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Archive of entries posted on May 2009

Meet Tucson…

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For those of you who have met Milo, Milo is our Minnesota grandpuppy.  This is Tucson, our Virginia grandpuppy.  (Tucson’s boy is Dave.)  We’ve never met Tucson in person, but we will someday, and we’re looking forward to it.  After all, not everyone has a superhero in the family (remember Underdog?).  Obviously this isn’t Tucson’s everyday clothes; this was a couple of Halloweens ago.   Don’t you love his stance?  I don’t think I want to know what he’s thinking at this moment, however.

Since this is Wednesday (Puzzle Day), Tucson is today’s puzzle:

Click to Mix and Solve

This round cut is my favorite.

Sue

The Results are IN!

First, how I prepared for the “drawing”.  I printed out each day’s comment section for the eight days of the give-away.  Next I went through and X’ed out any duplicates for that particular day, any comments by me, my hubby, or my son Dave (sorry, Dave, I know you really wanted all this quilty stuff…). 

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I then started numbering the comments starting with 1 on the first day going through to the last comment on yesterday’s post, which was numbered 171.  Then I got DH into the computer room with me to be my witness that I did everything fair and square.  I used a random number generator, entered that I wanted it to draw two numbers in the range of 1 to 171.  And here’s what it spit out:

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And, the winning numbers are: 129 and 59!!!  Oh, wait, you probably wanted NAMES, didn’t you?  Let me try again.

Congratulations to Donna and Ruby!!!  Congratulations to both of you, and I will be contacting you via e-mail to get your mailing addresses.  An interesting side note:  both Donna and Ruby entered all eight days, as did many of you (thank you!).  Here are the winning entries:

 

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Thank you, everyone, for making my 1st anniversary/40,000 visit week so much fun!  I really enjoyed everyone’s comments, and I also feel like we know each other a little better.  Thank you all again for playing along this week, and I hope you continue to stop by once in a while and say “hi”!

Sue

(PS:  Sorry, apparently asmallorange (the host for my web site) had a server down for a while today, and it was the one I’m on.   My apologies to those of you who were trying to find out the results of our give-away.)

Sue’s Favorite Things Give-away — 2nd Sunday

It’s already been a week.  That means there are 7 prizes accumulated, only one more to go.  My favorite thing for today?  I love to knit, and my latest knitting passion is socks! 

Here’s what I’ve made so far:  Upper left is my first attempt at two socks on two circular needles.  So far, so good.  But I’m not very far.  Upper right is my first sock, and I finished those in November.  The first time I wore them is when I fell and broke my wrist, so I guess they’re not my lucky socks.  I like them anyway.

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Lower left, the raspberry one was coming out really weird once I got past the heel (but I love the yarn).  It would have been custom-made for Big Foot.  Ripped it out and it’s now a ball of yarn.  The green pair came out nicely.  Lower right, I really like this sock.  I did something wrong in shaping the toe, so I’m going to rip it back to the beginning of the toe and do it right.  Then try to make another sock just like it! 

Sorry, if you win one of the prizes, don’t draw around your foot on a piece of paper and send it to me; I’m not giving away hand-knit socks.  Just a pair of low-cut athletic socks with a cushioned sole, perfect for a walk around the block or standing at a long-arm machine.  (And doesn’t “low cut” sound a little scandalous?)

Another category of what’s near and dear to my heart are my friends.  Like you, I have been blessed with quilting friends, former-co-worker friends, neighbor friends, internet friends, and “just because” friends.  And it’s nice to keep in touch with them.  My favorite all-purpose greetings cards are Rebecca Barker’s Quiltscapes, so four different designs will be included in each prize bag so you can keep in touch with some of your friends too!

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And the complete assortment (bag, scent of Best Press, and specific cards are different in each prize).

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I’ve been printing off the comments to each post, deleting any of my comments, my family’s comments, and a couple of duplicate comments where someone forgot to say something and did a second comment on the same post to finish out what they wanted to say.  Then I’m numbering them straight through, 1 to whatever we end up with.  Monday morning I will use a random number selector on line to pick two winning numbers in that number range, and I will post the results by Monday afternoon (maybe sooner, but no promises!), as well as e-mailing the winners.

So leave me a comment on this post, and for today’s subject matter, what is your favorite quilting-related tool?  One of mine is good-quality pins.  I bought good pins early on and have taken them for granted, but I ran across some old pins lately and tried using them.  It was like pinning with a nail! 

Thank you all so much for making this give-away so much fun!  I’ve really enjoyed all the comments.   Happy Quilting! 

SORRY, GIVE-AWAY IS OVER.

Sunday’s Stash-Busting Report

Well, lucky for my report, I’m concluding a give-away today and there was a little fabric included (total of 3.5 yards).  (Click here if you’re looking to comment on the give-away posting, which ends at midnight Central Time tonight.)  I also used a bunch of scraps and charm pack leftovers to start a scrappy nine-patch quilt through Crazy Mom Quilts.  I have ten blocks done, but here are nine that fit nicely in a photo:

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And the next 35 blocks ready to be stitched up:

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Even though that probably isn’t technically “stash”, it is fabric out of my sewing room, so I’m going to count it!  I weighed a yard of quilt fabric on my new kitchen yarn scale, and then weighed my cut pieces.  I did the math, and all those little 2.5″ patches equaled 1.5 yards!  I would have weighed the slivers I threw away last night, but it was in the kitchen garbage, and it wasn’t pretty.  Nothing in except some yardage for children’s pillowcases our guild is making for donation, so that’s not part of my stash.

  • YTD 81.25 yards out
  • YTD 85.5 yards in
  • YTD Net:  4.25 yards IN
  • Wow, I’m almost back where I started four months ago!  Hopefully next week I will get into the negative numbers, since my goal for 2009 is a net difference of 75 yards out.

    Sue

    Sue’s Favorite Things Give-away – Saturday

    Every time I’ve typed my post titles this week, I’ve thought to myself, “Leave it to me to turn a thank you give-away that’s supposed to reward my readers into … IT’S ALL ABOUT ME!”

    My favorite thing today?  Nice fabric.  I know, I know, nobody is going to say they like ugly fabric.  I do think the fabric designs, colors, and quality just keep getting better and better.  That’s why most of us have more fabric stashed away than we care to discuss in a forum that our DH reads!  Because I like scrappy looking quilts, I’m a sucker for charm packs.  How fun to get all those different fabrics that coordinate so beautifully in one little pack; it’s like getting a sampler box of chocolates, without the calories!  Today’s sur-prize:

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    This is Kashmir III by Moda.  It seems that I like almost anything by Moda.  If I find a good price on a charm pack I like, I will buy three or four of them and just stitch them up into a patchwork for a really quick and easy quilt (here’s an example).  I’ve had pretty good luck at the Hancock’s of Paducah site by searching for charm packs on sale or on clearance (but they seem to be pretty low on pre-cut clearance at the moment, probably as a result of the quilt show at Paducah a week ago).  A tip:  If you want to add a border, try to buy some coordinating yardage at the same time.  It can be hard to find later.  Experience speaking.

    And our topic of the day?  Stash.  (Jim, there are cookies in the cupboard…why don’t you go help yourself???) I have at least my fair share of fabric filling a bookcase plus a closet, but I’m okay with it.  I’m participating in Judy Laquidara’s Sunday Stash-Busting Reports, and in 2009 I’ve kept track of what I’ve bought as well as what I’ve used.  I’ve also signed on with AmandaJean to play along with her scrap quilt quilt-along, and for that I am totally using snips and strips out of the scrap bucket — well, it’s really closer to a scrap barrel.

    I have come to terms with my stash, and decided as long as I focus on using some of the totally outdated aged-to-perfection portion of my stash regularly, it’s really okay to add new fabric occasionally that I love and can’t live without! 

    For an entry in the give-away, leave a comment on this post, and please tell us the state of your stash (or lack thereof).  One more day (Sunday) to comment, then I will be doing the number randomizer thing Monday morning to find out who our two winners are!  Good luck, and once again, thanks for playing along!!!

    The fine print:  1.  Give-away runs Sunday 4/26 through Sunday 5/3.  2.  You may enter once each day by posting a comment on that day’s new give-away posting (that’s what THIS is).  3.  Each day I will add an item to each ”basket” (there will be two); to have the most entries in the drawing, check back and add a comment each day.  4.  There are two baskets because there will be two names drawn on Monday May 4th.  5.  Be sure to include your e-mail when you make your comment so I can contact you if you are one of the winners!  6.  I will close the comments on this post at midnight CDT (sorry, West Coast, but that’s the latest I can stay awake).  Also at midnight CDT the next day’s give-away post will come up, so if the comments are closed here, go to www.suehecker.com/blog (unless it is after May 3rd — then you’re too late!).

    SORRY, GIVE-AWAY IS OVER.