A Bit Of This And That

Oh boy, it seems like forever since I last joined you all here at my blog.  I'm sorry I've been MIA.  Life seemed to unravel just a bit, but everything is returning to what we call "normal" in this crazy house, and I'm finding myself with enough left over brain cells at the end of the day to finally return to blogging.

I feel like I've accomplished nothing in the quilting realm lately, but this would say otherwise.  I've had to have been doing something to see green.

I love the green of an empty spool of Aurifil

Then there was the start of this

Material Girl Quilts Layer Cake Sampler QAL (quilt-a-long)

The Quilt-a-long is only 1/2 way done, so grab a layer cake and join us at

Material Girl Quilts place.

I've been spending a little quality time with my HandiQuilter Sweet 16 having some fun with FMQ charity quilts

But mostly my life has been filled with the glorious site of this

I can spot that Moda packing tape from down the street

And this.

I have fabric coming and going almost faster than I can keep up, and I love it!  Do you have any idea how much fun it is to have your hands on fabric all day ... cutting and packing and shipping oh my.

Remember "Llama Love" that I showed off a bit ago?  

Of course...Sofie found her sleeping spot just as I started to baste.

Well, it's still not done...*hanging head in shame*  Oh yah, that whole life thing got in the way.  

Besides loving llama's, my Ally girl also has a HUGE thing for all things British, so I made this

for the back of her llama quilt.  It in no way goes with Llama Love, so we will just call it a 2-sided quilt.  20 years from now this quilt will remind her of the things she held near and dear to her heart at the age of 14.

And look at these cuties...

My first quilt labels by Jennifer's Jewels.  I feel so official now.

And have you heard the new?

There is a new fabric line of solids in town...American grown, American made.  How awesome is that?  I have 25 bolts on their way hopefully next week to fill in the solids I already have in stock, so please stop by the shop if you are in need for solids.  Let's show that we support American Made.  

Last but not least, I'm very happy to announce that I'm in the beginning stages of the development of my own webpage.  Etsy has been so good to me but it's time to move on.  I'll keep you all updated on the progress as I work with my wonderful web designer to get my virtual storefront off the ground.

I invite you to stop by, browse the ever-growing stock of fabrics, and do a little shopping if you so desire.   Visit me at Gotcha Covered Quilting, the Shop

From my house to yours...Happy Sewing!

Two of the faces behind Gotcha Covered Quilting

Until Next Time...

Dirt Trails

Today was a beautiful day, the perfect day to take Katelyn, my mini me, out for her first mountain bike ride.  She's been wanting to go, I've been wanting someone to ride with.  Perfect!

Katelyn (L), Me (R)

Me and Mini Me

I prepared my bike and pumped the tires, loaded all the gear in the car, and picked up a borrowed bike from my brother (thank goodness he never had that growth spurt mom promised him because his bike was perfect for Katelyn).

I gave her a few instructions, like "don't freak out and crank down that left brake (the front break) or you'll fly over your handle bars."  Little tid bits like that.  And we took off for our ride.  Truly it was a gorgeous day, a day to be outdoors, out in nature, out on a bike.

Lake Hodges

One of the things I love so much about Katelyn is her exuberance.  I wrote a whole blog post about her on my life coaching site if you want to get a feel about her personality.  But, she gets a kick out of life.  Little things excite her and it doesn't take much to make her scream (in fear or thrill).  There was a lot of that today.

For a bit of time we found ourselves in a fairly technical area.  I should mention that, although I've been road riding, I'm fairly new on the mountain bike and I'm inherently a huge chicken, so we spent an equal amount of time off the bike walking around the rocks and up and down scary hills as on the bike riding.  

At one point Katelyn decided to just go for it.  As she whizzed past, I yelled to her to put her body weight forward, gear down, and just pedal.  And she did it.  She made it up the hill, navigating around all the rocks.  I couldn't see her at the top, but I could hear her, "Wooohooo, I did it," laughing and so proud of herself.

Katelyn, always full of life

What does any of this have to do with quilting?  Oddly enough, there is a connection.

As I was riding up a hill gasping for air, yet making it to the top nonetheless, I was reflecting on how I've been feeling about quilting since returning to it after many years off.  It's a whole new ballgame out in quilt land now.  I'm in awe by what I see.  The talent is phenomenal.  I'm also intimidated by what I see.  I sometimes wonder if I'll ever measure up.  Will I ever be as good as….<fill in the blank>.  It's a weird mix with quilting just like on the bike today…my legs were burning, my heart was pounding, I was sweating, and yet the scenery was absolutely beautiful, I was feeling so blessed by the fact that my body works well enough to ride, I was in full appreciation of the moment.  None of this was about anyone else.  It was simply about what I was doing in that moment, what *I* was accomplishing.

Cruisin' and comtemplating

Isn't it the very same way with quilting?  It's about enjoying the process, doing things the way that work best for you, about creating, and pushing yourself to try new and different patterns and techniques and colors.

I know it's a weird analogy, but I think like this when I'm out riding.

Seam Ripper AND Magnifying glass

Whether on my bike or at my machine, it doesn't matter if I'm as good as, or as fast as, or as famous as.  It really doesn't.  What matters is that I'm plugging along at my own pace, pushing outside my comfort zone bits at a time, learning and teaching and creating a track that works the best for me.  I'll hit some rocky spots, but if I breath, relax, and don't over think things, I'll come through the other end exhilarated, proud, feeling successful.  If not, there's always a seam ripper.


Although I'm not new to quilting, I am new getting back into it and back into business.  I'm finding where I fit in, what my niche is, what direction I ultimately want to go in my business.  But here's something that has not changed…I'm still who I am.  I quilt because I care.  I quilt because I love.  I quilt because I want to make a difference.  I quilt because I'm passionate.  I quilt because I love where my mind goes when I'm creating.  I quilt because I am meant to.

Being out on the dirt paths today
reminded me, just like with machine quilting, I need to relax my hands and arms, I need to breath, and I need to trust the process.

Newest Large Lap Quilt for sale

When I complete a quilt, whether as a gift, as a commission, or up for sale on my Etsy site, I want to always remember to look back fondly at the process and give a big yelp, "Woohoo…I did it!"


Until next time...