Design Wall Monday

Every Monday, Judy, over at Patchwork Times lets people show what's on their design wall. Every Monday morning when I get to work I think DUH! I forgot to take a picture. Well I finally remembered, mainly because I am binding the quilt I have been working on and actually got a little organized in my sewing room. I cut these out last month and took them to the beach with me. (In case it rained) Well it did rain one day but I was having so much fun hanging out with my grown kids, that I didn't even open my sewing stuff. So, I have been piecing them in between quilting my Asian Wallhanging that I am going to hang in my office. I'll show you that one when it's all done.

I think I'll lay these out and start sewing them together this week. Then I get to go shopping to buy a border and back. I haven't been fabric shopping in months and months. Is that a good thing or a bad thing?

Until next time...
Susie

Getting caught up

It has become a tradition in our guild for the past two years for members to make a 12" block with a given theme fabric. It is the brainstorm of Cappy and she finds the most fun fabrics. The first one (if my memory is correct) was chocolate, the second one was pizza, and this one is a mexican theme. The fabric we were given had tacos and chili peppers and margaritas and everything mexican. I used it in the center of my block. I was going to put the pinwheels all around but then I found the stripe fabric waaaaay down in my stash and had to use it. I can't wait to see all the finished blocks. This is another one I would love to win.
Mary is our a new Block-of-the-month chairperson. She has started off simple, but to be honest, sometimes they make the best BOMs. We were to do lime green and black nine patches... because lime green is the new beige! We usually have so many people participate that there is enough to do three or four drawings. I don't do a block every month because (and excuse me here) sometimes people don't follow directions. So you always get one or two blocks that don't play well with the rest. I have won those before. So I like this one and don't see many ways to go astray.

Drawings are in August. Hope I win these too!

Until next time...
Susie

Enthusiasm

Our guild has been blessed with some mighty fine program chairs the past few years. It wasn't always the case though. I think that program chair is one of the hardest jobs in the guild. We have been on a roll and the last two program chairs set the bar high. Their enthusiasm has held because now we have Wendy! She came up with a great idea to make a quilt for our Quilt Bingo in October. Everyone makes two rows 60.5" wide for a row quilt. One set will be used for the quilt bingo and the others will be won by a lucky participant who made a row. The theme is fall colors. We have seen some of the rows already and this quilt is gonna be good. I have always liked row quilts and would love to win this one (even before it is revealed). I did these over the weekend.
Enthusiasm is contagious!

Until next time...
Susie

Starting something new

Ahhhhh, I love this feeling.
I few times a year (and I mean a few...maybe two) I get to a point in my quilting adventures where it is time (without guilt, I might add) to start a new project. After our quilt show in March (which caused all sorts of deadline stress) I found myself finishing lots of odds and ends, including getting a few tops put together, making backings, and rounding up batting for said same. Oh and I also have been doing some superficial organizing-as-you-go in my sewing room. Soooooo, I have been accumulating piles of projects (ie fabric with patterns in boxes and bags) ready to start when the moment was right. Well I have spent the last two weekends cutting, cutting, cutting. I have three quilts cut and bagged, ready to start piecing. Here is one of them.
You can see the sample in the upper right corner. Deb Tucker made this quilt and I just loved it, mainly because it uses lots of different fabrics. Deb taught our guild the Hunter's Star class (she invented this amazing ruler that makes the quilt so much fun to make) and she brought all sorts of quilts to show us during her lecture.

There is something strange about this quilt though. All I had was the photo to go by and when I drafted it out to cut, I wanted the trees to be taller than they are wide. So the blocks are not square. You can sort of tell by the red nine patch.

My family will be going to the beach in a few weeks and I want to take something all cut so I can just piece. (Only if the weather is bad though)

More tomorrow. (I promise)

Until next time...
Susie

I am very (parenthetical) today huh?

Beautiful butterfies

I just couldn't look at that Stack 'n Whack anymore. The more I look at it the less I like it. So feast your eyes on this beauty.
This beautiful quilt was made by Carolyn. She won this top a few years ago as our guild's anniversary quilt. It won first place in the group quilt category in this years' show. You can check out all the winners of our show here. Click on 2009 quilt show.
One of my favorite guild activities is the trash-to-treasure sale. I bought all these buttons (above) and lots of thread and a book or two (below) and of course some fabric. But my favorite find was a Joan Jones Santa face.
I bought the kit at Lancaster last year. She sells the faces already done but she showed me how its done, I bought the face fabric and the markers, and was confident that I could do it. Well, every time I thought about starting that quilt the face stopped me. I just couldn't get started. So when I saw this in the trash-to-treasure sale I grabbed it. So how many people think I will finish it before this Christmas? ....Yea I thought so--no takers. Oh well maybe I will at least START it before this Christmas.

Until next time...
Susie

Productive weekend

I did it. I put three borders on this sucker. But I sort of cheated because I mitered them. That means I sewed them in strips and put one border on. There is alot of math involved (which I like I might add) and I have a way to do it that is practically foolproof. (Besides the math part).

This quilt is my donation for our guild's Quilt Bingo in October. I took a stack 'n whack class and I liked this fabric but I am not crazy about this quilt. I should have used different colors for the alternating diamonds. Sometimes when I look at this picture I see the argyle-like diamonds and sometimes all I see are the red/white hexagons. I like seeing the diamonds better. It is from Stack 'n Whackier by Bethany Reynolds.

I had three more floral hexagons left (I was playing with the idea of making the quilt bigger) so I impulsively made a table runner. It went together really fast.

I even basted it and it is ready to quilt. We can always use another table runner huh?

Until next time...
Susie

PS I have disabled anonymous comments. For some reason, they bug me, especially when they come across as chastising and with bad grammar.

Likes and dislikes

I do love to piece. There is something so soothing about piecing. BUT, I have discovered that I really don't like to put on borders. This quilt wasn't so bad. One because it is small and two, there is only one border. I am a little anal about borders not being wobbly, so I go to alot of trouble to measure first. I also like inner borders (although this quilt doesn't have one) and that makes borders double (or triple-depending on how many inner borders) work. On my to do list for this holiday weekend is putting on borders for my Stack 'n whack. It will have three borders-ugh. I'll show you the pic on Tuesday. I will get it done! I also have to hem my husbands pants. His inseam is 31" and do you know how hard it is to find 31" inseams? So these pants have cuffs. Not too hard and they are all pinned, I am just procrastinating. They also will be done!

This cute quilt was made all from my stash. I had swapped jewel tone 6" squares on the internet a few years back (I had to cut them down to 5") and I just love it when the perfect fabric and the perfect pattern collide. I had the perfect border. I only had a yard and I used every inch! I have to find a backing. I have decided that I don't like pieced backs so I might be heading out to Joanns. BTW, our Joanns in Bowie is closing the end of June.

Until next time...
Susie

(And no snide comments Debi!)

More of my favorites

My friend Terri makes the "funnest" quilts. ( I know "funnest" isn't a word, it just fits the mood of her quilts!) Here is her boxer shorts quilt all done and hanging in the show. When my husband and sons came to view the show they all voted for this one. My son, Scott, actually said he'd like boxer shorts out of some of these fabrics.
She also made this fun Christmas Tree quilt. It has a metallic silver inner border, which I thought was a clever touch.
Too cute, huh?

Until next time...
Susie

Eye Candy

How gorgeous is this?!!! It was made by our president, Pat, and not only is it beautiful, but it is very complicated and made very well. It is a Stack 'n Whack with three different sizes of triangles. I think she said she took a class at MAQ. I am very impressed, Pat. Oh and she won second place.
This beauty was made by Jackie and it is BIG. I would guess at least a full size, maybe even a queen. The pattern came from a magazine, (I will be finding out which one because this one might be in my future) All hand appliqued. She won second too.
And you've seen this one before. It is my Merry Moody Blues. The Adirondack chair was part of our theme, A Day at the Beach.

More to come
Until next time...
Susie

Quilt Show weekend

Whew and was it ever a good one.
Our guild members sure are talented. We showed some of the most gorgeous quilts. I will be showing a few over the next few days but these I want to show first.

I gave you a teaser here a few weeks ago. This quilt is so different I thought people were going to look at it and say either wow, that is beautiful, or ugh that is the ugliest quilt I have ever seen. Decide for yourself.
Well, I guess more people liked it because it won first place in the large pieced category. It is by Maria Tamaoka from Pinwheels, and all made from the beautiful Daiwabo Taupe fabrics. I was thrilled to win.

You all have seen this quilt here before but here it is actually finished. it won second place in the medium pieced category.
My Glacier quilt from the kit I bought in Alaska this past summer. It is designed by Lisa Moore and made with McKenna Ryan fabrics. This one was actually finished at 10:30 the night before the quilt show set up. Well, I should say the binding was finished because I still have a little work to do on it. I want to put some of those heat set crystals on it and make a label with our picture standing in front of this glacier. I had this picture pinned up next to it so people could really see that this quilt really does look like a glacier!
And here is the photo that I want to put on the label.
So check back later for more quilts from the Southern Comforters 2009 Quilt show in Bowie, MD and to see who I happened to recognize visiting our show.

Until next time...
Susie

ISO this fabric

I am looking for just a 1/2 yard of this fabric. It is a Thimbleberries and more than five years old. I would be willing to buy it or trade for it. If anyone has a half yard piece that they would be willing to part with, please e-mail me privately.

This is why I need it.
I bought this kit at the Williamsburg (VA) Quilt show years back. I liked it so much I decided to make it a king size. So I went on-line when I returned home and bought more fabric. Well the kit sat and sat for a few years, long enough for me to not want a king-size anymore. So I pulled it out and decided I had enough fabric to make two twin sized quilts out of it EXCEPT for this light background.

The first quilt is made and if I can't find any of this background I will substitute another for the background in the second quilt so all will not be lost. I just thought I'd ask around.

Until next time...
Susie

Annual pincushion

Every year at our February retreat Georgia has a pincushion for us to make. This year, since we were there over Valentine’s Day, we made hearts. They all turned out so cute and we had fun embellishing them.
This one was my favorite. Click here for a look at some past pin cushions.

Until next time...
Susie

The real silk purse

The blocks were BEAUTIFUL!!!! I would have loved to win some but alas it wasn't meant to be. Five people won and I can't wait to see what they do with them. People kept to the Asian theme too. See the lanterns, the kimono and the cute Asian guy? There's even a scene with a pagoda!
Remember my last post, where I showed you last years blocks? Here is what Amy did with the ones she won.
The solid purple squares are actually satin. Very striking huh?! My block is in there too. (upper left). It's is so wonderous to me that when I see these blocks separately they don't appeal to me but put together in a quilt they are stunning.

Until next time...
Susie

Silk purse

You know the saying.
Well here's the sows ear.
It is a very strange color. This is a 10" square. We have to make as many blocks as we want from this piece, 12 x 12 or 6 x 6 or 12 x 6. Retreat is in 16 days (not that I'm counting!) and I will be making some of these blocks with our Asian theme. Even if you don't particularly like this fabric I can guarantee that the blocks our members will make will make it look beautiful.
Here is last years fabric and the blocks that were made. They really were beautiful.







So I am expecting lots of pinks, greens and golds to go with this years fabrics. I will probably make one 12" block and two rectangle blocks. I like those weird sizes.

Until next time...
Susie

Soldier pillowcases

I made 5 pillowcases last Monday at our mini-retreat. One of our guild members is a member of the Red cross and passes out the beautiful quilts to the wounded soldiers at Andrews Air Force Base. She told us they got a donation of 150 pillows and needed pillowcases for them. Each soldier gets a pillow when they are transferred to another hospital or released. I can't wait to go to guild Wednesday and see how many we all made. I know one woman made 30!!! If I was stashbusting, this would be a good way to use it up. Ahhh but unfortunately, (or fortunately, depending on your point of view) I am not a member of that club so I just use and replace (not necessarily in that order) at will.

I was very busy sewing over the weekend but can't show you anything. I am working on the mystery project for our retreat and I know some of the ladies read my blog. Last Year I did this one (scroll down to see the correct photo) by Mary Johnson. This year we have an Asian theme. Tomorrow I'll show you the "ugly" fabric that we are supposed to make blocks to trade.

Until next time...
Susie

Mini retreat Monday

And we sewed and talked and ate and laughed and sewed and don't you know...I didn't take one photo. People started arriving at 9 am and didn't leave until 9 pm. I made potato soup in the crock pot (got up at 2am to turn it on) and homemade bread in the bread machine for lunch and we had Chinese food delivered for dinner. I think this is going to be a new tradition for our bee. I mini-pre-retreat-retreat. Our big guild retreat is coming up soon, in 22 days. Our minds are on what we want to work on there. At least mine is. I am sure that half the fun of retreats is in the anticipation!

Here are our guild BOMs for February. (The blue tape is holding them to the wall)
I love this idea and will be making a few of these. Our name is put into the drawing for each block we make. I hope I win these.

Until next time...
Susie

Brrrrrrr

Don't my dogs look cozy and warm? Every time we make a fire, they plop themselves down for a nap. It kinda makes it hard to tend the fire but it must be some primal instinct that draws them close.

I read my blogs while I'm eating my breakfast. This morning, both Mary in Minnesota and Judy in Missouri have talked about how cold it is. Well, here in DC, it is, what my husband calls, "stupid cold". (Of course, he thinks anything below 70 is cold.) I am starting a four-day weekend thanks to Martin Luther King and Barack Hussein Obama.

I do plan on some serious quilting this weekend. I have to finish two quilts for our show in March and don't want to wait until the last minute. Here is a tiny portion of one of my entries. You'll have to wait until the show for the whole picture. If anyone recognizes it please don't tell. This quilt is so striking and different, I don't want to spoil the visual impact.
I am hosting a mini-retreat at my house on Monday. Just my bee coming over to sew. We'll put tables up in the living room and family room and sew from morning 'till night.
I'll report on that on Tuesday.

Until next time...
Susie

Show and Tell

We always have Show and Tell at our guild meetings and this one was made by a new member, Marcy. Marcy is a new quilter and I just love the way she works (totally different from me). She is very creative and totally does her own thing. I think she started with the basic directions for the prairie braid and then her design just evolved. I have trouble doing that and admire people who can. I am too rigid and/or timid. I would worry, what if I make a mistake? Marcy would just go in a different direction to fix it. I would worry, what if I run out of a certain fabric. Marcy would just substitute another. I would worry, what if I don't like it. Marcy would work on it until she did or finish it and move on.

Our quilt show, coming in March, will have a new category called novice quilter. Anyone who has been quilting for less than three years can enter their quilt. Marcy is entering this one and I'll tell you right now, I'm gonna vote for it.

Until next time...
Susie

IIIIII don't want to work

Did you get that tune?
You know, the one by Todd Rundgren.
I don't want to work. I just want to bang on the drum all day. That's what I have been singing for the past four days as I was sewing. After working six days in three weeks over the holidays, I had a full week of work last week. Now I do love my job but I sure did have a great time staying home and doing all that sewing. So I kept singing, "I don't want to work, I just want to sew in my room all day!"

This is what I've been working on. I want to get the blocks done so I can start quilting a special quilt to enter in our guild quilt show in March.


I took this Hunter's Star class back in October from Deb Tucker.
This is how big the top turned out...which isn't big at all (Another row of dark blocks goes on the bottom but I left it off because I knew I was going to make it larger). The blocks are only 6", so.....I am making it twice this size. I got out more beiges and browns and started again over the weekend. Her ruler really is amazing and I highly recommend it if you want to make this block. Check out her web site in the link on her name above.

Until next time...
Susie

Donation quilt

One of the many charities that our guild donates quilts to is the Pediatric Oncology Department at Georgetown Hospital. Every newly diagnosed child gets a quilt. I like to send them off with prayers stitched in. I bought two of these panels a few years ago and finally got around to putting on borders and quilting one for Georgetown. (During my self-imposed sequester over the New Year's long weekend)
This is the back. They said they needed more quilts for boys so this one will fill the bill. I love making quilts for Georgetown as well as soldier quilts.

Until next time...
Susie

Naming Quilts

Judy, at Patchwork Times, has a post today about naming quilts. That decided for me what I would post about today too.

During my sequestered New Years' weekend. I finished this quilt, and while I was working on it, I was thinking of names. I kept calling it Mary's triangles or blue scrap but it needed a formal name. See the basic block here and here.

Let's back track just a little so I can tell you I got a cute pink iPod for Christmas. I am having fun loading it with all the crazy eclectic music that I like, from classical to show tunes to rock. So I plugged it into the speakers that my son gave me, cranked up really loud, I might add, and was listening to my all time favorite album from the 70s when I was in college. I was quilting away when the name finally came to me! Duh...Moody Blues! I want the name to be a little happier so the official name is Merry Moody Blues.
Ha, how's that? I love it when that happens.

Until next time...
Susie

Starting Over

Well, I think I have probably lost all my readers. So I am going to pretend that I am starting my blog over...with all the anticipation and enthusiasm I had when I first began.

Yes I have a new header. I saw Nicole's new header at Sisters Choice, and loved her blue log cabin blocks. Soooooo...

...while I was home... literally home for five days... as in, I didn't go out of my house... I have been physically and mentally organizing my quilting world. Oh, and I also undecorated my house, cooked some scrumptious meals, cleaned just a little, slept late, read, and of course sewed.
I teased you with the idea for our bee gift exchange, so I want to show you some of the creative ways we keep our gifts to under $3. Georgia embroidered this cute scissor holder. I have my full size pair of Ginghers in it. This will definitely keep my husband from cutting his odor eaters (new ones thank goodness). True story!!!
Loretto made this cute cup/bottle holder with a bee and our initials embroidered on it. I will be using this often to keep my water bottle from sweating all over my purse.
And this is what I made for everyone. I cut up my old quilt calendars and made stationery. There are different sizes of blank note cards with envelopes as well as some tiny gift tags. I also printed out some address labels (see upper left).

Until next time...
Susie