Fifteen years of Crazy Quilting Potlucks!!

Tonight, my dear quilting friends and I gathered for our fifteenth Christmas potluck. It is such a joy to be a part of such a special group of friends. I missed our potluck last year due to icy winter weather but today was clear and fine, just cold. Our group began meeting in February of 2000. It all began when I coordinated a fundraising crazy quilt project at what was then known as Murphy's Landing (now called The Landing). Tonight, we reminisced about how our group started. We meet at the Stans Museum in Shakopee and we asked staff member, Stephanie to take our picture.

 Left to right.....Laura Cloutier, Judith Hentges, Deanna Geer, and me/Sandi Andersen.

Deanna is a Manager of Education at The Landing. I met her in the mid 1990's when I visited The Landing and inquired about volunteering at the site. It's an "open air history museum" and on the site are homes that were once located here in the Minnesota River Valley area. It was like "stepping back in time". It is a wonderful place to visit! And I really enjoyed both volunteering and then working as as interpreter and sharing the history of the homes and the Minnesota River Valley. Judith was Coordinator of Education at the Scott County Historical Society and I think I met her in 1998, during the time we were working on the crazy quilt project. We enjoyed making the quilt and it raised over $2000 that went to maintenance of the homes on the site. One day we were all in the Landing office and got to talking about what fun it would be to continue to make crazy quilting blocks. Deanna and I said it would be great to continue to meet but we couldn't do it at the landing as the houses were too cold in the winter. And Judith said "then let's meet at the Stans Musuem which is the home of the Scott County Historical Society. And so on a very cold night, January 20, I presented a program on crazy quilting to a group of about twenty guests. There was enough interest that we decided to start meeting monthly and that's how the common love of stitching and friendship got our little group started and keeps it going. Some of our original members have passed away, a couple have moved away. There are only about six of us that meet regularly. Laura and my friend, Sharon Ritchart, joined the group a few years ago. For ten years we went to a lovely retreat together in August. I've shared many photos of those retreats. Perhaps I need to do a re-run of those in a future post. :-)
So, anyway, thanks to meeting Deanna and Judith, our group got it's start. I wanted to give them a little gift tonight in remembrance of that and our friendship. I found some pretty decoupaged coasters at HeArt of Henderson and here they are looking at them.........

I gave Judith the set with the ice skates because I had the feeling she had probably gone ice-skating as a kid, but it was the strand of bells that "caught her eye". She said she had a string just like them at home!

The peppermint set reminded me of Deanna and the bits of Christmas words on the design, reminded me of the old print shop that used to be at the Landing. It was a fascinating shop that had a working printing press and school group kids loved it. Sadly, it burned to the ground in 2001.

Back to our crazy quilting group...........we used to do an ornament exchange. I was often lucky enough to win one of Judith's handmade ornaments or she would just make me one as a gift. Last year, she mentioned that it would be fun to see them all so I packed them in a special tin so I could bring them out this year. The little ornament with Santa sleeping the day after Christmas is probably my favorite!

If you live anywhere near Shakopee, MN and have an interest in crazy quilting and stitching, please consider stopping in for a visit. You don't have to want to learn crazy quilting to come. You can just bring any form of handwork as some of us work on crazy quilting but sometimes we work on applique, wool projects, cross stitch, knitting and crochet. We meet the fourth Thursday of the month at the Stans Museum but do not meet in June, July and November. And in December we meet for the all-important Christmas Potluck on the first Thursday of the month! You can call the museum for more information at 952-445-0378. 

It was so relaxing to get together with Judith, Deanna, and Laura! It has been a busy week but when I got home, my husband had good news......Collette will get in for another MRI tomorrow. We will take her to the appointment. Hopefully, it will provide some answers for her pain. 

Time to turn out the lights.......

Sandi

Stockings and Joy!

Today I went to help my daughter, Collette, as she copes with this neck/shoulder pain issue. While she was resting, I worked on some Christmas projects. These are stockings that I'm adding a fur cuff to and a loop for hanging. They will be filled this Sunday after service at our church. We have coloring books, candies, puzzles, games, and stuffed toys to put in the stockings that will bring a smile to some kids on Christmas morning! My friends, Doris, Arlene, Joanie, and Diane helped me cut out the stockings, then Pastor Deb stitched them up and I'm putting on that finishing touch. Teamwork is awesome!

After Collette had rested, I shared a little something that I bought at HeArt of Henderson this past Tuesday. All of their framed treasures were 50% off. Couldn't resist this treasure that was marked at just $5.00. I nearly squealed with delight when I saw it as I thought of Collette right away. Her favorite symbol of Christmas is the tree and the framed piece was in her colors and will great in her living room. When I got ready to show it to her, I told her I didn't get her a card, I got something better and I held up the framed tree. She was delighted, too. "Gorgeous!" was what she said. She smiled (have to be honest, that she smiled amidst the pain) and it made me smile to think it made her feel just a wee bit better.

The floral chair that the framed tree is sitting in is one of two chairs that belonged to my mother-in-law, Ora/Collette's grandma. They are the sweetest, daintiest chairs and very comfortable...........just ask Emmet and Marty, the family cats!

They were curled up in the chair while we ate supper (I made chicken and noodles, good comfort food) and then watched the movie "Heaven is Real". I was working on another little crafty project after supper but I can't show that one for a couple days yet. Back soon.......
Sandi

Felt Ornament fun at the Henderson Library!

This past Saturday, I took a mountain of felt, a dozen cookie cutters and lots of other supplies to the Henderson library for some felt ornament crafting with local kids. I had help from my grandson, Jacob, but daughter Collette was not able to go because of the stiff neck she had (she is improving a bit). Here are some photos of our fun day............

 Our first visitors for the day were Ella and her mom, Kristen. Ella loves red!

 Tiegen was working hard on her heart ornament .............

 and when she finished her heart, she decorated a bear for baby brother, Riley (sitting on mom's lap).

The kids had a great time choosing from all the felt colors, then picking a cookie cutter and tracing around it on the felt. Then they cut out two of each shape, glued them together and began decorating.

And while the kids enjoyed crafting, moms and other folks were bidding on the Christmas trees and other silent auction items. 

Look at all that fun stuff on that table and the happy faces of the kids. I am the big kid in the red sweater. LOL! Lydia is holding her silver bell ornament. Gayan made a white jingle bell snowman.

Ayla was so delighted with her googly-eyed star ornament!

And here's my buddy, Landon, playing CAR cards with my grandson, Jacob. I was so glad to have Jacob's help that day. He was our guy to go get sodas and then hot dogs at Toody's Sweets and Treats, and he helped with clean-up! He also enjoyed the cookies and I'm looking for the recipe for one that he really liked.

 Here's my good friend, Doris who was in charge of the cookie table for the day. While she tended the treat table, she got a chance to keep an eye on little Kathlyn while her brother, Landon, and sister, Lydia made their ornaments. 

It was a very fun day! 

It's December!

I am going to try to post every day in December. My blogging has been sporadic for the past year. Seems like family health issues keep me hopping and once again that has been the case this past week and today. My mom had a little "speedbump" but is getting a bit better. My daughter, Collette, though, hit a major "roadblock"......developed a stiff neck that just got worse and worse. Went to the doctor this morning and had an MRI, and still in pain but maybe there will soon be a diagnosis. I appreciate any prayers and positive thoughts you would like to send her way. :-)
I have several things I want to blog about in the coming days. I love this time of the year.......... the Christmas carols, the smell of cookies baking, the Christmas trees, the lights, pretty wrapped presents, and the manger scene placed under the tree. Such a lovely time of the year!
I have had a lot of fun decorating for our library event "Holiday Traditions". We decorated trees, made felt ornaments with the kids, and decorated wreaths with ribbons and glitter ornaments. I had so much fun decorating the wreath for the library activity room that I had to make another one. And this one was for the auto parts store where my son, Devlin, is store manager. I told him my idea and he said, "Go for it". Here it is.........zoom! zoom!

This was so much fun to make that I am going to make one for the Silent Auction at the library next year! I love to wrap the tiny packages and then weave the tiny bows. I used to make oodles of these in the years from the '70's, '80's and '90's when I was active in the Midwest Miniature Guild. I just wrap blocks of styrofoam for the gifts, then add the bow and a little name tag. Each tag is an employee at the store. I might even decorate a little tree with cars and trucks for the Silent Auction next year. Then I should probably do a Princess themed tree.........or zoo animals......or tiny teddy bears. Yep, the list goes on. :-) 

Happy December 1st! 

Sandi

Happy Thanksgiving!

Sending greetings to all of you who celebrate Thanksgiving! May you have a wonderful holiday with family and friends! May their be plenty to eat and plenty to share! Counting our blessing here! ! I am so thankful for family and friends both near and far. Thankful that both my kids have good jobs and while they won't be here at Thanksgiving, they will be here at Christmas.  Son, Devlin has to work tomorrow and daughter Collette, Daryl and Jacob will go to Daryl's mom's for dinner. I took pie, some fudge and other goodies to Devlin and co-workers yesterday. Fudge always wins smiles. He texted today and said that they were really enjoying the goodies that I brought!! Steve will be cooking the turkey here and I will be making the stuffing and the sweet potatoes. He didn't want a pie, instead wanted poppyseed muffins. First time I have ever made poppyseed muffins for Thanksgiving! We are blessed to have food on the table, a roof over our heads, and while our health had some speed bumps this past year, we are getting back on track. I am thankful for my dear parents, my sister and my brother. Miss my dad and wish peace for my mother. She is having a bit of a health bump so if you could lift up a little prayer for her that would be greatly appreciated. 

This little quilt is one of my twelve quilts made in the Millennium, one for each month. Yes, if you can find only one blessing in your life, that is certainly more than none! We are all more blessed than we know sometimes!

Wishing you all a lovely Thanksgiving and safe travel if you are "out and about". Wherever you are, have a great day!

Sandi

Victoria Findlay Wolfe at our Library!

Quilting brings out the smiles, doesn't it?! It was an amazing evening at our Henderson Public Library last night, Thursday, November 13th. There were lots of smiles! Usually on the second Thursday of the month, our "Sew and Share Quilters" group meets. But on this second Thursday of November, we were all excited to hear Victoria Findlay Wolfe speak about her quilts and process and see them! Our Friends of the Library group hosted the evening which was supported by a Legacy Arts Grant from the State of Minnesota. As guests were arriving, Judy Loewe, Friends member, snapped a few photos like this one.............

Interestingly, this is almost a multi-generation group of quilters which tells you that quilting is not a lost art. Clearly, I'm the older one in the group, then there is Nichole (right) and Victoria (left). And then there's Lydia in pink and blue, who is the youngest member of our group. She and her mom, Nichole, took a beginning quilt class that I offered at the library. Baby sister, Kathryn, will get lessons from Lydia. It is delightful to know that the art of quilting is being enjoyed by young and old!



Victoria set up her display of books and products. I was planning to get a copy of her book, but when I saw the templates I knew I wanted those, too!
















It was a bitterly cold night, even for here in Minnesota. I think the temps were only in the teens. That cold weather, though, did not stop quilters who wanted to hear Victoria speak and see her quilts. They came from right here in Henderson and nearby Gaylord, Arlington, LeSueur and Belle Plaine. And they came from Lakeville and Eden Prairie in the Twin Cities! Even a slight road repair detour did not keep them away!

And then it was time to begin...........Now I'm not going to give away the stories that Victoria shares in her program because I don't want to spoil it for any of you that might get to hear her speak some day. I'll just say that she is telling us the story of how this lovely jacket came to her. It made her smile and we enjoyed the story.

Victoria's program is a combination of Powerpoint presentation and the actual quilts that are featured in her book "15 Minutes of Play".  I liked the fact that she shared about the quilt first and then she would pull that quilt out of her suitcase!

Victoria gave permission to share photos of her quilts so I took photos the best I could. Judy was her helper and she takes better pictures than I do. Maybe I should have been helper instead but Judy had so much fun studying the quilts that she is glad she was asked to help! I am so sorry that I don't remember the name of each quilt. I would look at the book but......well, I'll tell you about that in a minute. I loved this one with the yellow polka dot..........

There were lots of ooohs and aaahs when she held up this quilt.........

Here she is describing the process that led to the next quilt..........

......this stunning large hexagon quilt. Once again, lots of oooohs and aaaahs!

It seemed that each quilt was more colorful and unique than the previous quilt! Here Victoria is answering a question from the audience.........

I almost squealed with delight when I saw this next quilt pop up on the screen and then she pulled it from the suitcase! I ooohed and ahhed and was so happy to get to see her quilt "Double Edged Love"! This quilt took Best of Show at QuiltCon in Houston in 2013.

And then there was another Double Wedding Ring, this one which is featured on the cover of her new book.

The book will be available in January of 2015. Check out Victoria's website to pre-order. 

This large Double-Wedding Ring with it's New York Beauty points was really amazing!

I happened to be standing next to Lydia, who had brought notebook and pencil so she could take notes about Victoria's lecture.............

when she turned to me and said "I think she/Victoria likes Double Wedding Ring quilts" and I replied "I think you are right"! I asked her about the notes she was taking and she said she hoped Victoria would sign the page when the program was over. Another smile!

Each quilt had such a story behind it. This one incorporates a bit of something that is a reminder of Victoria's grandmother. Her grandmother was a huge influence in Victoria's love of quilting.

There were lots of smiles and lots of laughter during the program which was full of information and stories and inspiration and quilts, quilts, quilts! And when the program was finished, Judy took her camera and snapped a photo of the two of us.

Several people asked how I connected with Victoria and got her to come all the way out to Henderson. Well, we talked about that and decided it probably started when we both began blogging about the same time. I remember that her posts were always colorful. She put out a call for donation quilts for her BASICS quilt drive so I made a kid's quilt in memory of my quilting friends, Cindy Mark and Cathy Wright, and sent it off to her. It made me smile to do that. Then we met for lunch a couple years ago when she was back in Minnesota. I shared some of my vintage quilts and said if she had time on a future trip, come for a visit and also we could schedule a program. So, last year around Christmas time, she sent me a message that she was planning a visit to teach some workshops and do some lectures, would I like to have her do a program then, too. I said "yes, of course!" and within days we had our next Friends of the Library meeting and the plans were set in place to have her come and speak!! Do you have any idea, how much fun it has been to know that she was coming to speak at our library? I knew how much people would enjoy hearing how she approaches her quilting projects and seeing the end results. I'm pretty sure that everyone who attended was delighted that they could attend! I overheard one woman say "Isn't she amazing?" Made me smile. 

With the program over, it was time to shop...........

My friend, Sue, who is not a quilter, was so excited, so inspired by the colors and fabrics in Victoria's quilts. She had to take a closer look at them.........

She took note of the yellow piping on this Double Wedding Ring quilt. I see her making one of these colorful quilts!

And, we can make one together because Victoria "gifted" me with a set of the Double Wedding Ring templates that I was eyeing. I didn't get a copy of her book as she ran out of them, so she'll send one later. Always nice to have something to look forward to. Something that will bring a smile one day in the future. And speaking of the future.........Lydia got the autograph she wanted from Victoria. She is a future quilter for sure. This past summer, I helped her with a little project for her Clover Buds 4-H project. She has the gift of sewing in her!

There were treats and coffee for everyone, too. Here is our Friends president, Mary Pilling, and our young-at-heart member, Doris Wigand.

And then it was time to pack up all the supplies and the quilts. We watched as Victoria folded each one just so.........and Doris wasn't sure Victoria would get them all in the suitcase.........but Voila!! she did!

With quilts packed, Victoria was ready to travel on to her next workshop on Friday morning. We enjoyed a cup of tea when we got back to my house and had a nice relaxing chat. I have to be honest, I was a wee bit nervous about her visit because on Tuesday afternoon, my husband said to me......"What are you going to cook when she is here, or do you plan to go to the RoadHaus to eat?"
And that was when I realized I had forgotten all about the need to eat! I was so busy cleaning my house and making it look all quilty good, that I forgot about food! Ah, when the mind gets focused on quilting, cooking just goes out the window. LOL! But, I decided to cook because it was just a little more relaxing. And that it was. Especially when we topped off our meals with a little Baklava or with a cup of tea. We didn't finish it all so guess who will enjoy the leftovers?.............
as Miss Piggy would say........."Moi!"
That's all for now. Have a lovely weekend! Stay warm if you are coping with the Midwest Deep Freeze!!
Sandi

Breaking NEWS!

I haven't posted in weeks so perhaps you thought I fell off the edge of the earth. Nope. Have just been super busy with volunteer projects. Took my quilts and headed to my hometown of Lehigh, Iowa the first weekend in October. The next week I took quilts and treats to friends at nearby Assisted Living Centers. And I taught some wooly classes at HeArt of Henderson and our Henderson Sew and Share quilters gathered to work on our Christmas quilt blocks. Then I started working on the annual "Count Your Blessings Silent Auction" at our church and by that time it was off to Kindred Kwilters over in Le Sueur. The next week, I taught a fun snowman ornament class to the Sibley County Home Extension group and then I was off to Shakopee for our monthly Crazy Quilt meeting.  In between all that, there was family time and that boring house-cleaning stuff. When Halloween rolled in the weather turned cold and I wondered "how did winter arrive so soon?"  And tonight the temps are dropping down into the teens!! But, we will all be warmed by this event............

Yes, Victoria Findlay Wolfe will be speaking at our very own Henderson Public Library. I have posted about this on Facebook and should have posted it here on my blog much sooner. I do hope if you live near Henderson, MN that you will come to hear her lecture and see her quilts. She arrived tonight and we enjoyed visiting a bit and having a cup of sleepytime tea. If you think my schedule sounds busy, she is really busy! I can hardly wait to hear her lecture and see her quilts! I'll be back with some photos on Friday and then this weekend, I will finally share the photos of my trip to Iowa and the quilt show that my brother Doug and I coordinated for the Lehigh Historical Society. Time to turn out the lights and dream of quilts! Is there anything else to dream about?  ;-)
Sandi