Top 11 for 2011

I can not believe that 2012 will be the 5th year that I have been blogging.  It's crazy.

In honor of the new year, I thought I'd share with you guys the top 11 (since it's 2011) most viewed posts last year. (via google analytics)

1. Padded iPad Case

Meet Mique of 30 Days!

Happy Tuesday!!

Did you guys all have a wonderful Christmas? I sincerely hope so!  Ours was very nice. The kids loved the quilts (even though they weren't bound yet *wink*)- even so,  I think they still appreciated the thought. They have been dragging them around the house the past few days, so I'd better get them bound and washed today!

I've got one more interview to share with you before the New Year.  Ironically this is a blogger that I've never actually "met" - but I feel like I've known her for years! One day our paths will cross and I'll get to meet her.

Mique runs 30 Days Blog, if you haven't stopped by then you should! She's got great crafts and recipes and is the very talented girl behind the Queen Bee Market in California.

Mique has also shared her experiences having a son with Autism in a very moving seires of blog posts, you can read them here.  My youngest brother (now an Adult) also has Autism and I remember so many of the emotions she descirbes from our own families experience.







So now... Meet Mique!

Handmade Christmas Quilt Along: Last Update

instagram photo

I hope that you are all busy crafting away or spending time with those that you love this week before Christmas! I just thought I'd give you one last update on the Handmade Christmas Quilt Along I've been hosting.

Tutorial: Easy Peasy Fleece Blanket

Pin It

If you are looking for a last minute hand made gift, I've got an idea for you.  These blankets are so easy you can make them in a hour!  Plus they take only 3 yds of fleece (which you can find on sale this week) so they are inexpensive to make too!   You've got time to whip out a few before Christmas!  They are also great if you are looking for a project that your kids can make with you.

Festival of Nativities

I'm excited to share with you today the project I've been working on for the last 4 months.  It's the reason behind all the guest posts this month and total lack of Christmas projects on this blog!

This is the 2nd year that I was involved in our church's Festival of Nativities, this year I was the chairman.  Most of the time I kept thinking "am I even old enough to be in charge of something like this?  They must have the wrong person".  It was a giant undertaking with lots of moving parts to keep track of.  This year I had a wonderful committee.  I felt like the entire event was a true collaboration of everyone's ideas.  I did not do this with out help, and these are NOT all my ideas, I just happen to be the one that is blogging about it.

Meet Calli of Make it Do

Today I get the pleasure of introducing you to Calli of Make it Do!

Advent Calendar Pattern

She's a twin mom like me, that I met at a blogger meet up in Utah a couple of summers ago.  You may know her as she has been kind enough to guest blog for me a couple of times when I've been in a pinch!  As you will be able to tell from her interview she is super sweet... and NO I didn't pay her to say those nice things about me.  (I blushed a bit when I read her interview!!)

Meet Calli

Hi Everyone, My name is Calli. My blog is called Make it Do. I am so happy to be here on Polkadot Chair today. I DO wish I was sitting in Melissa's craft room on her polkadot chair with an embroidery in hand and time to visit. Melissa and I met at a blogging dinner a year and half ago and I felt immediately like she was an old friend. Since then I've felt like I've gotten to know her even better through her wonderful blog. Melissa is not only incredibly talented, she is super fun, funny and kind.

Jewelry Giveaway

Hello!

I hope that you have been enjoying the blogger interviews featured here.

I'm happy to report that 1) The Festival of Nativities is OVER and 2) We did not lose or break anyone's nativity set!  It turned out beautifully but was a major undertaking.  My only regret is that attendance was pretty low,  I had lots of people working hard on it, and it's too bad more people could not have seen all the time and effort they put into the event.   I've received many many emails with questions about the details of our event, so I'll be doing a proper blog write up about it later this week.

Until then, while I regroup a bit (okay a lot), I've got a couple more interviews to share with you and a GIVEAWAY today!!

I hope that you all enjoyed meeting Leigh of Leedle Deedle quilts last week.  Today she has graciously offered to give away a pair of earrings in her shop, your choice!!

leedle deedle designs

Meet Natalia of Piece and Quilt!

I'm so excited to introduce you today to Natalia of Piece and Quilt.  Let me tell you this girl has MAD quilting skills!

She makes quilts and also has a long arm quilting business.  She's an amazing long arm quilter.  The level of detail that goes into her quilts is incredible

Meet Amy of Amy Lou Who Sews!

Hi!

Today I have the privilege of introducing you to another Amy... Amy W. of Amy Lou Who Sews! 

I met Amy at the Sewing Summit. I sat down to talk to her and within about 2 minutes I felt like I'd know her for years!  I'd linked up to her Sew and Tell party a couple of times and it was fun to finally meet her in person.   She said she'd come visit me in Kentucky and I'm holding her to it!

Meet Leigh of Leedle Deedle Quilts

Today, meet Leigh!

I met Leigh at the Sewing Summit. She was kind enough to sit with me one night and show me how to make hexies.  She even gave me a few of her templates and some fabric.  She was so kind to share her knowledge with me!

Leigh blogs over at Leedle Deedle Quilts, if you haven't visited her before, stop by and say "hi" for me! She's got lots of great creative eye candy on her blog.

Meet Amy of Diary of a Quilter

Hi there!!

This is the week of our Church's Festival of Nativities.  I'm running around like a crazy person and will admit I'm on the verge of tears  most of the day! It's a major undertaking and even with my fabulous committee it's quickly taking over my life!! I'm doing my best to return emails this week, but please understand if I don't answer right away.

I'm so grateful that these wonderful girls you will meet this week agreed to participate in my little "Meet the Blogger" series. I hope you enjoyed meeting Allison of Cluck Cluck Sew last week, this week you can look forward to a post a day introducing you to some fabulous bloggers. Some that you might now and some that might be new to you.

Handmade Christmas Quilt Along: Machine Quilting

For those of you following along with our Handmade Christmas Quilt along I wanted to get the machine quilting portion of the Quilt Along going today since it's December 1st!

I will admit only 1 of the 3 quilt tops I'm working on is done, but I've got a good plan to get the others done by Christmas, hopefully you are further along that me!

Let me just say once again, I'm not an expert at machine quilting.  This is just what I've "figured" out over the last 3 years from the quilts that I have made-   all but one I've quilted myself on my home machine (it's not a quilting sewing machine).

Today I'm going to share with you what I think is the simplest way to machine quilt your quilt.  It's easy, especially if you are a beginner or are in a rush as you only need to sew straight lines!!!

This is the method I am using for my son's quilt.

instagram photo.

I will still be posting photos of the progress on my quilts until the end of the month.  With the final photos posted after Christmas (in the off chance my kids read my blog, so I don't ruin the surprise). This won't be our last Quilt Along post, but I wanted to get this up today in case anyone was ready to start quilting.

Okay let's start!