Awesome Mail Day and Looking Ahead

Today there were two awesome packages in the mail for me (and a letter from my son and a Deaf friend of mine from Wisconsin) so it was an awesome mail day! One package was my sewing bee prize sent by Barbara in MN. I love the paisley fabric in all its wildness and the other wintery/Christmas fabrics rock too. I am planning on adding them to the I Spy blocks I have already cut and waiting to start a few of those. I don't have any like these, so what a lucky girl I am!

The second package was from the truly talented Bonnie Hunter of Quiltville! I got my autographed copy of her debut book (though she has written tons on her website). I hope it is the first of many. I have always admired antique quilts and scrappy looking quilts, but other than the first big quilt I made (with cheap thread and before rotary cutting and mats) which fell apart after just a few washings I really haven't done much scrappy stuff. Bonnie's Orange Crush mystery had me doing two and I really enjoyed them. They really seem to have so much heart or something. I will have a hard time giving away that OC this Christmas (one was given away for a wedding gift already) but I know there are more quilts like this in my future!

I loved the quilts in Bonnie's book but she has Lucy's Shopping Bag in there as well and I love it! It looks simple enough so I added it to my list of sewing goals for this week's sewing bee...we will see if I get to it.


My trip to Wisconsin was not quite how I envisioned it (is it ever?) since the trial was cancelled and will be rescheduled and I will need to go again when that happens. I did get to see my grandparents and Dad and Margie and lots of other relatives including my kids which was nice.


I am looking ahead to meeting a few of the online gals from the area and one from New Mexico who is visiting this weekend. We are planning a little lunch and hitting a quilt store too. Can't wait to meet some like minded quilters!


I am also super excited to get thinking about the NYE 2008 Mystery by Ann M. Smith. I think I have done her last two NYE mysteries and since it was before blogging I will include the pictures here! The first one is a snowball quilt and I liked the way it looked so much and how the colors went together I couldn't give it away as I had planned! It is hanging in the upstairs hallway just outside my quilting studio where I admire it often!

The second on is called Surrounded by Love and my mom has it (in Texas now!) and uses it when the nights get chilly. I can't wait to see what the latest NYE mystery will be (I think I already said that GRIN). If you are wanting to play along on the mystery feel free to join Quilt-Talk on yahoo in time to start...and any of you bloggers out there who are participating please comment me so that I can bookmark your blogs and see your progress too!
PS I finished the binding on Rachel's Outside the Box Quilt. It is SPECTACULAR--I really love that pattern!