Bling in the New Year!

My friend Janice Pope--oh, you know Janice, she' the creator of the Two-Hour Tulip Purse--is running a contest. All you have to do is make a Two-Hour Tulip Purse and 'bling' it up! Get creative, the more over-the-top, the better! Send a picture of your blinged-up Two-Hour Tulip Purse to Janice by the deadline, and you could WIN big!

You have until March 31 to make your purse and bling it big! Seems like a very realistic deadline considering it's a TWO HOUR sewing project! Rules, deadlines, and all the deets are right here. If you are a winner, you might just find a copy of the new book, When Bad Things Happen to Good Quilters in your prize package.

What? You don't have the pattern? Well, here's another contest to get you started. Make a comment on this blog entry just below, and you'll be entered for a random draw to get a signed copy of the pattern, straight from Janice herself. Don't delay! The random drawing to receive the pattern happens Monday, January 12, so only those comments made before midnight Sunday, January 11th (East Coast Time) are eligible. All you have to do is comment!

Good luck!

Oh, and before I forget, if you are a shop owner and would like your shop to join in the challenge, Janice is offering some special wholesale pricing just in time for the contest. Check her website and get in touch with Janice for the specifics!

Update: We have a winner! Janice Pope drew the random number 11. That means Char Popson wins the autographed copy of the Two-Hour Tulip Purse pattern. Congratulations Char--bling it on!! 

But there's more! . . . If you still want the pattern so you can enter the big contest, order the pattern here, and Janice will refund the shipping cost. This special only lasts through Friday, January 16th! So, don't delay!

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Those of you who follow this newsletter regularly know that I travel a lot! It's one of the great perks of doing what I do! Sometimes, all the travel leaves me missing my sewing machine. Whenever I get a good stretch of quiet time at home, like during the holidays, I try to take full advantage of some glorious, decadent sewing time. Here are a couple of projects I busied myself with this holiday season . . .

I saw a sample of this table runner pattern at Quiltique when I was in Henderson, Nevada in November. With new living room furniture delivered just in time for the holidays, this table runner, entitled Open-Weave from the Tiger Lily Press, was calling me. Stash fabrics in neutral tones, a spurt of time here and there, and call this one 'done!'

I made a second Hummingbird quilt using the pattern from the new book When Bad Things Happen To Good Quilters for Tim, one of my editors at The Taunton Press. I don't know why he didn't feel confident enough to pull out the sewing machine and make one for himself after spending all that time reading and re-reading the book text . . . Anyway, he tells me the quilt is going to be a special gift for someone who just loves hummingbirds--I can relate to that!

To make this version of the panel project, I opted for some hand quilting in the main section of the quilt. It's so nice to step away from the sewing machine for some hand work during the crazy holiday season! The pattern, and even some tips for hand quilting, are in the new book! The beautiful hummingbird fabric from Blend Fabrics might be tough to come by since it's been out for a year or two.

Speaking of hand stitching. This detailed cross-stitch kit was one of the treats I purchased just for me last summer during the Alaska Quilt Cruise. I started working on the stitching in August, and I've been chipping away at it fairly diligently ever since. Once the stitching is complete, I plan to add a quilty-scrappy border--maybe sometime this coming summer at the rate I'm going. . .

Oh, and I started working on a new project featuring the Mini Scrap Grid. It's still really early in the process to share very much, but here's a sneaky peak . . .

What about you? Did you get any holiday stitching in between cookie-baking, gift-wrapping, deck-the-halling? Do share!

Happy Stitching!
joan