Giveaway winners!

Hello everyone! I know I'm a day late in posting this, but I've been super busy just like the rest of you, I'm sure! :) Here are the winners of my giveaways:

#24: StasaLynn who said: Beautiful projects! And beautiful fat quarters. I am a new follower now - because I want to see your designs become quilts! Thanks for the opportunity! 

And then she also replied to her own comment (so she wasn't counted twice) and said: hahahaha... I got so excited I forgot to tell you my favorite quilt pattern... right now it is log cabin.

Well, I am also a fan of the log cabin pattern. I haven't tried it yet, but I love how you can make it look completely different just by changing the color patterns.

And, the winner of my second group of fat quarters was #89: Happy Cottage Quilter who said: I like stars and baskets. Thanks for the great giveaway!

I am definitely biased for stars. The first pattern I ever sewed was an Ohio Star block for a pot holder at summer camp while I was in grade school. I have no idea what happened to it, but I've been hooked on quilting ever since! I'm in my first online quilting bee (Color Bee Shocked) and I think I'm going to ask for star blocks for my month. Now, to decide if I want them to all be different or if I want a specific pattern!

Anyway - both of my winners have been emailed, so StasaLynn and Happy Cottage Quilter, please send me your mailing information. :)

And, in other news, I had just a few minutes for sewing today between church and working out. So, I made some spring flowers. I have 3 more pairs to make, and I hope they turn out a little better than the first two. I have a yellow, a red, and then a dark and light purple flower coming up. :) Hope you've all been able to spend this weekend sewing up your projects or having a great time! Happy crafting everyone!

Beat the Winter Blues! Blog Hop and Giveaway!

Hello everyone! If you're new here, welcome to my blog! If you're returning, welcome back! This is my first time in participating in one of the Quilting Gallery's blog hops and I'm excited to check out the line up.

I'm going to highlight some of the projects I've completed over the last couple years and link you back to those posts. Otherwise, feel free to browse around my blog. I hope you're all inspired to create!

My blog is called The Recipe Bunny because I initially wanted a place to write down the recipes I was trying out (and my husband's nickname for me was/is Bunny). As you will see, I quickly turned from recipes to crafts, but I still do a savory or sweet post every now and then. My favorite recipe so far is my Roasted Garlic and Sausage Pasta. I tried to recreate my husband's favorite meal at our favorite Italian restaurant here in Madison - Lombardino's. It turned out really nicely, but still can't beat the original.

One of my favorite craft projects is the hallowed-out book safe. My husband actually asked for this to be completed. Actually, he helps me come up with ideas for lots of projects and is usually the one I ask for a seal of approval. Anyway, we needed a place to store a flask his parents brought home from Ukraine. So - the book safe was created. We bought the book from the thrift store. It was a thick biography about Colin Powell. Probably not a book we'd usually have on the shelf, but thick enough to hold the flask!

My favorite knitting project so far has been the kindle case I made for my sister. It looked like a little monster and was the first knitting-in-the-round I had ever done. I still need to make one of these for me sometime now that I have a smaller kindle too. I originally had a large kindle and made a quilted case for it. Alas! That kindle broke and so I gave the case to my friend who was visiting for a weekend to fit her nook. She was happy to have it even if it was used. :) Otherwise, I'm pretty new to knitting, so I make a lot of scarves. I have one I'm still finishing up for a friend, even though I hope she doesn't have to use it any more this year (I'm ready for spring!!!). I also did my first cabling on a scarf for my mother-in-law for Christmas. She was the person who originally taught me how to knit and purl and I'll be forever grateful!

Now, on to the quilts! I made my first quilt at summer camp when I was in grade school and I'm pretty sure I've been hooked ever since. I made one with my mom for a wedding present in high school, and I did make 2 in college during finals week my Junior year. Yes, I was a little crazy but it really helped me wind down in between all that studying! Now it's much more of a regular hobby.

My most popular and probably crowning quilting achievement is my Super Mario Brothers quilt. This quilt was 9 months in the making. My husband and I sat down one night and drew up the pattern for most of the blocks. Some I had found a pattern for out of perler beads or cross stitch - like Mario and Luigi. But others like the Piranha Plant, Thwomp and Angry Sun we designed ourselves. A lot of the characters in the quilt were pretty tricky to fit in a 16x16 grid. I had to scale down Cheep Cheep the fish and the Koopa Troopa turtle quite a bit. Then, lo and behold right after I get my quilt finished I see there's a Mario Quilt-A-Long! If I had just waited a few more months someone would have done all of that designing work for me!!! I did share my quilt with the QALs flickr group and I've loved seeing my patterns put into different color combinations. I'm happy other people have enjoyed my patterns/characters as much as I did! It was a lot of fun to figure out the blocks with my husband. It was also probably the project he's been most interested in. He was involved with the pattern, fabric choice, quilting, and now we sleep with it just about every night. It's cold here, and we have basically every blanket we own on our bed. :)

But, the Mario Quilt is special and I don't want it to get too much use, so I'm making more quilts. Please stop by my Quilt Projects tab at the top of the blog to see some things I've come up with. Most things I've given away, but this year I have several quilts planned just for us (and I'm sure I'll throw in a few for other people too - it always happens!). I've had a Double Irish Chain planned out for a couple years. I've got a Fall Leaf Quilt with about 1/3 of the blocks done. I've also got my longest WiP ever all pinned and ready for quilting. Hopefully that will get finished this month, and I started that when I was in 8th grade!! (I'm 26 now...too long to keep it in a box!)

Besides that, I love to design and dream about quilts. Sometimes I even post my sketches. Maybe one day I'll make one into a real quilt! :) Here's my favorite, so maybe this one will be next... Sun, Moon and Stars

Well, if you've made it through this long post you deserve a treat! I've got just the thing for this Quilting Gallery hop - some fat quarters!

So, I'll definitely have at least one drawing, but let's try to make it 2! I'm really close to 200 followers on my blog. If I get to that level, I'll give away 3 fat quarters to 2 different people. If I don't then I'll just have a giveaway to one person.

So, what can you win?

**GIVEAWAY CLOSED**

These:

 Or these:

How do you enter? Please leave just one comment. You don't need to be a follower, but if you like what you see here, please sign up! And, let's make the comments fun. Give me an answer to this question: What is your favorite quilt pattern?

If you are a no-reply blogger, please include your email in your response. If I can't contact you, I can't send you your winnings! I'll pick a winner on Saturday, March 16th.

And, last but not least, please go check out the other blogs on the hop! I know I'm going to be very busy going from one to another and I hope you have fun with it too!! Just click on this button to be directed back to the main page for the hop. The list of participating bloggers should be up by late afternoon on Friday, March 8th, so if it's not up when you stop by, come back later! Happy hopping everyone!

I Won!

So - remember that little quilt shop I shared with you in my last post? Apparently, I won the door prize they were giving away during their sale! I never win things like this, so it was really exciting to get their call!

The shop is about 35 minutes away from my house, so I had to wait until the weekend to pick up my gift basket. I couldn't remember what was inside, so I was really eager to see what I had won.

Here's what was inside! :)

Quilt Tags

Quilt marking pencils, a note pad and a pattern

This cute purse I gave to my sister. I have too many purses as it is and I just didn't see myself using it any time soon. She was very happy to have it and said she'd be using it for a portable sewing kit. I think the ladies from the quilt shop would be very happy with that. :)

9 Block of the Month Kits!

Body lotion, a pattern book and a crib size package of batting!

Plus, I get to keep the basket too! :) I still can't believe I won. I know I'm going to have a lot of fun putting the block of the month kits together. I haven't checked to see how large they'll be when they are finished, but maybe I'll have a little wall hanging for my sewing room. 

Wicked? Who, me?

The Case of the Missing Halloween Candy

"No, officer, you must have me mistaken with someone else. I wouldn't eat all the Halloween candy before the kids get here to Trick or Treat. I'm not that cruel!"

"Ma'am, the evidence is overwhelmingly against you, but I'll hear your story before we put you away for good."

My heart was pounding. How was I going to get out of this. There had to be someone who could vouch for me. My head scrolled through the list of contacts in my phone, email, neighbors, friends, family - finally I came up with someone. 

"Mdm Samm and Wendy. They've been organizing this blog hop that I've been furiously sewing for. You see, I wouldn't have time to eat all of the candy, I've been too busy." I showed him the burn on my hand from the iron, the welt on my finger from the needle and he seemed to be considering my innocence. "They have a whole list of people who've been involved. You can find it on Wendy's website at: http://why-knot-kwilt.blogspot.com."

"I'll look in to those people too, but why don't you give me a list of the ones I should be concerned with today."

I searched my head and came up with a list of talented quilters who could have pulled off a candy heist. I told him if he looked into the following people he wouldn't be disappointed.

Beaquilter
Fun Thread Designs 

Stitch, Stitch, Stitch

Made By A Brunnette

Buttons And Butterflies

The Recipe Bunny

Quilted Delights

Sunshine Reflections

Louzeekreativ

Mice In The Mix

Rosemary - That Other Blog
The Fuzzy Hat Quilter
Sew We Quilt

That should have kept him busy all day, but he was back questioning me in an hour. 

"Ma'am, all of those people have alibis and completed quilt projects as well. They've been too busy to steal Halloween candy."

My mind raced on to the last few people I could pin the crime on.

"OK officer. I was hoping it wouldn't come to this, but I have no choice. There's a couple strange people in town that have been asking questions all week on where to get more Halloween candy. But, they are a little spooky and live in that old house on Main Street."

We got into his squad car and sped over to Main. I'm sure the house was a lovely Victorian home when it was built, but now it was dilapidated and in bad need of repair. It gave me the creeps just looking at it and I desperately didn't want to go inside.

We knocked on the door and no one answered. I started down the front stairs, ready to jump into the squad car and lock myself inside. Instead, the cop knocked harder and the door did that creepy thing it does in the movies and opened up on its own with a haunted groan. Much to my dismay, we entered the house. 

"The first one you'll want to question is Belinda," my voice said with a crack. "I've heard talk around town that she's the biggest witch around - a real piece of work. I'm sure she had something to do with the missing candy."

We heard a wicked cackle behind us and turned around just in time to see a puff of smoke. Belinda had vanished leaving behind only her hat as evidence of her existence. 

"She's got style, I'll give her that, but she knows we're on to her. I bet she'll never show her face here again," I said. The cop just gave me a look of disbelief.

"There's one other person you should talk to before we leave, officer."

Horace had to be around there somewhere. He liked to lurk in dark corners and wait for prey to fall into his trap. He was my last chance of getting out of this mess. 

We walked up to the attic, the last place in the house to check. Upon opening the door we saw nothing but dusty windows and old cobwebs. Just as I was about to give up hope Horace swung down from the rafters and blocked our way.

"Leaving so soon?" He asked. "We haven't even had a snack yet."

This was promising. Horace was a devious little spider. He was gifted at catching anything in a trap - his web of horrors - and he could get himself out of any sticky situation. 

I patiently waited while the officer asked Horace for his alibi. Unfortunately for me it was rock solid and he had the web to prove it. He'd spent all week building it. This time his web looked hypnotic, almost like a time warp, and I was ready to jump right in and escape the house, the cop, the town - everything.

As I was about the jump, the officer placed me back in cuffs and herded me out to the street. The officer paused before putting me back into the car. "You spin a good tale," he said as he reached into his breast pocket for a photo, "but I'm placing you under arrest for candy theft."

I had one last option, but I doubted it would work. "Wait, can't I give you something to make you change your mind? Some fabric maybe? All you have to do is say something, anything, and make sure I can get in touch with you later to give you the fabric. I can get it to you by November 2nd, I promise!"

He shook his head and I knew my bribe hadn't worked. "There's just one thing I'd like to know," he said, and with a glint in his eye he flipped over the photo. "How'd it taste?" 

THE END

**Giveaway Closed**

I hope you've enjoyed this little tale and the picture of me eating a giant slab of peanut brittle. :) If you didn't get it from the story, just leave me a comment below to be entered in the giveaway. Please leave me your email address if you're a no-reply blogger. The giveaway is open to everyone. I'll pick a winner on Friday, November 2nd. Now go cheer on the other bloggers of the day! Happy Halloween everyone!

Leafs Me Happy Blog Hop and Giveaway

Fall is here! Fall is here! Fall is here! That means it's time for things like apple pie and the changing of the leaves! 

Fall is my absolute favorite season, so that's why I jumped at the chance to be in this hop! Thanks so much to Mdm Samm and Cherry for hosting and getting everything ready for us all.

You can find the full hop schedule on Cherry's blog - here. Here's a list of everyone sharing the day with me:

Plum and June

The Recipe Bunny

VroomansQuilts

It's Sew Kiki

PigTales and Quilts

Quilting fiesta

GrammieQ's

Nancy

Just Let Me Quilt

Selina Quilts

The Learning Curve~Quilts and Such

You Please visit them all and cheer on their day!

I have just one block to show you all, but plan on making many more of them. Here's the fabric that I used.

I wanted a variety of reds, orange and browns to bring out the colors of fall. I plan to make these into 36 blocks - 9 of each type. 

So, without further ado, here's the block I put together for you:

This picture doesn't look too good, so I  snapped a couple more outside on my balcony (see below). The leaves around us are right at their peak for changing colors and I wanted to capture that in my quilt.

This block features brown, crimson and red colored fabrics on an orange crinkled background. I plan to make 3 other leaf color combinations in reds and oranges for the other blocks with backgrounds in red, brown and tan.

I made up the leaf pattern myself. It's pretty similar to the other ones that I've seen. When I created it, I didn't have a computer nearby to look up a pattern, so I sketched it out and made it work. I hope that the finished quilt looks something like this, but with more saturated colors:

**GIVEAWAY CLOSED**

So, if you've made it this far through the post you deserve a giveaway! I have 2 things to give away this time:

3 fat quarters of this fall print. It has bird houses, wheat, sun flowers, hearts and other cute little prints on it.

And this Christmas panel. It has some really cute snowmen prints and quilty stars on it, so it would make a really fast wall hanging.

To enter to win, you have 2 chances. For the first, just leave a comment on the post letting me know what your favorite fall food is. For a second chance, be a follower and leave me another comment letting me know. I'll draw a winner on Saturday, October 6th, so comments will count until Friday, October 5th to 11:59PM central standard time. Good luck everyone!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Enjoy the rest of the hop, and happy crafting!

Think Christmas Giveaway Winner

Thanks everyone for all of your comments! I guess I have to make a decision about putting the table runner together. I'm hoping to finish it up this coming weekend, so check back in to see what I decided on. I think I'll definitely do sashing, but not sure what color yet. I've just got to figure out which block will be in the center and then I'll be all set.

But now, for the giveaway! I had 97 lovely comments that counted toward the prize. So, thanks to Random.org the winner is #9: Karen M!

Karen, I've sent you an email, so send me your address and I'll get your winnings out in the mail as soon as I can.

Can you believe it's August 6th already? Where has summer gone! I've got too many projects to complete this month and not enough time, so back to the sewing table for me. :) Happy crafting!