Sweet Home Quilt Co.

We were happy to host this talented group of Girl Scouts and the Gwinnett Quilt Guild’s “Just 4 You” Committee on Saturday as they made donation quilts for Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta-Scottish Rite Hospital. This is the second year this group has helped make quilts for this effort, and it is fun to watch their quilting skills evolve. Robin, the troop leader, is a friend through Batty Babes, and she does a terrific job mentoring these girls. The girls were tasked to use their teamwork skills as they paired off to complete their quilt tops. The group worked hard to finish their quilts, and were rightfully proud of them! They turned out great!

Debbie Frey (pictured here helping one of the girls pin her quilt rows together) is the committee chair of the guild’s “Just 4 You” program, and was the impetus for starting the community service project in 2001. The guild has made and donated hundreds of quilts to this effort over the years, and the three quilts made by this group will be added to the hundreds that will be donated again this year.

Debbie also brought along a surprise visitor on Saturday…someone we’ve never had the pleasure of seeing at SHQC.

Can you see him? It’s FLAT STANLEY! Debbie’s niece from Ohio sent him on his journey as part of a 1st grade class project. Flat Stanley has had quite an interesting visit with Debbie – he’s been to tennis matches, the dentist, shopping at Calvin Klein, the Cheesecake Factory (yum!), and to a guild meeting. Debbie’s husband took Flat Stanley to Italy and NYC, too! And now, he can add a visit to SHQC to his travel adventures! What fun!

Our thanks to Debbie for inviting us to host this event, and to the girls for their participation. It was a fun day for everyone, all for a great cause!

Melisa

I’m ready to dump all my computers in a pile, and go back to doing everything with pen and paper! Not really, but it has been a really difficult week, technologically, both at the shop and at home!

First my laptop was hit with a Trojan/virus thingy and had to go to the computer hospital. It was a fairly easy fix, but then a few days later the darn thing popped up again. Thanks to step-by-step instructions from my computer guy, I was able to get it going again. Only problem is that I don’t have nearly all of my software programs on my laptop, so I’m pretty limited with what I can do with it.

THEN, the PC at the shop was hit with the same junk late last week and it proved fatal to that machine! The whole thing had to be wiped clean, and everything reloaded…still a work in progress, but hopefully sometime this week I’ll be back in business. I have an external hard drive for backups of photos and files, and luckily I had just done a full system back up at the end of the year. I’m hoping I haven’t lost too much, but it remains to be seen. Apparently, this particular piece of nasty code targets McAfee and Norton security systems, and is able to bypass other security programs so there is no fool proof protection…other than abstinence…now where have I heard that before??? (Sorry, couldn’t resist!)

Learn from my experience: If you get a screen or pop-up saying you have a virus, and another pop-up offers to fix the problem if you click on “install”, DO NOT TOUCH IT! Even though it appears to be legitimate Microsoft stuff, it is actually creeps looking for your credit card info. I knew better than to fall for it, but the marauding trojans and viruses were already wreaking havoc on my computer(s)! And trust me when I tell you, it is a royal pain to fix!

If you have sent me an email in the last week, I’m not ignoring you, but it will be a few more days before I can read it. If you really need to talk to me, call me at the shop!

Oh, and no worries, I’m not contagious!

Let’s all be safe out there…geez, I’m just full of puns tonight!!! Gotta laugh to keep from crying…

Melisa

“Spoolin’ Around” Beginner Paper-Piecing

Our class schedule through April is on the website! We have new dates of our most popular sessions, as well as all new offerings. We continually add classes as teachers become available and special requests are received so be sure to check back often to see what has been added. We also have some fun club groups to give you a little fun, uninterrupted quilting time. Take a little time for yourself in the New Year to make your first quilt, learn a new technique, or stitch up a unique gift for someone.  Classes are a fun way to improve your skills and enjoy crafty company!

A gift certificate to one of our classes would be a wonderful gift for the sewing enthusiast in your life? Better yet, you could take a class as well and spend some creative time together. We are happy to mail gift certificates anywhere they need to go, so please call the shop for details.

See you in class!

Melisa

Anyone still with me? I know postings have been a bit scarce lately (and I’ve taken a lot of grief about it, too!). I have been working, working, working. Along with all the usual year-end stuff and some fun, busy days at the shop, I’ve been planning lots of fun things for the shop (more on that later!), getting ready for Fat Quarter Frenzy, and planning for Shop Hop. And in between, there has been a little (very little!) cooking, cleaning, laundry, yada, yada, yada!

Since the weather here is rainy and yucky today, I thought I’d try to catch up on a few things. I’ve got a long list already that includes a little cleaning & laundry, a few small quilting projects that shouldn’t take long to finish, and blogging with you. I’ve got loads to share, just haven’t had time to post; hopefully, I can remedy that today.

I’ve been searching for a few quick Valentine projects, and I came across a few that I thought you might like, too. Still plenty of time to work on these…

These cute pennie pockets from Sew What’s New would make great favors for the kids’ teachers or friends, or maybe for a little treat for your co-workers.

Here is a beautiful small heart wallhanging provided by Janome that would work up quickly. There is also a matching pillow project that would be quick to make, too. Be sure to read about The Heart Truth project, heart disease in women is a real threat!

Check out this free tutorial for a Stack-n-Whack heart block from Bethany Reynolds – make 3 or 4 blocks and set them into a cute table runner or topper for Valentine’s Day.

Here’s a little surprise Valentine’s giveaway for you. Leave a comment and I’ll send this great little pattern to the lucky winner – make it for yourself or as a giftie for a quilting friend (or both!)  I’ll post the winner on Friday, Jan. 29th. Be sure to leave your email address with your comment so I can contact you if you win!

I’m off to tick a few things off today’s list. First on the list is to put on a loda of laundry, eat a little breakfast and read the Sunday paper…then the fun can begin!

Melisa

It’s Cold…brrr!

Wishing you the best for 2010.

TURQUOISE!

Each year The Pantone Color Institute selects a color based on its general sense of the world’s mood. Turquoise, while combining serene blue and invigorating green, evokes thoughts of soothing, tropical waters and an escape from everyday troubles, while restoring a sense of well-being at the same time.

“In many cultures, turquoise occupies a very special position in the world of color,” says Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute®. “It is believed to be a protective talisman, a color of deep compassion and healing, and a color of faith and truth, inspired by water and sky. Through years of color word-association studies, we also find that Turquoise represents an escape to many – taking them to a tropical paradise that is pleasant and inviting, even if only a fantasy.”

I’d say that’s a pretty accurate description of what most people would hope for in the new year – faith, truth, compassion – and an escape. Heaven knows I can’t afford a “real” tropical paradise escape, but a few yards of turquoise fabric – yea, that’s right up my alley!

At one point late Christmas Day the thought crossed my mind that I would get up early and go shopping today to see what sort of post-Christmas bargains I could find. At 6AM this morning I realized the folly of this idea, and pulled the covers back over my head!

So what did I do today? The bad news is that I’ve snacked my way through the kitchen several times! I love having the leftovers from Christmas, but nothing I ate seemed to satisfy me today! I can also say that I am now intimately familiar with the offerings of the Hallmark Channel, while reacquainting myself with a couple of long forgotten knitting projects. I actually managed to finish off two things – a funky little cupcake and a felted tote bag.

This little knitted confection was fun to make, but knitting the “icing” with that funky yarn truly tested my patience! Love how it turned out, though. This will be a gift for a friend’s birthday. The pattern can be found in the book Oneskein: 30 Quick Projects to Knit and Crochet by Leigh Radford.

This is my felted knit tote bag, and I love, love, love how it turned out! It is very large (it was twice this big before I felted it!) and will hold lots of stuff. I need to fashion some sort of closure for it – right now I’ve just used a shawl pin. I’ll probably just use a really heavy duty snap on the inside and add a large button on the outside to cover it. I don’t know why I didn’t think about it before I finished off the tote – I hate having my bags gap open! This tote will make a great overnight bag or carry-on for the plane.

In between eating and knitting and watching movies, I managed to do a couple of loads of laundry and did a little reading, too. A very relaxed and laid back day – exactly what I needed! Tomorrow it’s back to my “To Do” list!

Melisa

I’m hoping this post comes through ok. I’m trying out Windows Live Writer and still don’t quite have the hang of posting with it. Fingers crossed …

Wishing you and your family all the joy and wonder of the holiday season.

We get many Christmas cards each year from family, friends and business associates. I used to keep all of the cards, but it just gets to be too much after a while; so now I cut off the front pictures and donate them to a charitable organization that recycles the pictures into new cards. But every once in a while, we get a card that is a treasure unto itself and those I hold onto, to be enjoyed season after season.

This handmade gem is one that I will treasure for years to come. My friend Louise brought this to me at the shop several days ago. She made the card using cheater fabric that she ‘pieced’ together to make the top and borders of the tiny little quilt; the fabric is glued to the card stock and laminated.  The photo makes it look very large, but the card is only about 4″ x 6″! A sweet gift and wonderful reminder of our special friendship that developed through our love of quilting.