LaVieEnRosie

Thursday? THURSDAY???

Yikes!  It was just Saturday yesterday... what happened to my week?

I'm trying to get caught up before I have to leave for the next trip so I think I worked all weekend... proofing patterns, packing orders, unpacking the last of the Market boxes, and so on.  The good news is that I'm mostly caught up, to the point where I was out and about on Tuesday.

I took photographs, files and quilts to the printer to get the last three covers finished, and then I ran all sorts of those little putzy errands that need to get done at some point.  But lest you think I didn't have any fun... then you don't know me at all.  I did a few of those "since I'm not going to be far from there anywhere..." little side trips.

First up... Anthropologie.  They have the best "stuff"... like these awesome soaps!  They are wrapped in felted wool, wool that acts as a washcloth while you use it, then shrinks as you use the soap.  They smell amazing, but I admit it, the real appeal is that I think they're a hoot. 

 

They are made by a company called Fiat Luxe Designs ~ and really, the scents are fabulous. 

Then after a couple more errands ~ very important stuff, I promise ~ I went by one of my favorite Phoenix shops ~ Willows Home and Garden.

 

They were doing some major re-arranging of furniture in anticipation of some new arrivals... suppose I'll need to make sure I am by there again in the very near future, huh?  (Be sure to check out their blog to get a sense of their fabulous style.)

And since I was downtown... and it was lunch time... I stopped by my very favorite place to eat in Phoenix, Pane Bianco, for what have to be the best sandwiches on the planet.

The sandwich shop is open Tuesday through Saturday, from 11 to 3, and for a week or two once or twice a year.  It is owned and operated by Chris Bianco, a James Beard Award-winning Chef.  He is also the owner-proprietor of Pizzeria Bianco, a world-famous pizza place in downtown Phoenix.  He's been featured on Oprah, Martha Stewart and several Food TV shows, and his restaurant has been named by several writers as serving the best pizza in the country... perhaps even in the world.  Yes, it is that good.

But I like his sandwich shop better.

  

There are four sandwiches on the menu ~ a Market sandwich that changes daily based on what is good and available.  (It can range from the most awesome bacon, Emmenthaler cheese and arugula combination to a sandwich made with Serrano jamon, manchego cheese and a locally-made peach mustard.)  This is the Mozzarella and Tomato ~ yes, its rather like a Caprese salad.  Lots of freshly-made, locally-made Mozzarella, and lots of fresh basil and tomatoes.  The bread is a flat round of pizza dough baked in a wood-fired oven then sliced across the middle.  The bread is warm, crispy and a little chewy, and the ingredients are fresh... words cannot describe how good something this simple can be.  If you're ever in Phoenix, you simply must go there ~ everyone I've ever taken there has loved it. 

And before I forget, there are a couple of things I need to mention... some post-Market housekeeping, if you will.

A huge thank you to Ginny in Canada for the Calgary Flames socks!  I love them and I will think of you every time I see them and wear them!

Another huge thank you to Melody and Michelle, two lovely ladies I met at Market in Pittsburgh.  They came by the booth to say Hello, and when they returned on Sunday, Michelle brought me a wonderful little Pressing Pal.  (I promise to show a picture soon.)  It is a small blue wooden bird whose tail is used as a pressing tool.  I love it ~ even more after Michelle said that she had given me the blue bird so that I would always have a "bluebird of happiness" with me.  After she said that, Kathy Schmitz wanted to steal it... Michelle gave her one too.

And speaking of Kathy, she was my roommate at Market and I think that was a huge factor in why I had such a good time in Pittsburgh.  If you're not familiar with her work, Kathy is an amazing painter and artist who also designs for Moda Fabrics.  I always buy lots of trinkets from her at Sample Spree... this was one of my finds this year...

  

Kathy has an Etsy shop where you can find some of these wonderful little pendants.  

And thank you to Gudrun Erla of GE Designs and her buddy Yvonne for a terrific ride from Pittsburgh to Chicago on Monday.  Gudrun is one of those lovely people that I get to meet quickly at Market and then wind up waving at while we scoot past each other at Market, and it was so much fun to finally get a chance to sit and visit without that "work thing" intruding.  What you don't know is that getting to sit together on the flight wasn't all that easy, thanks to Southwest's no-assigned seating policy and an obnoxious man's ridiculous insistence on folks not saving seats for people in later boarding groups.  He was a jerk... not to me, he was a twit to someone else, but it meant that I resorted to a some odd behavior to save a couple of seats.  Gudrun posted a little bit about it but the best reason to jump over there is to see her wonderful booth, and to see just how much fun she had at Market!

And that's it for now... Mom wants dinner which means I have to go fool around in the kitchen and figure out what to make... which is probably warranted lest the Adult Protective Services people get on me for running a "sweat shop".  Mom's been busy packing patterns... lots and lots of patterns.   

I'm off to make dinner

Still on Pittsburgh time...

The good news is that I'm getting caught up on my sleep.  I'm managing to sleep until about 7:00 am in the morning.  Pittsburgh time.

The bad news is that I'm in Phoenix... Pacific time right now. 

And more good news!  My voice is getting better, in fact, it was better on Saturday.  From what I was told by a very nice lady at the Westin, my cracking/rasping/ridiculous voice was the result of the combined factors of weather and allergies.  I felt fine the whole time, I just sounded awful on Friday.  Better on Saturday.  And even better by Sunday.  I'm thinking the "tomato juice" I had on Saturday night might have helped with that...

So you can stop worrying.  I'm fine.  (A couple of you e-mailed me or sent comments via the website ~ thank you.)

I am going to post a few more pictures from Market.  Now that I'm home and PamKittyMorning and  Anne ~ Bunny Hill have posted a thousand pictures, it's safe for the rest of us.  (Whoever thinks/says that Market is all work has never been around either of them ~ they sure do know how to have fun.)

After seeing what pictures everyone else has been posting, I am going to show you some of some of the rest. 

This is Karen of Black Sheep Quilts ~ the "house" across the aisle from me.  I "met" Karen through this blog and through a real cool sequence of events, she wound up across from me.  She had a terrific first Market and you should see her quilts!  They are SO much better in person than they look here.  As a local girl, she had lots of friends and family helping her.

 

This is the booth of my friend, Monique Dillard, of Open Gate Quilts.  I have no idea where Monique was... or Polly, Ruth or Joyce.  And since I don't remember if this was before Market opened one morning or not, I can't pick on them for that. 

  

This is the Aster Manor quilt in the Moda booth.  Isn't it gorgeous?  I really love this quilt... think I might have to make this quilt.  After mine is finished, of course.

 

This is Heather Petersen's booth ~ Anka's Treasures.  Her new books are awesome... kind of like Heather and Joel, her husband.  Don't forget to remind Heather that we would like to hear about Joel's dog, Daisy.   

 

Say Hi to Tara Lynn Darr of Sew Unique Creations.  I met Tara a few years ago at Market and she's always one of my favorite people to see ~ and she was a life-saver this year when she did the Vanna-thing for me at Schoolhouse.  Her booth always looks amazing... but then, with all these gorgeous quilts, how could it miss? 

 

This is another picture from Laurie and Polly ~ Minick & Simpson's ~ booth.  The quilt is Seaside and it is made with the gorgeous new Wiscasset fabric.  The Star and Poppies quilt next to it is terrific too ~ both are new patterns.

 

I love this fabric!  And while I'm also going to make a quilt with it, the first thing I'm going to make are some pincushions using Wiscasset.  I promised Polly I would get some made for something she's got coming up, and after what she and Laurie did, I think I owe them about a thousand pincushions. 

Do you remember that Polly made a fabulous gameboard hooked rug for a giveaway she and Laurie were doing at Sample Spree?  Someone else won that beautiful rug but after much whining, complaining, allegations of a "fix" and general carrying on, Polly and Laurie gave me this...

 

Daleview Farm, an original hooked rug designed and hooked by Polly.  (The picture is theirs too ~ it is much better than mine... probably because I haven't put the rug down since Laurie brought it by the booth.)  And, yes, I still can't believe it... when I really thought about their extraordinary generosity, I kept getting all teary.

Thank you hardly seems enough.

As for new patterns, those are up on the website by now.  Six new Schnibbles with two more coming in about a month or so, and six new big patterns with two more of those coming by late June. 

And one last little thing... I loved the 24 season finale but it's killing me that I'm going to have to wait until next January to find out what happened!  There was a moment where I wondered "who are you and what have you done with the real Kim Bauer?", and I still don't like Janice.  Can't she get chased by a cougar or something... kidnapped by some survivalist? 

Until later...

The end is near...

Not the end of Market... the end of the world!  The sign of the apocalypse is upon us... I've lost my voice!

I know... nobody ever would have thought it possible.  If I'm not talking, I'm either sleeping or anesthesia is involved.  But when I woke up this morning, no voice.  Okay, some voice but what there is is hoarse, cracking, rasping and definitely not all there. 

With all that, do you think I remembered to take a picture of my low-tech booth?  Nope.  Forgot all about that.  I did get a couple of pictures this morning ~ a couple of which I can show you and a couple of which will wait a day or two... I promised.  (Besides, Joanna will have much better pictures... but I can tell you that the booth is gorgeous, the quilts are gorgeous and the new fabric is gorgeous.  Even the sun pouring in the side window agreed ~ while it played havoc with pictures, it sure made everything look even more beautiful.)

This is the booth for Barb and Mary ~ aka Me and My Sister.  Their new collection is Birdie and as usual, everything looks wonderfully bright and cheery.  Check out those eggs ~ my first official pincushion-sighting.

  

I'm sorry about the shadows but that was the sun I mentioned above causing the problems.  I would have gone back later to get another shot but you wouldn't have been able to see anything through all the people anyway.

My best celebrity sightings today were a Late-Bloomer and a PKMorning.  No wonder everybody loves them! 

I have to tell you that one of the good news/bad news things about going to Market is that you get to meet all sorts of wonderful, amazing people.  That's the good news.  The bad news part of it is that you rarely have a chance to do more than say a quick "hello".  

I met them while pestering Laurie about taking a picture of her booth.  Okay, so I also wanted to see if I could slip her a couple of dollars to better my chances of winning the missing Polly's gorgeous hooked rug that Laurie and Polly were giving away.  No such luck... someone else won it.  (I am happy to say that it was won by a very nice lady who will treasure it as it deserves... unless, of course, I have a chance to steal it.)

 

For someone who doesn't like having her picture taken, Laurie sure takes a good picture!  Laurie?  Remember her?  She's the one in the pink shirt standing next to the quilt you won't stop looking at.  And yes, that's the Carolina Lily quilt I mentioned yesterday.  Told you so... it's wonderful, isn't it?

And that's Pam Kitty Morning's beautiful new bag Sew Frilly Bag.  It's gorgeous... don't be surprised if that sort of "disappears" too.  

I am surrounded by ladies I've "met" online and have now gotten to meet in person ~ Pat of Silver Thimble Quilt Company is the one aisle over at the end.  Her booth is filled with beautiful quilts ~ I didn't get a picture because she wasn't there when I was by with my camera and I always ask first.  Across the aisle from me is Karen of Black Sheep Quilts.  She doesn't blog yet but she comments and "lurks".  Her booth is also filled with beautiful quilts ~ applique!  I'm very lucky, I always seem to have very nice neighbors at Market.   

Finally... will you promise to forgive me if I tell you what I did?

Promise? 

I know many of you would love to go... and you've heard all sorts of wonderful things about it... and while it is a lot of fun... this is as close as I got...

  

... to this Spring's Moda party. 

It was perfect weather for a riverboat cruise up the Allegheny River but I was so tired and I really just wanted to go back to the hotel, get something for dinner and put on my jammies.  I know... I'm such a fuddy-duddy.  Who needs to save her voice... two more days to go. 

I will take more pictures tomorrow... but in the meantime... here is one of the new patterns that I can show you.  My pincushions.  This pattern is titled "Fruit Salad".  This is the picture on the front of the pattern.

 

This is the picture on the back of the pattern. 

 

Until tomorrow...

Thursday at Market...

Some folks are completely set-up and ready to go by now ~ show-offs. 

Some folks are just arriving at the convention center and trying to figure out where to start ~ my favorite folks... probably because these are my people! 

Today is also Schoolhouse... more on that in a moment.

While there is still a long way to  go to make everything ready, the place is starting to take shape.  To give you an idea of how everything lays out, the convention hall is on the 2nd floor of the building and there is a long walkway bridge across the middle that overlooks the entire floor.  The bridge is on the 3rd floor and it is how you get to the meeting rooms on the other side of the building.  The walkway is very wide and the walls on  both side are glass, making the whole place very light and bright. 

So this is what it looked like this morning at about 11:00 am.

 

 

 

The booth with the red drapes that aren't entirely across the front pole ~ next to the fork lift ~ that's me. 

 

Do you see the booth at the top in the middle ~ red drapes and a white quilt?  That's Minick & Simpson and that quilt is to die for!  It is gorgeous... I'm pretty sure it is titled Coastal Lily.  (No y-seams either is the story on it.)  It's gorgeous... but then so is their new Wiscasset fabric. 

I took the pictures on my way to Schoolhouse.  If you haven't heard about it, Schoolhouse is where exhibitors can apply to do presentations on "whatever"... which usually means 101 things you need to know about all of our new products.  There are a dozen or more rooms, and about a dozen "sessions" during the day.  While there are some 15-minute presentations, most are 30-minutes and the day is divided into 30 minute segments with 5 minutes between the sessions. 

There is a catalog listing all the presenters for each session, and if you're signed up to attend Schoolhouse, you get to pick which sessions and presentations you'd like to attend.

This was the line-up for Room 321 today...

 

Everybody said to say "Hello"!

 

After jabbering away at all these nice ladies for what I'm sure seemed like forever to them, I went back downstairs and finished up my booth.  Well... almost.  I kept running into people and chatting, so I wasn't quite done with I took a break and went for a terrific lunch/dinner with Kathy Schmitz at a local restaurant. 

After finishing up the booth, it was time for Sample Spree.  I know that's what you really want to know about so here goes...

It's a big room in the convention center... tables, chairs... not much else.

 

Not very exciting, is it?

 

It's getting there... 

You should know that set-up/move-in starts at 6:00 pm and Sample Spree starts at 8:00 pm.  The line starts a whole lot earlier than that...

 

It wraps around the corner.

This is what the Moda table looked like about 30 to 40 minutes before the doors open ~ and those are the doors to get in on the left side of the picture.

 

Within a minute of the doors opening, this is what it looks like...

 

Crazy, isn't it?

Sample Spree ends at 10:00 pm and after packing up and dropping stuff back at the booth, this was the view of the Convention Center on my way out at about 10:30 pm...

  

 

 

It took almost two days to set up and on Sunday, the whole place will come down in just a few hours. 

More tomorrow...

Day 1... sort of

This is the view from my hotel window...

 

That is the Allegheny River in the background, and looking north toward the Strip District.  If I look out the window in the other direction, all you can really see is the David L. Lawrence Convention Center ~ the home of the International Quilt Market Spring 2009. 

The convention center is right next to the Allegheny River, just north of where it meets the Monongahela River to form the Ohio River.

 

This picture is taken from the sidewalk between the river and Fort Duquesne Blvd., the road that runs between the river and the Convention Center.  Those lights on the right side of the picture on the other side of Clemente Bridge are from PNC Park.  And that's where I'll be tonight, having a hot dog and watching the Pirates and the St. Louis Cardinals play.  (I sure hope they monitor the Pittsburgh Penguins/Washington Capitals game and put it on the scoreboard... its a Game 7!)

The Westin is right next to the convention center, in fact there is an indoor bridge/walkway connecting the two buildings ~ very nice if its raining like it was five years ago.  I was happy when I found out that we would be coming back to Pittsburgh since I really like the city and I love the convention center.  For me, it's simple.  This is the only convention center with skylights and windows ~ I love all the natural light we have during the day.

After returning my rental car this morning, I went by to see if my boxes had arrived, and to take some pictures so you could see all the excitement.

Wow... just look at all that bustling about... the veritable beehive of activity... Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

Will you believe me if I tell you it will be busier tomorrow ~ Thursday?

Have you heard about the fabulous Moda booths?

 

See those crates at the back?  A couple of them have pink polka dots?  That's the Moda booth!  Or, those crates hold the Moda booths.  Very exciting, isn't it?

Okay, it will be.  And, yes, I promise more pictures.  Some close-ups too. 

 

Do you see the black curtains in the middle of the picture?  Do you see the white drapes to the right of it, the booth with the metal frame?  That's me!  And for those of you that like to have the lay of the land, United Notions, Moda and the Moda folks are all to the left of this picture.  I'll be able to see a few of them from my "front door". 

 

No, that big red crate is not mine.  That belongs to my neighbor with the black curtains, National Nonwovens.  Those four boxes in my booth ~ two are my booth and two are for Sample Spree.  As I've mentioned before, I hope to one day have a really pretty, very decorated booth... just not this year. 

I did get to do a little "visiting".  So far, I've run into Jo Morton three times.  Her husband, Russ, is a sweetheart.  Did you know that Jo has a blog ~ Jo's Journal?

I also saw the Cotton Blossom girls ~ Bonnie and Camille.  Their new fabric is AWESOME!  My honey, Ted, sent me some last week and it is absolutely gorgeous ~ the reality of it is so much better than the pictures.  (Even Camille's fabulous photographs don't do it justice... though they come close.)

And speaking of honeys... I also ran into Heather ~ of Anka's Treasures ~ and her sweetheart of a husband, Joel.  He was laying the floorboards for a beautiful floor for her booth ~ her pictures will be WAY better than mine ~ and joking around.  You know how sweet and cute he is on her blog... another example of how the reality is so much better.  And, yes, his eyes are that blue and his eyelashes are that long.  He says that they're extensions.  Remind Heather that you want her to blog about Joel's dog.  

And just down the aisle from Heather is the brains behind the bunnies, Hef... Anne Sutton of Bunny Hill.  While I wish Anne and Heather were a bit closer so I could go sit in their beautiful booths ~ I'm booth 452 and they are 1921 and 1916.  And both will have lots of gorgeous new quilts.

One last thing... two, actually.

Earlier this year, I got the itch to do a quilt that I could make in a couple of days... like, maybe in a weekend.  And since this pest I know is always dropping hints about using some of the Bake Shop stuff, I started playing around with those Layer Cakes.  Two of the new patterns are written for Layer Cakes ~ and/or fat quarters.

This is Sweet Escape ~ it takes 2 Layer Cakes and 3/4 yard of fabric, and it measures about 70" x 70".  And I made it in less than two days ~ started on a Saturday and finished it early Sunday afternoon.  The fabric is Gypsy Rose by Fig Tree.

 

And this is Ridley ~ it is also made with 2 Layer Cakes and 1/2 yard of fabric for the inner border.  It also measures about 70" x 70".  And while my friend, Sue, pieced this one, it took about the same time.  Okay, it took a little bit longer because Sue had to figure out what all my jots, notes and chicken-scratches meant.  The fabric is Patisserie by Fig Tree.

 

Okay, I'm off... all work and no play... more tomorrow. 

Side trip...

All the craziness of Market starts tomorrow when the convention center opens and "move-in" officially starts. 

I flew to Pittsburgh on Saturday and wasn't supposed to be back in town until tomorrow ~ Wednesday ~ but I got in really late and I'm now checked-in and looking forward to my "heavenly bed".  It also means that I can sleep in a little bit on Wednesday morning before I have to return my rental car.   

So where was I in between?  I took a little road trip... to Massachussetts. 

Actually, for the record, I've been through Eastern Pennsylvannia, New York, New Jersey ~ but just for a few minutes, Connecticut and Massachussetts.  More specifically, I have been in Sturbridge and Brimfield for the first couple days of the Brimfield Antiques Show.

 

Now there are a couple of things you should know... I'm not really much of an "antiques" person.  Old or new, reproduction or authentic... if I like it, that's all that matters to me.  I just thought it would be fun to see what all the fuss is about... and since I was going to be in the area... okay, the same time zone... it seemed like a good idea.  And really... the weather in Phoenix was 104 degrees the past couple of days and it was sunny and 70 degrees in Sturbridge and Brimfield.  Tough decision, don't you think? 

While the "premium" vendors won't be there until Thursday and Friday, it was amazing how much "stuff" there was.  A lot of fun stuff, a lot of cool stuff, and a lot of junky stuff ~ beauty is in the eye of the beholder!  And lots of expensive stuff!

I did see several tents/vendors filled to the brim with buttons, trims, embellishments...

 

There were also several vendors selling vintage linens ~ tableclothes, tea towels, bedspreads, handkerchiefs, etc.

 

I really wish I collected some of these things...

When it was all said and done, I didn't buy anything!  Everything I saw that I liked and would have considered was either too big ~ would have cost enough to ship home that any idea of a bargain would have been lost ~ or way, way, way too expensive.  (Uh no... I'm not going to spend $75.00 for a wonderful antique painted tin that I would probably only use to hold my binding clips.) 

And really, when am I ever going to use one of these in Phoenix?

 

Pretty cool though...

I promise to take some pictures tomorrow ~ and let you see what kind of transformation is made over the next day and a half. 

Do you remember my telling you about Birdseye, a quilt I was working on a few months ago?  My quilt was made with Jo Morton fabrics and some of my favorite background prints.  It was named after Clarence Birdseye, the inventor of frozen foods.  And the name was inspired by a quotation that I read many years ago in Judy Martin's online newsletter.  I promise to post the quotation when I have it in front of me ~ it's on the label of my quilt.  In the meantime... this is the quilt. 

 

I'm off... something "heavenly" is calling my name. 

I see a light...

 

No, that isn't Rosie. 

But I loved the picture... which is probably why I've saved it for so many  years. 

It rather describes how I feel though... I'm peering over the mountain of stuff I've had to get done this week and I think I the end is in sight.

The funny thing is that while on my way to FedEx early this morning to ship the quilts, I was suddenly in the best mood.  I've never quite figured out why ~ I've no doubt that it is due to a shocking degree of shallowness on my part ~ but I can be doing whatever and all of a sudden, I have this incredible sense of well-being.  I was exhausted.  I needed a shower and a hairbrush.  But the sun was shining, the windows were open, there was a great song playing on the radio and for no particular reason at all, I just starting smiling and laughing.

And while I was laughing, I considered that my good mood was most definitely evidence of my lack of depth and that made me laugh even more. 

I'm going to take that as a good sign.  Or maybe my subconscious is getting itself ready to make the fortune that came with my Chinese food the other night  come true..

 

I'll do my best. 

I had a couple of other good fortunes but I always think the first randomly chosen one is the most likely to be the one that comes true.  (Fuzzy logic, I know... but it's mine so there you have it.) 

The only dark cloud on my horizon is that I am disappointed that I am not going to get my Aster Manor quilt finished for Market.  I was trying to rush to get it finished and I started making mistakes.  And I was getting frustrated because I really love this quilt.   It is one of the hardest things about getting ready for Market, at least for me.  I love the process of making a quilt.  It is probably why I piece so many of them myself.   The day that isn't the case, I'll go get a real job without any regrets.  I keep telling myself that this just means I will have something to look forward to when I get home.

So what else have I been doing this week?  Writing patterns.  Packing boxes to ship to Market.  Finishing something for a deadline.  Getting ready to leave Mom and Rosie for a week ~ flowers, enough groceries to feed a family of ten for a month, chocolate, desserts... done.  There are a thousand things I wanted to get done but didn't... but that always seems to be the case.   

On Wednesday night ~ at 7:00 pm! ~ I drove across town to pick up 21 boxes from the printer.  Some of the boxes were a reprint of a cover I've run out of... but most of them were new pattern covers.  And, yes, there are multiple boxes of each title.  (They came out beautifully... the printer did a fantastic job!)

That's the good news ~ I have six new Schnibbles and three new big patterns finished for Market.  As in written, photographed, printed, packed... and now on their way to Pittsburgh.  There are still a few more patterns coming in June ~ two Schnibbles and four big patterns ~ and three of those quilts are done and going to Pittsburgh. 

I'm off to get packed... I'm going to try and post from Pittsburgh next week as I will have my laptop with me.  And I will have pictures to post of the new quilts and patterns!  (And pictures of the new fabric that I'm not supposed to show you until Market "officially" starts.)    

Which reminds me... why is it that the Westin is going to try and charge me $9.95 a day to use the high-speed internet access in my room while the Hampton Inn and La Quinta lets you use it for free?  Just wondering... 

Later...

.05

It should be .O5... not .5.

It will make sense if you read on...

Stuff... and my box

Okay... are you back?

I know.  You saw the title, quickly scanned the pictures to see what was in my box and now you're  back to see what I wrote.

I'll show you what was in my box and what I got to play with yesterday but that's at the end.  Hey, I'm a delayed-gratification kind of girl ~ I always save the comics, the most interesting mail, dessert and the best piece of candy for the very last.

I'm glad you enjoyed the cartoon ~ some of your comments are hilarious!  Thank you for making me laugh so much and so often this morning.  It helped wake me up ~ that and about four Diet Dr. Peppers... I was up sewing until almost 3:00 am this morning. 

It was the first I've gotten to sew all week.  I had to concentrate on patterns, web-stuff, getting ready for some classes next month, a couple of deadlines and I don't remember what else.  So I was on the computer when I would rather have been sewing... after fabric arrived, it was really hard to concentrate on the computer when I really wanted to be sewing!

But yesterday... it was bliss.  I think the quilt I'm working on will get finished by Friday but it won't be quilted by Market... I'm a little disappointed but this is going to work out best for everyone, especially my wonderful quilters who take such good care of me. 

You've seen some of the new fabric that Lissa is showing, there is more over at Simplify, and even more with Joanna.  But did you see the new fabric that Meg of Crabapple Hill is working with?

Now about the box I showed you the other day.  There were a couple of things in there ~ some of which is in this picture, some of which arrived a few weeks ago.

 

Odyssea, Hushabye, Blessings, Eva, Aster Manor, Mill Creek Inn, Vine Creek, Gobble Gobble, Happy Camper, Alliance... that's what's in there. 

I promise to show more later... just as soon as Ted isn't looking and I can sneak a few more pictures. 

I think Ted may be a little bit of a delayed-gratification sort too because the rolls were on the top and there was a bundle and some yardage buried on the bottom.  It's the new 3 Sisters collection... and this is what I did with it yesterday morning...

I promise more pictures later ~ when I think of a name for the quilt.  At about 2:30 last night, I was thinking of naming it after a BonJovi song... then something with "cherry" since I really like the red... Bada Bing?  Cherries... bing...

I heard yesterday going without sleep for more than 17 hours is the equivalent to having a blood alcohold level of .5.  Okay, so that's what they said on Law & Order: SVU and I know that's not a particularly reliable source of information like that... but given my quilt-title train of thought, it is starting to sound sort of accurate, don't you think?

Taking a break... sort of.

While looking for something earlier today, I ran across an envelope with all sorts of cartoons and cartoon strips that I've saved over the years.  Even after several years, every one of them still makes me laugh...

I even have a few quilter-cartoons.

This is one of my favorites ~ and it is by one of my favorite cartoonists, Wiley Miller, the creator of Non Sequitur.

 

But this cartoon does annoy me just a tiny little bit...

Why are all the women whose faces are visible wearing glasses?

And why are all the women a little "chunky"?

Just wondering...