Fluttering Butterflys

One of the things I worked on this weekend was a few of the blocks for my hankie quilt.  

I stitched down this floral hankie that I've had pinned for several months now.

And I've pressed and pinned the next two hankies.  these both have crocheted embellishments on them.   A southern belle dressed in yellow on the blue hankie, and an umbrella on the pink one.  there are some embroidered flowers underneath the edge of the umbrella so i'll have to be careful about how I tack the crocheted part down.

I'm still debating about how I want to set these blocks (will be 9 blocks) - with or with out sashing........  I do know tho that I plan to send it out to be quilted by someone else.

Gratitudes:

1. that the loss of life has not been higher in Houston

2.  that is has been drier here in N. TX

They Do Wear Out.....

The quilts we work on so hard do eventually wear out if they are used like we want them to be.   Well, maybe I should say, as I want them to be.   I make quilts for friends and family that are meant to be used, and even "used up".   I don't make them to be a showpiece that just gets looked at once in a while and never used.   That hasn't always been true of my quilts.....but part of that is because I don't have anywhere to hang the quilts I've made for display.

I always tell my recipients that I want them to use the quilt, not just look at it.   If it wears out I can always make them another one.   How do you feel about the quilts you make - do you want people to "Use them up" or "Look at them"?

I do have one quilted project that I can honestly say I've "used up" because it is totally falling apart and I need to make replacement.

Made more than 40 yrs ago when I was in high school, I think this was about my first quilted project.   I used fabric that was available at the time and I think it was poly-cotton, with poly batting.  It only started to fall apart when I moved to Wyoming last year, so it did well over the years.  

Underneath is a pillow that my Granny made me from double-knit scraps that she had used to make pants for herself.  Not fun to sleep on but lots of memories in those scraps.  Not to mention they wear like iron!   When I take the cover off, I'll have to find the seam I've opened before so that I can add more foam stuffing before putting the new cover back on.

I think I know what fabrics I'm going to use to make the cover, but haven't fully decided yet.   My art quilt for the challenge needs to come first because that has a due date in February next year!

And the quilt under that is on my bed is a sampler quilt, one of the few I made from a pattern.  Lots of different fabrics were used in making it.   Assorted repro shirtings were used for the block backgrounds, and I raided my blue and red scraps (without making a dent them) for the rest of the blocks.   This quilt used the McCalls Big Blocks pattern that I'm finishing up now as a work-in-progress for an Am. Hero Quilt.

Gratitudes:

1. Warm weather for my parents who are out here visiting.

2. The long Christmas weekend.

When to replace or retire?

I don't know about other quilters, but I know for me that the best complement that someone could give me is to use a quilt I've given them.   And use it enough to actually wear it out and need a new one.   Well, I've finally done that with what I believe was my first quilted project from way back when I was in High School.  

Way back in the "dark ages", I made a quilted cover for a pillow that my maternal Grandmother had made for me.   She had used scraps of the poly-double knits that she made her pants from for the pillow and stuffed it with shredded foam.   That stuff wears like iron to say the least.   The only problem is that it's all textured and isn't the most comfortable stuff to sleep on, and this pillow gets used nightly so that I can keep my head elevated.

When I made it all that was available was lighter weight poly-cotton prints.   So that is what I used, along with polyester batting.  

The cover lasted actually pretty
well up unto the last yr or so when it started falling apart.    Guess I can't complain too much since it is over 40 yrs old now.

Replacing this cover (and putting more foam into the pillow again!) is one of my projects for the first part of the coming year.  I haven't decided what pattern or colors to use for the cover.   And might go digging through my stash of unused blocks to see what is in there that might work for the cover.  Or who knows I might decide to go digging thru the stash to see what takes my fancy.  =)

At any rate, how far do you let your quilted projects go before deciding that they need to be repaired are gotten rid of?

Gratitudes:

1.  Cool temps (ok, cold) temps outside so I can cool down!

2. Christmas vacation!!!!!

Playing Hooky.....

......from all of the commissioned sewing here that is and working on a new quilt project.  I had so much fun this past weekend at the quilt retreat that I couldn't resist starting a new quilt project last night/this morning.     When finished it will probably end up as a donation quilt for Sunshine.

The focus print is actually two pillow panels that I bought about 15 years ago at Ben Franklin's in Phoenix.   The store went out of business many years ago and the fabric languished in my stash of fabrics that I had pulled for 'kits'.   When getting ready for the retreat last week I had pulled three coordinating fabrics which I've added in the asymmetrical piano key border that connects the two blocks.   The current size is about 20" wide by 38" long.   And I'm happy to say that I was able to correctly miter the corners to put the border on.  

Next up will be a narrow border of a darker color all the way around.   Then I want to put something down both sides, and then finish with a final border around the whole thing.    What I haven't figured out is what I want to put down the sides of the quilt to add width to it.    Any one got any ideas?

Gratitudes:
1. Weather out here has finally cooled off!
2. Only 2 weeks till the next quilt retreat.  =)

Rick-Rack and Quillts

One of the members in a yahoo groups that I'm in was asking how to use rick rack in quilts, which brought to mind a couple of quilts that I've made in the last year and embellished with rick-rack. The first quilt I made with it can be seen here - http://quiltedsnail.blogspot.com/2011/05/ufo-project-finished.html .

I ended up with lots of scraps from the first project so I took them and cut strips of the shorter pieces and made 30 blocks from them. I then took the rick-rack that had been left from the first project and sewed it onto the blocks I finished for this quilt on top of the seam between the two different fabrics in the blocks. I used a zigzag stitch to sew the trim on. And love the little pop of color that it gives to the quilt top.

I used the jumbo rickrack in these two quilts,but the smaller sizes could be used as well, maybe even multiple rows of them for more of an impact.

Gratitudes:
1. Fall Break in my observation school gives me an extra day to sleep in this week!
2.For all that God provides.

Quilting Again!

Summer School derailed most of my sewing & quilting for June, and now that the first class is over I've got a couple of days to quilt and sew again. =) Of course my sewing /quilting these days is made of the various commissions that I've got in house at the moment. At the moment, I've got 10 more scrub tops cut out and in process, and also have 8 other tops / dresses also cut out for the same gal. Also have a quilt going onto the frame that is for a friends daughter.

And finally am working on a wall-hanging that I've been commissioned to finish for another friend. I've got the satin-stitching finished around 3 of the pine trees so far, and am getting ready to start on the 4th one. Not hard work, just fiddly to say the least. Worst of it is that the colors are very close in shade so I'm having a wee bit of trouble seeing where the edges are because I can't find my clear open-toed foot.......argh.....need to go take another look for it. While I'm working on the stitching, I'm also thinking about how to quilt it....esp. the outer two borders of it......any ideas anyone?

Gratitudes:
1. Thankful for the commissioned work that is helping me to be able to set aside some money.

2. Thankful for all of my good friends everywhere.

UFO Project finished

A year or more ago I had taken a work shop led by Karen Stone.......finished the I started in class during teh actual workshop. But that's where it stayed until yesterday. Had intended to make 3 more blocks to go with this one...........but after all the headaches of taking the paper out (it's paper-pieced) I decided it was time for a change in plans. Ended up setting the completed block on point (after repairing it that is) and used coordinating fabric for the setting triangles. Used more of the rickrack as an edge treatment in the binding. Added a hanging sleeve to the back and got the binding on late last nite. Got everything sewn down today. Haven't decided what i'm doing with this one....will decide that some where down the road.

Gratitudes:
1. Got a great price on an Ott Floor lamp. =)
2. Making progress on the commissioned sewing that I've been working on.

Empty tote!

As I've been going thru things here in the house I've been working to condense, get rid of or use up things that I moved this last time....now that doesn't mean I'm trying to get rid of my stash - but it does mean that i'm working on using what I have without adding a lot to it. This weekend is UFO weekend on one of my groups, so yesterday I emptied a small tote that had a set of 6 UFO blocks that had been sent to me a yr or so back if I rememeber right.

Finished off the satin stitching on the flowers and made the alternate blocks from the fabric that had been sent with the blocks. Only fabric I had to add to make the quilt was the wow that I used to frame the alternate blocks and then the two borders. Nice to have this done and outta my to-do pile. =) This quilt top will be going to American Heros eventually.

Gratitudes:
1. Time to quilt =)
2. Summer break.

Been a while..........

It's been a while since I posted, mainly because I was going nuts with school and all that I had going on with it, and with working 20 or so hrs a week on top of school. Have been doing a lot of sewing for others (well for one person at any rate) for pay as well - am thanful for the extra income. Needless to say there has not been a lot of time to actually quilt and sew for pleasure the last couple of months.

Did manage to finish off a couple of UFOs - the patriotic double wedding ring that I had in the works for American Heroes. The rings were paper-pieced out of pre-cut squares I'd already trimmed down from scraps. The rings are machine appliqued (buttonhole stitched) to background squares of various WOW's. the finished quilt top is about 60" square if I remember right. It has already been sent off to American Heros with 6 other quilt tops to be quilted and then given to a wounded military vet. the second UFO finished off was made using patriotic snowball blocks and sashing. Some of the leftover triangle blocks made from the snowballs were used as setting triangles for the quilt.

This past week I've been busy making a lot of scrub tops for the same gal I've been doing sewing for the last several months. Took a break from them (still have 2 more to do before Wed) to put together a quilt top last nite. The pic on the left shows the fabric I started with. the fabric is was one of the current dress fabrics that has the elastic gathering at the top of it (remember those dresses from yrs ago?). I took out all of the elastic thread that made the gathers (chain stitched). then soaked the fabric with the elastic had been so that the holes would disappear and ironed it dry. What started out as a 27" piece of fabric at the top ended up being 48" wide. =) The pic on the right shows the top as it is right now. I love how the colors shade from yellow to fuschia. Still need to figure out what i'm going to do for the final border. Will go 'shopping' in my stash for that.

I've got one more piece that is blues to purple to do something along the same lines with. Am thinking i'll use a WOW for sashing on it instead of black though. Might do a snowball block and sashing type of quilt.....or not.....lol.

Now back to the remaining 2 of 11 scrub tops so that I can have them all ready to deliver on Wed morning this week.....

Gratitudes:
1. Extra income from sewing
2. My quilt frame is together and working!

Projects in Progress

Have enjoyed the long weekend. =) Started working on getting my fabric and stash room under control. Something that was drastically needed after having the stash in storage for over a yr, buying more fabric, and having it scattered across this apt in piles and totes everywhere. For those that don't know, I normally have it sorted into boxes and totes by color and/or type of fabric. This has not been the case over the last 18 months as i keep finding boxes and totes of "Assorted Fabs" - ugh. So I've got everything pulled out and piles of colors and types sorted out ready to go back into the proper boxes.

Have been sorting out things to sell as I go through them as well. First pile to be sorted out was a large bunch of FQ's that I'm tired of moving around between various totes. I've finally admitted that I'll probably never use these so I'm going to list them for sale and hopefully get rid of them. Need to go through my quilt books as well and see what I can get rid of there.

The only problem with doing things like this is that I'm easily distracted and get caught up in new projects.....lol. One of the "mini-stashes" that I found were large pieces leftover from various quilt backs. I took three of them and made the baby quilt shown to the right. Had the perfect amount of the teddy bear fabric to cut 16 rectangles that were 7.5" wide by 9.5" tall, with nothing useable leftover. Fabrics used for framing were also leftovers. There is enough left of the tan to use for background in something else. Remaining red will be used for the binding. Blocks ended up at 9.5" wide by 11.5" unfinished. I still need to pull fabric for a border, but am not sure about what color I want to use for that. Need to take the quilt with me when I go upstairs to work on stash organization and see what looks good with it. When finished it will be a gift for the daughter of a very good friend who is pregnant with child #1. Will wait to send it until she has a baby shower later in the year.

Also in the works is a quilt for American Heros made from orphan blocks. Some were mine, many in it came from my friends Nancy, Susan, Jane, and Jodi. The pic to the left shows the two fabrics that I was considering, but I don't like either one, so it's back to the 'drawing board' for fabric. Need to head upstairs and see what I've got in the boxes of blue fabrics to see what will work.

Next up to finish off are a stack of quilted postcards that I am going to use as thankyou's for various things. And a pair of commissioned fleece hoods that I've been paid for and need to get made....gotta find the pattern tho first! lol. After that I need to put together the gifts I'm making my dad and mom for their BD's....stitching is all done....woohoo. Have due dates for both of those so need to get busy on them. After that it's onto BD gifts for later this spring. =)

Gratitudes:
1. Warmer weather yesterday.
2. School holidays! lol

Ugh.....

...........haven't been feeling good the last couple of days and as of last nite the crud has settled into laryngitis....good thing I live alone. Of course, having laryngitis doesn't work too when you work in retail....but that's another point.

Have finished off several projects, pics that I can show are below.


Gratitudes:
1. My throat doesn't hurt even tho I can't talk very well.
2. I have today off to work on my homework a good thing with the coming week.

Decisions....

Two of the UFO's I have pulled out to work on are pieces of cross-stitch. One will be going into the Block Robin that I'm going to be hosting starting in January. The other is a doorpull featuring some really pretty roses. Rather than put it back into the UFO's that I've got stashed away upstairs, I'm going to get it finished.....and in doing so I'm debating about what fabric I want to use for a small border around the stitched piece.

The fabric I'm drawn to is shown in the pic to the right. It is a hoffman that I rescued from a giveaway pile at the retreat I went to the first weekend of this month. What do any of you think about the combination of the fabric and cross-stitch? Once this is done I'll probably sell it.

Gratitudes:
1. I have a working heater and fan in the apt - just in time for cold weather!
2. For meds that are helping keep the allergies (?) in control at the moment.

New projects

In case anyone ever wondered, I'm easily distracted by new projects....which is probably why I have so many UFO's. Since the retreat i went to a couple of weeks ago, I've started a couple of new projects. The little one will finish up a cross-stitch UFO and work into an entry for a contest that Quilters Newsletter is holding for the Alzheimers Art Quilt Initiative ( click here for their blog posting about it). The top is together but will be embellished some.





The second one is a top that I've started made from 1" wide strips (cut) that I had left over from another project that I was working on at the retreat. Had too many strips to toss out, and the green top with the flowers below is how that project is turning out so far. Still need to do the Buttonhole stitching around the flowers. Next border will be more of the brown wood print fabric that I used for the first border. After that ..... who knows. =)

Gratitudes:
1. Lots of extra hrs this week at work.
2. Good grades so far in class, and the Midterm I had this week went better than I was afraid it was going to.

T-8 days and counting.....

Only 8 more days here in N. Tx before the trek to IN begins. Hard to believe that I start classed on the 23rd of August.....where does the time go?

I've been finishing up projects that were in various stages of progress over the last few weeks. Pics below are of the most recent quilt tops that I've finished for American Heros, a couple of tops that I plan to finish and sell, and one for Sunshine quilts.

Gratitudes -
1. Broken tooth doesn't hurt, and the dentist here believes that it will hold till I get to IN and can get an appt with a dentist there....and he thinks it can be salvaged, ultimately ending up with a crown on it. =)

2. For the provision of the student loans!

To border or not to border....

Just finished a quilt top that was started with scraps from a friends stash.....have it all together except for the decision whether to border it or not. I did have to add a few squares of green from my stash to make the complete blocks, and have some yardage of the batiky looking squares. Pic of it is below...... What do you all think - does it need another border or does it look ok as is?

Gratitudes -

1. A job that helps pay the bills and that deals with things that I enjoy. =)
2. The cooler weather and rain here in N. Tx this week.

More quilts from Terry's legacy of scraps

Last year I inherited oodles of scraps from a friend who was a part of one of my online quilt groups. It has been my pleasure to make quilts from those scraps that are being donated to a couple of different groups in her honor. Over the last couple of weeks I've finished up quilt tops from the strings she had collected and from a whole bunch of 2" squares that she had saved. Pics of these quilts are below -

n addition, knowing that I won't have as much time to sew & quilt once I'm in school this fall, I've started working on Christmas gifts for this year. And have finished up three of them so far. Below are teasers of what I've been working on. =) Have fabric for three more and will be working on them next.....

Gratitudes -

1. for the gift of quilting friends

2. for the gift of being able to bless others through the quilts that I send to sunshine and American Heroes.

Making progress on UFO's

Anyone who knows me, knows that I have oodles of blocks that I've gotten through the various swaps that I've been in. One of my goals for this year has been to work on getting these blocks into quilt tops. Some of the tops I'm keeping for when I need a gift and will eventually be finished off. Some of them are being sent to groups that I support and others will actually quilt the tops that I finish.

Yesterday I finished putting together a top with a set of heart blocks from one of the many swaps that I've been in and 4 flower blocks in the same colors from a second swap that I'd been in several yrs after the heart block swap. Sashing and border fabric came from my stash. I've kept the remaining border fabric with the top for use as binding when I do get around to quilting this quilt.

Now onto my next project......swap blocks for a swap that is due in June.....

Gratitudes:
1. Things are progressing for the alternative teaching certification program/fellowship and my move to IN.

2. That I know I can rest in complete faith and trust in God, knowing that He will supply all of my needs for the first yr in IN - no matter how bleak things look at the moment.

Finishes.....

Woohoo...I've managed to finish the top and back for the T-shirt quilt. Only thing left to do is to figure out how I need to adjust the back so that there is enough room too put it onto the frame by the gal who is going to quilt it for me.

And the latest project that I finished today is a purse for me. Both of the two that i've been using are coming apart, so I needed to get a new one. But I haven't been able to find one that I liked, so I decided to make one for myself. =) Pictures of the purse are below. The purse Front has a pocket made from a quilted piece from the stash of a quilting friend who passed away last year. Used another piece from her as an inside pocket as well. The main body of the purse is denim and I used a remnant to line it. The only thing I don't like is that the fusible fleece didn't want to bond to the denim when I tried ironing it on today. The purse was made in a similar manner to how I make tote bags and was easy to make. =)

Gratitudes:
1. God has supplied financially and enabled me to pay rent and my auto insurance. Hallelujah!
2. Lots of hrs at work, which keeps me busy.

More UFO's completed.....

One of my goals for this year is to get as many of my UFO's finished up as possible. I've been making progress on that over the past couple of week. And over the last couple of days have finished up two more.

The tabletopper was made from a Christmas fabric that I was intriqued by because of the colors in it. Haven't decided what I'm going to do with it. Might sell it....or might give it as a gift. The second finish is a quilt top made from blocks that I made with a bunch of the leftover batik strips that had accumulated in my scrap bins. This quilt will be donated to either American Heros or Sunshine Quilts.

Gratitudes:
1. I don't have to take the AEPA test since I was not offered a spot in the Phoenix program.

2. I get a partial refund from my registration fee for the AEPA.