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Hello all, Mary Ellen here. I think we’re all dating ourselves who can remember what happened for years on Labor Day weekend with Burt Parks singing that famous song “There she is…” I won’t finish it, so if you don’t know what I’m talking about, you’ll be able to kid yourself that it’s because you’re too young!! I finally got the next Lucy Goosey directions (#5) worked up. You’ll find the pattern here: sept lucy goosey. I’m kind of amazed that we’re at month 5, one more to go! I must admit that with the summer hub-bub and seminar preparations, I am behind. I have to finish my #4 and get a sample done for #5. I had told myself that if I was organizing this quilt-a-long, I would have to keep up! Oh well, life happens. Do you have any kiddos heading off to school this week? My 5 […]

Hello all, Mary Ellen here. You probably haven’t heard of Ada Lovelace, a female who was WAY ahead of her time in a man’s world. Well read here to find the connection between Ada and a man billing himself as a “heterosexual quilter”. Maybe a bunch of us should “bomb” a building on the grounds!

Hey y’all, ME here. Just was listening to an interview done by Pat Sloan with Kim Diehl on the American Patchwork and Quilting weekly podcast. If you haven’t tried those out yet, give them a listen some time. I find them perfect for listening while walking that same old boring route with the dog each morning. I had a chance to eat dinner with Kim when she and Jo Morton were our seminar teachers a few years ago. What a nice lady-very “normal” and friendly. Just like a neighbor or colleague might be. (well…some neighbors and colleagues, anyway!) She mentions her freebies in the interview. Here’s a link to her freebie section; lots of goodies there for fans. I’m pretty sure I’ll be making her free ornament for some folks this Christmas.

Hello everyone, yes, I do know today is Thursday…but read on, I’ll explain… 🙂 These summer days, as long as they are, don’t seem to have enough hours in them for everything! Sorry for not posting in some time, as always – promise to do better! 🙂 Anyway…how is everyone’s summer? Are you thinking holidays yet? Making gifts already? I just love, love love Mary Ellen’s instructions for those triangular coasters! (previous post) Those are promptly added to my favorite list of small gifts to make – thanks ME! As we start to rev-up our sewing, quilting and holiday gift making, some new tools might be of help…I just saw this blog post from Moda (fabric manufacturer) and …hmmm, not sure what to think about these QUILT STICKS! What do you think? Another inspiration came from the recent email that came from our Newsletter fairy, Colleen, about Karen Goddard’s quilt […]

Hello all, ME here. I was trying to remember, unsuccessfully, a silly knock-knock joke from my childhood that had a punch line that began with “orange you glad I didn’t say…”. That’s all I can remember. If you know this joke, please send it to me to put me out of my misery! Anyway, got an e-mail today from Quilting Arts about color choices. It seems “Tangerine Tango” is the 2012 color of the year from Pantone. Have we seen shades of orange everywhere this year? Not me, although I’ve stayed out of the stores more than usual. Thinking about the new quilt fabrics I’ve fondled so far this year, I do recall lots of orange. I’ve even purchased some yardage of a fabric with paisley in shades of orange and turquoise. So hot and summery looking. Here’s a link to a blog post from Quilting Arts about orange in […]

Hello all, ME here. Wow, I went out to walk the dog this morning at about 7:15. I always check my kitchen weather station just before we leave so I know if I will need a jacket or not. It’s a habit, so even during the summer I check. It was 83 degrees at 7:15! This is not my idea of a great summer day, fans. I want it cooler in the evenings and early mornings. It was very gray and windy while we walked, so the old-fashioned method of forecasting tells me rain is coming-but I think it might be a heck of a storm instead of a steady soaker like we need. Yesterday I gave demos at a local shop-some of which were giving ideas for using the 60 degree triangle ruler that many quilters have. Once you have made the striped fabric table runner, what else can […]

Hello all, Mary Ellen here. I have been a fan of Ami’s quilting patterns, books and teaching, almost since I started to quilt. I am so glad to have learned Ami’s invisible applique stitch a long time ago. I use it for almost everything I need to hand stitch, where I want my stitches to be completely unseen. I rarely take the time to hand stitch my bindings to the back of my quilts, but when I do, I use her stitching method. You truly can not see any stitches, and if I have been careful enough there are no puckers or traces of any kind to give hints of where the hidden stitches are. There is no need to use matching thread for the stitching, they are so invisible! At her website she still sells the book from which I learned this stitch, many moons ago! I got Ami’s […]