Grow Your Blog & Giveaway

Hello, so glad you could stop here.  I'm guessing you are here for the "Grow Your Blog" party being put on by 2 Bags Full. This is my first time every doing something like this, so I will start off by introducting myself, I'm Shauna, in case you've not been her before.  I have been blogging for about almost 5 years, wow that seems so long ago.  Up until recently my posts were to show off digital scrapbook pages I made, but I'm slowing working to show more of the quilting I'm doing.  I'm not a designer, of scrapbook stuff, fabric or quilt patterns.  I'm just a working woman, who loves to quilt, create scrapbook pages, and who knows what else.  I will say that I always try to be honest, if I like something I will say so, if I love something I will say so, and if I hate something I will say so.

This blog is a place for me to tell the world what I'm working on at any given time.  If I find something I think is really cool, I'll tell you.  I love taking pictures, so I tend to have lots of photos on my page.  And if you're a dog person, you'll find lots of cute photos/scrapbook pages with dog photos.

So let's get the basic info about me out there.  I'm single, but live with my sister, Sharla and nephew, Cole. My sister and I bought a house together several years ago so we could move our parents in with us to take care of them. Unfortunately we've lost both of them now, but we like the arrangement and so we continue on together. About a year ago my nephew moved in with us. We live in the great state of Texas!!!  We had three dogs, two yorkies (Tucker and Cooper) and a shih tzu (Zoey), but sadly lost one of the yorkies (Cooper) last year.  About that time my nephew brought a puppy (Hollywood) home, a lab/boxer/who knows what mix.  I had forgotten what it was like to have a puppy around.  I work as tech support on an off schedule of Wed-Sun, and have lots of time to spend on the computer when things are slow.  I love digital scrapbooking, because it involves computers and photographs, two of my favorite things.  I've been doing it for about 5 years, and at one time was on about 12 different designer/store teams.  But I've cut back to just a few that I love and focus more now on my quilting.

Now so you can put faces to the names, and yes we are a motley crew, but we have lots of love and that is all that matters to us.

Yes I will be honest and say... I am a fabric-holic.  I love fabric, and can pet it all day long.  Sharla and I starting quilting in 2007, but when I was laid off in 2009, we put it aside.  Then in 2012 we decided it was time to get back into it.  We both love piecing the quilt tops, but neither of us was that hip on quilting them with our regular sewing machine.  Part of the issue is we like larger throw/bed quilts and they are just so hard to maneuver through a small machine.  In late 2012 we took a long arm quilting class and to say we were hooked is an understatement.  Ok maybe I was more hooked than her, but we knew that is how we wanted to quilt.  So we saved money and shifted everything in the house around and made room for a Handiquilter Avante.  We just got it at the end of 2013, so I'm still learning it, but let me say it is so much fun!!!!! Am I good at it yet, no, but I do see improvement with every quilt I do and I'm really starting to feel like I can do it.  The first time I loaded a quilt on it I got scared and it was about a week before I started quilting it. Here is the quilt I finished just this week.

So what will you get if you follow this blog...pictures of a crazy woman's life...wait did I tell you I was crazy?? If not, then take my word for it, I am.  I promise that if I show scrapbook pages I will tell you who the designer is of the kit I used and normally where you can buy it.  If I use a pattern for a quilt I will tell you what it is, and if I know the fabric line I will give you information on that as well.  I will tell you things I learn about long arm quilting as well as any new cool digital scrapbooking thing I find. I know I love seeing what other people create, and if you look at the list of blogs I follow on the right side, you'll see I follow a lot (and that list is old because I now use bloglovin and I think I follow over 300 blogs.  I get inspiration seeing what others create.  Sometimes it is the pattern they used, or maybe the fabric or maybe just the colors.  I hope you can find some inspiration in my pages. If nothing else you will at least find some humor every now and again. If you want you can also follow me via Twitter (but I don't tweet too much) or Instagram (I love taking pictures) with the social media icons in the side bar.  You can also check out my Pinterest boards or Flickr photos.

And to thank you for stopping by I'm offering a small giveaway.  To enter simply leave me a comment and tell me where you are and what the weather is like.  It very cold here.  If you follow me, then you can add another comment letting me know, easy peasy.  Now I'm giving away two mini charm packs, Daydream by Kate Spain and Sewing Box by Gina Martin.  I'm starting to collect mini's in hopes of some day doing a postage stamp quilt...I can dream right?  I am also throwing in a Kwik Klip basting tool.  I recently won it, but since I don't baste like that with my long arm, I thought I would pass it on to someone that could use it. I will draw the winner on Feb. 15th. Here is what your getting.

I'm glad you stopped just to check out the blog and I hope you find lots of blogs to follow. Make sure you visit Vicky at 2 Bags Full, I understand there are over 500 blogs participating, so I'm sure you will find something that peaks your interest.