Hello all, Mary Ellen here.

What’s up with this weather?! I enjoy winter but I’m ready for spring. I suppose this is our annual Buffalo St. Patrick’s Day weather roulette. Could be gorgeous, could be a blizzard-just roll the dice!

Once again I’ve got a collection of odd quilty bits for you. The next post I’ve got on the drawing board will actually have a cohesive thread through it!

I’ve done this technique for making a binding with a mini flange before, but haven’t seen such a well done tutorial of it. Great technique to add to your bag of tricks. She also gives some good general binding tips. click here  BTW, maybe you are like me and have given up on a paid subscription to the Anderson/Tims Quilt Show online. If you subscribe to the blog or newsletter (free) you still can see many of their guests, in short snippets, and take advantage of many of their resources.

 interesting use of the disappearing 9 patch technique: click here

If you make dolls, or incorporate faces into your quilts, you may find this tutorial for life-like faces helpful. Very clear explanations. click here.

What’s at your machine these days? Making something for St. Paddy’s Day or Easter? working on a UFO? I’m working on a paper pieced bird house. I finished some samples for a class yesterday on getting yourself out of the ditch. Examples of quilting with a walking foot with little or no marking, and was not in the ditch a single time! This is always a popular class-so many quilters don’t free motion quilt, yet want something other that the old standby “in the ditch”. I was inspired by a book by Mary Mashuta and have been accumulating more and more examples. The trouble was I gave away a few of those samples as Christmas gifts, so needed to replace them! Next up will be some fabric posies. It’s time for something fresh and springy on the front door. (Did you hear me, Mother Nature?)