Hi all!

Fabrics received as of Thursday, July 31:

DB - 60201
ED - 60202
IJ -   H4H 1E9
BS - 26180
ME  - 22172
AK  -  53590
SP  -  60446
SE  -  82070
AS  -  29483
MC  -  48315
AR  -  76111
KM  -  53211
SL  -  47909
RP  -  71291
AC  -  02176

Also a reminder that the next round for the C+S Swap here at Sew at Home Mummy will be for Rashida Coleman-Hale's "MOONLIT" - sign up starts Monday, August 4 at 0700 CST.

Sign up for the next C+S swaps start August 4!
More information on how the swap works can be found {here}.

<div align="center">
<a href="http://www.sewathomemummy.com/search/label/C%26S%20Swap" title="Sew at Home Mummy"><img src="http://i1252.photobucket.com/albums/hh573/sewathomemummy/Round2Button_zps6bbf828a.png" alt="Sew at Home Mummy" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

Quick Update:

I have received FEs from the following people:
DB - 60201
ED - 60202
IJ -   H4H 1E9
BS - 26180
ME  - 22172
AK  -  53590
SP  -  60446

A while back I participated in Massdrop's Aurifil Designer's bundle sale. I managed to pick up this Tula Pink thread bundle, full of variegateds, for about $80.

image courtesy of Massdrop.com

I have to admit, my mum made this purchase possible. She spoils me. :)

This box is quite literally eye-candy. It felt as though I'd walked into a 50's ice cream parlor when I opened the box:

I've wanted to try quilting with variegateds for some time now; I've seen what other quilters have done with them, and I love the dynamic they add to the right quilt. As well, I'll be able to use them in my Etsy makings, so I thought I'd give them a shot.

Le sigh. I do *love* me some Aurifil!!

I am linking up to the always Pink, always Glittery, Molli Sparkles today for Sunday Stash Share!

Quick FYI:

Craftsy is having a big sale on their quilting fabrics - it's their Summer Clearance Sale going on right now - email says things are up to 75% off.

There are a few Freespirit and Kaffe bundles there that look gorgeous.

...I also took a peek at their RBD precuts and they are on clearance, too.



In other news, I kinda sorta broke my fabric fast. The Great Fabric Fast of 2014 is over. Kinda fell off the wagon with a massive crash. Of course, I'm hosting the Cotton and Steel swap, so I had to participate in the Melody Miller round. And then I saw these gorgeous, out of print Kate Spain charm packs on an Instagram destash and kinda sorta picked them up.

I may have also bid on a Central Park charm pack (also Kate Spain) in an Instagram auction benefiting #luluneedsaride. I'll be sure to post some pictures of that when it comes in.

And I still have my $10 gift card to Fat Quarter Shop from the super lovely Berry Barn Designs as a gift for hosting the AMB Swap, but me thinks I might be saving that to spend on a Miss Kate bundle.

Sheesh.

Off to pick up my friend at the airport! Loves and stitches, everyone!

This post contains affiliate links.

I've received fabrics from the following people:

DB - 60201
ED - 60202
IJ - H4H 1E9

Remember your coupon code expires tonight!

Man, I have been a little bit absent as of late!

I really try to post at least 3 times a week, but it's been tough lately. Summer and all.

Here's what I've been up to with respect to works-in-progress. Linking up with Freshly Pieced on WIP Wednesday!

1. Classic Meets Modern QAL
I've been madly trying to get ahead of all of you, so that I can write all of the tutorials, finish and quilt and bind my two tops so that by the time December rolls around, I'm done and have a couple of layout options for you. I've been working late at night when the kids go down, and when insomnia attacks.

So far, I've written August, September, and November's tuts.

And don't look at the picture *too* closely.

There are a couple of spoilers in there.

If you aren't playing along with the Classic meets Modern QAL here at Sew at Home Mummy, feel free to join us! Still plenty of time to catch up to us by the end of the year. The instructions for the QAL blocks are all in the right sidebar of my blog, listed by month.

And, for those participating, I hope you're doing well, and I'm trying really hard to secure a little something the participants can enter to win at the end of the year. Here's hoping. :)

2. Bloggy Duties
I'm trying to catch up with blogging. I feel like I have a lot of balls in the air right now - I just finished writing the series of posts in the Beautify your Blog series, and I truly hope that those who've participated in some of the tutorials have enjoyed it and found it useful. If you're interested in jazzing up your Blogger blog a bit, you can find the tutorials, listed by subject, in the right sidebar of my blog, near the bottom.

Right now I'm trying to write a bunch of blog posts in advance - here's what my Post Dashboard looks like right now:

As well, trying to write and schedule all of the C+S Swap posts, sign-ups, IG posts, etc. Busy busy! But busy is good. Busy is never boring, right?

Bear with me if you post a comment and it takes a few days to get back to you - I'm not avoiding you, I swear ;)

3. Pattern Writing
I'm writing my very first sewing pattern which will actually be for sale.

I'm not quite sure why I'm dragging my rear on this one - I've written a bajillion tutorials, and there's really very little difference between the two.

The first pattern up is for a cone-shaped pin cushion, which I'm planning to write in 3 different sizes. Won't cost very much, maybe a buck or two. But still. I'm so nervous about it! I think that's why I'm dragging this out...

I've made two of the pin cushions now in one size, and am working on a few more in two other sizes. They've both turned out really well, especially for an experiment. Stay tuned. More on this soon, I promise.

Happy Monday everyone.

I thought I'd pass on these skookum deals that have come my way over the last week. As always, I invite you to comment with deals you've found around the net and share with my readers! Let's save some moola together, shall we?

Havel's Sewing is having a promotion right now where you get a free seam ripper with every purchase with the code

RIPS

Now, I cannot personally attest to the fabulousness of this particular seam ripper, but, the last time I posted about Havel's here on my blog, I had three readers email me about this particular seam ripper to say how fantastic it is. I can attest to the quality of their scissors, and they are super fantastical fo shiz ('for sure' if you're not down with the lingo). They have their 3-piece 'Scissors Gift Set' on sale right now for $39.99 - 7", 5 1/2" curved tip, and 5 1/2" serrated - I have 2 of the three of these and I love them. My favorite is the curved tip 5 1/2", it cuts so close to the fabric when you're trimming threads. Love!

img courtesy of Marmalde Fabrics

Marmalade Fabrics has their True Colors lines on for $6.60/yard. I love Joel Dewberry
and Heather Bailey. I have a few fat quarters of the Mod Dot prints from HB and last year I used a JD woodgrain print to bind a quilt and man, did it look good.

I'm loving this grey woodgrain print. I'm trying to think of a future quilt I could use it in in order to justify buying it. I think it looks just like a picture frame, no?



Fat Quarter Shop has their Sketch Zig-Zags by Quilting Treasures on sale in their Flash Sale section until 9:59am today. Super cute stuff, in all sorts of colors. They have a retro-looking one that looks pretty cool. And I've seen a couple of Quilters in the modern world again using chevrons in bindings and man, does it look really sharp.






Mad About Patchwork has moved to their new location, and is now in the midst of a Summer Sale. I spied some really pretty Chicopee, Flea Market Fancy, Minimalista and Notting Hill in the sale bin. Eep!




Okay guys, that's all I've got for today - what kind of sales have you come across lately??

Well, as per usual, the summer has been busy for me.

My mum was here visiting from Vancouver for almost a month, and as such, I've found it difficult to keep up with my Quilterly and Bloggerly duties (yes, I just made up two words) whilst busy with my Daughterly and Motherly ones.

C'est la vie, mes amies!


I've been busy, though, planning and organizing a Cotton + Steel swap - by designer, in separate rounds - so you can participate in as many or as little as you like - with of course a separate round for their Basics line. We're in the midst of the Melody Miller round, but sign ups for the next round will be coming up soon (see below). Hang tight. Also working on a schedule for you all so that you know when to sign up for which Designers. (and we're swapping charms OR fat eighths, two separate sign ups for each Designer, your choice which [or both!] you'd like to sign up for). Next sign up starts Monday, August 4 at 0700am CST for Rashida Coleman-Hale's MOONLIT fabrics. This swap (in its entirety) is open to International residents - to save on postage you're encouraged to ship your orders to me, and I'll cut them for you. I'm nice like that.

Boo-ya!! My cut is a little wavy on the straights, but it was my first time using a jig. YIPPEE for ME! I'm no longer a jig-virgin. WOOT!

If you've been following along for the last month on Instagram, you know that I've been up to all sorts of craziness - among other things, I have a 'new' 1937 Singer 201-2, for which I 'hacked' a Craigslist-find Ikea dining room table... yes. That's right. I cut a hole in it. Myself. And I'm gonna write a tut on how to do it since so many of you were interested about it! More on that, soon. I swear. When I get 30 minutes to write.

Anywho!

On to the stash share for this week!

1. Oliso Pro itouch Iron

just LOOK at that sexy iron! (yes. I said 'sexy'. yes. an iron can be sexy. hehehe)

 Now, in case you think I'm some rich Diva quilter sitting around whippin' up quilts all day, spending lots of moola on super-fantastical irons, boy, am I not.

I spent every penny I've made in my Etsy shop this year on this iron. (insert awkward grin here). I'm still hoping it's a tax write-off.

Let's just say I had some 'splainin' to do, Lucy, when I opened the box and my husband saw it.

"Wait. Isn't that the iron from that show you watch? The quilting show? Fons and something?"

"Ya! Isn't it great?!"

"Doesn't it have some sort of computer in it?"

"Ya, isn't it great?!"

"Uh, isn't anything with a computer in it really expensive? Like, too expensive?"

"Ya! Isn't it great?!"

>>holy mother of irons Erin, think fast!!<<

Once I explained that it was 'company' money that purchased the iron, and how my old one wouldn't even press a yard without dying, he was a little more conducive to the new-iron notion. But what truly impressed me was that

a) he knew the name of the show I watch (close enough)
b) he actually was paying attention to the show whilst supposedly 'reading' a book - enough to notice the 'iron with a computer in it'.

I digress! Back to the iron.

Holy frickadoodles Batman. I love it.

I'm going to write a review on it at some point, hopefully before Massdrop ends up running another drop on it so that if you're thinking of buying one, maybe I can help you out if you have any questions, etc. I really want to use the iron for at least a month, though, before writing the (unsolicited!) review.

So far, so good. I really like it. It was kind of tough to get used to not having to flip it up, but it only took one sewing session to get it down pat.

Totally worth the $119 Massdrop was selling it for (normally runs anywhere from $169-$210). I'll try and keep you posted on when they're dropping the next Oliso, if they do. Fingers crossed.

Oh, and I am a (bit of a) Diva, just not a rich one. And I wish I could quilt all day. Too busy changing bumbums and singing "Mickey Mouse Clubhouse!" though. (which I wouldn't change for the world. I sure do love my kiddies!)

2. Lulu Magnolia by the Quilted Fish for RBD
A little while ago, I was lucky enough to win 4th place in the Blogger's Quilt Festival through Amy's Creative Side for my pixelated sewing machine quilt ("my first {pixelated}"). My gorgeous, gorgeous prize was a full FQB of Lulu Magnolia by the Quilted Fish! I received this line from the designer herself (Amanda, you rock!) before it was even in stores. How awesome is that??!!

What I love most about it is the pairing of navy and orange. I first saw this color combo on the cover of HGTV mag in the winter, and loved it. And the line just makes me want to be on vacation somewhere. It's really quite gorgeous.

3. Bobbin Thread
You'll also notice in the pic to the right a spool of thread. That would be Superior Threads® - The Bottom Line Polyester Thread #655 Off White 1,420 Yds.It's meant for bobbin, applique and quilting work. Mostly, I just want to try it for the bobbin. I'm really intrigued to see how much less often I will have to change my bobbin when quilting with this stuff. I had heard some good things about it, so I thought I'd throw one in the cart the last time we had to place an Amazon order. I'll also write a review on this, as well. I've heard poly can be a bit more slippery, and conducive to opened stitches at seam ends when piecing... we will see.

Okay. That's all I have to share for this week. That's enough, me thinks!

This post contains affiliate links to Amazon.com, and by FTC regulatory laws I must disclose this. If you make a purchase on Amazon after clicking my link I'll make a small commission on the sale, if it qualifies in their affiliate program. And by small, I mean, a few pennies :)

Hi all!
Quick update on the first round of swapping (Melody Miller's "Mustang" line):

All fabric assignments have gone out to the email addresses you supplied when you signed up, along with a coupon code. Please check your emails and order your fabrics ASAP - there is a small expiry window on the code, and we all are eager to have this fabric in our hot little hands, tee hee.

As I begin to receive packages, I'll be posting teaser pics - stay tuned!

As well, the next designer and dates for sign up will be posted this Sunday, July 20th.

Welcome to the first round of sign-ups for the Cotton + Steel Swap here at Sew at Home Mummy!

For the first round of the swap, we'll be exchanging Melody Miller's Mustang collection from the Cotton + Steel line of fabrics from RJR.

As reference, her fabrics can be found {here} on the Cotton + Steel website.

If you have not yet read the rules of the swap, please read them {here} before signing up below.

To ensure we receive full groups, please feel free to post a button on your blog or in a blog post promoting the swap to your readers.

Please use the Google Form(s) below to sign up.

Please note: there are two separate forms below - one for the charm square sign-up, and one for the fat eighth sign-up. Please make sure to use the appropriate form. Feel free to sign up for both swaps, if you like!

Also, please make sure to click Submit at the end of the forms to ensure I receive your entry.

You may sign up for multiple spots for each swap - however, I'd like to be as inclusive as possible and have the opportunity to participate expanded to as many as possible. Therefore, I can't guarantee you'll receive an extra spot, but I will try! :) Please fill out the form twice to sign up for multiple spots.

As dictated in the rules, the sign-ups will be open for 48 hours or until at least one group fills.

QUICK!!

Joann.com has EQ7 for Mac on for $95. Free shipping with the coupon on their site right now.

Too bad I'm a PC girl.

Blargh.

Happy shopping, Mac users!

Are you ready to swap some gorgeous Cotton & Steel? Sign up for the first round starts tomorrow (Monday, July 14 at 07:00am CST)

I recently posted a poll on my blog asking my readers how they would like a C&S swap organized, and what size of fabric cut they'd most like to swap.

Here are the results:

1. I asked what size you would most like to swap (charm square [5"], brick [5"x10"], layer cake [10"sq], jelly strip [2.5"x WOF], FE [9"x21"] or FQ [18" x 22"]) -
 2. I asked how you'd like to swap - in rounds, separated by designers, just the basics, or all of the fabrics from the entire C&S line at once -

....based on these results, here's how the swap will be organized. Please read the rules and outline carefully before you sign up tomorrow.

Edited/Revised September 20, 2014:For the final rounds of the swap, this swap mama will be keeping 1 fat eighth of each print, and in some of the charm square groups, a charm square or two (by keeping I mean: if there are 13 prints in a line, you'll send me 14 fat eighths; you'll receive 13 F8s in return, and the 14th will be kept by myself). I haven't kept any fabrics in the past, unless of course I physically 'bought into' the round (i.e. signed up for a spot myself and purchased my own fabrics). I found that I wasn't buying into each round, and I was doing a lot of work with the swaps (as you can imagine). I spoke with some friends who've hosted swaps and participated in swaps and found that the general consensus was that other Swap Mamas were doing it this way. I hope that's okay with everyone!

• By Designer, including one round for the "Basics" line. Each 'round' will be approximately 3-4 weeks apart, with separate sign-ups for each round. In other words, you can sign up for as many or as few of the rounds (and therefore, designers,) as you like. Because so many of you also wanted 'just' the Basics, there will also be a round for Basics. In no particular order:
• Mustang {Melody Miller} - 14 fabrics
• Moonlit {Rashida Coleman-Hale} - 14 fabrics
• Hatbox {Alexia Marcelle Abegg} - 13 fabrics
• August {Sarah Watts} - 14 fabrics
• Homebody {Kimberly Kight} - 12 fabrics (excluding panel)
• Cotton + Steel Basics - 34 fabrics
• Each round will have two separate sign up options: one for charm squares, one for fat eighths. Why? Because I'm a glutton for punishment. No, seriously, because the poll was so darned close. You can sign up for one or both, up to you. 
• Charm Squares: If you sign up for this option, you'll be responsible for purchasing 1 yard of your assigned fabric (Designers) and 1.5 yards (Basics). 1 yard = 48 charm squares. 
• Designers Rounds: You'll be responsible for sending me up to 42 charm squares (depending on the number of prints in each line). This means that each person participating will receive three of each print, for a total of 36-42 charm squares each, depending on the number of prints in that Designer's line.
• Basics Round: If you sign up for this round, you'll be responsible for purchasing 1.5 yards of your assigned fabric. You'll send me 68 cut charm squares. This means each person will receive two of each print in the Basics line, for a total of 68 charm squares.
• Fat Eighths: If you sign up for this option, you'll be responsible for purchasing 1.5 - 1.75 yards of your assigned fabric (Designers) and 4.25 yards (Basics). Each person will receive (1) fat eighth of each of the prints in the given Designer's or Basics line.
• Sign up will be open for 48 hours (or until at least 1 group fills). Each grouping will contain the same number of people as there are fabrics in that line (12 for Kimberly Kight, 14 for Melody Miller, 34 for the Basics, etc.) If there are more than enough people to fill one group, the additional people will used to fill additional groups. My apologies in advance if they're aren't enough to fill additional groups/if you don't make it into a swap round. First come, first serve :) If there aren't enough people to run a single group, I'll try my best to fill it, but I don't think this will be a problem with this gorgeous line.
•  You will have a maximum of 2 weeks to purchase, receive, cut, and mail me your swap fabrics once the fabric assignments go out. We all want a fast turnaround time on this swap - and ask others who have swapped with me before - as long as everyone abides by this, you'll have your fabrics back with less than 30 days from assignments to your door (US participants). This is really important - if you can't commit to buying your fabrics and cutting your fabrics and mailing your fabrics as fast as possible, please reconsider signing up. I really don't want to sound like a 'b' but it really, well, sucks, when one person is holding up the other 13, etc. We are all just so super duper excited to hold these fabrics! Be prepared to purchase your fabrics the day the fabric assignments go out to allow for the best turnaround times :)
• Open to International Residents. Oh ya, baby. I can't leave you all out!! For int'l resies, in order to save you some money on shipping costs, feel free to ship your fabrics to me and I'll cut them for you (I'm nice like that). I'll PayPal you for the return shipping (First Class Postage unless otherwise requested).
• Although you don't have to, I suggest you follow me on Bloglovin', Feedly, by email, or Instagram (@sewathomemummy) as I'll be posting updates on the swap rounds, when sign-ups start for the next rounds, etc. I'll try and work on getting set scheduled dates for the sign-ups for subsequent rounds for you, but in the meantime, I'll try and post with a lot of advance notice when the next rounds will happen. And if you're on IG, tag your friends who are C&S fans on the updates to make sure everyone stays in the loop. Stay tuned on this for more updates.

This is the final tutorial in a the Beautify your Blog series of tutorials I've been writing for the last 3 months here at Sew at Home Mummy.

I'll be covering how to upload a custom Blogger template to your blog. If you've been following along with the tutorials and modifying a 'test' blog and not your 'real' blog, this will show you how to move the changes over to your 'real' blog.

As always, please read the disclosure statement from Week 1. Also, I highly suggest you go through the tutorials week by week, in order, as each week builds on information learned in the previous week's tutorial(s). 



1. Start Here

Note:
Any sidebar content you've added or modified on your test blog will need to be manually copied over to your real blog - uploading the customized template won't move these (for example, any blog buttons you've added, widgets, custom sidebar titles, etc. - you'll need to go into each widget, copy the content, and paste said content/code into an appropriate widget on your 'real' blog).

So what if I haven't been following along, but have found a downloadable template online which I'd like to use on my blog?

There are plenty of online sites which offer free 'custom' Blogger templates for anyone to download and use. 

A Google search of "Free Blogger Templates" reveals a plethora of gorgeous freebies floating around the web.

The webistes I'm most familiar with (becuase when I was starting out, I used their templates or buttons) are:

Leelou Blogs
The Cutest Blog on the Block
Shabby Blogs

...but there are hundreds of sites out there with free, super pretty templates for you to download for your site.

There's also the option to have someone design your blog template for you - or, to pay for a pre-made, more custom look. Check out Etsy.com for this option - there are a tonne of graphic designers there, charging really reasonable prices for fantastic work.


1. Backing Up Your Blog
If you're planning on uploading a new template, be it one you've downloaded to use, or one from a 'Test' blog you've been editing, please back-up your original blog before making any modifications.

We covered this in the very first week's tutorial - but here is the video once again. 

**If you have been modifying your test blog along the way, and want to now upload your Test Blog's template to be your Real Blog's template, you'll back-up BOTH your Test Template and your Real Blog's template: I would suggest re-naming the files to something really obvious so you don't run the risk of mixing them up - something like:

(test blog's template): Blog Template - NEW version.xml
(real blog's template): Blog Template - OLD version.xml



2. Uploading Your New Template

From your Blogger.com homepage, click the drop down menu beside your Real blog's name - select

Template

on the Template page, select

Backup/Restore

(circled in RED in image below)

A pop-up appears.

Select

Choose file

(circled in GREEN in image below)

in the second pop-up which appears, select the file name of the template you want to upload to your Real Blog - be it one you've created on your Test blog, one you've downloaded from the net for free, or one that you've purchased.


click

Open

then in the previous dialogue box, click

Upload

There you have it. When you preview your blog, you'll see the new template uploaded.

If you've uploaded a purchased or web template you didn't create, you may have to go into your 

Template

Customize

Advanced

settings to play around a bit with your fonts, margins, etc. And remember, like I said above, you'll have to manually move the content of your sidebar content over from your test blog if need be.


If by chance you don't like the look of your Test blog on your Real blog's page, you can always use the above directions to re-upload your old version of your blog.

I hope you've enjoyed the series. I apologize in the delay in posting this. 

I love to see what you're doing - make sure to share a link with me with your new blog look in the comments below. If you have questions, feel free to email me and I'll try my best to point you in the right direction.

Thanks for playing along, and I hope you found this information useful!

Hi all.

I've decided to see if there's any interest in me hosting a Cotton & Steel swap here at Sew at Home Mummy.

This is a prelim post, just to feel you all out. I'll post the results of the poll in a week or so's time, and let you know more about how I've decided to structure it and when sign-up will start if there's enough interest.

I'm thinking of separating the swap into 'rounds' - where each round will have a separate sign-up, and each round will be dedicated to a single designer within the Cotton & Steel line. This way you'll be able to sign up for as little or as much of the lines as you'd like (I know there are people who aren't in love with every designer's line, so this is my reasoning behind suggesting splitting it up into individual mini-swaps).

I'll be going with what the majority says on this, as I want the best turn-out possible of course :)

The swap will be open to international participants. As always, return postage is up to the participant.

Please feel free to fill out the poll below; leave comments you'd like to stay anonymous IN the poll form - otherwise you can feel free to leave comments on this post below.

Make sure to hit "Submit" at the bottom of the form to ensure I receive your responses.

Thanks!

Hi all!

Thanks for entering my paying-it-forward Massdrop giftbox Liberty of London and Swag giveaway!

The winner of the giveaway (and I've emailed her already - check your inbox!) is:
a Rafflecopter giveaway


Don't despair if you didn't win :) I'm very close to having 700 readers here on the blog, and when I hit 700, I'll most definitely have a giveaway :)

As well, in celebration of finishing my Singer 201-2 "Ikea-hacked" table and refinishing the refurbished 66-16's table, I'll be posting a mini-tutorial on how I did the former and a little giveaway for my readers - so stay tuned.

Also upcoming:

I'll be posting polls on my blog regarding:

1. Cotton & Steel Swap: have your say - I'll be going with the majority on this, if there's enough interest - Charms? Layer cakes? Fat 8ths? Fat Quarters? By designer? Basics only? etc. This will be open to international participants. Swap will start beginning of August.
2. The "Make-it, Swap-it" Swap: have your say - again, going with majority on this - what would you like to swap? Christmas ornaments? mini quilts? machine covers? pin cushions? pouches? notebooks? Open to international participants. Swap to start end of September/beginning of October for end of November mailouts.

... a few hours left to enter my Liberty of London/Aurifil/Charm pack giveaway for my readers!

{click here} to go to the post.

xoxo

DID YOU KNOW:
Staying at a healthy weight, being physically active, and limiting how much alcohol you drink can help reduce your risk of breast cancer. 

***Regular screening can often find breast cancer early when treatments are more likely to be successful. ***

DID YOU ALSO KNOW:
In my past life, I was a Mammography Technologist?
That's right! I was the lovely lady who got to 'squish' 100+ breasts in every shift - all in a day's work. 

I was also the person your doctor sent you to when your routine mammogram came back with a possible abnormality, and you needed further imaging. 

It takes a special type of person to be a breast imager - it's a physically and emotionally draining job - but it's a rewarding one, too. And how many people can say, that several times, on a daily basis, I would get hugs from wonderful women (of whom I just inflicted pain upon??), none of whom I had met before that day. Not too many. (But then again, I'm a pretty modest person - I truly am - but I won't be modest about this - I was damned good at my job!).

From the diagnostic perspective, I have seen my fair share of breast cancers. But more importantly, have seen my fair share of women (and men!) who were about to go through, were going through, or had been through their share of breast cancer Hell. And even though I didn't know these people personally, I treated every.single.patient who walked through my exam room door as I would my own mum, aunt, or sister. 

So when Anna came to me and asked if I would be a part of this blog hop in honor of her very brave mother-in-law whom is currently battling breast cancer, I didn't even bat an eye - of course I would. Because although I've never had breast cancer, I've been around it quite a bit as a health care professional, and I know how important support, of any kind, is.

The Hop Challenge was this:
Make a pink block, any size over 4", and post about it!
Send the blocks on to Anna, and she'll be making a gorgeous charity quilt to donate to the center where her mother in law receives her treatments (the Lemmen-Holton Cancer Pavilion in Grand Rapids, MI) (easy peasy lemon squeezy)


I've made a few blocks which I'll be passing along to Anna for her charity quilt.

Block 1 - a simple 4 patch, made of pink charm squares:

Block 3 - a simple strip block (before I trimmed it square):




8 cross-hatch blocks:


a simple strip block, I had these from the ends of my 60-deg triangle project, so I joined them together and squared them up:

All of the blocks I made for Anna, 4 simple large HST blocks made from layer cake pieces in there, too:

so a total of 16 pink blocks heading Anna's way....

...and I've also received a block from an awesome reader of mine, Jen, who wanted to participate so I'll be passing the block on to Anna and Jen will be entered to win some goodness, too!

Interested in participating? Wanna make a pink block? Wanna enter to win some yummy prizes??

If you're interested in making a pink block over the size of 4" for an awesome cause, and in doing so, enter to win some awesome prizes (don't have time to make a block? NO PROBLEM! there are other ways to win, too! Anna has other ways you can enter! you can promote the hop, make a donation, and more!) 

>>>>> head over to Anna's blog {HERE} to read about how you can enter to win some goodies on August 2 from Pink Chalk Fabrics, Pink Castle Fabrics, or the Fat Quarter Shop!

I want to thank Anna at Life Sew Crafty for asking me to be a part of her wonderful blog hop - and before I forget, make sure to visit the others participating in the hop, too! Here's the schedule:


May 10

Anna @ Life Sew Crafty

Sarah @ Confessions of a Fabric Addict


Robin @ Miscellaneous Thoughts

Kathy @ Kwilty Pleasures


May 24

Jess @ Quilty Habit

Melinda @ Quirky Granola Girl

Kristyn @ Melon Patch Quilts



June 7

Amy @ The Calico Cat

Leanne @ Devoted Quilter

Terrie @ Quilting Nonnie



June 21

Carla @ modern bias

Meli @ Munchkin Quilts
Stacey @ The Tilted Quilt
Julie @ The Crafty Quilter



July 5

Erin @ Sew at Home Mummy - you are here - *smooches*

Lyanna @ BlueStripedRoom
Heather @ Quilts in the Queue



July 19

Katie @ Swim Bike Quilt

Sarah @ {no} hats in the house
Katie @ Snuggle Up with a Dish from Karma

Quick post today, I'm supposed to be sleeping after yesterday but I had to share these deals. Here's another edition of:






Massdrop has 100 packs of Clover Binding Clips on for $24. They regularly retail for $59.95. I ended up spending my 'allowance' on a pack of them, I couldn't resist for that price.








They've also got Lotus Pond yardage on for 20% off if you're looking for some gorgeous Organics.









A couple of my readers have said they've signed up for the Tula Pink Ribbon bundle on Massdrop's site, too. Looks really pretty :)







Marmalade Fabrics has half yard monthly subscriptions of Cotton & Steel on sale right now for $40.
Each month Marmalade will offer up 8 unique Cotton & Steel prints sent automatically to your door via superfantabulous squishy packaging.


Marmalade has also beefed up their sale section - and I
see that it's full of awesome steals, including a lot of fabrics from the "True Colors" lines!


This is a good one:

Fat Quarter Shop is offering up the "Simply Style" by V. and Co. Fat Eighth bundle for
$43.19 (down from $71.99).

I just checked their Flash Sale section but they must have sold out in that section already for today.





Okay. I'm going back to bed. If you have a deal you'd like to share with my readers, leave a link in the comments below!

And if you haven't entered my Liberty of London giveaway, you can do so {here}.

Happy Thursday, everyone.