Naughty Or Nice Holiday Party - Day 2 & pdq Club!

Thanks for coming to our party. Didn't you just adore Mary Jane's "horse" yesterday? Don't forget to go to her blog and enter her giveaway. She is giving away TWO block of the month Tour Des Jardins kits.

Here are the general guidelines for this party. Each day we will feature the answers of the questions that we posed to the designers. You will find out about their holiday habits and each day you will have the opportunity to share your thoughts. You will be eligible to win a fabulous bundle of fabric. All you have to do is answer the question on the blog [and/or on Facebook] for a chance to win the bundle of fabric of the day. No substitutions. You can enter on the blog and/or Facebook for two chances to win per day. You have until midnight December 9th to enter and all winners must claim their prizes until midnight December 13th or the prize is forfeited and we will announce a new winner.

Thank you for visiting our website, blog and Facebook page. It has been a great year for the Henry Glass designers. They've been busy working on a big project with the folks at Martingale & Co. The book will be released next fall and we know that you are going to love it. Stay tuned to our blog and Facebook or sign up for our newsletter to receive news about some exciting announcements in the new year.

For this blog party we asked the designers the following questions:

1. What was your favorite gift? Worst?

2. Early or late shopper? Earliest or latest that you've shopped?

3. Favorite holiday drink? Alcohol or none? Recipe?

4. Are you likely one to return a present or to suck it up and keep it?

5. As a child were you likely to make the naughty or nice list? 

1. What was your favorite gift? Worst?
2. Early or late shopper? Earliest or latest that you've shopped?
3. Favorite holiday drink? Alcohol or none? Recipe?
4. Are you likely one to return a present or to suck it up and keep it?
5. As a child were you likely to make the naughty or nice list?

Today, Jill Finley is our guest and she is going to have some fun answers to the party questions. Make sure that you go over to her blog too. She is giving an extra bundle of fabric away there. We are going to show off her pdq* Club [PRETTY DARN QUICK] project for "November" too. It is the perfect gift to make because it is so festive and an easy project. Here is the link to all of her other projects in the series. We know that you'll find something great to make as a last minute gift or two.

1.  As a kid I always loved getting snow things—like sleds or new skis and boots.  We had a lot of family fun on the ski slopes.  And the sledding was monumental—we lived on a hill and the road was long and steep.  Sometimes in the winter when we got a great snow storm, we would just not plow the road, so it was perfect for sledding.  (Only problem was that cars couldn’t drive up.) Dad would get out the snowmobiles and shuttle the sledders from the bottom back up to our driveway.

[Jill's family doing their annual Gingerbread Houses.]

2.   I am definitely a late shopper!  One year I actually tried starting early—several problems arose:  I forgot what I had purchased and where I had stashed it, and I just kept shopping, the more time there was, the more I spent!  So now I just do my shopping a few days before Christmas.  Our wedding anniversary is on the 17^th and we usually would go out—and do our shopping!

[Jill and her mom with daughters Talia and Sarah on their way to the Nutcracker - an annual event.]

3.  Hot chocolate!  If  you are spending all that time outside sledding and building snow forts, you have to have hot cocoa!   No alcohol here—we have plenty of fun without it!  Now if you want really great hot cocoa, this is what you do:

Heat together on the stove in a large pot:

4 cups milk

4 cups half and half

1 cup cream

Stir it contanstly so it doesn’t burn.  When it is steaming, and almost to a boil, add in a large package of chocolate chips.  Stir until they melt.  (You may want to add a few more or less, depending on your taste.)

Add a dash or two of salt, and 2 teaspoons of vanilla.  Stir and enjoy!  (you can add flavorings like orange extract or peppermint or cinnamon, etc)  YUMMM.

4.  It depends what the present is, and who it is from.  Sometimes it is just not worth the effort and pain to return it!  We often make homemade gifts, and they are really not returnable!  (Not that you would want to!!)

[Grandkids with new jammies.]

5.  Well. . . .if you were to ask my mom, I am quite sure she would say I was often on the naughty list.  I know this because she would frequently remind me and others who might be listening how “difficult” I was.  I think she was always a little amazed that I turned out to be a “normal” adult.  At Mom’s 90^th birthday party, she said a few glowing comments about each of my siblings, and when it was time to tell about me, she told the story of when I was so naughty that I stood in the corner ALL DAY rather than say I was sorry.  I was only 6.  

I wasn’t really that bad, just, as they say, a willful child.  I think I have done a few good things since then.  Let’s hope so! Mom is gone now, and every day I am grateful to her for all she taught me—even though I was “difficult.”

HG: Thanks Jill. Your answers were fun. Now we want to show off the next pdq* Club [PRETTY DARN QUICK] project. It is an easy and beautiful project and you can download the pattern here. If you make this project [or any of the pdq Club projects, make sure that you show us! We love to see your versions. Just e-mail us here.

Jill styled this shot to make her sofa look so festive and comfortable. We love the reds and greens that she used in the pillow.

Today's featured fabric is Weekend Retreat by Jan Shade Beach. This fun line boasts beach balls, kites and sail boats. Jan has designed a couple of beautiful quilts to go with this line and they are available as free downloads on our website.

In addition to the fabric bundle that is featured today, Jill has generously offered a bundle of her gorgeous Poppy Patio line to give away as well.

To win these two scrumptious bundles of fabric, tell us what sewing notion you have on your wish list?

Good luck!

-hg