National Crafting Month

March is National Craft Month. About 56 percent of U.S. households include a person with a passion for crafting, according to the Craft and Hobby Association. Here are five facts about crafting:

1. Woodworkers spent the most on their craft, about $3.3 billion in 2010, according to the Craft and Hobby Association's Attitude and Usage Survey.
2. A product called Kodak Shoe Art Film by a company called Shoe Attitude won the innovations showcase best-of-show competition at the Craft and Hobby Association winter show. The product allows people to customize shoes made of leather, canvas or synthetic material with ink-jet printed images.
3. Food crafting, which is ranked among the top pursuits, includes cake decorating, cupcake decorating, candy making, gingerbread house making and other edible crafts related to holidays, birthdays and celebrations.
4. 14 percent of U.S. households are home to at least one active quilter, according to Quilting in America 2010, a statistical report. The number of quilters is down from 2006, but spending on quilting is up.
5. Women are the majority of those pursuing four out of five of the top craft segments.

I plan on doing my crafting with this little goody bag that was dropped off at my house the other day. Yes, I get from little baggies right up to lawn/leaf bags of scraps. But this one is delightful! Alexander Henry, Windham, RJR, NorthCott, Prim wools, plaids, shirtings - oh, my heart flutters.

The first thing I pulled was some reproduction prints to use in the new mini by Temecula Quilt CO - the same ones who offered the 12 Days of Christmas sampler. I have the little basket button on my side bar. A block each Thursday thru the month of March, easy peasy. This could be used in Barbara's new Doll Quilt Swap.

I am putting the finishing touches on the Bust Yo Scraps quilt. I only had enough of this white (and we know not all whites are the same) and if you look close you can see where I pieced the one border to use what I had. I am browsing my stash to put another border and then ready for quilting. The original pattern used 8.5" snow balls and 2.5" squares - mine are 4.5" snowballs and 1.5" squares. **will link up to Patchwork Times design wall** and at some point it will be quilted with the new SewCalGal FMQ Challenge for the month.

More crafting on Cherry. I give you permission to knock me up side the head if I ever think of doing 1" cross hatch ever again!! Slow going, but almost done. Then the binding. Thank heavens I did this with smaller size squares - will be a 32" square wallhanging. I can't imagine doing a large quilt with this type of quilting!

My Pioneer Friendship Quilt is finished. I call it that, even though you folks will identify it as the 'granny block' - because it is not a granny block. I really had trouble with jumping in on this as I knew something was wrong. It is my nature to research history of fabric, patterns, and blocks and I knew I had seen this before. So to the best resource - my MOM. She knew immediately and we pulled 3 of her books and 2 of mine - it is an ALBUM block - sometimes called the Chimney Sweep Block or the Pioneer Friendship Block. It is usually made with a muslin center so a bible verse, prayer, or name can be added. The rest of the block uses little fabric so easy for adding what was on hand at the time. Then the community ladies would 'bee' to put the blocks together, tie off the quilt with 'prayer knots' and gift to a new family in the community. My resource book was 'Better Homes and Gardens' 501 quilt blocks (album blocks section) copyright 1995 - exact directions and cutting. As much as I love seeing a lot of quilters enjoying a process - please educate yourselves and give proper credit where due.

We are tickled pink to see Bingo Cards starting to pop up around the web. Kim at KimsCraftyApple gave me permission to link her post on her card. Just to give you some inspiration. I would be happy to link a post if any one would like to show their progress. And I have had some questions on not having novelty prints, what to do. Oh, go look over your fabrics my dears - with a much closer, loving eye. Polka dots, stripes, sure you have all kinds of florals (roses, daisies, tulips, pansies), circles, squares, maybe there's a hidden butterfly, look at those fall fabrics - leaves, acorns, christmas fabrics - candies, gingerbread men, deer, santa - just look with a different eye. This is meant to be fun - not stressful.

Quilt Gallery will be hosting a St. Patrick's Day Blog Hop. Go here for information and sign-up. I will be passing on this one - as a participant and hopper, as I have a lot on my March crafting plate.

CLOSING THOUGHT

Try not only to set some crafting time for yourself, but to share it with someone else. I plan on having some small craft items to share with my grandson when he visits - I love that he is now old enough for this kind of fun.

Sewingly Yours,
Sharon