Catching up...Show ~n~ Tell!

I can't believe it is taking me so long to catch up on my life! April is just a blur...

It is already MAY and I still haven't shared my loot from the AQS Quilt Show in Paducah!

Ok, here goes:

I bought some books and special rulers. This book-- http://creativecurves.com/curvesaheadb.htm --and these rulers-- http://creativecurves.com/cc_mruler.htm --are to do some curved piecing. The rulers look like a 'hood' pattern piece to me! Vanessa, my companion at the show, already had the oval rulers and stopped in at the booth to ask how to use them (as she had forgotten). As I watched the creators explain to her how to use her rulers, I decided that *I* wanted some, too! Of course... :) So I bought the curved (radius) rulers, so as not to duplicate the ones Vanessa had...and I got a book as well so that I could remember WHY I had wanted these and what I planned to do with them!

I also bought this book from Elisa's Backporch...the Crazy Curves book and the 7" Crazy curves templates, as well as the 3½" Small Paths Template. She was in a brick warehouse across from the museum...and had laryngitis! http://www.backporchdesign.com/backporch.htm

I bought these fat quarters to go with a scrap quilt that I have started. Because I am not sure that I have enough scraps for an entire quilt, I bought more fat quarters in those colors to mix and match with the fabrics I already have. I might end up with WAY more than I need!

I got these fabrics just because I like them! some of the greens might go in the scrap quilt with the fabrics above...that one is a block of the month quilt...but they were to lovely to pass up! The bird print is like from an encyclopedia of birds!

I had decided to collect animal prints for a quilt, and so in each shop or booth, I looked to see if they had any and picked them up where I found them. Well, I now have SEVENTEEN animal prints—all different! Amazing that I got no duplications (of prints, not animals!). I hadn’t realized I had found quite that many! I am not exactly sure what I will make with them...perhaps a New York Beauty quilt?...but I have them now! :)

These were a couple of intersting Japanese fabrics that I couldn't pass up, along with a leaf and vine trim that was also calling my name.






The black roll is CHALK BOARD fabric! One can write on it with chalk and erase it, just like on a blackboard! I will make a small quilt for my neice with this.

The CHARM PACKS are Kaffe Fasset fabrics that I picked up at Hancock's of Paducah. They will make something interesting, but I am not sure what just yet!

I looked at several quilting aids at the show and the one I decided to buy is this one, the Fabulous Fabric Glide... http://cgi.ebay.com/FABULOUS-FABRIC-GLIDE-FREE-MOTION-QUILTING-GUIDE-/270544865325 ...two semi-hoops to use when doing free-motion quilting (but *not* on my HandiQuilter...on my regular machine, where I would be moving the fabric). These help grip the fabric and give you something to hold on to, rather than relying on finger tips and friction. This 'hoop' was taller than some of the other hoops...some of which were stacked 3 tall in order to better get a grip on them!

The underside has tiny little rubber grippers that will hold on...not foam rubber that will eventually wear out and crumble.

I also bought quite an assortment of 'stuff'...wonderful NECESSARY stuff! :) Like these blue foam blocks...they can be heated and molded around small items and then they become a rubber stamp! Just heat them back up to remove the molded imprint...and remold them at will!

The rubbing plates of insects and leaves are to be used with those paintsticks that I still haven't used, as could be both of the animal print stencils. And the tjanting tool is for batik...the soda ash is to prepare fabric for dying! See? All very necessary items!

These BAREROOTS things are actually kits for candle mats. I just thought they were cute! I got the recommended needles for hand sewing them, because that is polite...but I might do them by machine! I do love power tools, you know... :) The disappearing thread has already vanished...it is somewhere in my sewing room, I am sure!

I picked up several patterns that I couldn't live without...one in particular is for a purse insert. That just sounds like a good idea!

Who knows when I will find the time to do any of this...let alone ALL of it!

Currently, I have been working on creating a pattern for a new dartless top.

WHAT? you say.

Yep, every so often I feel the need for a little self-torture, so I go at it again! :)

And to make matters even MORE interesting, I decided I needed a new pants pattern (as my old one is now a bit tight across the middle! 8-0

I'll let ya know how that goes!