teaching myself to tat, without much leeway in time for mistakes. I always seem to do things like that. I haven't a clue why I get an idea I want to make and, if it takes learning a new skill, so be it.

The baby in pink is wearing a costume I designed and created while watching the movie "Everafter" over and over again for months on end. I really loved the wings in that movie that they portrayed as having been made by Leonard De Vinci for Cinderella. Since I had no idea how to make them like they did, I designed and created these wings without a pattern. They are made from craft-wired floral tape and organza, with beads sewn at the tips of the wings and silver ribbon on the veins of the wings, which are also craft wire. The wings have a body harness to keep them from bouncing funny on the body and make them more stable. To make the wings, I had my daughter lay next to piece of poster board and drew my idea of a wing on the board with veins and all. Then I bent the craft wires to this shape and covered them with floral tape, then covered it all with fabric and other items.

The dresses are made from a sort of pinafore concept so the back would be open and allow for the wings to come out. The waist has satin leaves that have, on top of them, another set of leaves that are crocheted individual pineapples made out of rayon embroidery thread. There is embroidery on the hem of the tool netting, too; it's just real hard to see in the photos. That embroidery was also done with rayon embroidery thread. On each of the fabric petals are store-purchased flowers, from the wedding section of the fabric store; each had a beaded center. The bonnet was also rayon embroidery thread. Trust me, it's not a good idea, as a beginner, to give your self two days to learn a skill, make a project and, on top of it, add a super-slick substance that doesn't want to stay put! I also stitched flowers and leaves, both iridescent, all over the bonnet with accents in beads. The bonnet purposely has real long picots on it. I hoped it would make it look more like a flower's center -- a blown dandelion, sort of.

The baby also has on crocheted fishnet tights that had booties for the feet; these were made out of metallic size 10 crochet cotton. I put normal tights on under them because they were way too itchy and rough to be next to a 5-month old's skin. As you can tell, she was happy and didn't seem to mind. A few years later my youngest daughter wore it for her first Halloween, too, but she was much older so the fishnet tights wouldn't work for her since she was almost a year old.

My other daughter, the fairy in blue, has a pretty cool wand in her hand that I made using gourd stitch (some people call it Peyote stitch). This was done over a dowel with a bead at the top of it. The wood bead was covered with batting, too, then the bead work done over it. This is something else I taught myself to make (the gourd stitch and brick stitch). Then I did the brick stitch for the petals on the flowers and added streamers of beads.

Please, don't ask me how long it took to make that. All I remember is that I started it in June for Halloween (I take that back. I remember I went to a Memorial Day sale at the fabric store, so it was May). So way too long, in other words. Just so you know, the last thing I made was the bonnet because it had to fit the baby. If I made it too soon, it wouldn't fit the baby when needed since I had to fit it as I made it. The Blue fairy also had bigger wings. She could not sit in her costume because the wings would bend; thus the harness was great since we could unbuckle the wings and off they came, and the rest of the costume stayed intact. The pink fairy's wings accommodated the fact that she could not stand and could only sit slightly, so they went sideways -- more or less up and down.

In the top photo, I also made the burgundy Princess. The previous year we had two princesses -- a blue one and a burgundy one. The other three costumes I purchased because it became too much for me to keep up with the costumes with the number of kids and the details I wanted to put into the costumes.

Vintage and Antique

I have a small collection of vintage and antique collars that I have been given and have purchased. The whole purpose of collecting these was not to stare at them and admire them in a drawer, but to use them to make dresses for my children. You see, a collar that is meant for an adult is just the right size to become the bodice on a little girl's dress.

This first four are true antiques and have some very special features to them.
This first one has coronation cord that hasn't been made in over 80 years. Size 10 thread.

The next two have turtle braid in them that, like wise, has not been made in over 80 years. They are both in size 30 thread. I will also finish them all with the same size thread the collar was made with. If I believe the collar to be antique, the thread used will also be antique. The first also has Irish crochet. The second, somewhere along its life, has been dyed and not very well mind you. I gave it a light soaking; it got about 30 shades lighter, and the water turned brown. This was not dirt but un-set dye. Now it is fine and the color will stay as is.

The next I believe to be antique, but I'm not sure; it could just be vintage. I lean more toward vintage even though, when purchased, I was told it was an antique. Most people don't realize to be an antique it has to be 100 years old; to be vintage, just 20 or 30 will do.

The next two are definitely vintage, and I have started to convert them into bodices for my children's dresses.

Tatted Bodice

I was asked in some of my group/ forums what type of things do I tat. I have tatted lace gloves for a baby and a bonnet for a baby (same baby). I am currently tatting a bodice for a child's dress. It is in two different colored threads; one is variegated (a discontinued Manuela thread color) and the other is a discontinued color by Anchor.

Since most of you do not belong to the thirty-some groups I do on the internet, I thought this was probably the best place to post it. This way others could see it, too. I figured others, not just those in my forum/group, might like to see this as well.

When finished tatting the bodice, I will make the sleeves and the skirt. They will be crocheted, then I might put tatting around the hem of both sleeves and skirt. The buttons are mother of pearl.

Just in case you are wondering, I do not have a pattern to give you. I am making it up as I go along which I do for most things I make. It is in size 20 thread.

Tatting Thrift

I like thrift shopping and finding things I can use that other people toss. This is one of my favorite places to find supplies to make things.

I found this real bright pink thread on a cone a few weeks ago and thought it would be lovely as rings and chains in tatting. It is a real soft thread, so it has a nice drape to it. It almost looks like a full cone of thread, so this will make hundreds of yards of tatted lace.


That same day I also found this very old antique even size 10 Columbia thread, pale blue in color; yeah, not exactly what label said. I always love it when I find the original papers still in them. This one had the colors of thread and styles of thread that they sold at that time. Sometimes they have coupons in them for free patterns; of course, you can't get those free patterns any more even if you sent in the coupon.

I like to hard laminate these papers so I can stop the deterioration and keep them and use them as book marks in my pattern books. With this one I even laminated the size cards so I would know what it came from.

The thread was still super strong and could stand up to tatting which can be very rough on thread when closing a ring. It does have discoloration which makes the blue travel from faint blue to a medium brown. I sort of liked that on this. I don't want all my threads that way, but every now and again it's OK. Because this does have a use this way, such as on a primitive doll or prim pincushion, it would look lovely as an accent and the technique used, tatting, would work nicely with those things too.

If you are into tatting check out the 25 motif challenge group and check out the tatting group on flickr. I joined the tatting challenge with this post this is number 1 and 2 out of 25 things/motifs I am to make in the next year.

Pattern for above just copying an old piece of lace.
Pattern is chain = 1 picot term four
ring = 3 picot term four with joins on 1 and 3 picot.

my photos on explore

my photos on explore, originally uploaded by sunshine's creations.

1. redwork butterfly signature block, 2. crazy daisies, 3. bubble gum pink quilt #1, 4. back side dove, 5. felt snow man done, style:christmas colors

Sale Sale Sale Sale

Vintage Threads Inc. is having a sale
Memorial Week; it runs May 25 (today) thru June 4.
When it asks for a code, type in Memorial
and you will receive 20% off merchandise.

Have a nice weekend!
Sunshine

Sisters / Friends

The last few days have been full of school recitals, dance festivals and sick kids. My kids' school has a habit of doing these two things (recital and festival) every year during the last two weeks of school.

My youngest was feeling left out, so half way through the performance she went to sit with her older sister's class. This made her feel a little better; she was starting to get sick. It is always nice when, for a split second of time, you see that your kids truly love each other. This isn't to say that they don't show it all the time; it's just that I don't always get to notice it like I should.

So while I was behind them watching the second oldest daughter dance and perform, who is just getting better from being sick for the last three days, I noticed this picture happening. Just could not resist the chance to catch that moment in time.

Then Mom takes a picture and the older sister notices. So she tells little sis to turn around for a photo. Well little sis doesn't want her photo taken. So big sister tries to make her look and the moment is gone; aren't sisters great!

I have two sisters myself, and I remember my big sister taking care of me and teasing me, and it is all good. She is still someone I look up to even as an adult. Our lives have taken different turns throughout the years, but I always know we are there for each other.

My little sister was the one I was teasing and taking care of as a child. and my older sister took care of our little sister when she was a teenager. It is great to see that my children are learning to pull together, too, and still have fun with being sisters and best friends.

30 mm Clover Yoyo Maker " The Green One'

I was given two clover yoyo makers as gifts from my MIL as a birthday present. I didn't really know what size they would work up as. Today I got a chance to sit down and play with it, finally. I wasn't sure if it was going to be to gimmicky or real cool. I think it is cool; it allows you to make a quarter size yoyo super easy. This isn't easy to do in the hand because the fabric flips and fights you. In this tool, it lays real nice and still. I also tried it with other fabrics. If you wanted to work in silk or satins or other slick hard-to-hold fabrics, it is great. Also I tried corduroy; it did work, but was a little more difficult to get the gizmo to lock as it should. But once in the tool, it worked great, too. Just formed a little larger yoyo than cotton or silk did because the center hole couldn't get as tight due to the bulk inherent in the fabric.

Clover even makes a size smaller than this in circle form and two bigger. I am so excited to get the smaller one I am hoping it makes dime or nickel size yo-yos. How cool would that be. My friend Seiko makes them this small by hand without a gizmo; I'm not sure how she does that, but I think I will, too, once I get the smaller size. My friend Buttercup in Japan said she was sending me some, all the styles and sizes clover makes. I am so much more excited now that I got to play with one, anticipation for these to come is going to drive me a little crazy. I was excited before my playtime; now I am more so, to say the least. Those she will be sending are flower and heart shapes and more circles. Yes, many more things to make with yoyos.

Below is Seiko's Quilt; if you look closely, you can see hers are smaller than a quarter. The ones made with the second smallest clover tool are just a little bigger than a quarter. This was a gift from Seiko about nine years ago.

JuSt FoR fUn PrIzE gIvE AwAy

So, I thought because I missed giving out prizes previously at my 100th post and 200 post (and same goes for the 300th post), I am going to do a drawing for this quilt that I just did the tutorial on. You have to post a comment on this topic. The drawing will be held on July 4th in celebration of the birth of the United States of America. You do not have to be a US citizen to play this game. If there are over 368 comments then I will add more prizes. Let's see how many posts we can get. All items will be something made by me, Sunshine. If more items are added, I will post their pictures. The idea is to have multiple winners to make up for the other times when I didn't do a give away. Please leave some way for me to contact you because blogger doesn't make it easy to contact people who leave comments (such as a flickr address or blog address). Only one comment per person, please. So tell your friends; more people equals more prizes.

My blogiversary is on July 5th, so winners will be announced on that day, and I might do an added surprise on that day as well.

I decided to change this; I will add a new prize every 100 comments. I will do something different at comment number 368. If you are wondering why that number, that is this post number.

Prize #1

Prize #2 ?

Late Mother's Day swap items

Group #1

1. sunshine: knitted and crocheted washcloths and an angel coin
2. Mikki: handmade bookmarks; she ran out of time or she would have embroidered everyone one
3. celebrate 2727: soap and either bath salt or body spray (hasn't come yet)
   
4. Candismom: travel kleenex holder
5. Buttercup: flower candles, magnetic dominoes, chop sticks (she lives in Japan)
6. ktknits: knitted headband
7. cinnamongirl: rag doll
8. kathie: decorative little screen door and handkerchief
9. mommom: wood box full of chocolate
10. suzyhomemaker: quilted picture frames

Group #2

1. sunshine: crochet and knitted wash cloths and an angel coin
2. levisgrammy: hanging pillows
3. willowtreecreek: java cozy
4. herbquilter:soap and salve
5. tina michelle: handmade rose pin
6. naomi michelle: handmade tomato
7. knewslady: Scented candles
8. firemama: variety of items -- wall plaques, sachets, apron, pin cushions, hand-decorated ink pens with flowers, receipe box...
9. smoothiejuice:handmade Japanese-style stab binding books
10. beckels: 2 pails and tea

Tutorial Mock Cathedral Windows

This is sometimes called an orange peel quilt, and a few other names, too. Whatever you want to call it, it looks sort of like Cathedral Widows.

Supplies:

1. Template -- cd or plate, depending on the size you want (small plates work better than cd size). I did cd size for tutorial; it's easier to take photographs, but you will get smother rounded sides with a bigger circle (small salad plate or large soup bowl)
2. Scissors or rotary cutter / mat for fabric
3. Quilters see through ruler with square grids on it
   
4. Scissors for paper
5. Needle and thread if doing all by hand / sewing machine if doing all by machine / or half and half
6. Card stock to make square template
7. Pencil

Directions:

1. Trace round template onto fabric and cut out (use what ever method you want, such as: trace and cut with scissors or use a rotary cutter and mat with template).
2. Lay right sides of circles together in preparation for sewing.
3. Next, either sew by hand or on a sewing machine with a 1/4 inch seam allowance.
4. Overlap beginning of seam by 1/2 to 1 inch.
5. Cut a small slit in one side of fabric being careful not to cut through both layers. Make this incision close to where the folded sewn edge will be.
6. Turn fabric to right side through the small hole you just made.
7. Put something inside of circle to push all the edges out. The back side of the pencil works well for this.
8. Smooth out circles.
9. Iron circles.
10. Figure out inside square size. As this is different for each person who makes this because of different templates used or not everyone's seam allowance being the same. I will just reference how to do it. Way 1: Fold circle in half and iron; fold in half again in the opposite direction mating up first iron marks and iron again. The four marks that are left on the outside edges of the circle are the corner points of your squares. Do this to all your blocks. Sew from corner to corner. Make a row as long as your quilt's finished length will be. Way 2: Place see-through ruler over circle and see what size square will hit all sides, four corners of square at once, and cut that size square out of cardstock. This is your template for inner sewing dimensions of square. Place on all circle and trace. Sew on traced lines as before.
11. When sewing seams, make sure that the seam you sew will cover the slit you have made when flipped over.
12. Continue in this manner until you have enough strips to equal the width of the quilt.
13. Next, start to sew these long strips together
14. When all strips are sewn together, iron flaps down
15. You now have a choice: you can either sew the flaps down by hand or with a sewing machine. If you use a machine, you can use decorative stitches; I sewed mine by hand.

Finished, you can either sew down side scallops and make a straight edge quilt or leave them, as I have, as scallops for a decorative finish and less work.
Below is what the back of the quilt will look like. Front view is at the top of post.

There is no batting in this version. If you want batting, use warm and natural and sew it at the same time you do step # 3; trim close to seam and flip as before. This will make the quilt warmer, but less like cathedral windows. This is more of a spring-summer quilt, not a winter-keep-you-warm type of thing. Of course, this is a doll quilt, but you can use the same technique to make a normal size quilt, too.

If you have questions please ask so I can help you understand how to do this.

For an added surprise go here and you may just end up owning this quilt, or maybe another mini quilt I have made. As a celebration of the 4th of July and my blogiversary.

whipup

Cathedral Windows Group

Cathedral Windows group, originally uploaded by sunshine's creations.

I have always loved the cathedral windows quilts. I plan on starting one soon, but until then I enjoy looking at the ones on flickr.

1. JoAnne's quilt, 2. Cathedral Window Quilt, 3. pine green, 4. quilt close up, 5. HELP!! Cathedral Quilt, 6. Cathedral Quilt, 7. My Last Wildflower Bouquet of 2007, 8. Halloween Cathedral Window, 9. No Time to Finish...

In My Hoop

Currently I am working on a red work floral bell. She is about 1/3 the way done. This is for a signature block swap I am doing, same as the last one, so I don't get to keep her.

There was another swap awhile back that I did that everyone is switched out on. The first one I did, someone else hosted and I made a lot of blocks (13 all different) and have never seen any back; I'm not happy on that one. I am still hoping that I will get a package in the mail with 12 blocks in it; because one block was for a person not in the swap, I should get 12 back.

Back to this block I hope to get her done over the weekend. If you notice I am using red lines to draw her out. This way if a little of my drawing shows it won't be very noticeable next to the red thread.

Hand Knit Washcloths

Hand knitted 100 % cotton washcloths. These work great in the sink for washing dishes or as a face washcloth. My children love them in the tub; each has their own special cloths, some I made and some friends made.

Now I have some for the my store; they come in a few different colors. Each takes a few hours to make, so I think they are a bargain at $5.00. If you would like some, too, for your home, go here.

Prize

I got my prize in the mail today for the rug I entered in whip ups whip lash competition awhile back. I received a book on how to make rugs. Hey, it is even one I don't already have; how cool is that (sort of don't have, read below).

I sat down for only a few minuets to look at it because I have lots I have to get done today. Even if I hadn't won this book as a prize, if I had seen in a store I would have purchased it. It is great.

There are rugs in this book that will just blow your mind away. That is saying something because I have made a lot of rugs, and have seen many hand-made rugs that my relatives have made, and this still is amazing.

I actually have the older edition of this book, but the new edition has so much more stuff in it, it is like having a whole new book recommended, whether you do or don't have the old version.

redwork butterfly

redwork butterfly, originally uploaded by sunshine's creations.

This is for a swap with Cinnamon girl at Mary Jane's Farm. She lives in Canada, and it is in the mail to her. I hope she likes it; I already have one from her. Block is 8 1/2 unfinished and 8 inches finished. I am collecting signature blocks from people who want to trade with me. When I get enough of them, I plan on making a quilt. I am hoping for blocks from all over the place.

If you are into embroidery, I started a new group today on flickr; you are welcome to check it out and join.

WIP

I am in a swap over at MJF. This is a yo yo swap. I am in the middle -- well, a little beyond the middle -- of making them. Out of the 200 we are to send in, I am give-or-take 5 at 150. So I am feeling pretty good about this; I seem to be back on track on getting projects done fast. For a while there, it seemed like everything in the world was happening and I wasn't getting anything done in a normal amount of time. When I was deciding what fabric to use I noticed that I have a ton of blue fabrics, twice as much as any other fabric in my stash. I don't really decorate with blue so, yep, that is what I used: blue, blue, and more blue, and then a little more blue to top it all off.

Sign ups are open until May 18th. The swap is for only 50 yo-yos sent and 50 yo yos received, but my 3 daughters are in this, too, so ours is 200 to send and 200 to receive.

A Touch of Flowers

My peony is in bloom; I just love the bright color.

This is the first year my wisteria has actually bloomed well. Last fall I got one bloom and was happy to have it. The year before that, nothing, and the year before that I planted them. So this is the first time I get to be real excited about them. I have another wisteria plant on my porch but it blooms later in the season. I am hoping I get to enjoy it this year, too, because I have never seen a bloom on that plant.

It was so nice to see all these flowers on Mother's Day, especially since I was home with a sick kid and not able to visit my mother-in-law or my husband's grandmother. My children and husband got me a lovely little rose bush.

I'm tagged

The very creative Carina Envoldsen has tagged me to tell all the world seven things it didn't already know about me (and yes, I am way behind on doing the TAST challenge. I do plan on getting back to it and finishing it). So after I'm done telling, I have to tag seven people to do the same (sorry folks that's the rules of this game).

OK, seven things... shouldn't be to hard, Hmmm?!

1. OK, for starters I met my husband while sort of on a date with another guy. Sort of weird; never did that before or since (I am still happily married to him). I was getting ready for a date with my then neighbor and made some cookies to take over to him and his roommates, we were in college. I was also trying to make sure the date was still going to happen, he was a busy guy. Date still on and they had company over so I offered the roommates cookies and some to the stranger sitting in the corner, too. The next week my neighbor went on a date with some girl -- I don't know who. Then the following week my husband (not husband then) went on a date with that girl and my neighbor doubled with my roommate. Three weeks later I was hanging out with my husband-to-be as friends. We jinxed ourselves; long story short, neither of us wanted a relationship and thought it was safe to hang out together. Thus about 1 year later we got married and, outside of my husband's immediate family and said neighbor, I knew noone at the wedding. My husband's joke is "May the best man win; oh wait, the groom won".
2. OK, in high school I had a Mohawk: pink and purple liberty spikes and a hand made chain mail mini skirt. At times I wish I still had that skirt because it took me months to make. Gave it to a neighbor (don't ask me what a 45-year-old woman, who was 10 sizes bigger than I was, wanted it for). I don't even want to think about her trying to wear it. YIKES!!! I was an 8 at that time in my life.
   
3. I am Italian and Portuguese, but you probably already know that. I'm married to a man who is German; thus the German last name. But I bet you didn't know I have a Japanese step mom, two full siblings, two half siblings, one step brother and a step father. A typical family these days, I would guess. Maybe not!
4. (Side note this is harder than it looks to come up with seven things). I have a sewing room; no shocker there. The weird thing is I think I have only sewn in it twice and that was to help my daughter with her first quilt. I tend to sew in the family room and front room of the house. The sewing room has too much stuff in it to make a good sewing room. More of a storage room that pretends to be a sewing room.
   
5. I went through Junior College and the University on full-ride scholarships and had enough money left over that I was able to pay half of my husband's tuition and buy his books, too, plus tons of art supplies. Made life much easier for him. The funny thing is, when it comes to book smarts, my husband is tons smarter in math, science, and English than I can ever dream of. So it is funny that art/art history scholarships paid for a math and science major's tuition.
6. In my 13 years of marriage we have lived in 5 different homes, and before we get to our 14th anniversary we will have added another home or two to that list. Just sort of happens; every few years we move. This home and the one two back we stayed in the longest, both around 3 1/2 - 4 years.
   
7. We have three daughters; you know that if you read this blog on a regular basis. But before them I had miscarried twice. Don't worry I am fine with that now, but it wasn't till after the last child was born that we figured out why I had miscarried. I have what is known as Von Wiillenbrand's Disease (similar to hemophilia and genetic, not contagious unless I give birth to you), and we believe all our children have it, too. This is the most common bleeding disorder in the world: 3 people in 100 people have it and most don't even know it. My husband actually diagnosed me with it after hearing one 60-second commercial on the radio from the Utah Hemophilia foundation. After taking some tests, yep, I did have it. That was a good thing to find out because after 2 miscarriages and three births (I almost died after each one from hemorrhaging), I was so iron poor that I couldn't physically drive more than 15 minuets without falling asleep. So it was a life saver to find out because I was becoming home bound. I am fine now and all is well. If you think you know someone who has this, please, by all means, check out the link above. Males and females get this equally, unlike hemophilia that is more dominate on the male side, girls can get hemophilia, too; it is an old-wives tale that they don't get it and are just carriers. You can also check out the Red Flag Project Site for information too.
   

OK, now you know too much, yes!?! I think so too!!!
Seven people to tag: let's see

1. Penny
2. Eren
3. Susan
4. Jane
5. "Pyglet"
6. Laura
7. Beth
   

Not only was it hard to pick 7 things to write about, it was hard to pick 7 people to tag, too.

28 Threads...

All that there is left to do 'till this is finished is to weave in all the loose tails. It took three days from start to finish. Now just to give it to our friends. I was asked how I was joining the pieces. So enclosed in this post are some close ups so you can see the joins between blocks. Please click on the photos for a better view.

A little bit of edging and block joining.

Block joining and a corner block join.Edging

Progress!?!

I was hoping to be farther along than I am today. So I guess we will end up giving it to our friends next week instead of this week. That is sort of a bummer. I am liking the blanket thus far. I think it will end up being five squares by five squares with an edging.

I have tried to make it both boy and girlish. If they have another child and want to use it again, I want it to be able to be used for either gender. I hope I am succeeding in my goal because I don't want them to feel weird that it looks a little girlish now or a little boyish later.

I like the way I decided to join the squares. For the final row on each square I am chaining six and using that as a way of joining the blocks. When a join is required I ch 3, sc in corresponding chain on opposite block then ch 3 again and sc in the block I am working on and continue around in this manner. Corners have an extra sc in them to make a strong connection because that is usually a weak place on any afghan. This is also a faster way of joining and looks lacier than stitching them together at the end and, did I happen to say much, much faster.

WIP / New Tools

Sunday I was making some banana bread (I was using nine bananas), got half way into the recipe mixing and realized the box in the refrigerator didn't have any eggs in it. Don't ask me why it was still in the fridge -- I haven't a clue.

So what to do because I don't go shopping on Sunday. Quick call to the sister-in-law; life saver, that one. She had enough for me and enough for her to make something that took either six or nine eggs, too. So I quickly went over because the backing soda and baking powder were already having their reaction and I had to hurry; not hard because she only lives about 3 blocks away. Long story short -- she saved my bread.

The surprise was when I got to her house she had a present for me. Real cool; not my birthday or anything! She said she had been at Hancock Fabric (a fabric store) and saw these items on clearance and thought of me because I like to make yo yos. She said they were real cheep; I hope so because things like this usually cost a lot.

I am so excited about the new toy. I just haven't had time to play with new toys as of late. I am in a swap that is just getting under way over at MJF, so I will be cutting lots of yo yos in the very near future. That actually isn't the reason this is exciting to me. When I get a chance, I get to open the package and look inside because it has a note on the outside which reads that it has an apple core pattern inside. This is a quilt I have wanted to do for a long time. I am hoping this will help me with the cutting and getting it done sooner than later. If any of you readers have this toy, tell me what your opinion of it is and any tips and tricks you might have because I have never seen this before. Monday I did return to her house and gave her one of the loaves of banana bread as a thank you for the nine eggs.

My current project is a baby afghan that I am making for a friend of ours who had a baby born, not even at mid term. Amazing, the baby was the length of an ink pen and it's weight was less than a pound. The baby is home now, and I am late on the gift. The baby is healthy; it's amazing the things that doctors can do with modern medicine and a lot of prayers. The afghan is made of 100% cotton. Where you see the balls sitting next to the afghan is where the next block that color is going to be. I am hoping to get this done by the end of the weekend.