Sew Saturday ~ Guild Quilt

Happy Saturday, my friends.  I'm feeling soooooo much better, but I haven't sewn in 4 weeks.  I think I'm finally stable enough to try out my rotary cutter again and see if I can sew in a straight line.  :)   I'm itching to get my lilac and purple quilt done. 

In the meantime I thought I would show you the finished quilts our new guild made to send to the Oklahoma City Modern Quilt Guild for relief help.   Many ladies donated blocks and we ended up with enough blocks to make 2 quilts.  Four people worked quickly to sew them all together and quilt them. 



One block came in late and was able to be added to the back.  Isn't it amazing?  The back is just as pretty as the front.  



Here's the second quilt.



The quilting on this is amazing.  I think she quilted each block individually.  I wish I could have seen it in person before it was shipped.

If you live in the Olympia, WA area and are interested in quilting at all you should come check out the South Sound Modern Quilt Guild.  We are brand new.  Only 2 meetings so far.  You can get in on the first official membership meeting  on July 10th, 2013.  It's being held at Ruby Street Quiltworks, and they let us shop after the meeting is over.  :)  Your first meeting is FREE, just to check it out and see if you it's something you might be interested in.   Oh, and there is show and tell, so bring whatever you are working on so we can oooh an ahhh over it. 

Want more info?   You can join the South Sound Modern Quilt Guild Facebook page. Or you can let me know and I can invite you to the Facebook page.

Blessings,
Heather

P.S.  Can you find the blocks I made?  I have at least 1 in each quilt.  :)

Sunshine On A Cloudy Day

We have dark grey cloudy skies with showers again today.  I'm probably the only person in the state that isn't complaining about it though because it has knocked down my allergies, and it it's helping me heal.  :)   Besides, I looked at the forecast and it's supposed to be sunny and 80's starting tomorrow.  Could get up in the 90's by the 4th of July.   That's hot for our area.  :)

To bring a little sunshine to those of you who want it I have another card created for this week's Summer Challenge at StampNation.   I believe the challenge was to create a card that makes you think of a sunny day. 

With the card open you can see how the embossed sun is layered on the inside and the flip flops are attatched on the top.  The flip flops are from a local stamping store that is going out of business.  :(  So sad that Cindy is retiring.  (Cindy's Simple Stuff)  She has a great little store and so many creative ideas.   She said she will be doing small events at her home though, so hopefully I will get to stamp with her again.  Cindy was the first person I met when my husband took the job here in Washington.  Her shop was just around the corner from the hotel his company put us in.  I took it as a SIGN that we had heard from God correctly that this little town was where we were supposed to move to.   :)

Her Tuesday Dollar Demos are what finally taught me how to make cards and gave me courage to keep trying and learning.  From there I started watching YouTube and learning more, and taking classes at her shop and learning more and signing up for online clubs and learning more and eventually led me to being a demonstrator with SU so I could buy everything at a discount.  I told my husband that I put her out of business by shopping from home on my Stampin' UP! site and forgetting to go in to her store.  Just kidding.  Her business has been thriving, she is just ready to get her life back after all these years invested in her business.

The sun rays were made with Washi Tape from the new SU Gingham Garden Washi Tape.  When that was done my sun looked pretty empty.  I had made my sun really big, not knowing the sandals were really small.  Soooooooooo, I pulled out the A Round Array stamp set and some punches and added a sentiment.  Then I took some basic rhinestones and scattered them all over the card.   What you can't see is the shimmer mist I sprayed on the embossed sun piece.  It adds a nice sparkle.

When I placed my new catalog order I forgot to include the new Circle Framelits.  Drat.  I cut my big circles using my old Creative Memories CCS, and I didn't have the right size to create the size of sun I wanted.  They were either too small or too big.  It still works, but when I get the new circles from SU I might try this again and get it to a better scale, and it will stand up better on it's own.

Creative Blessings,
Heather North



Gingham Garden Washi Tape



A Round Array



Gingham Garden



Circles Collection Framelits




Whirly-Twirly Pinwheel

StampNation is having a Summer Challenge Party this week.  Due to my bought with vertigo I haven't been able to fully participate, but I LOVE the challenges, and this is one of the cards I made for them.

I believe the challenge was to create a card that reminds you of summer and summer activities.  Oh the ideas were swirling... hot afternoons in the pool, playing with friends, campfires and smores, trips to the beach, sun, parades, 4th of July, summer break....

The first thought that comes to my mind when I hear the word "Summer" mentioned is, summer vacation from school as a child.   We would go to the city pool and meet up with friends.   They had a break in the middle of the day for the lifeguards to have lunch and clean probably, but as a kid I just knew it meant it was time for the ice cream truck to come.   :)  I decided for this card I would try to capture the whimsical carefree days of summer in the park, at the pool, in the streets riding bikes with my friends or climbing trees in the backyard.  

I also chose the pinwheel because my body has felt a bit like a pinwheel spinning in the wind.  I have so many people to thank for helping me, encouraging me and praying for me while I recover from this inner ear fluid build up that led to vertigo and all the other sypmtoms.   Each one of you is a blessing and I would make each one of you this card, but it took me about 2 hours over 3 days to make this simple thing.  You can do it in 15 if you aren't on a tilt-a-whirl in your head. :)  Perhaps I will put it on a shelf in my hobby room to remind to thank God for my blessings and not push myself beyond what I should.

Creative Blessings,
Heather North

Sunshine and Happiness

Are you ready for the first card I made since this vertigo started?  I'm still a little bit on a tilt-a-whirl in my head so I decided to run with that idea and cut my paper on an angle.  I cut both pieces of patterned paper at the same time, cutting them on an angle.  This way they would all fit back together, and I had enough pieces for 2 cards.  Not that I made a second card.  It took me 2 days to make this one.  :)

The sentiment from the Feel Goods stamp set is embossed with Melon Mambo Embossing powder, then cut out using the new Deco Label Framelits.  The cute little flower was made by punching out the yellow patterned paper with the Boho Blossom punch, then I added bow made out of Calypso Coral Baker's Twine

It was hard to capture the colors of the paper in this card, but in this close up you can kind of get an idea of how the papers fit together.



Yesterday I made another whirly twirly card to go along with my vertigo.   I'll hopefully be posting it tomorrow.  My husband said perhaps I should stop the swirling cards, but I told him my head is already swimming so this is much easier than straight lines.   :)  I even painted my nails and added slanted lines to them because I couldn't do any other shape.  It was fun to play again, especially since I am still to weak to do much standing or walking. 

Creative Blessings,
Heather North



Quatrefancy Specialty Designer Series Paper



Deco Label Framelits





Feel Goods Stamp Set



Masculine Card Video ~ Part 2

As promised I have part 2 of the video I filmed a couple of weeks ago.  Father's Day is over, but this card can really be used for so many occasions.   Think retirement, graduation, birthday, tropical party, thinking of you, get well, etc.  It's masculine enough to be sent to a man, yet pretty enough to go to a woman.  I think it would be a great card for someone renewing their vows at a destination wedding.   Anyway, here is the video.


***Note-  If you are not on my blog reading this post you may need to click on the post title above "Masculine Card..." to go directly to this post and watch the video.  :)

Click HERE to go to the blog post with more pictures and supply list for this card.

Click HERE to go to yesterday's blog post to watch the first video.

Masculine Card Video ~ Part 1

Short and sweet today.  Here is part of one of the video I made before Father's Day.  Sorry my attack of vertigo made this posting too late for Father's Day, but there are still some great techniques you can use on any card.  Besides all it takes to change the card is to change the sentiment.  ;)

***Note - If you are reading this post in an email or reader, you may need to click on the post title "Masculine Card...." above to go to my blog and watch the video.

Click HERE to see the original post for the first card:

Click HERE to see the original post for the second card:

Creative Blessings,
Heather North

P.S. Watching the video I can see that I was already not feeling well.  :(  Hopefully I will be able to edit the second video for you tomorrow.  I couldn't concentrate enough yesterday to do it. I went to the doctor today and there is still lots of fluid in my inner ear so I will need a second round of steroids.  No infection yet though, and my vertigo is getting better every day.   I was even able to sit in my stamp room for about 15 minutes this morning.  :)  It's the little things.  Thank you for the prayers, concern and kind thoughts.  You are a blessing to me. 

I'm Alive & Getting Better Daily

****I have my video uploading to YouTube right now, so come back tomorrow to see what you probably came for.  :)  Masculine Cards Part 1.  This post is another personal update, but so feel free to skip it, or just scroll to see pictures of our yard.
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Hello my creative friends.  I am so sorry to have left you without updates.  I've been pretty sick and ended up in the emergency room.  If you are my Facebook friend you can read there to find out more.  Thankfully I am on the mend now and I am really hoping to be able to start stamping again soon.  Do you know the torture of having a box of new goodies from the brand new Stampin' UP! catalog sitting on your table for over a week and you can't even go through it.  That tells you how bad I have been feeling.  

In case you are wondering I have been diagnosed with vertigo.  Many serious things were ruled out and it looks like it all started with allergies that built up fluid behind my ears that wouldn't drain.   Add in dehydration and passing out and vomiting and you get the basic picture.  For several days I could not sit up or walk on my own.  Today I have been able to sit up and pay bills on the laptop.  (oh joy!)   Next step is to be able to walk around and water my flowers, then if I can sit up and bend over my table I will get back to the creativity I love.  (Oh how I wish my lilac quilt was finished so I could have been wrapped in it all this time, but I digress.  I'm just happy that I will be able to finish it soon.)

As for driving, I am not allowed to do so until a week after my symptoms are gone.  Good thing I have a permit driver for emergencies, but I think it's safer for both of us to stay home.  I figure if I can't drive, then I can't do "chores" so I am letting my teenagers attempt to keep the house running while my dear husband is at work.  They have been good about checking on me to make sure I am still alive and have plenty of water, juice, soup or crackers.

Would you like to see what I was doing in our yard before I got sick?  Here is the last thing I was working on before I started getting too dizzy.  It's driving me crazy that I haven't planted the rest of those flowers and spread the bark, but at least the weeds are pulled, the plants are placed where they will be planted and the tree is trimmed.

All of us helped with added a border of salt and pepper rocks along our fenceline.  I was getting dizzy at times, but I thought it was just the heat and sore neck/back muscles.  I promise to be smarter about all this next time.

P.S.  Ignore the yellow/brown spots in the grass.  Mostly that was the weed-n-feed killing off the clover and weeds.  ;)

Our late blooming dogwood is in full bloom now.  It's so pretty and should keep blooming through the 4th of July.  :)  That means I can go out and enjoy it as soon as I feel up to wearing something besides jammies.  LOL  This is in our front yard.

Another area I had been working on was extending a flower bed in the backyard near our pond.  It too was coming along nicely.  I still need to plant flowers, but the raised bed will make that easy as soon as I can bend over without falling over.  :D  I had to put in some stepping stones for the dog.  He kept walking through the my plants and knocking them over where the stones are now.  If you can't beat him, figure out a way to get around him.  :)

Did you spot the roses?  Yes, I have a sunny enough spot for some tea roses.  :)  Hopefully.

Thank you if you stuck through all this and looked at my pictures.  I think you can get an idea of how much yardwork I had been doing and why I "may" have pushed myself a bit too hard.  In addition to this there has been weeding and flower planting along the roadside/mailbox area, another flower bed around in front of the house that had been overgrown.  I pulled weeds, trimmed plants/bushes/trees and planted new flowers.  Then I added bark.  I still have 2 more flowers to plant in that bed and it is done.    Our pond/waterfall area was a mess.  I pulled weeds and pruned around the waterfall.  All 4 of us pulled weeds around the pond edges.  Dear husband did so much weed eating/weed whacking.   We laid down paper and some crushed rocks around the back of the pond area to keep the weeds down.  Now we are trying to decide what to put on top of that gravel looking stuff.  Debating between the same rocks we have in the front yard (expensive option), red lava rock (pretty, but not flip-flop friendly), and bark (cheap, but has to be replaced often and weeds like to grow in it so it is more maintenance.

I am sure this is more than anyone other than my closest friends and family wanted to know about our yard and my medical issues, but it is helping me to write it all out.  I promise not to overdue it.  An easy promise to keep since my body won't let me do very much.

Sunday Share

Hello Friends,

Just wanted you to know I have been extremely ill.  I ended up in the emergency room on Thursday.  I'm starting to feel better today, but I can't promise when I will feel up to working on cards and blogging again.  Hopefully  by the middle of next week.   Thank you for your patience and prayers. 

Blessings,
Heather

P.S.  Happy Father's Day to all you dads out there, those who fill in the role of daddy, and especially those whose dad's are no longer with you.  {hugs}

P.P.S  Dad, Papa Marty and Papa David----you cards will go out as soon as I can walk down the stairs and into the hobby room by myself.  Sorry they will be late.  I love you all.

Postcard in Time

Are you ready for another masculine card?  Father's Day is quickly approaching.  I still need to make two more cards.  Lots of dad's to recognize this weekend.  Here is a card I made for one of them.

It uses the same stamp set as yesterday's card, but this one has more color.  :)  To create the background for my stamped image I sponged So Saffron, Pool Party, Wisteria Wonder and Calypso Coral inks onto Whisper White Cardstock.  Then I stamped the collage image from Postage Due using Smokey Slate ink.

The postage stamps are from the same stamp set.  I stamped them first onto Wisteria Wonder, but then it seemed too bold a color, so I stamped it again onto Vellum.  Now it was too late.  Then I layered the vellum on the wisteria wonder and it was just right!

I hope the dad that this is going to will love it.   The video for my three latest masculine cards will be on my blog on Friday if all goes as planned.  :)  In the video I show you how I put this card together.

Creative Blessings,
Heather North



Postage Stamp Punch




Postage Due



Finishing Touches Framelits



Square Lattice Embossing Folder



This & That Epic Day DSP



Happy Birthday, Dad

Father's Day is coming, but even before that is my dad's birthday.  Here is the card I made for him.  You can make this into a Father's Day card simply by changing the sentiment.

It's funny to me how this card is both vintage and trendy at the same time.  The images on the card come from one stamp in the Postage Due stamp set.   It has a great collage look.  I also used some wahsi tape and a cool arrow paper clip.  Torn edges give it a distressed feel.

To get the image looking like this I stamped it twice.  First I stamped it on Whisper White cardstock, then I stamped it on Smokey Slate cardstock.  Both times I used Smokey Slate ink.  Next I tore a section out of the middle of my Smokey Slate cardstock and adhered it onto the White cardstock. 

Today I was able to make a video for you to show you 3 masculine cards I have made, including this one.  I'll do my best to get that edited and uploaded soon.  I'm so thankful for the cool, cloudy, rainy day toady and hopefully tomorrow, so I can get caught up on my cards.  :)

Creative Blessings,
Heather North





Postage Due



Epic Day Washi Tape



Hung Up Cute Clips



Sunday Share~ Guest Stamper

My mother in law is a much better cardmaker than I am.  She doesn't think she is, but I do.   Every card she makes is a work of art.  She takes the time to add all those special little details and intricate cuts.  Do you want proof?  Here is the card she sent me for my birthday.

When you lift up the little flap you see their adorable puppy, Sparky.  He looks so much like our dog, Bella, that I thought it was her at first.

Don't you love how she embossed the background layers?  The black and white is so elegant.  I love it! I need to ask her how she made that bow.  Bows are so trendy right now.

Thank you Joanie for all the love and time you put into my card.  You are a dear.   Just in case you want to see where this card is right now, it's on the shelf sitting across from the window where I usually take my card pictures.  :)

Creative Blessings,
Heather North

MYSTERY HOSTESS

Enter the hostess code EZSAFAM6  when you are in the checkout section of your online order and I will choose one person to win the hostess credit.  Order must be placed between June 7th and June 28th, 2013.  If you order is $150 or more you won't use the code because you will earn hostess rewards all your own.  :) Happy shopping!

~Note- You will find the hostess code box at the bottom of your screen when you go to your cart/shopping bag. 

Gift with Purchase

Anyone who places an order with me between now and the end of June will get a bonus surprise that includes a sample of all the new colors, a card using new product and a secret surprise from the new catalog.   :)   Thank you for supporting my business!!!

Sew Saturday ~ Oklahoma City Quilt

Last week I took a little break from my Star Shadow quilt to work on some blocks for a charity quilt.  Our local quilt guild, South Sound Modern Quilt Guild, asked its members to create blocks using the colors green, blue, gray and white, to make a quilt for the Oklahoma City MQG.  As you know that area has been hit with major storms, record breaking tornados, floods and damage.  It was so rewarding to work on these blocks.  I'm still getting the hang of modern quilting.  I've only really known about it for a month, but I am having fun learning new styles of quilting.

My first stop was to the fabric store.  As I am just beginning to build my stash I didn't have what I needed to make a block.  Aren't these colors soothing together?  I hope our guild adopts them as our main colors.

I decided my first block should be a pinwheel block with my new Twist-N-Stitch tool.  The instructions that came with the tool said to start with 5" blocks to end up with 3 1/2" blocks and put a 3" border all around your blocks.  Perfect.  I needed a 12 1/2" finished block so that meant I would need 4 blocks by 4 blocks.  I cut my squares, sewed them together in a random pattern, added the border and began cutting.

As I was assembling the block I began to be concerned that it seemed too large, but the instructions said it would shrink as it was cut and sewn together, so I kept going.  After I cut out all the pinwheels, I had 5 rows instead of 4.  Ruh-roh.... I kept sewing though...

The end result was fabulous.  I really like this pattern and so do my boys.  There's a good chance they will be getting a Twister quilt in the near future. 

Once the block was finished it was obvious that it was too big.  I couldn't figure out how to get my 16" block down to 12" without ruining it.  So, I decided this piece will become a pillow case or small quilt or ???  It won't be for our guild project though.  I redid the block using rows of just 3x3.

After taking the extra time to make another block I didn't have time to make the chevron block I wanted to.  Instead I made these really quick double triangles.

Here is my design wall after I was done sewing.  Did I mention I put up a design wall?   Actually I just had my (very tall) son help me put a large piece of flannel on the wall using thumb tacks.  Hey, it worked, and he as very impressed with how the fabric "stuck" to the flannel without glue or pins.  :)  He thought I was brilliant.  I love when that happens. It's not always easy for a mom to impress her 16 year old son. ;)

At the guild meeting everyone brought their blocks and we had enough for two quilts.  Isn't that great?!!!  The first quilt is already pieced together by Honnah Sims.  Can you spot my blocks?

This was such a fun thing to do.  I'm really looking forward to making more charity quilts.  I have plans to work on quilts for local foster kids, quilts of valor for our wounded soldiers, and even put together some quilts for the animal shelter.    If you would like to help out the victims of the recent tornadoes, consider visiting the OKCity Modern Quilt Guild and making a donation.  They are raffling off some quilts to raise money.  You don't have to be a quilter to help. 



OKCMQG Donate

Creative Blessings,
Heather North