Start the year out Quilting!

We had our January Quilt Day this week!....Yep, my favorite day of the month! I finally had a quilt finished to show. That doesn't happen very often. I am a slow one finishing my quilts once I start. Let's just say I enjoy the process.

This quilt was made completely of scraps. I love 1930's reproduction fabrics and have a whole drawer full of scraps that need to be used. I am on overload! I saw this quilt in one of my books and thought it was the perfect one to use up those scraps. It was FUN!

This month Becky had quilt group at her home. A few of us had finished quilts over the Christmas Holiday and...... some of us did nothing. Here are a few fun quilts, and some in the making. Thanks Becky for a really fun time! We missed Elaine, Valerie and Marene. Hope to see you next time!

Debbie Jensen has finished her star quilt! Three of us made this quilt....Yeah...it is a really fun one and good for scraps!

Heidi told us a great story about this quilt being lost in the mail
for a month! She missed enjoying it for Christmas....but it
finally arrived....Whew!

Kim made this quilt for her son for Christmas. Really....these guys love our quilts!

Another cute Michelle quilt in the making!

This quilt is partially hand appliqued. It was on the cover of a magazine and on display one year at the International Quilt Show in Houston. It is a time consuming quilt. Marae and I are trying to finish ours. It has been an on-going project for oh....about 3 years!

Our Christmas Party in Pictures!

"Madly Cooking Brunch"

This year for Christmas Marene was our Hostess. Enough said! She is a fabulous cook, always over the top with her yummy recipes and table decor. We were all looking forward to her "Brunch." It was as expected....in other words.....FABULOUS! Our Christmas Party is alway so much fun. A few months ago we drew names and committed to do something handmade for each other. It is always so fun to see what gifts are exchanged. This year was not different. Sit back for a preview of our fun "Christmas Quilt Group Party and Gift Exchange!"

The Christmas Party is about to begin!

Becky gave this to Michelle

Marae gave these cute fabric napkins to Becky

Kim gave Marae this fabulous Pottery Barn bowl filled with homemade popcorn

"Fancy Kim" Marene made this for her...Hmmmmm

Debbie gave this shadow box with star blocks to Marene

Valerie painted this darling Christmas picture for Debbie

Elaine made this cutest wall hanging for Valerie

Carol made this cute apron for Andie

Carol went overboard and made this embroidered picture for Andie

Andie gave this "Merry and Bright" to Carol!

Debbie made this oh-so fashionable apron for Debbie

The "Apron" crew

Are these the cutest Christmas Quilts! I'm jealous!!!!

Elaine always bring the best projects to show...check these out!

We just had a great time together visiting and sharing the Holiday Spirit

Thanks to Marene for sharing her home and going to so much work and effort to entertain us! We missed Heidi and hope she is feeling better. A Holiday Wish goes out to all of you to have a very Merry Christmas with your loved ones! Until January.............Sew On!

Postcard Cuties

I was so sorry to have missed this fabulous day at Elaine's but my motherly/nurse duties were needed at home. I missed everyone and look forward to next month. I do have a show-n-tell that I finished this week. It is called Postcard Cuties and the pattern is by bunny Hill. It was so much fun to make. See you all next month.

Michelle

November Quilt Day

This month it was Elaine's turn to have our quilt group at her house. As usual, it was FABULOUS! We had a fun time....even though we were missing some of our friends that were not able to come. Heidi, Michelle, and Andie...we missed you! Lucky for us Kim came at the last minute. We can't laugh without her there!

Now....a little about Elaine. She moved here from Utah and I am sure it took her a while to get use to the Arizona weather.....I kinda think she still misses Utah a lot! We're glad she is here, though, because she has added a new dimension to our quilt group. She is an experienced quilter and always does the most darling things.....really, we all want to copy her! She always has such good advice to give and is always sooooo helpful..... and Becky.....I know you love her!

Here's a little peek into our day!

Like I said.....Elaine is a fabulous quilter. Her quilts are definitely treasures. This one was soooo cute! I wish I had taken a close-up picture of her border and binding. The border is scalloped and she inserted ric-rack in the binding.

These aprons she made for her daughters were absolutely the cutest! Her fabric combinations were so fun. I just thought they were pretty dang fashionable for the kitchen girls! Hmmmm gotta try them for myself!

The back of this apron.....the cutest!

My goal lately is to use up some of my scraps. My sewing room is just way too cluttered with fabric....and of course....I need to buy some more! Soooo I am trying to come up with some quilts that use up some of these scraps! Actually, I love this quilt....made up of 30's reproduction fabrics. Almost done!

Marene always has something to show for herself. This quilt was so complicated! It is all appliqued. She is one of our quilters that quilts our quilts when we are finished piecing them. She is so talented! This Christmas quilt is a masterpiece!
Carol is working on a Star Quilt. Several of us made this quilt. It is so fun to make and turns out so cute. By the end....you need a rest from making stars!

Marae made these fall kitchen towels for her Visiting Teachers. Michelle (her daughter) had made some last month and she just had to try them. Actually....it is such a cute gift idea and so quick to make for a Holiday.

Just a word about this quilt....Kim is making it as a favor for her sister-in-law. The fabrics in this quilt came from blouses that were worn by her sister-in-law's Grandmother. The squares have been hand-pieced. Kim is sewing them together and then the quilt will be given as a gift to the daughter. (Does that make sense?) Anyway....it is cute and old-fashioned!

Marae gave us a lesson on our upcoming quilt group project. We are all making an American Jane Pattern from Jelly Rolls. She has begun to sew hers together and she gave us some hints on pressing the seams in certain directions to make your block turn out well......thanks Marae!

Whoever hosts our quilt group also fixes us lunch. Luckily, this is only once a year. Pressure, pressure....what's for lunch? Elaine made a delicious chili. I am posting the recipe. She obtained this recipe from a restaurant in Galesberg, Illinois called "The Jumping Bean." (Elaine...feel free to correct me!) It is called "Mom's Famous Santa Fe Chili" Yummmmm! It was truly delicious. We had cornbread with honey butter and a salad. Dessert, well....a picture is worth a thousand words!



What an absolutely fun day we had at Elaine's home. I have made such incredible friends and appreciate their company so much. We always have something to learn from each other. We appreciate each other's talents and hopefully share ours. I love to sit and visit, laugh, eat and marvel over the creativity and knowledge that my friends have. I love it! They are truly a light in my life!!!

Enjoy this recipe! Thanks Elaine!

Mom's Famous Santa Fe Chili

3 lbs Hamburger

1/2 pound bacon (chopped)
1 teasp. garlic (fresh, chopped)
1/4 to 1/2 cup chili powder (yes, cup)
3/4 T. Cumin
3 fresh Jalapenos (cored and seeded)

1 cup Kidney Beans
1/2 cup Black Beans
1/2 cup Pinto Beans
*Soak these overnight, then cook until tender

1 1/4 quart Beef Broth
1 yellow onion
3 green peppers

Cook and drain bacon. Cook onion, green pepper, garlic and beef until done. Drain all grease. Add bacon and other ingredients. Simmer 1 hour.

Serve with cheese, cour cream and chopped jalapenos

Whaaa!!

Ok - I missed most of the fun at our last sacred quilt day!! I was helping my daughter with her kids. (Do I get a free fat quarter for that?) I was so happy to help her, but missed my favorite quilting buddies! Everyone said that the olive bread was incredibly fabulous as was the salad, etc. Heidi is a great hostess. We love her. My baby daughter, Mallory, is getting married September 27. Then I'll REALLY need my quilting friends. Do you think Dave will buy that???

September 15th was our Anniversary Quilt Day! Our quilt group has been together for four years...we have such a great time together. We met today at Heidi's home for a fabulous time, lunch and a few hours of sewing. So it is time for a little quilt/stash talk!

The long summer days produced many quilt projects. This post is full of some incredible quilts made by some talented quilters. If you would like to see, read on........ Anyway, we have so much fun oooooooing and ahhhhhhhhing over each other's projects! So here comes the quilt show!

Carol finished this cutest Christmas Quilt.
The quilting on it is incredible!

Kim made this in about 2 days.
It is for the former YW President in
her ward. Kim is the new Young Women's
President.....woop! woop!

These two are always up to something! These are their
Christmas Gifts for friends. They are sooooo cute!

Michelle's fabulous quilt!

Andie just got this quilted...it is a really cute pattern

Elaine finished one of the Houston projects!

Debbie J. did this for her daughter that is
getting married in two weeks. She always
makes them a Log Cabin Quilt...Cute!

Heidi made this quilt to practice her Applique.


This is the back and label of a quilt Debbie B. finished this summer.

As a quilt group we usually come up with a fun project to do together. This year we decided we would pick a quilt pattern and then we would individually choose our own fabric to complete the quilt. In March we will bring our completed quilt to our monthly meeting and show it. It will be fun to see what different fabric was chosen for the same quilt. This is the quilt we have chosen. It is on the cover of McCall's Quilt Magazine. It is an "American Jane" pattern. Check out their website!

Finally, Heidi gave all of us this gift. Her daughter, Beth, creates designs for wall boards. She designed this one for us. We all thought it fit perfectly! There is nothing better than sitting down at your sewing machine and knowing you have two or three hours ahead of blissful sewing! Undisturbed, of course!!!!

And now for the food . . .

Olive Cheese Bread

1 regular can whole black (ripe) olives
1 6-oz jar pimiento-stuffed green olives
2 green onions
¾ pound Monterey Jack cheese
½ cup real mayonnaise
1 stick butter, softened
1 loaf French bread

Roughly chop black and green olives. Slice green onions and give them a rough chop. Combine green onions and olives with the softened butter, ½ cup mayonnaise, and grated Monterey jack cheese. Mix thoroughly. Slice French bread in half lengthwise, then spread mixture evenly over the halves.

Bake at 325 degrees for 25 minutes, or until thoroughly melted and starting to turn light brown and bubbly. Cut into diagonal slices and serve with salad, with soup, with spaghetti, or as a yummy appetizer. (Recipe from Pioneer Woman)

(THANKS TO DEBBIE FOR LETTING ME COPY THIS FROM HER BLOG.)