Last Minute Gift Ideas

Emilee emailed me her fantastic last minute gift ideas. These are amazing and still completely do-able before the big day.

First up, an embroidered bow pendant.





How adorable is that? She found the tutorial in a Better Homes and Gardens magazine.



Next, for the new babies on your Christmas list- a car seat blanket.




Cute and highly useful. She used the tutorial from Running With Scissors.

Last up is pillow covers.




Emilee modified a tutorial she purchased from Etsy. There are tons of free pillow patterns online, as well. I swear every year I'm going to make this one from From the Blue Chair. There's still time this year, right?

Also, every year I try and make at least one new ornament for our tree. They also make great last minute gifts along with a plate of treats. Here's my long list of all the ones I am considering making this year-

Patchwork Star
Button Tree Ornament
Felt Nativity Ornament
Simple Quilted Stars
Scrappy Stocking Ornaments
Love Where You Live Ornament
Christmas Bird Ornament

Have a merry Christmas, everyone!

Don't Forget!

This Saturday night is our Meeting, Late Night Sew and Holiday Party all rolled into one. If we tried to cram any more fun into this one night, it would actually explode! We'll be meeting at 6pm in the big, lovely Hen House located behind the The Quilt Barn.

A few reminders-

1. We'll be exchanging blocks for the final time. If you'd like to participate, bring six Granny square blocks.

2. We'll be having a potluck dinner. Come hungry. Bring something to share.

3.If you signed up for the gift exchange, don't forget to bring your gift! If something's come up and you're not going to be able to be at the party, you can drop off your gift at the Quilt Barn ahead of time or bring it by my house in Twin Falls. Email me for the address. Don't leave someone giftless!

4. Our demonstration is going to be all about last minute gift ideas. It would be wonderful if everyone could bring an example of a quick project and where you can find the pattern or tutorial. It can be something you've done in past years or something your making this year. It could even be what you've made for the gift exchange.

I think that's everything. See you soon!

November Meeting Recap

There's lots of good stuff in here (including information on our Holiday Party!) so pay attention...

1. Members in Attendance- 8. The rest of you all better have really good excuses or doctor's notes.

2. Birthdays this month- KZ, Mary and Kim. Happy Birthday ladies!

3. Much wedding and new baby talk.

4. Our Annual Holiday Party is Saturday, December 7th at 6 pm. As always, it promises to be a fantastic time. Some things to know-
               a. Guild funds are providing a ham and all the paper products. The rest of dinner will be potluck. So far, people have signed up to bring a pie, side salad, dessert, funeral potatoes and a sweet potato casserole. Consider that when deciding what you would like to bring. Then email me (trinasdoings@gmail.com) and let me know.
               b. We drew names for the gift exchange. Gifts can be handmade or store-bought, new or from stash, crafty or whatever. Just try and keep it under a $10 value. It's not too late if you'd like to participate. Just email me and I'll send you back the name of your giftee. Just please, don't sign up unless you're going to be at the party or can otherwise deliver your gift.
               c. We're going to try something a little crazy for the demonstration at the meeting. I'm calling it the Quilt Guild Last Minute Holiday Gift Guide. How it works is this, everyone who can brings a quick and easy project to show off along with the information on where to find the tutorial or pattern. It can be something you've made in years past or what you're making this year. We'll go around the table, share our projects and by the end of the evening we should all have some great ideas for last minute gifts.

5. Giveaway- Pattern for Rudy the Reindeer by Melly & Me. Congratulations, Nicke!

6. We took a quick vote on whether to leave meetings and sewing night connected or separate them into two different nights next year. Leaving them connected won. I should hopefully (fingers crossed) have next year's meeting schedule for everyone by the December meeting. I would also like to have a member information list for everyone at that time. So, let me know if your contact information has changed lately.

7. Demonstration- Granny Square Blocks. I've collected some inspiration and tutorials on a Pinterest Board. If you'd like to participate in the (final!) block swap, bring six completed granny square blocks to the December meeting. I know, I know...that's a lot for the December meeting. But, you can do it!

8. Show and Tell. Wow, we are a talented group!




Emily's third completed quilt. She's a rock star. The pattern can be found here.



Plus, she's finished three beautiful Geranium dresses, one with matching doll dress.







Nikke showed off her Noodlehead Super Tote modified into a backpack and her super sweet doll Moses basket with pillow and quilt.




I showed the Miss Mary dress I made for my daughter and a finished Noodlehead Open Wide Zippered Pouch. There was a lot of love this month for little girly things and Noodlehead, it seems.




Jenele showed off her new improvisational project. We're pretty much all in awe.






Mary showed off two finished quilt tops. The second was a lovely tribute to her mother.




Emily showed off a lovely quilt she is making for her mother and her own new little baby, Lydia. I know water bottle in the way. I never got a picture of the baby, but Nicke got a fantastic one.

Well, I think that's everything. Let me know if you have any questions. I'm looking forward to our holiday party and hope to see everyone there!

October Meeting Recap

Let's just all pretend that I wrote this blog post three weeks ago, shall we?

1. Welcome to our newest member- Kim Almon! We're so excited to have you in our little group.

2. Our next meeting is November 9th. We'll be drawing names for our Holiday Party Gift Swap. If you'd like to participate either be at the meeting or let me know (trinasdoings@gmail.com) so I can draw a name for you. Please, please, please don't draw a name unless you can be there for the holiday party.

3. Mark your calendars now- our Holiday Party is December 7th, 6 pm at the Quilt Barn. As in years past, the guild will be providing a delicious ham and we'll be potlucking the rest of the meal.

4. Demonstration- Review of Quilting On the Go by Jessica Alexandrakis. Including the showing off of my finished English Paper Pieced quilt top.




5. Show and Tell






Kim's Amazing Quilts



Jenele's fantastic quilt. There were others, I'm sure. But I was too busy trying to keep my kids from breaking something that these were the only pictures I managed.

So, that's it. Great meeting everyone. And, speaking of meetings, since I took so long to write this blog post- it's also serving as your meeting reminder. Meeting this Saturday, October 9th. 6 pm at The Quilt Barn. As usual, we'll stay after the meeting for a late night sew. Bring your nametag. Bring some snacks to share. Bring some projects for show and tell. Bring your machines and some projects to work on. Bring friends. Bring your beautiful selves. Hope to see everyone there!

September Meeting Recap

1. Welcome to everyone, especially our new member Kim. I forgot to get her email address and contact information. Did anyone get her last name?

2. Thanks to everyone who came to the picnic. I had a blast and hope everyone else did as well.






3. The Magic Valley Quilt Walk is this weekend. It's now a part of the Oktoberfest celebration. It's Friday, September 20th 5-10 pm and Saturday, September 21st 12-10 pm. Email me (trinasdoings@gmail.com) if you'd like to have the contact information for entering quilts.

4. The Boise Basin Quilters Quilt Show is September 28th and 29th, 10 am to 5 pm at Expo Idaho (the Fairgrounds). Admission is $6.

5. Our next meeting is October 12th, 6 pm at The Quilt Barn. As usual, we'll have a late night sewing night following the meeting.

6. At the October meeting, we're going to have a stash essentials fat quarter exchange. If you'd like to participate, bring 4 fat quarters to the meeting. They can all be the same or different, brand new or from your stash. Just make sure they're what you consider stash essentials- the kind of fabric you use again and again and again for all sorts of projects.

7. I demonstrated three different Plus/Cross/X/Whatever you want to call them blocks.
         a. Simple Nine Patch based



         b. Wonky Cross- tutorial here.




         c. Scrappy Plus- tutorial here.





I've started a Pinterest Board with all sorts of cross block inspiration. If you'd like to, bring six cross or plus blocks to the next meeting to exchange.

8. Show and Tell



Mary's Tinker Bag



Tara's Skull Quilt



Jenele's doggies



Jenele's Baby Elephant Quilt

Of course, there were more fantastic things that I forgot to take pictures of!

I think that's everything. Email me if you have any questions and see you all in October!

Pinterest!

So I think I've got the guild Pinterest account up and running as it should. Go check it out-

http://pinterest.com/magicvalleyquil/

I just pinned a whole lot of Flying Geese tutorials and inspiration for our next block exchange.

You should be able to look around all you want without an account. Of course, if you create a free account then you repin and create your own inspiration boards. Then, if you follow Magic Valley Modern Quilts, I can send you an invitation to be able to post to the Guild's boards. I'm picturing a huge collection of quilts and techniques we love and quilts we've made.

Have a great Tuesday ladies!

August Meeting Report

August 10, 2013
Members in Attendance: 10 amazing ladies

1. We rescheduled our Summer Picnic. It will be Saturday, September 7th at 6 pm. We'll meet at Thomsen Park in Twin Falls. The Guild will be providing paper products and a main course. Please bring a side dish, dessert, or drinks. And your family! I'll send out a reminder email a few days before.

2. Our next meeting is Saturday, September 14th. 6 pm at the Quilt Barn. Following the meeting will be our usual Late Night Sew.

3. I'm trying to figure out a Guild Pinterest Board. Right now I think I've got my account and it a little crossed. I'll work on fixing that. I'm also trying to figure out how multiple people can post to a board. That way we can all share the account. I'm planning a Stuff Our Members Have Made board and an Awesome Quilt Inspiration board. Is there anything else you'd like to see? I'll get it all worked out and let you know when it's ready.

4.The Boise Basin Quilters Quilt Show is September 28th and 29th. If you're going and are willing to take along other Guild members, let us know.

5.It's not too late to enter something in the Twin Falls County Fair! Visit http://tfcfair.com/competitive-exhibits/ for information.

6. Demonstration- I demonstrated about 4 different ways to make Flying Geese. I'll have a blog post up with links to tutorials and blocks and inspiration soon. If you'd like to swap, bring six completed blocks which somehow include Flying Geese next meeting. They can be any size or shape, wonky or precise. Whatever you come up with.

7. Show and Tell-




Candy and Jolene with their amazing Super Totes (pattern available at the Quilt Barn).



Tara's amazing Briar Rose tumbler quilt.

I also showed off my Alabama Chanin inspired Zinnia Shirt and Rose Shirt. No pictures because I have yet to master the art of photographing my own chest.

8. And now, what I actually forgot to talk to about at the meeting. The only swaps we've done this year have been blocks for the Kitchen Sink quilts. Boring if you've decided not to make one. So, it's high time we did a swap! I'm thinking October. I have no ideas as to what to swap, though. None, at all. Not a single one. So, it's up to you guys. What should we swap? So we want to do a specific item- like tote bags or pincushions. Or a theme- like Halloween or Your Favorite Thing? So, comment, comment, comment or email me your ideas at magicvalleyquilts@gmail.com.

August Meeting!

Meeting! This Saturday, August 10th at 6pm at the Quilt Barn. We'll get some business out of the way and then stay for a late-night sew. Bring your machine, your projects, a friend and some snacks to share. Hope to see you all there!

Saturday Night!

So, I'm going to be out of town this weekend. Yes, the weekend we planned on having our Guild Summer Picnic. (Maybe I should have looked at my calendar a little closer.) And, it's hot. So, benevolent dictator that I am, I'm cancelling the picnic. Instead we'll have a late night sew starting at 6 pm at the Quilt Barn in Kimberly. No meeting beforehand. Just bring your machine, your projects and some snacks and sew late into the night. We'll reschedule the picnic sometime when it's a little cooler and I (and my little envelope of guild funds for buying chicken) am around.

It's All About Mary!

Meeting Date: June 8th, 2013
Members in Attendance: 7 (8, if you count Zuri)


OK, not really. But, Mary did seem to be the star of Saturday night's meeting. She volunteered to give us a demo on wonky kiss blocks.






If you missed it, there's a similar tutorial here, just make the inset strips more diagonal rather than side to side. I might give it a try today!

Mary also rocked the show and tell, bringing her almost finished scrappy trip quilt and three quilt tops she's finished this month. Three!




(Zuri seems to like it.)








Aren't they all just amazing?

We did discuss a few things other than Mary and her awesomeness.

1. Flyer report. I haven't seen any around town, yet. If you have some, please hang them up somewhere! Let's spread the word.

2.The Boise Basin Quilters Quilt Show is September 28th and 29th. We discussed the possibility of putting together some carpools and heading up together. There was some definite interest.

3. We're going to have a picnic! We settled on Saturday, July 13th. That's the first weekend that worked for all of us at the meeting. It also happens to be our regular meeting night. Instead of the meeting we'll head to an as yet undecided park (any recommendations?) with our families and have a potluck picnic. The guild will provide paper products and a main course. It's up to everyone else to bring the rest. There will be more details as the time gets closer. I'm also going to try and still sneak in a late night sew in July. There's no way I can go a month without it!


So, that's it. See you all next month!

The Glories of the Nine Patch Block

Can I just start by saying that I love Nine Patches. Truely, I do. Let's just take a little walk through my own personal quilting history, shall we?




Scrappy Nine Patch



Irish Chain Baby Quilt



Girly Nine Patch Baby Quilt



Lone Gnome Irish Chain



Disappearing Nine Patch



Irish Chain Wedding Quilt



Bug Irish Chain Quilt



Cousins Irish Chain (actually 2 quilts- one for each girl)




Scrappy Nine Patch #2

I'm a little shocked. I had forgotten some of those. That's 10 Nine Patch based quilts in the past 7 or so years. So, is it any wonder that I've choosen the Nine Patch for our next block swap? Here's some tutorials, links and whatnot to get you started. Make any sort of Nine Patch that strikes your fancy- traditional, wonky, disappearing, whatever. I'm excited to see what you all come up with.

Tutorials-
Basic Nine Patch Block
Strip Pieced Nine Patches
Disappearing Nine Patch
Missouri  Star Quilt Company Disappearing Nine Patch Video
Crazy Nine Patches
Double Trouble Disappearing Nine Patch
Framed Nine Patch Quilt Block
Double Disappearing Nine Patch

Inspiration-

Source: redpepperquilts.com via Trina on Pinterest

Source: flickr.com via Trina on Pinterest

Source: flickr.com via Trina on Pinterest

Source: flickr.com via Trina on Pinterest

Source: quiltbarn.blogspot.com via Trina on Pinterest

Source: flickr.com via Trina on Pinterest

Source: home-and-garden.webshots.com via Trina on Pinterest

Source: modabakeshop.com via Trina on Pinterest

Source: flickr.com via Trina on Pinterest

Source: flickr.com via Trina on Pinterest

Source: diaryofaquilter.com via Trina on Pinterest

Source: crazymomquilts.blogspot.com via Trina on Pinterest

Source: crazymomquilts.blogspot.com via Trina on Pinterest

Well, did that make you as excited about Nine Patches as I am? Email any questions to magicvalleyquilts@gmail.com.