Here's a Peek at My Week

April 23rd - April 30th

Welcome Spring! 

The pecan trees are leafing out in Oklahoma and that means no more freezing weather!  The tulips are blooming at our home in Pennsylvania (where my husband works) and the Azaleas are blooming at our forever home in Oklahoma.

Mom and I planted tomatoes, cucumbers and squash in our storage container garden. The plants receive water from the bottom using PVC pipes and a reservoir system.

I've been wanting to raise bees for several years now and in February I ordered all the needed supplies and the Bees. My bees arrived this week! I was so excited! It reminded me of the excitement I had as a young child at Christmas time. The Bee introduction to the hive went well and I'm anxious to look inside to see if the Queen has been released from her cage. I'm impatiently waiting until tomorrow afternoon to accomplish this task!

The Bees in their shipping package

The chickens are enjoying the Spring weather and I'm enjoying their increased egg production. Roscoe the Rooster is a new addition to the flock (adopted from a neighbor this winter).  He does a good job of protecting the girls but is a bit aggressive toward humans. I do my chores with my Rooster stick in hand for protection. I have to say though our relationship is getting better but we still are in the adjustment phase.  I'm trying to figure out if Roscoe is jealous of me or I'm jealous of him since the girls have been solely dependent on me for their needs since their chick days. 

I've been playing with the Free Trial version of Wilcom Hatch Embroidery Digitizing Program and I'm really loving it!  I've waited, did my research and have pretty much decided I'm going to purchase the program. It's user friendly and not as expensive as some of the other brands on the market.

  

I digitized these owls from a picture of the above fabric panel. It was my first real attempt with the program after watching the awesome tutorials. 

 I know I need more practice but it sure was dog-gone easy to do. 

This I'm going to make...soon. The guild I attend is doing monthly door banners. Members meet before guild and we receive the instructions and pattern for the monthly banner and have a show and tell of banners for the previous month. The banners are designed by one of our talented guild members. I'm looking forward to this banner hanging on my door.

This was on the sewing machine this week. A friend asked me to quilt, bind and embroider a label for a baby quilt. Cute quilt in Orange and Black....OSU colors.  

Hope your week brings happiness and peace.

Happy Sewing! Happy Living!

Quilters are Giving People

I'm happy to be associated with such an awesome group...

the QUILTING/SEWING GROUP!

The majority of people who reside in this group love sharing their ideas on quilting and sewing, whether it's tips and hints, reviews on all things quilty, reviews on sewing machines, and tutorials about creating some of the most awesome quilt blocks and quilts....old and new, traditional or modern....and I'm happy to say that most of it is free information!

I was recently searching the web and my brain realized without really thinking of the generosity of the quilting and sewing group as compared to other crafting disciplines. Now, understand something, and don't go tellin' your bestie that I was puttin' down on other crafty disciplines...I'm not...but...MY GOSH...there is such a wealth of free information out there that's shared by the quilter and sewist. What a great way to make sure our craft continues through the generations!

Quilt and Sewing people Rock!

Here are some of the sites I've found just this weekend:

Here's a Block of the Month that is just now starting over at Quilt Addicts Anonymous. I signed up while I was visiting.  The quilt looks really awesome!

Lori Holt has a Bloom Sew Along starting.

 The quilt looks awesome! Check it out at Bee in My Bonnet

Pat Sloan and Jane Davidson are starting a Mystery Quilt that consist of 100 blocks. Two blocks will be released each week.  You can find more information at Splendid Sampler.

LifeSewCrafty is hosting the DCMQG 2016 Quilt-Along. She has some amazing colorways posted to help with your color options. Looks like it's going to be fun.


Westering Women Block of the Month will celebrate the women who walked west on the overland trails. The blocks will be 12" and include a history lesson about America's westward movement.


In Our Garden Block of the Month will include 11 separate bloggers sharing patterns for free! They will be offering appliqué and traditionally pieced blocks.

Pinterest also has so much to offer in the way of tutorials and ideas. I think I now prefer to search Pinterest rather than Google! At least I have oodles and oodles of pictures to feast my eyes and brain upon.

If you know of a tutorial, Mystery quilt or Quilt Along or anything related to our craft,  please share the link in the comments. It's a good way to spread information about the craft we all love and are so obsessed with.

Thanks for stopping by.

Quilt On!
Live Strong!

Grow Your Blog - A Blog Hop and A Giveaway

Hi there and welcome to my blog, Georgia-Girl Quilter. My name is DeAnna and I'm so very happy that you stopped by for a visit. A huge "Thank You" goes out to Vicki at 2 Bags Full for all her hard work in pulling this Hop together. The number of participants is astounding and surely everyone will have fun visiting and following as many blogs as they can...I know I will!

When visiting my blog you will see posts about my journeys in quilting, machine embroidery, Serging, and becoming a Longarm Quilting Diva. Its amazing how these different machine functions can add to the finished project and I love sharing with you what I've learned, here on this blog. I also love to cook so I've created a "Recipe" tab to share my favorite recipes with you.

Here are three of my Kaleidoscope blocks from my Kaleidoscope Quilt. This was a fun quilt to make.

I come from a sewing family and it's such a joy to have family members who all enjoy the same craft. We rely on each other's opinions and you will often time see links to my sister at Sew Much and More. (Who, by the way, is also participating in this Hop!)  I'm inspired by the many blogs I follow and visit and you will also see links to these various blogs hoping they will inspire you too!

I enjoy participating in Blog Hops and they really help me to expand my comfort zone while expanding my creative abilities. 

I love using my Serger to create edges such as these on my projects.

There is so much a Serger can do and I'm only touching the surface. I hope to start a Serger Series soon so that I may share all I'm learning with you.  

So...check back soon!

When quilting, I have a chance to stitch out something nice on my embroidery machine. I set it up and let it do its thing while I go about my quilty business.

And I always like a quilt loaded on my longarm...ready to be quilted. 

                                      

This is one of my favorites. The string piecing technique made a striking two color quilt.

I'm looking forward to following and visiting you and getting to know you too. You can read more about me in the "About Me" section on the sidebar. I always enjoy reading your comments and learn so much from my readers through their comments.

To see a list of participants visit Vicki at 2 Bags Full and start visiting and following all the different blogs. There are many who are having giveaways too!

Anyone up for a giveaway?

What about two giveaways?

I have for you:

Giveaway #1

Four fat-eights

Giveaway #2

A personalized pen embroidered with your name

1.  Just leave a comment and also tell me which item you prefer. Make sure I can get in touch with you, especially if you are a no-reply blogger.

2.  If the two winners requested the same item then the first drawn will receive the fabric and the second will receive the personalized pen.

3.  Winners will be drawn on February 15, 2014.

4.  This giveaway is open to anyone and I will ship anywhere.

Thanks for visiting and enjoy the rest of the blogs participating in this Hop.

Happy Living! Happy Quilting!

Muffuletta or Muffaletta? A New Orleans Tradition.

It's A Saturday Sharing Day at Pigtales and Quilts. Go take a look at what everyone else is sharing on this Saturday....This is what I would like to share...

muf·fu·let·ta

 [muhf-uh-let-uh] 

noun

a thick, round sandwich similar to a hero, typically containing ham, salami, and cheeses and topped with an olive salad, a specialty of New Orleans.

I didn't get any sewing done today, but I did make one of these sandwiches that my husband loves and could enjoy on a weekly basis. My local grocery store use to carry a similar semolina type bread but then stopped. So...if I wanted to make this sandwich I had to learn to make my own bread too! I succeeded. I use my bread machine to mix the dough and use for first rising. There are two more rising to go before baking. 

The muffuletta sandwich is one of New Orleans' signature foods. The sandwich originated at the city's Central Grocery early in the 20th Century, when Italian-born farmers brought their produce to the local farmer's market. The Italian-owned grocery stocked their favorite meats and olives and, over time, the owners hit on the idea of making lunch easier for the farmers by creating a sandwich that would hold all their favorite ingredients. The loaf used was a round, Sicilian bread called muffuletta, which gave its name to the sandwich.

Read more: What Is Muffuletta Bread? | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/info_8423893_muffuletta-bread.html#ixzz2J7oIHDzh

Steps to Build a Great Muffuletta 

Here is my round 1.5 pound loaf. This will be one sandwich cut into wedges. It smelled soooo good while it was baking. I love baking breads in the Winter. (Small round sandwich buns from grocery bakery will work well too..not hamburger buns, they are too soft.)

I use Olive Salad from Gambino's Bakery in New Orleans. Any time I go back home for a visit, this is one of the items I always bring back. (If I'm out I just make my own. The one I make is similar to this one)

I drain the olive salad in a colindar and generously spread it onto the sliced loaf. I will use a little more than half the jar. Don't discard the drained olive oil!! It's great for dipping fresh breads into or to dribble over steamed veggies. I just pour the oil back into the jar until I need it.

Onto the olive salad I next put a layer of Honey Ham then a layer of Hot Capicola.

I then add a layer of Provolone cheese....

Then a layer of Hard Salami....

Then a layer of Pastrami....

Then a layer of Mozzarella...whew...wait there's more....

Then a layer of Sopressata...

I generally have some extra slices of Mozzarella left, so what the heck...I throw those on to...

Just a few more steps left.

A little more Olive Salad on top...and...

Put the top half of the bread on...and...

Slice into eight wedges...and...

Plate it up, zap individual wedges in microwave for about 30 - 45 seconds to melt cheese...and ENJOY!

Serves 6 - 8 people. I can only handle one wedge and sorta have to eat it sideways....DELISH!!

It was nice spending a cold Saturday baking bread and sipping coffee then enjoying this sandwich for supper.

Hope you try it and enjoy it. Let me know if you do. 

I buy about 1/2 pound of each ingredient but usually don't use it all. (I normally have other uses in mind for the remainder or make two and wrap wedges in plastic wrap and keep in frig for a quick grab)

Thanks for visiting! I love reading your comments!

Happy Living! Happy Quilting! Happy Cooking, too!

Quilt retreat coming up

I signed up for Saturday's quilt retreat at my LQS. I went in July and we had such a blast. Sewed, laughed, ate, laughed, sewed, ate, laugh, ate, sewed...from 9am to 9pm. Check it out on my LQS blog. There are also pictures of my Honeyberries quilt that I serged using deco thread and a picture of my gold and silver serged table topper. I even made the tassels on my serger! The site has some great pics. I'm looking forward to this Saturday. I'm back in school trying to earn my Master's of Science in Nursing...and working full time. Just finished up with a course and I have a week and a half off before starting again....I NEED TO TO SEW!

My new sewing technique and personal goal is to become a serger diva. My last few projects, I've done on the serger...I even did mitered corners on a border...I held my breath and let the machine do the sewing an cutting...it's the best mitered border corner I've ever done! (Done on the gold and silver table topper). I embroidered a pretty gold ornament on the center block.

Everyone...please a have great evening and rest of the week. Thanks for visiting.

Happy Quilting, Happy Living!.....DeAnna