No, I haven’t fallen off the deep end. Yet. Just have been really, really busy.

Does this happen to you, too? Every now and then I just get this deep need to clean. And clean. And clean. Which means I start by painting the walls. Because in order to do so I have to move all the furniture, right? And that is the perfect way to get into every little last corner. And, while I’m at it, I might as well sort things out, declutter, and organize things. Room by room. And I live in A REALLY BIG house! So that’s what I’ve been up to.

It’s also been raining a lot in my neck of the woods. And it’s been cold. So much for living in what is known as “the land of eternal spring.” Hmmm… I wonder if that is the reason why I seem to have been painting all my walls with bright spring colors?

But enough of that… you know the saying about how much fun it is to watch paint dry…

There actually has been a big event in our family. My oldest son, Jonathan, married last weekend (the second time around). The wedding was formal, and took place outdoors, in  Vilcabamba (Loja) a little town in the southern part of the country. There is a private album for family to view (elsewhere), but I couldn’t help and brag a little here. Especially about my lovely grandchildren.

Here are the newlyweds…

And isn’t our Alexia beautiful?

Julian looked quite dashing in his penguin suit, even though he can’t help clowning around.

And an informal “formal” pic…

Now we are back from the wedding and settling into our usual routines, I will do my best to get back to blogging, too. Although I still have some more painting, decluttering, and organizing to do!

I normally set aside one project to work on Thursday mornings when my sewing circle meets, usually a UFO. Sometimes the project chosen takes only one or two morning sessions to complete. Others take longer. And even others take forever.

Such is the case of of my current – and oldest – UFO, a Lone Star quilt. I completed the quilt top in early 2004, hoping to finish it in time for my very first quilt exhibition. I didn’t make it, so set it aside. Then I started teaching, and designing, and… and… I knew I wanted to hand quilt this project, and also knew it would take time.

Since then my tastes have changed. Yikes! I really did go through a blue period, didn’t I? When I finally pulled this top out and prepared it for quilting, I found I wasn’t as fond of it as I had originally been. But I was committed to finishing it. And so over the past few couple of months of working diligently most Thursday mornings I have finally finished hand quilting the star. And I’m still not excited about this quilt.

All that dark blue is getting to me! Initially I had thought of quilting the corner squares and triangles with a rather complex and hopefully interesting quilting design. But I’m afraid I’m going to hate it if I don’t do something to liven it up. So I have decided to simply quilt those sections with a grid, and then applique a design (probably floral) onto each one. So now I’m playing with possible fabric choices.

Initially I was thinking something in the pink/rose family might do the trick…

But then I started to play around with orange fabrics, and started to like that more.

That’s as far as I’ve gotten. No other combinations seem to liven it enough for me. What do you think? Any other suggestions?

I’ll admit it. I’m a bookaholic. Since I started quilting, I have managed to grow quite an impressive collection of quilting/sewing books. But I seem to have finally reached a point where I am no longer tempted to buy… too many more.

These days what interests me the most is anything to do with a new technique I hadn’t seen before. So I am more apt to invest in a video download than in a book. But I recently came across a book review that tweaked my interest… so of course I had to buy it. I have to admit it… Sew Wild: Creating With Stitch and Mixed Media, by Alice Burke, is one of the best book investments I have ever made. And I just had to share this information here, particularly for those of you who, like I, live in countries where a lot of the new, modern quilting and mixed media supplies are simply not readily available.

If you are interested in creating your own fabrics and are not able to find or invest in special dyes, resists, paints, and whatnot… this is the book for you. And even if you are lucky enough to have easy access to a myriad of supplies, you might be interested in experimenting with these fun and easy techniques. Burke uses very simple, inexpensive, and readily available materials to achieve some pretty spectacular results. The book is really easy to use… kind of like a cookbook. Even better is the DVD that comes with it. You will grasp her techniques in one viewing, but will certainly want to come back to it time and time again.

I can’t recommend it enough. Proof of the pudding? Here are some samples I made following her techniques. All that was involved was one ugly piece of fabric for one project, cheap white muslin for the others, a spray bottle with water, a couple of homemade foam stamps, some fabric paints, and some fabric markers. Done. The results? See for yourselves…

You will recall a while back I shared a nifty idea on how to use the neck of a plastic bottle and its bottle cap to create an airtight bag sealer. I also often use the bottle caps alone to make little pincushions to share with my students. And every now and then I will cut a bottle to use the bottom half as a container. Most of the time, though, our plastic bottles end up in the recycling bin.

So yesterday my daughter’s boyfriend, Carlos, sent me this idea. Now, c’mon… isn’t this nifty?

(right click to view image at a larger size)

To celebrate International Quilting Day (March 17), we are having a special sale at our online store! Here’s a chance to purchase a pattern you might have missed from our member site! And no waiting for the mail to enjoy your pattern – just download your file, print it out and start sewing tonight!

Use coupon code TAKE5 for a $5 discount on any purchase over $20!

Our little group continues to meet every Thursday. Sometimes it has been only two of us, sometimes more. What started out as a group of seven was reduced to four. One friend was not able to continue meeting because of work obligations. Then our wonderful and terribly missed friend Mariangela returned to Italy. She does continue to “visit” with us practically every week via Skype, and that’s a blessing.

Undoubtedly, though, the most difficult challenge we have faced as a group was the sudden loss of our friend Luchita last August. Her death certainly hit us hard. So much so, I have not been able to post anything about our time together these past few months. The truth is mourning takes time.

Even before Luchita passed we had been discussing the need to invite a couple more people into our seemingly shrinking circle. With her death, however, we found we needed some time (to mourn) before doing so. As we begin to heal, we have found it is time to open up to others, so two new friends are now making there way into our hearts and into our circle. Yesterday all the places around our table were taken once more. Here are the newcomers to our circle: Jacqui on the left, and María del Carmen on the right.

Hmmm… as usual, this group seems to do more eating than sewing! The occasion: celebrating Bachita’s birthday. She refuses to tell us how old she is and I guess she’s right about that. Age is in the mind.

A bubbly, noisy gathering. Which included an hour long conversation with Mariangela. And our friend Luchita’s chatelaine hangs from one of my shelves, as a reminder of our friend’s gentle spirit.

Using my kids’ expression to describe this particular group… the locas (crazies) are back!

If you haven’t stopped by lately, make sure to do so soon, for this special 20% off on your purchases from the EQ Boutique. There’s a whole slew of new collections designs perfect for your Spring/Easter projects!

Remember: you can purchase whole collections or pick and choose individual blocks. Print from the free stand-alone software or, if you are an EQ7 junkie, import your blocks into your EQ7 library. In either case, you can print your blocks any size you like!

Click here to go to the My EQ Boutique!

I don’t know who, but somebody (whobuddy?) has nominated me for Sew Cal Gal’s 2012 Golden Quilter Awards, for the category of “Best Designer.”

I am touched, deeply humbled, flattered, and pretty much tickled pink. Because, you see, this award could pretty much be described as the Quilting Oscar. And you have no idea what a thrill it is to see my name next to those who I have considered as the “mothers of quilting” – BIG NAMES, and oh, so famous teachers and designers. The likes of Carol Doak, Patrick Lose, Susan Brubaker Knapp, and other designers I’ve followed and admired since by first days as a beginner quilter. Wow!

Whoever you are… thank you. Really. Your belief in me means so much!

Obviously, this isn’t the only category. You have until March 31st to vote for your favorite designer, teacher, author, store, product, publisher, etc. – 10 categories altogether. Read all about it here. And by voting you will also have a chance to win some great prizes!

And a BIG THANKS to Sew Cal Gal for all her work organizing this… and for all the wonderful reviews and resources she offers us through her blog!

Although things have been rather hectic around here lately, with little time for sewing, I always manage to squeeze a few minutes in.

So today I can at least share a photo of the March block of our Itching to be Stitching BOM. I used a piece of stabilized organza for the “frosty, see-through ruler.” This was a fun block!

I have a new block collection out at My EQ Boutique! Check it out!