I was surfing the web today (feeling a bit ill, so not doing much else really) and found this absolutely wonderful site: FreeQuilt.com. It’s a collection of links to other quilting and sewing sites around the Internet with free patterns for download. In other words, mega legwork already done by someone else, and nothing to do but click and enjoy! I love all the cat quilts that can be found there, but I’d already found another that isn’t listed there: Cats in the Attic at Pam Bono Designs (you have to register there to download the pattern). This one might even make good placemats, if you just make the four blocks singly instead of putting them together into one quilt.

So now I’ve got ideas for more quilts! This is what happens when your body doesn’t feel like doing much, I guess. Your brain and creativity start up, and then you’re in trouble when you do feel better!

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Every year, I think long and hard about what gift(s) to give our landlord and landlady. They are just wonderful people, but it’s difficult to know very well what they like. They’re German, of course, and retired, and pretty much have everything they need. Things to eat and drink seem safe, and are usually well received, but I do like to go a bit farther than that if possible. Last year, I used my embroidery machine to make a table runner and a matching door hanger:

It was really funny, since I’d put the fabric that I used for the lining in a pile with bunches of other quilting stuff to get rid of donate to charity, and when I needed something to line the tablerunner with, I had to go digging for it. See, this is why we never get rid of anything, packrats that we are in my family. As soon as it’s gone, we need it for something. It absolutely never fails.

Anyway, I still have more of the green fabric (and the lining, which I decided might be worth keeping after all), and more threads for the embroidery, so I’m thinking I’ll make some napkin rings or something with some of the other embroidery designs that came in the package I bought. I’m not sure that I have the time to make placemats (much bigger and take longer of course), but some kind of napkin thingy might be doable. Oh, and maybe if I actually use the embroidery machine for the first time since I made these gifts for last Christmas, hubby will quit twitting me about it!

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Here’s how Patches spent his morning:

in one of his favorite places sleeping off the late night last night. Their schedules are all out of whack because of our late nights over the past few days, so he’s catching up I think. Then there’s Shadow:

While I did my quilting (before I did anything “work-ish” today, just like I said I was going to) Shadow sat in the middle of it and tried to play with the end of my quilt marker while I was using it. When he finally got tired of me telling him “no,” he settled down to nap as well, and only woke up when I left the room to get my camera and then he gave me this annoyed look when I took a couple of pics.

I don’t know if I’ll actually get to really quilt today on the machine, but I did get some of the marking done anyway. Maybe later I can reward myself if I get all the other stuff done! I’m off to start Christmas cards and packages!

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