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Greist Zig-Zag attachment

 Well, I was out of town for 5 days for the Loosen & Lube TOGA (Treadle On Gathering & Academy) in Wisconsin this weekend.  When I got home, I had lots of goodies waiting for me. 

Batik charm squares

5 RED fat quarters

 I had ordered this Greist Zig-Zag attachment and it arrived.  I wish it had directions, so I don't make a mistake when I try it.  This will be fun to try on all of my vintage machines.

Japanese box

goodies in Japanese box

Kasuri & goodies in Japanese box

 I won a giveaway from Toni at The Quilting Pirate a while back.  These lovely batik charm squares were waiting for me when I got home.  I'm thinking half square triangles.  What do you think?

Annie at Adventures in Oz sent me these great RED (yes, my favorite color) fat quarters.  Sew pretty!  The bottom one has gears on it.  Great after the TOGA this past weekend.  Thanks Annie!

And look at all the neat things I won from Julie at My Quilt Diary.  Julie lives in Japan.  I knew this was coming, but, I didn't have any idea what would be inside the box.  Just the box it came in is a fun thing to add to my collection.  This box will sit by my hand quilting frame.

Look at all the goodies Julie put in this box.  Fat quarters in tans and browns.  A charm pack with 100 10cmx10cm charms in browns, tans, creams with some reds and greens.  They go beautifully with the fat quarters.

Julie also included a stack of 10 Kasuri fabric pieces.  The note Julie included says: Kasuri is a very old traditional form of fabric.  The thread is dyed before being woven.  The top weave and the check are most valuable and sought after.  These are all quite old.    My hubby and I were oohing and aahing over all of this.  They are so pretty!

Year of the... panel

Up close view of panel

Julie also included 2 panels.  One depicts the animals from the Japanese Year of the... calendar.  It includes: 1) Mouse or Rat, 2) Ox, 3) Tiger, 4) Rabbit (this years), 5) Dragon (next years), 6) Snake, 7) Horse, 8) Sheep or Ram, 9) Monkey, 10) Cock, 11) Dog, and 12) Wild boar or Pig. 

 The second panel is the cat panel.  Julie wrote: The left paw raised welcomes wealth.  The cat is holding a coin saying 100 million Ryo on it.  The raised right paw welcomes good fortune.  That character is "Fuku" the first of our name.

The last 2 panels are tenugi. Julie writes: Blue is made for Boy Scouts of Japan (now SAJ or Scout Association of Japan).  The green (top panel) was dyed in Janap by a tradition method for a Scout Troop in San Jose.  The kanji says "kokoro" or heart.  Julie included these since she is involved in scouting, as is my family.  It is another bond that we share. 

Julie had a great way to choose the winner of her giveaway.  Check it out here. Thanks Nikko for picking me.

I'm just catching my breath from being gone.  I'll post about the TOGA later this week.  Lots of fun things to blog about.  Even a new machine my hubby found for me!