Debbie Shore has a cute tutorial, well, MANY cute tutorials, on YouTube. Recently, she posted one one how to make a wallet that has spaces for credit cards, a zippered compartment, and a place for 'whatever'.  I've been busy making two of them, but I tweeked the pattern, making the purse smaller and adding 2 sections for credit cards, deleting the space for 'whatever'. It should have been a quick and easy projrct, but for the past 2 weeks Fibromyalgia has been devouring me, so there has not been much energy for doing anything. I am almost done, all that is left is attaching the bias binding, which she also has video on how to make your own. Instead of making individual binding strips and sewing each piece, I searched for instructions on making continuous bias making, and found some good videos on the subject. It makes the project go a bit faster and gave me a good feeling of accomplishment.
So, here are pictures of them

Oops , this picture came out a bit slanted.
You get the picture.

I will post pictures of the finished products. If anyone is interest in purchasing a wallet, I can make them in different colors, but with fabric from my stash. The 'wallet' measures 8 1/2 inches wide, and approx. 5 inches when closed, a bit larger than a standard wallet. I can make them smaller, if you like.

There are many people I follow on YouTube, but lately I am hooked on viewing Leah Day's videos.  She started a new Free Motion Quilt Along for 2014 and I am challenging myself to see if I can go to the finish. So far, I see the gradual improvement in my being able to FMQ. Last nite I did the Wiggly Pasta block, I when I saw it, I said 'No Way!' but to my surprise, it turned out to be one of the easiest and most satisfying

The other site, which I have just come across, is on Sewing, by Izzie MEIMsaab. Love her tutorials on making totes and bags! She also has a paid channel on making clothing. Very professional, another MUST 

SEE videos. 

Ah yes, my Favorite Bead Shop, Beadjoux in Braselton Georgia, only a couple miles away from home.  yay! The great ladies offer free classes, once a month.  I was able to attend one, showing us how to make a leather and rhinestone bracelet. Loved it! Since the class, I have made quite a few of them, yes, for my family, here's one I kept for myself.

This is where I took a class, from Jimmie Boatright, on how to make Floating Islands bracelet, designed by Jimmie.  Not completed yet, but well on it's way.  The purple one is mine.

One last note for the day, do any of you know of a verfy easy tutorial on Round RAW?  I've found Cubed, and Flat, but cannot find  'non-confusing' instructions or video.  Would appreciate your help.

Today, my daughter, Andrea, came over to help me learn how to post pictures on my blog. Oh my goodness, thank God for children!  She has a different blogger, but in literally 2 seconds, shows me how easy it is to insert a photo into a post!  :-)  One comforting thought that keeps me from feeling dumb, I recall I was very intelligent as a child, until Fibromyalgia robbed me of my smarts.  Thanks to my girl, a married lady of 32, nonetheless, my girl.

So, here is the quilt I completed this weekend. I used my BabyLock Ellageo sewing/embroidery machine, to embroider some cute sewing designs on the solid fabric. I then I stitched the rest of the blocks, in the ditch. The one highlight of this project is that these fabrics were leftovers from a previous project, and I was about to get rid of them!  I am so glad I read other blogs, and enjoy going through Pinterest. Somewhere between those two, I had read a post that said 'Save Your Scraps', so I did.

Remember that Herringbone bracelet I made, while my sis-in-law came to visit?  Well, here it is!  I love the way it came out.  Lots of tutorials on you tube, which, by the way, I am so thankful for all of you that share your knowledge and expertise with us! You guys are all soooo appreciated. We actually used Cube Bead Stitching by Virginia Jensen, a good book for using cube beads, which I love.
I am making one in black and cream, will post a pic when finished.

Back to my hobbies!

Yay! The flu is finally over, what a horror it was. I realized that I just hate 'doing nothing'. Even my favorite tv shows did not keep me from boredom.
My sis-in-law, visiting from Florida, was finally able to spend some fun time with me. We went to my local Bead Shop, Beadjoux, and shopped for over 3 hours. It isn't a huge store, but we just could not leave without her seeing each section, very carefully.  :-)
 The greatest time for us was taking a class on Thursday, 16th, from Jimmie Boatright, whose work you can find in several Bead And Button magazines.
Juana was making  a Floating Islands. I will have to post a picture. I had originally chosen to make Heavy Metal Bands bracelet, which you can find in the August, 2011 Bead & Button magazine.  Truthfully, I thought that making the one I selected was easier. The one she chose was lots more complicated, or so I thougt! For me, it was a wild trip trying to learn tubular right angle weave. For the life of me, I could not understand 'the roof, the wall, and the floor' concept. After 30 minutes of trying to follow her, I gave in and started making the one that I had originally thought was complicated. Little did I know how much easier that one was! We did not finish it in class, but working on at at home, at our pace, went well!  Once I figure out how to post pictures on this blog, I promise I will post the bracelets.

We also got to make a Herringbone bracelet, made with 3mm cubes. pattern found in Cubed Bead Stitching by Virginia Jensen. Those came out beautiful, at least to our eyes. :-)

There was also a lovely rhinestone bracelet taught as a free class by Stephanie, daughter of Beadjoux owner. I cannot recall the name of it, but it required rhinestone chain, rolo chain and 1.5 mm leather. A quick but beautiful bracelet! Since I had already taken the class and made several of them, Juana purchased the supplies from Beadjoux, and made the bracelet.
All in all, for just a few days of being able to spend with her, without the flu, we had a wonderful time.  Her husband, Bill, said he will bring her back soon. I hope so.  Hobbies are fun, but so much better when shared with a fellow hobbier, especially someone you get along with so well!

Happy hobbying!

The flu and a visit from my best friend.

Since my last, or my first, blog I have been laided up with the flu. I have no memory of ever having had the flu, so I felt like I was dying. Of course, I wasn't, but I could hardly get out of bed and, worse of all, could not quilt nor make jewelry. (Yes, I have 2 expensive hobbies, both of which I blame my sister-in-law for introducing them to me.)
My sister-in-law is my quilting buddy, jewelry making buddy and best friend.  We have a great relationship, more than a sister to me. We are so close, that somehow we both managed to have Fibromyalgia. She had it for many, many years, and I was diagnosed with it in 1997. We do have lots in common and understand one another's pains and hardships.

She and her husband, came up to visit from Florida this past week, and I have been so sick that we haven't been able to anything together. However, today is the first day that I have felt capable of doing anything, so, of course, we visited my favorite bead store, Beadjoux Bead Store, (beadjoux@att.net), which is a hop, skip, and a jump from my house.  :-)
What a great few hours, after a 2 week jail term. We were like kids in a candy store. She bought up a storm, but I was reasonable. Well, I have a mini beading store in my hobby room, so I really didn't need much. We signed up for 2 classes for next Thursday, Jan. 16th. Both of us will be making gorgeous bracelets, although not the same pattern. In addition, we will stay in for a free beading class, going to make a beautiful open heart pendant made from 3 and 4mm bicone crystals. A nice day to look forward to!  :-)

This coming week, our next outing will be to the 2 fairly local quilt stores. More eye candy for us, at least it will not be fattening.  :-)    It is fun to see her in our favorite types of stores, she is happy and can set aside her pain, if only for a short while. I am looking forward to that day. By the way, we each have wonderful husbands that support us in our hobbies, and we love them for it.

As for my new adventure, I am going to begin the Leah Day 'Building Blocks Quilt Along', and I am so excited to learn many ways on how to Free Motion Quilt my quilts. Leah Day does a wonderful job with FMQ, on her home sewing machine. Watch her tutorials on YouTube, you will be glad you did. Since being on Social Security Disability, having my quilts done by a LongArm quilter is no longer an option, so I want to learn how to quilt them myself. This project is exactly what I needed. Thank You Leah Day!
I will keep posting my progress in future blogs. Have to hurry up and prepare my first block,  since our new lesson begins on Monday! Somehow need to squeeze this into my schedule this week, along with the long list of 'Things To Do', we have made for things that hzve to get done before the family goes back to Florida,  two Sundays from today. Juana, my buddy, does not want to go back home. She would love to stay longer, but doctor appointments are in the way. I am hoping they will be back in March, in time for the Quilt and Sewing Expo at the Gwinnett Civic Center. I sure do miss having my quilting and beading buddy close by.

No more to say today, except my Mom just completed 91 years of life this week! Thank you, my dear God Almighty. What a blessing it is to still have my mom alive and fairly well.

Until next, have a great week. Enjoy your hobbies, but mostly, enjoy your family, children and spouse! The time we spend with them, are everlasting memories!

To blog or not to blog.

Okay, so this will be my very first attempt at blogging. Hopefully, I will get the hang of it and continue forward.  As you might have already figured, I love to quilt. I am by no means a super talented quilter, but I still consider my quilts as accomplishments. There is no art degree or previous designing experience, however, I recall always wanting to learn how to sew! When I was young, a long long time ago, I had a toy sewing machine, which I absolutely cherished! I so wish I still had it today! My creative streak is very limited, but I can still admire the creativity of others. What do I want to make out of this blog? Maybe I can post and share the quilts I have made, and am making, and will continue to make, and inspire other, less creative ones, realize that what matters is doing what you love, even if it means buying a pattern and following instructions.  We can still be creative in chosing our fabrics!

Oh well, let me go and visit a few blogs and layouts and try to learn what having a blog is all about.  :-)