Chatbug Karen

One more Christmas Dinner! I am grateful that my friend, Tina, wants to have us over for dinner. Our friends are here from Georgia and this way we can all get together and share what has been happening in our lives. Our Georgia friends just recently moved there so they will have lots of stories to tell, I am sure. They recently moved from Indiana to Michigan and when that job didn’t work out, found themselves moving to Georgia. They keep smiling even though I am sure they are terrified of what the world has in store for them. More people will be experiencing this as our economy struggles to gain its foothold. All of their kids and grand kids live here so they came back for the holidays to visit. Gotta keep a stiff upper lip for the kiddos.

We had snow but it warmed up and made water puddles. Of course, today it got cold and so now we have ice. Fog is rolling in as I type this. I am glad we don’t have far to travel this evening.

Tomorrow might be a day of sewing for me. I received two new quilt books and some fabric that I can’t wait to put to use. I have a purse request to finish and a binding to put on my civil war quilt. I may not know which to do first! LOL

I hope everyone stays safe and warm tonight.

As a quilter, I have found that the more I take my time making my quilt blocks the nicer things look. It is important to press each piece after it each is sewn together and then again after each block is made. I would love to have a new iron that has a really good point on it. I have been drooling over the Black and Decker iron at Buy.com. It has the All-Temp Steam feature that would give me the flexibility to select steam at every temperature setting. That helps when I try to steam quilt blocks at lower temperature settings. Buy.com has a good sale price on the model I like so I am hoping my hubby takes note when he reads my blog. Hints are good!

The Black and Decker iron is listed at the Buy.com website at one of the best prices I have seen. I love Black and Decker products. We have had one of their coffee pots for a long time and will probably replace it with another if it ever dies.

Buy.com is the best website for Christmas shopping because they offer name brand products at great prices. Many products are eligible for FREE Budget Shipping. That means more money for more gifts! Check out Buy.com to save time by buying online and save money with their great savings.

I have read the Elm Creek Quilts series of books by Jennifer Chiavirini and loved every one of them. Even if you are not a quilter, you will love the stories of the women and their lives in these books. I think that there are 12 books in the series. Each one centers on different women and how their lives are intertwined. If you enjoy reading uplifting stories, you will love these books.

I discovered that a man wrote a book with the quilt them in mind. He actually never planned on writing a book about quilts. He had always wanted to write a novel. Knowing that her husband loved to write, Mrs. West asked her husband to write a novel for her birthday. He knew that she loved to quilt and set out to write a book that had a quilting theme. Ed West wrote Father’s Quilt on enough pages to fill a 3-ring binder. The book was so popular that it was soon published.

From a review in the The County Register:

Father’s Quilt is about a special quilt made at a special time and the impact the quilt had on the young woman that made it. The story starts out during the Civil War and progresses through the late 1800′s to the early 1900′s. You’ll follow Sarah as she makes her special quilt and lives life in a small rural town complete with quilting bees, small town fairs, barn dances and the difficult times faced by women prior to women’s rights.

This book is full of twists and turns that will make you want to turn the page quickly.

Mom and I belong to a quilt guild that meets a couple of times a month. This month’s project is to make a leaf wall hanging. My sister Grace was here for a few days and we were on a roll to get this wall hanging made. Here are our wall hangings so far. We have to quilt them and then put on the binding and we are ready for fall decorating.

Have you ever been involved in a Shop Hop? A Shop Hop is a great way to visit new fabric shops. The ones participating in a shop hop will often have a kit for a quilt block that will include the block pattern created by that individual shop as well as three fabrics. You begin by purchasing a passport that is stamped at each shop. Manufacturers often donate fabric to each participating shop. Some shops may have finishing kits available for you to purchase. Your passport is your entry for great prizes. Some shops have been known to give away sewing machines as their grand prize! Shop Hops are a great way to get motivated to make a quilt, see new fabrics and find new quilt shops.

In an effort to support our active service personnel deployed overseas to sustain Operation Enduring Freedom, Afghanistan or Operation Iraqi Freedom, Iraq, quilters across the nation have united for a worthwhile cause. In an effort to remind our soldiers that they are not forgotten, Christmas stockings and pillow cases have been made to brighten many soldier’s day. Talented seamstresses have also been making homemade, Civil War inspired quilts to present to the family members of Fallen Heroes who gave their lives while in service to our country. For more information about this endeavor and how you can help, please go to the Home of the Brave Quilts website.