Long Tall Glowing

Hello Again!  Yes this is the second post tonight.  I actually have time, and access to the laptop. 

 

This quilt glows.  The pattern is "Long Tall", hence Long Tall Glowing.  This is a great example  of how much a difference the fabric makes.   The pattern cover is in shades of brown, and, to my eye, meh.  At the sewing expo (every February at the Puyallup Fair Grounds!), I had seen a glorious quilt in spectacular greens and aquas.  It was Amy Butler "Glow" fabric.  These pictures don't do the glow-i-ness justice.  I walked past the pattern many, many times, and had to ask the clerk where I could find it.  When she handed it to me, I was surprised, to say the least. 

My best-girlfriend was with me, and she saw my hesitation in getting the pattern and the fabric, and she encouraged me to go for it.  It didn't take a lot of encouraging, but I'm so glad that she helped me to make a good decision.   This is also a lesson  in how fabric lines play together.  I always love Amy Butler fabrics, and Tula Pink, and the showy lines. But I never buy them since I don't always see how it's going to go together.  I would have never put these together, with the variety of designs and colors.  This is why I'm not a fabric designer!   

 

The picture of the back is so gloomy, I'm not even putting it here.  In reality is it a gold flecked aqua, and pieced with a variety of leftover fabrics from the front.   

My son asked what I was going to do with it.  I said, I didn't have any plans for it.  He asked, "Well, then, can we just keep it, and you don't give it away?" That's about as high of praise as I can get from him.  So, yes, we can keep this one.  It currently lives on our bed.  We have a king, and this is a generous full, so it lies sideways across the bed.

 

Once the sun comes back, in say, April, I'll try to get a good show of it in its "home". 

 

Coming soon: Pics of Christmas gifts for friends (OK, so none of them see my blog, so it's probably safe, but you never know...)  and my secret sewing can be revealed in January.  I'm really excited to share with you what I was allowed to do, and how honored I am to have gotten to do this sewing.

 

Much Love,

At the fair

 My how time flies...These photos are from September! And its nearly the end of December!  We did "the Puyallup", except it's now the Washington State Fair.  I don't now if I'll ever call it that - it's been the Puyallup Fair for forever.

 

One of the best things about the fair are the quilts!  There are HUNDREDS on display.  They vary from tied quilts, to intricately quilted.  The piecing varies from simple to complex.  They are hung from the ceiling in the second floor of the Home Arts building.  I entered several pieces in the fair this year.  It's a tough show - the judges are really looking for high quality in whatever category the piece is entered in.   I've always been intimidated by the amazing work that is hung there every year.  

 

About 8 years ago, I entered 2 quilts, and one of them won 2nd place in its category.  Of course, there were only 3 I could find in the large, non-traditional category, so 2 out of three ain't bad?

 

I'm fortunate that a friend works the fair each year.  She messaged me with something to the effect of "You can bring your quilts in today or tomorrow or the next day.  Do you want to bring them down, or should I?"  Love that.  No excuses.  I gathered some work from around the house, and off to the fairgrounds I went.  On the small one, I ripped out the machine stitched binding, and hand-stitched it down.  I may have gone a tad bit overboard - I took 5 items!  I entered them, and then didn't think much about it for awhile. 

 

We usually go to the fair as a family, so getting it to schedule out can take awhile, or a few weeks in this case.  I'm so lucky, my friends and guildmates love that section of the fair as well.  I heard from a friend at church that she thought I'd won a ribbon (WooHoo!) but she couldn't really describe the quilt.  And, I had one hanging at the top of the entrance stairs.  That's where the ribbon winners land!  And did I have a small one, maybe in a case?  At this point, it had been almost a month since I turned them in, and honestly, I couldn't really remember all the pieces I turned in!  Then at the TacMQG meeting, a guildmate came to me and asked if I'd entered a pillow.  Um,  Yes?  She thought that she'd seen it at a guild meeting during Sew and Tell.  Then she pulled out her phone, and showed me the pics she'd captured.  Yup, that's my pillow.  I was so excited!  (Envision Snoopy and the twinkle-toes happy dance!). 

 

Finally - the family was able to go to the fair, and I could see them in place!  My husband is very tolerant/encouraging of my sewing, and doesn't mind just letting me roam for an hour or so by myself upstairs.  You can see how thrilled the kidlet is about this. 

 

 

 

 

Actually, this picture is the one I take each year, so that if I lose him (or Dad and I get lost...), I can show someone what he's wearing and what he looks like.  This pretty well captures his happiness at being drug to the fair.  More time at the fair means less time on-line gaming at home 

 

Our family tradition is to stop and get a "Krusty-Pup" and a drink.  That's not just a corndog, mind you - it transcends the genre!  Of course, for $4.50, it better. Then, it's off to the quilts.   And this is what I saw at the top of the stairs when you come in!

In a place of pride, and a ribbon! Then, knowing I had 4 more spread out and about...off I went. 

 

 

 

 

 Four ribbons!  I was so excited.  My husband laughed and said "I'm married to an award winning quilter."  I can't even describe how thrilled and delighted this made me.  His comment and the ribbons.

 

I don't know how I got so lucky!  The judges commented on the variety of pieces that I could work on my piecing accuracy.  Yes, yes I can.  Their comments were spot on.  I do need to make sure the corners and edges match like they should.  Yes, Yes I should.  But, was thrilled regardless. 

 

I hope that you all had a wonderful Halloween and Thanksgiving!

Watching the Calendar...

It's been a whirlwind of sewing 'round here!  I actually have several posts worth to talk about, as I mentioned last time.  This project wasn't even on the list when I said that.  Do you ever have a date in your head, and  even though it is swiftly approaching, you somehow think it's farther away than it is?  Yeah, that was this project.  My husband's niece is expecting, and the baby shower was last Saturday.  In my head it was coming up this next week.  Last Friday, my husband chatted with his/my Sister-in-Law and they chatted about the shower...that was Sunday.  Yup, 2 days away.  He mentioned it to me Saturday morning.  And we already had a full schedule until late afternoon.  Oops!  

When we got home from all our activities, I looked through magazines of quick quilts. I messaged the Mom-to-be's sister and asked about colors.  Lavender and Aqua! In a magazine of Kids Quilts, I saw one that would be graphic, and straight forward. I did have some Warm n' Natural that would just fit the finished dimensions.    I didn't have a lot of lavender, so off to the quilt store I went.  At 4:20 pm, I arrived at the quilt store closest to my house.  They had closed at 4:00pm.  I took off for the next closest shop that was 30-ish minutes away.  While driving (I was at a light) I looked up their hours, to see that they closed at 5:00pm.  I got partway down the hill and realized there was no way I would make it. 

I turned around, and landed at JoAnn's Fabric at 4:45pm.  I had some coupons on the phone.  I went in and looked for lavender and aqua in the nursery fabrics.  I found some cottons, and some flannels.  I eventually made a set of cotton, and a set of flannels.  They each had a bit of gray tucked in.  I decided on the cottons and off to the cutting counter I went.  35 minutes later, I was on my way up to the checkout stands.   30 minutes later, I was out the door.  I got home about 6:45ish.  I ate something quickly, and started the quilt. 

Round about 1am, I hand wrote the label, and was tossing the finished gem into the washer. Of course, I had to be at church su-u-u-u-u-u-per early (choir was singing at 1st service).  Before I left the house, I tossed the quilt into the dryer.  When we got home, we bagged it up into a gift bag with some super cute baby tissue that was on hand, and out the door we went to the shower and hour and a half away. 

The Mom and Dad liked it!  I always sort of hold my breath when folks open a gift quilt.  They are such personal gifts - what if they didn't like it?  Of course, who is going to say they don't like it, right?  But they seemed to be pleased. 

 Josh and Rachael - your Gabriella Jo will be much loved!  We are so happy for you, and the new family you are making. 

May you all feel as blessed this coming week! (And make sure you actually check your calendar when you get the announcements & invitations in the mail!)

Summer's Been Good, but now It's Back to School!

September is always bittersweet...I'm always excited to be back at school and all that teenager energy is powerful. But summer is relaxing (mostly!) and I miss being able to quilt as I please.

 

I haven't posted for a while, but there are several completed projects. Tonight, I'll show the Sweet Pea Pods. Little zipper pouches, with a single loop of zipper. So easy to make and super fast and darling! This is a Lazy Girl design and, as always, the directions are crystal clear and thorough, with lots of pictures.  You can check it out here.

 

Got a bunch of zippers and extra pulls from Zipper Island. So many choices, and quick service. She included a few goodies - an extra decorative pull and adorably packaged. So inexpensive too! I'll be ordering again  for the next zippers I need. 

  

Mine came out pretty cute I think. I made 4 and just made two more last night for an exchange gift at my TacMQG meeting tonight.  They are a lovely soft green. We are doing birthday baskets - if it's your birthday, you bring a small gift, and folks buy tickets for each basket for $1 a piece.  If yours is drawn, then what's inside is yours.  I'm hoping that my two little sweet green pea pods are popular!

You know, as I look back at these pictures, I see that these were made while my Brother (Oh, my goodness, I LOVE my Brother!) was down for repairs.  I was using my Great Grandmother's 1938 Featherweight.  And it is amazing.  I need to wax it - I got post-it stickum on it, and tried to use water and soap to get it off.  Rookie mistake!  The lovely sheen just disappeared in front of my eyes.  Making a teeny tiny problem much larger! I need to go buy the wax, and polish it.  I'm hoping it's as easy to fix as the on-line references make it sound.  I got this from my Grandmother, who purchased it from her mother.  I will not mention my oops to her - she'd just laugh and shake her head.  I bet she never made that mistake...

 

Do you name your machines?  I've never done it, but I'm starting to feel like they deserve it!  I'm happy to take suggestions for names.  The Brother is an Innov-is Dream Weaver (can't remember the model number) and she(?) works really well.  It's got a massive throat - truly you can quilt a king without killing yourself. Of course, since it's entirely electronic, something gets a little out of whack, and it has problems.  I'm blessed that I purchased it at Quality Sewing and Vacuum and they have provided me EXCEPTIONAL customer service.   If I ever have questions or a problem, they make it right.

 

I hope your summer was fantastic!

 

"Any day with fabric is a good day..."

Itsy Bitsy Bits of Progress

I've been making bits of progress on a variety of projects. I actually finished the quilt top that goes with these photos, but I don't have a photo of the top. That will come later.  By the way, when squaring and trimming half square triangles, don't try and answer the phone - it doesn't bode well for accurate cuts.

I've been working on a pillow for swap my guild is having at this week's meeting. It will be white elephant style and I'm excited to see what my guild mates have made. Because it isn't public yet, that picture too will have to wait. But, here's a snippet.

My most on-going project is my version of La Passacaglia.  I've been working on it on and off for forever. I took it with me on the 10 day road trip.  I only ended up working on it for a few minutes. I couldn't work on it in the car unless I wanted to be terribly car sick. The one time I sat down to work on it (doing laundry at the hotel), one of our trip "adventures" struck. I didn't get to pick it up again, although, my sewing travel kit pretty much lived in my purse.

Oh, travel "adventure" you ask? Our vacation was one of those that you look back on afterwards and laugh and tell stories. I'll leave them to another post, 'cuz this is a whole other story...

 

 

So, what can we do?

I am a part of a bee.  There are 6 of us.  Two, 12" blocks. I picked last so that I would have time to decide on a block I wanted to pick.  Paper piecing was off limits, so of course, EVERY block I liked was a paper-pieced block.  I've been worrying about this in the back of my brain since January.  For those of you that don't know me, if there is something I can possibly worry about, I will.  I had no idea what to pick.  Colors would be easy (yes, blue and green) but the block left me cold.

Then Orlando happened.  Along with most of America, I was(am!)  feeling hurt and frustrated.  There had to be a quilting response, and Alissa Lapinsky and the Orlando MQG stepped in.  They are making/organizing quilts for the victims who survive, the families of those who didn't, and, if there is enough, the first responders.  When I saw the blocks, 10" hearts, I knew the blocks I wanted for my bee blocks.

A quick text to my bee mates with the link http://theorlandomodernquiltguild.blogspot.com/ and they were more than on board.  Since there were 6, and there are 6 colors in the rainbow, each person picked a color and volunteered to make 5 each. 

When it's right, you know.  This is a far better use of blocks than any I could have hoped for myself. 

So I'll make at least one quilt, and send it off.  And maybe I'll make more. Making these was more therapeutic than I thought it would be.  Maybe there are dozens more in my stash...

To quote Lin-Manuel Miranda "Senseless acts of tragedy remind us that nothing here is promised, not one day."  and "Love is Love is Love is Love - it cannot be killed or swept aside."

Love each other!

Another baby quilt in the works

And another baby quilt on deck! My school has another Daddy. He actually became a Daddy a while ago, but my Assistant Principal wants to honor that sweetie with a quilt as well. Since there is no due date, per se, and it could be made whenever, I had to make my own due date. I made it due at the end of May. As you can see, it's June, and it's not done.  Oops!

Hopefully it will be a pieced top by the end of the evening. I don't think it'll be a quilt until tomorrow. We shall see!

I Just Need to Make Something!

Some times you just need to play with your sewing machine. You need to MAKE something. "Hey, I've got a 'skein' of clothes line, let's see what I can do..."

The inspiration really hails from Leyda Greenwood in my TacMQGuild. We did an orphan block swap and she made a cooler version of this from the block she got. I loved it! I've made fabric bowls before, but they were completely covered in fabric. This has a more modern aesthetic, with the line showing mostly, and bits of color appearing.

I should have used a bigger width cord, as the teeny tiny width that was available at my local Fred Meyer is toooo skinny.  There is no strength in it, and the bowl is super floppy. It will need to just sit somewhere, it's not meant to carry an object from place to place.  There are two more skeins that need to be used - I'll have to figure out a way to use more fabric or somehow shore up the sides and base.

I'm proud of the swirl I added at the very end. It's a nice flourish. I think I'll play with curves and gaps next. Leyda posted a tutorial and it was inspiring.  If i can find it again,  I'll link it here.

Best,

Time Flies...

And somehow, a month has gone by since I last posted. I see why folks set a schedule for themselves regarding posting.  I also see why some of my favorite bloggers don't post regularly. 

I've had some finishes, but I couldn't show them yet. 

I am in a baby bee.  There are 6 of us in my local guild, and we are doing a 2 block swap.  The queen for the month gives us a pattern and fabric range.  Then we go to work.  There have been some great blocks so far, of course I didn't take pictures of all of them.  Now that I have given these two away, I'm sharing.  Her request was blues and greens, not in the local sports teams color way.  I hope she likes them. 

Also, this is teacher appreciation week.  As a high school teacher, it is not much celebrated.  But at the elementary level - it's a big deal.  My son's teacher this year (How did he get to be in 5th grade?!?!?!) has been marvelous.  She is just compulsive enough about germs (everyone uses hand sanitizer!) and structure that my compulsive kiddo is a perfect fit.  She is also a first year teacher, so that is just tough!  I appreciate how my son is blossoming during the year.  So, as a quilter, I made her a gift.  Actually, I try to be careful about that.  It's such a personal taste thing - just because I like it, doesn't mean anyone else will.  And by the time elementary folks have been teaching a while, they have a ton of tchotchkes and a hand made gift is not as welcome as a pack of dry erase markers, or a box of pencils.  We've done flower pots and a plant before, among other things, but I try to avoid the decorative route.  When I asked my son if he wanted to give her a plant he said "Well, you could make one of those..." and motioned the size of a mug rug.  He just asked me to make a quilt for someone!!!!! Why, yes, I can...

So armed with a little information ("Ryan gave her a mug, and she said it was her favorite colors - teal and green") and a visit to the stash, this appeared by 11:30 pm last night.  I hope she likes it!


I hope your spring is going well -- I wish you the weather you need, and hopefully want!

Cheers!

Labels - a Surefire (?) way?

I never used to label quilts - I thought they were too hard for me to create and I used to hate handstitching. I have since learned to label, and the importance of labelling.  Finding pens that work on fabric helped that transition immensely.  I also adopted the habit of just writing directly on the binding of the quilts in fabric pens or sharpies. 
Labels allow me to bless a quilt for someone - and express the love that went into making the quilt.  Finding the right blessing or saying is almost as much fun and almost as much challenge as naming the quilt.
Then, for wedding gifts, I decided that the quilt needed to belong to someone in case of a divorce.  I permanent pen I write who it is intended for, and when it was made, and the creation information.  Then I make a label to put over the top for the happy couple.  If something goes awry, the "real" owner of the quilt can remove the hand stitched label and VOILA - it's labelled for them.
In the IG world, I have*met* Lakeonestitchery - and she changed my world for quilt labels.  She makes mandalas and writes the information in rings around the mandala - they captured my heart!  She sent me to pictures of how she did it, and she makes a unique label for each quilt.  Since then, each quilt gets a mandala/zentangle label.

My artistry is quite limited - I have to work really hard to be artistic at all (I am more craftsman than artisan, although I am working on it).  I had worked and worked on a *zendala* for a label for the most recent set of three quilts I was making.  I started by drawing on paper, and finally got a sketch I really liked.  I just couldn't see replicating it with a fabric marker and fabric, though.  Here comes the cool part - I ironed freezer paper to a 8.5 "x 11" piece of white fabric.  I put the paper design on the printer glass, and "copied" it.   Instead of paper I fed the freezer backed paper through the paper feed, and it worked! 
I learned some things along the way - I tried to put 2 labels to a page - they totally fit! But it picked up weird lines from the folding of the original, and that didn't work.  Also, the edges of the fabric picked up ink smudges, and when the label was at the edge of the sheet, then the labels had smudges.  Just one, smack in the center of the sheet worked perfectly. 
Lesson 2 was to really iron the edges down - especially the leading edge.  Once that was tightly adhered, it worked like a charm in the printer. 
Lesson 3 - I wanted to make sure the ink was thoroughly set, so soaked the 3 labels I printed in a bowl of white vinegar for 10 minutes.  They were then rinsed, and  ironed - no smell at all once they were rinsed and dried. 

I then cut them down,  pressed the edges over to the back, and handstitched them down.  I was holding my breath a bit to see how they would hold up in the wash.  Sharpies fade when they are washed so I was wondering.These are as crisp and clear as they went in the machine!  Victory!

Before washing

After washing and drying - no fading!

 

If you aren't a labeler, I hope this inspires you to give it a shot.  Truly,  If I can do it, anyone can!
 

A triple finish!

Yay! All three are done...I guess technically I shouldn't post these until they have been given away, but since I know that no one is reading this yet, I should be safe.  For the record, I am a Cougar - Crimson and Gray, all the way.  However, I teach at a high school whose colors are purple and gold.  It's a bit painful, but these are beautiful in spite of the color choice!  These only need labels and washing - to crinkle them up and to de-cattify them. 

I was exited to take them outside in the glorious spring sunshine for photos.  It's been a few days of gorgeous weather - reminds me why the Pacific Northwest is a home that some people can only dream of.

Hope you are having a wonderful weekend - we are ending Spring Break here, and it's back to reality on Monday.  But with sunshine like this, nothing can be too bad!

2 out of 3 ain't bad...

So these are two of three baby quilts that are "due" soon.  Tops are done, they need batting, quilting and binding. The first is inspired by Amanda Jean Nyberg of Crazy Mom Quilts and Blue Underground's Green Glass quilt.

The second is Lucky from Allison Harris.  I was "lucky" enough to see her present a trunk show at my TacMQGuild meeting.  She had a scrappy low-value version of this.  I saw it and knew that it was meant to be one of the purple and gold baby quilts!

Start Somewhere...

Just start!  Everything has a beginning, so just start.  I've wanted to blog for forever, but always thought,  "Wow, that blog is so amazing, I could never do it that well..."
The danger of comparing yourself to someone else is that it can immobilize you.  I'm seeing their middle or ending, not their beginning! 
Also ringing in my ears is my mother's admonition..."Just because you think it, doesn't mean you need to say it!" (And that is, was and always has been one of my biggest challenges...I mentally try and use the 3 penny rule - each time I speak up in a meeting, I use a penny.  Don't ask how many times that I've actually kept to less than 3, but it does help to keep repeating, "Don't use the penny".)
Initially, my goal is to track my quilting journey.  I've quilted forever (really, forever...at least 20 years) and it's easy to forget where you've been.
Special thanks to Livia, who pushes me to just start.