Silk Hearts Quilt

Ready to pin baste!  Basting is  about the only part of making quilts that I really don't like at all.   Some quilters use spray glue, but I don't want to get overspray all over the wonderful floor up here in the studio and don't have another place that might work.  Plus, I am not so sure about all that glue...so, I will just continue to grin and bear it with the pins.  What is this, do you ask?  Well, a little over two years ago I bought the Sarah Vedeler embroidery cd Hearts, which features embroidery and applique.  Along with the designs I bought the tin of gorgeous jewel-toned silk dupioni fabrics. You can Google Sarah Vedeler Silk Heart Quilt to get an idea of what this will resemble once I have the quilting done.  I am going to do free motion quilting, mostly doing feathers and spirals.  I have a Bernina 440 QE that has a stitch regulator on it and really helps keep the free motion stitches more uniform in length.  When I first got the machine, I didn't really like the regulator that much.  I had been free motion quilting for many years without it, and I "fought" what it was trying to do.  Once I relaxed and let the regulator do its thing, I was very pleased with the results.  This quilt hanging is pretty big, almost 48" x 48".  Twenty blocks were appliqued and embroidered.  Lots of hours and lots of thread.  I will show you the finished quilt when it is all done.  Now I have to find a perfect spot in the studio to hang it.  If you go to Sarah Vedeler's website (sarahvedeler.com) you will see oodles of gorgeous designs she has made.  What really attracts me to them is her fabulous use of color.  And, her designs are based on decorative machine stitches that you can find on Bernina machines, as well as others.  I have been on a quest for a few years to encourage sewers to use all those wonderful, fun stitches.  Similar results to some of her designs can be sewn without the help of an embroidery machine.  They may not be as perfectly lined up, but still can be colorful and fun.  Thanks for letting me blab on a bit.  Jerilynn

I Only Changed it a Little

Don't you just love looking up recipes on the internet and seeing the ratings and then reading what they had to say about the recipe and then they say they love it and then they go on to tell you all the things they didn't add or all the different things they added to it and when all is said and done it really isn't the same recipe at all? Yes, me too. Anyway, my wreath is a little like that, but I didn't change it too much from the original. The original is from sweetwaterscrapbook.etsy.com. I saw it and fell in love with it and ordered it right away. It came nice and fast and this morning I had an opportunity to get a little sewing done while our new counter tops were being installed. (yes, I like them a lot!) Anyway, the pattern, very well written by the way, said to wash the canvas to make it soft and then tea dye it and the labels on the twill tape. I decided I wanted more of a Swedish look - whiter and with touches of red (of course). So I kept the canvas a bit stiff, sewed all the words on the twill tape, then used my Bernina 440 to sew on all the red buttons. Then, instead of sewing the front wreath on a back canvas wreath, I decided to use red wool felt. I think it turned out really cute. I have enough canvas and twill tape left over to make another one, but I would need more word labels. Speaking of labels, sweetwaterstreet.com (same wonderful company) has a label of the month club that is very fun. At the first part of the month they send you some labels and a pattern to use them. The fabric and fixins to make the projects are on their etsy site if you so choose to buy them. This is the company that I order my Jerisew labels from that I sew on the stuff I make. They also did my business cards. Look on their etsy site and you will find tons of very cute stuff. I ordered the Christmas Name Picture when I ordered the wreath kit, so that will be a project I work on soon. Sounds like this is an advertisement for them, and maybe it is. I just love their style. Even if I do change it just a little. Jerilynn

My Next Sewing Machine Needs Spellcheck!

Tonight, tomorrow, and tomorrow afternoon I am attending the 2010 Sew Holiday Workshop at Sew Complete. What fun! We make three different projects, kits all cut and ready to go, AND get fed! Dinner tonight was a yummy Many Bean Soup (fiber is VERY important for women of age). We get breakfast for tomorrow morning's class, and we get lunch for the afternoon session. Tonight's project was a big bag using the Double Diamond Ruler and a pattern by Jill Hix, Double Diamond Tote. I decided to be "creative" and program my machine to stitch out Sew Holiday 2010. Well, for some reason, a "J" got in front of the "S" in Sew. I didn't notice it until I had stitched the WHOLE strap! I laughed so hard and had the rest of the class in "stitches", too. I corrected the spelling for the second strap, but I have a feeling that this tote may just be a favorite project tote because of the crazy handle. I was using the Bernina 440, which doesn't show the whole line of what is going to be stitched...at least that is a partial excuse. Was I trying to write JERISEW? Who knows. You know, we always wonder what sewing machine manufacturers are going to come up with next - each new model has tons of new features. Well, I think I may have to request a machine with Spellcheck! Sew...I am back home, in the Red Chair, with a glass of wine, looking forward to another sewing day tomorrow. Isn't making stuff just the best fun? Jerilynn