Summer Time!

Hello Woolies!!

Summer Time has arrived in Colorado!  We are experiencing days in the 90’s and even hotter!  I remember when I first moved to Colorado in 1978…you know the “olden days”….the rare person had air conditioning in their homes.  Every afternoon at about 3:00 it would rain gently for a bit and then the sun would come out again.  It cooled things off so beautifully!  A day in the 90’s was rare for sure!  Chuck says he remembers when Fort Collins ended at Prospect Avenue.

Things do change…..this year’s Birthday qualified me for Social Security.  Wow! Life feels like it changes and goes by in a blink.  I hear the 1950’s referred to as “mid century.”  That can make you feel ancient.  I remember my sister and I visiting a Flea Market together and we were cracking up at all the things that we had from our childhood that are referred to as “vintage.”  We certainly in our minds eye are still the young chickies we always thought we were….at least that is how it feels until we look in the mirror.  I have found if I look in the mirror without my tri-focals on, I have not a wrinkle or age spot on my face!! Try it! It works!!

On to quilting…….where wrinkles can easily be taken care of with an iron!  Pictured below are Savannah (Bee) and myself holding the Moda Bag from Spring Market.  This bag is going to be filled with fun items, a total surprise for the person who wins it!  We will be drawing for the prize on July 13^th and notifying the winner in that Friday Post. 

Hope you have a great weekend, don’t forget that next Friday’s post will have the August themed “Snowbuddies” embroidery pattern.  We will be leaving the downloadable patterns on the blogspot until next June so that you have the opportunity to download them all.  After that they will be removed and distributed as a pattern that will be for sale.

Mini Moments from Bee…………. 

There is a lot of things you can do in a summer. You can go fishing, camping, vacation, picnics, bike rides, and swimming just to name a few. Well here is a great idea to make sure almost everything gets done that you are interested in. It's called a Summer Bucket List.

How To Get Your Summer Bucket List Started-

1.  You buy a bucket (small one is great) and write down all your summer want to dos on strips of cardstock.

2.  Then you put all the strips in the bucket. You can put this bucket by a bulletin board or something else.

3.  Then when you get the time to do one of the activities you can draw a strip from the bucket and then you have something fun to do that day. Make sure to take lots of pictures at your events. Then you can hang that event strip on the bulletin board along with a picture or two.

Here are some of my family's Summer Bucket List events:

·        Go to Waterworld

·        Go to Elitches

·        Go on a picnic

·        Ride our bikes on the Poudre Trail

·        Ride our bikes to the pool

·        Read at least 12 books

·        Swim at the Windsor Lake

·        Go the Gunther Toody's

·        Spend a day in Estes Park

·        Go to the Drive-In

·        Have a picnic on Picnic Rock

Here is a picture of our Summer Bucket List

Woolies Brown Bag Strip Kit Drawing Today!!!

Hello Woolies!

Today we drew the winner of the “Woolie’s Brown Bag Strip Kit.”  Our computer generated winner is……..Pam Hagar.  Congratulations!!  We will be emailing you for mailing information.  This is so much fun!!

We have started our “Summer Hours” at the shoppe.  We are only open on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.  Always going against the grain, I have shorter Summer Hours than Winter Hours…go figure.  Actually, this is the first step in creating the classroom space and classes on the days that I am closed.  With a smaller retail space it is hard to set up and operate classes while the shoppe is open.  Last Sunday, we had about eight ladies here just having a great time stitching and extending friendship.  Nancy promised us a Chantily Cake from Whole Foods and we were not disappointed.  I loved that I got the leftovers to share with Chuck.  We had plenty of healthy and not so healthy snacks to choose from.  I love the spirit of sharing and caring when two or more come together.  Stay tuned as we offer some really fun classes and I encourage you to contact us if you have a group of ladies that would like to use our space or have me teach a special class for you.

Last Friday night we had this enormous bus pull up and empty out 40 excited quilters from Texas.  It was about the wildest hour and fifteen minutes that we have experienced in a long while.  Since we knew these ladies would be visiting, I decided to make it “Free Kit” day at the shoppe.  Why not make the day a bit wilder and crazier!  I have at least one “Free Kit” day per month, it is a small project that I design just for this reason.  Ladies need to walk into the shoppe to get their kit.  Pretty easy!  We have been known to giveaway anywhere from 50 to over 300 kits in one day!!  The little kits are free for that day and then put out for sale the next day.  Soooo, “Bee” came in to be the distributor of “Free Kits.”  A lot of you Blog followers got to meet her, not that she is famous, but it was sure fun for her!!!  Our Texas ladies were able to experience our Shoppe, get a free kit and become “Woolies.”  Deb tells us that we converted a lot of ladies over to wool.  For sure we could tell that we made some new friends and followers.  Thanks Y’All!!!  Come again anytime, we loved it!!

Today, Bee and I are eating the best homemade tamales imaginable!!  A local woman makes and sells them and today they were steaming fresh right out of the cooker. They were so hot we could barely touch them.  Well, I consumed one and Bee couldn’t resist and had two.   I am sitting here watching her while she eats, picks out perle cotton colors and is blanket stitching.  She is definitely going to be a multi tasking woman some day.  I often realize just how your genes can filter down to grandchildren.  I may begin to call her “mini me” instead of “bee.”

I received a really cool Bag from Moda while at Market in Kansas City.  Our next post will show the bag and we will have some surprise contents for the NEXT GIVEAWAY.  Watch for details!!

Have a wonderful weekend, we are hoping that the horrible wildfire in Northern Colorado will soon become contained.  So many of our friends have been affected by this disaster.  Homes are lost, but so is the magnificent landscape of Colorado.  We are praying for a huge rain storm that will snuff out the entire fire and people can begin to rebuild their lives and homes. 

Mini Moments from Bee……………

Well, recital was amazing.  I danced my little heart out.  It was great having my family and friends there to cheer me on.

My brother, Cody has been gone for a week. He is at camp in Estes Park with his church youth group. I have been the only child, it’s been fun, but also boring. Without my brother around I don’t have anyone to play with, with it being summer and most people are out doing something else. Thankfully, he comes home today. I will enjoy his presence.  I can’t wait to hear and see him again.

Today I think of all the firefighters at the High Park Fire trying to contain the fire.  I pray for and thank them. I also think of all the homes that have been either evacuated or burnt down. I just pray that the Lord would look over the firefighters and the residents of the affected area.  God bless them all!

Summer is Here!!

Hello Woolies!

I can honestly say that Summer is here!  We have had such a warm Winter and Spring that it has been hard to define just when Summer would begin.  Last night was the first Concert in the Park and the streets were full of families coming and going to the park to enjoy the food and music.  Since we are now living downtown on Main Street it is so much fun to see and be a part of the activity without even starting my car!  I sometimes feel I am out of a romance novel living over the Shoppe.  It really is quite comfortable and this big antique building has welcomed us in so many ways.  Watch for future posts where I will share photos of our little home and some of the fun decorating ideas that I have used.

I have been spending lots of time in my storage units and have been finding some boxes with cool things in them.  Today, we introduce the “Posies Treasure Box” kit.  It is an 8” X 8” white box with a cool divided tray on the inside.  I love nothing more than finding a box or tin that I can embellish with one of my designs.  It is a challenge that soars me through the air.  I found 32 of these boxes in the way back of my storage unit.  I obviously had some vision for them.  So, I dug them out and this box is embellished with a Penny Rug on the lid and a wrap around Penny Rug for the box bottom.  One of the coolest parts of this box is a sectioned tray that fits just inside of the box.  Perfect for your treasures, sewing jewelry or whatever your heart desires.  The design features a white wool oval on the center front of the lower portion of the box.  I have used this spot to personalize my box with my initials.  You can do the same or add whatever you like.  Perfect for yourself, or a perfect gift for that special someone in your life.  The kit is available for $48.00, includes the Box, all the Wool for the Penny Rug on the lid and box.  We are happy to ship to you or stop by the shop and pick one up, while the supply lasts.  Call the Shoppe to order a kit – 970-686-5642.

I hope you have downloaded your next “Snowbuddies” embroidery pattern.  Some of you tell us that you are just getting the first one, but we have checked and both are on the site to download.  You may need to go to “Home” to update the latest postings. 

You still have time to sign up for the “Woolies Brown Bag” Kit that we will be drawing for on June 15^th.  You can check a previous blog posting for that information.

Have a great weekend, stay safe and be happy!

Mini Moments from Savannah –

Do you remember that Windsor had a tornado on the last day of school four years ago?  We had a big storm last night and it made me think of the tornado.  Before the storm we went to the Concert in the Park and it was really fun.  We had hamburgers, chips and a drink.  It was fun.  There were a lot of kids there and we got to see some of our friends.  I am so glad it is Summer time! 

July Snowbuddies

Today, Savannah and I shared some stitching time.  She helped me with the “64 Posie Basket” Class yesterday and we decided that since she has been doing Backstitch embroidery since she was three that it is time to move on to the Blanket stitch.  She is pictured stitching on one of the “64 Posie Basket” Blocks.  She selected her wools and traced the shapes onto Heat n Bond Lite, fused them onto her wool colors, cut them out and ironed them on to her background getting her applique piece ready to embroider.   Before her lesson in embroidery, she had fun rummaging through my basket of different threads.  She selected a #8 Perle Cotton in light blue.  As I write this, she is stitching away and making quite beautiful Blanket stitches!

I have been working on my re-creation of the “1894” Crazy Quilt that I have treasured for years in my collection of Quilts.  This crazy quilt is unique because it is all pieced with cotton fabrics, no fancy fabrics and is embellished with beautiful embroidery throughout the quilt.  It consists of 12 – 22” squares of foundation muslin that has been embellished with a variety and textures of cottons all added in “crazy quilt fashion.”  Each month we are re-recreating an additional block for the quilt that we hope will be ready to go together in about a year or so????????  I am redesigning the blocks and giving step by step instructions on assembling each of the blocks.  Holy Smokes! All twelve blocks are different!  It is a challenge, but so rewarding.   I have ordered in hand-dyed cottons to give that worn and weathered look of the cottons from the original quilt.  Pictured below on the top is my reproduction block and on the bottom is the original.  First month out we have not yet added the fancy embroidery that will go along the seams between the different fabric pieces, but we will!!  Anyone still interested in joining this project, there is still time.  Give us a call for details…970-686-5642. 

 Here is the Free June downloadable embroidery Snowbuddies pattern Since we are working in advance it is actually July themed.  Have fun!

Tip For The Week………….Transfer Eze…….if you haven’t tried it, I hope you will.  It is $1.50 per sheet (8 1/2” X 11 ½”) and it goes through your copier or printer.  You place your embroidery image that you want copied onto the glass window of your copier/printer and the Transfer Eze goes through and makes a copy of the image.  Peel the product apart and place the copied image directly onto your fabric and finger pressure press into place.  Then you embroider through the product directly onto the fabric.  This is great for those that do not like to trace or for those dark fabrics that are impossible to trace onto.  When all your embroidery is complete, simply soak in water and the Transfer Eze dissolves and disappears.  It is incredible!  I used it on one of the dark fabrics in the “1894 Crazy Quilt” block.  Check out your local Quilt Shop and see if they have it to try, or give us a call and we can ship to you.

Mini Moment from Bee:

It’s fun to be at the shoppe.  Yesterday, I helped my Tee Tee with a class.  I showed the ladies how to peel the paper off the back of the fabrics.  Today I am learning to Blanket Stitch.  Tee Tee has taught me how, and once you get the hang of it, it is pretty easy.  The hardest part is threading the needle.

I am having dress rehearsals and photos getting ready for my big Recital Weekend.   It is a busy time!!