Happy Haunting!

My favorite Halloween costume ever was made by my artistic aunt. When I was 10 years old I went trick-or-treating as a Band-Aid box. It was a great costume: warm and gave people a laugh. Just keep in mind the little one wearing it needs space to walk, so a cut-out in back of the legs from the knees down would be good. I still remember the feeling of my legs hitting the back of the costume trying to keep up with my cousins...ouch, my aching neck! It was worth it, though, that delightful costume made for a great time.

Favorite of the day: is a sweet applique Halloween themed wall hanging by Fairfield Road Designs
Wishing you a frightfully Happy Halloween!

~~Lisa

October is in Full Swing...

I love all things Fall: grapes, apples, leaves, pumpkins, and a little warm beverage. Around these parts our neighbors are harvesting their grapes, this is wine country! This Fall we have had fog, along with cool, clear nights and even unseasonably warm temperatures.

What is worth mentioning: an upcoming quilt mystery by Bonnie K. Hunter. A sample of past Bonnie mysteries are available here. I believe the fabric requirements will be posted on her Quiltville blog on November 1 and the first clue will be posted on November 18. If you're not sure what to do with all of your scraps ~ this is a great way to put them to use! Warning: Bonnie makes large quilts (typically about queen-sized or larger). If desired, make one-half the number of units called for and fill in where needed once the end result is more clear. That way you will have a smaller quilt and still participate in the mystery.

My favorite free patterns are:
*Timeless Treasures features Christmas Memories - this would be great with your favorite redwork or with the convenience panel as shown. Also, there is another pattern for a Kindle cover!
*P&B Textiles has a nice pattern called Gray Matters.
*Quilting Treasures offers the Autumn Harvest pattern by Possibilities, it's lovely.
*McCall's Quilting always has many free patterns, and this time the Lodge Getaway caught my eye. Based on the traditional shoe fly block, this one is a timeless classic.
*Maywood Studio's Wyoming Star - still seeing stars and so many possibilites with this pattern.
*Note: I hope you love them too! I have no affiliation with these entities, merely passing along information to you.

Enjoy the Autumn, before you know it Winter will be upon us!
~~Lisa

Arrival of Autumn

On September 23 Autumn arrived in the Northern hemisphere. It's my favorite time of year! I'd love to take the camera on a lazy tour of the county and shoot some old barns, pumpkins, grape leaves turning shades of persimmon into crimson shouting the arrival of autumn. But as the days have grown shorter, lately my time at work has increased ~ my days are longer! However, I have been able to enjoy the rewards of that hard work and even been able to teach a class in addition to my day job. For that I am grateful (tired, and grateful!).

To mark Fall's arrival here are some lovely Fall-themed patterns:
The Fluttering Leaf quilt pattern would make a great throw.
Acorn Autumn is a wall hanging...along with many other gorgeous free projects from McCall's.
Quilt Magazine features several projects which could be given as gifts along with Halloween accessories.