My Middle Name Must Be "Lucky"

Life at Rae Ann's cabin is idyllic. I think my middle name must be "lucky" for having the opportunity to be invited here for the week.

This morning we woke to a wonderful breakfast made by Rae Ann.
Fresh fruit...

And home made Oatmeal Yogurt Pancakes. She even makes her own maple syrup.

Rae Ann's Oatmeal Yogurt Pancakes

1 C. plain yogurt

1 C. Oatmeal

3 heaping Tablespoons flour

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. sugar

1 tsp. soda

2 Eggs

Beat eggs. Add yogurt, flour, sugar, soda and salt

Add oatmeal last.

When we aren't eating,yabbering, reading, watching movies, or napping, we have been getting a little quilting in.
(Oh, life is rough, but someone has to do it).

I'm getting ready to sew together my Aqua and Red 9-Patch exchange.

Susanne is working on her Schnibbles quilt

We have been having "pajama day", and Judi is the only one showered and dressed, so I can take her picture.

Judi has a daughter who just became engaged, so she has been working on a wedding quilt. I'll show you more later.

Another project is a Valentine quilt where Judi and Rae Ann bought the fabric together.

They fussy cut their centers. This is going to be the cutest quilt!

I'm also happy to report that Rae Ann is working on her "Star Crazy" blocks for our group. She is making her BOM out of civil war fabrics.

It's been so fun to see how these blocks are all turning out differently.

Meanwhile, outside in Star Valley, Wyoming the Spring weather is warming things up. The huge drifts on the roof have been crashing down

One more big drift keeps sliding. Water is drip, drip, dripping, and we know this one will be gone by the end of the day.

Rae Ann and her husband have decorated their cabin with the most wonderful artwork.

This little guy sits on their front porch.

I could sit and look at their view of the mountain for hours.

Rae Ann's Cabin

I have the privilege this week of spending time at a quilt retreat in Star Valley, Wyoming.

My friend Rae Ann (Cutie Pinwheel) owns a beautiful cabin nestled on a majestic mountainside.
This is my kind of place. In fact, I may never go home. (Just kidding, but not really!)

This is one of the quietest places on Earth. Deer in the meadow, and wildlife all around. I am in heaven.
Four of us have brought our machines, and have been working away on projects.

Rae Ann just sent her son off on a 2-year mission for our church (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints). Yesterday she got her first letter from her boy, and spent the day shedding tears of emotion. She is so proud of him for the decisions he has made, and yet she also really misses him.

Susanne has been a friend of Rae Ann's for years. It's been so fun getting to know her a little better.

Judi (Live Well With Judi) has treated us to fabulous, and very nutritious food. I love everything she makes.

I always say Judi makes "pretty food".

Rae Ann's cabin is decorated so beautifully. We have felt so comfortable here.

Her cabin has even been featured in magazines.

Rae Ann was the first to finish a project: a Schnibbles quilt.

We have had sunny weather and the snow is starting to melt with the coming of Spring. The eaves of the home have had big layers of snow dropping to the ground.

The cabin doesn't have Internet access, so we have been hanging at at a local cafe in the mornings to get some work done on our laptops.

You can take the girl out of the city, but you can't take away her toys.

Lunch With The Ladies

Yesterday I drove into the Salt Lake City area, and met with some of the most talented ladies for lunch.
We have met up through our love of quilting, and all have quilt blogs here in Utah.
I won't say who, but one of these ladies has a fabric line coming out soon, and another has been picked up by a well known publisher for her pattern line.
I am amazed at the talent within this group, and also appreciate the dear friendships we have developed.

Kim (Bitty Bits and Pieces), Lori (Bee In My Bonnet), me, Nanette (Freda's Hive)

Nanette and Raeann (Cutie Pinwheel)

Kim and Lori

Nanette just finished her "Going To Market" quilt from the class she took from Ricci up at Bryce.

The ladies all brought presents. It felt like Christmas!

Lori spoiled us all with a bundle from the new Riley Blake fabrics that have just been released.

Rae Ann hunted the antique stores, and we all recieved a teacup that matched our homes and personalities. (Plus more quilt fabric).

Nanette spoiled us with delicious cupcakes.

Kim has recently started crocheting, and gave us each this cute little pin, plus more fabric.

Boy, did I feel spoiled!

Star Crazy March BOM

Jan K. came over today and we worked on the March Star Crazy BOM.
I thought these were quite easy to put together.

There are only 3 blocks this month.
It almost took as much time to select the fabric and do the cutting as it did to sew the blocks.
The paper piecing made it go lickity split.

8" Puss In The Corner Star

8" Chain Star

8" Irish Chain

Some of these colors are a lot more bright than I usually pick, but I like them in small sections.

And the forty-eight 1- 1/2 inch half square triangles are tucked away for further use.

Easter Egg Table Runner

The Easter Egg Table Runner is now available.
After showing my prototype yesterday, here is the final pattern by Annie.

Annie used "Eden" by Lila Tueller for her fabric line. Beautiful colors for Easter.

She omitted the embroidered words to make the pattern easier to complete.

This allowed a few more eggs to be used with Texture Magic, which really is the fun part afer all.

I made one up right away.

My table runner is in our entryway, surrounded by Easter decorations.

This is a great way to learn how to use Texture Magic in small pieces. Try using different stitches and decorative threads. On this egg I did a wavy lines using Rainbows by Superior Threads. One of the nice benefits about using a decorative thread is that it adds even more color to the fabrics.

In the pattern, Annie shows you how easy it is to foundation paper piece the eggs. Or if you prefer, there are also templates for traditional piecing.

See how the stitching gives each egg a different effect?

Ric Rac adds more dimension.

Stippling with Rainbows thread.

As I was using Texture Magic, it was fun to see how each egg would turn out. It reminded me of dying eggs with my children and seeing how their creativity made each egg unique.

Because the runner is small, I quilted mine with simple lines.

Annie quilted hers in a grid system that turned out looking a lot like eggs.

The Easter Egg Table Runner is the first in a series of patterns that will be released under "Touch The Seasons".

If you are interested in purchasing one, e-mail me at nedras@mstar.net

Cost $9 (plus postage)