Grow Your Blog

Welcome to the 3rd Annual Grow Your Blog Party!

Special thanks to Vicki at 2 Bags Full for throwing this wonderful blogging bash.
Over 400 blogs are participating today. WOW!
Thank you for all of the work you do behind the scenes, Vicki!

Thank you for visiting! (You may click on any photo for a larger image.)

About Me

My name is Renee. I am 43-years-old and live relatively close to Portland, Oregon.

My best friend is my wonderful hubby of 20+ years.  I am so blessed to have him in my life.

Our lives revolve around our 2 boys.

My nearly 18-year-old is nicknamed Monkey.  (I am still coming to terms with the knowledge he will be graduating and off to college this year.)

My 15-year-old is nicknamed Mutt, but only on this blog.  (It was his choice of a nickname, but it never really took.)

My Hobbies and Favorite Things

Crazy quilting is my passion.
Quilting that includes embroidery and expects wonky corners?! That fits me perfectly!

I really enjoy cross-stitching and embroidery in general.  

And, I am striving to improve my sewing skills (check back on January 30th to see...)
I love hearts, flowers, butterflies, birds, trees, landscapes and embroidered spiders.
My favorite color varies daily. I love pinks, blues, yellows, greens, browns, jewel tones...

New Things I Tried in 2014

This is the purse I have been using for almost a year now.  It is one of a couple of crazy quilted purses I made from my own designs last year.
There are areas I would improve in the future, but it was a great learning experience
and I think each purse turned out cute!

I made my first county fair entries and was pleasantly surprised
to learn they both won blue ribbons!
I hope to make these entries an annual tradition.

I finally gathered my courage and attempted using a sew-in purse frame.
(I love making these now!)

I also made my first crazy quilted postcard, my first pin cushions and my first mug rugs.
Pictures and links to the posts are on my 2014 Finishes page.

I even joined my first Linky Party for a Halloween Ornament Exchange
organized by Kim at Wisdom with Needle and Thread.
If she hosts another this year, I will be joining the fun again!

New Things I Plan to Do in 2015

Reminder: You may click any photo for a larger image.

This year, I will participate in my first quilting blog hop.  

When Madame Samm at Sew We Quilt announced the We Support You Blog Hop to support our sisters battling breast cancer, I simply had to sign up.  The hop begins on January 29th and I will reveal my project on January 30th.  It has been in the works since the day after Thanksgiving and I am very pleased with how the project is turning out. I fear I may be hooked. I signed up for 2 more blog hops at Sew We Quilt!

This year, I plan to make enough items to stock my Etsy store. I opened Hand Stitched Treasure last year with one little item that expired in December.  This year, I plan to make the shop a bigger priority.  This under-the-sea themed embroidery piece is part of the project I am currently creating.

Although I finished NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) once, I was not happy with what I wrote.  This year, I would like my hubby's Christmas gifts to include a rough draft of my first novel.

In 2013, I participated in a Winter/Christmas Do Your Block Round Robin through Crazy Quilting International.
Last year, I began making a wall quilt with the blocks
and I plan to finish it this year.
The ladies that embellished these blocks for me did such
a lovely job! (I stitched their names in beneath
the blocks they embellished.)

If time allows, I will also begin putting my
Heart Do Your Block Round Robin blocks together.
First, I need to embellish the E.
More beautiful work by more amazing ladies.
I feel quite blessed.

Over the past couple of years, I swapped crazy quilted "snowballs" with members of Crazy Quilting International.  This year, I plan to make a wall quilt with my fabulous winter/snowman collection.
I plan to swap more snowballs to begin a Halloween collection.

Thanks to other bloggers that participated in the 2014 Grow Your Blog Party, I discovered Heaven and Earth Designs. I fell in love with
the freebie chart of Santa and the Mouse.
I plan to finish this little ornament this year so I can start on another fabulous chart I purchased from HAED.

I also need to finish up the 8 remaining blocks from the Crazy Quilt Journal Project 2013 (CQJP 2013).  And, I have 5 more blocks to make to complete my CQJP 2014 projects.

I plan to add more finishes to the "My Crazy Quilt/Embroidery Projects" board I created on Pinterest.

In addition to all of that, I want to train to walk a half marathon this year.
And, I need to compile a cookbook to make family get-togethers a bit easier.
(I am a bit of a nightmare as a dinner guest. Not being able to eat gluten, corn, rice, eggs, yeast, dairy, shellfish, some nuts, pineapple, mushrooms and a slew of other foods makes meal planning a bit tricky for some reason...)

Most importantly, I look forward to making more wonderful friends
here in the world of blogging!

Thank you so much for visiting. Your comments brighten my day!
Renee

UPDATED: I would like to thank Susan for letting me know some of you are having problems with the comment section of my blog. Please feel free to contact me directly HERE.
Thank you!