Pansy Park by Thimbleberries

This quilt has been around for a long time.

I'm sorry... did you say EIGHT borders???  OK!  Well then, we're just going to pretend the skinny ones aren't there, alright?

You know I love sampler quilts, though.

The old ruler got a good workout.

This past Sunday was the semi-annual SOLO meeting (Southern Ontario Longarm Operators).  There was an EXTRA prize for costume-wearers.  Sadly, I did not win - that went to Louise from Tillsonburg, the lucky duck.  I still had fun with my like-minded friends.  And I DID win a door prize - a $25.00 gift certificate from the Quilting Bee in Fonthill.  Now, to find an afternoon for a field trip.

Our guest speaker was Kathy Wylie, taking us through the judging process for juried quilt shows.  She did a great presentation and I think we all learned a lot.

Speaking of juried quilt shows, the IQA show in Houston opens today.  If you're there, please have some fun for me while I stay here, slaving over a hot needle. Thankyou.  If you are stuck at home too, HERE is a link to the winning quilts.

Dog Quilt & Mom's Weekly Visit

I took this quilt photo at the Houston show for Sadie.  Too cute, eh?

All summer I've been hitting up McDonalds for yogurt parfaits before I go visit mom. We take a walk outside in the lovely sunshine and have the parfaits in the courtyard by the fountain. Now that winter is creeping up on us I have to change my tactics. It is still nice enough to take her out for a short (short!!) walk. So I dress her up in her winter gear and we drive over to Tim Hortons. Today we had tea & timbits. She had such a good time sitting there watching "all those old people". Truth be told, they were closer to my age than hers, so I had a wee chuckle to myself. She has NO IDEA what her age is.  (90, in case you have no idea either.)  I hope I'm that blissfully ignorant when the time comes.  She kinda grossed me out when she spit out a ... pea? which had apparently been stuck in her tooth since lunch.  We had to have a little talk about manners when we're in a restaurant. I shudder when I think about the gals who work at the home and have to sit through meals with a BUNCH of people who have forgotten their manners.  Ick.

Houston Shopping

I did some of my Houston shopping via my home computer before I got on the plane. It costs SO MUCH to ship stuff from the USA to Canada that I always take advantage of my suitcase.

I bought two bolts of Tonga Batik wide backing.  This is for sale - $20/m.

A new die for Jaws.  This is burning a hole in my brain.  I am kinda REALLY booked up with quilt jobs until Christmas and cannot play.  Aarrgh.

I had 30s prints on the brain from my last guild meeting.

New templates for use with Floyd.  The tiny circles won't be used too much but I'm sure they will come in really handy.  The rope design should look great on borders.  The rectangle is kinda boring but will replace my old one which looks like the dog was chewing on it.  I use this all the time.

This week I've turned into Mama Bear, getting filled up with berries for a long winter.  In a manner of speaking.  I've made a huge batch of coleslaw, cabbage soup with the leftovers, a large pan of cheese/spinach manicotti, and two pans of Shepherds Pie.  (ok, ok, DH made the Shepherds Pie.  He came home from work early, and he's a GOOD cook.  So I let him cook sometimes.)  Everything has been delicious.  I have enough leftovers for Thursday and Friday suppers.  Now if I can figure out a way to get a Saturday night date for dinner and a movie I will be all set.

A wee bit of Houston Quilt Show stuff

Our first shopping stop was... Specs Wine & Spirits (my kind of store :-) ).  This is the HUGEST liquor store I've ever seen.  I've heard they make everything BIG in Texas.

Our second shopping stop was... DSW (Designer Shoe Warehouse - also my kind of store :-) ).  Apparently I'm not alone.

Here are two of the Japanese quilts which I saw early in my wanderings through the quilt show.

Maybe this is what I should do with some of the 30's prints I bought?  ha ha ha ha.

This is Linda Taylor,of Linda's Electric Quilters. My hero.  She laughed at me when she noticed I was taking her picture.  I promised to take a few so I'd have a good one, not one where her tongue was sticking out or she was looking cross eyed.  If you ever have a chance to register for a class with her, TAKE IT.

I came home with the plague. A couple of gals on the trip were sick, and you know how germs love to travel. Sigh.

Back from Houston

I managed to smuggle my overlimit goods through the airport.  Including the very large bottle of IVANABITCH Vodka which was stashed in my suitcase.  Hmm - is it smart to post that information here?  Maybe not so much.

This fella is my new favorite art quilter.  Here is a piece he had in the silent auction.

Nov. 14th - my mistake.  Jamie is a gal.  Many apologies!!!

It may be a while before I post more photos.  I have about 400 to go through.