Oh how I love purple! You should be very proud of those. Many, many hours of playing with cables. They both look so warm and inviting, I'd like to zip into one right now. -Babka

Sue send me an email with dog sweater in the subject. I am out of town right now, but will be home in about 5 hours. I have several I can send you.

I have been doing 4-H sewing for a long time. 2011 there were 6 boys and girls mostly 8th graders and it was challenging. It depends if kids are experienced or beginners and plan the project toward the simple side until you know the member's skill and ability. This year I had fewer kids, but kids with "attitude". I used a kitchen timer a lot to get them to complete small chunks of work in a limited time. I need to remember that 4-h is "Learning by Doing" so perfection is not the goal. I have 3 machines that are older, but not expensive. One year there was a girl who intentionally threaded the machine wrong and created a big mess. I gave her the choice of going home or doing the tedious repair job. She fixed the machine, cleaned and oiled it! She never did finish anything, but loved to work on the machines and keep everything organized. I hope that your kids got finished. If not, they learned a lesson. I have a lot of new kids starting this year and the older ones all want to sew quilts. Most of my 4-H kids have challenges at home, but my mission is to promote competence and provide skills that will carry them in life.

Thanks again. We are very happy with our kitchen and it is such an improvement, especially layout-wise than our previous kitchen. The backsplash tile is Allen + Roth in Pearl from Lowe's. It is very affordable and looks handmade without the variation in size that you find with some handmade tiles. The mosaic is from The Tile Shop. This was my first tiling effort and boy is it backbreaking work! It didn't turn out perfectly but maybe that helps it look more handmade:) I sent EAM44 an email regarding custom cabinetry but for anyone reading this that hasn't signed on the dotted line regarding their cabinets- seek out a cabinetmaker and get a quote! When I was in the planning process, I got quotes from all the big box stores and found that the upcharges for special sizes was so expensive. By using a custom cabinetmaker, I could get everything exactly the size I wanted and exactly how I wanted it to look for about the same price. I also was able to pick the exact stain and paint colors I wanted and was not limited by the choices on the display. I thank GW for leading me in that direction along with teaching me about drawers instead of doors, Blanco sinks, my corner cabinet design (from willtv), dividers in the cabinet above the refrigerator, and morgue drawers for the banquette. This is such a great place!