Celebrations With a Giveaway

Did you ever see the little "Tumbling Glory" Quilt by Melonie that Calico Girls had in a kit last year? Sarah had it on her blog then and I wanted to make it to decorate when celebrating the Fourth of July. Couldn't find a pattern for it, so I just marked the page on the Calico Girls blog and hoped to find it available sometime. Recently I've been wanting to make something using Primitive Gatherings Tiny Tumbler template and it finally occurred to me that I could make a smaller version of "Tumbling Glory".

I just dug through my patriotic fabric scraps and found plenty of variety to give it depth and movement. The original is listed as being 21"x32". The little template shown to the right will make something closer to half that size. Even though I haven't sewn any of it together yet, I'm liking what I see. I'm not even sure if I will have time to do it before we celebrate Independence Day, but it is closer to being made now than it was when it was just an image in my mind.

Last Wednesday was the one year anniversary of my first blog post. At times I can't believe I have been doing this for a year already. At other times I feel like I have known some of you forever, so it must have been more than a year ago I jumped into the quilt blog world. So, though it isn't a big event in the grand scheme of things, I've decided to have a little celebration giveaway.

I've been gathering a few items to be "the prize". I've chosen carefully--there is no fabric involved to add to your burden of guilt over the size of your stash. There are no patterns that you might feel pressured to make, even though you have a gazillion UFOs and WIPs. No books that you wouldn't be able to squeeze into your quilt bookshelf anyway. Everything is something I have wanted, so I hope you will, too.

First of all, I have been wanting some cool "quilty" notecards. I've looked high and low and finally found what I wanted in Rebecca Barker's Quiltscapes cards. So I bought an extra set. Integrating traditional blocks with beautiful paintings, these cards are clever and beautifully done. The pack of cards includes 10 different designs, shown here.

Ms. Barker has dozens of designs available, based on her paintings, and when placing an order you can select which designs you want in your pack of cards--all different, all the same, or any other combination. See how the name of the quilt pattern is illustrated in the rest of the painting?

The stiletto has a hand-turned hickory handle. I picked it up at the HMQS when I bought one for myself. An indispensable tool when making little blocks, to help in precision piecing. 

The flying geese block is actually a pincushion I bought this week. DH and I have been in Moscow, Idaho helping my oldest daughter and  her husband pack for their move to New Hampshire (5 miles from Keepsake Quilting). On the way home we stopped in Rupert, Idaho. It is a small town that proudly claims the largest quilt shop in Idaho--The Gathering Place.  Someone in the area makes these pincushions in quilt block designs and they sell them in the shop. I bought two. (BTW, I recommend the shop--it is even worth going out of your way to see.)

And the basket--well, what can I say? I just had to make another tiny basket in Christmas colors for a tree ornament. It measures 3" square--including the border.

Also, if I'm in a good mood the day I send this out, I will probably throw in a couple of bars of my handcrafted herbal soap. : )

That's it! A guilt-free, stress-free giveaway! I began blogging because I wanted to feel a part of a larger quilting community. I don't belong to a guild and have always felt like I was on the fringes of the quilt world. I have been so welcomed and included by all who have commented on my blog, or responded to my comments on their blog. So this is for you, my blogging quilt community. To enter, just leave a comment. You don't need to be an official follower, but I would prefer you not publicize the giveaway. It is meant for those who are regular readers, whether or not you are "signed up" and even if you don't ever comment. If you are here reading this fairly regularly (even if you only began recently), comment below for a chance to win, and thanks for sticking with me. If you are a no-reply blogger, make sure your email address is included in your comment. 

I will choose a winner at noon MDT, Saturday, May 26th.

Hopefully next time I will have made some progress on a project that I can share. Maybe I will have a long overdue birthday gift made, or  be ready to post my FMQ challenge finish for the month (before midnight on the deadline day). Who knows, I may have even caught up on the Sow-Along!  : )

Until next time,

Janet O.

p.s. I was the happy recipient of Kathie's trimmings from her cheddar, green and red nine-patch quilt. I have had them under the needle and something is coming together. It is currently on the design wall. Stay tuned for the result. I'm interested to see what comes of them.