DJ progress during the French Open Tennis

I think I made real good progress on Dear Jane as I've finished 20 yellow blocks, joined these to the blocks already finished and then was able to join the 5 rows in the center of the quilt.

Then I made, sandwiched and hand quilted these 16 purple blocks.

This will however now end my progress with Dear Jane as I am all packed and ready to leave with Karin to their cabin by the dam for the weekend and I think you guessed it, we will be starting a brand new project, called Universal Beauties.

More February beginner quilts

Yesterday evening 3 more of the February beginner quilters came over for coffee and cake and to show their completed quilts.  Every time I see these I just realize that I was actually up to nothing when I started quilting.  Look at the beauties created by these first timers.

Here are the proud producers of the quilts.  Elsa, to the left is still somewhat behind but with an extremely good excuse.  This lady, looking so fit on the photo, went mountain climbing during the course, fell off a cliff, broker her hip, had to be airlifted off the mountain and had a hip replacement!!

Seven of the group couldn't attend our final meeting but one, Diana, sent us a photo of her quilt.  Diana was involved in a minor car accident just before our meeting.  Amazing to think she still thought of sending a picture while being rattled by the accident!

Ladies it was fun being able to teach you and now that you are so capable I hope you'll return the favor and teach me to be just as accurate and neat as you all are.

Free motion quilting after only 3 months

I had one of my February beginner quilters pop in this morning to get some advice on her free motion quilting.  She caught me still in my PJ's with a leftover headache from last night but she did make an appointment, so my bad not hers.

She mad her beginner quilt bigger and turned it into a single bed size but the most amazing part is that she free motion quilted this, using different patterns and this after only 3 months of quilting.  I could surely not do that when I only quilted for 3 months, in fact I don't even think I had as much as a quilt finished by then!

Linda (Meiring) you did great and can truly be proud of yourself.  I am!

Pre-departure dinner

We had Karin and her family over yesterday evening for a pre-departure dinner for our men.  The two of them will be leaving on a golf/fishing vacation to Thailand on Father's day and had plenty to discuss and plan.

The big kids on both sides had to come as they have all been there and their main purpose was to inform the two men that those sexy girls so badly wanting their attention might just be transvestites.  Here are Karin's girls; just as well mannered as their dad.

My very pregnant daughter in law explaining to us how the women over there would go for your husband even with the wife around.  It seems as if Karin enjoyed the thought of someone else having to deal with dear André.

Serious discussions with my son far left in the back.  My kids really don't like their photos being taken as can be seen when I tried to catch the blonde on the couch.

Candice seemed to understand all the 'Par' talk and was drawn into the conversation.

And dear Karin and I?  We were just left there having to pretend to be interested.  BUT..... we had a little pre-departure planning of our own to do as we are going to Karin's cabin this weekend all by our lonesome selves to quilt!

My Saturday

I fell so far behind with reading the blogs I follow and my e-mail while enjoying the first week of tennis at Roland Garros that I just had to use Saturday morning to get updated.  So no quilting done.  I need to read as many blogs as possible to find interesting links on free patterns or tutorials that I can use for our guild blog.  I do enjoy writing the blog for our guild but heck some days I just run out of ideas totally.

The afternoon I went to our Saturday group meeting and guess what?  I left all the DJ blocks I planned to hand quilt while there at home.  O I felt so terribly clever!.  We did however take a new group photo seeing that all our members were present.  This doesn't happen often.

I finished the last of the yellow DJ blocks at home and once these are attached to the previous blocks I can mark another UFO off my list.  DJ won't be done yet but I marked every color as an individual UFO as it takes me forever to finish.