Jeep Girl

It was my sister Carol's turn for a new quilt.  I asked her if there was a theme or type of quilt she wanted, and without missing a beat she said, "A Jeep quilt".  I wasn't surprised.  She is most definitely a Jeep girl!

I couldn't find any Jeep fabric locally so I had to shop online.  Darn!  I hate when that happens.  Just kidding.  I can almost always find exactly what I need on quiltshops.com.  























We decided on the pattern Pastoral Countryside from All People Quilt, and I added one more fabric to the mix.  

It was Shirley Jackson to the rescue again, and the quilting was perfect. 

And you know what the best part was, right?  Giving it to my sister in person!

I love, love, love that kind of reaction!

Linking up with Confessions of a Fabric Addict.
    Linking up with Tish's Adventures in Wonderland

Sisters Trip 2012

This year it was Barb's turn to plan our trip, and we all decided it was the best one yet!  She booked our weekend at the Great Wolf Lodge in Kansas City the weekend of The Renaissance Festival.  The lodge has a humongous indoor water park.

Hubby couldn't believe it, but my sisters talked me into going down one of those crazy slides!  I was terrified, but I have to admit it was fun. And, NO they could not get me to do it twice!



Saturday morning I stepped into the bathroom while Dee Dee was showering and said, "I'm just taking a picture of you to put on FaceBook."  You should have heard her scream when the flash went off!

This is how Barb puts her makeup on when there is only one mirror for five people.

I had bought T-shirts for us, but ordering online makes it difficult to get the right size and they were way too big.  We all decided they would make better PJ's so Carol modeled one for me.

None of us had been to a Renaissance Festival before and we loved it.  You do see some interesting people there!

It was not always easy to tell the customers from the performers.

Even so, the costumes were great.

The fairies were especially cute!

Debbie and Barb were flirted with.....

.....Dee Dee braved a snake around her neck.....

.....Carol did some shopping.....

.....and I got a cute shirt that totally fits my personality.  (It's hard to get a picture of yourself when you are the resident photographer!)

Five hours was not enough to see everything, but we gave it our best shot before we were totally worn out.  That night we ordered pizza for dinner and played cards in our room.   I really do "heart" my sisters!

You can see more photos on my Flickr page if you aren't already tired of us!   

Oh, Those Sisters of Mine!

You may remember my sisters.  I made each of them a quilt.  Not one of them can sew a lick.  Or sew on a button for that matter.  They must really love me because they decided to make me a quilt.  And from the photos of them working on it, you can see that they had lots of fun!

This is Carol.....

..Barb..........

..Dee Dee..........

..and Debbie.

They surprised me with it at a family bridal shower, and the word "surprise" is an understatement!  They also gave me a framed collage of the above photos and a few others.  All my nieces and great-nieces were in on the surprise so they were there that day, too, which made it very special.  To say I was sobbing almost hysterically is also an understatement!

Some of the fleece squares are tied together on the front, some on the back.  They used the same "technique" with the labels.   In some places the squares are tied together so tightly that the whole section is one big pucker.  And in case you are wondering what to do if you have one extra square leftover..........

Please don't anyone tell them that it is technically NOT a quilt.  I could not love it more!!

I know I am showing a lot of pics, but it was hard to eliminate any, and you have to see the labels.  

So, there you have it.  My special gift from my special sisters.  I love them bunches!  

Oh -- one more thing.  You have to see how much style this "quilt" adds to my home.  It totally blends in with the contemporary decor, don't you think?

Sisters

Sorry, quilters, I am not referring to the Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show which is held annually in Sisters, Oregon, and which I would dearly love to attend one of these years (Ahem, are you listening, Dear Husband of Mine?) but rather to my dearest and darling sisters, referred to in an earlier blog entry, and otherwise known as The Wagener Girls.  My sisters and I have been trying to go on an annual sisters getaway weekend every fall since 2004, and so far we have been to some very interesting and exotic locations.  Like, Silver Dollar City in Branson, Missouri in 2004........

Paducah, Kentucky in 2005........

Memphis, Tennessee in 2006........

......and Eureka Springs, Arkansas in 2008.

But this year topped all of them when we headed to the Fall Festival in Jamesport, MO.  When we got there on Friday afternoon we checked into our cute little "rustic cabin" at the Arbor House Country Inn and set out, on foot, to see the town.  We were very excited to see what this Fall Festival would be all about.  We stopped at a fun little ice cream parlor and, while sipping our malts, got directions to some of the popular locales.  We thought it was curious that directions to everything sounded like "a few blocks east (or west or north or south) of the 4-way-stop", but folks meant exactly what they said!

Everything in town was pretty much closed by 6:00 that evening so we enjoyed some snacks and games in our cabin.  I can happily say that when I am with my sisters we enjoy ourselves so much and end up laughing so hard that we just about wear ourselves out.  But, we were ready on Saturday morning for some fun!

Well.............I'm not sure how to describe the festival, but here are some photos:

                         

On Saturday night we had a blast while the Krazy Kats performed on the main street in town.  This group has been together for 53 years and they really know how to play the Oldies.  I don't think the townsfolk enjoyed it nearly as much as we did, though.  Most of them did clap, and a few of them did dance, but nobody seemed to have as much fun as the Wagener girls.  We even stayed past dark!

The rest of the weekend was uneventful.  We did have a great time, as always, and we did come home with some souvenirs and photos and lots of memories.  And I have to tell you a little secret. I really love my sisters!             

 

Take-5......and Take My Sisters..........Please!

I'm talking about the "Take-5" pattern from "The Teachers Pet." Last fall this pattern became my new favorite way of making a quick, cute and really fun quilt. It calls for 5/8 yard of five different coordinating fabrics and then fabric for the borders and backing. I just completed this pink and yellow version to donate to CASA for a teenager going through the foster system. I hope it gives some young girl just a little bit of comfort.

Let me tell you how this "Take-5" thing started. See.....I have these sisters........

Last year my sister, Barb, said those words that every quilter dreads, "I found some old material and thought you could use it." Well, this time it actually worked out for good! She had purchased this giant cats fabric a long, long time ago to make a dress and never got that far. When I saw it I thought it was actually pretty cool, so I decided to make her a quilt from it. This is the first quilt I made using the "Take-5" pattern. Barb was surprised with her "Comfy Cats" quilt, and she really liked it.

When you have four sisters you can't make a quilt for one of them and not the rest. I mean, you can't play favorites, right? Carol's quilt was easy because she is a real nut for Betty Boop and an internet search revealed that there are waaaaay too many Betty Boop fabrics out there! Carol was surprised with her quilt, too! I called hers "Peek-a-Boop" because Betty looked like she was looking out a window.

It was a little more difficult to select fabric for Debbie. There are lots of things she likes but she isn't actually crazy for any of them. (Don't take that the wrong way, Carol!) One thing Debbie does like is hot food, so I settled on a hot peppers focus fabric and called her quilt "Too Hot Too Handle." I don't know if, by this time, she was catching on, but she acted surprised, and I got the feeling she liked her quilt, too.

Now, Dee Dee.............What can I say? Dee Dee has a great appreciation for really physically fit good-lookin' guys. I had seen a lot of different "hunks" fabrics at quilt shows and in magazines, so considering that her dear hubby is in construction I did an on-line fabric search for "construction hunks" and wouldn't you know it - I was not disappointed. Either was Dee Dee! I couldn't use the same pattern for her quilt without cutting up the guys too much, so I used the "BQ" pattern from Maple Island Quilts and called it "Hubba Hubba." Need I say, She liked it?! (I don't think she was too surprised, though!)
You can see better photos of the quilts (and a close-up of Dee Dee's quilt) in my Flickr albums -

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sandypanagos/sets/