Happy Holidays!

My friend Paul dropped by on Tuesday with this gorgeous bouquet of flowers, the only decoration in the house for the holidays and much appreciated!  He took me out for lunch and then I talked him into coming by to see the store!  We don't see each other often so this was his first visit to the "Doodle".  He didn't walk out empty handed either, purchased a purse and a shopping bag for his mom and sister for Christmas!  I know they'll love them...

On Thursday I completed the Winter Newsletter and sent it off to the printer who delivered it on Friday afternoon!  It should be in the mail on Wednesday (since the mailmen are taking a well earned holiday Monday and Tuesday)!  

I also finished Gabriella's quilt in time for Christmas so she could give it to her mother!  However, as much as I'm happy it's done I don't really think I would do it again!  Sonia did a wonderful job (my Janome) but aside from the deadline I faced, I found it very difficult doing that size quilt in flannel on a domestic machine.....it was truly gruelling.....

On Friday Rich went and picked up my Mettler thread order and left Gizmo with me (she made herself right at home) - we really needed to replenish and I spent a good part of the day processing the order so I didn't close until 5:00 P.M. and was too tired to head for the grocery store so I went home to lie down.  (Could have been because I was up until 3:00 A.M. quilting that quilt!)

 I decided to take some UFO's home to work on!  These were special UFO's....They are charity quilts for Gillian.  A while back Gillian started working on an enormous project, 33 quilts for an orphanage in honour of a young woman who was killed in a car accident.  Alot of the Monday group worked on these quilts but Gillian did most of them.  I had taken on a couple and so had Barb!  Unfortunately they got put aside and misplaced but Friday I came across all of them, and decided it was time to finish them......so that was my mission!

I started quilting this one last spring and I am really happy to have finished it......

Then I decided to make another quilt top - that was in between making a fabulous Turkey dinner for tonight (Saturday) for Jonathan and I.  It was actually a very emotional experience for me....I haven't done any "major" cooking at home since my mother passed away in September!  I've pretty much stayed in denial for the past 3 months, ignoring Sundays and holidays in order not to think about it!  When I started the stuffing this morning - that's when it hit me, she wouldn't be here for dinner!  Jonathan wanted to invite some friends but I just wasn't ready for that yet....however, dinner turned out really good and he had no complaints!  (for a change)

I'm hoping to get another top done tomorrow!  Then I brought home a few more charity projects that I hope to cut and piece too!  Simon of course, is a big help, as you can see......

Actually, I have news about the house!  The offer fell through, they couldn't get their financing (I had a funny feeling that was going to happen) but Tanzie stopped by on Friday to get the mutual release signed and she's very optimistic that it will sell early in the New Year.  In the meantime, I had to laugh this morning, if she walked into my house right now she would go aploplectic......check out my living room!

The quilting has taken over, two machines on the dining room table, cutting tools on the coffee table and the iron and ironing board!  Can't show the house like that!  However, I will only have a few days to enjoy this freedom but I intend to make the most of it!

Simon was kind enough to post the Cock A Doodle blog for me tonight.......

....and now I'm off to bed - tomorrow's another day (of quilting I hope!)!
Have a wonderful Holiday, enjoy family and friends and the joys of the season!

Jo-Ann

While the cat's away......

As soon as the door closed behind Tanzie and Gord on Sunday (my real estate agents) my plans started for the next 2 weeks!  I didn't do anything Sunday night because I knew I would be too tired and had to do so much stuff on Monday......

On Monday night I schlepped "Bernie" home (my Bernina Q150), along with Laurissa's quilt as I'm obligated to quilt it....figured I could get that out of the way!  NOT - had to do some food shopping and by the time I got home last night it was almost 10:00 P.M.....

I set Bernie up this morning on the dining room table and did about 2 hours quilting!  Almost done the Black on Black....ugh!

However - I also promised to quilt another quilt before Friday and realized that my Bernina walking foot is in a box located somewhere at the townhouse!  So tonight I ran over to the store and picked up "Sonia" ( my Janome QC6260) and her walking foot so I am in business......check it out!  Bernie's on the left and Sonia's on the right!

Yes - that's Barb's coat and scarf on the chair, she dropped by for coffee after spending a few hours at the store finishing off her placemats - a Christmas gift!  We watched Santa Claus 3 - The Escape Claus!

Simon also got into the act - can someone tell me why or how a cat always finds the quilt in the room?!?!?  He does look pretty darn content!

I woke up this morning at 3:30 A.M. and remembered the eclipse......I took a couple of pictures through the bedroom window so not so good and it was the tail end of the eclipse but it was really cool!

It was really cool and since I doubt I'll be around in 400 years for the next one - I'm glad I took the time to check it out!

Got the call this afternoon that the house inspection is on Thursday from 2:00 - 5:00 P.M. so Step 1 is done it seems, they qualified for financing!  So by midnight Thursday I will know whether the house is sold or still on the market!?!?!  Keeping my fingers crossed!  Tomorrow I'll cross my toes.....

Have a great day everyone!

Jo-Ann

There's something wrong.......

...with this picture!  Here I am complaining how I can't get any of my quilting done and I'm taking on quilting for other people!  I have to learn how to say "NO"!  But I just can't sometimes......

After finally finishing quilting the borders on Gillian's baby quilt - Laurissa came to me and asked me to quilt this quilt for her.  It's a gift for one of the teachers who is retiring at her school - how could I say no!  I'm about half way through so I guess not too bad BUT I don't think I ever want to quilt Black on Black again!  I am really having a hard time with it.....I'm sure you can all relate.....

 Once I finish Laurissa's quilt (and it better be really soon!) I have taken on another "little" project!  As if I have nothing else to do!?!?  This is Gabriella's first quilt, it is a Christmas present for her mother......she doesn't know how to quilt and really wants to give it to her for Christmas, so, again - how could I say no?!?!  It really shouldn't take too long????  Right!!!

Did I tell you the Pork Shoulder story yesterday????  No - okay, so last week Kathy and I are going through cookbooks as I'm planning meals in advance and I see this really good looking recipe for Barbecued Pork!  I figure I can do it for Thursday Sit & Sew, Friday Night Sit & Sew and then again for Monday! 

I go shopping on Wednesday and come back with all the fixing including about 7 pounds of Pork Shoulders and start cooking!  It is a FABULOUS recipe which of course I changed as usual!  Anyway, there was enough for Thursday, enough for Friday but not quite enough for Monday so I needed to get another Pork Shoulder......

I figured that after work Saturday I'd pop over to No Frills and pick one up!  Yeah, not so much!  I picked Jonathan up after work and we stopped at Price Chopper, no Pork Shoulder!  Okay, off to No Frills - nope, sold out!  Okay, so let's try the other No Frills - YES!  One piece - all I need - only took 1-1/2 hours to track that one down!  It's slow cooking as I write this and will be perfect by tomorrow morning - but what an ordeal!  It seems Wednesday is the day for Pork Shoulder - go know!

I spent the afternoon today teaching Amy, a brand new quilter, how to quilt!  It was really fun!  She's trying to get a quilt done for Christmas for her sister who is having a baby in January!  Looks like she'll get it finished in time -she'll be back later this week to learn how to bind it!  She was very patient as we were pretty busy with last minute shoppers today.....

Jonathan was at the store for the afternoon because we were having our last Open House before the holidays - so I put him to work, vacuuming and moving bolts of fabric for me!  I'm relieved that we're done with the Open Houses for the time being (of course if the offer on the house goes through then we're completely done!)....I'm planning on bringing "Sonia" (my darling Janome) home tomorrow night and enjoying her for the next two weeks anyway!

Now is the real test - can I (we) keep the house clean for the next three weeks???!!!  Since I really love coming home to a clean house - I'm sure gonna try......

Okay - gotta get to bed so I can wake up bright and early (cooking to do) and head over to the store, Jonathan's actually working with Rich tomorrow YEAH! so gotta get him up in the morning too!

Nite all - have a great day!

Jo-Ann

I know, I know.....

I'm not really keeping up here!  I knew it would be hard to keep up two blogs!  It was either gonna work in my favour or against me....so far, the jury's still out!  (Well, at least in my mind!)

It's been an extremely busy week for me, working on the Newsletter is always time consuming and with 4 Open Houses (both weekends...) it's been pretty hectic!  We have a "conditional" offer on the house already, so we're just waiting on the formalities to see if the deal goes through!  A little bit stressful, to say the least but hopefully we'll be packing up in the very near future.....fingers crossed!

In the meantime I was going through the camera and downloading pictures for the blog(s) and found two fabulous pictures that Rich took when he was "playing" with my camera a few weeks ago......

I think this one was taken on the Humber River....

This one is Gizmo, isn't she adorable - may try to do a quilt!  I'll definitely have to take Mary's class first though!  (Take a Picture)  Need to play a little and start collecting fabrics.....

Thought I'd get some quilting done tonight to show off but I was so tired I came home and fell asleep on the couch........then I started watching the late night movie on CTV - Christmas in Connecticut with Barbara Stanwyck, in black and white, a real oldie but lots of fun.....really enjoying it!  Could have been knitting but I left that at the store!  Oh well, guess I'll just sit back and relax...

Okay, have to go let Simon in, he's been out carousing all evening....

Have a great day!

Jo-Ann

Sometimes.....

I get too busy to think!  Depending on what's on your mind that can be a good thing!  The past few days I've been too busy to sit down for even a minute.....

I was lucky enough Thursday night to actually get some quilting done!  Friday was our monthly meeting of the Applique Club - there was a great turnout considering it was December.  I made the absolute WORST Macaroni and Cheese that I have ever tasted!  Not often do you get a DUD meal at Cock A Doodle but I have to say, nobody will be asking for this recipe.  Nancy imparted her secret (after the fact) and I will have to try it the next time I attempt to make this recipe but I promise all of you it won't be anytime soon!  I made up for it with dessert, I made the Rocky Road Chocolate Chip Bars so I think I was redeemed.......but never again!

I actually got to sew as well!  I have to say, that is unusual but once in a while I actually get a moment to sit down and stitch!  So that was two nights in a row!  We watched a really cool DVD that Virginia brought, from the Canadian Film Board - will have to get the name......it was an animated Quilt Show - very cool!

Then I went home and cleaned the house (again)!  Yesterday and today were Open House again!  Yesterday I had the joy (not) of waking Jonathan and hustling him off to the store with me.....he hides in the back office but he did help rearrange the classroom after the Friday night Applique Club.  After work I went home, made dinner (poached eggs on toast - comfort food!), cleaned up again and then wasted, I mean wasted, 6 hours playing computer games.......what a colassal waste of time!  

My excuse is - I didn't want to mess up the house!  Libby called around ten and we talked for an hour!  By the end of that hour I was feeling alot better!  She reminded me that when her and Lorenzo were selling their house last Spring - she spent half her time at the store hanging out because her house wasn't "Libby friendly"!  She said, Jo-Ann, your house is not Jo-Ann friendly and she is absolutely right!  

It's really a Catch 22!  I could stay at the store and quilt but again, I have to clean up after myself because of Sit & Sews, and classes, etc....  I could go home and quilt, but I have to clean up after myself because of showings and Open Houses!  Either way I'm just a frustrated quilter......oh well!

It seems there were quite a few people through the house yesterday and today and Tanzie says there were some interested parties although there are no offers as yet.....so hopefully!  We're all keeping our fingers and toes crossed!  I JUST WANT TO MOVE ALREADY!!!!!

Tonight I'm not sure what I'm doing - maybe quilting, maybe knitting, maybe NOTHING!  I just finished reading The Bourne Objective and went back to my bookshelves to see what I could get into - Jonathan had picked up War and Remembrance the other day and asked me how it was and I said you have to read Winds of War first!  So taking my own advice, last night I took Winds of War to bed with me!  Of course, now I know why I have tendenitis and carpal tunnel - it's 885 pages and I hold it while lying in bed......proof I am crazy!

No pictures tonight - they're all on the other blog I think!

Have a great day everyone!

Jo-Ann

Finally.....

...got downstairs to the studio tonight!  I was determined!  Left the store around 8:15 P.M. after closing and when I walked in the door, I thought - I'm so tired!  But, I also thought that if I didn't go downstairs, if I stopped to turn the TV on upstairs, if I sat down - that would be it!  Another night/day would go by with no quilting done!

So - I talked Jonathan into making me coffee and down I went....here's what's been done so far on Country Haven - I only have the last 3rd to do and my brain "seemed" to be working so I started piecing the top row.....I was motoring along, finishing up the first block and piecing the second (I have a chain going all the time so I was already half way through the second block), when I realized I put the first block together backwards....so I sat and unstitched while Rich and I gabbed on the phone only stabbing myself once......

 I'm not sure what's going on with the camera these days but it seems to add this lovely (not so much) yellow hue to everything - the light fabrics are actually beiges.....

Below is the block I was having trouble with the other night!  You know the "easy" block which I cut wrong twice!  I really was tired......I'd show you the pattern but I can't seem to find the pattern cover!  Unbelievable - and yet I am sooooooo organized down here!
I'm sure it will turn up at some point.....

In any event I managed to finish two blocks of Country Haven and I started the 3rd block before I decided I'd had enough..... I admit this quilt is a bit tedious because I am really trying to match it to Kim Diehl's pattern and the photo I have is not a very good one, but I am determined, so it's going very slowly.  I have 10 more blocks to do and then the centre will be done and I can start on the appliqued borders....woohoo!  They will probably go alot faster then the rest of the quilt!

Today was Thursday Sit & Sew and I took a few pictures of quilts on the go but I got so excited about Nancy's Aunt Millie's Garden that I completely forgot!  I will try to get them posted on Cock A Doodle tomorrow......

My realtors did an Open House this morning for other realtors and no one showed up!  Tanzie said she wasn't surprised because it was so cold but I'm not impressed at all!   She's doing another Open House this weekend, ugh!  I'm so tired of this - I feel like I should just move and be done with it!  It would just be really nice to get my life back (and my stash - I mean really that's what's really bugging me!).....Oh to be able to have 5 projects on the go - all over the house, ha, ha!  You know, one by the TV, one by the Janome Gem, one by the Bernina - one upstairs, one in the basement.......I was so used to being able to walk away and leave it where it was so it was easy to pick up where I left off! 

Don't get me wrong - I love having the house clean and everything in it's place but I also know that I can have my cake and eat it too!  I can still have a clean house, but my projects can also still have there place in the clean house too!  I really miss not having the space to create! 

When I work on a pattern, I tend to spread out all over (you can see that in the back room at the store - better you don't!) I don't confine myself to a small space, rather cutting in one spot, computer not far away and camera and notes in another spot.....I really, really miss that freedom!  Hopefully it won't be long before I get it back!

Okay, tomorrow night is Applique Club so I'll take my hand applique and maybe get a few stitches done after dinner is over and cleaned up.....come join us, but call early so there's plenty of food......

Have a great day/night everyone!

Jo-Ann

P.S. Thought I'd show you what the Country Haven Quilt will look like once it's done - and those are the REAL colours - see what I mean about the yellow!

Was too tired.....

Last night I was just too tired to do anything. I actually proved it to myself because I went down to the studio and started a real easy quilt and messed up on the cutting!  Decided to continue and messed it up again!  Ugh!  Got two blocks done and called it quits.  It's a quilt I want to do for myself but it's also a store sample so I may try getting back to it again tonight.....

If I end up making my way downstairs again tonight I will take a photo - it is just one of those really easy, easy quilts that should go together with little to no fuss!  I knew I was too tired to work on Country Haven - that one takes actual brain power.....

Got a call today from the realtor that someone is coming to view the house between 8 and 9 P.M. (a little late - but hey if it sells better at night, so be it!)  Not really looking forward to it - I mean that's "my time" but we do what we have to do....

Simon is really enjoying this clean house ------ he's taken over the guest bedroom (Libby's Room) as we call it!

.....and I mean really, how do they get into these poses?????  I just couldn't resist this photo op! 

Got half way through the second ball of Chenille on Jonathan's scarf last night, kept picking it up and putting it down.....At this rate I may have it finished by the weekend....

I'm still at the store and it's 6:40 P.M. - gonna get home and relax a bit before they come, maybe have a little dinner.....

Will catch up later!  Have a great day everyone!

Jo-Ann

I'm smarter than a 5th grader......

I hate it when my computer thinks it's smarter than me.......I mean I love being able to work with technology but I become absolutely crazy when it gets the better of me like it did last night when I tried to load my photos.  I tried a couple of times and kept getting the message "Server Rejected".....could not for the life of me figure out what I had done wrong or differently!?!?!  Got frustrated and decided I would have to either blow up the computer or give it up for now.....

Tonight I tried to load the pictures and got the same message!?!? ....and I thought - no way - I've loaded pictures in the past - what is going on here!  Well - I figured it out!  I directly accessed the blog page by the address, when I went to load the pictures, I was prompted to Log In - hmmmm, that was different, so I decided to try something different - I signed out and the signed back in again and voila!  I loaded the photos - no problem!

I beat the computer!

So here we have the blue scarf finished......

 ...and here we have Jonathan's scarf - barely started!   I'm much further ahead on it tonight, almost completed the first ball of Chenille and will be starting the second before I head for bed......I better get another project ready to start soon or maybe I should go back to quilting......

So today was another Open House and of course I was subjected to a few choice words from my son when I woke him (at 12:15 P.M.) to take him with me to the store!  He's really not very happy about all this upheavel and I can't say I blame him but he did get one of his favourite meals out of it - I made spaghetti and meat sauce for the girls today for lunch......he also got to watch all the football his little heart desired and it seems by the picture was very comfortable doing it, although not so thrilled about the interruption, too bad, so sad!

 In the meantime, Barb took a shot of me quilting, a rare occurence these days but I'm trying very hard to get a quilt finished for Gillian for tomorrow as she needs it for Thursday and she says she CAN'T do free motion quilting.......Hopefully I'll be able to finish it up for her in the morning......

After the girls left today Barb did her thing, vacuumed, cleaned the washrooms, threw out the garbage, etc. (not so glamourous this job of hers) while I prepared meals for this week and managed to turn the clean kitchen into a disaster area!

We have two birthday's tomorrow so I made a cake - Florida Orange Cake - prepared a Frittata for lunch and made up two batches of Beef Stew!  We had to run the dishwasher again, lol!  It's gonna be a pretty full house tomorrow!  Can't wait to see what everyone's working on......

Barb hung out with me until I was done cooking at around 7:30 P.M., helped me load two crock pots into the car and we both went home.  We really have to get lives!  Although she was knitting while I was chopping and sauteing.

Came home with the full intention of going downstairs to the studio to quilt, maybe do a load of laundry while I'm down there and watch TV, but I ended up turning on the TV upstairs and planting my butt on the sofa, so I knitted instead!  Now I'm off to do the Cock A Doodle blog and then hit the showers!  

Ciao for now!

Jo-Ann 

There's something wrong.....

....with this picture!  Well there would be if I could download the two pictures I wanted to share tonight.....

I am the owner of a quilt store and all I seem to be doing these days is knitting?!?!  I finished the blue scarf last night - well I tried to finish it but I miscalculated how much yarn it would take to cast off and was short....When I tried to fix it, I really messed it up but Barb came to the rescue this evening.  After the store closed I begged her to come home and see my clean house and the new carpet (I had alterior motives of course), I made coffee and then sprung the scarf on her.  Her knitting skills are far superior to mine so it wasn't long before she had it all sorted and completed......

Knowing that this would leave me without a knitting project I went to my "stash" and pulled out 3 balls of Chenille to start a scarf for Jonathan.  No sooner had I cast on when he came looking for a scarf to wear.  I'm not that quick so he'll have to wait a few days but I did get it started (wish I could show you - maybe later).  Just didn't feel like getting into the quilting tonight.

Had a great Open House, it seems there were quite a few visitors.....fingers crossed!  There's another one tomorrow so hopefully something will come of it.....

Our Healing Heroes Pot Luck was lovely!  Forgot to take pictures as I got side tracked.  Judy needed 2.5" Thangles for a Demo she's doing at our Guild meeting on Wednesday night.  I had ordered them for the store but they haven't come in yet - so I spent about 1/2 an hour calling quilt stores and found them at Ruti's Needlebed in Streetsville.  I hopped in the car and drove out there to get them......we're a "full service" quilt store you know - if we don't have it we'll find it!  No quilting emergency is too small!

Okay - gotta do a house check and make sure everything is in place for tomorrow so I can enjoy a little Coronation Street in the morning before I rush off to the store.....

Have a great night everyone!

Jo-Ann

December 3rd, 2010

Today was supposed to be the Realtors Open House so Jonathan and I had to be out of the house by 11:00 A.M..  That was a minor miracle but it did happen, however it seems that poor Gord and Tanzie ended up sitting on their own for two hours.  They figure it was because it was a Friday.....we can only hope that's the case!

In the meantime I went food shopping because there's going to be alot of cooking in the next few days at the store.....so I picked up a few things!  Of course, I forgot the eggs (a key ingredient in the Frittata I wanted to make on Monday).......

Off to the store only to find out that I'm serving 10 for lunch on Sunday too!  Okay, so maybe we'll go back to the grocery store.  Off we traipse, back to the store!  Okay, let's kill two birds with one stone, Jonathan can shop for the house and I'll shop for the store.  That worked......and by that time I could drop him off at home with the groceries while I went back to work!

Healing Heroes (Quilts of Valour) is having their annual Christmas Potluck tomorrow so a list went around for everyone to fill out as to what they were going to bring - next to my name NOT ALLOWED!  Well it took me forever to find the recipe for NOT ALLOWED but in the end you know I found it and here it is..........looks a little like Deviled Eggs doesn't it!

Nancy was working today so she started on the Christmas window and got it almost done.......however, she had a personal dilemma.  She needed a Yule Log for a Christmas party at her sister-in-laws tomorrow and of course was thinking she could just pick it up tonight or tomorrow but her usual place didn't have them, so while she was working on the window I made her a Yule Log (looks more like a chocolate igloo to me)!  Anyway - once she puts her Christmas decorations on it and her personal touches it will look amazing - and hopefully she'll take a picture.....By the way - I now know why they use Sponge Cake rather than regular cake - it's much more flexible!  Live and learn!

 We all know how talented Nancy is and she felt that the NOT ALLOWED should be properly adorned for the Christmas Pot Luck - look what she did with a bit of red pepper and some green onion.......pretty cool huh!

 I'll have you know that we got this all done by 8:00 P.M. and closed on time.....and went home!  This is very unusual for me - usually there's always something left to do!

I have to say I really enjoy coming home these days - the house is clean, the beds are all made (even Jonathan's - very rare) but I miss all my fabric!  It's been nearly a month that my stash and almost all of my quilting projects have been packed away in boxes that reside at the townhouse or in bags that reside at the store.  I only allowed myself the luxury of two projects to work on.....one "hand" project and one "machine" project.

The hand project is a pattern that Judith gave me from a magazine - McCall's Quilting - February 2009 and I found the perfect fabrics for it in this quilt store I frequent.....

 Check out the fabrics - I only have to complete another 15 blocks!  One of the reasons I am hand appliqueing this is I wanted to try out the Quilt Patis we sell in the store - some people love them, others prefer paper!  In my case the jury's still out, when they work for me I love them, when they get fiddly I don't!  The problem I DO find is that you can't use an iron with them - no pressing, so that for me is definitely on the CON side!  So far I am loving the way it looks though.....gonna take awhile as I don't get to work on it much!

 Then there's the knitting - which I completely messed up tonight!  I actually finished the scarf I was knitting but didn't leave myself enough yarn to cast off and completely messed it up....will have to find a way to fix it but it can wait for another day!  Enjoyed some TV tonight which is rare for me and now finally am going to call it a night (3:00 A.M.) or a morning......

Tomorrow is going to be a pretty busy day and I have to get lunch prepped for Sunday.  It's also the first of a two day Open House for the public!  Let's keep our fingers crossed that somebody shows up!

Have a great day everyone.....

Jo-Ann

December 2nd, 2010 - Carpet Day

Having tried to sell the house on my own, and having showed the house to a number of realtors, I realized that the existing carpet was really not up to snuff!

When Tanzie and Gord went through the house last Sunday, the only flaw they pointed out was the carpeting upstairs which really was it's expiry date!  There were stains that just wouldn't come out and in all honesty, if I were looking at the house as a buyer, the first thought I would have was I wonder how much it would cost to replace it!  That can seriously lower any offer if you have to take something like that into account.

So, Monday (Nov 29th) I bit the bullet and went to see my friend and neighbour Allan Rug Co. Ltd..  They are located at 105 Miranda Avenue, a few doors down from Cock A Doodle Quilts.  On Tuesday, Peter came to measure and on Thursday the installers arrived.

As you can see the old carpet was a peach colour.  (Dirty peach colour!)  Showed high traffic and lots of pet stains........especially in the hallway......

My bedroom was pretty passable but once you are changing the colour you might as well do it all......right!

The second bedroom had a nasty pet stain from a visiting pet.  I had a friend who used to stay with me when she wanted to stay in the city and at one time she used to bring her dog.....unfortunately he was an older dog and prone to accidents, one of which we could never clean up.  It just made sense to do both bedrooms and the hallway.......

 The installers arrived at 9:30 A.M. and by 9:45 A.M. they were already installing the carpet in my room......They were gone by 11:30 A.M. and left the work space spotless. 

This is my room at about 10:00 A.M., carpet installed........ 

This is the guest room (Libby's Room) after all the furniture was put back in place......looks fabulous!  Simon seems to be very happy with it! 

 This is the hallway.........taken from my room.....

...and from the kitchen....... 

...and my room, it really looks good......The guys at Allan Rug were amazing and you can check out their website at http://www.allanrug.com/.  They have a fabulous selection of floor coverings and the absolute best installers.  When I did my basement 4 years ago, I got my carpeting there and they were fabulous then too.......their prices are very competitive and they really do a wonderful job. 

It's almost an oatmeal colour, very neutral, not really me but certainly goes with everything so I could definitely live with it if I had to.......we did find out that there's hardwood in my room which is always a bonus, but the cost to have it done would have been way too much on my budget, which is $0.00.  This was really the only way to go!...and it avoids the possibility of having to negotiate around it!  I certainly think it will pay for itself.

By the way, that quilt on my bed is the Marti Michell Jamestown Meets Ramblin' Rose, the Block of The Month two years ago at the store.  Linda Robertson quilted it for me and did a fabulous job.  I love it and made some pillow cases (actually Nancy made them for me) and a throw pillow from a block that didn't work out so well for the quilt.....

That's it for now, the realtors Open House is tomorrow so here's hoping....

Have a great day!

Jo-Ann

Here goes nothing.......

I decided it was time I had my own "Jo-Ann" blog!  I write a journal and keep it up pretty well, as a matter of fact, I have 3 journals right now.  The first one is my "personal" journal where I just right what's happening in my life and how I'm feeling.  The second one is my "quilt" journal where I keep track on all the projects I'm working on and how they are progressing, and the third one is my "decorating" journal for the townhouse I've rented and hope to be moving into shortly once my house sells......hopefully very soon!

This journal is somewhat a combination of all three written journals and maybe a little more.....

So, let's start off with the house!  This is the house I am selling!  I thought I would be smart and try selling it on my own, hence the Property Guys sign on the front lawn.....On Sunday I met with Gord Bartozzi and Tansie Fenton, friends of my friends Libby and Lorenzo, who are ReMax agents and the new signs went up yesterday......

My friend Rich's original idea was to put signs on the tree that said - "Tree for Sale - House Included"!  Cute idea and may have peaked some interest but for all intents and purposes will not necessarily sell the house!  I finally admitted to myself that I couldn't give it the time and effort I needed to in order to make it happen.....

Tomorrow I have new carpet coming for the hallway and two of the bedrooms upstairs so tonight I will be, with help from Rich and my son Jonathan, moving furniture out of the two bedrooms and hall closets so they have clear access and it doesn't cost me an arm and a leg......You know what they say, sometimes you have to spend money to make money......I believe that Tansie (who prompted me to do this) is right, it will pay off in the end.

Right now I am at the store (Cock A Doodle Quilts),  Kathy is working today and we are going to go through all the store samples we have and price them for sale.  If you're looking for a handmade quilt to give as a gift this Christmas, these are gorgeous quilts.....however, we no longer display them because the fabrics have been sold out or we are no longer teaching the classes that they were made for.

I'm not sure how often I will be posting here (hopefully often) but I hope you will enjoy reading it!  Will also try not to be too verbose! (my word for the day!)

Have a great day everyone....

Jo-Ann