Hey! Are clotheslines your thing? Jeannie over at "Life on the (Clothes) Line" profiles bloggers and their clothesline on a regular basis, along with household tips & tricks, and family tales & recipes. This week, she's asked me to talk about my love affair with clotheslines so if you want, feel free to swing by and say hi!

Life on the (Clothes) Line

Old fashioned wisdom in a modern era.

Thanks, Jeannie, for featuring me this week!

The I-almost-missed-your-birthday apron

My Aunt Pat's birthday is coming up. I was all set to start making her a retro apron this weekend until I realized at about 10pm last night that her birthday is this Saturday. Yes, I pulled out the fabric and went to work!

I made this pattern once before so I knew it was child's play until the bias binding neckline.

The pattern is "My Mom's Favorite Apron" from Sew Simple Patterns (click on the title for a nice big photo). See how cute that is when it's on your body?

Of course it's reversible! 

Fabrics:

Red = Let's Play (Plaid with floral red) for Benartex

Blue = Hankie Club by Whister Studios Style (mini dots blue) for Windham Fabrics

By 1:30am the last thing I wanted to do was hand stitch bias binding, so I utilized a fast & fabulous method from Accio Fabric! (If Vicki would just upload a freaking tutorial I could link straight to it! hint! hint!)

Check out these results--a perfect seam on one side and cute top stitching on the reverse. 

Well, this beauty was done by 2am and at the post office by 8:30 (this is when the postal worker told me that it wouldn't go out until 4 pm and my lip curled as I growled at her). Thankfully, it is scheduled to arrive on Saturday! Happy Birthday Aunt Pat!

For anyone who would like to enter the giveaway going on right now, click here. If you're already a follower of Mary Lou's, that counts too!

Two Birds One Stone

You've all heard the adage, Two Birds, One Stone. Well here's a quilty giveaway that's sure to make you see double:

Mary Lou Weidman (click on her name for a wallop of inspiration!) is an amazing quilter, teacher, cook, author, gardener, and all-around-great gal! i follow her blog and am never disappointed--there is so much inspiration! If you've ever needed to give your creative juices a jump start, her blog is the place to do it.

Blogger deleted her blog a short while ago and so she's got a new URL for your reader: http://marylouweidman-marylou.blogspot.com/

so, HERE'S THE DOUBLE GIVEAWAY:

Mary Lou is giving away a purse on her blog and I am giving away these items TO ANYONE WHO IS A MARY LOU FOLLOWER:

(It's a Tammy Tadd-themed giveaway)

75-page project book! Here is a sampling of projects:

Market bag, lunch bag,  & Arm Candy handbag

Cherry Cherry Cheesecake quilt, Half Baked Apron, & Casserole dish

fall/winter 2009 magazine with Tammy's shop as a top store

2 patterns--free-pieced or foundation -pieced squares quilt and a  market apron.

TO ENTER:
1. GO TO MARY LOU'S BLOG AND BECOME A FOLLOWER; LEAVE A COMMENT TO WIN HER GIVEAWAY!
2. COME BACK HERE AND LEAVE A COMMENT THAT YOU'RE A MARY LOU FOLLOWER TO WIN MY GIVEAWAY!

EXTRA ENTRIES:
BLOG ABOUT EITHER ONE OR BOTH GIVEAWAYS AND LEAVE 5 EXTRA COMMENTS FOR 5 EXTRA CHANCES! (In other words, put a link on your blog to Mary Lou's URL, or my URL, or both--and that is worth 5 extra chances total, no matter which option you choose)

This giveaway will run until  midnight CST on July 16!