Christmas in July

Ahhhh Christmas in July, sounds kind of good right now while so many of us are melting in these 100 degree temps doesn't it! And ready or not, summer time is perfect to start a little sewing for the holidays. This week I mailed a Christmas trunk show to Laura at The Cotton Patch Quilt Shop in Bradenton Florida. Some of my absolutely cutest pattern models ever were included, oh my gosh they will make you smile :) Saturday the shop is holding their Christmas in July preview, so if you are in the area stop on by! Pick out some yummy Christmas fabric and check out all the festive goodness in store for you!

Last weekend a new kid showed up in town.... the long awaited Trader Joe's. I made the mistake of checking it out on grand opening weekend.... along with a gazillion others.


My big find... Tuna just for cats! No I didn't buy all these cans lol, but Cleo sure does love this stuff!

I don't have an exciting weekend planned, I can tell you all of my activities will be indoors with the AC roaring. A stack of Christmas fabric is calling my name and I hope to get started on a new project. Stay cool, happy sewing and happy summer!

A road trip with my Son

Well lets see... where did we leave off last post, oh, coming up on a really boring 4th of July weekend. And that did not disappoint, as predicted it was pretty darn boring. But Hubby made it through his oral surgery and that was a good thing because he still had to finish painting the dining room he had not completed. I puttered around the kitchen making water melon boats and red, white and blue angel cake for dessert. We watched the Nathans annual hot dog eating contest and the spectacular NYC fireworks on TV. Ho hum :)

Soooo... this past weekend I was invited to go to OKC with my son, I'm kind of like driving Miss Daisy down I-35. He felt I needed a getaway and some girl time with his sister Erin. So thoughtful and sweet of him don't you think? Jon has been running back and forth in-between Oklahoma and Kansas for months now. It seems this is the year of the wedding for his age group and he is now a professional groomsman on the weekends LOL! After dropping me off at my daughters, he gave his nephews a quick hug and squeeze and headed off to his next pre wedding event. The boys just love their big Uncle Jon!

Alex is 7 and William 5, they are a riot!

Saturday Erin and I had a girls only afternoon. But I'm going to tell you, it was HOT!!! Every temperature sign we passed was climbing higher and higher, 110 degrees was the high. OMG, I forgot how hot Oklahoma can be in the summer!

Our first stop was Oklahoma Quiltworks where we browsed and bought some fabric. Most of the Christmas fabric is out now and it was a tough choice to choose from just one line.

Next we hit up several antique shops and malls and Sonic for a blueberry slushy, can't beat Sonic drinks on a hot day! We stopped in a tiny bakery which was next to one of the antique shops, what an unexpected treat! Adorable cookies to take home to the boys, and I have to say they had the best tasting bakery cookies I have had in years! "Full Cup" Bakery in Bethany- loved them!

Today I released 2 new patterns, always such a nice feeling to go from start to finish!

First is "Pumpkins All Aglow" A wool table topper, fast and fun to make. Love the Fall colors, those plum berries add just the right touch of color and make my heart pitter patter :) Button teeth add some extra fun!

Next is "A Fall Sampler" 4 tea towel designs to stitch up for Fall. Stitch them by the lake or on your next road trip, you'll have them done before the leaves change color!


Now it's time to get back to my chores, you know how things pile up when you're gone a few days. And I'm anxious to start my next sewing project! I can tell you though, I won't be sitting out side stitching this week, looks like 98's most of the week.

Have fun and stay cool!

Help... I'm melting

Help, I'm melting! Nice and hot out here in the Midwest and it looks like we are rain free for the rest of this approaching holiday weekend. So why do I torture myself sitting outside sewing you may wonder, instead of staying inside where it is nice and cool with the AC running! Well I suppose this is my way of enjoying the great outdoors LOL! If I can't be stitching by the lake this summer I have created my own backyard resort minus the lake. Honestly though, natural sunlight is like having an Ott lite and makes stitching easy on my eyes.

This weeks summer drink is orange juice/sparkling water and orange polish for my toes! It co-ordinates with the shades of fall wools I am working on, show and tell pic this weekend. I also finished my Fall tea towel designs I was stitching, the pattern is now being printed, photo in a few days also. Finishing just feels sooo good as I am exploding with lots of new projects to

get started on.

I dumped my button jar yesterday in search of a few buttons for my wool project. Mine are stored in an old cat cookie jar, what do you store yours in? Well anyways, emptying the jar brought back memories of Cleo when she was a playful kitten. She would come racing down from upstairs when ever I dumped my jar of buttons out, bat them all over, she loved my buttons, they were the best thing ever! My buttons no longer spark any interest for her :( And with that being said I know my fur child is feeling her age and I am just content to have her sitting by my feet while I sew.

Big weekend coming up and I know many of you will be traveling or heading out of town. Ours will be quiet. Hubby is having oral surgery on Friday so we will be pretty laid back here. I will stay busy with new sewing projects and thinking about my road trip the following weekend!

Safe travels, happy 4th!

Crazy wool pincushions

Friday night and here I sit composing a blog update, I sure lead an exciting life don't I!

Well to tell you the truth I had a fabulous afternoon and am happy to share it with you. My friend Roberta and I attended a Primitives Of The Midwest workshop this afternoon, an annual event put on by Quilters Station in Lee's Summit MO. Roberta and I had both wanted to take the crazy wool pin cushion class from Lynda Hall- Primitive Pieces By Lynda.

And here she is with samples of her crazy wool pin cushions. Lynda was an excellent teacher, if you have a chance to take one of her classes you will be glad you did. She walked us through every step of construction leaving no stones unturned. I also liked the fact that Lynda encouraged adding our own creative touches to make a unique project. She offered many helpful techniques, a sprinkling of cute stories, this enjoyable class went way too fast!

And here is Roberta showing off her pin cushion progress. All she has to do is stitch that applique down. As for me, well I'm not showing off yet. I didn't get nearly as far, maybe I was talking too much. We sure had a nice group of ladies at our table, some of them drove all the way from Ohio to participate. Wow, now that is dedication!


And thats it for me today folks, going to unwind, cuddle up with Cleo and watch some mindless TV. She likes "Chopped", maybe we'll watch that!

Enjoy your weekend!

Still stitching....

My summer days all seem to be running in to each other. 90's and humid, strong storms every night. And I am still sitting here stitching away... looks like I've been in the same spot since 2 weeks ago doesn't it! Well a few things have changed, as you can see I have been trying an assortment of summer drinks, trying to break out of the Diet Coke rut. You can't go wrong with iced tea, and groovy blue polish for the toes. I have a lovely stack of tea towels in fall shades that I am stitching on. Just one more to finish and then I move inside to the computer and begin writing the pattern.

Our bunnies are bolder than ever this year, they don't seem to be frightened of me and are chowing down practically right in front of my nose.... with a watchful eye.

I bought this darling piece of fabric this week along with yardage of other fabrics I needed for my next sewing project. I can't say that I will ever use it, but the illustration was just too darn cute to pass up. It will end up in my too cute kitten box of fabric, but you never know, maybe someday I'll find the purrfect project for it.

Friday I will be attending a Primitives of the Midwest workshop with my friend Roberta. We are taking the wool crazy pin cushion class given by Lynda Hall. I am so ready for a girls day out and with sewing involved, well it just sounds really good to me!

Pics to follow I am sure... stay cool and happy sewing!

The Birthday girl and a winner!

Yay... Happy Happy Birthday Cleo! What a fun day she has had. New toys and a bag of catnip.

The toys amused her for a very short while, but that catnip, now that is a cats meow!

Next we had cake, well honestly Cleo did not, but the thought was there and Jerry and I did consume that in her honor.

After cake Jerry drew a name from the fish bowl and the winner is..... DARLENE!!!

Oh my gosh Darlene, aka Mrs Quilting Daze, please e mail Cleo your address so I can mail your box off to you! Gosh, we sure wish every one could win and thank you all for your very sweet comments. I'm thinking next month we will have another giveaway. Still lots more goodies from the sewing room that need a new home and some new patterns! SO keep in touch.

And now that Cleo is all tuckered out from such an eventful day, she is 12 after all, we are going to cuddle up and watch a movie. The end to a purrfect day :)

Oh and Pssst... the birthday girl will continue her celebration all week long on our web site with a special offer: Buy 2 patterns and get 1 free. Just click on Cleos picture on the side bar to take you there. YIPPEEE!

XX000 Cleo and Me (Barbie Jo)

Sum sum summertime!

Wow, who turned on the heat! I guess summer has finally arrived and very quickly indeed. Not to complain after the winter that dragged on forever..... but it sure did heat up fast, we are in the high 90's here in Kansas.

I enjoy stitching on my patio during the late morning hours, while there is still a little shade and the temperature is pleasant. As you can see here I am multi-tasking lol! Painting my toenails a nice water melon pink, and while they dry.... sipping some nice sweet tea and stitching away. I have a nice stack of tea towels to stitch some new fall designs on. The birds are chirping away, that silly chipmunk is running back and forth across the patio. Rabbits are nibbling on whatever we recently planted and squirrels are leaping from tree to tree; Cleo is content in her old age to watch us all from patio sliding door.

Cleo is getting excited about her approaching birthday this Sunday! If you have not signed up for her give away there is still time.... you can read about it on my previous post.

Wishing you a pleasant summer,

Barbie Jo and Cleo