THANK YOU!

I love it when I ask for help and people take the time to stop and send me a note.  I appreciate all the feedback I got from this post yesterday.  This morning when I got up, I had a thought.  Yes...a thought if you can believe it :)  If there existed such a database then how would all the designers make the money from their patterns?  Hmmmmm....ya'all know I would not take a dime from any of them as I know just how difficult it is to write a pattern and many also write wonderful books as well.  So, I doubt anyone will be coming up with any databases anytime soon....and you can be sure it wouldn't be me to develop a database anyway!

To show my appreciation....I'm giving a few fun things away to those that left a comment yesterday.  This is what I'll be giving away:

This is my favorite fusible...Mistyfuse and I'm going to give away my sample package from Quilt Market of both Mistyfuse and Transdoodle. 

A charm pack from RJR fabrics, the fabric is Giselle by Marianne Elizabeth.  When the winner receives it it won't be all pretty in that neat pile since I made a fan out of it first.

And a beautiful pattern from Golden Thyme Designs, Sunset in the Sierras.  I adore Lacy Hill....she is a lovely woman and a great designer too.

Today is the last day of school for my co-workers so I've got to run back up to the school now.  When I get back I'll do some random number generating and give these fun things away.

I'll leave you some updated Flamingo pix.  Apparently with all the work they did yesterday....they are have a day off:

Smiles,
Kelly

A Better Way....

Before I share my thoughts with you....I think a Flamingo Update is in order:

When I first saw this Flamingo...I thought it was the black sheep of the family....but I was wrong.  This Flamingo can be illuminated and it glows at night :)  As you can see, Glowie Flamingo has chores to do today....

 

And Gimpie Flamingo also needs to finish some chores.....but.....

 their siblings got their work done early and they've gone fishing!

"A Better Way" 

I find myself saying there has got to be "A Better Way" frequently....and then the wheels start turning....

my old wheels start turning.  You know they can get rusty don't you?  LOL

How many times do you start a project with a specific pattern and know exactly what you want to make and then go buy just enough fabric for that project?   Honestly....I want to know from each of you that read this post....please leave me a comment telling me approximately how often that happens for you.

Here is my dilemma...  I have some fabrics that I bought for one project and then changed my mind so I have these fabrics....

My mother wants me to make her a full size quilt for her birthday present and she really likes these fabrics.  I'm tickled because I can use up this fabric.....until I remember that this was going to be a baby quilt so I'm going to need more fabric to make a full size bed quilt. 

My process:

1.  Need more fabric

2.  Search for more fabric and I'd like to expand into some of the other fabrics the designer has in this line

3.  How much more fabric will I need?   That will depend on what pattern I'm going to make.

5.  I need to find a pattern.....which in part will be dictated by the fabrics. While looking at the fabric I know I don't want to loose the focus fabric so I don't want to cut it smaller than 6" finished.      

Are you frustrated yet?  This is where the frustration sets in for me.  Now the task is to find a pattern that will finish into a full size quilt AND have 6" blocks AND will use the coordinating fabrics in a pleasing way.

 I think that is why people buy kits...like this one....

 Yep....this one comes with the pattern and all the fabric needed.  That is one solution....but many of us buy fabric before we know what we are going to make....am I right?

I don't know of a database that I can search where I can enter the size quilt I want to make and then up pops tons of choices in that size range.   I also don't know of a data base where I can say how much of each fabric I have and get a list of patterns that I could make using that amount of fabric (and if I wanted it to be larger...how much more fabric would I need).

Stick with me here.....

It is like being able to plug into a database that you have chicken, butter and three eggs....and then a recipe containing these ingredients would pop up (in my fantasy life...the database would scan recipes and spit out choices of different meals that could be made using those ingredients and highlighted in red would be the "other" ingredients you need to go and buy to complete the recipe).  

Sounds simple doesn't it?  My mind tells me an algorithm can be written so that the process can be reversed....starting from ingredients firs,t instead of completed project.  I approached the folks at Electric Quilt a few years ago at Market and shared my idea.  I hope and pray they add this to their software.  

OK, I know that I can make my own pattern....I can go into my Electric Quilt 7 software and design something....I can change other patterns to make them work with what I have....there are lots of options here...I get that.  

How many of you don't want to do all the calculations and gyrations and hope that it all works out?  Call me lazy....but I want a database that has this information in it that I can access.  Perhaps I've been spoiled by Google....I Google everything under the sun.  Google has become the wise elder in my village.  Honestly, I do feel a bit of guilt just writing this post because I know my brain can solve all these things...but aren't we all so happy to have a calculator even though we are completely capable of doing the math ourselves?

I want to know what you think....and what you do in these situations.  If you don't want to leave a comment for everyone else to read...you can e-mail me at IHaveANotion@yahoo.com   

I Have The Notion but lack the skills to get to the end result....LOL 

Smiles,

Kelly

PS....I reserve the right to see things differently once I've been enlightened by my friends  :)

Green Day

Feeling Yucky seems to be a theme around the IHAN clan.  Last Thursday, Aaron was sick and I kept him home from school.  Then on Friday, yep...you guessed it...Zach was home too.  He was complaining about his head and stomach hurtling.

I was fine until this morning....now I'm feeling green.  Typically I don't announce to the world that I'm taking a sick day...but I know my nearest and dearest friends will send e-mails and call all day wondering where I am.  I'm so thankful for loving friends :)

I"m going to turn off comments....no offense....I will just feel guilty if everyone says...feel better soon.  My little green day is really just a little green day....all will be back to normal soon :)

Greenish Tinted Smiles,
Kelly

The New Floriani Thread Storage Boxes Arrived Last Night

I was floored when I saw the UPS driver arrive after 7pm.  They typically deliver during the day.  The excitement to get those boxes open overwhelmed me.

Check these out:

Floriani 30 Spool Thread Storage Case

Here they are in all their glory....all I can say is they are the "bomb diggity"   These thread storage containers hold 30 spools (15 spools per drawer) of Floriani Thread.  The spindles on the inside of the drawers measure 3/8" wide....so you can store other brands of thread that have an opening at least 3/8". (I don't know if the folks at Floriani want me telling the world this....but hey...we all have several different brands of thread right?

 

I was tickled by how nicely they stack.  Each Thread Storage Case measures 11 1/2 inches wide, 7 3/4 inches deep and 8 1/4" tall.  

 They have nice carrying handles so you can take your thread with you when you go to classes.

The drawers have a snapping closure so they stay shut.  Way cool for me because I'm the queen of clumsy....really!

 All I can say is I'm ecstatic that the Floriani Thread Storage Cases have arrived.  I'm almost embarrassed to say I had previously had my Floriani Embroidery Threads all jumbled together in no particular order.  

Everyone who knows me knows I would not go on and on about something unless it was all that and three bags of Fritos....and the Floriani Thread Storage Cases are ALL THAT and 6 bags of Fritos...LOL.

Smiles,

Kelly

Swatch Buddies and Clam Shells....new from Spring Quilt Market

There are a few interesting things that turned up in Kansas City.  I am fortunate enough to have some friends who went to Quilt Market and have brought back some cool things to show me.  The first one is Swatch Buddies.

Swatch Buddies 24 ct or Swatch Buddies 48 ct

I'm one of those folks who needs an actual piece to match to other fabrics so I think they would be very handy.

The other thing I saw that I liked are the Clam Shells by Clover Needlecarft.

 They will come in three sizes, small, medium and large.

 Just like those change purses we had as kids....you squeeze it and it opens.  I was told that a gal had made some and put a ribbon on one end and was going to use it as a Christmas Ornament and put gift cards inside.  I really liked that idea a lot.  I can think of so many uses for these cute little Clam Shells.  Here are just a few that quickly came to mind:

• use for tooth fairy
• sewing kit
• secret treasures hidden for children
• hold lipstick in your purse
• hold jax and ball-I know you remember those things....and marbles too :)
• travel jewelry case 
• bobbin storage 
• hide your candy stash from the kids
• leave positive or love notes around the house hidden inside
• stuff a fat quarter inside and give as a gift :)
• stuff it with 100 dollar bills and send it to me...but only if you don't know what else to do with them!

You get the idea....just so many cute and fun things can be done with these Clam Shells.  Clover is always coming up with something new and interesting. 

Smiles,
Kelly

We Reserve This Day

for remembering, mourning, honoring and expressing gratitude.

Road Trip

What are the chances of seeing this...

while watching a Cirque video on a day trip? The driver said they are on the way to Montreal.....I so badly wanted to run away with Cirque!

 Smiles from my eye-phone :)

Kelly

That Surprise Quilt and More

I eluded to a surprise quilt I was making and I got it finished.  It is now safe to share the photos of the process....since the recipient now has possession of said quilt.

When my sister was visiting she happened to see some fabric in my stash that she said she really liked.  Her birthday was coming up so I decided to make her a quilt.  I had to choose something rather simple if I were going to get it put together in a day or two.

 Here I am zipping along.....I just pieced and pieced and pieced.

McSteamy saw that I was working feverishly and he offered to help.  I'm no fool...I said sure thing...you can help me cut the borders.  He wanted me to cut the 7" border straight down the length of fabric and was frustrated when I told him I wasn't going to do that.  The large piece above....yes that one....McStamy thought it was scrap and I would be throwing it away.  I laughed out loud for quite some time.  Then I explained that Mary Jane and many other quilting friends keep even the smallest of scraps and he could be shot for even thinking about throwing away such a large piece of perfectly good fabric.

Then he asked if this tiny piece would be ok to toss...well...that is small enough...don' you think?

 I was floored that he spent the evening helping me and even spent time pinning the borders with me. Sooooo sweet.  I had not met George Siciliano at this point...and thank God because I would not have let McSteamy near my quilt if I even thought for a minute that he would take off and become an amazing quilt artist...LOL.

Two days and it was in the mail to Joanne over at Splitting Stitches Blog and at Insanely Cheap Quilting Blog too.  Joanne does such a beautiful job and she is so fast.  I don't think you can beat the quality and price anywhere...I've always been very pleased when I got my quilts back :)

From start to finish this quilt was completely finished in about 8 days and then given to my sister.

 Here she is...Tracy absolutely loves her quilt.  I even made a pillow case to match and she is tickled pink.  I'm in a heap of trouble though....now my Mom wants one for her birthday....which is TOMORROW.  Yikes...hope she doesn't mind getting an IOU.

Last week was nuts....Thursday night was guild, Friday night both boys had baseball games, and Saturday was Cub Scout Crossover.

 Each year I add to the banner.  I join each panel with a large zipper so they can be removed and changed.  My girlfriend, Diane, saved my life and embroidered all this years names at the last minute.  I had the banner ready but forgot the names may change....ding dong...LOL.

Then on Sunday we had a birthday party at the house for Zachary's classmates.  We had 15 little monkeys

here at the house and Zach had a ball.  Afterwards we gave him his gift from the parents....oh he was excited to get a new bicycle.

As if all that was not crazy enough....I then had to get everything done for the IHAN Blow Out Sale on my website.  I guess I just don't plan ahead very well....I am truly flying by the seat of my pants each day and I'm frequently amazed that I'm still breathing at the end of the day.

Here are a few examples of the amazing deals to be had over at I Have A Notion: 
 

 Save 50% on this Mettler Modern Mix Mini Thread Assortment

I think these bags are an excellent value.  They are top quality and you could not make one for the price.  They are all from the Bagamore Collection and are $40.00 OFF!  Click here to see them...scroll down the page.

Save 50% on this Moda Solid Fat Quarter Bundle

Save 30% on ALL Floriani Thread and Stabilizers

There is so much more....14 pages of amazing deals....the sale ends tomorrow so hop on over and help me out....please!  I need to reduce my inventory as it is taking over my house....LOL.

Smiles,

Kelly

Virginia and George Siciliano visit the Toledo Gathering of Quilters

It's not just the Flamingos who have been crazy busy....I have been too.  I can't believe I'm just getting to share the pix I took last Thursday night at one of my guild meetings.  Virginia and George Siciliano came and gave a wonderful lecture and then George had a class at Quilt Heaven the following day.  I could not find anyone to get the co-workers off the bus ....sadly I was not able to make the class.  I was told it was a great class....next time.

Thursday night was EXCELLENT!  I had such a good time and I'm only a little embarrassed to say I thought it was an "interactive lecture"...as I interjected probably a few times too many.  Honestly...I was so blown away by George and Virginia's work that I just could not help myself.

George started by telling us that he and Virginia had gotten into an argument in the car prior to arriving at the meeting.

Then, Virginia appears with a very large pair of scissors in her head...YIKES.  The smile on her face gives it all away, don't you think?  

George and Virginia have been married for 47 years and I'm thinking one of their great strengths as a couple, would be a wonderful sense of humor.  Without one, who could stay married to this guy 47 years?  (I say that with great humor and I'll elaborate more later in this post)

Ladies First :)

"In The Gloaming"  by Virginia Siciliano

Virginia has hand quilted this amazing beauty.   I tried to take a few close up photos so you could see the beautiful hand quilting...it is absolutely lovely.

 

 The border of this quilt is stunning as well.  That is a pieced border....isn't it amazing?  I just love the colors Virginia chose, the purple-ish and gold-ish thinner borders...the quilt really just pops because of the colors she chose. 

 Who could resist a photo of Virginia posing with Waldo in front of that beautiful quilt?  Not me :)

This was the first time I have had the pleasure of  attending a lecture by George and Virginia.  George does most of the talking....it is a very good thing this man has a great sense of humor....I would have hated to hear a dry or smug mind blowing quilter.

If you are wondering what I mean....check this out....below is George's first quilt....

Below is George's second quilt....

Are you ready to smack the guy yet?  What the heck....first and second quilts looking like this?  REALLY??? (calm down...y'all know I'm a peaceful person at heart...I just could not believe my eyes)

Quilt number 3.....

Oh and by the way...quilt number three was made from just two blocks...the two he is showing you here in the picture.  "Can you see the two blocks" he asks.  I was thinking..."HE double hockey sticks NO I can't see them....I can't even being to take in this quilt much less see it was made from two blocks"  My mouth was hanging open...I'm sure I looked like a real fool....I was just blown away.

George's talent was discovered because Virginia threw his "one" magazine away in the bathroom.  He was left with a hundred quilting magazines.  I cracked up when George told the story...she thought his magazine was and old issue so she tossed it.  Funny how our quilting magazines can be from the 80's and we hand on to them....but a guys magazine...older than a few weeks....must be trash...LOL.  

A Log Cabin Pineapple Variation. 15 1/2 x 21 inches with 2,842 pieces. 
George was offered $10 for this one and the lady that offered it wanted 5 more for place mats!!

Can you imagine...a place mat?  Really?  I would have only agreed to that price if the person allowed me to run them over with my car afterwards!!!  What was this woman thinking?  2842 pieces of fabric all amazingly placed....a masterpiece for sure....and she wants to eat on it....LOUD GASP

Well...if the someone is crazy enough to want it for a place mat...think how nice this one would look on the back of my toilet tank. ROFL

Paper piecing is definitely on my list of must learn.  I bought George's Seam Allowance Guide and Foundation Stuff....I figured this man knows what he is doing and I know I could learn a lot from him.

If Virginia had not thrown away George's magazine...all this amazing work and creativity may not have come to be....I'm so glad Virginia tossed that magazine in the trash :)

I did not fill in all the details of George and Virginia's lecture....I wouldn't want to spoil it for those of you have not had the wonderful pleasure of hearing them speak.  You can visit their website and learn more about both of them by clicking HERE.

All I can say is THANK YOU to George and Virginia for not tossing out the strange gal in the audience....I had an absolute wonderful time.

Smiles,
Kelly