So a lot has happened after my last post and I'm hoping I can get back on track making quilts and posting about them. 
First we have moved from Texas to Washington State.
My Mom got cancer (but is doing fantastic now)
My oldest daughter, now 25 has gotten married to an amazing man and is stationed in Italy.
My next to oldest stayed behind in TX to finish college.
My third who is now 18 and my youngest, now 13 moved with my husband and I and we are all doing wonderful.
I have a new sewing room and am preparing to start another year of quilts.   
First up... My very first quilt for me!! Thats right... I have never made my own quilt before. 
Then I have four quilts for each of the girls and last but not least two quilts for the hubby and new Son-in-law.

So I hope you will check in from time to time and take a look at my progress.

Below are the images of my new creative space. 

So sorry I'm delinquent in my post. I had an all-day shoot last weekend and I’m behind.

Today’s tip jar is from a great site - http://www.minnesotacharms.com/charmtips.htm

This is a great site so go check it out. These are wonderful charts to use for your charm quilt making.

HOLD EVERYTHING!!! (Insert needle scratching across a record noise….) So I’m glad I didn’t complete my background yet because I found something today that may make me change my design… I found a new quilt store during lunch today (well new to me) and there hanging on the wall was the cutest panel!

   Sunday for me is one of the best days of the week and one of my “not so best” days of the week too…

   I love the time between 8:45 am and 12:30 pm because I spend it with my extended family at our church. It’s a wonderful way to start my week and I look forward to going back from Monday on. Another great part of Sunday is the Sunday nap. Nothing feels better than a nap in the middle of the afternoon. Especially during football season; we come home from Church and my husband watches football and I can take a nap. It’s the only day of the week for me this can usually happen.

   So makes you ask what exactly then is the bad part of Sundays??? Well…. its laundry day and get ready for the work and school week day. Because of all of that I don’t normally have a lot of time to quilt especially the beginning of a quilt when I’m designing and piecing it together. I tend to do most of that work on Saturdays. Once everything is pieced together and I start to quilt I can sit anywhere in the house and quilt between all the other chores. 

   I started the background yesterday by cutting rectangles of all different links to give it a more organic feel. This is a night scene & fall season quilt so the top is a combination of two starry night materials and a dark navy material.   The bottom is a green with orange and yellow mixed in, one with a dark dirt color and green mixed in and a brown with leaves. The idea being in the fall you will see all of these colors on the ground. My rectangles are not perfect because my 11 year old broke my rotary cutter. The background will be sort of crooked but I think it will add to the organic feel of it. This is defiantly more of an art quilt. But I think those are my favorite! 

I will sew all of the pcs together this week and take a picture of it..

    Today was a great day! I went antiquing with my little sister and mother. 
The house to the left was one that made me stop and take notice. I fell in love with it…A dream house to be sure!
     

   I purchased a few lace doilies for my daughter and I found the neatest little sewing case. It reminds me of one my grandmother had when I was a little girl. I love the blue fabric with the small little flowers. It even came with two spools of thread. I will stock it up with needles and thread next time I head to the material store.  

   I cut out the background of the new quilt tonight. I will post pictures tomorrow. 

So in preparation of making the OLD bedroom into a fabulous NEW sewing room AND the first Friday to start my new Friday tips post, I found this article on HGTV’s website. Number 11 is my favorite! TGIF….

 17 Quilting Supply Storage Tips
  1. Store thread spools in clear plastic egg cartons. These are also great for stacking.
  2. Cut strips from inexpensive vinyl/cling wrap and wrap it around a thread spool and bobbin to keep the thread from unraveling.
  3. Buy medium and large pizza boxes for storing quilt blocks. They're easy to stack and your blocks are organized. They work especially well if fabric is cut on the bias and handling it repeatedly can cause distortion.
  4. Buy a flannel-backed vinyl tablecloth from a dollar store or buy flannel-backed vinyl at a fabric store and hang a portable flannel wall near the ceiling with grommets and small finishing nails.
  5. Cut out large pieces from a flannel-backed tablecloth, lay quilt blocks on them and roll them up for storage.
  6. Use a pants hanger to hold your pattern book to keep it from getting lost under fabric. Hang the hanger on a bulletin board, a nail in the wall or a kitchen-cabinet knob.
  7. Make a pin holder from a recycled breath-mint box and magnetic sheets. Magnetic sheets can be purchased at a craft store.
  8. Store sewing tools in a silverware basket from an old dishwasher, and hang it on a pegboard. A revolving pencil holder is also great for tool storage.
  9. Use trading-card dividers for needle storage and place them in a binder. Insert needles into felt or muslin squares that have been cut to the size of the dividers. The holders can also be used to store swatches of your fabric stash.
  10. Store a thread spool in an old prescription bottle to prevent the thread from tangling. Burn a hole in the lid with a hot nail for ease in controlling the thread. Bobbins can also be stored this way, and prescription bottles also work for discarded needles, lessening the chance that they'll get lost in the carpet.
  11. Keep spools of thread and matching bobbins together by storing them on a large golf tee. Secure the bobbin and thread together with a rubber band.
  12. Attach an acrylic suction-cup hook on the side of the sewing machine for hanging small scissors or thread clippers.
  13. Tape a pen cap to the sewing machine to hold a seam ripper.
  14. Organize and connect quilt blocks, block pieces and paper work with basting guns. They're also great for quick fixes for curtains and for securing buttons.
  15. Divide a tomato pincushion into sections by labeling it with one machine-needle number per section.
  16. Store glue sticks in the refrigerator to keep them from drying out or molding.
  17. Organize and store cut fabric strips by hanging them on an over-the-door towel rack or a wooden or plastic drying rack.

My 11 year old came home from school and said she had joined the crochet club. Sooo cool! ;0)

I am in need of a sewing room... Now that two of the girls have moved out, I have an extra bedroom and would love to turn it into a sewing room. I was Google searching photos yesterday and came across this site.  http://sewmanyways.blogspot.com/2011/04/sewingcraft-room-ideas-and-updates.html 
I am in love with this room. She has the best ideas on recycling things and reusing them to organize her space. I'm going antiquing this weekend with my Mom and little sister so I will be on the hunt for shelving and tables that could be used in the room. Please send me any pictures you have of your sewing space or any great ideas to recycle things for it. Have a blessed Thursday!