The Ugky Sweater Party

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Today is the annual Moda Christmas party. Lots of fun and merriment will be had by all. No Christmas party would be complete without the UGLY Christmas sweater competition. Please remember that ugly is in the eye of the beholder. Do not take offense to an ugly sweater that may be your favorite pretty sweater.
I have my own version of the history of the ugly Christmas sweater but I turned to Google and searched….
History of the Ugly Christmas Sweater and found this article by Martha McCarthy .

‘Twas the Night Before Finals: The History of The Ugly Christmas Sweater Party…


Ugly Christmas Sweater Parties originated like the Post-it note: by accident. No, a 3M scientist was not goofing around in a lab, but the birth of the legendary Ugly Xmas Party tradition was one big fat accident. It started with elementary education teachers. They began sporting the sweaters like it was their job. This had a trickle down effect…slowly but surely infecting soccer moms, soccer grandmoms, art and music teachers, retired people, volunteers, PTA-goers, thrift store shoppers and the racks of Kohl’s department store. Ugly Christmas Sweater Fever (as it is clinically referred to) had reached epidemic proportions.


No one died, fortunately, but this huge mass of people were really really ridiculously confused. For some reason, they thought they looked good. Really good. Super stylish. Cute as a button. Hollidazzlin. But no, they were sadly mistaken.


They looked hideous. For a long time, the non-Ugly Xmas sweater wearers remained in the closet. No one wanted to make the first move to alert these sad souls of their super sad situation.


A flip switched somewhere around 2007. Many attribute it to white people*. White people and their undying thirst for theme parties. One college co-ed sported a said sweater to a regular Christmas party. Everyone loved “Ugly Sweater Guy.” Next thing you know, people are calling their elementary education teachers, their soccer moms and their local thrift stores in search of a sweater to wear to the next party. They know they’ve seen em…now they must track them down.

uglyxmasparty.com

Well my story started about 2005. The day after Christmas my sons insisted on going to the mall for the after Christmas sales. This should have been my first clue that something was terribly wrong.
We always went to Dillard’s to meet up with one of the ladies that worked in the school counselor’s office. (Mrs. Neinhiser you never knew what an influence you had on this whole ugly sweater phenomenon.)
The boys rushed to find Mrs. Neinhiser because she knew where all the over sized , glittery, shiny, tacky Christmas sweaters were. The boys would very strategically go through racks of  bargain priced sweaters, planning their wardrobe for the following year.

This became such a trend that the dept stores no longer had any Ugly Christmas sweaters left. I guess the ugly stuff sold at full price. We spent many years hunting the thrift stores looking, looking and looking for UGLY. Imagine that we didn’t find any Ugly!!

acrylic sweater for 75.00 from TheSweaterStore.com

Now my crew is quite the crafty bunch and they are not afraid of a hot glue gun, rotary cutter or even using one of their brothers cashmere sweaters to create their own version of ugly. These sweaters included ornaments, bells and even lights. I wish I had some pictures to share of their sweaters but….
they would not allow me to have evidence of all the things they used of mine that they shouldn’t have messed with. Am I the only one with such “creative” or sneaky kids?
This trend has certain grown. It was even covered on the Today Show this morning.
Have no fear, my boys no longer have to scour the thrift stores. There are plenty of websites where they can buy brand new Ugly “tacky” Christmas Sweaters.
Look what one of my sons will be wearing this year.  I don’t think I am going to borrow this sweater for the company party this year.
What’s the next trend?
Ugly Christmas Ties?
DISCLAIMER: No Moda company sweaters were shown in this blog posting.

and this just in from my husband

Life isn’t fair, but it’s still good

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Written by a woman on her 90th birthday
This is something we should all read at least once a week!!!!! Make sure you read to the end!!!!!!
Written by Regina Brett, 90 years old, of the Plain Dealer, Cleveland , Ohio .
“To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me. It is the most requested column I’ve ever written.
My odometer rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once more:
1. Life isn’t fair, but it’s still good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
4. Your job won’t take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don’t have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It’s more healing than crying alone.
8. It’s OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.
11. Make peace with your past so it won’t screw up the present.
12. It’s OK to let your children see you cry.
13. Don’t compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn’t be in it.
15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don’t worry; God never blinks.
16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
17. Get rid of anything that isn’t useful, beautiful or joyful.
18. Whatever doesn’t kill you really does make you stronger.
19. It’s never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.
20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don’t take no for an answer.
21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don’t save it for a special occasion. Today is special.
22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.
23. Be eccentric now. Don’t wait for old age to wear purple.
24. The most important sex organ is the brain.
25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.
26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words ‘In five years, will this matter?’
27. Always choose life.
28. Forgive everyone everything.
29. What other people think of you is none of your business.
30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.
31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
32. Don’t take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
33. Believe in miracles.
34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn’t do.
35. Don’t audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
36. Growing old beats the alternative — dying young.
37. Your children get only one childhood.
38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else’s, we’d grab ours back.
41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
42. The best is yet to come…
43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
44. Yield.
45. Life isn’t tied with a bow, but it’s still a gift.”

Quilting From Little Things Tour

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I am honored to be included on this blog tour along with such a diverse and talented line
 up of fellow bloggers.
Thank you, Sarah for including me.
I have known Sarah and her family for many years. Her passion for quilting
and teaching has always been apparent in everything she touches.
Material Obsession by Kathy Doughty and Sarah Fielke
.
Sarah’s first two books, Material Obsession one and two,  hold treasured spots on my bookshelf
and I can’t wait to add her newest, self published title, Quilting From Little Things.



 
Sarah’s newest book, Quilting From Little Things, is a feast for the eyes with
brightly colored quilts, brilliant photography and
close-up detailed pictures.
Click here for a look.
You may wonder about the name of the book….Quilting From Little Things.
Sarah’s passion for teaching continues in this book by clear detailed illustrations and instructions to make a “dolly quilt.”
Sarah teaches a new technique, how to practice it and accomplish the technique
 by making a small doll quilt. Then move on to using the same technique
to make a larger version with your new skill set.
The techniques include projects from beginners to advanced including
 paper piecing,
 foundation piecing, set- in seams
 and more.
This quilt is my current obsession.
Feathered stars have always been on my to do list.
Funny Story:
I had a piece of paper hanging on the wall behind my sewing machine with all of my UFO’s. On the top of the page, I had written, TO DO LIST.
Sometime, I am not quite sure when, my husband had added the words… in this lifetime. Do you have a to do list of quilts you want to make that is longer than any one lifetime?
This quilt has moved up my perpetual quilt…to do list.
I am actually waiting for a new Christmas 2012 fabric line to arrive any minute
 because this is the quilt I am going to make.
One more comment about Sarah and the quilts in this book.
Sarah’s color sense and combination of fabrics is inspiring. There is an international flair
(after all she is from Australia) to the combination  of scale, color and design.
Ask for this book at your favorite independent quilt retailer.
Thank you for stopping by, now hop on over to see what the prolific Monica has to say…
Friday 2nd December:
Saturday 3rd December:
Sunday 4th December:

 

If you are just joining the blog tour, please visit my fellow bloggers that have posted earlier in the week.
Monday 28th November:
Tuesday 29th November:
Wednesday 30th November:
Camp Follower Bags http://campfollowerbags.com/

Quilting From Little Things blog tour begins today

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Now that any remaining turkey is made into soup and the holiday shopping, decorating, cooking and caroling has begun, take a break and visit the following bloggers on the Quilting From Little Things blog tour, featuring the newest book from Sarah Fielke.
international book cover
Monday 28th November:
Tuesday 29th November:
Wednesday 30th November:
Camp Follower Bags http://campfollowerbags.com/
Thursday 1st December:
Friday 2nd December:
Saturday 3rd December:
Sunday 4th December:

do you pin?

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Do you Pin?
I have been trying to explain this obsession to some of my friends.
Some have caught on and curse me, I mean thank me for exposing them to my obsession called Pinterest.
thank you happy zombie and pat sloan for getting me hooked months ago.
Here is how it works and why you NEED it.
Have you ever found a cool picture on the www and then saved it to your computer only to come across it months later and not remember where you found the picture? I have.
Pinterest is a digital filling cabinet saving the image and the source in your own little folder or as they call it on pinterest, Board. I guess a better description may be a digital bulletin board  that you can share with the world. They can share back.
My sister in law is a fantastic cook, so I follow her boards for recipes.

I found this yummy recipe for apple cake with brown sugar glaze from http://lickthebowlgood.blogspot.com/2010/09/caramelly-appley-delicious.html from Stephanie’s Boards.
I saved (RE-pinned) this picture into my recipe folder (Boards) and I not only have an enticing picture but also have the recipe and the source of the recipe. You can also follow this recipe site  just as
if you would “LIKE” someone on Facebook.

I have a board that is titled Decorating things.http://pinterest.com/modalissa/decorating-things/
You can create as many boards as you can dream up.
Endless possibilites.
This saves the picture along with the tutorial of how to make it from Craftynest.com
It is time for that NEW haircut but you didn’t save the latest picture of Jennifer Aniston?
 Pin it into your Haircut folder.
Did you read about some fancy wine you just have to try?
Pin it and you will remember it!
Hey I like that slogan. If anyone is reading this from Pinterest feel free to borrow it.
There are so many things to discover that have already been pinned on Pinterest, but don’t let that limit you.u. A picture from any website can be pinned and saved. Install the Pin It icon to your favorites tool bar to quickly pin an item from the web without being on Pinterest at the time. You will love how convenient this is.
Your pin can be shared on facebook and twitter.
Another great feature of Pinterest is that you follow people or just follow one of their boards that your are interested in. An example is my new adorable daughter in law. Yes, she is an avid pinner! When Ii was making their wedding quilt I made the quilt reversible by looking on her pinterest and finding
designs she liked.
As soon as she saw the back of the quilt, she said, “I saved that on Pinterest!”
Yes she did! (I will show this in a future post.)
And of course I have my little folder where I am saving Modalissa  MONA LISA pictures.

From topcultured.com

And to substantiate my fetish here is an excerpt from The Boston Globe.
The current toast of the web is Pinterest, the visual pinboard for collecting and sharing content online. The “pinning” phenomena is spreading from its modest beginnings to appearing in national media outlets. There are over 2.5m monthly active Pinterest users on Facebook. A co-founder of the site has over 500,000 followers on Pinterest. Ron Conway (an investor in the site) remarked that Pinterest’s user growth rate is what Facebook’s was five years ago. Earlier in 2011, it was valued through venture financing at $40m and, most recently, just a few months later, at around $200m.

Pinterest is an entire community with so much to discover.
I hope to meet you there. Follow me at modalissa. Let me know if you are on Pinterest and
 I will check it out.


When Harry Met Sally

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Have you ever worked on a quilt project that you just couldn’t sleep? You were so excited to see it all come together that you would sneak off to your sewing machine for hours at a time?
I make alot of quilts but I must say that this happens to me a couple of times a year.  I even dream about sewing the quilt when I do sleep. I know this may seem extremely odd to some of you, but for those that have caught the fever they will know exactly what I am talking about.
My quilt is featured in the current issue of American Patchwork and Quilting.
While I was making this quilt, I thought I should name it When Harry Met Sally. You all know the hiliarious movie starring Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal?
If you read my blog often you know that I like to mix different moda designers lines to challenge myself on fabric combinations. I choose two totally opposite groups, Little Gatherings by Primitive Gatherings and paired it with Etchings by 3 sisters. Just like the movie where two total strangers meet, these two fabric lines seem strange to include in the same project.
But I love it!

As I sewed the dark browns, blacks, tans, blues and greys on one side and then mixed the soft romantic floral on the other side, I couldn’t help but think of this movie and the power of opposites attracting whether in a chick flick, real life or a patchwork quilt. Throwing in some medium fabrics on both sides for the “Clash Factor” helps make it all interesting.

The Log Cabin block is one of my all time favorites. I made larger blocks for a graphic look. The color and layout options are endless. You can find all the instructions on how to make this quilt in American Patchwork & Quilting, but I have taken those same blocks and given you several layout options below.

I didn’t name it When Harry met Sally for the magazine but will probably always refer to it as that.
So with any quilt I make I have a few scraps left over. It isn’t enough to make the quilt but it will get you started and I am giving it away here along with a copy of the magazine.
Leave a comment and tell me your favorite quilt block.
I will pick a winner Saturday night the 5th of November.
Make sure you have an e-mail address that I can contact you.



my beautiful scraps

this isn’t a great picture but I had to introduce Bo’s new puppy, Cassie. A black lab with huge feet just like my boys!



Thank you for stopping by. Good Luck and Happy Quilting.
COMMETNS FOR THE GIVEAWAY CLOSED.
The Winner is
charlotte said…




I love the idea of mixing two such different lines. How clever of you to have come up with that. It never would have occurred to me. I love the log cabin. I also love the simple 9 patch.


November 3, 2011 6:31 PM

MARKET

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Tomorrow we hop a short plane ride to Houston Texas. 2 crazy days of setting up booths, sales meetings and seeing old friends. I always have intentions of remote blogging, but there is not enough time in the day. So I thought I would post a few links here for you to enjoy some sneak peeks to anything moda.

Alicia – one of our machine quilters have a few peeks on her blog.

Kate Spain talks about her Good Fortune.

Aneela Hoey from across the pond shares her adventures and projects.

Bunny Hill’s Ohh La La is just that. She continues to amaze us with her sophisticated baby lines.

Cosmo Cricket has posts about her newest line of fabric but I enjoyed this post more. Fried Mac & Cheese. Oh I am so hungry!

Jan Patek is on the road!

Malka will be at Market for a meet and greet!

me and my sister are in an auriful booth hop. I wish I could win a big package of auriful thread!

Polly and Laurie will be there.

Sweetwater is ready to roll!

You can follow all of the moda designers from the moda webpage. including any updates and new designers.

Thank you to all the sewers, binders, designers, painters, packers, builders that work behind the scenes to help put the moda show together.
Susan, Chelair, Lorinda, Mariza, Eladia, Sophie, Aida, Kathy,Victor, Ted, Isla, Alicia, Alison,  Sue, Valerie, Jan, Sherron, Sara, Maggi, Holly,Outlaw, Ducky, Barb, Sherri, Diane, Crystal, Nancy, Barb, Rachel, Sherri, Gerri,
Yosten, Emily, Dennis, Herbert, Juan and of course the “other” Lisa.
If there is something you would like to hear about that goes on at market, leave me a comment and I will see what I can do.

Winner of the last book giveaway

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And the winner of stitches from a one room schoolhouse is
MahSistersQuiltTrunk
Everybody loves Renee’ and everything she does. For thoses who do not know her she is a true person inside and out. A dear friend. Congrats to the winner.

Thank you for following along on my week of book reviews and giveaways.
This next week begins the week of quilt market and the next weekend is quilt festival in Houston. If you have never had the chance to go to Festival, put it on your bucket list. The show is really quite incredible.
I will be going to festival on Friday so I will take lots of pictures to wet your appetite for future projects!

Modalissa