First of March and WINNERS!

Don't think I have any pictures to share, and haven't finished anything lately.  Well, that's not exactly true - I did deliver that Civil War reproduction quilt, but am still working on those pictures.  I'm still stitching on my Scarlet Letter sampler as part of Nicola's Scarlet Letter Year.  Making changes all over the place on that one.

But, I did take the time to sit down and draw the winners for the Blogaversary Giveaway!!!

The lucky folks - and what they won are - dah dah dah dah ! -

Peg C - won the April Prairie Schooler chart
Evelyne - won the Long Dog Sampler chart
April - won the needles
Kathy H. - won the mini-sampler kit
and Deb (The Threadgather) - won the Cherished Stitches chart.

Whoo Hoo!  Congratulations to all.  Turns out, I do have something to share.  At my last DAR meeting, we were entertained by Tom Dawson, a local fiddler.  He specializes in historical performances and he talked to us about the evolution of fiddle music in the US from our earliest days as a colony forward.  Hope you enjoyed.  All the winners - I'll be in touch with you by email; if you don't hear from me, it's because I can't contact you, so you'll need to contact me. 

Mid-January Update

You will see by the logo at the right, I have joined in on Nicola's Scarlet Letter Year.  I've been assigned to Blog Two.  I have decided that I will work on Susan Singleton.  To read more about that, head over to NSLY - Blog Two.

 I am getting set to make this purse, pattern by Indigo Junction, that was a shop model in my quilt shop two years ago.  That's how behind I am on my own projects!  The fabric is wool.  I got the liner fabric yesterday, but am still on the hunt for the leather that I want to use as an accent and also for the handle(s).  Winter weather may delay my road trip to the supplier for the leather until spring and reliable traveling weather.  That disappoints me, because the purse really is a winter purse.

 I have finished the second pre-printed project I was working on.  THANK GOODNESS!!!  I really pushed myself to do this and get it done.  I've used up almost all the variegated flosses I'd collected except for the nicest ones that I will save for small projects that will finish them off.  I think that this will become either a pillow or a framed piece that I will gift to my dauther in law.

This is a lovely present that I recently received.  Pin cushion on top, spool minders, and even a little drawer with tiny treasures.  The pin cushion may end up being replaced by a small biscornu that will fit in the receptacle.

The little gem inside the drawer was a sewing kit (see below) that opens to reveal first a little thimble, then further with a thread keep that has a needle case down its center.

This little JBW Designs chart has been in my drawer for awhile so on a scrap of Jobelan, I stitched it with DMC 321.  I omitted the words and will make it into a little pillow.

I've had more computer problems which I have only partially recovered from this last weekend.  That's what I spent most of my time doing, not projects in the sewing room.  So, alas, that's really all I have to show you this time.

This morning our low was 11.7 degrees with a wind chill that took us down below zero.  I suppose it will be even colder tomorrow morning because the wind hasn't stopped yet.  I feel really awful for everyone up in the northern latitudes.  Wherever you are, I hope you are staying cozy and warm.

Revisiting an Old Friend

There's trouble brewing on the horizon as I go out and take down the blankets and towels I left hanging on the clothesline overnite.  Thunderstorm is almost here, but will usher in cool, fresh air for a few days.  Sebastian follows me.  It really amazes me how attached he seems to be.  Most cats, you walk out the door and they could care less.  I can't leave the room without Sebastian
following to see what kind of hijinks I'll be up to next.

He's found a stick in the yard and begins playing with it.  Quickly tiring himself out.

Since I finished Opus Magnusson, I picked up American Sampler again.  It feels like I'm revisiting an old friend since I am  no longer intimidated by the multitude of Queen stitches.

Here is the most recent progress; I finished the motifs on one side, all the way down to the urn.  Now I'm working my way back up the other side having started with the urn.  And here's an urn closeup -

The urn is worked in Florentine stitch and I thoroughly enjoyed stitching that.  You can see the outer border beginning to take shape in Rice stitch.

Here is what it looks like over all (a little droopy).

Turns out when I was stitching the strawberry flowers, I made a mistake.  I actually stitched them like strawberry flowers.  Turns out on the chart, each of them have four lavender spots.  Not sure yet whether I'll go back and put the lavender in.  I have also still not decided what verse or information I will put in the car touche below the arch.  There's plenty of time to decide, I think. 

Had some fun this weekend.  While my husband and I were out running an errand, we came upon a community yard sale.  This was a sweet find - for only two dollars:

Yeah, they're prestamped, but after working on the kit for The Chase sampler, I decided that pre-stamped wasn't SO bad.  The color scheme of soft pinks and sage greens is very 80's though.  The blocks are about 12 inches.  Only six come in a package so I am clearly not going to be able to make a quilt with them.  However, all six, or even just three, will make a nice table runner or table topper.  So that will eventually make it into the rotation.  Fun, huh?

Oh, and I also came up with another find (not pictured, but if you want me to in another post, I will).  You remember I got a new car?  Well the console goes up the center all the way, into the dash, so there's no place to put or hang a trash bag.  In my minivan I had a beautiful stitching tin that I would line with a grocery bag and that was my trash container.  So, a girlfriend (thanks Cheryl!!)  gave me the idea last week to use some sort of plastic container with a lid.  One of the yard sales I stopped at had a Tupperware bread keeper - with a snap-shut lid.  For another 2 bucks, I got it, came home, put a bag in it over the lip, snapped the lid shut and now I have a trash container that will sit on the floorboard on the passenger side, or the back, and if it falls over, no big deal - the trash will still stay inside!  Brilliant!

So, that's it from the thundery Eastern Panhandle.  Hope you enjoyed!

Spring Samplers

Thanks for all your congrats.  That was really nice.  Baby Gabe is doing well.  We had a video chat with him and the rest of the family yesterday.  My son was so sweet toward the end, talking about how glad he was that I had gotten us set up with the webcam because it used to upset him that we were missing out on Emma growing up.  He said that now, we will be able to see Gabe's progress. 

He said that Gabe is still "frog-legged" which I guess is because of the C-section birth, but, he's been stretching out on his own.  They say when he stretches, he looks like Superman, flying.  He also told us that Gabe's got a cyst on his eyelid that will have to be removed when he's about 1 year old.  I understand that this happens frequently - it's extra skin that developed, but not fully - and that the surgery is routine. 

And no, I'm not going to visit him on the webcam everyday and watch his toenails grow.  I'm not that kind of gramma.  In other words, H-E-L-I-C-O-P-T-E-R is not my middle name; a fact for which I think my daughter in law is eternally grateful.

I have been working still on the American Sampler and here are some progress photos:

 I just adore these birds that are at the top of the columns.  They are SO pretty.  I'm thinking that when this is all done, I may stitch them on larger count fabric, like Tula, and make them into clippy birds for the Christmas tree - like the needlepoint birds I showed you last time.  Speaking of those needlepoint birds, I'm so glad you all liked those too.  I'm salivating to get started on one, but am holding myself back.

This is an over-view of the center section of the sampler which is complete - well, sorta.  I'm going to put a different phrase in the cartouche.  And hey, turns out I used the wrong color altogether for the grass.  It was supposed to be 3347 not 732.  Now, how I made that reading mistake when I went back several times to check, I have no idea, but I did.  I am still going to live with it.

 Here is a detail of the Lady that you can see in the overall picture above.  She is stitched over one.  Whew!  That was something else.  But it just makes that center pop having her there.  I tell you, the photos here and in the magazine, do not do this sampler justice - even with my mistakes it's going to be one of those that I will greatly anticipate and then love to hang on my walls.

And here is the overall progress to date.  A little more of those golden green cross stitches and then some leaves in cross stitch on the to do list for tonite and then I'll begin on some Queen Stitches.  I really despise working on Queen Stitches.  Valerie, down at Shenandoah Sampler did such a beautiful job with hers, but I'm not that good.  I will give it a go and if it becomes too much for me, I'm converting them over to cross-stitch.  But I'll give it a go.  Anyway, I decided that since I dread them so much, I'll work some cross, then some Queen and then go back to some cross again.  If I break it up, maybe I can get through it?  Would that all the world's problems were this great!  It is also nice to be working on this sampler at this time of year because it just makes me feel springy!

Our weather has changed from distinctly summer-like (82 on Thursday afternoon) to cool, damp and springy.  I will have to mow the grass tomorrow once it dries off.  And, of course, all the peach trees have bloomed as well as the cherries and last I looked, my pears are about to break out in song.  Unfortunately, the weatherman is saying the Shenandoah Valley may be hit on Tuesday morning by frost.  That would be terrible for the crops.  Here are a few pictures of what's been going on outside my door -

 Above is a from the bottom, up - photo of my weeping cherry tree. 

When I was walking back up the driveway the other day, after getting the mail, I noticed some pink blossoms along the fence row that I'd never seen before.  Upon closer inspection I found what is shown at left.  It is probably a volunteer that originated in my compost pile.  There were two more actually growing out of the compost pile.  I am not a serious composter, and the ground hog eats much of what I put down there.  In fact, she may be responsible for this one along the fence row.  I'm thinking of relocating the two in the compost pile to somewhere in the landscape.  I'm not one to turn down free trees.

Below is a photo from last weekend when it was foggy and my Yoshino cherry was still in bud.  Later in the day, it would be in full bloom.

And, while this last one is not a stupendous photo, it does show an apple orchard on the left and a peach orchard in the back along one of the toes of the mountain.  Hope you enjoyed.

Early March Update

Well, I've been hard at work on my DIL's Christmas stocking and I'm happy to say that I'm close to finishing it.  Here's a picture of the overall status:

I have done all the regular cross stitching as well as all the back stitching that makes many of the objects "pop".  I've also done most of the Kreinik fiber stitching.  That's the "bling" part.  Right now, if you can see it, down in the toe, where just a portion of the bottom of a Christmas tree is peeking into the picture, I've stitched the gold garland and am in the process of stitching a few candy canes using the last of the Kreinik.

Next I'll add popcorn garland and bead "ornaments" to the small tree on the bookcase and some bead "ornaments" to the peeking tree.  The last step will be stringing beads to make cranberry strings and I'll couch those down in droops along some of the shelves on the bookcase.  Then I'll put done on the stocking.

Here are some pictures of the details of the stocking:

Old fashioned "desk top"

Santa, Mini-tree and School Bus

     Was able to put the pictures where I wanted them to be for once!

Stuff on the Rug

Sunflowers and Graded Papers

Name Bling

You all were so nice about my last post, wishing me well on the blogoversary.  Can't wait to see who the giveaway winner is.  If you missed it, the post on the giveaway can be found here.

LOTS of you liked the tennis pillow with the cool trim.  Yes, I did design it.  The moment she gave it to me, I knew what I wanted the trim to be - tennis balls - because that's the only thing that made sense; right?  Sometimes I can be quite the idiot-savant when it comes to those sorts of things.  I searched online at some of the trim places I deal with for tennis ball trim and much to my disappointment, there was none to be found.  I actually contemplated how I could hand draw little white lines on yellow pom poms to make them look like tennis balls, but quickly gave up that idea. 

Back to the drawing board.  Note quite ready to give up on the tennis-themed idea, I briefly entertained thoughts of purchasing tennis racket charms, but that worked out to be too expensive.  WAY too expensive.  Hmmmm.   Then, suddenly the lightbulb went on.  It was because of the charms that I thought about jewelry and that made me think about beads.  And tennis ball beads, it turns out, I could find.  I located a bead shop in Florida and they had them in all sorts of sizes.  So, I'm sitting here in front of my computer trying to figure out what size would work best and decided it had to be the largest ones.  They weren't exactly cheap, but were much less costly than the charms.

I moved on to trying to figure out how I would attach them.  Not yarn or string, that wouldn't look right.  Then the light flipped on again and I went - tennis shoe laces!  Of course!  When the beads came and I was all excited to execute my plan.  I got my shoe laces at the grocery store, but have since found out that you can get all kinds of colors at Target in the shoe department.  Then I found out that the shoe laces wouldn't fit through the holes in the beads.  The hole looked big enough, but I could not make those laces go through.  Harumpf!

I pulled out my trusty drill and drilled every single bead just slightly larger.  My husband was freaking, he thought I was going to drill right through my hand, but I didn't - this wasn't my first rodeo doing something like that.  Holes re-drilled, I strung the beads on the laces and then pinned them to a piece of ribbon that would be the skeleton that I sewed into the seam of the pillow.  I put the ribbon on my cutting mat on a straight edge and used the lines on the cutting mat to keep me putting the laces on the right distance apart and the beads all at the same distance from the ribbon edge.  The laces curved back and forth down the ribbon like a bunch of "S"s one on top of the other.  Then I affixed white, jumbo zig zag trim because I thought it would need something right at the edge of the seam.  The final step was to sew the new trim pieces onto the pillow and sew it all up.

My customer was absolutely thrilled with the outcome.  She's giving the pillow as a gift to a friend of hers that is in her 80's and is the "world's biggest tennis fan".  She kept saying "she'll love it", "she'll love it".  Which of course is the best thing I could have heard her say.  I'm tickled pink that you guys liked it too. 

It's been a very weird winter here.  Yes, we've had some cold days, but not real cold like we usually do each winter.  Last month's electric bill was a surprise, about $50.  That's because the power company had been estimating our usage - for three months.  Then they came out and did an actual reading and found they'd been WAY over-estimating.  So, we got the credit we deserved and paid a nice low bill for once.  This month's bill was pretty good too.  Each week we have several 60 or 70 degree days and the forecast for next week is 70's all the way from Monday through the week.  While it's nice, it makes me worry about the summer weather ahead.

My daffodils are already blooming - a month ahead.  I'm sure that the apple and peach blossoms are not far away.  I noticed my pear trees are budding up already.  The robins are back already and I've also seen the birds performing their mating rituals - early, I think.  A blue bird flew across the road in front of me the other day.  Apple Blossom time is early May around here, but I'll bet they'll be a whole month early.  And then we have to worry about frosty mornings that will destroy the crops.  Ah well, mother nature is a wonder.  I'll close with a picture of a peach orchard in full bloom.   Hope you enjoyed.

This Winter Really Sucks

The doctor's say that it's because we keep going from mild to cold.  There are fleas, ticks, germs that aren't being killed by the cold weather.  My son works at a grocery store and handles dirty money.  And he hasn't been all that careful about cleaning up well when he comes home.  Whatever the reason, I'm sick again.  I have now been sick - in some sort of way - since December 3.  My husband had to go to the doctor this week.  His sinus was so full on one side, his eye was swollen shut.  So, I had to take him.  He saw the same doc I saw back in December.  She asked how I was doing.  I said I was now fighting off whatever he's got, but also I've had a nagging cough that just won't go away.  She nodded - lots of people are having the same trouble.  She recommended we run the humidifier.  Last night I lost the battle against the newest germ.  However, the nasal spray and the Coracidin seem to be helping me fight back.  I am just so sick of being sick.  Spring, and consistently warm weather, just can't get here soon enough for me.  Punxatawny Phil better be wrong.

We did get some snow last weekend and are supposed to get a little bit more tonite - but it will only last a day and we'll be back in the 60's again.   I pulled a huge tick out of my dog last night that wasn't there a few days ago.  Yuck!  So here's some pics of the snow.

 

So there I was, last Sunday morning, sipping my coffee and BAM!  A hawk lands on my deck railing.  POOF!  All my songbirds disappeared instantly.  Amazingly, the hawk looked straight at me inside the house and then hopped to the other railing.  That gave me the opportunity to get up and grab my camera.  First shot is of the hawk - not the best, but it was looking right in my direction and they don't call 'em Hawkeyes for nuthin.  After that picture, it was up up and away - much to the songbirds delight.  I went outside and grabbed a shot of its prints in the snow.

 

 On the sewing side of things - I've got a lot of things on the burners for clients.  Thought I'd resolved my issues with the pirate quilt and have managed to make great headway with Opus Magnusson.

Did this for a client - it's a needlepoint plaque; just a large ornament really.

I saw a piece on Fons & Porter last weekend about painting with Fabric dyes.  Finally found the dyes on a website and ordered the "Classic" colors.  Got an email today saying oops, sorry, we're out of stock, how about we send you the "romantic" colors or the "country" colors.  Well, I wrote them back and said, how about you issue me a refund and keep better track of what you're in stock of and not.  Get pissy when I'm sick.  I was just really annoyed.  I'd spent hours looking for the darned things and then thought I'd resolved my problem.  Not so much.

When I finished stitching on AotH in January, I went right into Opus Magnusson.  Remember how I really hated this tiger?

Well, to use one of Siobhan's euphemisms, I yanked up my big girl panties (because the darned thing was driving me nuts!) and did this:

I have not edited the stitching in my photo software.  I edited the stitching on my kitchen counter instead.  Yep.  I went out to Michaels and purchased a packet of orange fabric dye.  I mixed up the tiniest bit of the dye with a little salt and a little water and painted it on with a watercolor brush.  I am MUCH happier with the whole thing now.

Also, I've finished the top four blocks:

 

I have decided that I'm going off the reservation again with the recommended colors.  As noted before, Cidermill Brown is not a satisfactory substitution for orange (that's what happened to the tiger).  So, I pulled some GA orange - Pumpkin Patch.  And it turns out that it very closely matches my dye job on the tiger!  YAY!  At least that went right, right?  And then I decided that there was just too little use of the red.  So, I made the birds red with a little orange.  They make me think of phoenixes.  The bottom row is supposed to have more people in the corner, but I think that's too many people, so I'm going to make a substitution.  My husband, who has been rather blase' about this piece in the past went WOW!  when he saw it this past weekend.  I'm now back to work on the stocking for my daughter in law (no pic for now).  

I am probably late in discovering her, but in case you haven't heard about the Pioneer Woman, she's had a blog (now website) for a long time and recently went into the t.v. business on the food channel.  I made her brussel sprouts for Christmas dinner and want to make her Knock-You_Naked Brownies soon.  I just love the name!  I have to write her because she recently did something on her show that I went - wow, why haven't I been doing it like that, I'm smart, I should've figured that out!  So, gotta run!  Hope you enjoyed!

First Giveaway of the Holiday Season

I worked a bit more on the birth sampler; am very happy with the results. I have set the sampler aside so I can work on the December block for AotH. I can't believe how close I am to finishing both samplers.

Each week I plan to do a giveaway. Rules are simple. Comment on this post and be a follower and you'll get a chance.

Here's the first giveaway - it's an Ellen Chester design (With My Needle) called Alphabet Samplings Book.  I really love it, but I have had to come to the conclusion that I will never do it.  There's just not enough time.  Chart is brand new, never been used.  Be sure to tell others about this giveaway.  Remember - the more the merrier!  Drawing the name on Monday, December 12.

Funny pictures - I was coming out of the farm market, saw these pigs.  Decided to have a look.  When I stepped out of the car I cautiously walked up to the pen because I wasn't too sure what mama was going to do and I understand pigs can be really, really mean.  So there I was standing next to the pen and this little piglet came running up to me -

 I suddenly felt like I was in the movie Babe.  Then the piglet realized that all its brothers and sisters were eating and it squealed and ran back to its mother.

But then it couldn't get in.  This piglet squealed and squealed.  I laughed and laughed.  It was a great stress reliever.  I should spend more time at the farm market. 

 

Hope you enjoyed!

I Urned It

No, no, don't get the idea I'm patting myself on the back.  I've just had that post title running through my head these last ten days while I worked on The Chase sampler.  Here's why:

I finished both urns and flowers.  I am almost finished with the Jacobean Crewel portion of this sampler; just have those two little birds to do.

Here's a picture I took, indoors, that shows the crewel portion of the sampler and you can see the placement of the birds better.

Finally, I took a picture outside so you can really see the colors.  We have 98% humidity out there so I only stayed out for the one shot.

I have decided that on the two lines I will put my own information; my name, birth date and either birth place (as there is no sampler in my family commemorating my birth) or the name of the town I grew up in.  Right now I'm leaning toward the town I grew up in.  The original sampler has the stitchers info as well as a brief Bible snippet.  I don't know if I'll finish the sampler next month or not, but I'll come darned close!

I want to take an opportunity to say how impressed I am with the people who were attending the concert at the Indiana State Fair where the stage collapsed.  Incredibly brave people who ran into the fray to help those who couldn't help themselves.  And then I want to say how disappointed I am that law suits are already being filed.  Want to know what's wrong with society today?  That's one of the things.  Any opportunity to make a buck.  Anyone remember the phrase "act of God"?  Last weekend my husband made negative comments about the state leaders bringing in people to figure out what happened there - so soon without giving people an opportunity to grieve.  Me, the eternal pessimist, replied that I thought he was naive that lawsuits wouldn't begin pouring in the first week.  Well, guess I win that one - and I just think that's sad!

Back on the stitchy front, I was reading Mary Corbet's blog a week or so ago and she reviewed this book:

She talked about what a great read it was.  Mary so impressed me that I immediately went to Amazon and ordered myself a copy.  It has arrived and although I haven't had an opportunity to read it cover to cover like Mary, I have thumbed through it.  It is now sitting in my "to read" pile by the bed because it certainly deserves a closer look.  I think it will not only inspire design, but explains some older techniques that we may find interesting to use again.  Oh, and the author has two other books that I'm putting on my wish list!

Meanwhile, I needed to beef up my total so I could get that free Super Saver Shipping!  A book I'd had my eye on for quite a while is this one:

When it arrived, I started reading it that night and have read it every night since before going to bed.  My favorite historical era is the American Colonial Period and this is the best book I've ever read that gives you an idea of what it was like to live on a colonial plantation in Virginia.  Martha Washington was some kinda gal!  She has completely come alive for me.

That's all from me for now - hope you enjoyed!

Off Topic - Have You Seen Zen?

I've watched the three Zen Detective stories on Masterpiece Mystery these last few weeks.  I DVR them and it takes me a bit to catch up.  But, last night I saw "Ratking".  All three stories have been wonderful - intense, mysterious, and Rufus Sewell, well, he's just gorgeous.  His eyes have fire in them - or maybe it's call smolder.  Whatever it is, he's a dish! But, Zen is an Italian detective.  He's from Venice, working in Rome.  And the thing that really bothered me about the shows; distracted me many times, in fact, was that all the actors save one spoke with English accents.  Now, I've never been to Italy, but I suspect that Italians speak with Italian accents like Caterina Murino (Zen's love interest) and not English accents.

This series originally aired at the beginning of the year on BBC1 and I found some blog entries from reviewers where the comments were about 50/50 that the accents were confusing/distracting. Anyone else been watching?  Have an opinion?  At any rate, I enjoyed the series so much I'm going to check out the remainder of the books.  Maybe audio?

I have so little  time for reading.  Although, I did have a medical issue recently which left me on my back a few days.  Can't stitch that way, so I read.  First, I fiinished The Eagle by Rosemary Sutcliffe (begun many months ago).  They had a movie out last year based on the story and now that I've finished the book I'd like to see it.  The story, based in Roman Britain, was like a Jr. Reader.  It was interesting, had lots of history.  I recommended it to my son, but he didn't bite.

I pulled an old favorite off the bookshelf too - The Gamble by Lyvyrle Spencer.  Oh, that woman could write!  Toward the end of the story, they are in the main character's home "Waverly" a Southern plantation located in or near Columbus, Mississippi.  Turns out, there really is a Waverly Plantation Mansion just as it is described in the book.  And it's gorgeous!  And haunted!  ooooooowwwwwweeeeeeeoooooooooooo

Finally, a while back I mentioned an old favorite book by Elswyth Thane.  Well, here's another one.  I first read it when I was in the 7th grade.  It's called Mrs. Mike by Benedict & Nancy Freeman.  It's the story of a Boston girl (whose name is Katherine which is probably why I picked the book in the first place) who goes to visit her uncle in Saskatchewan and falls for a RCMP officer named Mike.  I vividly remember little Miss Boston's experience with a filthy rotating hand towel.  It was really funny!  Mike's beat is in the wilderness of the Northwest Territories of Canada - in and around the Great Slave Lake area.  Back then when I read about a place I didn't know, I'd pull out the National Geographic Atlas and look up the places they talked about on a map.  Make a whole research project out of it.  This book is probably how I learned about the Canadian provinces - there are a dozen of them.  And yes, because I am no longer smarter than a 5th grader, I had to look them up to refresh my memory!

Me and my stitchy friends were talking yesterday, trying to figure out why kids today have so little ambition.  I tend to think it's the Great Depression (and I don't mean financial).  When they see the world going to hell in a handbasket, do you think they are thinking, what's the point?  Any thoughts?

Hazy Hot and Humid - With a Chance of Peacocks

I took this photo this morning at about 5:30 AM when it was already 72 humid degrees outside. 

Flow Blue

Now, I know, I should not be complaining about 72 degrees.  I heard on the news this morning that the heat index somewhere in Iowa yesterday was 127 degrees.  Now that's just wrong.  Rest assured, all that heat and humidity are headed my way and by the end of the week I'll be calling myself roasted something-or-other.

Going to see the client today with the oriental quilt top.  We'll discuss how it will be quilted.  Here's what it looks like:

Oriental Peacocks

Remember I told you this was a kit that she ordered.  Take my advice and don't buy the kit.  The instructions were, in my opinion, not good.  I actually found two errors that - if I had followed the instructions - would have really screwed me up fabric-wise.  There was also an error on how many of a certain triangle to cut.  And we won't talk about the headache of having to cut each of those fan pieces by using a template.  Three templates actually - because of course when you make one out of that milk carton plastic, they don't stand up to a rotary cutter too well. 

However, I will say that the template thing was mostly my fault.  The directions did say that you should copy the fan blades onto freezer paper and cut them all out.  I just thought I would go crazy doing that, so went ahead with the other recommended way which was the templates.  Bad decision.  But I own it. 

Also, I wanted to tell you about a discovery I made on my camera.  I have two little Nikon Coolpixs that have this feature, so maybe you will too.  You know how when we take pictures indoors and use the flash, things turn out washed out, too bright, BAD.  Well, I found this "scene" setting on my camera that is for "Party/Indoors" and I used it.  I took pictures of the quilt top using the flash, not using the flash and using the party setting.  Turns out, the party setting gave me the most true colors on the quilt.  Interesting, huh?  So, check out your cameras and see if it works for you too.

Hope you enjoyed!