2014 November BOM: Pumpkin!

November means Thanksgiving here in the states, and we like to enjoy a big slice of pumpkin pie with whipped cream after our big meal.

I love this time of year!

This early BOM is my gift to you while I'm gone to the International Quilt Festival. I won't be home until Sunday evening. You'll find me on Facebook though, posting photos when I can.

Hubby's holding down the fort here, keeping the dogs out of trouble (I hope).
Hexie love until next week,
Julia

Introducing…Happy Days!

Happy Days is another quilt pattern in MORE Quick and Easy Hexie Quilts. (That's my orange and white Ikea rug under it.) I love, love, LOVED making this one - it made me happy, hence the name.

Lots on hand quilting with Perle Cotton everywhere!

And the center circles are surrounded with some lovely gathered rick rack. I love the various gray backgrounds - a background fabric doesn't have to be white!!!

Here are some shots of our weekend:

Hubby and I took Cooper for a LONG walk around campus Saturday morning. He was pretty good, but he just about did us in when the tried to join in a pick up football game with some young boys. We somehow managed to keep him in control.

The day was beautiful and the sky was a brilliant blue.

In the evening we were back on campus (without Cooper) for the football game. Beautiful sunset!

I spent Sunday suffering from allergies from being outside all day the day before. Bummer! Back on track today, working on the November BOM. Where has October gone?!!!!

I'll be leaving REALLY early on Wednesday for the International Quilt Festival in Houston. Yippee! I'll be searching for everything HEXIE while there - quilts, products, patterns - stay tuned!!!!!

Hmmm…I'll still be gone on Nov. 1….how about I post the November BOM a bit early? That okay with everyone?

More of Toomer's Oaks!

Wow! What a response! You wanted to see more of this quilt! Lucky for me it was in the first box I opened.

This quilt is dedicated to the massive oaks trees on the campus of Auburn University which were poisoned, died, and had to be removed. Miss those trees!

I dug into my stash for this quilt - don't you love a stash buster?

I did my own quilting. Click on this picture to see some of my hand quilting with Perle Cotton on each tree.

Toomer's Oaks and MORE New Fabric

Here's one of the quilts from MORE Quick and Easy Hexie Quilts! This is called Toomer's Oaks - can you see that each block is a tree? This is an old photo I took at the lake - one of the doxies had to get in on the act. I love the scrappiness of this quilt. Those hexies are 4" on each side - big ones!

Do you know that I STILL have not opened the boxes of quilts that were delivered Wednesday! I promise I'll do that today so that I can continue to share photos!

Here's more fabric that came in the mail this week. See the hexies? Love, love this! You may remember that in my previous career I was an engineer, so this really speaks to me! The fabric is a bit lighter in person. I bought enough for a backing.

And because I know you're going to ask me, here's the selvage so you can find some if you so desire!
It's by Robert Kaufman.

By the way, Cooper says, "Good Morning!"

Today Will be Better!

Yesterday. Is. Over. Yay! It started out with a call to the plumber's office. The phone answerer was extremely rude. I'm still not sure why. But she was. I even asked her why she was being so rude to me. "I don't mean to be," she said. Well, she was. She told me lies, accused me of lying, etc. And she kept interrupting me. She actually made me cry while on the phone. Plumbing company is now fired.  

The good news- hubby called the manufacturer of our French faucet. Turns out it has a lifetime warranty (despite plumber telling us it was out of warranty). They are sending the needed part to us at no charge and hubby will fix it himself. And they told him how to cap off the geyser so I can actually use my sink until the part comes in. 

Enough of that - on to fabric!

Hancock's of Paducah had a big sale. And free shipping. That's my excuse! I got this lovely bundle in the mail yesterday. Won't this make a pretty quilt? I'm planning to add white to it, also. I'm setting this aside in case I decide to do Bonnie Hunter's new mystery. (Yes, I'm changing up the colors she picked.) I really don't have time for it. But I'll print out the instructions for somewhere down the line.

After my day started so poorly, I needed some "me" time. So, with Bonnie Hunter on my mind, I spent about 30 minutes in my studio working on last year's mystery. Yes, I'm behind. I've been a bit busy this year starting a magazine….

Almost all the parts and pieces are ready to sew into blocks. So I put together 4 blocks. It's a start and cheered me up!

My boxes of quilts arrived yesterday! Today I'll open them up and will start sharing these book quilts with you.

Today's list includes opening my business bank account, filing for my city business license, and making LOTS of hexies!

Making Progress!

My meeting with my accountant went very well. Turns out I'm doing most things correctly. She's preparing some forms to file with the IRS. And she gave me a few assignments which I'll try to accomplish today. Ready to get down to the nitty gritty!

I spent the evening last night working on the first issue - putting in photos and text. This is my favorite part of the process! I love being creative with how the pages are laid out. Fun stuff!

Here's a cool photo I took yesterday while Mickey and Cooper were playing at my feet. Don't feel sorry for Cooper because his ear is in Mickey's mouth - I assure you that Mickey doesn't bite hard - this is the way they play.

Today's list includes doing my homework assigned by my accountant, waiting at home for THREE boxes of my quilts to be delivered from AQS (I have to be here to sign for them), make hexies for November BOM, make hexies for the special progressive quilt for Hexie Love, vacuum the house (lowest priority).

I still don't have a working kitchen sink…maybe today I'll hear options from the plumber. I guess I need to add that issue to my list!

New Book is OUT!

Today my new book - MORE Quick and Easy Hexie Quilts - is out! Yippee! Over the next several days I'll be sharing projects that are within those pages - lots of FUN quilts!!!

Want one? You can get one over on the right sidebar! See the button to click?

Today starts out bright and early with a plumber who will (hopefully) fix the geyser at my kitchen sink. Then on to my accountant meeting for Hexie Love. And then off to daughter's house to supervise the installers of shower doors.

Photo Shoot! …and Pumpkin Bread

Yesterday I FINISHED the appliqué on the first part of the progressive quilt for Hexie Love! After a quick press it was time for a magazine photo shoot! So exciting! You will love this pattern!!!

After all that excitement, I put a double batch of Pumpkin Spice Bread in the oven. Thought you might like the recipe. Click on the recipe to see it bigger.

This is actually my tried and true Whole Wheat Banana Bread recipe (that I make constantly!) I substitute 1 cup of canned pumpkin for the banana and add 1 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice - voila! Yummy pumpkin bread!

Today's list includes laying out some magazine pages and preparing for my accountant appointment tomorrow.

Let's Hexie!

Last night was our guild meeting. Guess who the speaker was? That's right - me! I decided to give my slideshow lecture, "Let's Hexie!" It went very well!

Here are a few of the beautiful quilts that were shared.

So many talented folks in this guild!

So did I hire an accountant? Yes! I have my first meeting with her on Tuesday - hope she can set me straight on some on my many questions about starting a new business. I must say, the business side of starting a new magazine is the most boring and unlikeable part. Taxes, licenses, paperwork - ugh! But it is part of the process and I'll muddle through it!

Today's list includes more appliqué on my special hexie quilt - yes, this is the progressive quilt that will be patterned in the magazine over the course of 2015. I also plan to work on some magazine pages and run a few errands. Oh, and I need to cram heart worm pills down a couple of dachshund throats - the only way they will take them.

And So I Sew

I worked most of the day on hexie appliqué. Love the words that jumped out at me! Yes, that's what I'm doing, making art! Making progress on this wonderful journey of a quilt.

I'm also looking to hire an accountant for Hexie Love. Hopefully I'll do that by the end of the week. The first issue is going to be SO AWESOME! So excited!

Hubby and I took a nice afternoon walk. We are very fortunate to have TONS of places for walking around here. This is one of my favorites. The leaves are still mostly green here, though Fall color is not far away.

A Quilt Purchase

It's not often I buy a quilt - but on my trip to Chattanooga in September, I did just that. I was mesmerized by the exhibit of quilts from the Philippines. They were all colorful, unique, and amazing! The story behind them was equally colorful.

A Japanese man and his wife moved to a Philippines island. The wife taught the locals to quilt to supplement the islanders' income. Now the quilts the islanders make bring in 1/3 of all the income there. What a wonderful gift!

These quilts depict the life on the island. I knew I wanted to buy one with fish, so this one came home with me.

Today I made the last of the reservations for the International Quilt Festival in Houston. All booked! Hotel, shuttles, festival tickets, airline tickets…done!

I also started the appliqué of many hexies onto a background - this piece is too big for my lap so I'm working on it at the dining room table. I got a good start today. Happy work!

From One Thing to Another

I did some tie sorting today - someone in our guild is getting rid of a huge bin of these. One person has already gone through them - now it's my turn.  Then I'll pass it on to the next person. I did find some nice ones to use for a future project.

And look! I even found one with hexagons on it - yes, I snatched it!

Late this afternoon, hubby and I went for a hike. We went to an ecological nature preserve here in town. We'd never been before, but we'll definitely go back again.

Beautiful scenery… Then we came home and grilled out.

Here's a tiny sneaky peaky of something special. I've been a busy bee! Now I'm exhausted, so it's off to bed to read for a bit. Tomorrow will be another day full of hexie fun!

My New Craftoptics Glasses Came in!

Before we get to the subject at hand…here are the hexies I'm working on today. They are not quite as bright in real life as they show in the picture. I have been hexing since I woke up today! An entire day of hexing! Does it get any better?! I think not!

The WONDERFUL people at Craftoptics sent me new glasses (to replace the ones Cooper chewed up). So happy to have these! I can baste hexies without their help, but when stitching hexies together…boy, do these things make my life easier!!!! Excuse the no makeup look - most days at home I don't bother with it.

And look at the note sweet Kate from Craftoptics sent along with the replacement glasses! Made me smile…a LOT! Thanks so much, Kate! I do hope that Cooper will be as chilled as your dog soon!

Auburn has an away game this weekend, so that means I'll be sitting home with hubby watching all the games on the TV (while I hexie!)

Another Happy Hexie Flower

Here's the latest in my pile - I fussy cut the center. This quilt is coming along nicely, but you'll have to wait until January 1 to see it and get the pattern in Hexie Love.

Ah, yes, the magazine. How do you start a magazine? One tiny step at a time…

If you follow Hexie Love on Facebook, you've read some of the drama.  I bought some software to help me run things. However, I was not happy with the customer service they provided: missed on-line meetings, unanswered e-mails, etc. So I cancelled it - chalk that one up to a lesson learned.

Yesterday I bought new software. In less than two days I've learned so much! This company has excellent customer service. They answer my questions on-line within seconds.

The way the subscriptions work on this software is as follows:
No one can sign up for a subscription until the first issue is published, i.e., January 1, 2015. So hang in there. The day you subscribe, you'll get the first issue! Now that I think about it, it does make sense - that way you don't give up any money until you can immediately have the product. Nice, huh?

You will be able to buy a one year subscription or to buy individual issues. There will be a progressive quilt pattern for the year with one part of the quilt patterned in each issue. If you're interested in this, it will be much more affordable to subscribe for the year instead of buying individual issues.

I will keep you posted here and at HexieLove.com. If you wish you can sign up for my e-mail list (at hexielove.com)  to get occasional updates, such as when a new issue is out.

So after much toil and trouble, I seem to finally be on the right track. Today I even started putting the first issue together - so much fun! This is the part I've been looking forward to!

There is still some boring stuff left: get a business license for my state and city, open a business bank account, and a bit more yuckity yuck. But all in all, I'm feeling very encouraged today.

Haircut and Studio Rearrange!

I got a much needed new haircut Friday - always makes me feel like a new woman! I'm loving my new style.

And here are the promised photos of my rearranged studio. It's not a huge change, but I'm enjoying it so much. The dark low shelving unit you see on the left used to be on the right side against the back wall. The ironing table used to be where that shelving unit is now - I moved it to the right side - you can only see a corner of it in this picture. And my new Ikea rug came in on Friday - love the pop of color! (You know I love ORANGE!)

I turned around to take more pictures and realized I have something big on my design wall that I can't show! (It will be in the first issue of Hexie Love!) So I'll just share this little corner - more pops of orange here and there.

I also hung this little storage bucket set (again, from Ikea) under my television. It's great for my scissors, rotary cutter, and other important stuff! That's my Accuquilt Studio on the table under the television - I use it constantly! I have most of my dies stored there on the little shelf unit under my hexagon magnetic board.

I have one more small addition to hang today - it's a fun little touch which I'll share soon.

Now that our big football weekend is over (in which I didn't have much time to hexie), I'm hitting the ground running today! I'm hoping to accomplish LOTS of magazine goodness today! And of course I'll get my hexie on!

Ombre Fun!

Here's what I'm working on today - loving these happy blues.

For some reason, I've been very tired today. So I've listened to my body and rested and hexied. Dinner tonight? Eggs, bacon, bagels - quick and simple.

You can tell there is a big game here this weekend (Auburn vs. LSU) because I've heard planes and small jets flying in all day. This will continue Friday and even Saturday morning. You can feel the excitement in the air. We have lots of friends and family coming for the weekend - all beds at our house and at our daughter and SIL's house will be full, with some people sleeping on sofas and floors. I may or may not go to the game. My mother is coming so I may sit home with her while the rest go to the game…we'll see.

More hexies for me tonight!

2014 Hexie BOM October: Candy Corn!

We do love our Candy Corn this time of the year! It's one of hubby's favorite fall treats.  Here's the pattern:

And here's my version. You will notice that I did mine in the brown, orange, and yellow version - you've seen those haven't you? Feel free to do yours in orange, yellow, white if you wish! Happy Halloween!