I'd like to share some thoughts as so many other bloggers have done.
First, I'd like to recommend everyone read a blog post written by Shelly Stokes on Cedar Canyon Textiles Blog. It is about Rituals and I thought it was excellent and I bet many of you will appreciate it too.
This past year I've been inspired by so many people this year and I'm grateful for all the beauty and joy that has been brought into my daily life. Connectedness to people is the most important thing in my life and it always has been.
It is a pleasure and privilege to own IHAN and it would not be possible without all of you who have purchased from me. I'm very mindful about who and what I support when I make purchases. It typically takes the folks at the car dealership by surprise when I say I want to meet more than one sales person. But hey, I figure that I'm actually helping that person make their mortgage payment and I'm not about to pay a persons mortgage if I don't think they care about what I want and need to purchase. Actually, I do this with most places and people I shop with and I suspect many of you do the same. So this THANK YOU is heart felt because I know you want to support me and I appreciate it very much!!!
May you have the happiest of New Years possible and healthiest too :)
Edited: 11:00 PM Another dear friend in PA gave me an update…..Kay is obviously distressed but her main concern is her daughter in law Shiela. ( Kay has been teaching Sheila,to quilt).That is the kind of heart Kay has….loosing her last surviving child and now concerned about her daughter in law.What an amazing woman.
Last Edit I promise. I set up an e-mail account and if you would prefer to send an e-mail rather than a card you can send it to: anote4kay@gmail.com I will print them all and take them to her. For those of you would would like to send a card my addy is 25696 Brittany Rd. Perrysburg OH 43551. Just address it to Kay c/o Kelly Jackson and I'll take them to her. If you want to send one to Sheila, Kay's daughter in law, you can just write Sheila c/o Kelly Jackson or send them to the e-mail addy above.
I have a dear friend in PA who has lost her son in a car accident this morning. Her name is Kay and when I think of Kay I think of a tall strong sunflower that brings a smile to everyone's face. Years ago she lost a son and then a daughter....and today her only surviving child has died tragically.
We all know there is nothing that can be said or done....yet....we all want to do something....and there isn't much a person can do other than let her know we care. Kay does not have a computer and does not use the internet so I can't just say....can you drop her a line.
However, if you are like me and would want to reach out and just say something....you can do that and I'll take the cards to her when I go home on Jan. 13th. Just e-mail me at IHaveANotion@yahoo.com and I'll give you my home addy if you don't have it all ready. You can address it to Kay C/O Kelly Jackson and I'll take them home with me and give them to her. Please keep her and her family in your prayers/thoughts/ or what ever ritual you practice when things like this occur.
Many of my PA friends know Kay and I am certain you are all hurting along with her. Please don't tell her I've done this....I'd like to quietly give her some cards from other quilters and stitchers that would like to reach out.
I'm so sad for Kay that it makes posting almost anything else today meaningless. Once again an important reminder to be present for each moment of our lives and to embrace those we love for the time that we are able to do so.
I told everyone I was going to take a break and that is just what I have done. Not one blog post in several days....I can't believe it!
If you've been wondering what we've been up to....here is a little Slide Show for you. It may not appear obvious but we like to play games and cards too. We may just so happen to need some fun hats to wear when playing cards....and there is always a losers hat. Many times we play under assumed names as well....just for fun.
The last photo is a Hawk that swooped into the tree in front of our window....an interesting guest. The other folks in the photos are, Mr. McSteamy, Krista(oldest), Megan(middle girl), Cody(Megan's husband), Maddy(youngest girl), Aaron(oldest boy), Zachary(youngest boy), Olivia (mom), Tracy (sister), Cordie(brother) and me.
I'm still sick but I'm moving just the same. Unfortunately Krista and Maddy boarded a flight this morning early with the same bad colds.......a little extra present from me (unintentional).
I hope all of you have had a wonderful week and are warm and not stranded anywhere due to the snow in the East.
The IHAN Holiday Sale continues through Dec. 31, 2010 so if you want to take advantage of some great prices you better hop to it!
The IHAN Posse has arrived and I can't believe I remembered to post about the Giveaway....even without Gene reminding me....Oh I'm getting good!! LOL
Instead of the Random Number Generator I relied on the IHAN Posse (all arrived safely tonight)....I walked in and told them to pick two numbers between 1 and 95 and the first numbers that were said were 13 and 72....sooooo
Congratulations to Patty and Marcia W. Please e-mail me at IHaveANotion@yahoo.com with your addresses and I'll put two charm packs each into the mail.
Thank you to everyone who left comments. I'm really glad I thought of asking to hear what you had learned because I learned so much from the comments myself.
My co-workers are anticipating the arrival of their sisters tomorrow. The house will be full, three daughters and a son in law....making a total of 8 in the IHAN Posse this Holiday Season.
The youngest, has recently lost a front tooth and the next one is just dangling.....and I think if the Tooth Fairy is too busy the Elves will come and visit his pillow very soon.
Now I get a little break....I got sick....yep....can you believe it? I certainly can't. I went to the Dr. yesterday and got an antibiotic....hopefully this URI will clear up soon....because I have lots of fun stuff to be doing around here.
Mr. McSteamy was very tolerant of me....I was laying on the sofa and out of no where...I screamed...."Is today the 20th? OMW....today is the 20th.....and it is the deadline for the Aurifil Christmas Photo thing.....I gotta get my entry in." You would have though there was a fire with how I started running around. Well, can you blame me? The winner would get 28 spools of Aurifil.....now come on.....I would be willing to do a lot for that....wouldn't you? Don't ask what...please....I've already posted photos of myself nude quilting on my blog....I just can't go there again.....and I did win that prize....and it wasnotevenAurifil Thread.
I did not win. I know, I know.....I'm sad too.....I could not stop thinking about that thread.....but apparently I was too focused on the prize because I never read the "Fun" part of the sentence. DANG.....I could have done so many fun things with all that thread....but no....I thought it was about a Christmas decoration. It pays to read folks!!! It cost me 28 spools of Aurifil Thread. Look at the cute little snowmen that won....click here. Aren't they cute? Now those are fun.....next time....I'm reading every word!
I'm going to find more Kleenex....the really soft stuff.....I'm really grateful for very soft Kleenex right now :)
Smiles,
Kelly
OOPS....my foggy headed self forgot on very important thing....A VERY COOL GIVEAWAY going on at the Quilting Gallery Blog. The drawing is tomorrow so get yourself over there and check it out :)
Tomorrow I'll be looking for 2 lucky winners for the current IHAN giveaway. OK, I hope that is everything.
Monday is the last day IHAN will ship packages before Christmas. If you have been procrastinating, better get hopping!!! I am happy to enclose gift cards too. Make sure you write "Card" in the notes section and what you want the card to say and I'll make sure to enclose it.
Just a reminder, you can still get a FREE Sizzix Die (my choice) when you purchase the Vagabond Fabric Cutter....and it is ready to ship (You save $40.00)
PLUS....there are many Holiday Specials going on at IHAN....so check them out because tomorrow is the last day to ship according to the USPS and still arrive in time for Christmas :)
If you have not read about the current Giveaway here on the IHAN blog....you might want to check it out!
Smiles,
Kelly
PS....I'm so glad none of you have gone over to Patsy Thompson's blog....she has 8 days of giveaways going on....and I put my name in the hat for most of them.....I want my chances to be great....so don't go over...OK?
Thank you for the kind words for my son...he is feeling much better. His illness was brief....and I am very grateful for that. There are children who are not so fortunate....some are seriously ill and some are in great need of comfort due to a tragedy. As I was thinking about this I remembered a wonderful presentation in Houston for Fall Quilt Market. It was a School House Presentation given by Linda Arye for Robert Kaufman Fabric Company.
Linda is the founder of Quilts for Kids. Their mission is, "Transforming discontinued, unwanted and other fabrics into patchwork quilts that comfort children with life-threatening illnesses and children of abuse".
Look how cheerful the fabrics are in the Animal Party Too! line. I never understood what folks do with one charm pack. Am I alone here? I'm always thinking two is good start and then you can add some fabric for borders, right? Tell me what your thoughts are on the subject.
Since it's my blog....for today....I'm saying ya need two charm packs and there will be two winners chosen. Do you have that? Two winners will each get two Animal Party Too! charm packs compliments of Robert Kaufman Fabrics by way of the IHAN blog (they were kind enough to provide them for a giveaway).
To enter, visit the Quilts for Kids website and come back and tell me something you learned. If you have participated in the Quilts for Kids project, tell us about your experience. I'll choose TWO winners on Wednesday December 22nd. Feel free to spread the word if you are so inclined :)
PS....if you are looking for something incredibly fun to do with your kids, or the kid in you, check out Dave's Snowflake Patterns....I love making these during the winter months :)
Flexible...oh yeah that's me....I have to be flexible and now you do too!! No Giveaway Today...I have a sick co-worker home and I had to tend to him all day. I guess we'll all just go with the flow and I'll be able to get something up soon.
Nothing serious....upset stomach and lots of whining. Wonder where he gets that from? I get fussy when I'm sick too.....must be a genetic thing....or not!
Hope you each had a great day and I'll be back in touch tomorrow....unless I'm forced to be even more flexible....dang sometimes I feel like Gumby Momma :)
You know I can't keep a good thing to myself....much less a Great Thing....actually THREE Great Things.
Dragon Threads Blog is giving away a copy of Susan Brubaker Knapp's latest DVD. I was over there putting my name in the hat and figured you might want to know too :)
AND
Susan Brubaker Knapp is giving away a copy of Confetti Naturescapes by Noriko Endo.
I saw Noriko's work in Houston....it is absolutely beautiful. Her techniques are very interesting....check out Susan's review and enter to win a copy of the book. Hey, if you are not interested....just remember I am...and ship it to me :)
And to top it off, check out Patsy Thompson's blog. She is giving away some Batik Fabric....yes BATIK....
Wow....Blogland is a great place for fun giveaways. Speaking of which....I think tomorrow will be a giveaway day here too. Hmmm....I'll do digging into my goody bag from Market and see what I have to share.
If you still want to to order for the Holidays, NOW is the time to do it. I'm going to be slowing down around here and preparing for my family to come to town. So, if you want to take advantage of the IHAN HOLIDAY SPECIALS you better hop on the bus and forget about Gus, and get your Visa free!!!
Last Friday's post was a review of Threads, The Basics and Beyond and there were 59 comments at my last check. So I ran over to the ole Random Number Generator and here is the number that came up. I hope you are all very proud of me now....I was able to do a screen print, go to Paint, copy it there and crop it....I want a star on my computing forehead!!! The last time I did this, I took a digital photo of the screen....see, you can teach an old dog a new trick :)
Be right back....I forgot to see who number 51 is....LOL...Progress not Perfection, Right? Right!!
I'm back....here is the comment for #51
sewmeow said... 51
Thanks, Kelly, for more fun info and a great giveaway. I love to try new things.
Sewmeow please e-mail me at IHaveANotion at yahoo dot com with your home address and I'll get this excellent book in the mail to you.
You all know there are more gifts to come so please don't pout if your name was not drawn (Santa is watching ya know).
Do you want the Sizzix Vagabond from Santa? If you do, you better tell Santa because there are more Vagabonds arriving here at IHAN very soon....and you could have one before Christmas. I just got a phone call today and I'm getting my delivery soon....I'm so excited. I'm so excited I think I'll even send a Free Die (of my choosing) along with your order. Just write Free Die in the comment section on the order page. I'm only offering this to blog readers so make sure you do this or you won't get a free die :(
When I sell out I may not get more before January 2011 so if you are wanting one, order now before they are back ordered.
If you did not see the video I posted yesterday....just click here....and no laughing at me....please :)
Ok, now before you watch this I just want to say that this is my first published video and I have exactly no experience doing this. I was scared and my hands were shaking a bit. I so badly wanted to show everyone how the Vagabond works and not just in photos. Much of the video relates back to my earlier post about the Vagabond arriving here at IHAN.
Here is the long list of credits:
Directed by: Kelly Jackson
Written by: No one, it was all ad lib
Produced by IHAN
Director of Photography: Mr. McSteamy
Editor: Mr. McSteamy
Costume Designer: That was no costume...I dress like that every day
Make Up and Hair Designer: None, that's why Mr. McSteamy did not shoot the face or hair
CAST : IHAN CEO, The Sizzix Vagabond Killer Fabric Cutter, Mr. Mucinex as the stowaway
Camera Operator: Mr. Mc Steamy
Script Supervisor: Would have been great to have one.
Post Production Supervisor: Kelly Jackson
Supervising Sound Editor: Could have used one of those too.
Construction Manager: Mr. Mc Steamy moved all the toys and put up the table for the big shoot.
It took all evening just to shoot 4 minutes of video.....now I know why we pay so much to go to see a movie at the theatre!
When I walked outside to get this box I saw the label and my heart rate sky rocketed. If you live in a 4 state radius of IHAN I'm sure you heard me screaming when I saw this on my doorstep....I scared the co-workers....poor guys.
Do you see those words....yes those....the one's that read...Tim Holtz and VAGABOND by Sizzix!!! On my front porch no less. All I could think was, feet don't fail me now. I ran into the house and the kids wanted to know why I was all excited (they are home from school due to the weather and snow here in OH)
My co-worker standing next to me while I cut the tape on the box.....
Waldo's Granddaughter, Clair, and my Co-Worker Zach were standing at my feet......they had to see what I was screaming about.
Look at this....even the cardboard box ROCKS.
This is exactly what you see when you open the box.....the stickers are to embellish your Vagabond any way you like.
Oh look, it comes with a luggage tag....somehow an IHAN card made it right into the slot even before I un-clipped the Vagabond. I wasted no time marking this one as MINE....and I'm a darn good aim too....just for the record.
I clicked the button and the Vagabond suitcase opened right up.
It comes with standard cutting pads, a Solo Platform and a Shim........my heart is pounding as I'm typing just recalling all these things that just happened a few minutes ago.....
Typically I clean up before I shoot pix....not today folks....sorry for the mess but I was just too excited to share this with everyone....so pretend you don't see the mess, ok! Promise?
This is not a Sizzix warehouse...but I am happy to say I am fortunate to own the Big Shot Pro on the far right, the Vagabond, and the Big Shot in the background. The Big Shot Express belongs to a customer in PA who asked me to give it a test run for her. Within the last 24 hours I've had the incredible pleasure of cutting lots of applique shapes without even turning the handle.....sounds lazy right? Think about it though.....when you need to cut hundreds of blocks or applique shapes your arms and shoulders get tired (mine do anyway) so it is wonderful to have one that you plug in and it just zips on through. Many quilters have problems with Arthur (Arthritis) so the Big Shot Express and Vagabond are the ticket to cutting lots of pieces at one time and quickly too.
I'm going to quickly show you the machines so you can see which one's I'm talking about and the size differences.
This is my Big Shot Pro...I tape the photo from the package onto my dies so I can quickly glance and know which is which.
This is the Vagabond....can you say OH YEAH BABY? This machine will make all other cutting systems dial 911.....no kidding no joke and you have my word....you will flip too.
This is theBig Shot Express with a Sizzix Snowman Die. I was extremely pleased when I tested my friends Big Shot Express. Since it does not belong to me I did not attempt to run 12 layers of fabric through it but I did cut 6 layers with ease.
I know I'm excited and my post may not be as clear as I would like it to be so I'll just tell you that both the Vagabond and The Big Shot Express are electric. The Big Shot and the Big Shot Pro are manual.
This is my Big Shot, it does not come with my little friend who sits on mine...he makes me smile and I appreciate all the smiles I have in the dark months of winter.
The Vagabond has a little side compartment to hold the electric cord.....and when I looked away for just a minute.....
A stowaway jumped in. See.....he is even happy to be close to my new Vagabond.
So, now is the time for the big test. You know I'm not cutting up any fabric....not scraps....nope....I'm funny like that. So I took a 100% cotton pillowcase cover that I bought at a factory sale for 25 cents and yes....I'll cut that up. Will I cut one layer with the new Vagabond? Two? Three? Four? Heck no....the very first time I put fabric through this baby I used........
TWELVE layers.....why? Because I heard this baby works like a dream and it cuts chip board....if it cuts chipboard (which is very dense cardboard) you know it will cut 12 layers of fabric. Keep in mind I have not read the instructions and have no idea how many layers are recommended....but I did watch the YouTube video for the Vagabond and I knew I had to give it a spin. I did not use the new cutting pads that came with it....I have to keep those pretty for awhile, I used the one's I use with my other Sizzix machines so you can see the pads are used.
I simply put the Sizzix Ornaments Die with 12 layers of fabric between the cutting mats and pushed the button. The Vagabond is very quiet and within literally 3 seconds or less ( I didn't time it but I can if you want me to :) the die came through to the other side.....how did the test work?
Like a charm!!! All 12 layers....cut through without one little string hanging....not one I tell ya. Now you know why I'm so dog gone excited.....this machine cuts like BUTTAH and it is sooth, fast and sturdy!
Look at all these perfect little ornaments.....24 in all ....in seconds. Can you even begin to imagine how quickly you can cut applique shapes? Blocks? Circles? Triangles? Dresden Plates? I know many of you are like me and I can't keep going or we'll all need medical attention.
Look at this....12 deep....smooth....real smooth.
That is 12 layers and I'm still looking at that stack of fabric.....I can hardly believe it....this is absolutely amazing to me...perfect....and I have one....please don't wake me up if this is a dream....I'll shoot ya.
When Mr. McSteamy gets home from work and the boys get settled down....I'm going to video tape me cutting this exact same thing again....so you can see it and hear it for yourself. If you can't wait you can always call me and I can hold the phone next to the machine so you can hear how quiet it is....you won't believe it either.
Last night I used the Big Shot Express to make the Tea Towel from my last post. The entire thing took me 20 minutes. I wanted to test the machine and I also wanted to make something useful so I used my "real" fabric. There are so many dies for applique that your head may spin....so hang on tight before you click on any of the links here.
If you want to see the YouTube video before I make the IHAN Vagabond video...here it is:
I've had these questions asked so many times that I'll post the answers here. If you have any more questions please e-mail me don't ask them in the comments. I'm on a vacation from replying to comments....but never e-mails....so if you want met to reply...send a e-mail or call me. The contact info is on the front of the IHAN website.
Ok...I hope this all makes sense....I feel like I hit the Quilting Lottery....good thing I was not in a towel when the Fed Ex Driver came...LOL.
I put this little gift together yesterday....in 20 minutes it was done. Talk about the perfect holiday gift...I guess because I've always loved holiday guest towels and kitchen towels (when I was a kid I always thought only rich people had these sorts of things). I used a spanky machine to make it with some really spanky dies too. More on that later....but if you want to see the spanky dies...click here...drool away :)
Smiles,
Kelly
FYI...I am still not replying to comments...please, please, please forgive me. If you want to chat...call me or e-mail me (numbers and addy posted on the front of my website).
