Christmas Retreat

Our bee Christmas retreat was the first weekend this month - I always call them my "Eating, Drinking, Sewing, Eating" time with the girls. It's always so! nice to get away and be with good friends. I will say,, we have some of the best cooks! A great chicken casserole on Friday nite, delicious breakfast casserole on Saturday morning, wonderful tiny ham/cheese sandwiches for Saturday lunch and the special pizza catered in for Saturday dinner. YUUM! OH! a delicious chocolate angle food cake ( hand made, too! no box was this one! ). and a to-die-for chocolate sheet cake that I might as well have plastered on my thighs. I sure I'm forgetting something - but trust me,, I was NOT hungry! This is why I have so much trouble loosing any weight :)

So in between the eating, talking, eating, wine-ing,,what was everyone working on, you ask?

I played all Friday afternoon on a tooth fairy pillow for my grandson - didn't like it didn't finish it at retreat. That's a story for another day. Then I pulled out a paper piece project ( tan/green/red stars, got tired of that, SO I had a tan, brown, beige Turning Twenty quilt that I had already cut out and finally! found something fun to do. I'm happy with it! I have already gotten the backing out and I think I'm going to do some straight line quiliting in some sort of a pattern ( yeah, that made a lot of sense, didn't it )

This is the beach quilt that we had the swap on ( was it this year or last? ). This is so cute,, there is a little bush she made to fit in a space,, great idea!

Our resident free motion quilter was hard at work on a "Take Five" quilt that she made. Someday I'll get enough confidence to do a big quilt - she had a few tables all arranged to take the weight of the quilt which made it easier ( she said - still looked hard to me! )

A couple of views of progress and VOILA!!

I love this fabric collection I'm not sure what it will be ( she could send it my way! I'll make something from them )

and I covet these blocks,, so pretty! and if Santa brought me an embroidery machine, I could make pretties, too!

This is a Patrick Lose pattern that I wish I had,, isn't this just as cute as can be! I just love doing fusible applique. I call it "fabric by number" ( like paint by number ?? ok, I'm weird ), but it's so fun!
She sewed them down and then she is going to quilt over the top to secure everything. I might just have to go get that pattern!

Doesn't this one just make you want to fly right down to the beach! ( for those of you already there, can you see me stick my tongue out at you?? )

The sandels and beach ball are buttons! this is a kit complete with the cool hanger with the shell - Santa are you listening??


We had a Pillowcase Queen this weekend, too. She had a mission to make 30 ( yes 30! ) pillowcases for family. It takes me months to make ONE ! I left before she did, and at the count I had, she was dang close just a few shots of what she was doing. The creme and blue poinsettas here are my favorite.

A baby alphabet quilt that is getting the binding put on, I'm not sure whose heart quilt this was, I turned around and VOILA! it appeard on the wall. springy! I liked this one and the different fabrics used - tres modern!

the big squares below was finished but I asked her to hold it up so I could take a shot,, beautiful!

and this one is MINI -- Yes! a MINI, about 12 inches square. wow,,, blows me away.



I hope you all have Happy Holidays! And if the little elves show up and finish projects for you - I'm jealous!