Meghan's Material World

Day 1

Not much to post today.  I am very tired.  But I made a promise to myself to post something every day for a week, so I am doing that.  I am just going to show you some of my spun goodies.  Perhaps I will feel more "wordy" tomorrow.  Have a great one!

 

Happy,Happy!

Thank you all so much for the warm welcome back messages!  I think that is what I missed most about blogging.  For almost a month now, my email box has been empty…well, I have had a few “real” emails (hello to G.H. in Texas!), but for the most part, it has all been junk.  It has been quite sad.

But, since I am sure that no one wants to read about my pitifully sad empty email box, I will instead, share with you some things that make me happy!

 

First, I was thrilled to find a four-leaf clover this morning – and I wasn’t even looking for one!  I almost stepped on it as I was walking into the shop from my car.  I have an uncanny ability to spot a four-leaf clover at 100 paces….okay, maybe not, but I have found more than (what some people would consider) my fair share of them over the years.  I am well over 100 at this point.  Yes, I used to actually LOOK (search) for them.  Now, they just seem to pop up at me from nowhere.  I still get that giddy happy feeling whenever I come across one, so this was a very happy way to start my day!

Yesterday was Jeannie’s (the new Mrs. Gehman) birthday, and there was a little family get-together at their place to celebrate.  Of course, I brought the cake!  I had big plans for this baby….I actually started working on it LAST WEEK!  I had made some adorable little fondant candles and other 3-d decorations for on it, however, they didn’t have enough time to dry out.  The weather here has been so humid that the poor things were still soft.  SO, I had to change my entire design idea at the last moment (yesterday afternoon).  I ended up doing a paisley-themed cake, with no pre-planning at all….I was pasting paisleys to that thing like a mad woman, in fact, I was putting on the final touches as I was walking to my car!  Considering the major changes that I had to make from original concept to finished product, I am quite pleased with my results.  And, even more importantly, Jeannie was delighted with it, and THAT made me very happy!

I have been keeping myself busy with projects that don’t involve sugar and stand mixers….by the way, I DID get my new KitchenAid.  It is pistachio green, and I love it!  I did really want a pink one, but no one had any in stock, and I got a fantastic deal, so I really can’t complain…

We did finish the yellow quilt, and I couldn’t be happier!  I was beginning to wonder if we would ever be done with it.  It was starting to really stress me out.  Both quilts have been shipped out, and now they are one step closer to being “home” with the little girls they are meant to comfort.

I have picked up the jumbled mess of fabric from my floor (otherwise known as my brother’s wedding quilt), and I have started to make some progress on it.  I think that I may actually be done with all of the ripping and resewing that was driving me nuts!  I suppose I just needed a break from it, because ever since I started working on it again, I haven’t had any real frustrating or tear-inducing incidents….In fact, it has been pretty easy!

  You can see a little bit of the above-mentioned quilt-in-progress in the following photographs.  I am using it as a backdrop for my lovely new yarn.  Don’t you just love colorful yarns?  I do…especially when I was the one to spin it and dye it!  Oh, it’s true, I have a new obsession – spinning is the next skill I want to develop.  My ex-sister-in-law, Dawn, is an incredible spinner, and I have always been in awe of her amazing talent.  My desire to spin was piqued by the new wheel that Miss Meshell and her mother Dy recently acquired.  So, I worked out a deal with Dawn that I would make her a bunch of microscope slide pendants, and in return, she is letting me use one of her wheels for a few weeks.  I have been having so much fun!  I have, however, had an allergic reaction to wool (or actually, the lanolin, according to the pharmacist),  but I am so addicted, that I continued to spin with the wool until my new fiber arrived.  I have since used another type of wool, Blue Face Leicester, and I didn’t have any kind of reaction to it….in fact, it is really soft and super-easy to spin.  I also got some soy silk, bamboo, flax, hemp, and alpaca.  I haven’t tried the alpaca yet, though.  I have spent some time petting it, and it is so nice.  I can’t wait to spin it!

I have a growing collection of pretty yarns, and I don’t really care for knitting or crochet – and there is no room in the house for a loom (my REAL dream toy!), so, I am going to have to figure out what to do with it all.  Especially if I ever want to be able to buy a wheel for myself….I have to have some way to rationalize it to the Hubby.  Any ideas?  It would make me REALLY happy to find a way to get myself a wheel!

 

Now, on a completely different topic, could all of you lovely folks help make a Pennsylvania boy’s NBA dreams come true?  I got an email from my SIL (Hubby’s sis) asking for help to make Adam’s dreams a reality.  I can’t think of a better way to assist Adam than to ask all of my readers to vote for him….His video is HILLARIOUS, and it is well worth your vote.  Here is the link to his video in case you have any desire to help, or if you are just curious to know what this is about.  If he wins, we will ALL be very HAPPY! 

 

I am AMAZING!

I never fail to impress myself with my uncanny ability to sabotage my own work and projects....

The perfect example of this skill would be yesterday's Mixer Massacre.  These beaters got a beat-down from a metal serving spoon, which, sadly, did not make it through looking any better!  While normally this incident would be unfortunate, it certainly would not be a tragedy.  Of course, I had to allow this spoon/beater altercation to occur just weeks before I need to prepare icing for a wedding!

Now, I must admit that I have been hinting around to my Hubby that a new Kitchenaid Mixer would make me one very happy girl.  And, while this is true, I can assure him, and the rest of the world (or at least anyone who reads this blog), that yesterday's tragic kitchen appliance catastrophe was completely unintentional!  But, since now I NEED to get a new mixer, which color do you think I should go with?  I was thinking the tangerine, or the pink, or ice, or even pistachio....There are so many pretty colors!

In case anyone else is keeping score, I have successfully destroyed the following appliances in the last 6 months....1 toaster oven and 1 stand mixer.  Watch out microwave, your next!  (I'm KIDDING, calm down dear Hubby!)

I can't think of a title today....

Despite the fact that I can't think of an appropriate title for this post, I am going to write anyway.  I am still working on the 7 weird things about me for Dy.  That will come later....this is just a quick bit to say hi to everyone who is still reading (thanks!) and to update you on a few of my projects.

I realized that I haven't even mentioned the yellow quilt is in the frame (it has been for a couple of weeks now!), and we are working on it whenever we have a spare moment.  The girls even work on it during their lunch breaks and before and after work! Here is a picture from early in the quilting process.  We were going to do stars around the border (since the other quilt has hearts), but when we saw these bows, the overwhelming consensus was to use them instead.

Now we are working on the last 6 blocks.  Hopefully they go fast.  I think they will, since it is mostly just straight line quilting.  Soon this lovely quilt will be all finished!  I will be so relieved when it is.  As much as I have enjoyed doing these quilts, and as much as I felt I NEEDED to help with them, I also feel like we are going too slow, and that everyone is waiting for us to just get it done.....Then I feel like I haven't spent enough time on it because of all the other projects that need my attention right now.  I really feel like I am being pulled in about 100 directions right now!  I can't tell you how thankful I am for the help of all the girls in the shop....without them, I can guarantee that I would still be working on the border!

While the girls from the store are helping with the quilts, I am lucky enough to have a bunch of crafty pals who were kind enough to help me crank out some more roses for the centerpieces! Here is one that is finished...what do you think? My Craftster group got together on Sunday to help with wedding crafts!  And with as much as I appreciate all the help they gave, I know that my brother and his fiance were even more appreciative of the help! I know I had a great time, and I hope everyone else enjoyed themselves, too. See how much we got done?   

There is still a lot of work to do.  But there was some major progress made this weekend (thanks everyone!) and I am feeling a LITTLE less stressed about getting it all done in time.  June 16 is coming up really fast!  Please keep your fingers crossed that I can pull it all off! 

Again, because of the massive amount of work, and loads of projects I am trying to get finished, I don't know when I will be posting again.  Thank you to everyone who is still checking in....after this marathon of wedding mayhem, I will be back to posting more regularly again. 

Still Busy, Busy, Busy!

I just wanted to let you all know that I AM still alive!  I have been so very busy with work, and the weddings, and life in general, that I have not taken the time to post on my blog.  Lately, by the end of work, I really just want to come home and take a nap!  Unfortunately that hasn't been an option....Of course, if I did feel that I had the time for a nap, my mind would be whirling with "things to do" and I wouldn't rest anyway!

I have a ton of projects for the wedding half finished.  I have the expectation of completing them all around the same time....that is the plan, anyway.  You may be wondering why I don't just do one thing at a time....sometimes I wonder that, too!  If I keep it mixed up, I don't get bored as easily, and I actually get a lot more work done in less time.  But then, there is the issue of not having any one thing FINISHED.  It would feel so nice to cross SOMETHING off my list....soon, very soon. 

You have seen the centerpiece bases, so here is a look at the flowers.  What do you think?  Do they look okay?  This is obviously not a finished piece...it is just flowers I stuck into a block of foam as I finished them.  In case you were wondering, yes, the roses are made of paper.  Coffee filters, painted with watercolors, actually.  These happen to look quite orange in the picture, but they are really a very pretty pink.  Really!

Now for some eye candy.  These are images of stuff I have made for swaps recently.  They were all shipped out before my last post, so I have not been "wasting" my wedding craft time with swap projects, for anyone who would question WHY I would do that to myself.  To be honest, it has been very difficult to stay away from any swapping for the past few weeks!  I keep reminding myself that it is just a little while longer before I can swap again....just a little while longer....

I made this as an "angel" package for the Tea-Time Swap at Craftster.  That means that the person who was supposed to send my partner a package, didn't.  So I volunteered to put something together for her, without the expectation of getting anything back.  This one was a lot of fun!  The tea cozy is reversible!

I made these for the From my Hand to Yours swap on Swap-bot.  I haven't heard from my partner, so I don't know if she got it, or likes it, or if it has been eaten by bears or some other horrible fate has befallen it.  This is what I sent, anyway!

Ah, and here is something that I GOT!  This is what I received from my partner in the 24 hour swap.  I love it so much!  I felted it, and now I want to line it with fabric so that I can have a zipper pocket.  You see, my bags have a tendency to fly off the passenger seat onto the floor, and if I don't have a zipper pocket, there is junk scattered everywhere!

I will be sure to show you when it is all finished....whenever that may be....

I must get back to work now...Hopefully I will post again soon, but please don't hold your breath....It could be awhile before I make time to do it again....but then again, I could post tomorrow....we'll see!

Busy, busy, busy...

I want to thank you all for leaving me such wonderfully sweet comments!  I get such pleasure from reading all of your lovely messages that I really wish that I could send each and every one of you a gift!  However, at least this time, I had only one gift to give, and Joyce was the lucky recipient!  If you were not as lucky as Joyce, don’t worry, there will be more goodies to get in the future.

What a crazy week!  I didn’t figure that THIS week would be the one that was so busy!  After all, the quilt show was last week.  So, the shop has been doing very well…Thank you all!  But it isn’t only the store that has been busy….my “real” life has been jam-packed with craziness, too! 

I have had a major toothache all week….not fun!  It isn’t just a toothache because it has been the cause of a headache and an earache, too.  Basically I am miserable!  On Thursday, I decided that it wasn’t going to get better on its own, so I have scheduled an appointment with the dentist on Tuesday morning.  Hopefully, I will survive that long!

Despite my desperately pitiful condition, I have been surprisingly productive.  I finally figured out a centerpiece idea for my brother’s wedding!  Do you like it?  Pretty, huh?

This is the dollar-store centerpiece by Meghan….a candlestick holder with a clear glass plate on top.  Both have been decoupaged with a glittery tissue paper in a very light shade of the bride’s color.  This one isn’t completely finished…I still have to clean up the edges, and the base needs another coat of paper to fill in the patchiness.  But you get the general idea. 

These will have a floral arrangement with little twinkle lites on top.  They will also hold the table numbers.  So they are very multi-functional.  I am very happy with them, and the lovely bride-to-be was as excited as she gets (she is a very calm, rational, person – I don’t get it!) about them, which makes me a happy girl!   Now, only 19 more to go!

Progress on my cake decorating has not really happened this week.  Who can think about cake when they have a toothache?  I did, however, do one cake early in the week that was fun, but not really a wedding idea.  It was more of a “playing with fondant” thing.  I LOVE that fondant is so much like polymer clay.  Not that I am a spectacular example of a clay artist or anything, but I do enjoy doing little projects now and then. I have always liked doing/making canes, so I wanted to see if the process would work with the fondant…and LOOKIE, it did!  This one was fun to do, but it isn’t something I would want to attempt for the wedding.  It was way too much work! 

With all the wedding activity, and the busy shop, I decided I needed to do something for myself last weekend.  And, because I LOVE to do swaps (I like the challenge of creating something for someone else, and getting mail is always a pleasure, too!) I signed myself up for the 24 hour swap on Craftster.  You sign up, and have 24 hours to create and mail out a project for your partner.  When I got the info on my partner, I discovered that she likes bags (okay, who doesn’t?!) and is particularly fond of paisley (again, who isn’t?!).  It took all of 2 minutes to decide what fabric I was going to use….Kaffe Fassett Jungle Paisley…But then it took me about 3 hours to decide how to use it CREATIVELY.  I didn’t want to just make a straight-up tote bag….where is the fun in that?!  This is the final result.

Of course, if I had more time, I would have added a zipper pocket to the lining, and I also would have added some sort of closure, too.  But, for the limited time, I think it turned out pretty nice.  In fact, I must admit, I had a tough time letting this one go.  I could really use a new bag myself, and I really liked this.  But guess what?  I got an equally, if not even more, great bag in return.  And, it is something I could not have done (easily, anyway) for myself.  It is crocheted!  Obviously, with only 24 hours, my partner didn’t have time to crochet and felt it in time to send, SO I get to do the felting myself.  I am excited to try it out….It will be my first time….My only real concern is that I will ruin all the work my partner did!  She seems to think I will do just fine.  I hope she is right!  I will be showing off the lovely thing once I have it felted.  I am hoping to do it today.  Everyone cross your fingers that I don’t screw it up! 

Oh, there is so much more to show you, and tell you about, but if you are even still reading this post, you deserve a medal!  I am even tired of it, and I am the one doing the writing! At least now I know I have something to write about next time, right? Well, I think it is time to take some more aspirin!  Have a great one, all!

Crowds, and yes, more CAKE!

I have a few pictures to share with you today.  I don't have a lot of time for too many words, so I hope the images speak for themselves. 

First, a few of the the crowd at Sauder's earlier this week (most were taken from the "safe" area behind the cutting tables!).  You can see them larger by clicking on the photos.

I call this last one "Brave Local".  Notice the Amish woman in search of the perfect print?  Oh, my, I just realized how terribly jumbled and untidy the bolts of fabric look!  This is the textile carnage that is the result of having a flock of excited quilters swarm the shop!

And, of course, my latest and most favorite (so far) practice cake.  This one is also just an inverted cupcake, but it has an extra layer!  Tiny layer cakes are funny.....and I am easily amused!

 

Just one question  for anyone reading this who may know....How do you keep your flowers from getting smooshed? Should I have let them dry completely before adding them to the cake?  I think I flattened the petals when I was pushing it onto the top.....I couldn't find any directions for making the flowers, so I just crumpled up a strip of fondant until it resembled a flower (like a ribbon rose in sewing)....this was AFTER spending about an hour trying to build one with individual petals, which looked great, but I couldn't get them to stay stuck together!  I need a cake decorating mentor...someone to whom I can ask all my silly little questions when they arise.  Oh, Great Cake Guru, are you out there?!

Let them eat CAKE!

There is a lot going on here at Z&S Fabrics this week.  As I mentioned in my previous post, the Lancaster Heritage Quilt Show begins this week, and that means the stores will be mobbed with many, many customers.  So far, it has been rather quiet, busy, but not out-of-control crazy.  For some reason, I have a feeling that today things are going to start to get a little more intense....There are four busses scheduled for this afternoon.  And, on average, for every 2 scheduled busses, there is an unscheduled one that shows up too!  We really like when large groups notify us of an upcoming visit....that way we are sure to have enough help in the store to keep things moving.  This is especially important to our customers, since we are not the only fabric shop in town, and they want to visit as many as they possibly can in the little time they are in Lancaster.

If you aren't lucky enough to have made the trek to Lancaster this year, check out the website for a little fabric therapy.  Right now, any order of $25 or more will receive an extra 15% off!  There are LOTS of new things to see, too!  How about that? You didn't even have to leave your house for that great deal!

More cakes have been decorated… It is quite obvious that while my design concept is good, the actual execution of the cake decorating is quite clumsy.  I am not going to show you the macro pictures of these little lovelies…they might scare you!  Some things are nice from a distance.  Thank goodness, I still have plenty of time to practice….and thank goodness that my practice-cake eaters aren’t as critical of my work as I am!  As long as it tastes good, they are thrilled with my work!

Here is something that I am thrilled about!  Isn’t this just the cutest little notebook cover?  The prints are from the Summer in the City Collection by Urban Chicks for Moda.  We currently have the charm packs available.  We will be carrying the entire line once it is released (later this month, I think).  Of course, one lucky ducky will be the proud new owner of this adorable project made by Me!  I am also going to send the winner their own charm pack of this collection, so they can make something lovely with it, too!   You all know how to play….Leave me a message before Saturday, April 14th, and I will draw a winner from the lot of you on Sunday.  Good Luck!  I can’t wait to hear from you!

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter!  To celebrate, my dear friend Meshell has sent some Aussie goodies for my family to enjoy.  She was going to send me an Easter Wallaby,  but, probably because it is what she was looking for, she wasn’t able to find a wallaby this year…So, instead, she sent 2 bilbies, and a wombat (still “strange” animals to me!).  Meshell also sent two Cadburry Cream Eggs…..which we do have here at Easter, but it is fun to know that they came from so far away!  Along with all the chocolate goodness, there were two BEAUTIFUL postcards, but I was not able to get a good picture of them because the glare from my flash was just too bad.  So trust me, they are so pretty that I think I am going to have to frame them.

So, what do you think about my tiny cakes?  Aren’t they cute?! They are just cupcakes that I have turned upside down and covered in (homemade) rolled fondant.  The little chick is also made from fondant….I sculpted it!  This is my very first attempt at cake decorating.  I must practice, practice, practice, because I am going to be decorating a bunch (probably 20) small cakes for my Aunt’s wedding in June.  They are going to be the centerpieces at each table, and will take the place of the traditional wedding cake.  This is just a bit of a warning; expect to see a few cakes over the next few months as I practice for the big day!  No, I NEVER commit to more than I can handle! Ha ha ha!

Perhaps you have picked up on the recent wedding-theme here.  It is because I have an unusually high number of loved-ones with upcoming nuptials.  May 26 my cousin will be tying the knot, and other than sending a gift (which WILL be selected from her registry – sadly, she is not one to enjoy/appreciate gifts that have been lovingly created by hand), I have no other obligations involved with her wedding.  My big brother is getting hitched (to one of the sweetest girls on the planet!) on June 16.  I am making a quilt for them.  Mom and I are making centerpieces and favors for their reception, too.  Then, my aunt is making an honest man of her fiancé on June 29^th.  As I mentioned earlier, I am decorating many, many cakes for her big day!  Luckily, my auntie is a big fan of simple elegance….

I have finished the first of the quilts for the Kim’s!  Sabine’s quilt is all finished…quilted, bound, and even washed!  Penelope’s quilt should be in the frame on Monday or Tuesday (keep your fingers crossed that we get the chance to make that happen!).  

The upcoming week will probably be pretty hectic around here….It is the week of the annual

Lancaster

Heritage Quilt Show, which means that we will all be spending some time working in the brick and mortar store.  This is the very busiest week of the entire year….I wish that words could express just how crazy things get in the store….I will try to snap a few pictures of the insanity to share with you.  It really is quite unbelievable!  The girls in the shop have been preparing for this one week for the last 2 months!  From their many years of quilt show experience, they have crowd control, and cutting, and checkout down to a science!  I cannot imagine the chaos that quilt show week COULD be!

I have a very cute Spring giveaway planned for later this week....Keep your eyes on my blog for your chance to win something lovely made by me! 

Have a wonderful, safe, Easter everyone!

I'm here!

Once again, time has just flown by!  Apparently, I am not so great at time management, because for some reason, I never seem to make enough time to blog.  I think it needs to have a higher place of priority on my "to-do" list.  But enough about my not posting....on to the good stuff!

In my last post, I mentioned a Craftster meet-up that I went to last Sunday.  A bunch of local (Lancaster, Harrisburg, and Lebanon area) crafty women (we met on Craftster) coming together for good food (we all bring some sort of delicious treat) good crafting (a different type of project each time) and good times (how could a day of crafty camaraderie NOT be a good time?!)  We have decided to do a crafty get-together every month.  When we got together last Sunday, we did decoupage.  This is a new craft for me, but I think I really like it!  I have finally come up with SOMETHING to do with all of those magazine pages I ripped out a few weeks ago.  See the cute little box I did on Sunday?  I think that next time we meet, we will be doing embroidery.  That should be pretty fun, too.  I can't wait to get together to play again, girls!

I have continued to work on the quilt for my brother and his fiance, and it is going pretty well.  I am going to need to haul all of the blocks with me to the shop in order to have the space to lay it out.  This is the part that should be really fun, and challenging, too.  Hopefully, I will get a chance to do it this week...It would be good to keep the momentum going.  I have also been working on a new gifty goody to give away here, on my blog.  My first attempt didn't work out so well...I ended up with the wrong size!  So, now I am trying again....So, keep your eyes peeled on the blog for your chance to win a cute little something from Me very soon!

Plus, the best news of all, the quilt is out of the frame!  I have actually got the binding sewn on, now I am doing the hand stitching of it towards the back.  I took today off from work (I haven't been home on a Saturday in goodness-knows how long!), so I am hoping to get most of it (if not the whole thing) completed this weekend!  Of course, it is so beautiful outside I may take a little trek to the garden shop to get some great inspiration for my own yard....not that there is enough time to ever get anything done out there!  It is still nice to imagine what it could be...

Well, I am off to do some more stitching on that pretty pink binding!  Have a great weekend everyone!