My so cute Hoot Hoot Hot Pad!!

My Flirty not Naughty  Apron!!

I am so finished with this Secret Santa Swap!! Just look at my pictures!!

I am off to the Post Office this morning, then off to the Historicak Museum to help with the Christmas Tree Display!!

Shawnee, you host  very special swaps!! Just wanted you to know!!

Shawnee sent off our Secret Santa Swap Partners, and today I am going to be a sewing Busy Bee!!

Last night my grandson Tony came over for a sleep-over...we had a great time!! He will be heading home soon, so I can get started on my Package for...!~:;"%#@*... Sorry, you have to be surprised!!!

Friday night Joe and I attended the LARC Dinner Fish Fry! We invited past neighbors, Bob and Linda, over for homemade Cherry Pie and ice cream. We should get together more often. When they left, I stayed up and made a dress.

The Dress...let me explain. This very nice young girl called and asked me if I would make her bridesmaid dresses, 5 in all, the wedding is next July. I said sure!! I told her I would want a separate pattern for each girl, stricktly for alteration ease. Not a problem. She asked if she could come over with her mother to discuss all the details. They came over on Monday late afternoon. We talked for awhile, and it was decided that they would go to a fabric store in Chicago and pick out the fabric they wanted and bring it back to me. The next day they came back with fabric. Also they asked if I would just make one dress so they could see if I new wht I was doing!! Can you believe this?  I can't believe I agreed!! I am nuts!! Certifiable!! Anyway, they then told me they wanted me to copy a dress they had without a pattern!! Be sure not to take apart this dress, because this little girl may still want to wear it!! This is all what this MOM was saying to me.

Okay, I have cooled down...

Friday afternoon while I was getting ready to go to the LARC Fish Fry, this little girl called, and asked if her sample dress was completed. Her bridesmaids were coming in for the weekend, and she needed the dress to show to them. Can you believe this...I'm still amazed that I haven't hung up the phone...I politely say to her...give me a call tomorrow afternoon, and we will work something out .

I haven't even thought about how I was going to make this dress...So now it is Friday night at 9:00pm.

I lay out the fabric, lay the back side of the dress down, and trace the outline of the dress with tailor chalk. Do the same with the front side, estimating the wideth of the neck line, because it is gathered into the collar. I cut the pieces  out, and then use those pieces to cut out the lining. Really a simple process, Cut out a collar, and start sewing.

The Process...I sewed the side seams of both the dress and lining separately, Put the lining inside the dress, lining up the side seams. Gathered the neckline to fit the collar and stitched them together. I hemmed both the lining and dress, and now I am finished...it is now 12:00am.  I waited until 2:00pm to call her. She loved the dress.

I have three pictures that I took of the Friendship Quilt that I put together and hand-quilted!!

This is one of eight counted cross-stitched squares that were provided to me to be included in the quilt!! Sew pretty, don't you think?

It took me 13 days from start to finish!!

Fits beautifully on a King Size Bed!!

 

After I finished this quilt, I started the Memory Quilt that I am making for my brother's second child, Valerie!! She graduates from High School this next June!!

 

 

Valerie is going to love her quilt, and I am very happy to be so far ahead of my schedule!!

 

This is what happens when I am waiting for my swap partner info!!!

 

Decided to post this on my blog too!! Christmas is just around the corner, so be nice and not naughty!! You never know who is watching!! HO!HO!HO!

 I'm clicking through everyones websites, wondering when our Secret Santa Swap Partners will be announced! Come on Y'all!! Creative time is a'wastin

So...Who else knows about Swap-Bot. Seems to me, that I just might enjoy that swapping community!!

I loved Shawnee's very cute dress, so I thought I would put her on my blog to make sure I was nice and not naughty!!  LOL!!

NTOOD, or National Tie One On Day is a great way to give back! Sounds like something I could really enjoy participating in!! I will make the apron, wrap up a loaf of freshly baked bread and give it to someone who could use a nice addition to a meal!!

Remember, November 21st, 2012!!

I have spent the better part of a couple hours checking out the blogs of all Secret Santa 2012 Swappers! Everyone is so creative! Most blogs look so professional. Sadly, I am lucky to find time to make a posting...

I just finished making a quilt that is going to be raffled off at a fund raiser for LARC, an organization that works with adult physically and mentally challenged individuals. I didn't make the entire quilt. I put the Squares together and did the quilting by hand, but there where eight squares that were cross stitched by other people. The quilt ended up being King Size. Just beautiful!! I never considered myself to be a quilter, but I really am enjoying it. I will be posting pictures soon, just not now.

I started another memory quilt for one of my neices. Made from her volleyball T-shirts. I started hand quilting it yesterday.

Last night I bought fabric to make a queen sized duvet. I am not sure the best way to work the closure,so I will have to think about that awhile!! I am using wasable suede!! Very cool stuff. Hope it holds up. Very pricey!!!