Monday, December 31, 2012

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

I hope your holidays were filled with love and wonder. We had a very nice Christmas at home with just the 4 of us (7 if you include the critters). It snowed Christmas Eve and dd6 & I took the dogs out walking as we delivered the 11th day of christmas gift. It was so quiet and peaceful and pretty!

That snow melted but we have more on the ground now to help welcome the new year in. We really should have a winter retreat! Sipping hot chocolate by the fire as we sew all night and then snow ball fights during the day would be so much fun!




By now everyone should have her 1/4 yd of fabric for the retreat challenge. If you don't, please contact me and I'll get it out to you. If you don't remember what it looks like, here's a reminder:
If you are stuck inside, procrastinating on the challenge or if you just like reading, pick up a copy of a Beverly Lewis (click and you'll be taken to her website) novel and you'll get to read about the Amish in the area you'll be visiting in June.

That's less than 6 months from now! It'll be here before we know it. Hopefully not before we are ready though...So if you haven't gotten your 2nd payment to me yet, you'd better get hopping. January 3rd is the due date!

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Update

Well, we've only got about 6 months until we're in PA for the 2013 COF Retreat! But first I must get through Christmas. I am hoping for snow :) I know that in many parts of the world Christmas comes in summer but to me it just isn't Christmas without the white stuff!

All of the fabric for the 1/4 yard challenge has been sent out. If you haven't received yours, please PM me or send me an email at COF2013PA@gmail.com to let me know. I think I finally figured out what I'm going to do with mine ;)

We're working on some great things for you and I hope you'll like them! This part of Pennsylvania is a great place to get out and see some sights that maybe you've never seen before. We won't be going to the town of Lancaster but you can go there on your own, it's only about 45 mins from Harrisburg. We will be going to Intercourse and Bird-in-Hand so if you want to do some research here are 2 sites to go to: Intercourse, PA & Bird-in-Hand, PA There may be a quiz to test your knowledge later...

The next payment is due on January 3, 2013. So if you didn't pay in full, better be getting ready to send it in - I'm sure you don't want to lose your space!

Tuesday, December 4, 2012

They're coming!

Be on the lookout! The fabric for the 1/4 yd challenge has been sent out via the USPS. Each one has a tracking number so that if anyone doesn't get hers in a few days I can find out where it went. I had a difficult time finding a fabric that I liked and thought most of you would like too. I hope I met the goal. I can't wait to see what y'all do with it! I hope to see some creative entries as well as some more traditional projects.


Here's the letter that is enclosed with the fabric. If any of you newbies need more information on what to do (as always) Just ASK! EBQG/Marlene is in charge of this challenge. Her email is: mgienow@comcast.net

Quarter Yard Challenge


Enclosed is your fabric for the 2013 Circle of Friends 1/4 yd challenge. You may love it, you may hate it but here it is. Those of you who have been to retreat before are used to getting a fat quarter but this year we decided to give each of you a whole quarter yard. You are not obligated to participate in the challenge but then you won’t have a chance to win one of the spiffy prizes!

The rules are simple:


You must use at least 70% of the 1/4 yd in this envelope, any other fabric selections are up to you - there are no limits there - but you cannot use more than the allotted yardage of the challenge fabric. No borrowing or buying extra fabric.

The 1/4 yd fabric must be on the “front” of your project, not just used as the backing.

That’s it, the rest is up to you. It does not have to be quilt related, you can create to your heart’s content, there are no size limitations.

Bring your CHALLENGE PROJECT to retreat in a brown paper bag (don't be showing it off ahead of time) and we will assign your project a number.

You will be given a ballot for voting for your favorite in the following five categories - and you can only vote once for a project

Most Creative

Best use of Challenge Fabric

Best use of Color

Best Workmanship

Most Out of the Box

--- REMEMBER ---

NO POSTING PICTURES OF THIS YEAR'S PROJECTS !!!!


Any questions: email me EBQG/Marlene at mgienow@comcast.net
I'm not going to post a picture of the fabric just yet because I want you to be surprised when you open the envelope! Have fun with it :)