This Month's FabShopHop ends July 31 so don't miss out!

Most of us love to windowshop for fabric sets, and windowshopping on the Internet is great for generating ideas or stimulating your muse.   That's why you find such a long list of fabric resources on this website.   I can't tell you how many times I've gotten ideas that boosted my energy level just by browsing a few online stores.

And when I'm visiting the family in a rural area (where the nearest fabric resource is more than 10 miles away), having access to great selections by a few clicks of the mouse is wonderful!

Be sure to read the contest rules -- you must visit a large number of shops online to qualify for any of the prizes. But it's a FABulous way to get a look at what's out there.

It's been 2 years since I fell in love with the "Monsters In The Closet" quilt pattern I watched on a Fons & Porter's quilt show on PBS television.  The details are available in the Summer 2007 "Fun Quilts For Kids Of All Ages" book, which I ordered from them by phone.

But I didn't want to make that EXACT quilt.  I wanted to make one in a Pirate theme for my grandson Derek (who was 6 at the time).  I wanted the "top" to be water, and the closets to be under-the-sea or inside the ship.  Pretty grandiose for a beginner.  Even my instructor-friend Sue cautioned that I was stepping into some deep stuff.

I had to agree when I looked closer at the instructions in the book, but that didn't deter me from gathering swatches, fat-quarters, snippets, and other yardage whenever I ran into something that looked like it would be usable "behind the door".

What's worse, as the collection grew, I kept changing what I wanted.  Derek kept growing, too.  I have a storage tub of fabric "for the Great Pirate project".  Derek had his 8th birthday a couple months ago, and wonders if I'm going to have his Pirate Quilt done by Christmas.

I'm beginning to wonder if he'll be too old for some of my original fabric choices, so I've changed out a few of them.  And finally I've got the book out to make a few practice blocks with scraps fabric and test my ability to produce what I have in mind.

Yikes! The instruction is missing some critical information -- like what pieces to sew together at what point.

Has anyone made one of these things yet? 

(copied from Mar.2009 Forum entry)