I did finish something!

I completely forgot! The very first thing that came out of my box of goodies at retreat was my block for our Guild raffle quilt:

 Our finished blocks are due at our next meeting and I didn't want to forget to do it until the last minute, so this was the first thing I tackled at retreat and sadly the only thing I finished :(

But I'm hoping to sew more this weekend, so that should make up for it!

I also wanted to show you what our parameters for this years Guild Challenge is. (Does that sentence even make sense? If not, sorry!) This year for our Challenge quilt, we all had to reach into a container and blindly pick out a box label. Here's what I got:

Depending on the label you chose, you then have to create a quilt using any technique that uses atleast 3 of the colors from your label. Your quilt can be any size between 12" x 14" and up to 40" square. I really like this challenge and I already have an idea in mind. It's a pattern I've admired and wanted to try for some time now, but never really had a reason to actually do it.

I'll fill you in more as I go, but all I'm giving away right now is incorporating old denim into the design. I think it should work!

Are you working on anything fun this weekend?

Easter Recipe Request

So it's Spring, or so the calendar says...

This is what it's looked like the last week or so outside my quilting room:

I took this picture yesterday while I took a quick break from quilting. Yes, this is Northeast Ohio at the end of March with Easter in a few days. Needless to say, no super cute Easter dresses will be worn here!

So that brings me to my request for help. We've been invited to my Sister-In-Law's apartment for Easter on Sunday and I've been asked to bring a side dish for brunch (No big deal, right?)...

Here's the thing. I have no clue what anyone else is bringing and I have to drive said dish 47 miles so I don't want something that needs to be served fresh out of the oven. I know I could spend an eternity searching recipes on Pinterest, but I'm not really willing to test a recipe for Easter and hope it works.

Do you have any tried and tested recipes that you would recommend for my Easter brunch? I really wanted to try this coffee & doughnut bread pudding recipe I saw in an old issue of BHG, but I'm worried about the long drive. I also was thinking about either a cherry dessert or scones, but I'm not really sure if they're a true side dish... Any ideas or tips you can give me would be much appreciated.

Even better, if you have the recipe or a link to it, please send it over. If it's too large to leave as a comment, e-mail me at rubybluequilts (at) gmail (dot) com. Thank you soooo much and I'm sure you know of something I'm not thinking of. Too much quilting on the brain (but really is that a bad thing?)

Off to quilt, I can't wait to hear your ideas!

Getting Back in the Groove

It was so nice to get away, but it seems like it's taking me so long to get back into the groove of things after retreat.

Over the weekend, this was my view:

 It was absolutely gorgeous and I couldn't have asked for anything better. I even got to watch a man with his team of horses plowing some of those fields while we were there!

Basically, our retreat was in a hotel (Carlisle Inn in Walnut Creek, OH) that sits on the top of a hill. Everything in Holmes County is either at the top of a hill, built into a hill, or at the bottom of a hill. Just look:

 This is the view out the front of the hotel. I snapped this just as the sun was starting to set. It amazes me how far you can see!

 Now, in true retreat style, we weren't lacking for snacks. We had everything from chocolate to crackers and fruit and everything in between. Most ladies would get up, have breakfast, sew for awhile, and then do a late lunch/early dinner so you have more time to sew! We could've been here in a blizzard and be perfectly fine!

There were 19 ladies in our group and they worked on all sorts of projects. 

 The lighting in this room is phenomenal! It's wonderful to be able to see what you're working on. Even at 1:30 in the morning...

 The greatest thing about these retreats is the companionship. Sometimes if you're working on a project that you're stuck on, you can bring it here and so many people are willing to give you their tips and tricks or just a second opinion if you need it. Many friendships have been created at our retreats.

 Mom was able to finish her version of Judy Niemeyer's Glacier Star pattern. I love how the colors turned out and as soon as she gets the papers out of it, I'll be quilting it up so you'll see it again soon!

 Karen also was able to finish her Glacier Star, however she came with her own celebration :) Karen had an app on her iPad that made fireworks. She cracks me up, we had such a great time!

And here's Karen's Glacier Star. I love how her colors are much more vibrant, yet are grounded by the earth tones in certain spots. It gives this pattern a whole new look and I can assure you this picture does not do the quilt justice. She did a great job.

Unfortunately I have nothing to show you that I worked on :( I wasn't able to finish a thing while I was there. I made a bunch of blocks for a pattern proto-type, I forgot pieces I needed for the border of another pattern :/ And I wasn't able to finish another project because I completely underestimated the time needed to press all of these little pieces... But it was a few days of nothing but sewing and I'm happy with that. Once I get some of these things finished I'll show them on here, but it might be awhile.

Now it's time to get ready for a few big shows coming up including Spring Market and I have a TON of baby quilts that need to be quilted for the bumper crop of babies around these parts! Speaking of which, gotta go quilt! Later!

Mexican Stars Round Two

Now Pat also made a Mexican Star quilt, but her version of it is a bit different than Karen's you saw yesterday...

 Now, I have a sweet spot for red... Anything red. And this quilt has just a touch of that red in with these gorgeous shades of orange.

*Sidenote - I just got my rules for the guild challenge this year and orange is one of those colors. This quilt really sparked my interest and I'll be posting about that soon when I get my idea under control. Back to the main subject :)

 I focused on quilting each star and accenting the points with subtle curves. What I saw was flower petals similar to a tulip almost and I used that to soften the design. Then I brought back the same points and curves in a slightly different shape to fill in the background. That way the designs are tied together, yet stand apart just enough.

I love how the design shows on the back of this quilt too.

Both of the Mexican Star quilts I've shown you used a 3D effect that I was asked to avoid while quilting. I think I managed to quilt each of these to fulfill that request while showing off each quilt's own personality.

Thanks, Pat! I love your quilt and I hope you love the quilting!

Mexican Stars Oriental Style

Now I know from the title of this post you may be thinking this is like going to your favorite Mexican restaurant and seeing Chicken Fried Rice on the menu. It's not like that, I promise.

Well, it kinda is, but you'll see:

 Karen made this amazing Mexican Star quilt and used gorgeous colors. And yes those colors are from Oriental fabrics.

 I chose to quilt this in one thread color in the blocks with simple designs and filled in the background with these mittens. I also quilted ripples in the border to play off of the Oriental fabrics.

You can see how all of the designs blended well together and created a secondary design on the back.

Thanks, Karen! This was a fun thing to quilt, I don't get many Oriental quilts, and this was definitely in a category all it's own which makes my mind work in ways that amaze even me! I hope you like it!

Wiggly Whimsy Update

Anita sent me a picture of the finished quilt shortly after I got to retreat and was going to swap out the pictures in the post for yesterday... But I just was sewing away and forgot what day it was!

Here's a picture of the finished quilt on her amazing bed. I love the added touch to the edges she added. Great job, Anita!

Wiggly Whimsy to the max!

Earlier this week I got a sweet e-mail from Anita. She sent me this picture:

She made my Wiggly Whimsy pattern from the Moda Bake Shop and increased the size to KING SIZE!

Not only did she make a huge quilt, this is a picture of her progress while she quilts it herself on her domestic machine!!!

Kudos to you, Anita! You are much braver than I. I will admit I don't like using my domestic for quilting at all, I'm so much faster on the long-arm that it makes no sense for me to try this type of quilting. Especially a king!

Hop on over to Anita's blog and give her a pat on the back for her effort!

Puppy Love

I have to say that I am so happy to be on retreat, but I am missing my boys at home.

Ben is left in charge and I'm sure he'll take care of the furry boys just fine. 

 Duncan lately has been torn between his new favorite toys, both squeaky chickens...

 This look just says it all.

 Then I got too close and he took both chickens and went to hide between the recliner and the wall the rest of the day... Silly puppy.

And I even miss fighting over the blankets with this little one. He waits just until you get them warm and then he steals them. Little rascal!

We'll see what happens when I return home. I have to put my slippers up now when I'm gone or else Duncan steals them and sleeps with them under the bed until I return... Maybe he'll steal something else this time...

We've arrived!

We arrived and just checked in. Here's the view from my room for the next few days (not that I'll be in there much, too much sewing to do!) gotta get set up and I'll report back later!

Simply Style Aura

So not only is this quilt pattern in my new book, Seamingly Scrappy, I think it's pretty awesome. Obviously so since this is the third version of it!

 So this version is by far the most modern of the three. You may have seen a sneak peek of this one last week when I was finishing up the quilting. For this I used a nice Bella Solid gray for the background to work with the awesome prints from Simply Style by V & Co. for Moda (due out later this summer!).

 Since you need just a bit more than a charm pack for this pattern I blended in a mini charm pack that I had of Vanessa's first line, Simply Color, into this quilt. I was so excited to see this line announced on Vanessa's blog and was more excited to get my hands on a charm pack shortly afterwards :)

While we were at the Farmpark Show, someone mentioned about how it looked like overlapping circles on the Kate Spain version of Aura and almost immediately I got the idea on how to quilt this version. I used a slightly darker gray than the background fabric and I love how the quilting on this version stands out from the other two. Who knows, I'm sure there will be another one of these quilts in my future.

This is definitely more modern than anything I have done in the past and it reminds me of two of my friends who are so much more modern than I, Corey and Kori! Miss you girls!

I'm all packed and getting ready to head on down to Holmes County for the rest of the week for a quilting retreat! I CAN'T WAIT!!! Days of nothing but sewing... It sounds so heavenly. I have so many things cut and ready to go, I'm hoping to get a bunch done and will be popping in for short mini posts when I can!

Packing for Retreat

Popping in for a quick request.

My brain is a bit fried at the moment from prepping all of my fabrics for my retreat that I need your help!

I've been cutting and cutting and I think I'm set on my projects and fabrics for retreat. The thing I'm most worried about are the other things I'll need to get through my days of sewing that I'm not thinking of.

I'm already bringing my camera and my laptop so I can blog with you while I'm gone. I have my coffee mug and my comfy shoes. I have my speaker for my iPod.

What else should I bring that I haven't mentioned or what else would you pack when you're going on retreat?

Hopefully all I'll forget is nothing, but if it must be something, let it be something I can pick up while I'm there.

Thanks for your help! Gotta pack!

Another Aura

I just finished the binding of this little gem and wanted to drop in really quick and show it off before I finish prepping for retreat later this week. Back soon with better pictures and more information!

I'm Stranded on a Mysterious Island!!!

Guess I should consider myself lucky that I seem to be stranded with a good bunch of people and this island has power and all of the Moda fabric you could ask for!

Head on over to the Moda blog (click here) to see what notions I chose to take with me and my one special request :)

Now thinking of this kind of tropical paradise makes me think of my days spent here:

 Which just so happens to be where a cruise ship is stuck at this moment (St. Maarten)

 But if I were stranded here watching these planes land, I'd be just fine with that.

 Did I mention I also had the BEST PIZZA EVER here?! It's the shrimp & garlic pizza at the Sunset Bar & Grill at the end of Maho Beach. Try it, it's sooooooo good.

 Here would be nice, St. Thomas was nice.

 We spent our day here at a resort...

Surrounded by ocean, awesome pools and iguanas (don't worry it's really cool and not scary). Any of these places seem really good right about now seeing as I'm typing this drinking coffee to get warm while I'm in my fleece pants, slippers and really warm hoodies since it's only in the 20's outside right now....

And to think earlier this week I actually drove with the sun roof open on my car... But that's Northeast Ohio for ya!

So, where would you choose to be stranded if you could choose and have all the fabric and notions you wanted?

Sugar Spice & Lots of Nice!

Today I would like to introduce you to a friend of mine, Mandy, and her adorable new blog.

Mandy and I went to school together and now she's a mother of two, married to her High School Sweetheart, and one of the best baker/cooks you'll ever meet.

The coolest thing Mandy is trying to do now is incorporate all of those comfort food recipes with healthier non-processed twists not only for her health, but for her little kiddos as they grow up.

Please take a second and hop on over to Mandy's new blog Sugar Spice & Lots of Nice! and take a look around. Her recipes are great and I see her having the potential to be the next Pioneer Woman!

Honestly, she's real, down to earth, and will only have recipes that will call for items you probably have on hand. Please hop on over! You won't regret it!

Machine Quilting: Semi Custom Feathers

Now, I'll be honest. I'm still a newbie to the whole feathers game. I would guesstimate that most of what I quilt (especially this upcoming week) are baby quilts so feathers and baby quilts don't really go together.

I have always been a bit shy about attempting feathers. I think this is the result of when you let that voice in the back of your head tell you your feathers will never look as good as so-and-so's. We have some very talented quilters in our area who seem like they can all do feathers in their sleep. It's intimidating, I'll admit!

But Alyce gave me her version of the Patriots in Petticoats pattern and asked for feathers in the border and the log cabin areas:

This quilt as featured as a Block of the Month through various quilt shops, and it is quite large, but beautiful!

I started with the borders and the log cabin areas and filled those with feathers going in opposing directions from the center. 

 I LOVE these feathers and now I need to make a log cabin something or other so I can quilt some like this for me too!

Then I added in single feathers in one direction in the smaller inner border. 

 And double larger feathers in the outer border. These are a bit harder to see on the front of the quilt, but they show up so well on the back!

  Alyce chose to use a wool batting which gave just a slight puffiness to the quilt. It really helped to make the feathers stand out, but she also chose a simple muslin for the back for a true to the period type of quilt.

In this shot you can see both borders with the feathers going in different directions and the log cabin areas. We chose do to a simple all over design in the rest of the quilt and I think it all worked so well together.

Thanks Alyce! This quilt was so rewarding to do. Thank you for letting me finish it off for you!

Northcoast Needlers Guild

Earlier this week Mom and I traveled over to the West Side of Cleveland and talked with the ladies of the Northcoast Needlers Guild.

 Mom gave a trunk show of the Judy Niemeyer patterns that she has made and I gave a trunk show of quilts from my new book, Seamingly Scrappy.

Sorry I don't have any pictures from the trunk show itself, I was busy either chatting or holding quilts :)

 Then afterwards the ladies shopped and I signed some books!

Overall the night went well and I think everyone left a happy camper. Thank you so much for hosting us!

If you are interested in having us come to your Guild, please e-mail me at rubybluequilts (at) gmail (dot) com!

Homemade Chex Mix

Now for those of you who say you don't like Chex Mix, this is different (MUCH different) than that stuff you get out of a bag.

My MIL made this for my Hubby and his friends waaaaayyyyyyy back when and it was such a shame there was so much left over to snack on ;)

At first you realize it tastes different. Then you realize you love it. And (WARNING) then you'll realize you can't stop eating it!

I promise if you need a quick and awesome snack that will feed an army and doesn't need any special treatment (kept in the fridge, out of the heat, etc.) this is your new go-to snack.

Here's what you'll need:

Chex Cereal (doesn't matter which type: corn, rice, whatever)
Goldfish Crackers
Cheese Its (grab your favorite flavor, Pepper Jack is ours)
Pretzels
Golden Grahams
Mixed Nuts (optional)

I mixed equal parts of each of the cereals/crackers above. I started with the goldfish which was about 4 cups for the small bag (it was the smallest thing I bought) and just measured out the rest of the ingredients to match. I measured them in my large measuring cup (it's really big!) and then poured all of the stuff into a large bowl. Then I mixed it all up and split the mixture into two gallon size storage bags.

Once you split the mixture, you'll add 1/4 bottle of popcorn oil and 1/2 of a ranch dressing packet to each bag. Shake it all up and let it sit for a day or two (the flavor gets better over time) and shake it up every so often turning the bag each time.

After a couple days you will find yourself with heaven in a bowl. I promise! This is one of those types of recipes that is soooo simple and everyone falls in love with it.

I've been on a diet where I'm not supposed to have carbs, especially breads and crackers and Chex Mix, but I couldn't resist this amazing food and I'll admit I had a small handful every day. I couldn't fight the urge and it was sooo worth it. And I'm happy to say I still lost weight! Yippee!

Have you had this before? I'm warning you, once you try it you'll never go back to that bagged stuff again!

Exciting News!

I am happy to announce that the Ruby Blue line of patterns are now available through Brewer! It's finally official and the products are now on their website (see them here).

You can now order the patterns online or contact your Sales Rep to place an order.

Otherwise, I'm working diligently behind the scenes and I'll have much more to show you in the near future! More exciting news to come!