Thimbleberries

How many of you were in a Thimbleberries Club? I joined one not long after I started quilting. I met some really great quilters and made some pretty neat quilts too. As a beginner quilter I learned a lot from each quilt I made. These first 3 sets of pictures are photos of a photo so that is why they don't look good.
The quilt on the left was sort of a BOM that you could make into little quilts or into a big quilt. As you can see I made mine into a big quilt and I ended up donating it to a group for victims of 9/11. The quilt on the right is made of flannel. It is queen size and it is really heavy.
Here are two more quilts. These are two of my favorites of the Thimbleberries.
Here is a wall hanging I always bring out for the fall.

This quilt is not actually a Thimbleberries pattern. The center of it is though. The center was from another BOM/small wall hanging that I did not continue. So the center was put away for a while. Then I joined another BOM at a local quilt shop. While I was making the blocks from the shop I decided to also make a second set of blocks using the Thimbleberries fabrics. My goal was to work the center panel into the BOM.

I came up with this setting and am pretty proud how well it all came together.
Here is my newest Thimberries. It is not really new because I made the top in 2003/2004. Not real sure how long it has been. I actually had it thread basted because I was going to hand quilt it. I finally decided to pull all the basting out and get it machine quilted.
Here are some of the details of the blocks. Gloria, a lady in my guild does her quilting with a computerized machine. I picked out these designs and then she sizes them to fit the blocks on her computer and then the machine sews all the designs.

Gloria is entering this quilt in the Carolina Longarm Association Quilt Show on Sept 17-18 to show off her work. Maybe she will win a ribbon.
Check out some giveaways: One is at Stash Manicure and the other is at Comfort Stitching.

With Passion,

Carrie P.

Memory is the way of holding onto the things you love, the things you are, and the things you never want to lose. Kevin Arnold

Just a Little Something!

This past Friday we had delightful weather here in North Carolina. The humidity was way down and a light breeze from the north was cooling the air down. It was so wonderful to feel a touch of fall in the air. Because it was so nice in the morning I decided to sit outside and do some embroidery. I finished the last block from Crabapple Hill.
And a little something came in the mail too. It came all the way from Australia. From Jenny of Elefantz. Do you get excited over new threads? Well, I do and I am quite excited about this variegated thread. I don't know how I will use it yet but when the right project comes up I will definitely try this thread. I wish you could see how tiny those stitches are on the scissor fob! I just keep looking at it in awe. Click on the picture and maybe you can get a better idea how tiny the stitches are.
Thank you so very much Jenny. It was so very kind of you to send me such a sweet and thoughtful gift. A big hug for you.

With Passion,

Carrie P.

Friendship is the golden thread that ties the heart of all the world.

John Evelyn

Snowflakes and Flowers...

these are a few of my favorite things!


Instead of making little freezer paper templates I decide to make one Templar plastic one and use this applique technique I like.
Look at this machine embroidery design. It was sent to me by Quilting Fiesta because I had sent her some of my fabric scraps for her hexagon quilt. Go to see it here. I am not sure what I will make with it, maybe a towel for the fall. Thanks so very much Fiesta.
I almost forgot something. Check out Cyndi's blog. She is sharing directions for the cutest hexagon Christmas ornaments.

With Passion,

Carrie P.

The thought you now have shapes your experience of the next moment. Practice shaping the moment. Tom Barrett

Shabby Roses

I finally got my Shabby Roses quilt finished. This was a BOM that Jenny of Elefantz generously shared with her readers. If you look close at the blocks I actually am calling my blocks Retro Roses because of the fabrics I used. The fabrics were a line called Tranquility by Sandy Gervais for Moda. Jenny gave me permission to create the "Retro" word in her style. What do you think Jenny? Thanks so much for sharing your talents and creativity with us. You are such an inspiration!
Here are some photos of the details on the blocks. Jill, a lady from my quilt guild, did the quilting on her home sewing machine. She did a fantastic job on the quilt. Thanks, Jill.



Here is the back of the quilt. I decided to use every bit of the fabric I had from the line to make the back of the quilt.
I also wanted to thank Michelle at The Desert Quilter for this award she bestowed on me. I am always honored when I get one of these blogger awards. You know there are rules for these awards and I always have to break them because I just can not pick 15 bloggers from my list to give this award to. You all deserve the award that is why I read your blogs.
I am supposed to tell seven things about myself. I am just going to tell you one thing about me. I am not a big "sweets" eater anymore. I used to be horrible about eating chocolate a lot. No more. Two things that I love that are sweet though is Good Ole' Southern Sweet Tea and Edy's Espresso Chip Ice Cream. I don't eat the ice cream much but I do drink the tea and I guess it satisfies my sweet tooth just right.

With Passion,

Carrie P.

All that I have seen teaches me to trust the Creator for all I have not seen.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Purple

As you can see from this new block I have joined this tiny hexagon BOM from Dawn Hay. I had won some Fairy Frost charms and thought they would be perfect for these Snowflake blocks.
One more flower done. The picture looks like it is foggy outside but it was just my camera lens fogging up because of the high humidity we are having. I actually think the picture looks pretty neat.
With Passion,

Carrie P.

Nobody trips over mountains. It is the small pebble which causes you to stumble. Pass all the pebbles in your path and you will find you have crossed the mountain. Author unknown

Quilt Around the World

This Christmas house block with Santa peeking out will be added to...
these blocks. The person that made the first block also sent some Santa fabric that she wanted in each block. If you look close you can see Santa in each block.
This cardinal block will be added to...
these blocks. This person said she would like different sized blocks and she also mentioned she like cardinals.
This is a block exchange that I am doing through Jane. It has been fun to see what I receive in the mail. Sometimes they stay up on my design wall for a few days trying to decide what to add. Other times an idea comes to me real quick.

Thank you all for your words of sympathy about my dog Cindi passing away. You are all are so kind and sweet and understanding. Hugs to you all.

With Passion,

Carrie P.

The smallest act of kindness is worth more than the grandest intention.

Oscar Wilde

Missing Cindi

It has been sad and quiet around my house lately. My little girl Schnauzer, Cindi has passed away. She was 14 years old.
She was my buddy. In the winter time I would let her hair grow long so she doesn't even look like a Schnauzer in these photos. You can see with all the snow that it was a good thing. She loved playing in the snow and fetching sticks. She would go out into the yard to look for small branches that had fallen off the trees and bring it to me to throw.
She was so good about staying by your side when I would take her to different places. She went camping with us and had so much fun exploring new places. I had a dog biscuit jar on top of our refrigerator and when she wanted one she would go stand in front of the refrigerator and bark. She always had a messy bed because she would take the blankets and make them into a nest for herself to sleep in. We never could teach her to roll over instead when someone would tell her to roll over she would go around in circles like she was chasing her tail. It was funny.

She will be missed greatly.

Love you, Cindi girl.

With Passion,

Carrie P.

My little dog---a heartbeat at my feet. Edith Wharton

Last of the trip

Today I am sharing the last of our trip to Asheville. When we go to Asheville for any length of time we like to stay at the Ridgecrest Conference Center. It is a nice quiet place to stay in the town of Black Mountain. When we would come back from out travels we would hang out around the fireplace even though it wasn't lit. My husband would get on the Internet and I would do some hand work.
While there I was able to finish a block from the Linen Closet Quilts.
and one more hexagon flower.
While we were in the area we drove to Brevard and Hendersonville. This is the ticket booth to a movie theater. I just thought it would be fun to share with you all. Check out the floor.
These sculptures were pretty cool too. The tree was in Hendersonville and the other three were in Brevard. We like to check out the Main streets of the little towns. Have you ever noticed how each town does have a Main Or Center street? We usually can find an antique store or two. We also like to see the different architecture of the old buildings.
These photos were from another quilt show I went to. It was held in a mall and there were not many quilts. Most of them were quilts made during WWII. I thought you like to see a few and read a little history about them.





Thanks for coming along on my trip. Hope you enjoyed the quilt shows. It was a good little vacation for us.

With Passion,

Carrie P.

The game of life is not so much in holding a good hand as playing a poor hand well. H.T. Leslie

COLOR!

Aren't they great! I am slowly getting to all your comments. Please be patient with me.

With Passion,

Carrie P.

Color is my day-long obsession, joy and torment. Claude Monet