Rev up with thread

We are going to let thread tell our story today.  

Closing the drawer on 2013.  

Fresh and organized for 2014, ready to meet our challenges.

How will you challenge yourself in the New Year?
Remember to quilt, bind and savor…

Holiday Wishes...

And the stockings were hung ....

With great anticipation the holiday has arrived.  All is in readiness (or not, but that's okay)...

May your stockings be filled with good health, much joy and many creative adventures!

Our best, Marny and jill

Nuts, nuttier, nuttiest!

A few of my 2013 drawstring goodie bags for Spiced Nuts 

Marny here…every year our family makes Spiced Nuts to give as little homemade gifts during the holidays.  My husband's parents started the tradition, and graciously shared the secret recipe with us years ago.  Every time we look at the original directions we have to smile because we can hear my late mother-in-law's voice in the kitchen encouraging us to "stir like mad".  It is a special time for us all every Christmas.

Generally I go from grocery store to grocery store searching for enough one pound bags of the right kind of three different nuts.  This is a frustrating process during the cold, snowy or icy days leading up to Spiced Nut Night.  This year I parted with tradition and went online.  And that is where this story begins.

Googling for nuts the website Nuts.com charmed me.  It was easy to navigate, had good descriptions of products, and was filled with good will and good cheer.  Seemed like a fine idea to order everything all at once from them.  Little did I know it was a GREAT idea.  Look how the order arrived.

Note tail of helpful cat entering from the left…

…and exiting to the right.  Take a look at this cheerful packaging.  I chuckled upon finding this box on my front porch not long after ordering.  How can the inside of the box top the outside?

Inside the charming and amusing bags they use for nuts did not disappoint.

Here is sack of "just a little something" (organic raw white buckwheat) they included as a gift.  Isn't it cute?  Luckily they sent a recipe on the invoice.  Speaking of recipes, check out their blog, the Nutty Scoop, for lots of ideas.

Their company's heartwarming story is on the back of the bags.    

Jeffrey sent the happiest email when UPS confirmed they'd left the package on my doorstep.  It was just a pleasure doing business with Nuts.com.  Yummy too.

Photo and quote courtesy Jill, "17 years of wonderful little bags".  

May your holidays be bright, filled with the warmth of family and friends.

Lucky Star Market Booth at Prairie Moon Winery

jill here....Seven o'clock am on Saturday morning was cold, really cold and sorta dark too.  We braved the elements and set up our booth for a 9 am start.  Hot coffee and warm cinnamon rolls fortified us.  As you can see from the photos, the event center supplied us with essential hanging beams.  They were a nice perk to display some of our patterns.

These beams were perfect to display
 Supper Club and Leftovers.  We have kits for both!  

Another pole, supported by our ladder. displayed a few
quilts in front of Torte and Cutlery.

Nothing like a deadline to move past perfection
and to "call it good".  

Our business table displaying patterns,

 kits and just a few more quilts.

Our cozy little corner!

A good way to spend a winter day with layers on!

The event was a festive and well run.  Lots of shoppers made the rounds.  Wine in the hands of some seemed to make it relaxed and enjoyable.  Hmmmm, we'll pass that one along to wholesale market organizers. 

It was most fun seeing our friends and quilt shop friends!  We may have even recruited a few new quilters.

'Till next Tuesday...

Lucky Star Market here we come!

Please join us at the first ever Lucky Star Holiday Market this Saturday from noon to four at Prairie Moon Winery.  

We are really excited to get to participate.  Meeting our customers in person will be a special treat!

The range of goods offered for sale is truly astounding.  Check out this blog for lots of photos.  So much has been added since our last post about Lucky Star Holiday Market.   I'm getting my shopping list ready. :-)

A map showing Prairie Moon Winery's location, just north of Ames.  This is the Lucky Star website map, so go here to read it more easily. 

Hope to see you Saturday!!

Nostalgic Creativity

Family stocking that was lovingly created
by my Aunt Kelsie.

jill here....When our family was young and funds were tight, I had to be creative with holiday ornaments.  Sometimes, it was more about the time than the money: there wasn't a lot of either.  I did allow for one really nice "ornament" each year.  One that I hoped would be passed down like the stocking pictured above.

 These darling hand painted ornaments were discovered at a craft show.  I decided they were worth the splurge. I had to custom order them and make an Advent Calendar appropriately scaled to display them.

This is the calendar...self taught applique with numbered pockets
to house those cute little ornaments.

 There seems to be a few missing....the dog must have eaten Santa.  The question is which dog!

So when it came to making my Mom's holiday special (in a very small space) I decided to create a calendar with some of her costume jewelry.  There are bits and bobs from the past !  She can actually wear them on the appropriate day and then pin them to the tree.

Pins and necklaces...

Advent calendar created from a pre-printed panel .
Perfect little envelopes for all those jewels ...
or chocolate!

Hope your holidays are filled with the spirit of simple creativity.  'Till next Tuesday

Food photography meets quilt design

Marny here…couldn't resist.  And it will make a great thank you gift for a friend who has warmly shared hospitality throughout the year and who I recently discovered has gone gluten free. 

Small Plates & Sweet Treats by Aran Goyoaga is an absolutely beautiful cookbook with glorious photography.  Aran's blog is Cannelle et Vanille, food, life & photography.  Take a look and you'll see her artistry.  Her presentation draws you in and lets you experience the food.  

Page from Small Plates & Sweet Treats.  Look at the negative space,  asymmetry, simple shapes and I do believe that melting dark chocolate with a spoon for you and a spoon for me provides a focus to the photograph!  These are the same elements we keep in mind while designing quilts.

See you next week!