Moonlight Dancers is a wonderful BOM available free from Planet Patchwork. The example is in bright jewel tones and black, but if you like sampler quilts, any color combination would be wonderful in these blocks. The BOM started last August and goes for 12 months.

My favorite block so far: August, 2009, Grecian Square, aka Churn Dash:



If you like paper piecing, you might try Regina's Magic Mushroom Garden This one started in September, and there are other patterns to paper piece at the bottom of the page.

Check the sidebar also for the link to Capricorn Quilts' new BOM.

The start of another new year. If you are anything like me, and if you quilt, you might be, you have very good intentions every time you start collecting patterns, or you make the first one, two, three blocks, and then other things in life come along to interfere. By December, you have a sense of failure. Another UFO in the drawer!

You might make one more New Year's Resolution, and decide to do this snowbound series in applique or embroidery. The first block is up, and a new one will go up the fifth of every month. Anne Sutton, Bunny Hill Designs, has the start of a great series here! Her baskets from last year are still up for a short time, so if you didn't finish downloading the patterns for 'A Tisket, A Tasket', go do it now, right this minute! The snowbound image in my sidebar is a link to the pattern page and, for now, both patterns are on the page.

And all those unfinished BOMs? Send the blocks to me for an AmHero sampler quilt! No more guilt, the blocks are used effectively! If you'd like more information on where to send them, drop me a line in comments below.

Yes, Virginia, you can make a Christmas tree from green bottles!

"In Northern Europe, Christmas occurred during the middle of winter, when ghosts and demons could be heard howling in the winter winds. Boughs of holly, believed to have magical powers since they remained green through the harsh winter, were often placed over the doors of homes to drive evil away. Greenery was also brought indoors to freshen the air and brighten the mood during the long, dreary winter.

Legend also has it that holly sprang from the footsteps of Christ as he walked the earth. The pointed leaves were said to represent the crown of thorns Christ wore while on the cross and the red berries symbolized the blood he shed." From Christmas Traditions