Do you Believe in Fairies?

Abigail built this in the backyard this summer.  Brick exterior, slate roof, a flag pole and a bit of vine landscaping. 

 

Very cozy, don't you think??  If I was a fairy, I'd want to move right in.  =)

Love,

Erin

How a 16 year old Quilter Earns Money

I was sorting through my quilting magazines this morning and found this one --  it's from 1995 and I was 16 years old.

Do you see the basket quilt down at the bottom?  That is MY quilt.  =)  I'd like to share the story behind having it published in a magazine.

I made my first quilt when I was 14 years old and soon after discovered quilt magazines.  Such fun!  I found the Fruit Basket Quilt pattern in a magazine from the library.

I didn't have much of a fabric stash back then but my mom found a big bag of cotton prints at a garage sale for $2.00 so that's what I used for the baskets.  The white background is 99 cent/yard muslin from Joanns.  The sashing is a poly/cotton solid from Walmart.  I thought this was the prettiest quilt I'd ever seen when my mom, sister, and I finally finished it.

On a whim, I sent a picture and little description of the quilt to a the magazine who had published the pattern.  I was SOOOO surprised when I received a letter in the mail, several months later, that the magazine wanted to publish my quilt and they would pay me $50.

Wow!!!  I was over the moon with excitement.  =D =D =D  My dad very carefully packed up the quilt and mailed it to the magazine for photographing.  The quilt was returned to us and I began to wait.  And wait.  And wait.  And wait. 

Nine months went past and then it happened!  A letter arrived from the quilt magazine, apologizing for the delay and informing me that my quilt would be published next month.  And there was a CHECK, not for $50 ... but, $200!!! 

So there you have it.  It's just as exciting to see my (maiden) name in print 14 years later.

Love,

Erin

A Fish Named Felicity

Abigail has been asking for a pony for the past few months.  We are not a pet people, so we settled on a goldfish.  =)  Michael and I brought it home on Saturday night after our weekly date. 

Abigail named her Felicity and is very excited that Mommy is blogging about her new pet.  She also thinks Felicity is very cute.  =) 

Love,

Erin