Oh my stars and garters!!! I am thrilled to have won. I cannot wait to see all your hearts. I love that old saying!! You girls really know how to make one feel welcome. Thanks again.

Jan, I think the black and white really helped. I made the same block for someone in red and yellow and I hated the results so much I ended up making a replacement. It lacked the 3-D" effect which was my goal with the pattern, plus despite being PP I didn't sew it right and the points were too close to the edge and it would not lie flat... But the black and white one I was rather pleased with, if I may say so myself... I'm sure there are already a lot of patterns very similar to that one out there, but it does feel kind of special to think you "designed the block yourself!"

Thanks for the comments. As for pattern choices... my goodness they're difficult! One pp that I chose that I thought would be simple, turned out to be a nightmare to make (my apologies!). I would love to choose more complex/adult/mature patterns, but I worry about whether they would scare away beginner level quilters. Another problem I'm running into is that there are a lot fewer non-juvenile themed patterns in pp that are on free sites. And many of the applique patterns seem awfully time consuming for a lotto, though I love them.... such as floral wreath patterns. The last couple of lottos, I've tried having pp and applique in the same month so that quilters who enjoy one technique, but not the other, don't need to sit out a cycle. And it's very difficult finding TWO patterns, one pp & one applique (in the same or similar sizes) that will go together in the same project. I'll try a couple of more lotto cycles, but would definitely welcome suggestions of pattern/fabric combinations that fit the criteria I'm trying to meet each month. Thanks, Kay

Thanks for sharing, Cathy. Great site.