Free projects on the internet      (last UPDATED 11/16/07)

• NEW  wipe clean coasters
• NEW Reversible Coasters
• NEW Appliqued Coasters
• NEW How about a PATCHWORK PLACEMAT to go along with your coasters!

• (This would be a fabulous tutorial for kids to follow) Blanket Stitch on felt-- http://www.futuregirl.com/craft_blog/2007/09/tutorial-hand-sew-felt.html

This is the pinwheel pattern I'll be using for all the mothers of this quilt. I chose the green to represent the new CREATION and the GARDEN OF EDEN. The pink (lighter in real life than in this scan) represents EVE as the FIRST WOMAN.

Here are some things from my study notes on Eve that I'm keeping in a journal just for this season of study:

• Eve had EVERYTHING. Everything perfect, yet she DOUBTED GOD and wanted more. Remember Eve when doubting His grace, His wisdom, His plan.
• Plucking the fruit, darkness walked in. From the inside outward. Seems to me this is still true today, inward guilt from our sins.
•  Eve's sin and her desire and choice to disobey God shows us completely that although the Lord has a plan for us he gives us free will. It is up to us to make faithful and correct choices and decisions.
• One might ask why God put the forbidden tree in the Garden anyway. Well, temptation is one of many trials and is an opportunity to live righteously, live in faith, and rely on Him to guide us through. Eve did none of that. Instead she served herself, not God.
•  Adam had perfect, had everything. Yet in God's own wisdom he knew what was missing. He made Eve for Adam. Eve was to be Adam's helper, companion, cheerleader, and partner.
• God said they would become "one flesh." Meaning to be bonded together, they are as one. In body, mind, & spirit they are combined. I also suppose it to mean that because they are as one they are not to hurt each other. Because, as one, they would also be hurting themselves. 
• To be of one flesh, a couple would definitely treat each other under the Golden Rule. Each would be respectful, loving, kind, loyal, honest, and know how to laugh, cry, be joyful together. When one hurts, they both hurt. 
• Deception by the serpent -- I think (hope) that Eve was resilient to the serpent's ploy initially, though the Bible doesn't mention multiple encounters. Regardless, the serpent was indeed wily. Eve went against what she knew to be true, and was true, spoken by God. She served herself instead of Him. 
• She let the sight of the fruit, the desire to taste it, and her desire to be knowledgeable like God to finally persuade her to follow the serpent's prodding.  
• All of them, the serpent, Adam, and Eve, are all at fault for this situation. And because God punishes them all fully and harshly I believe they're equal culprits. 
• But in God's grace and love for Adam and Eve, even after they'd sinned against Him, He provided for them, clothing. 
• If this tells us nothing else, it should SHOUT OUT that God is Love, He is forgiving, and He'll always provide for us.

***I have two more days of studying Eve to do, so will add more notes afterwards.**

Because I've always loved Biblical art pieces, I thought I'd share some I found to go along with this week's study. Click on each image to enlarge.

Well time slipped away as life took over last year in my first attempt at quilting. Now, now that we've moved and settled in, I've begun another Bible study with some great ladies, quilting squares as we go along.

For this study of twelve of teh mothers in the Bible,  I'm using Women of the Bible (a one-year devotional study of Women in Scripture) by Ann Spangler & Jean E. Syswerda  as well as NIV Women of Faith Study Bible. Additionally, as needed I have Strong's Exhaustive Concordance and   Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Manners & Customs: How the People of the Bible Really Lived" by Howard F. Vos at hand.

I've decided to do the same block pattern for all the Biblical mothers we're studying, only varying the colors used in the block to represent each woman, with the background of the block to be white for continuance.  To finish the quilt, I'm planning to add additional blank blocks to stagger through the quilt, and use colors that match our living room furniture in between and on the border. We'll see how it goes. Here is an image that sort of represents my vision for this quilt (Block colors are just to show variance. Border, shashing, etc. colors are just representative.)

I've decided to sew all these blocks by hand so as not to be tied to a sewing machine, thus taking time away from my family. As such, I'm able to sew while watching TV or a movie with DH, or at an activity for DD, etc. Portable!

I'll be adding blocks as we progress through this Bible Study.

First, let me just sigh.....    ******sigh******

Well, this block (#2 in history for me) went together easily. Sewing 1/4" seams isn't so difficult. LOL. I think I usually sewed smaller than 5/8" seams when sewing garments anyway (I don't like wide seams, and often used a serger anyway.) And like I said, the sewing was pretty easy. Most difficult was lining up the points of the triangles. I lost a couple in the process but oh well.

However, this block is horrible! In my defense, I tried not to buy a new rotary cutter and mat (mine is in storage in San Diego!) and instead used some scissors... bad scissors at that! So I know my measuring and cutting of the initial pieces were off. But UGH... I hadn't realized that being off at the cutting would make the final block so off in the end. Well, DUH! So my block is 1/4" too small all around to sufficiently have room for the sashing later.

And on top of that the outter spoke triangle points are all different sizes, which makes it look so horrible. I could just pull my hair out! And to make matters worse, when I finally put the quilt together with the sashing I'll end up losing the out facing points!  Grrrrr.

Have I sighed yet?

But... oh well. I like my fabric selection. This block is to represent Sarah, Abraham's wife.

The chocolate color with blue and tan flowers is Sarah's fabric, showing her beauty (flowers) in an environment that was less than beautiful.

The blue floral is for Isaac, Sarah's son (blue for boy.)

The cream color with tiny gold stars represents God's promise to Abraham.

So here's the block:

(it scanned in kinda katty-whompus but is
much straighter on this bottom horizontal seam in person... )

Well, to borrow a title from a children's book, I just had my very last first time.

I made a quilt block!!!  Nothing to write home about, but it is done. It is for a quilt that represents the women of the Bible. This is a Bible study I recently joined based on the book Women of the Bible by Ann Spangler and Jean E. Syswerda.

Anyway, here  is my first block (ever.) It is a block about Eve.

The colors seem a little dark in this scan and the
shadows at the seams look odd. (It looks better in person.)

The green represents the Garden of Eden.
The gold (though looks orange here) and radiating specks represent God.
The red is for the temptation that Eve felt thereby leading Adam to sin too.
The dark blue represents the darkness that fell over the world with the first sin. 

This block was rather tough for me. Bless a couple of online friends (who are also doing this Bible study and quilt) for putting up with my constant emails full of questions! Oddly enough, this seemingly easy quilt block was one of the toughest things I've ever sewn... and I can whip up some clothing pretty darn easily!  It was a challenge, but fun, nonetheless. I look forward future blocks.