Merry Christmas!

My Christmas Eve day was spent in a fairly relaxed way. I did a little "puttering" around the house, doing some light cleaning to get ready for THE DAY. I went through all of my quilting books, culling out the ones I no longer want and reshelving the ones I do--all as part of my whittling down of quilty stuff. After the "chores" were done, I got out the book and fabrics for the Garden Club Quilt and started section 4. While I appliqued the first part, I watched the first Sherlock Holmes movie--the one that came before the movie that's in theaters now. All in all, a really nice day!

I mentioned showing you the three quilty gifts I made this week. Maybe you've seen the pattern for making quick tablerunners using a striped "border-type" fabric? I can't remember what it's called or who it's by, but it's a simple concept. A 60 degree triangle "ruler" and the fabric itself does most of the work, so it was possible to make a couple of nice gifts fairly quickly.

The two "round" ones went to my two work "lunch buddies." The three of us try to get out to lunch--usually Chevy's--every week or two. The longer runner was for another friend from work--someone I've known there since I started. I was so glad to be able to make gifts for these special friends.

I made a fourth, longer tablerunner that I was going to give as a gift but I realized how perfectly it went in my livingroom, on the chest we use as a coffee table. I didn't have a runner or tabletopper on it, and it was taking a bit of abuse from--well, I'm not sure. It looked like hot cups had been put on the wood, but I never actually SAW anything put down that shouldn't have been, so I'm not sure what was causing it. In any event, the chest is now better protected and I've paired up some homemade edible goodies with a purchased gift for the person I initially thought I'd make it for. And really, I'm pretty sure that it's a better choice in this instance anyway, so it's all good.

This evening when I went to take a photo of the runner on the chest, I noticed Stitch was nowhere to be found. I guess he's hiding from Santa. Where could he be?

Aren't animals funny?

I picked a winner for the quilt top I showed you yesterday. Cory said, "My church's Hugs Ministry would gladly accept this top. We make quilts, pair them with stuffies and give them to the local fire department for kids in crisis situations. Thank you for the opportunity to add to a ministry that is very near to my heart. Merry Christmas to you and your family. Take care and God bless." I think you'll agree with me that the quilt top will be going to a good home. Cory, please email me your mailing address and I'll get it in the mail when life gets back to normal on Tuesday.

If I don't post tomorrow night, it will be because I'm spending time with my family and/or am worn out by the festivities of the day. Now, though, I'm going to try to get to bed early with a book and a cup of hot chocolate and wait for Santa to arrive. I hope you and yours have a wonderful holiday. Merry Christmas!