Happy Little Pouch Blog Hop!

Hey everybody!!

I'm so glad you stopped by for a visit.

I would like to first thank

Elaine and Emily

for inviting me to participate in my very first blog hop!

And I couldn't have asked for a better one

to participate in,

because I am TOTALLY

crazy about making pouches.

Here's a little eye candy for you

of a few of the pouches I've made.

I have a pattern that I use quite frequently.

The zipper instructions are WONDERFUL,

and I will tell you,

I am not a zipper gal.

When I first started making pouches,

I would look at the zipper

like it was a zombie

trying to eat me alive.

And I turned into Satan himself

when I tried to do zippers.

(I know it's  hard to believe, because I'm such an angel)

Did I just hear lightening strike?

But then I noticed on Flickr,

these 'to die for' pouches

where the zippers looked PERFECT!

I found out the pattern was called

Perfect Zip Bags

by Elizabeth Hartman.

And perfect they were!

You have a choice of 3 different styles.

I've only made the one

(Style C)

because that one seems to suit the needs

of what I use a pouch for

and for what some of my swap partners

have requested.

What's Style C, you ask?

Why...

it looks like this

What I love about this is that you

can use the pattern for a basic construction,

but design it however you would like.

I just did this one for a private swap with my friend, Stephanie.

Use your creative process

to add little embellishments to your pouch.

I added this little songbird because of the birds on the fabric

and...um....

because I'm a "Singing Quilter"

hee hee

And I've also added printed twill

(that I get from my favorite shop,

The Little Red Cottage.)

I love the alphabet twill tape above the typewriter fabric.

And you can dress up your pockets too!

(make sure to watch your seam allowance, or you'll be giving compliments on someone's derriere like I did)

What was meant to be 'cute as a button'

became 'cute as a butt'

Luckily I had an awesome swap partner with a great sense of humor like me.

Perfect match!

:o)

Just make sure to use your imagination!

This pattern

is GREAT for things like this.

Freedom for your design,

easy to follow instructions,

LOTS and LOTS of information.

This pattern is 20 pages long,

but it has instructions for 3 different designs 

with 2 different sizes for each.

AND...I just looked....and it's on sale right now.

If you're interested,

check HERE.

How sweet is that??

Make sure to also check out my 

blog hop partners who are also posting about pouches today.

Sara at SewSweetness who's reviewing Noodlehead's Gathered Clutch

and

Jennifer from Ellison Lane Quilts

who's going to share some more eye candy!

And this is the kind of eye candy that won't give any added weight!

Pretty sweet, eh?

Don't forget to check

to check out my post HERE

to see the list of upcoming blog's

and the list of sponsors.

Also, make sure to sign up in the FLICKR

to win prizes!!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

I hope you enjoyed your visit!

Make it a good one, folks, and y'all come back now, ya hear!

xoxo

Cindy

My Swap with Stephanie (aka Mama Pea)

Some days do you ever feel like you've won the lottery?

That's how I felt last week

when I received the most awesome package in the mail.

Of course,

I had to chuckle.

When my husband saw I received 

this  huge package

he just rolled his eyeballs.

"More fabric?", he says.

(that's the standard question whenever I receive a package)

"Oh no, Dear!

This is from my new friend,

Stephanie!!", I say.

"You know,

you can tell me the  truth.", he says

"But I PROMISE

I am this time!", I say

anyone who is addicted to fabric totally knows exactly where I'm coming from in this conversation

I met Stephanie during a contest

hosted by Amy of During Quiet Time

(the Texting While Sewing contest).

You can read her inspiring blog here

at Peas in a Pod

Stephanie did a BEAUTIFUL block

as a tribute to Iowa

(my kind of gal!)

And the rest is history.

But meeting Stephanie has been such a blessing!

She's pretty awesome.

I'll quit babbling.

I'm sure you want to get down to the nitty gritty

of what was in the package.

Well.....

I received these fun labels

which will be PERFECT for

saving those special little tidbits 

of info you don't want to loose when browsing a magazine or catalog.

and this awesome journal and washi tape along with the labels

(the notebook was custom made for her students, and she had extra, so I got one too!!)

and this inspiring card!

And for the grand prize.....

This GORGEOUS pillow!!

I can't even BEGIN to tell you 

how in love with this I am!!!!

(Thank you AGAIN, Stephanie!!!)

I absolutely LOVE the paper pieced pattern 

she did for this.

L.O.V.E. it!

And the colors...

this Christmas pillow rocks my world!!!

Check out the lace

all the way from Holland!!

(seriously....can you believe this???)

(Stephanie - I thought you would appreciate your pillow next to the Hawkeye ornament

even though they haven't had the best football year)

And of course,

I had to take one with my Victorian doll beside it.

It even has a zipper!!!

(and groovy fabric on the back)

And one more close up,

just because I seriously cannot stop looking at this!

I love the way the pieced circles work together

and just keep your eyes flowing to each specially cut piece of fabric

Thank you again, Stephanie!

I could not be more thrilled!

Everything about this whole experience

has been a blessing!

If you would like to see what I did for Stephanie,

you can check out her post HERE.

I think I will start to follow

the direction of the card she gave me.

I think it's great advice.

xoxo

Cindy

Happy Little Pouch Blog Hop Starts Today!

Here are our Happy Little Pouch Blog Hoppers!

Monday 11/26: Emily from Mommy's Naptime and Elaine from Dashasel Sews

Tuesday, 11/27: Courtney from Mon Petit Lyons and Lucy from Charm About You

Wednesday, 11/28: Hollie from Undercover Crafter and Katie from Katie's Korner

Thursday, 11/29: Lindsay from Lindsay Sews and Michelle from I Like Orange

Friday, 11/30: Sara from Sew Sweetness, Cindy from Adventures of the Singing Quilter, and Jennifer from Ellison Lane Quilts

Monday, 12/3: Holly from Bijou Lovely and Heidi from Fabric Mutt

Tuedsay, 12/4: Elizabeth from Don't Call Me Bets and Emily from Mle BB

Wednesday, 12/5: Shruti from 13 Woodhouse Road and Liz from Dandelion Daydreams

Thursday, 12/6: Beth from Plum and June and Kaelin from The Plaid Scottie
Friday, 12/7: Emily from Mommy's Naptime and Elaine from Dashasel Sews

Please join us in the fun and share your pouchy makes in our Flickr group. The Flickr group is also where you can upload your pouchy makes, and at the end of each week we will have some great prizes to award!

Prizes have generously been donated by:

Across The Pond Sew Along

I'm so excited!

I finished my first project for the

Across The Pond Sew Along.

It's not too late to sign up,

so come join the fun!

Our first project was the Anita Vacation Tote,

a pattern created by Amy of eamylove.

If you are interested in this pattern,

(which I HIGHLY recommend)

you can find it

HERE

The pattern is so easy to follow.

I had so much fun making this tote,

I can't wait to may another one!

I hope my friends give me a strong hint to

make them one for Christmas.

Since it's a 'vacation' tote,

I thought it would be fun to use

French Post by Michael Miller

for the main part of the bag.

Since going to Paris is on my bucket list

this French fabric is perfect.

The decorative trim I used

is from the Little Red Cottage

(I may have mentioned a time or two 

this is one of my favorite shops!)

The pattern gives clear, easy to read instructions

for putting in this rockin zipper!

You even get pockets

with this glamour bag!

I am so excited to see what we make next month.

There's plenty of room on the ship,

so hop on 

and come Across The Pond!

I'm off to another Thanksgiving dinner.

I better Zumba for 5 hours tomorrow!

xoxo

Cindy

Happy Thanksgiving!

To all of my US friends,

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

To all my friends outside of the US,

THANK YOU

for all you add to my life!

You all hold a special place in my heart!

To continue on from yesterday's post

I'm just going to share some photo's of a few more of my grateful's.

Though this doesn't near complete the list,

but it's always fun to look at.

I am so thankful for my husband

who blessed me with two of the most wonderful sons a mother could ask for.

Jesse and his girlfriend, Catie

Justin and his girlfriend, Amanda

These two girls could very well be my

daughters-in-law one day!

(HINT to my home boys....LOL)

To my sister, and my "sister from another mister".

I LOVE YOU GIRLS!!!

(nice, huh?)

LOL

To my awesome friends & family who continue to support me.

I love you all so very much.

To my girl, Autum.

This gal holds an extra special place in my heart.

And I have to give a shout out to my sister again

just for always being such a dork.

But I love her!!

(she took this picture of herself when I stepped out of my sewing room)

Naturally, I had to doctor the picture up a bit.

Of course,

I can't leave out my brother.

He is 'da bomb'

Throws the best annual birthday bash ever.

do you see me photo bombing the picture?  hee hee

My list is even longer,

but I don't want to be like the relative at the family reunion

making you sit through all the vacation pictures.

Just know

that life is hard.

It doesn't always go as we plan.

But if we choose to look at all the good 

things and focus on those,

our life will be more fulfilling then we ever realized it could be.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!

Love & hugs to all!!

Cindy

Giving Thanks

Feel free to play this as you read this post.

As Thanksgiving draws near in the US,

 I'm always reminded of how blessed I have been in my life.

I won't lie.

My life hasn't been perfect.

Who's has?

It's what you take from it that counts.

I choose to hang on to those memories

that have made my heart sing.

Like the birth of my first son, Jesse,

and my mom bringing my grandma to the hospital to see him for the first time.

 And all the wonderful memories my grandma left for me.

Like making our wedding cake.

(27 years ago!)

And making Justin (son #2) his first quilt

(which he lovingly referred to has his 'nigh nigh')

 that he carried

for years until it became tattered and thin,

due to all that snuggly love.

 And I cherish the memories of my grandpa 

and his beautiful violin playing.

 And the continued tradition today

of gathering around the piano during the holiday's,

and family reunions,

for a sing along.

And for the silliness my boys

loved to share.

"MOM!  Take me a picture!",

they used to say.

 (they are going to kill me if they ever see these pictures!)

Their anticipation of Santa.

I have so many, many grateful's. 

I'll include more tomorrow.

For today

I lovingly remember my grandparents who are no longer with us on earth.

 I am thankful for all the memories they have given me.

There isn't a day that goes by that I don't think about them.

Sometimes my heart aches,

but I try to be happy that I had them so long in my life.

Because when my time on earth is done,

I don't want anyone to be sad.

I hope they will always think of me with a smile,

and remember all the good times.

For today,

I remember how truly blessed I am

 with my wonderful sons.

My life is, and always has been,

 dedicated to them.

It's hard now that they are grown,

because now I don't have a 'say' in what they do.

But I know I have raised them to make the right choice.

And I have to trust that I've done my job right,

and leave the rest in God's hands.

And one day,

when I am a grandma,

I will shower my grandchildren 

with the same love that my grandma,

and my mom, 

have done.

I've had great role models.

And for that,

I am truly thankful.

xoxo

Cindy

Aliens & Pouches

The other night I was home alone.

I am a tightwad when it comes to extra lights being on in the house.

(hello??  money spent on that is taking away from my fabric splurges!)

I was up in my sewing room and needed a refill on my water.

I went downstairs, thru the completely dark house,

 into the kitchen.

 

I saw this outside.

Scared the peas out of me.  

I thought I was being invaded by Aliens.

It was a combine in the neighbors field across the one from our house.

:o)

Now on to the fun stuff.

I made this pouch,

the open wide zipper pouch

by Noodlehead.

You can find the tutorial HERE

It's a great pouch for being able to find everything because, 

like it's name,

it opens WIDE.

Here's a close up of the printed twill I used above the typewriter.

I thought it was the perfect embellishment for this pouch.

I purchased the twill at the Little Red Cottage on Etsy.

You can find the shop HERE.

I'm now off to pick out my fabric 

for the Anita Vacation Tote 

by Amy of eamylove.

(I love her blog!)

Amy and team have created an

Across the Pond Sew Along.

You can find the information HERE.

I hope you join in!!

Love & Hugs to all!

Cindy

Pouch Update

Sorry it's been a while since I've posted.

It's been a little hectic out here on the 'ranch'.

LOL

I had to share a quick funny with you.

I am in the Scrappy Swap

and made this pouch
(you've seen this in an earlier post)

I was giving it the final 'once over'
to make sure all was right with this.
(I'd hate to send a crappy piece of work!  LOL)

I purchased this adorable twill tape
from Little Red Cottage
on Etsy.
(check this store out...it's one of my new favorites!)
The print on the twill says, "Cute as a button".

I thought this would be a great embellishment to add to the pocket.

But I wasn't paying attention to my seam allowance.

Cute as a butt????

I've posted a picture in my group
to see if my partner  has a good sense of humor.
Me?
I would totally keep this.
(but I'm all over a good laugh)
However, I know some people are easily offended,
and that is never my intent.

So we'll see how my partner responds.

Oh the drama.....................


xoxoxo
Cindy

2012 Election Day

Today isn't about voting for my quilt.

 

Today is about exercising your right to vote

in such an important election.

What a privilege!!

 

To my USA friends & family:

 

 

 

xoxo

Cindy

 

I'M A FINALIST!!!

Who would have thought??

My quilt made it to the finals 

in Amy's Creative Side's

Blogger's Quilt Festival!!

(Help a gal win some fabric and spread the word!)

I am beyond thrilled!

Thank you so much to all who took time to vote!

If I could ask a few seconds of your time

one more time,

I would appreciate it!

If you would like to vote for me again,

click the link below,

scroll down to 

Favorite Throw Quilt

and hit 'vote' under my quilt

(Cindy @ Adventures of the Singing Quilter).

But do this ONLY if you feel my quilt deserves the vote.

The finalist are all true beauties!!

Click HERE for the voting link

While you're there make sure to check out all the other categories

and admire all the quilty eye candy!

It is a true honor to be part of this festival!

In case you forgot what the quilt I entered looked like:

I'm also participating in the Scrappy Swap

hosted by the lovely Kat of Diary of a Flutter.Kat.

After much stalking on my partner,
I came up with this lovely pouch.

And the back side for your viewing pleasure.

I'm also doing a private swap with Stephanie from Peas In A Pod.

I can't post the picture until after I ship, because I don't want her to see it before it arrives on her doorstep!

I have one more thing to make for her before I ship,

but what I made over the weekend,

I absolutely LOVE!

I hope you all have a fantastic week!

xoxo

Cindy