Eclectic Quilter

Little twister Heart...

2012-01-25T21:57:00.000-05:00

I finished cutting and sewing the Twister blocks together today while I was waiting for the body shop to call for me to pick up our Nissan. It was dented a couple of weeks ago by a friend of the across the street neighbor. He backed out of the drive into our car that was parked on the street in front of our house. By the time the inspectors finished checking my quarter inch seams it was time to pickup the finished car.

actually they both match the quilt pretty well. Since the seams checked out I was able to put the borders on after dinner.

I have a few quilts in line to quilt before this one but I hope to get this done for 2012 Valentines Day.

UFO Bag DONE!

2012-01-25T00:35:00.000-05:00

I finally made myself just get this bag done! It has been a UFO for almost exactly one year. I had promised to make it for my eldest Daughter's last semester. But now it is done and off my to do list and she is very happy. It is made like a 'Regan Bag' only much bigger and with more zippered pockets. I didn't write down the dimensions so it will be one of a kind.

Since the bag is done I can now play with some charm squares. These are going to be cut with the 'Little Twister' ruler and then sewn back together. I am hoping this will look like a heart for Valentines Day.

They look like Angels here, but have been running around like crazy tonight. Scotty even knocked my iron to the floor. Broke the cord reel, but the iron seems to still be functioning. Needless to say they are in trouble.

I have one Customer quilt to get going tomorrow and lots of UFOs to try to get organized.

Still working on not doing what I should be...

2012-01-18T22:25:00.000-05:00

I made eight blocks for a charity quilt and Chipper did the inspection.

Quite thoroughly!

Scotty was too tired to help...

I am sewing with friends tomorrow morning and plan to make myself sew the rest of the bag in the afternoon. It really needs to get done and then I can Quilt a customer quilt on Friday. I just need to get back in the quilty groove again.

Just for kicks I signed up for this BOM quilt.

It's called Bella Verona.

Bow tie challenge update...

2012-01-09T09:58:00.000-05:00

I have been making my bow ties out of reproduction and shirting fabric scraps.

I counted up the finished blocks and there were one hundred and eighty. I have not decided how many I need to make. The block I tried out uses nine and finishes nine inches.

Check out what other Bow tie Challenge quilters are doing HERE

Now I got to get back to the bag project, I am trying to finish it today.

Procrastination......

2012-01-06T14:26:00.000-05:00

Scotty is waiting to get this bag started.

Chipper is ready to supervise.

But I have been procrastinating and playing with the Orca Bay blocks. I even sewed one row together. Also assembled the border triangles. Found out today that my Daughter starts back to school Monday, so I better get the bag done. ( I promised it for last semester. The quilter's children are always last.)

Happy New Year!

2012-01-01T08:51:00.000-05:00

2012 is off and running....

My only goal this year is to finish some UFOs that have been taking up space on my shelves too long. Many of them just need to be quilted. I am also going to start quilting for customers as the "Chipper Quilter". My youngest Daughter is working on logo artwork for me.

First project of 2012 is a bag for my Nursing Student daughter, that was promised to be done in 2011.

My reward for finishing her bag will be to assemble my Orca Bay Mystery quilt.

Orca Bay update...

2011-12-31T01:12:00.000-05:00

I have part seven done!

Here is the rest of the Orca Bay Mystery parts. I am liking all of them and really do not know what the final layout will be. I think the reveal will be New Years Day.

Back to step five.....

2011-12-28T16:26:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I received some wonderful red scraps from Amy. She is a very generous Blogger who offered to send me the scraps after I blogged about being short on red scraps. Thank you Amy for filling in the reds I needed.

I got ten more pairs of string pieced triangles made today. I have only twenty more to make.

This is a new tool that I got in December. It comes from the Gypsy Quilter and makes separating chain pieced blocks easy. It now looks like I will be ready Friday for Bonnie Hunter's next clue on The Orca Bay Mystery

Orca Bay update...

2011-12-26T13:07:00.002-05:00

Finished part five.

I have twenty one of the fifty six stars of part six done! I hope to be all caught up by Friday when part seven is revealed.
To see the progress of other Orca Bay participants click HERE
To see more design walls hosted by Judy Laquidara click HERE

Merry Christmas...

2011-12-25T07:56:00.000-05:00

Hope that everyone is having a very enjoyable holiday get together with their families. I will be cooking Christmas dinner for my family today.

Orca Bay update...

2011-12-22T11:56:00.000-05:00

Bonnie gave us clue 6 as an early Christmas present. I am behind on 5, as I have all the little triangles cut out but not assembled to the HSTs. I am waiting on some red strings to finish step 5 strip pieced squares. Now I have step 6 squares cut and just could not resist assembling two of the stars. I will only get little bits of sewing time until the day after Christmas. Gotta go to the store now and get the items together for Sundays Christmas dinner that I am in charge of making.

Tonga...

2011-12-21T20:25:00.000-05:00

I finished block 12 of my Tonga BOM. Now I have to construct all the pieced setting triangles and two zigzag columns that go between three block columns.

The bakening weekend...

2011-12-18T21:38:00.000-05:00

First I must show you the Cotton Angel that one of my friend made for me. She can stay out all year to watch over my quilt fabric stash.

For now the Cotton Angel is hanging by my Christmas tree, my Mother made for me.

We started on Saturday with our standard nut roll cookies. Then my Daughter and her friend continued baking all evening and did a few more Sunday morning. I am helping tonight by baking one more type of cookie. Then tomorrow we will pack up a variety of cookies to gift to friends.

Busy Friday...

2011-12-16T23:36:00.002-05:00

I went to Augusta this morning to pick up the last block for my Tonga BOM and the finishing kit. I was able to get half of my red triangles done. not sure if I have enough red scraps to finish these.

I am also getting low on black/white scraps. So far I was able to cut out about half of the Orca Bay step five triangles. I assembled four to see what they will look like.

I must now stop and make the dough for our traditional nut roll cookies. My MIL and SIL are coming over at 10:00am tomorrow to help assemble the nut roll cookies. So, I have to put away all my quilt stuff back into my quilting pantry and clean the rest of the kitchen. No more stitching/cutting until the cookies are done...

Orca Bay part 4 progress...

2011-12-15T15:32:00.000-05:00

I Have about one quarter of the triangles done.

It has taken me awhile to get these done, because I have been finishing the last quilt for a friend. Also I killed our main computer somehow. Don't know what I did, but it is now at the computer doctor. Luckily I have my DD#1's old notebook computer to use as a back up. I have been unable to remember or get my email so until further notice I cannot answer or read emails. Now my DH is happily planning on getting a new desktop computer. I hope to be caught up by Friday evening with Orca Bay part 4.

This is the front of the Batman quilt. I did stars and loops on it.

The blue thread showed up really nice on the borders.

I used a primary variegated thread on the back. I think her Grandson is going to love this quilt.

Two done and one more to do....

2011-12-10T16:16:00.000-05:00

This is one of two quilts that I am quilting for a customer. I love the bright colors on the front.

The does not disappoint, it is just as cheerful as the front.

This is the second quilt it was a mystery quilt class that I also took. I love the batik fabrics that she used. Seeing this one done makes me want to get mine done.

The back is just as beautiful as the front.

I am now going to take a break and fill out the paperwork on these two quilts. Then I'm off to dinner and The Hopeland Garden Christmas lights with my MIL.

Ruby update...

2011-12-07T12:07:00.000-05:00

This is the BEFORE picture. These are the side tension clamps that came with my machine. They are a nuisance, because when you get to the edge of the quilt Ruby would get hung up on them. Making jags in the stitching.

I saw a YouTube video

(www.youtube.com/watch?v=tEq_LQB9F98 )

"Speedy Side Tensioner"

So, I made my own version using clamps from www.clip-n-seal.com

(These clamps are very similar to the "Red Snappers") The printed canvas fabric and blue velcro came from Hobby Lobby. By making them colorful I hope that they will be easy to keep track of.

Hope you are having a good week. As for me I am going back to quilting.

Orca Bay so far....

2011-12-06T10:13:00.000-05:00

I worked on the Orca Bay Mystery last night, since TV was not very interesting. I am now done with steps one, two, and three.

I also finished sewing together the blue/cream strips into four patches and a few sixteen patches. I am thinking of using the sixteen patches in the centers of some churn dash blocks. They are 3 1/2" unfinished. Do you have any suggestions for quilts blocks that these would look good in?

I now have the next few days free to quilt a few small Customer/Friends quilts. Check back to see them after they have been quilted.

Monday progress...

2011-12-05T09:40:00.000-05:00

I have finished cutting out the 350 pairs of triangles for the Orca Bay Mystery. I have 170 sewn together and should have the rest of them sewn together by Friday when clue number four is revealed.

While in my scrap bin I found a bunch of 1 1/4" strips and decided to sew all the blue and cream strips together. Thinking of putting them together into 16 patch blocks and then maybe adding something red.

Finished the week by organizing the scraps that I got from my Mom. I ironed them and cut them into 2 1/2", 2", and 1 1/2 " strips. The leftovers will eventually be squares or triangles.

On Sunday I went to 2nd and Charles (a used book store in Augusta) with my husband. While he looked for a book to use for his class, I looked at the quilting books. I found two that had ideas and tecniques on what quilting designs to put on quilts. They were very reasonable (about $12.00 for both books) and will be good reference.

Now I have to get busy and see what I can accomplish this week.

Orca Bay step 2....

2011-11-29T21:55:00.001-05:00

I got twenty string blocks done today. I hope these colors work in the quilt, my plan is to use blue to purple for the strings. Only fifty two more blocks to make by Friday....

Alright, it's Wednesday afternoon and I have finished seventy two string blocks. I am now ready for step three....

I'm back....

2011-11-27T23:44:00.000-05:00

We got back today at around 1:30pm. It was a really good Thanksgiving visit with my Parents in Ohio. I forgot to take my camera, so I have to wait for the pictures to arrive in the mail next week. The kitties were well taken care of by one of my DD#1's college friend.

Chipper and Scotty checked out the Friday sale stuff that I got at JoAnn's and the Saturday fabric I got on the way home at Sew What Fabrics.

This 2.5 gallon bag of scraps is probably the best thing I brought home, besides the leftovers from dinner. I love to empty my Mother's trash basket in her sewing room. It always helps give my scraps variety. The blue will go into the current Orca Bay Mystery.

Orca Bay so far....

2011-11-21T20:46:00.000-05:00

Scotty was very helpful today when I was making the 224 quarter square triangle blocks.

Here are the finished blocks just before I trimmed off all the little ears. I will not be able to get to the next step until I return from my Thanksgiving trip on Sunday. So you have a few days to get ahead of me.

Scotty hopes to make bigger more colorful blocks in the next step. He didn't get very excited about these, although he was proud of me for using up almost all of my one and a half inch B+W strips.

Happy Thanksgiving to Everyone!

I'll see you when I get back on Sunday.

Saturday's progress...

2011-11-19T23:12:00.000-05:00

I continued working on Orca Bay mystery and have enough pairs of triangles cut to be able to get 90 quarter square blocks . Only 134 more to cut and sew....

I also went to a meeting of The Girls With Long Arms and was amazed at how much I learned. The potluck soup lunch was really good and the company was the best. Thanks Karen for the talk you did on quilting show quilts. Next meeting I will try to remember my camera and take some pictures to share.

The Inspectors were bored with nothing finished to check out.

Friday Night Sew In...

2011-11-18T19:33:00.002-05:00

I actually finished blocks 9 and 10 of the Tonga BOM last night. Tonight is the Friday Night Sew In, you can sign up HERE .

This morning I gathered strips for the Bonnie Hunter Mystery.

I finished sewing block 11 this afternoon, but Chipper didn't want to let me show it.

I changed the color placement on block 11. Now I have only one more block to pick up next month and also the rest of the fabric plus the backing. I hope to get this quilt top finished and assembled in January.

Eight mystery blocks are finished now to get the other 216 Quarter Square Triangle blocks to go. I leave on a Thanksgiving trip Tuesday, so I may not get to the next step until a week from Sunday. Are any of you working on Bonnie's mystery?

I was able to get 120 pairs of triangles cut out and a crockpot of chili made for a pot luck Saturday. Not bad for the Friday Night Sew In. Now I am off to bed.....

One more Charity Quilt quilted...

2011-11-13T17:55:00.001-05:00

I used a pantograph on this one today and will add the binding all by machine tonight.

Finished

and inspected.

I am taking my Red Snappers to share at our local Longarm club on Tuesday so no more quilting till Wednesday. Scotty will be missing his hammock bed till then, poor deprived kitty.

Quilting finished....

2011-11-11T11:00:00.000-05:00

I had Jury duty on Wednesday, so the quilting got delayed. Now it's finished and I am working on the binding.

This quilt was made from charm squares that I won from Squash House Quilts quite awhile ago. The pattern was just a made up one.

I used up the leftovers from the top and some orphan blocks to make it fit. The orphan blocks were left from a $5 BOM that didn't keep with the same color scheme all the way through. So I did not have enough to make a quilt and there was not any matching fabric to be had. I like how well they match this quilt.

Here's a close up of the quilting. It is not as good as I would like but, I learned a lot doing this one.

Of course the inspectors couldn't be left out of the photo shoot.

Now on to the next quilt.....

Internet router trouble...

2011-11-08T20:17:00.000-05:00

Computers are great when they work seamlessly, but when they glitch they are such a pain. Well, now ours is back in working order.

I sewed with my friend Carolyn on Monday. We were making great progress on our table runners, when she accidentally cut her finger with the rotary cutter. So, after a quick trip to the Doctor's office and a few stitches, we both finished construction on the tops at home. I think I will make another with a less busy print around the cut out diamonds.

As usual no project is done until the inspector finishes his inspection

Saturday...

2011-11-06T00:43:00.000-04:00

I have been working on the plan for quilting this squares on point quilt, but the Kitties think it is a great place to sleep.

I went to our Churches "Apple Fest" and rummage sale. I picked up four men's 100% cotton shirts and got them disassembled for my quilt stash.

I am in two groups that are exchanging Birthday fat quarters next year and while the kitties slept I got them all labeled and ready to hand in to the coordinators.

I also finished up my plan for quilting the top that is loaded on Ruby. So, tomorrow the Kitties are going to have to find another place to sleep.

Started a Christmas tablerunner...

2011-11-03T23:40:00.000-04:00

My friend Carolyn shared a pattern for a table runner with me today at our Busy Bee meeting. We plan to finish it on Monday at her house. She got the pattern at a recent quilt show and we both have the ruler that makes the diamond pattern.

Just in case you missed him, here's Scotty looking very regal.

Handsome Chipper, trying to get a catnap.

More quilts from the Aiken County Historical Museum 31st annual Quilt Show...

2011-11-02T23:44:00.000-04:00

These are just some of the quilts on display at the Aiken County Historical Museum. The show runs the whole month of November. If you are in the Aiken, South Carolina area please stop by to see the quilts at the museum.

Local Quilt Show...

2011-11-01T22:21:00.000-04:00

This quilt was the winner of Best of Show and First for pieced bed size quilt. It was made by Nora May, who made it in a class I taught this year. It is the same pattern as the quilt I won a first place ribbon last year. I am so happy for Nora. Oh, we had a different judge this year.

This is my quilt that won a second place ribbon in the Pieced wall quilt category. It is a Bonnie Hunter pattern, called Crabapple Tree and was quilted by Betsi Dinger. My quilt was named Apples in the corner orchard, since I added the pieced apples to my checkerboard border.

Salley King's Perseverance quilt won a first place ribbon in the Pieced wall quilt category.

This was my other entry in the show Cool Spice table runner. It won the second place ribbon in the Miscellaneous Category.

This face jug with flowers by Rachael Thomas won the first place ribbon in the Miscellaneous Category.

I'll post some more eye candy tomorrow.

DH gets a new car...

2011-10-30T12:28:00.001-04:00

I spent Saturday morning with DH picking out his new car. It is a 2011 Honda Insight. New to us it is a hybrid so time will tell if it was a good purchase. He traded in his eleven year old Dodge truck. The only thing I don't like about buying a car is the sales pitch that they seam to be obligated to pitch. They don't seem to like to talk actual numbers. They ask what car payment do you want to pay, not how much do you want to spend. We did it our way with a large down payment to make the payments smaller.

In the afternoon I was able to go to the end of the special one day sale that a local quilt shop was having. I got three one yard pieces at $2.50 per yard and the rest was 30% off. All but the Christmas fabric will go in my Camelot sampler.

Chipper wants to see what we are going to make with it and I bet you do too.

Camelot Block 2....

2011-10-26T22:43:00.000-04:00

I finished assembling block two.

I was able to figure out my new circle template and got the background added to block one. Next I need to trim block two and add the background.

Only one inspector. Scotty looks innocent here but right after the picture he started wrestling with block two trying to remove the paper. He is such a little devil.

Design Wall Monday...

2011-10-24T14:13:00.001-04:00

I have a workman here today installing my kitchen back splash. I was able to quilt this Quilts for Kids quilt, but will have to wait to get it trimmed after the kitchen table is clear again. I am now ready to quilt, quilt , quilt, since I got back from Atlanta. The classes that I took really gave me the confidence and will to get going on my quilting adventure.
To see more design walls go to Patchwork Times

I'm back....

2011-10-22T15:47:00.000-04:00

I have to show you this beautiful quilt. It is all done by hand and it has lots of beautiful embroidery and bead embellishments on it.

Here's the center...

Just look at all that detail.

Not surprisingly this quilt won Best of Show.

This is Mavis Rosbach of Quiltbird Studio. I took two classes from her, first "I did it on a Long arm" and "Buzz on Biz". The first class is pictured above. We learned to do a fun reverse applique. In the second class we learned the ins and outs of running your own longarm business. I would highly recommend taking her classes if you ever get the chance, they are fun and informative.

The other two classes that I took were with Dusty Farell

of Country Stitches. The first class was called "Bread and Butter Quilts". He taught us many free motion techniques and encouraged us to develop our own.

His classes are really fun and informative. We drew and then stitched on the machines.

Here is a peek at what I learned, more practice.

The top is mine. The Heat and Flames are what Dusty did. He was there for everyone and was gracious enough to give us all a sample of his stitching.

The second class I took with Dusty was "Radical Rulers" and it was a drawing class. We learned how to use rulers to make unique designs on quilts while quilting.

I would highly recommend taking a class from Dusty, because he is good at bringing out everyone's creativity. He also has some great videos on U Tube, check them out.

I am off to the Atlanta Quilt Show...

2011-10-19T07:37:00.000-04:00

My bags are packed and I am off to the Atlanta Quilt Show. I will be taking longarm classes from Dusty Farrell and Mavis Rosbach. I will have a lot to share when I get back on Friday. I may not get a post up until Saturday. See you all then.

More Quilt Show eye candy...

2011-10-16T20:48:00.000-04:00

This was really pretty, with yarn fibers added to accent the quilting.

Love this bargello. I have a kit to do one in blue, cream and brown.

I enjoyed seeing these artistic picture quilts.

This was quite bright and funky.

Thought these Monkeys were really cute.

These chickens put a smile on my face.

I only saw a couple of these wool flower quilts, it must have been a class.

I like this memory quilt it reminds me of vintage Valentines.

Thanks for stopping by, hope you enjoyed this sampling of the Sacred Heart Quilt Show 2011.

Sacred Hearts Quilt Show...

2011-10-15T20:33:00.001-04:00

This was the raffle quilt, that will raise money for children to go to Camp Rainbow. The drawing will be next September.

This was my favorite pieced quilt.

Look at all the beautiful tiny multicolored pieces.

This was my favorite applique quilt. I love the cats but, the flowers are really pretty too.

I liked the use of color in this French braid Quilt.

I liked the treatment of the border on this beautiful quilt. I actually have the tool to make those diamonds, but never thought of doing them on a quilt border. These quilters are very creative.

Even their ribbons are beautifully made, love the hearts.

I will show you some more quilts tomorrow. You can also see more quilts from this show at Scraps and Threadtales .

Camelot Block 1....

2011-10-14T07:36:00.000-04:00

Finished block 1 of Camelot, just need to trim the circle and add the background.

I started laying out block 9. I am choosing the blocks that look easiest to paper piece first, so I will not be going in numerical order.

Today I am off to the Peaceful Hearts Quilt Show. I hope to take a lot of pictures to share. Hope you have a fun quilting day!

The start of my Camelot....

2011-10-13T11:00:00.000-04:00

I collected these fabrics first for a jacket that had a circle medallion on the back. I decided after making the medallion, I would probably not wear and enjoy a jacket that much living in the very hot South. So, I then changed my mind to use this fabric for a traditional sampler quilt and found that beautiful flower fabric on the lower left and added a few more FQs. Now after seeing this Camelot pattern by Trish Harper, I have decided to use this collection of fabric to make my own Camelot Quilt.

This is the unfinished medallion from the jacket and after measuring parts of the Camelot pattern, it is the same size as the circles in Trish's pattern. This makes me happy as it is such a pretty piece and almost finished.

I am working on block one so far by making a foundation from the pattern pieces. I am not much of a hand piecer, so I plan to make my blocks mostly by paper piecing.

Mail Tales....

2011-10-12T16:12:00.001-04:00

I ordered this pattern from Australia ( Ordered from HERE ) after seeing some other bloggers working on this beautiful quilt. I am excited to start working on this one real soon.

These are the prizes on their way to the Post Office. I got them all into the mail today, so you will soon have them in your mail box.

It has been very rainy and overcast here so Chipper has been showing Scotty how to stay snugly/warm on my DD#1's plush robe.

Hope you are having a fun guilty week.

Quilt of Valor Finished...

2011-10-10T16:06:00.000-04:00

My Daughter was just tall enough to hold the quilt up for a picture. Now I can take the quilt to our Guild meeting tonight for show and tell. Then I just need to make a label for it.

Back to quilting...

2011-10-09T17:20:00.001-04:00

After I spent the morning weeding my flower patch, I got back to quilting. Ruby was ready to get to work on this Quilt of Valor top that I made from scraps awhile ago. Hopefully I can get it finished by tomorrow night for show and tell at quilt guild.

This end of the frame is a little dark, but Scotty is on the left. He has been sleeping on a quilt that is folded and waiting to be dropped off for our quilt show October 15th. He actually has been there today while I am running Ruby, relaxed as can be. He truly is a good quilt kitty. That is when he is not using my quilt frame for a jungle gym and playing in the thread! LOL

Found a giveaway for Kimberly Einmo's new book, Jellyroll Quilt Magic and two great rulers. Just go HERE to enter.

The winners are...

2011-10-08T22:37:00.000-04:00

Item #1 was big enough that I decided to split the selvages into three packages. So, I have three winners:

Rosa

Barb

Debra

Item #2 goes to Janet O

Item #3 goes to Mini M and Ms

Item #4 goes to Mommarock

Item #5 goes to Bev C

The Serendipity pattern and leftover borders go to Gill (no blog)
Congratulations to all the Winners!
E-mail your snail mail addresses to me and I will get your goodies to you as soon as possible.
Everyone else I wish you better luck next time.

It's almost time....

2011-10-08T00:23:00.000-04:00

The boys are ready to help. I will do the drawing after dinner tomorrow and post the winners around 9:00pm. There is still time to enter the giveaway HERE .

GOOD LUCK!

Pieced a few more bow ties tonight. I finished the mitered corners on my Serendipity quilt top today.

I have leftover borders

2011-10-06T11:16:00.000-04:00

I have now finished putting my four striped borders on Serendipity, just have to miter and sew the corners.

Scotty found that we have enough of the printed striped fabric left to do another quilt.

There are four complete strips of the wide border and three complete strips of the small border plus a generous amount of leftover pieces of the small border to piece the forth border.
So if you want the leftovers and the pattern let me know by Saturday October 8th when I will choose a new home for these leftovers.

Still working on Serendipity...

2011-10-04T15:14:00.000-04:00

I am almost two thirds of the way done.

When I finish this quilt top I will be giving this pattern away. I really like how it is turning out. Just don't think I will ever make it again. So if you are interested leave me a comment that tells me how much you like Jenny Beyers' quilts.

Also I have some other items in a giveaway on my previous post. I will be drawing the winners on Saturday October 8th.

Hope you are having a great Quilty week!

Giveaway just because...

2011-09-30T23:20:00.000-04:00

I have been cleaning out things from my house to sale in a garage sale this weekend. I found a few things that I couldn't sell to just anybody. So, I am doing a giveaway of things that I no longer need and want to pass them on to someone who will use them.

And it is fun to give things away!

ITEM #1

I have been saving selvages for a couple of years, but I have not made anything with them, so I'm going to split them up to at least two quilters .

ITEM #2

This was a BOM a few years ago, so I will not be making it again, so the pattern goes on to the next quilter.

ITEM #3

I've had this book for a long time. It even has recipes in it. I like the concept of the blocks, but never seem to want to make a quilt from it. So, on to the next quilter it goes.

ITEM #4

This Slider has not even been used more than once that I can remember. Now that Ruby lives at my house I don't think I will be using my home machine to quilt anything big. So,it goes on to the next quilter.

ITEM #5

I received this watercolor wall hanging as a gift about four years ago. It has everything except the border fabric to make the wall hanging as pictured. I find that I just don't want to make a watercolor quilt, so I am passing it to someone who will make it and love it.

Now all you have to do is tell me which item you would like to win. I will choose the winner of each item by Saturday October 8th. If you want to you can blog about the giveaway to your friends for an extra chance in the drawing.

Tuesday's progress...

2011-09-27T15:55:00.000-04:00

Scotty helped me finish assemble the back for the Winner's circle quilt.

I started putting these squares together last night. It is a Jinny Beyer quilt called Serendipity. The skill level listed on the pattern was "beginner", I found it to be quite tricky to cut out the blocks. Now that I have started putting them together and cutting the striped material for the borders, I would definitely not recommend this pattern to a beginner. Even putting the blocks together is tricky, because of all the points that have to be matched. Enough complaining, I now am well on my way to getting this long time UFO ready for quilting.

I am almost ready to give the details of the coming giveaway to you. I plan to post about it on Friday. Hope that you are having a good week.

Tried a new tool...

2011-09-26T09:28:00.000-04:00

I learned about this Quick-Easy-BORDER-Mitering-Tool

at my Tonga BOM meeting in August. I just got the chance to try it out on the border of this top. It really did make it easier to make a mitered corner that lays flat.

Chipper helped to take pictures.

Here is a close up of one of the corners.

I think I am in need of a large design wall, so I can get better pictures of the large quilts I make. I now need to piece the squares that I cut for the quilt as you go into one large back to load onto the machine. In conclusion if you get the chance try out the quick miter tool, it really does make it easy to do.

Happy Quilting!

trying to clean up...

2011-09-24T21:43:00.000-04:00

These blocks and the fabric for their borders have been sitting around since 2007. I was going to do them quilt as you go, but never became confident on my home sewing machine to do quilting. So, now I am going through a bunch of UFO blocks that have been waiting to be assembled and quilted. Stay tuned for more UFO quilt tops to be assembled. I am also gathering some things for a giveaway. I have some patterns that I will not be repeating.

Here is Scotty viewing the dog's new do. (see how puffed his tail is?)

The dog got a hair cut and a bath, now Scotty thinks he is a stranger. I guess soon he will realize that he is the same old Comet.

Busy week...

2011-09-22T14:09:00.001-04:00

I caught the boys snuggling this morning. They played rip/tear last night around midnight. Scotty had his neuter surgery yesterday morning and so far it has not slowed him down a bit.

Now that I have my hexagon template, I was able to trim my blue/cream blocks and I couldn't help but start bright blocks with black corduroy centers. Since I have been influenced by Bonnie Hunter, I found that I have been saving some inch and a half strips for quite awhile. Now they have a purpose. So in between other projects I plan to recreate my version o Carolyn's antique quilt.

Block #2 done and trimmed, I think to make a good sized quilt I will need to make hundreds. This is going to be a long lasting project to be worked on for a long time. Hope you are having a good week!

Goodies in the mail...

2011-09-20T15:24:00.000-04:00

I received a pattern that I won from

Valerie of Pumpkin Patch Quilts

I also got the rulers that I ordered from

Marti Michell .

Now I will be able to trim my hexagons, so they will fit together much better. My drawn pattern is a little off and I was afraid of the consequences after putting them together 15x16.

I have been getting things moved around here, so that I can do a garage sale at the end of the month. I wanted to make a bigger window space for the Kitties and found that I already had some things that were usable in the garage. Scotty tried it out this morning.

This afternoon Chip joined Scotty, so I guess it is a good fit for two kitties. The best part is that I ended up not having to spend anything to make the change and I got storage underneath.

Door prizes....

2011-09-16T21:31:00.001-04:00

Picked up my Tonga BOM today, won a pink/peach zebra FQ and a charm pack of Moda's Cattails & Clover.

Found a new free BOM that just started this month at http://piecesofranaslife.blogspot.com/

It looks like it will be a fun fall quilt. I'm still deciding on if I want to make it, what do you think?

Started the heritage hexies...

2011-09-15T23:02:00.000-04:00

I finished the paper pattern and started the hexies. The first prototype that I made only had three rounds. After I double checked Carolyn's original quilt, I corrected my pattern to match. The original quilt's hexagon block had four rounds. This quilt will use up all the extra strips that I cut for the snail trail log cabin quilt that I finished recently. I am planing to use a hexagon template to trim the blocks before I assemble them. I ordered a template from Marti Michell, as she had one that went up to six inches. This hexagon is only four inches, but I have another pattern that uses the six inch size.

In between the hexagon paper piecing I am trying to get my youngest Daughter ready to get her driver's license. She needs to have it by next month so that she can get herself to school when I am at the Georgia Quilt Show. The paper piecing seems to south my nerves after a ride with the new driver. Hopefully she will gain enough confidence to get her license and strike out on her own soon.

Guess who came to our Guild Meeting .....

2011-09-13T19:37:00.000-04:00

Well of course most of the Carolina Pine Quilters and our guest speaker was Siobhan Furguson of Scraps and Thread tales . She gave a very interesting program on how to date vintage quilts. She also brought many examples different decades of quilts to share. You must have her come to your guild for a presentation, the quilts were awesome and I learned alot. Go to her blog for some samples of the quilts that she collects.

This is my only really antique quilt. It was given to me by my Dad (who is 84 this year) and he said it was made by his Grandmother, because his Mother was not a quilter. Siobhan dated it in the 1900's and said it was a good representation of indigo fabrics of that time period. Looking at it now, I am starting to like it and the pattern. When I got it at age 15ish I thought it was just a bunch of ugly shirt fabric sewn together. I guess I am a real quilter now because I now appreciate the pattern and the hand stitching.

Funny how in my memory I remembered it as just a bunch of squares sewn together.

Now I see half square triangles and blocks sewn together in a planned pattern. I am thinking that one day I should make my own version of this quilt.

This was my favorite quilt from the meeting last night. It belongs to my friend Carolyn and was from Alabama where her Husbands Family came from. I think it was made by her DH's Grandmother. I was so amazed and enamored by it that when I got home last night I tried to draw a pattern from memory. I called her today to see if I could look at the quilt again and try to make a good pattern for the block. She said sure come on over. The block that I remembered was only off by one round.

Here is a close up of the block. it is kind of a pineapple or log cabin hexagon. The center is black corduroy. I really love all the colors that are in it. When I get the pattern drafted I am going to try to make one out of my left over blue and cream fabric with red centers. I may have to start a colorful one too. I know Carolyn is going to make one. Now back to my sketch book to get the pattern done...

A day with Ruby....

2011-09-08T17:01:00.000-04:00

Today is the day I decided I was ready to quilt for a Friend that gave me two baby quilts to be quilted. I have one done and the second one started.

These quilts are flannel front and back. I used a star and loop pantograph. Next on the machine will be a Quilt of Valor since I can use the same stars and loop pantograph.

Here is a new picture of Scotty in my zipper box, his favorite place to sleep.

Finished, quilted and Inspected...

2011-09-06T15:05:00.000-04:00

Chipper was kind enough to inspect my table runner, so I could get pictures taken to show you.

This is the finished table runner. I like it so much that I am going to enter it in our Guild's Quilt Show in November.

I just did a continuous straight line on either side of the seams with my regular sewing machine.

Here is a picture of the pattern. You also need to have a 10 degree ruler for cutting the wedges.

Played with Hexagons...

2011-09-05T21:35:00.002-04:00

I had some free time today and decided to play with a hexagon layout. Don't think I want to do it in these colors. Maybe it would be better in black and white with bright hexagons? The hexagons are
3 1/2" because I have a template, but if I decide to make a quilt of hexagons I may try to get a GO! cutter. I printed out some graph paper and plan to color some ideas to see what color combinations and layouts I like. Tomorrow I need to quilt two baby quilts for a friend. Then I can play some more.

Baby quilt

2011-09-03T17:14:00.000-04:00

I took a break from quilting my table runner to put together this baby quilt from a panel plus some leftover HSTs that were in my stash. Feels good to use up stuff that has been sitting around for a very long time.

Both kitties helped me measure the charity quilts before they went to their new homes. Now I have to get back to clearing off my kitchen table as we are having company tomorrow. Hope that you are having a great weekend!

Cool table runner...

2011-08-31T00:37:00.000-04:00

I wanted a new table runner to put in my kitchen on my Island. I bought the pattern and ruler to make this when I was in Florida this summer. I picked up the fabric today at the LQS (it takes eight fat quarters) I'll give you the info on this tomorrow (I guess actually today) and show the finished table runner......

Friendship Stars

2011-08-29T22:54:00.000-04:00

These blocks are part of a project that my guild is working on. We are making them from fabric left over from finished quilts. I had picked up eight kits to sew before my trip to Ohio and then miss placed them after only sewing two.

I found them last night and finished them today. Now I can hand them in at the September meeting. Our guild uses these blocks to make comfort quilts for members in need. This is a good start for the week.

Playing with Bow Ties...

2011-08-28T22:31:00.000-04:00

I now have over a hundred bow ties made. I looked at this layout and decided they needed something.

I tried this layout and found it interesting. Then my oldest daughter told me it looked like snowballs, sure enough it does and the bow ties are lost.

Then I tried sashing and I think it looks better.

Next I turned the blocks and I really like the secondary pattern.

I assembled one nine patch of bow ties. Added the black print for sashing, but think it should be thinner. Counted my bow ties and have enough to make sixteen blocks. Guess I still have more bow ties to make. Now I need to figure out how big of a quilt I want to make.

Me and Ruby

2011-08-26T08:18:00.000-04:00

I've been trying to learn pantographs and have been doing a lot of charity quilts. I am learning that not all charity quilts are not created equal or as well as our own quilts. Also when you take a break in the middle you need to remember which direction you are going. Guess it is good practice on what happens when the inside is very bias and the outside borders wave. I need lots more practice, I think freehand may be easier for me, time will tell.

Busy week...

2011-08-24T13:40:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I went to the first meeting of the Bejeweled Club at Jeff's Sewing and Vac in Augusta, GA. It is for long arm machine owners to get together and share their experiences. The next meeting is September 20th.

Today was the first day of College for my Youngest Daughter and since she does not have her driver's license yet, I have to get her back and forth to school. This will get me focused on letting her practice driving more so that she can soon drive herself around.

I got some Royal Mail from Chris and Barbara in the UK. Their book is a wonderful reference for any quilter. They also have Mystery quilts on their blog that are free and fun to do. So, click on their names above and visit a fun quilt shop in the UK. I wish that I could go in person to thank them, but for now an email will have to do.

Hopefully I will get some quilting done soon...

Tonga BOM block 8 and some bow tie blocks.

2011-08-21T21:36:00.000-04:00

Cleaned up my blue/cream leftovers and sewed a few bow tie blocks last night.

Put together this months Tonga block and added the sashing to the other seven blocks. Now I am caught up on this BOM.

Made more bow ties this evening. Next I need to finish a Regan bag for my eldest Daughter and get my Lisa's flower garden BOM up to date.

Chip Tails quilt top finished...

2011-08-20T17:56:00.001-04:00

I think it is going to be my new favorite quilt for my bed as soon as I get it quilted. I have a ton of already cut one and a half inch strips left over and so far I only have thought of making some purses with them. I do love blue and cream, so maybe another smaller log cabin quilt is in the works.

Here's a detail of the corner. I will be thinking about what to quilt on this for awhile. Whether to do an all over design or some swirly stuff in blue and cream? Maybe some cats playing? Any suggestions?

Progress has been made...

2011-08-20T00:52:00.000-04:00

Friday was BOM for the Tonga quilt at Jeff's Sewing & Vac in Augusta, while there I found the wide backing fabric for my Chip Tales quilt. I have all the borders finished now and just have to assemble the parts.

This is my finished block seven. I picked up block eight and some extras to start preparing the blocks for assembly.

One of the parts I like about the BOM at Jeff's is that they make it an event by having food, door prizes and a discount on your purchase that day. Since I brought some show and tell I had extra tickets for the door prizes and won two fat quarters and a new rotary cutter blade.

Wow! This quilt has a lot of pieces...

2011-08-17T22:44:00.000-04:00

Chipper helped me lay out the blocks that were already made for this quilt. I am thinking of calling this "Chip Tales". Today I started putting the blocks together and adding the pieced border. The corner blocks were already made too, but the border pieces are still in process. Each edge block gets twelve two part random piano keys. I made 56 blocks so that I could use this for my king size bed and I think that I was tired of piecing by the time I got to the border.

This is the size the pattern called for, wall quilt or throw. I am a gluten for punishment. I love the scrappy blue and cream and I don't know how many different fabrics are in this quilt. The strips are one and a half inches wide. I think it is going to be another week before this is ready to quilt, but if I am able to get it quilted before the end of September I will enter it in our local quilt show. I'm sure I would get the prize for putting the most pieces together.

The kitties just slept in the sun all afternoon.

Look how Scottie has grown...

2011-08-16T22:56:00.000-04:00

I took this picture last month when I found Scottie sleeping in my zipper box.

This picture was taken today. I think Scottie has grown a bit.

Since he likes to sleep in my zippers I decided to put them into the next bigger box. We will see if this box becomes too small.

I decided to work on a UFO that has been waiting to be put together for many years. My original plan was to try to put it together as a quilt as you go project. But I really don't like cutting out squares of batting for large quilts. This is a King size, if I remember correctly. Now that I have my own long arm, it is time to get all the UfO's that have been sitting forever moving along and finish them one by one.

I sewed more units for the construction of the border tonight.

Chipper says he needs more attention. So how can I say no to such a sweet boy.

QAYG finish...

2011-08-16T00:10:00.001-04:00

The front

The back

I finished my sample just in time for the class that I am teaching today, nothing like the last minute. I just have to make a few demos before I sleep. Hope that the students have as easy of a time as I did making this quilt as you go. I'll keep my fingers crossed.

Finally, here's what I did in Ohio...

2011-08-13T19:50:00.001-04:00

First the Girls and I stopped in Wytheville, Virgina at Batiks Ectera to pick up some bright jewel tone fat quarters for my Mother. She requested them and I was a good daughter, except I neglected to take a picture.

I was very good and only picked up the fabric on the right to make my already started lattice quilt bigger.

My downfall was my Oldest Daughter, she decided that she needed to make a quilt. She found the Butterfly fabric in the sale room and we finished the bolt at 40% off. Then she picked out 20 fat quarters to make a turning twenty around the block quilt. I cut out the pieces while we were in Ohio and now all she needs to do is sew.

While at my Mom's we picked up the supplies needed to make these Origami boxes from JoAnn's. I put the stiffy glue on the fabric, cut the squares and then my Youngest Daughter did the folding. She made my Mother eight Christmas fabric boxes, that I neglected to take a picture of. The box in the picture was our prototype made with not very square pieces of fabric. I now need to make some more for myself. The directions are in McCall's Quilting Sept/Oct 2011 issue.

We visited The Good Wife's Club in Marion Ohio, so I could pick up some light reproduction fabric. I also found some six inch squares in their scrap bin.

My Mom picked up this fabric for me to make her a fall purse.

We also went to Country Stitches in Kenton, Ohio. There I picked up some beautiful border fabric to use on a scrappy house quilt that I have been wanting to make. Scotty just could not stay out of the pictures any longer.

Now all I have to do is get all my chores caught up so that I can get quilting.

I'm back....

2011-08-11T15:47:00.001-04:00

My Daughters and I got back yesterday around 4:30pm.

We had a great stay and visit with my Parents in Ohio. On our way home we stopped in Nashville, TN to see a performance of "Tally Hall". It was at 3rd & Lindsley.

We had a short wait before the doors opened.

First up was Casey Shea, I liked him as he is a kind of eclectic ballad singer.

Next up was SPEAK we're from Austin Texas. They were very talented but not my cup of tea, as they were very loud.

The headliner was "Tally Hall" an alternative pop group. They are very quirky, musically talented group of young men and fun to watch. They are one of the bands that my girls introduced to me that I really like. The show was really good and all of the Performers stayed after to talk to their fans and sign autographs.

I'll tell you about the Quilty stuff I did with my Mother tomorrow.

Going to Ohio...

2011-07-31T20:36:00.001-04:00

This is just a quick post to let you know that I will be taking a break from my blog while I visit my Parents in Ohio. My Girls and I are leaving in the morning. We will be stopping at only one quilt shop on the way, Sew What Batiks in Wythville, WV. My Mother has asked me to pickup some fat quarters for her, what else was I to do? It will be enough to hold me until I get to my home town. Then I plan to make a trip to The Good Wives shop to get some light shirting fabrics. I'll blog all about my adventures when I return on August eleventh.

I hope the Kitties do a lot of this and don't get into too much trouble while I'm gone.

Very busy weekend...

2011-07-30T18:38:00.001-04:00

First the Quilting news!

Scotty checked the mail on Friday and found a box.

In the box was the winnings from Stash Manicure that was hosted by Dewberry Lane

Thank you Rachel, the fabric is beautiful and I started making something right away. I will show you when it is finished.

The next box came today.

This gift was from a swap that I participated in through the Quilting Gallery. The beautiful blue tote and Button the Cat pin cushion was sent to me by Dorthy ( I couldn't find her blog, not sure she has one?) Thank you Dorthy!

I took a couple of great long Arm classes from Karen Kendo

She is a great teacher, we learned Basic long arm quilting skills.

The long arm machines were supplied to us by The Quilting Solution They are an American company that makes the long arm machines and tables in North Carolina. Both Karen and the Quilting Solution will be at the Quilters of South Carolina meeting this coming week. Go tell them hello and see when they can come to your area to have a class for your group.
Aiken Standard is our local news paper and if you would like to read their article on the event click on their name.

Now if you are here are the pictures of my new kitchen counters...

before

after

new sink detail

I love the deep single bowl sink and the dark "peacock gold" granite. I will be putting in a tile back splash as soon as I return from a trip to Ohio. We also got the new garage door installed. It is good to have the house back to normal again....

Just waiting...

2011-07-28T08:33:00.000-04:00

The counter Guys haven't arrived yet. So, I thought I would share a picture of the quilt that I made using charm squares that I won at Jeff's BOM meeting.

Not much quilting going on here, but the inspectors were glad that something got finished so they could do their job.

This is going to be a busy week!

2011-07-25T09:10:00.001-04:00

Scotty helped me on Sunday by napping in my box of zippers while I worked on a quilt as you go project.

When suddenly we were interupted by the sound of a crash....

I opened the door to the garage to find that my youngest Daughter had a problem navigating the driveway full of cars. She paniced when she got a little close to the parked cars and missed the brake peddle.

Luckily she missed the cars in the driveway and Chipper, who was sleeping in the garage. Everything turned out ok, no one was hurt, the air bags in the car did not go off and the car itself was only scratched. So, today I will find out how much a new garage door costs.

The other thing going on here today is getting new counter tops. This is the scheduled day to remove the existing tops. The new ones are to be installed on Thursday.

To top off a busy week I am taking a long arm class on Friday and Saturday. Guess I won't be bored this week.

Thursday with the Busy Bees

2011-07-21T23:43:00.000-04:00

One of Sally's Quilt of Valor quilt top using the stars like I made. She had two done to show today. I'm not sure how many our group will do by the end of the year.

Chipper helped by inspecting the second one.

This is what they did while I was away at the Bee Hive today. I think maybe they need a bigger place to lay by the window.

Warm Wednsday....

2011-07-20T22:44:00.000-04:00

The temps here are in the triple digits.

The boys have been relaxing and I've been keeping cool in the air conditioning.

I finished the last four stars to take to my friend tomorrow. These blocks were already cut out and kitted, all I had to do was sew them together.

I now have 30 bow ties made and 30 ready to sew. I also cut out some background squares. I just need to decide how big I want this quilt to be. Then I can do the math to see how many 3" blocks to make....

I'm way behind....

2011-07-19T21:23:00.000-04:00

I promised to make eight of these stars for my friend Salley's Quilts of Valor project. Monday I got four finished.

Today my Lisa's Flower Garden BOM part ten arrived in the mail and I had not even started working on part nine. So, I started on both of them by getting the nine patches done, now on to the wool flowers tomorrow.

Then while I had the reproduction scraps out, I started making some leader/ender bow ties that Bonnie Hunter had on her blog a few days ago. They are like potato chips you cannot stop at just one. The finished size will be 3", I must be insane to start these.....But they are so darn cute and easy to make......I'll just do a few a month.

What about you have you seen the bow ties on other blogs?

Are you going to try some?

Great weekend...

2011-07-17T23:18:00.000-04:00

It started Friday when I picked up my block 7 of the Tonga BOM. I met a lady (Linda) who is starting a focus group of Crown jewel owners at Jeff's Sewing and Vac in Augusta. The group will meet once a month at the quilt shop to share and support each other. The first meeting will be August 23rd from 10:00am-noon.

During the BOM I won a couple of door prizes. First was this Charm pack, I see a cute baby quilt from these.

I also won this Christmas panel. Because the day before was Jeff's birthday we all got to pop a balloon that had a piece of paper in it with an amount of discount on it. So, I purchased some border fabric to go with the panel. I love Jeff's BOM because they are so generous when we pick up our blocks. They always have snacks, drinks, door prizes and a discount on our purchases for the day.

On Saturday I was invited by Vivian of The Whistle Stop Quilting Blog to come to a meeting of "Girls With Long arms". They meet at each others homes and Saturday was Liz of Frog Quilter Blog turn to host. There were about seven of us at the meeting and there were probably three or four that missed because they were in Knoxville for the quilt show. I had a great time meeting new people, seeing their show & tell quilts and sharing long arm quilting techniques. I am looking forward to getting together again with these ladies.

Chipper just relaxed this weekend, I wish sometimes that I had a cat's life.....

Finally I got my second Charity quilt done!

2011-07-14T21:40:00.000-04:00

My two novice Quilt Inspectors thoroughly checked it out.

Chipper and Scotty had lots of fun playing in the finished quilt. I was pleasantly surprised today that Ruby didn't seem to scare them or the dog.

Ruby and I are getting along famously. I am having to teach myself how to use this machine, as we don't have anyone at the quilt shop who trains people who purchase a machine there at the shop in Augusta, GA. They suggest you get training at the Home base of Babylock in St Louis, MO. But I have found the price to be too expensive. I have signed up for a day and a half Long arm class here in town July 29 and 30. So I'll get some experienced input then.

My input so far on what I have purchased...

1. Crown Jewel, alias-Ruby, I love.

2. Majestic frame by the Grace Co, Not in love with, I don't find it easy to use. The plastic parts on it are not very durable. I would like to see a regulator bar added to it. ( I suggested it to the Grace Company but will not hold my breath, as they were not very receptive of the suggestion.)

3. "Red Snapper" - love these clamps as they make loading and unloading the quilt very fast and easy.(way better than pinning or basting a zipper on.)

4. Pantographs are a beginners best friend. I think it will take me until around the end of this year before I am good enough to do a good job at freehand quilting.

5. The industrial bobbin winder is great, but takes a little getting used to.

All in all I'm glad that I got Ruby and I know in time I will move up to an even better set up. I just have to work with what I can afford and work towards what I want. My plan is to be able to quilt for others by the first of January.

Tonga BOM block 6 finished.

2011-07-12T22:24:00.000-04:00

I go to Jeff's on Friday to pick up block seven. As usual it feels good to be caught up. Tomorrow I will work on my Lisa's flower garden BOM to get caught up on it before the next set of blocks come.

Tonight it is Chipper's turn to help on the computer. I will give a review of the Red Snappers tomorrow.

Another week gone by....

2011-07-11T00:07:00.000-04:00

And I really have not gotten much done on the quilting front. I have been busy doing household stuff and procrastinating getting some quilting finishes.

Here is a picture of Scotty helping me post this blog.

I received a set of Red Snappers for Ruby.

I got them installed the first of the week, but have not tried them out yet. They are used to clamp quilts to the leaders on the frame to save time. I found that I do not like pinning quilts to my leaders and the thought of sewing zippers to quilts didn't appeal to me either. So, when I found these on the internet I decided to give them a try. I am going to do a charity quilt today, so I will let you know what I think about the Red Snappers.

I worked on this block for a way to use charm squares.

It is getting late so off to bed I go....

Fairy Quilt Godmother

2011-07-04T21:11:00.000-04:00

I started making my Fairy Quilt Godmother from Paper Panache

and found that I do not have the color I need in my scraps to do flesh for her face. So, I was only able to start her hair...

Hope that you had a great Forth of July Celebration!

Mystery block at Paper Panache...

2011-07-01T00:11:00.000-04:00

I am going to make the Fairy Quilt Godmother from Paper Panache

The pattern and name are given out randomly from questions that you answer. My Fairy Quilt Godmother's name is Quilonovia .

So, if you like to paper piece, why don't you join in on the fun at Paper Panache . Otherwise if you like paper piecing go check out the web site. They offer some really cute patterns to purchase and a free mystery block about once a month .

Here's what I did in class today.

2011-06-28T21:28:00.000-04:00

This is the class sample.

Today I learned how to make the center lattice. Once I had the 22" square center done I added the borders that I made the other night. I do not have any more of the background fabric so if I want to make this bigger than 48" square I will have to decide what to do for the rest of the background. I am thinking of adding an island chain border from the book Scrap-basket Sensations by Kim Bracket. First I have to decide what background to use.

Getting ready for Class...

2011-06-27T21:54:00.000-04:00

I made these blocks to put around a basket lattice sampler that I will be making in a quilt class tomorrow. I am using left overs from some other quilts that were made from these batiks. So this is going to probably be just a lap size quilt.

Chipper was trying to teach Scottie how to hep me with quilt layouts. I had trouble catching a shot when they were on the blocks.

Second Florida post....

2011-06-26T11:57:00.000-04:00

On Tuesday after our Family visiting in Jacksonville we returned to Orlando. Then on Wednesday my DH and his Mother went to visit her brother+wife about a two hour drive from Orlando. My girls and my SIL went to Universal Studios. So, I went to one more quilt shop. I didn't get to take pictures of the shop, as my daughter took the camera with her to Universal.

This is the fabric that came home with me from

The Cornerstone Quilt Shop . The Lady's in the shop were very helpful and friendly. It was "BLUE" month at the shop and anything blue was 15% off.

I have been wanting to make one of these Bargello quilts, so when I saw the kit and it had blue, my favorite color...I had to get it at 15% off.

I had seen this book on the web before I left home and since I needed some evening reading....I picked it up.

There are quite a few interesting quilts to make from this book.

We ended our stay in Orlando with a day at Epcot in Disney World. Very fun, but tiring.

I even found this 100% cotton square of fabric, scissor fob, tea tin and socks as a souvenir from the Japanese Pavilion. Perfect for a Quilter!

I have returned...

2011-06-25T07:35:00.000-04:00

Florida was a fun place to visit but I am glad to be back home. The kitten has grown a bit, but is also moving faster, so no new pictures yet.

Our first part of vacation was spent catching up with relatives of my DH's Mother. There had been a wedding of one of his cousins and many of my MIL's family members were in town. It was good to be able to make it possible for her to make the long trip south to see them in the Jacksonville area. Loved the town, but this time of the year it is very hot and smokey. (fires are started by lightning in the swamp areas and just have to burn themselves out.)

My daughter took this from the car as we left to go on down to Orlando. It was about 9:00am.

I had a free day to go to a Quilt Shop on the first day when we arrived in Orlando. This is The Quilter's Cove.

It is a small shop with lots of inspiration and great fabric choices.

To the right as you enter the door they had lots of tools, patterns and a cozy classroom.

On the left were more patterns, books and fabric.

I spent awhile looking for some new to me patterns and found a few. The fabric in the middle is going to be a gift I am making for a friends GrandBaby shower. The Flamingos are for my travel squares to share with my Bee pals. The patterns I hope to play with soon!

This one is for a wall hanging, but I think I will use it as a guide to make a cover for Ruby.

This is what the boys have been doing while I have been writing this post.

Wrestle, wrestle, wrestle.....

I will be on Vacation 6/17 till 6/24....

2011-06-16T23:07:00.000-04:00

And while I am gone...

Chipper will be Baby sitting .

See you in a week!

Design floor Monday...

2011-06-13T10:14:00.000-04:00

I just had to try one!

I saw this over at Impera Magna's blog. Since I didn't have a jellyroll that I wanted to use, I just got into my 2 1/2" scrap strips container. To make it random I threw in some strips that were not width of fabric. I sewed enough strips together until I had 40x42"=1680" or approximately 46 3/4 yards of strip. Wow! That sounds like a lot when you do the math. I just approximated by counting the number of strips that I sewed together, the shorter ones were counted as 2-3 were equal to one width of fabric strip. Then I just followed the directions at Impera Magna's blog (link above). I think it would look better in coordinated color scheme. Maybe pastels for a baby quilt. It was fun and I plan to make some more of this style for charity quilts. This is a really quick and easy technique.

Chipper and Scotty are getting along much better. The only problem now is that Scotty not fast enough to keep up with Chip. But when his legs are longer they will be able to tear through the house at breakneck speed.

Now I have to get back to quilting on Ruby. I'll have some to show and tell soon.

Ready for my quilting Bee meeting

2011-06-08T21:30:00.000-04:00

The first block of "Flower Penny Garden" is prepared for the stitching.

We also were able to remove the desk from Ruby's room so part of tomorrow will be spent getting the machine in a better position for quilting. I picked up 9 yards of batting from Hobby Lobby at 40% off and will be able to get some practice charity quilts done.

I received some pantographs that I ordered last week. I am thinking these will help get the movement of the machine into my head and will be good practice.

On the kitten front.... He is getting braver every day.

He decided to join Chipper on the top self of the climbing pole. Scotty also has made friends with the dog and drinks from Comets water dish. (I haven't been able to get a good picture yet, but the dish is way bigger than the kitten.)

Hope that you are having a great week!

What's happening...

2011-06-07T10:44:00.000-04:00

My DH finally got his roll top computer desk. Yea! Now we are in the process of getting the old desk out of Ruby's way. A friend is picking up the old desk on Wednesday. I can hardly wait until then, so I will have room to play more with Ruby.

I have been working on this UFO. The six blocks were purchased at a quilt shop that closed at least five years ago. They were leftover BOM kits and I added some fabric to get the quilt big enough for a kids charity quilt.

This block arrived yesterday from Primitive Gatherings

It is Lisa Bongean's Summer block of the week "Flower penny garden". It is a mystery with twelve blocks and will be a big quilt with borders that will be revealed at the end of the summer.

Scotty is getting more used to the rest of the family. He and Chipper are now getting along and are playing cat games. We still separate them when the baby needs a nap. It is getting harder to snap pictures of him as he is constantly moving.

Giveaway Winners !

2011-06-06T09:54:00.000-04:00

Thank you to everyone who entered the drawing. Blogging is a fun way to visit and get to know people from around the world and I love visiting with all of you.

Thank you all for stopping by to visit.

The first name drawn was Blue Star Stitcher She will get the blue knick-knack bag.

The second name drawn was Impera Magna She will get the pink knick-knack bag.

Ladies please e-mail me your snail mail info so that I can get your Knick-knack bag in the mail to you.

My youngest Daughter graduated from High School today.

2011-06-03T21:50:00.000-04:00

We are so proud of her. What a beautiful young woman she has become.

Chip still does not like the baby, but he does not try to hurt him.

Scotty is just too cute!

Hope you are having a wonderful weekend.

Don't forget to put your name in the drawing on my Monday May 30th post to celebrate with me. The drawing is Monday June 6th and there will be at least two winners.

Good Luck!

Someone new....

2011-05-31T14:47:00.000-04:00

My eldest Daughter talked her Dad into letting her bring home a kitten. He was born to a Ferrel cat at one of the horse farms in our area. The owners kids rescued them right after they were weaned and now are finding homes for them. His name, Scotty Dale Martin the third the last true King of Scotland, but we will call him Scotty. Only my eldest could come up with a name that is bigger than the cat, she was trying to keep everyone happy. I can hardly wait to see how Chipper reacts to him. I hope he sees him as a playmate.

Don't forget to put your name in the drawing on my last post to celebrate with me. The drawing is Monday June 6th and there will be at least two winners.

Good Luck!

100 Followers Giveaway

2011-05-30T13:40:00.000-04:00

I am giving away filled Knick-Knack sacks to celebrate reaching 100 Followers on my blog.

Leave a comment on this post for one chance and blog about it for another chance.

I will draw a two winners on Monday June 6th.

Good luck!

Finished month 8 of my Lisa's flower garden BOM. Now I am all caught up with my BOMs until the next ones come at the end of the month.

Hope you are having a wonderful Memorial Day.

Thank you to all who are serving or have served our Country in the Military.

Catching up on BOMs

2011-05-28T11:47:00.000-04:00

I finished Tonga BOM # 5

Finished last month's Lisa's flower garden blocks.

Still working on the flower blocks from this month. I also ordered and received some beige fabric for the embroidery blocks of my Life is Beautiful quilt, now to cut squares and transfer the patterns to them.

New top finished

2011-05-23T22:23:00.001-04:00

I made a fun top from a Moda bake shop pattern this weekend. I won a set of Rose Cottage charm squares at Jeff's sewing & Vac BOM last month. So I went to the Moda Bake Shop to find a pattern for a quilt using charm squares. I found the pattern "Criss Cross Quilt" by Lisnaweary Quilts. I only had to add four fat quarters and a couple of yards of fabric to make the quilt, the rest was in my stash.

Here's a close up of the block.

I used all the left overs and the yardage I purchased for the back. I also picked up thread to quilt it.

This is a sneak peak of a secret Basket swap that I joined and just remembered today that I am supposed to mail tomorrow. I finished the basket tonight, so I'll fill it and mail it tomorrow.