New to me!

I was looking for some clear plastic boxes to use for storage in my studio. I stopped at Big Lots yesterday and wandered back to the area where they keep all the storage items. I found really nice 6 quart clear shoe boxes.

I think you can see in the photo that the box is larger than a standard shoe box. They are manufactured by Bella Storage Solution and they are made in Massachusetts. Plastic shoe boxes at Dollar Tree are made in China. I prefer to buy American when I can. Here's what is really interesting. These shoe boxes are exactly the same price as those made in China...just one dollar!  If you don't live near a Big Lots I know they carry this particular brand at Kmart. I don't know that the price is the same but it is worth investigating if you are interested in supporting jobs in the US.

I put a fresh tape in my label maker. I am ready to organize!

Guilty Quilting

Sounds really naughty, doesn't it? It really just means that I am making something on a whim when I really should be doing other sewing!

The mailman brought me a package today from Green Fairy Quilts. In it were two packs of "Vin du Jour". I think the fabrics are lovely and very subdued.



I googled "what can I make with two charm packs". I found a Moda pattern that looks crazy fast so I am going to piece it this weekend...after I take my parents to the Poconos to leaf peek and after I finish making the crib skirt and baby bumpers for my great nephew's nursery.

If I get everything else done, maybe it won't be "guilty quilting" after all!

Missouri Star Quilt Company

Have you signed up for daily specials from Missouri Star Quilt Company?

I did and it is the most brilliant marketing I have encountered in a long time. They run fabulous specials every day in addition to weekly specials with items like charm packs for (roughly) $2, layer cakes around $22, etc. Even with shipping on top, the prices are most often less than I can find at Burkholder's (in Lancaster County) using a coupon. However, you don't want to get just a charm pack and call it a day. No, you take a peek at the rest of the weekly specials and throw something else into your virtual shopping basket. Next thing you know, you are shopping there two or three times a week.

Or is it just me?!

Thread sale!!

For one week only, Connecting Threads has select cotton spools, cotton cones and poly cones on sale. I love their thread! The colors in the sale are limited. If you have a cone holder for your domestic machine, you will love the 5000 yard cones priced now at just $5.99.  (My favorite for general piecing is "Sandstone".) Here is a link to the sale. I just snatched up a bunch!

Simple sewing

While I sew nearly every day, I also like to crochet in the evenings. I have a ridiculous number of crochet hooks in a variety of sizes. I have been keeping them in a ziploc bag. It occurred to me this morning that a drawstring pouch might be a better (and much prettier) way to keep them.

Voila!

Sometimes simple sewing is the best sewing!

One more time!!

Never heard back from "The Stylish Home" so I pulled up the random number generator again and this time the number is

Sandy!  Thankfully Sandy has an email address listed so that I can contact her which I am going to do right now.  Thanks to everyone for leaving such nice comments. It was a great blog hop!