Last Post for This Year!

Well, it's been quite a year! My husband and I will be glad to see this one tucked away into the history books. So much happened this year and lots of it wasn't good.  Our government here in the US began to take away rights at an unparalleled pace and I got sick with Lymphoma to name only a couple of the rotten things that 2009 brought. I've been out of work since August, but will be heading back around 2/1/10. It's been weird for sure!

On a lighter note, I was able to do a little bit of stitching today despite feeling pretty crappy. First, I finished up a tiny little pillow I made for my sister.

This other project is something that I cut out from a free pattern that came with something I bought when I first started quilting at the beginning of the decade. It's been hanging around my sewing closet along with other stagnant projects so I decided to zip up a couple of them to make myself feel like I am getting something done.

 After doing all these set-in seams, I think that pattern has been tossed already! What a pain! Why is it that no matter how careful one is with set-in seams they just don't cooperate?? I tried and tried, but this thing came out pretty darn wonky. Luckily, once it was together, it's hard to tell....It is hard to tell, right?

Tomorrow, if I feel okay, I'm going to try to make a thread catcher that has been in my sewing closet waiting to be made for 4 or 5 years. Hoping it won't take too long. Also working on another purse for a new friend who is battling ovarian cancer that I met at the infusion center. Hope to show those to you soon!

I hope each of you has a blessed new year and that it brings only good things for you!

Melanie

Merry Christmas Eve!

I've decided to finish up a few small projects that have been hanging out in my sewing room closet just taking up space and filling my mind every time I walk in there. It just feels like there are so many projects that need to be done. I'd like to be able to start over with new and fresh ones, but want to make what I've already bought before I don't like them any more. I'm sure you must have similar issues.

A couple years ago, I bought what turned out to be a really odd charm pack from Nancy's Notions. I have fiddled and fiddled with those fabrics to try to figure out what I could possibly do with them! Finally, I thought about the purse that one of my quilt group members, Linda B, made for me last year. I just love it! And it seemed to be a good project for these funky fabrics in the charm pack. So I dug into my stash for fabric for the handles and lining and here is what I put together.

I had a difficult time trying to figure out how to make these colors all go together in a cohesive way and look pretty and finally ended up with the cool-sided and warm-sided purse. I really like it. This might even be the start of something new for me. I normally go with much more muted colors, but I really liked this once it was done!

Hope you and your families have a save, happy and blessed Christmas. Rest, enjoy and give thanks to our Lord for the birth of his only child who came to save us! Amen!

Melanie

What I've Been Up to Lately...

I have been doing a little bit of sewing these days. Mostly still working on some presents, but I do have a few things I can show you. First are the placemats I made for a couple of dear friends as birthday presents.

The pattern came from the December '09 Quilter's World. This is normally a magazine I'm not all that fond of, but this particular edition had some great gift ideas. I liked these placemats enough to make some for us too!

I've also been tinkering with my DJ quilt a bit. I've prepped a few blocks for applique and have recently made these two blocks. The first one is I4 and was rotary cut and pieced and appliqued. It has 25 pieces. The second one, I5 is completely appliqued and has only 6 pieces.

 

I think the first one is going to be redone. It's just too wonky. I'll keep the center part, but redo the outside sections and will paper piece them this time. That should fix it! Honestly, I didn't think this one would be that difficult, but I'm out of practice with these tiny little pieces. If you're off just a smidge, you'll pay the price with these babies! I'm happy with the second one and this is one that I had dreaded doing for a long time, but it was very easy!

Lastly, I'll show you the progress I've made on setting the Gail Pan Christmas quilt.

As you can probably see I still need to add the outermost border and then this one is ready to quilt! I'd like to get the quilting done before my next (and last!) chemo on Wednesday, but Christmas presents are more important right now. So we'll see!!

Hope you are having some time to enjoy the true meaning of this holiday season!

Melanie

A Finished Project

It was small, but still a finish, which  can be difficult at this time of the year! It is a panel a friend gave me a few years ago. I'm pretty proud of myself lately to be using up my stash and not really buying too much. Of course it helps that I can't really go into public places right now though either. That's my cute little doggy eyeing the quilt just laying there on the floor waiting for her to snuggle up on it. I had to tell her a couple of times it wasn't for her. I don't think she really understood do you?

Today I'm hoping to do a Dear Jane block or two and work on a Christmas wall hanging. Hope you are doing some stitching too today!

Christmas and Birthday Presents.....

are being made around here, so I don't have any pictures I can show you without giving away some surprises. But a post without a picture is like a day without sunshine! So....take a look at this!

This was my favorite Christmas decoration as a kid. My mom bought it at some craft fair or church bazarre probably.  It is a styrofoam base spray painted gold (which seems to flake off every time you touch it) and then has all these gold leaves and costume jewelry stuck in it and of course, the arch with the angel in it. My guess is that this piece is about 45 years old and I just love it. It makes me think of the simple days of being a child and the wonder and sparkle and joy of Christmas. Those were also really good times in our family before things got, well I'll just say complicated. So while you may not think beauty when YOU see this, I think about warm cozy Christmases with a fire burning, Johnny Mathis singing Christmas carols, a beautifully decorated home, candles, lots and lots of relatives all brought together with love and fudge. Nothin' better! I miss that...

As Christmas draws closer, I hope you are enjoying some of the traditions you and your family celebrate. Try not to get too tied up in the materialistic, unimportant stuff. Remember it's really the warmth and love that matters.

Hope you get in a few stitches today too!

Melanie

It's Officially Christmastime

Now I just need to pull down all the fall decorations, my favorite, and bring out the Christmas decorations. Why is it that this seems like such a big task? Maybe it's because I have to haul out the empty boxes from the basement to store the fall stuff and then do the same with the Christmas decos. I need new Christmas decorations. I'm just not totally happy with what I've got. Plus some of the problem is that I just love the fall decorations so much! I'd love to have them up all year. It's sad to see them go!

DH and I woke up at the same time this morning just before 5:00am. What's up with that?? Just boom, wide awake....both of us!! Today, I have a friend coming over to sew for the day. I love these days. Hoping the need for a nap doesn't kick in until she leaves! Hopefully, I will have something completed to show you by the end of the day.

Hope you are having an enjoyable day as well and get a few stitches in before the day is over!

Melanie

Happy Thanksgiving!

I have so much to be thankful for! Just to name a few: Great family and friends, a God who loves me more than I can imagine, a beautiful place to live (California Central Coast), the best husband in the world and more, more, more!! I hope you are having a great Thanksgiving with those you love!

I haven't posted in a while and that is mainly because I've been busy working on Christmas and birthday gifts. I have to share this great fabric I recently purchased from the Rouenerries line by Moda. It is a linen/cotton blend.  I plan on making some pillows for my couch.  Pretty, huh??

Speaking of the Rouenerries line, my friend Vangie gave me 2 charm packs of it for my birthday. So I also bought some coordinating fabric and this Schnibbles pattern to make them up. This project will have to wait until after I've finished Christmas presents, but it should be a fun and quick project! Can't wait!

Again, happy Thanksgiving to you Americans. For the rest of you, I hope you get some stitching in today!

Melanie

DJ Design Wall Update

Every now and then I like to show a picture of my DJ progress. I was just talking to one of my oncology nurses who is a new quilter about this project and told her I would post a picture. Just counted and I have 115 blocks done and 36 triangles done, counting the 2 corner kites. As you can see, I've started to do the whole thing in order, or at least row by row. That way I can make sure I don't get 2 blocks of the same color together. I do wish I had done this in Trip Around the World format, but oh well. I like it this way too. This photo does not show all the blocks and tris that are done, just the ones on the upper portion. There aren't many others, just sayin'...

Hope you are doing something fun and creative today!
Melanie

My progressive for this year

Well, Monday night was the big reveal. Here's what my group produced for me.....

I had started with just the center star. My friend, Launi, was the first to work on it and she did the flying geese surrounding the center star. Then, her sister, Linda, made the 4 corner blocks. Now, this is a pretty big deal because for both of them, it was their first time paper piecing! Great job ladies!!! I'm really happy that my project stretched you into doing something you hadn't done before. Now you have a new skill that will lead to even MORE quilts you just have to make, right? Next, Le added the side strips and attached the NY beauties. At some point in here (maybe before the side strips were added or just after) Vangie appliqued the center medallion onto the background.  Next, Linda C made a label for this beauty seen here....

Cool signature block, huh?? Next, Barb added another solid yellow border that ended up being used to make the final fence rail type border you see on the final product. This border was done by Lucretia and I think was a fantastic addition, pulling all the colors together! The last person to work on the top was Rana and she put the triangles on the borders and the little snowball type corners in blue on the corner blocks to mimic the shape of the top. I'm super excited to get this thing quilted!! I have lots of ideas for it, which is kind of unusual for me to be able to think quilting ideas up this quickly!

Anyway, aren't I lucky to be part of such a talented group of women??? Here's another quilt that was made this year that is super fantastic!!! This one belongs to Rana and I know she loves it too!

That's it for now.  Hope you enjoyed the show! I may be out of commission for a while, though I do hope to get another triangle done before I go down. So hopefully I'll get another post in before tomorrow's chemo kicks in. Hey, and I might as well be optimistic here. I might not ever go down on this chemo. I might just do fine!!

Hope you are getting some stitching done today!!

Melanie

Another DJ Block!!

I may have caught the DJ bug again. After doing that block and tri this weekend, I decided to do another block. This one was so simple and can you believe, it took me 3 tries! What? The measurements were funny and I just kept cutting them out wrong. Thankfully it was an easy block. I save all my errant blocks and someday they are going in their very own quilt! That ought to be interesting!

Now I need to do a triangle for this week. However, I have a quilt all layered and ready to be quilted that I should really get started on. Maybe tomorrow I will work on that a bit. I won't feel much like sewing come this weekend. Chemo #4 happens on Thursday so.....Until then I'm trying to beat the clock!!

Hope you are doing something creative today!

Melanie

A Jane Block and Triangle

It has been somewhere around  4 months since I've done ANY work on my Dear Jane quilt. I felt like I needed to focus on getting some other things done and then came the Big C. But now I have done I-1 called Ralph and Nelda's wedding. It was rotary cut and pieced and has 20 pieces. It is not as wonky as this photo makes it look, but it is a bit wonky!! I'll be able to fix that when I set it in the quilt.

I also did a triangle. This one is LS11 called Kathy's Cake. It was paper pieced and appliqued like most of the triangles. It has 24 pieces. I'm motivated to keep going! In fact I quickly made another easy block this morning (I-2) but had measured the pieces wrong so it came out the wrong size and will have to be redone. Oh well, at least it was easy. I only have 3 more triangles to make on the left side and 3 or 4 on the right side to have the top and both sides done. I really should be focusing on Christmas presents though!

I have several things to get done this weekend. First, today I am going to go out and plant the pansies I bought. Our town is on water restrictions for a short time and so I can only water the yard on Saturdays and Tuesdays. That forces me to do the planting today.

The other thing I must get done is to put a border on the progressive quilt I am working on for a group member. They are revealing our quilts at the meeting on Monday evening. Unfortunately, I can't be there as my immune system is suppressed right now and the doctor won't let me be in groups. However, I have heard that my quilt is beautiful! I can't wait to see what it looks like! To see what I started with look here. It's the compass star and I hear the wonderful women in my group have done a fabulous job making something perfectly wonderful. I can't wait to see it and share it with you.

Hope you are doing something creative this weekend!

Melanie

A Return to Jane?

I belong to the Dear Jane list sponsored by Brenda Papadakis and read the other day that for 2 weeks in a row only 2 people had completed the TOW (triangle of the week) challenge. I was shocked! Before I got sick I did one every single week and never saw less than 15 or so names on the achievers list. I emailed Marianna, the achievers list mistress, to make sure what I had read was correct and it was! So, this was a call to action for me. I'm feeling well enough to sew this week so I'm committing right here for all to read that I will do a TOW this week! I've got the paper foundation all prepared for LS11 and hope to have it to show you in a day or 2. In the meantime, I'm going to go clean up my front yard just a wee bit. It has that scraggly fall look right now. Check back soon to see if I kept my committment!

Hope you are doing something creative today!

Melanie

My October Finish!

Well, my leaders/enders project a la Bonnie Hunter is finally done and is my finish for October! I believe I started this project (the 25 patches) in late 2005 or early 2006. Since I truly only sewed on this as a leaders and enders project it took a long time! I made the hour glass blocks in 2007 and put the body of the quilt together last year. This year I finally got to the borders and quilting and am really happy with this one! For quilting, I just did straight lines in the center and feathers through 2 borders. It is a large quilt (it's nickname is The Beast) measuring in at 96" square and is the largest quilt I've made.  Trying to do more than the straight quilting in the center did not appeal to me as I quilt on a regular home machine. Plus I really like the way the straight lines highlight the geometrics of this quilt. For the borders, I drew the spine of the feather and freehanded the rest.

Now it's on to my November project. It is another top that stopped short of getting its borders. Good news is that it is fall fabrics so it will be fun to work on this time of the year and it's much smaller than this one was so it should go fast!

Hope you are working on something that inspires you!

Melanie

Progress!

Well, I'm working on finishing up my OPAM for October. Got the quilting finished Thursday evening and added a label yesterday. I'm really bad about labels and as you can see, I didn't add this one before the quilting, but it's got a label nonetheless. Also sewed the binding on yesterday and now have the seemingly monumental task of hand sewing it down. This quilt is 96" square so that's 32 feet of binding to sew down! At any rate I know I'll have it done in time for the end of the month. I will share some pictures of it as soon as I have a finished product! Until then, hope you are getting some of your own projects done!!

Melanie

Very fun package in the mail!!

A package came in the mail on Friday from my niece, Sarah and her mom, my sister Betsy stuffed full of these fabrics and pattern they got at the Buggy Barn for me! Isn't it great?? I just loved opening the package and lifting each piece of fabric out and looking at it. What a lovely bunch of fabrics to make this pretty fall quilt. Fall is THE quilting season isn't it? I can't wait to dive into this!!

Hope you are enjoying a quilty project too!!

Melanie

Beautiful "Blocks" Given to Me by Courtney

My lovely quilt group did a really fun thing for me for my 50th birthday: they each gave me a gift of 50 things. I got things like a box of bible verses, a jar of hershey's kisses, tea lights, 5" squares....it was great!

My dear friend Courtney gave me these 50 "blocks" of the state flowers that she embroidered. Aren't they beautiful? She embroidered a set of these blocks for herself and one set for her mother, my friend Rana. Problem was, she was completely sick of them by the time she got done making them. She is so skilled at embroidery! I wish I had half her talent! She has asked me to take them apart and re-set them, which I am happy to do! Here are some more photos....

 

I can't wait until I'm well enough to go fabric shopping in an actual quilt shop so I can find just the right fabrics to set these with! I think, no I know, this is one of the most generous gifts anyone has given me. I've told her that she is welcome to take this back any time she wants...it's just too much!

Thanks Court! You're the best!

A Beautiful Quilt Given to me by Wonderful Ladies

This quilt was given to me by the wonderful gals in my quilt group. I took it with me to my 2nd chemo session yesterday and it was a big hit. I almost felt sorry for all those other people in their drab hospital blankets. It was obvious that I had people who loved me and I brought them there with me in a way. It was like they were there all around me (in spirit, of course).  I know they are keeping me in their prayers and that means so much to me; I can't really express my gratitude for it.

These 3 applique/embroidery blocks were done by Vangie. She embroiders so beautifly. The patterns are  from here.

 

This lovely signature block was made by Le. I LOVE it! It really brings the sentiment of the quilt together and I look at this part all the time. Thanks Le!

 

i just love these ladies. Wasn't that the sweetest thing? Oh, I forgot to mention the backing is flannel and the binding is satin. Wonderful!

A finish for September!

Well, I missed August, but here I am, back in the swing of things for September! If this quilt looks somewhat familiar, it's probably because this is the second quilt I have made with the same fabrics. It is the Sunshine line from Moda by April Cornell. When did this line come out? Maybe 2 years ago or was it 3? Whenever it was, that's when I started it.  Finally it is quilted and bound and thus is my finish for September. I'm already working on the next one. I suppose there is a small chance of it getting done this month too, but it is a small chance! Here's a peak at it....

Have a great weekend. I just had my head shaved, so I've got to go get used to that! I'll post photos on my other blog....

Hugs,

Melanie

Small Accomplishments!

I have been able to get a few things done, believe it or not! Chemo was not too bad. I layed low for a couple of days, but overall, I'd certainly have to say the Lord blessed me with very minor side effects. Consequently, I've been able to finish a couple of the Gail Pan blocks in the last week or so. Here they are...

Coming soon is my finished project for the month of September. Actually, I'm really hoping to finish 2 projects in September to make up for the miss in August. August ended up being a crappy month!

Also, in an effort to keep those of you who would rather not be bored with my cancer experience free of that thread here, I've opted to start a new blog, "The Unexpected Detour."  In that blog I will chronicle my experiences, past and future, as I go through my treatments. Personally, I have seen the hand of God at work during this time and it's exciting for me to share. Also, this will double as my journal for this time in my life. I have made a link to it on the right side of this blog.

Stay happy and healthy and keep on stitching!

Melanie

One down, five to go!

My first round of chemo is DONE! It was the longest one and lasted 7.5 hours. Glad to have it over with and feel just fine so far. One of the drugs, Rituxan, can cause some reactions and of course I reacted. So they had to stop the IV and get control of things before I could get started again. But once they started it again, I was fine. And it shouldn't happen again the next time.

I'm told days 2 and 3 are the hardest, so I probably won't be back until Sunday or Monday. Hope you all have a fantastic weekend. Do some stitching for me!

Melanie

Health Update

Forgive me for not talking about quilting at the moment. It's been hard to focus on being creative for the past few weeks, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel!

We saw the oncologist on Tuesday and got the word that my lymphoma is stage 3. I believe it is curable at any stage. It is stage 3 because I have a few small tumors in my abdomen. The football-sized tumor they took out when they did the hysterectomy was the greatest part of the disease, so that is very good news. I was happy to hear that it had not gone to the bone. The site where they did the bone marrow test still hurts over a week later, so I'm glad they won't have to periodically check that too!

Because there are such small tumors, the chemo does not need to be broken into 2 sessions. The doc thought I probably had more large tumors that once the chemo meds hit them, it would release too many toxins into my system. Tomorrow will be one long day starting at 8:30 and going until they are done (6 hours at the most). I have plenty of things ready to go: lap quilt for snuggling, pillow, hand held Tetris and Yhatsee games, Sudoku book, reading book, glasses and stitchery! What more could I need????

For those of you who have been so kind to send cards and well wishes, I do so appreciate them! I will be missing quilt group for a while as I'm not supposed to be in large groups, but the good news is that this will probably only last until December. It would be so nice to be able to make it to the Christmas celebration, but I think it will have to wait until next year. That's okay. God is good and in control. I am doing my best to lean on Him!

I'll leave you with a picture of another of my first quilts. I got the fabrics on a trip my mom and sister's and I took in 2000. We went back east for fall colors and to visit family and had such a fun time! Oh the stories I could tell you from that trip! I'm actually pretty proud of the hand quilting I did on this, but you can't see it in this photo.

Hope you are all well and being creative in some way!
Melanie

Wow, what a week!

Tuesday we started with an echo cardiogram (not sure of the spelling). Wednesday I had a bone marrow biopsy and they took a piece of bone while they were at it! The doctor told me it shouldn't hurt, but still does. Thursday I had a PET/CT scan and for some reason, that just wore me out. Yesterday I had my port for chemo installed. This was about a 4 hour process from the time we were to arrive at the hospital to when they let me go. I had a really sweet nurse who was determined for me to be sedated to the point where it wouldn't bother me and she did a fantastic job. I have really come to love and appreciate nurses. What wonderful people they are to take care of others with such dedication! I'm wishing I had gone that route right as a career....

Oh, I have so many thank you notes to write. My 50th birthday landed right here in the midst of cancer diagnosis and surgery recovery, so I have thank yous to write for both events. At least I have plenty of time and my energy is not bad. I need to get things ready for chemo though as that starts on Wednesday.

Here are a couple of little things I've done over the last couple of weeks. It's not much, but they have certainly been enjoyable. In case you don't already know, you can get the patterns here.

Thanks for stopping by....

Melanie

My first quilt

It's bad, I know, but isn't everyone's??? I really had no idea how to do the center, so here's what I did: 1) the sun rays are made with 2 layers of fabric sewn right sides together and then turned inside out (OMG, how hard was that?) and then appliqued to the background; 2) the face of the sun was put on with Heat-n-bond and never stitched down in any way; 3) for the outside border, each of those squares was cut out individually and sewn together at random; 4) the whole thing was hand quilted.

This little baby hangs in my sewing room. I don't hate it, but every time I really think about it, I think of how differently it would go together today!

Hope you are all well and happily stitching!

Melanie

Wow, It's Been a Long Time!

Sorry for being away for so long. It's been a trying time here for me. Last week I ended up having a complete hysterectomy and removal of a lymphoma from my abdomen. Super glad to have all of that behind me and am trusting in the Lord for complete recovery. Still feeling a bit like I've been hit by a truck, but that seems to get better each day. I'm supposed to be walking 20 minutes, 3 times per day already and am finding it to be a bit more of a challenge than I had expected. At any rate, I'll get there. If you are a believing Christian, I would appreciate your prayers for full recovery. Thanks a bunch! The prognosis is apparently very good.

Now for more interesting things to post....

Wanted to share some photos of the friendship group I belong to. Each month one of us hosts the group and this month was my turn. I live in a small coastal town, so we usually like to meet for some fish or chowder prior to the meeting. So here we are! We had a good time that night sharing our progressive projects and ending with watching my nephew, Tyler Anderson, on the Food Network show, Chopped. Hope everyone else had as much fun as I did that night!! What a great bunch of gals these are!



I've noticed on some other blogs I read that several people are sharing their first quilt. I hope to do that in my next post. It's interesting to say the least! Boy the things I've learned!

Until then, God Bless!
Melanie

The Kitchen Paint is FIXED!

When we bought our house in 2003, our kitchen was straight out of the 70s. BAD wall paper, really bad flooring and shutters that swung out into the room. It was just BAD. In our first year here, we stripped the wallpaper off and painted a light yellow, which I felt was too light. So, I ended up dry brushing a darker yellow over it. The longer I lived with that particular color the more obnoxious it became. I have been wanting to fix it for probably 2 years, but have been really tied up with my Dear Jane quilt. Since I'm taking a break from that, I finally got to adjusting the kitchen paint. I had no idea it would take me alllllll day and make me as pooped as I am right now! Since I had stenciled a border in there and wanted to keep it, I decided to mix a light yellow (my original base coat) with 2 parts glaze. I rolled the mixture on and then used a dry brush to thin it out and move it around. To save the border, I just went over it with a damp rag and that seemed to work. I'm so glad to have it done! NOW, it's time to put the kitchen back together!!!

Here are some photos of before and after, but I don't think it really shows how dramatic the difference is....

July OPAM

Well, it's not much, but it is a finished project nonetheless. I just wish it was one of my old projects. This one was started on a whim this year. I'm hoping to get a bed-sized quilt done for August that I've been slowly working on for a couple of years. It just needs one more border and then it's ready to layer and start quilting....Can't wait to show you the finished product!

Latest DJ Triangles etc

It's been a while! Here are the last 3 triangles completed. This first one is my least favorite of the bunch as it came out pretty wonky. But as they say, "from a galloping horse..." It has 18 pieces and like so many of these guys it is paper pieced and appliqued.




Next up we have Left Side 9. This baby is pure applique and has only 7 pieces.

Last on the DJ front is Right Side 5. This one is paper and regular pieced plus a bit of applique. It has 26 pieces and I'm happy with this one!
I feel like I have been pushing myself a bit too hard with these blocks and it has started to become a bit of a drag to work on. I don't want that to happen because it is such a fun project, so I'm taking a bit of a break. If I feel like making an occasional block or triangle, I will, but for now there are other projects that need some attention.

This year started out so positively with the OPAM (One Project a Month) goal. I have made one project a month, but they have been relatively small and several of them have been started new this year. My whole goal when I joined this group was to actually finish some of the quilts that have been started but never completed. I still like all of them, so need to get them done while that is still the case!

In addition to completing some quilty projects, I'm hoping to get a few other things done. Hopefully recording them here for all to see, will be an incentive to get them done! So here they are:

1) Tone down the bright yellow paint in the kitchen. My idea here is to do a "wash" of a very light buttery yellow mixed in with a glaze. I'm hoping this works!
2) Make new curtains for the kitchen (this is on my OPAM list)
3) Make a new valance for the guest bath
4) Paint the guest bedroom
5) Paint at least 2 walls of the master bedroom

This weekend was my first weekend off from Jane and it felt so productive! It's really amazing just how much time those little blocks take! For now I'm off to put binding on a small scalloped table topper. I'll keep you posted and will try to come back a bit more often now...

Have you done some stitching yourself? If not, stop blogging and go do it!!!

Melanie