Other People's Fabric - Sheila's Stash

Scrappy quilts are just the best!  To get all those fabrics takes time.  It takes time to build your own stash, but if you have friends, you can get other people's fabric.  Sometimes we have formal exchanges of fat quarters or fat eighths.  Sometimes, it's specific blocks or strips or squares. Sometimes, it's a gift from someone. Whichever it is -- it's fun to play with other people's fabric mixed with your own!

Last week, I received this box.

Inside was this.......

Oh, my! A Longaberger Basket!

A BIG basket full of.......

Make that jam packed full of........

Yep, fabric!

And other stuff, too!

Lots of fabric and stuff!

A tear might have fallen!

Sheila's greens, red and purples!

Patriotic prints and patterns.

Neutrals, golds and yummy blues!

It was Sheila's stash and all she asked was.....

that I quilt and bind this small quilt she made.

She's decided to give up quilting.  She's discovered

Skydiving and Zip lining!

I guess those are sort of exciting, but I'd rather play with other people's fabric adding it to my own rather large stash!

Thank you Sheila!

Do you love other people's fabric as much as I do?  It's the variety and they choose differently than I do which adds to the spice in a quilt.

Until next time,

xoxoXOXOxoxo

Lois

Chasing Rainbows

Do you love surprises?  I do if they are good surprises.  Today I had one of those moments.

My studio is on the second floor so I have a birds eye view of the neighborhood.  The sky had suddenly turned dark and ominous looking which isn't all that common in our part of Arizona.  We are used to blue skies and sunshine.  I grabbed my camera and went outside to take some cloudy sky photos and this is what I saw --

 

 

 

I almost missed it.  I had the wrong lens on so only took a couple of shots before returning to change the lens.

 

 

 

When I came back out, I only caught glimpses of the ends.

 

 

From one part of the street I got this end.

 

 

The other end almost gone!

 

 

Just a bit remained as I looked across the street.

 

 

Sometimes behind these are wonderful surprises.

 

 

I'm glad I didn't miss the rainbow completely even if the clouds are amazingly beautiful!

 

Yesterday I took these photos of another kind of rainbow.

 

 

My sweet little two's and three's classes made this rainbow as part of our lessons on Noah and the Big Boat.

 

 

God's promises are the best!

 

 

*** On another note, life had been so busy lately that I totally missed my blogiversary! In November of 2010 I started this amazing journey blogging.  During that time I have met so many wonderful readers and bloggers that I feel very blessed.  You have stuck with me during my quirky schedule when I'm so busy I can't blog or create anything to blog about.  I love you all!  Thank you for all the sweet comments, questions and encouragement! 

 

 

xoxoXOXOxoxo

 

Lois

 

 

 

 

 

 





 

Goody boxes!

There has been some discussion lately about whether or not we need the USPS.  Some people feel that they can get their bills and pay them online so why do they need "snail mail".

Well, here are some reasons:

1. Many elderly people do not know how to turn on a computer much less own one!
2. Some things just need to be written by hand such as sympathy cards and birthday cards, especially for those afore mentioned elderly folks.
3. Aren't you excited when you get a hand written envelope that is obvious it is not a bill?
4. Below are two reasons the USPS is the best!

You may remember that my husband's cousin asked if I'd make a table runner for her. She provided the fabric and I made the table runner for her.  Well, she liked it and sent me this surprise package!

Just look at those fabrics!  Yuuuummmmmy!

Here is a closer look.  Won't these look lovely in a quilt!  She said she had fun finding them and that her local quilt shop staff were very helpful in making selections.  You gotta love those, too!  Quilt shops are the BEST!

A while back, via the Internet and Facebook, I reconnected with a long time friend in Wisconsin. (The Internet does have it's purpose!)  Her mother was one of the first people who helped me in my quilting endeavors.  The ladies group of the church we attended decided to make some quilts for missionaries.  A couple of the ladies knew how to quilt and a few of us knew how to sew.  They are not the same, you know! 

Though my mother was a quilter, I had not made a quilt yet.  I think I was 18 or so.  Linda's mother, Lila, and the other experienced ladies helped us piece and then tie quilts.  The local newspaper even came and took some photos for the little weekly paper in West Allis, Wisconsin where the church was located at the time.  I still have the newspaper clipping somewhere.  This was news because, as you may know "Nobody quilted in the 1960's" or so I've heard.  They forgot to tell these ladies and my mom and hundreds of other ladies who kept quilting alive then.

Linda recently sent me some things that were her mother's.

I could not find a copyright date on these patterns, but Vogart was big in the 1960's in the needlework area.  Lila probably bought them about the time we were making those quilts.  Isn't that cool?

Here is a close up of the state flower and state bird embroidery transfers.  Now, how could you get this over the Internet?  These are TRANSFERS.  That means the ink is specially made to transfer to fabric with an iron.  All the patterns are reversed so that they will be the mirror image when transferred. 

Thank you so much Sheila and Linda for sharing these treasures with me!  Surprises in the mail box.  Just wonderful!  I think I should go write someone a note and send it.  You had better, too.  There is probably an older person in your life who won't read your FB status and doesn't have an e-mail account or read your bog.  There may be a YOUNGER person in your life who would love to get mail. Ever see a kid's face when they get mail?  Or maybe a quilter friend has done something nice for you -- go buy her a few fat quarters.in her favorite color and send them to her IN THE MAIL.  Sure, you could just wait until you see her again, but what a surprise to get a package in the mail.

Until next time!

Lois