Wednesday

Easter Bunny Table Runner

This is a table runner I quilted for a client of mine. It is absolutely adorable. I might just have to ask her the name of the pattern. The hard part about quilting this was that the whiskers are made from pieces of scrap denim. It is pretty heavy-duty fabric which made it a little tough to deal with while quilting. I sure hope she likes the result, it was really fun to work on.


Friday

ReStore Finds

My husband loves the Habitat for Humanity ReStore. It is like a treasure trove of junk and many wonderful finds. Back in February we walked into the store only to find an entire set of Lloyd-Flanders patio furniture. If you know this brand, you know that a brand new set can cost over $7,000. We sent a photo of the set to my son who lives on a lake. It would be perfect for on the patio over his boat house. He instantly said he would forward us the money for it. Even though the set was listed at the ReStore for $990, I paid $750 for a sofa, love seat, chair, two tables and all the cushions and throw pillows. It was an amazing find and I enjoyed the 'let's make a deal' banter with the manager to get an even lower price than listed.

Today I fell in love with four wrought-iron chairs. They were incredibly solid. As I waited for my husband to get the manager to come over, a few people realized what I was sitting on, and had to come and check the chairs out. I tried to discourage them from looking at them while I tried to cut a deal. The chairs each had a price tag of $39. I thought if I could get them for under $100, it would be a credit to my wheeler-dealer skills. When the manager finally came over I asked if there was 'wiggle room' on the price. The day before we were there the store had 20% everything for the day. I was a day late for that but was hoping to still make a deal. The manager agreed to give me more than 20% off - yay! When I went to pay for the chairs they rung up around $30. I corrected the sales clerk that she needed to charge me that times 4. The manager came over and said the price was for all 4 chairs. I couldn't believe it. What luck!

The day we visited it was 50% off all housewares day so I picked up a candy dish and a condiment dish. Together, I paid a dollar for them. They are so very pretty. I love the Habitat for Humanity ReStore.


Thursday

60-Degree Ruler Class

I took a 60-degree ruler class at the local senior center earlier this week. We were given patterns to make both table toppers and table runners during the class. The requirements for the class were to bring a 60-degree ruler and 1 1/2 yards of border fabric. I chose an Easter fabric from my stash.

After the class, I cut my fabric based on the instructions which stated to always line the bottom of the ruler up in the same place horizontally. I did that but did not like the results. I think I should have lined the ruler up based on the middle stripe. That might have made for a more connected look with the reversed pieces.

Friday

New Coffee Station

A year ago I drew up a simple plan for a tall cabinet that wouldn't be terribly deep with two shelves in the middle. I really wanted to make it out of pallet boards and I want to call it a coffee station. Well, my husband took the plan and made his version from it. His idea was much nicer than mine. He made it out of oak and then proceeded to make a maple butcher block top for it.

I wanted it to hold all my kitchen appliances. My pressure cooker, slow cooker, stand mixer, and rice cooker all needed a home that was not my pantry. I have a nice pantry that would be a great place to hold the larger quantities of groceries that I purchase from Costco and Sam's Club however, it's hard to store things in there when it's full of kitchen goods.

So now I have this beautiful counter-height cabinet. And all those appliances fit behind those two doors nicely.
Now all I need is a new fancy coffee maker for the top and I can clear off my counter top too!

Sunday

Ladders Quilt

I finished the binding on the ladders quilt today so I added the quilt label and washed it right away. Quilts for Kids quilts must be washed before turning them in so this one's ready to go. It may seem like a bad idea to place the freshly washed quilt on the frozen grass, but there's a piece of muslin fabric between the quilt and the ground so it's protected from getting dirty.

These little quilts are nice ways to use up those cute scraps and  I love working in these cheery colors.

Thursday

What's on the design board?

Today there's nothing on the design board.

We took our granddaughters to Disney World for a week towards the end of February so quilting has taken a back seat. It was a wonderful yet exhausting and I am glad we had the opportunity to do something so magical for them. But now we're back to Wisconsin winter and everyday life.

I am starting off March by completing another Quilts for Kids quilt. Once I have this one completed I need to start thinking about prepping for a quilt retreat I am attending in early April. I am excited about going - it will be my first one.