Received a Very Nice Prize

Isn't this a lovely little pillow? I won the giveaway hosted by Attic Raggedys during the Grow Your Blog Hop.

Look at those faces! So cute! She did an awesome job on the stitching. Receiving a hand stitched gift is such a treasure!! I appreciate all the work that went into it and absolutely love it!

Visit Attic Raggedys...her blog site is awesome, fun and happy! She has an Ebay store and an website, atticraggedys.com, offering a ton of lovely items from patterns to fabric.

Thanks Judy. Your do beautiful work.

Hope everyone has a great day. Thanks for visiting!

Happy Living! Happy Quilting!

Kings Cakes and Daffodils

I'm linking this post with the 2014 NewFo February Challenge held by Cat Patches. Scroll down to see my February NewFo and click here to see what others have created.

The signs I look for that tells me Spring is near:

King Cakes...

...and Daffodils

Click here for a great King Cake Recipe. It's from my niece, Angela, who lives in Baton Rouge, La.

The daffodils started pushing through a couple weeks ago and now they're in full bloom. Hope we don't have a freeze, but...alas...another Polar Vortex is on its way.

Quilting Happenings:

Friday my LQS hosted a workshop. It's a new club that's starting up..The ABC club (Already Been Cut). The objective of the club is to work with precuts. This month's workshop focused on the Disappearing Four Patch as demonstrated in this YouTube video by Jenny Doan of The Missouri Star Quilt Company. I've done the Disappearing Nine Patch before so the four-patch method was new to me. 

There were about 15 or so in attendance which made for a nice group. Don't you just love sewing with others...I do!

I started out with this four patch. I used fabric from my stash...YAY!!...and cut my own 5 inch squares.

Then you make cuts one inch (or two inches...your choice) from the seam on all four sides. Having one of those rotating cutting mats worked really well. 

Next exchange the two top squares with each other and the two bottom squares with each other. (Or move the narrow center pieces around too if you want...Lots of choices for YOUR quilt)

Then take the tiny center square and rotate it one way or the other.

Ta-Da...a disappearing four patch. 

I've played around with different layouts with the fourteen blocks I completed in the workshop...I'll let you know which layout I decide on once I get more blocks made. 

What did you sew this weekend?

Thanks for stopping by and I love to read your comments!

Happy Living! Happy Quilting!

Winners of My Giveaways!

AND THE WINNERS ARE:

 Of the Grow Your Blog blog hop:

#42 Emily C won the red and black fat eights and said:

Emily CJanuary 26, 2014 at 10:14 PM

I love your Kaleidoscope quilt. I am a new follower and would love to win the first prize.

#20 Barb won the personalized pen and said:

barbJanuary 25, 2014 at 8:42 PM

i really love reading your blog. i have been following you for quite a while on bloglovin. your blog is always informative, inspiring and shows your talent. i would love either prize. 

And the winner of My Birthday Giveaway:

#9 QuiltSwissy won the personalized embroidered Sewing Studio artwork and said:

 QuiltSwissyFebruary 6, 2014 at 10:17 AM

I love the bright colors, reds, blues, greens. And I also love a dramatic black. But there are some days when it just needs to blend all together with grey.

Happy Happy Birthday and thanks for the giveaway.

glen: Kinda like the Hobbits who give presents on their birthdays rather than receive them!

   (All winners were picked using Random Number Generator.)

Congratulations to the winners and notification emails have been sent. 

Thanks to all who visited and left comments. Come again soon.

Happy Living! Happy Quilting!

It's My Birthday Today - And I'm Having a Giveaway

Happy Birthday to ME!

I'm not telling my age but I'm in the 45 - 60 age category.

I've been very blessed by God in Heaven throughout my life of 45 to 60 years.  I've met some wonderful folks that have inspired me in everything that I love to do.

 I've been blessed:

• with a husband that always puts me first and indulges me (and doesn't question my fabric stash or the time I spend in my sewing studio). 
• with a daughter who has never caused us any problems and is becoming her own person in her own way.
• to have been born into a loving family that supports each member.
• to be healthy and
• to be wise (sometimes)

Thanks to all who have inspired me throughout my life.

 To Celebrate my birthday I'm having a giveaway.

 

I will give to one lucky winner a personalized Embroidered Sewing Studio artwork similar to  the examples pictured above. Frame not included. The design will be embroidered on Osnaburg Muslin and will fit into a 10 x 13 inch frame...remember frame not included.  The winner will have their choice of thread color for the wording. This will look great in your sewing studio!

1. Leave me a comment and tell me your choice of  thread color. (don't worry, the winner will be contacted and thread color will be discussed further.)
2. If you are a no-reply commenter then I will need to be able to contact you through email, so make sure that I can.
3. Giveaway is open to anyone who leaves a comment.
4.  I will ship anywhere.
5. Follow me for a second chance and let me know in a second comment.
6. Giveaway is open until Thursday, February 13th. Winner will be drawn on Friday, February 14th.  

Good Luck and I hope you enjoy my birthday as much as I plan to!

Snowpocalypse 2014 - Atlanta is Frozen!

What a mess this weather system has caused here in the South...and also maybe poor planning by government and private companies! I feel for the kids that had to stay at the schools overnight and the parents trying to get home but were stuck in the massive gridlock created by EVERYONE trying to get home. It's like snowpocalypse around here! We are just not prepared for this kind of weather. It may make for a pretty scene, but I'd rather have the green grass and warmer temps we are so accustomed to.

This was from a traffic cam on I-20 this morning, west of the city. These people are stuck in the ice...no one is moving. I heard that Kroger Grocery store kept there doors open through the night and allowed folks to take refuge in the stores.  A FaceBook group was trying to get to people stranded in cars, bringing them food, water and gas. Hotel rooms filled up throughout the city so most of the stranded people had no where to stay anyway. Churches also opened their doors to help accommodate the stranded. At least there is still compassion out there for those in need. Oh and a baby was born in a car while the parents struggled to get to the hospital. The National Guard is now teaming with law enforcement and helping all the stranded folks...THANK YOU TO ALL THAT SERVE!

Why do we have all this sophisticated weather forecasting if government and private companies don't heed the warning! Gosh I received the winter weather alert Sunday night on my cell phone! And quickly made sure I had all I needed for sewing my projects! Anyway...snowpocolypse 2014 continues with freezing temps until tomorrow.  Luckily I'm retired from nursing for the time being and my DH's company was smart and decided to close until tomorrow.... and I'm home...sewing!

This is what I'm currently working on:

I made these during our Annual Family Sewing Retreat in October. They came together quickly and were rather fun to make. One bag takes 2 fat quarters.

 

I'm wanting to use small panels for the front of the bag but I'll need to move the zipper up an inch or so...or maybe relocate the zipper opening to the bag top.

 

I love these panels. They make me laugh every time I look at them. I know some nurses that actually look like these and I'm sure you know some too!

 

 

 

 

  

They are the Nifty Nurses Collection by Loralie Harris for Loralie Designs. I'm using one panel per bag so I definitely have my choice of which Nifty Nurse to use!

Thanks for stopping by and your comments are always welcome. Stay warm!

Happy Living! Happy Quilting!

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!

The Road to Being a Longarm Quilting Diva...

...is a very bumpy road indeed with seam ripper and tweezers in hand!!!

I wanted to quilt this top I made several years ago. It's one of the five I need to do that's on my "To Do" list for 2014.  I've never used the laser light on my Longarm to trace pantographs so I thought this would be a great opportunity to try it.

From EQ7 I found 2 stencils that looked rather easy and then combined them....Leaves and dragonflies. I then traced the design on some long tracing paper. I practiced for about an hour going over and over the design with my machine not threaded to get the feel of the design. I know this sounds very lame to all those great Long Armers out there for this so simple design...but I have to start somewhere right?!..and some day I want to be a great Long Armer too!

I'm always afraid to start quilting a top and have to constantly remind myself that it's only thread and it CAN be removed...hence the ripper and the tweezers!

 

 

 

 

I thought this dragon fly came out rather nice...it was near the center of the quilt after I quilted several rows...practice, practice, practice. The quilting stitched out very dainty looking.

 

 

 

 

And I'm not afraid to show the "not so good" ones either. I'll get better with practice, practice, practice.

 

 

The leaves came out well and by the end of the quilting adventure I no longer needed the pantograph design.

 

 

I then let my Serger do its thing...cutting off excess fabric and finishing the edges. The quilt is now ready for binding. Hmm...should I do a serged thread binding or traditional binding. You all know how much I like using my Serger!

 

I'll post an updated pic as soon as I get it binded.

 

Thanks for stopping my. Have a great day!

 

Happy Living! Happy Quilting!