Happy Halloween!

Just dropping in real quick to wish everyone a safe and Happy Halloween!

 

 

 

Be sure to check out my tutorial today on the Moda Bake Shop! Super easy and quick... only three steps using a Layer Cake.

 

2 Blog Tours = 2 Winners!

Whew! What a month it has been and it's not even over yet!   It has been a rather busy month, but very exciting!

I also have some new exciting news to share, but not today. That news must wait for another day. Today is an exciting day for many readers in blogland!  Two lucky readers will be winning books from my blog today and many other readers will be winning from other blogs across the globe. Be sure to check all the sites from both the Sweet Celebrations book tour and the Beginner's Guide to Free Motion Quilting book tour to see if you are one of the lucky winners.

I have randomly selected one lucky reader from the Sweet Celebrations Book Tour and one lucky reader from the Beginners Guide to Free Motion Quilting Book Tour.

Sweet Celebrations winner:

Congratulations...

tpott October 06, 2012

She said: "It's 3:03am I can't sleep so I'm blog hopping, I would say it's a BAD hair day so far for me. It can only get better! ;-> Toni Anne "

You are the lucky winner of a copy of the new Sweet Celebrations Book by the Moda Bake Shop Chefs AND a Moda Fabrics Layer Cake!


Beginner's Guide to Free Motion Quilting Winner:

 

 

 

Congratulations...

Happy Cottage Quilter October 17, 2012

She said: I learned to sew my first year in High School. My mom did not sew, so I took a Home Ec class and that's where I learned the basics. We made garments, but that went by the wayside when I learned to quilt ;-) Much more fun!

  

You are the lucky winner of a copy of the new Beginner's Guide to Free Motion Quilting by Natalia Bonner from my blog stop.

 

 

Winners... please email me with your contact and mailing information so your prizes can be sent off. Thanks to everyone who participated and good luck on all the other blog stops for both tours!

Sew It All - Spring 2013

Do you get Sew It All TV on PBS in your area and/or the Sew It All Magazine?  Not sure? Well... grab your remote, turn on your TV and find out. It's okay, I'll wait.

Coming this Spring 2013, little 'ol me will be on an episode of Sew It All TV with host Ellen March.

This past weekend I had the pleasure of traveling to Golden, Colorado with my hubby and taping my very first TV appearance with the Sew It All crew. Oh my goodness... What fun!  I enjoyed every minute while we were there. A little nervous at first, but the entire staff at Sew It All were all awesome to work with and made it much easier to be in front of the cameras.

I am so excited to have been invited to be a Guest of the show and can't wait for everyone to see what I have to share on my episode. The show schedule for the Spring season will be released on the Sew It All website in March 2013.

 

My project for the show will also be published in the 2013 issue of Sew It All Magazine. So be sure to keep an eye out for it at your local craft store for this issue when it hits news stands this Spring.

As soon as they release the Spring Schedule I will post on my blog, so be sure to follow me so you can stay up to date with the latest events.

Beginner's Guide to Free-Motion Quilting... It's a Family Affair.

I'm late, I'm late, I'm late for a very important date!
Well... at least I still made it today, even though I am an hour away from being the 15th. :)

Today, I am very honored to be sharing with you all my review of Natalia Bonner's new book, Beginner's Guide to Free-Motion Quilting.  This book is perfect for me and anyone else that wants to learn how to quilt their own quilts... or least try to. :) She does such an awesome job quilting and boy is she quick!

Natalia's book contains wonderful tips, quilts and beautiful quilting designs to gander upon. I love the simplicity of all her quilt designs... now to find the time to actually make them.  This book is a must have and I am especially partial because she just so happens to be published by the same publisher as my book, Stash Books. Beautiful photography, clean page designs and not to mention the best authors in the industry {*wink*}

It's a family affair... that is the name of the game and is completely fitting to this blog tour. Quilts bring families together... your own family and your family of friends, whether they be near or far. It is the threads that bind us together!

So, be sure to visit the rest of the "family" of friends on their book tour dates to celebrate Natalia's new release and enter to win a giveaway of your very own copy of this fabulous book!

Here's how to enter:

Simply leave me a comment... How old were you when you learned how to sew and who taught you?

Winners will be announced on October 18, 2012.

A Cupcake Sandwich

A friend showed me this fun little trick on how to eat a cupcake and I eat all my cupcakes this way now...

 

Unwrap and break in half separating the top from the bottom.

 

Flip the bottom to the top and squish down.

 

Eat and enjoy... without the mess.

YUMMMM!

Sweet Celebrations

Welcome! Come on in and make yourself at home!

I am so thrilled to be a part of the second book in the Moda Bake Shop series along with all the other super talented Chefs in our industry.  If you already own the first book, Fresh Fabric Treats, then you know the variety of projects they contain and how great these books are. I would like to take just a second to give a HUGE THANK YOU to Moda Fabrics and Stash Books for putting together these creative and inspirational books of joy.

 

My contribution in the Sweet Celebrations book has to do with Graduation. It is a quilt that every high school or college student would love to receive and share memories with their friends. It would also make a fantastic gift for a special teacher from all her graduating students. To see a picture you will need to buy the book... I know the suspense! But, I am sure you will love it and find even more uses for the design such as a new baby, birthday, family reunion, or simply for a special friend.

Okay, Oda May has asked us a few questions so here it goes...

Do you prefer to celebrate with cupcakes, cake pops or just plain old cake?
Cupcakes all the way! Love me some cupcakes... currently trying to find an excuse for me to get some cupcakes just cuz they are so good... OH WAIT! A new book... perfect excuse for some cupcakes. LOL! I actually eat my cupcakes in a different way, less mess from the frosting but you still get to enjoy every last crumb! Check back Monday for my special cupcake eating technique... I promise you will start eating your cupcakes this way too once you see it.

When you picture Oda May, what does she look like?
In my mind, Oda May is a classy, timeless gal that doesn't take crap from anyone. She is tough but also as sweet as can be. She is the cream of the crop!

Tell us about your favorite apron.
I don't wear too many aprons, but when I do, I really like the butcher style aprons, bib and half. Being a tall girl, I like the length and the extra long straps so you can cross in the back and tie them in the front. My favorite apron is actually the French General Rural Jardin Butcher Apron that was sold a couple years ago.

How do you press your seams?
I prefer to press my seams all to one side. If I am topstitching then I generally press in the direction that I will be doing the topstitch so it holds the seam down. If I am working with heavy fabrics mixed with light weight cottons, then I will press the seams in the direction of the lighter weight cottons to help reduce the bulk.

Do your pets/kids/spouse help or hinder your creative process?
My KIDS definitely help my creative process. I started sewing again because of my kids. I wanted to make some cute things for my daughter so I dusted off my machine and have not put it back since. My oldest two are now drawing up designs and asking me to help them make their creations which I LOVE! They come up with some pretty amazing ideas, which I hope to share soon. Love that we are able to share in a common thread. {no pun intended... LOL!}

Every celebration, whether it be birthdays, Christmas, Halloween, or just simply for a family gathering, my neices and nephews always have one special request... "Aunt Angela, will you please make your puppy chow??" Who could say no?

So, today I am sharing with you my childhood favorite... Puppy Chow.  If I can remember correctly, the original recipe for Puppy Chow was published on the Kellogs Crispix cereal box.

 

 

Now for the celebration part of the post... did somebody say GIVEAWAY!?!

 

Stash Books is giving one lucky reader from my blog a FREE copy of the Sweet Celebrations Book.

 

BUT WAIT... that's not all...

 

Moda Fabrics is also adding to the loot one of my favorite precuts! Although, I like them all the same, I have chosen a Layer Cake as the giveaway on my blog. Layer Cakes are so versitile and can be cut some many different ways or simply used as is.

 

HOW TO ENTER:

 

Simply leave me a comment. That's it. If you are having a bad hair day, I would love to know. LOL!

 

P.S. - For a bonus entry, "Like" my page on Facebook and leave me a comment that you have done so.

 

P.S.S. - For another bonus entry Follow my blog and then leave me a comment that you have done that too.

 

Although the bonus entries are not required to win, I do love receiving bonuses. :)

 

P.S.S.S. - Have a SWEET weekend and be sure to check out all the other fun celebrations going on where you can gain even more chances of winning this awesome book and a Moda Precut!

Kid Sized Apple Juice

Over the summer, my kids were constantly asking me for Juice.  I like to buy the Apple Juice in bulk since we go through so much of it. The only problem with that is the bottles are just so big and bulky and the kids can't get it themselves or we might have another problem on our hands {and floor!}.

So, after a conversation with my mom, she gave me a great idea. I started saving some smaller plastic bottles and made them their own kid sized Apple Juice containers.  Brilliant! I can still save money by buying in bulk and not having all the waste from the individual drink boxes PLUS my kids can stop asking me every 5 minutes for juice learn how to be a little more independent.

It's super simple and the kids love it!

All you need is a small container that is easy for kids to handle. I used plastic apple sauce containers.

Next, just fill up the small container with Juice from the larger bulky container.

Put them in the fridge and the kids can now easily access the juice with no mess!  WIN WIN!
If the small container gets low, just fill it back up with the larger one.