100 Quilts · Family Quilts

Crossed Canoes

Elizabeth E.6 Comments

My sister’s friend recently lost her daughter.  As a memorial, my sister organized a group of friends to make quilt blocks in the crossed canoe pattern.  She laid them out on her floor, called and asked, “Can you help?”  Yes.  I asked her if she wanted me to get it quilted down here, as she couldn’t even get a quilter to take on the project before Christmas, and she wanted to get it to her friend.

She fast-mailed the quilt to me and it arrived overnight.  I put it up on my pin wall, and I have to admit I was discouraged. Really discouraged.  I had one more block to add, but all I could do that first day was true up the squares and put them back up on the wall.  That actually improved the balance of things, as part of the trouble was that they varied in size, as do all group projects of this kind.  I made mine and added it to the mix, but it was still problematic.

I went to bed, taught my class the next day, and came home and stared at it.

I called my sister.  Some changes were allowed.  I took apart one block to make it more the size of the others, and did a quilt intervention on two other blocks, substituting fabrics.  I moved the blocks around on my wall.

Better.

I had called my quilter, Cathy Kreger of CJ Designs and she had agreed to quilt it (a little miracle), so I kept working, knowing I had to drop it off the next morning.  I started stitching it together.

Borders on.  I didn’t smooth it down so they look a little wonky, but really, they’re straight. Done with the front, and I stitched together the back, trying to cut it creatively so I would have enough left for the binding.  The next morning, I dropped it off at Cathy’s.  She had one of mine ready for me, so I asked her if her small machine had anything on it, and if by any chance she could put this one on.  I told her the story and added that my sister had called and said she was coming down to Southern California for the weekend–I could give it to her then.  Cathy agreed to get it done quickly, and two days later, Thursday, it was done.  Like I said, she’s a miracle worker.  We chose the quilting pattern titled “Calm Water,” a fitting pattern for these crossed canoes.

Back from the quilter, I took a photo of my block–it’s right next to the boldly patterned block of my sister’s.  I like that we’re together.

Sewing on the binding.

My sister came by and picked it up late on Friday night (nearly midnight) and she was thrilled.  A few days later, she sent me an email with these photos, a fitting conclusion to our shared escapade.  I’m so happy she’s happy with it, and I think it turned out to be a lovely memorial quilt.

The label listed all the quilters, including Cathy.

I love how the canoes really show up in this angle–kudos to all the quilters, and for my sister for this perfect idea.

Creating · Sewing

“Front Basting”

Elizabeth E.Leave a comment

I had to post this snippet of video from Pink Chalk Studios showing Lisa Prior Lucy demonstrating her technique of “front basting,”while she sat at Market this year.  Of course, this is of interest to me because I have lost my mind and bought this pattern and plan (with my quilty friend Rhonda) to make this quilt.  Sometime in my lifetime, although Rhonda assures me we will finish this.  Okey dokey.

First, the video.  Then look below for the quilt.

What was interesting to me was that Liza Prior Lucy’s quilt, both in her hand and in the background, had a DARK background instead of these lights.  Oooh.  Now that’s interesting.

Sewing

Quilt Night–November

Elizabeth E.2 Comments

Last night was Quilt Night at Leisa’s house, and she and I collaborated on the theme and the preparations.  The theme: Dots!  She picked up some cute dotty boxes and we had everyone bring a fat eighth of fabric and  we all filled the boxes for our Stash Builder.

Leisa found this very fun cake to go along with our theme.  For those of you who asked, it’s from Tasteful Cakes, in Corona. The fillings were delicious, and we all wanted to eat the dots right off the cake.


Dot food.

Chocolate-covered pretzel sticks with. . . dots.

All that were there before we cut into the cake: Sara, Elizabeth, Laurel, Lisa, Tauni, Tracy and Leisa.  We missed all that weren’t able to come and hope to see you next time–probably January?

Jody came right after that, and showed off the beautiful lattice quilt she’s making  for her daughter-in-law. Here’s a *link* to that other quilt that she just completed–it was the “two” smaller quilts back to back.  The link is to an online pattern (scroll down to where it says Download PDF, and check out “The Next Generation” version of the Magic 9-patch).

Tauni’s working on this pinwheel quilt for a friend.  I think she was one of the more productive quilters last night–getting the borders on this.

Leisa just got back the red and white Block Exchange quilt from the quilter–and some of the quilters crowded in who had made blocks.

I showed off my Castle Peeps quilt–ready to go to the quilter this week.  I’d completed it before this night.

I did get a lot of orange/red/pink squares cut out for a duplicate of this quilt.  That’s about all I finished–it’s probably that I’m getting slower, but I also think that last night was a good night to catch up with friends, eat some dotty food, and have a good time. Which we did!

100 Quilts · Blog Strolling

Quilty Blogs, part 1

Elizabeth E.1 Comment

I feel like a four-year old girl when it comes to this blog: trying on one look after another.  Maybe this one will settle in, and I’ll like it.

It’s been a long slog through this semester, and sewing time has all but evaporated along with blogging time. I do find it therapeutic to sit at night when I’m beyond tired and look through quilting blogs.  I thought I’d list some here.

I think many quilty blogs these days are all about commerce–selling something–whether it be a book, or fabric lines, or something else.  I like these blogs because it keeps me updated on what’s happening in the quilt world.  Others are blogs that started out with quilting for pleasure and then as the quilter matured in their craft, blossomed into a commercial enterprise.  And the last category are those like me: Quilters who Blog.  Nothing to sell.

For today, it’s Quilting Commerce Blogs.

Anna Maria Horner. She just recently had her sixth child, and her blog is a combination of family life, personal memories and experiences and displaying her fabric lines, a mix of the exotic and the sublime. She blogs from Nashville, Tennessee.

Fabricworm. This blog is from a shop in Paso Robles on the Central California Coast.  Cynthia Mann stocks organic fabrics (her own line: Birch Fabrics) plus many other imports, as well as domestics.

i have to say is from Randi, who runs an ETSY shop, Fresh Squeezed Fabrics. I have ordered from her before and it always arrives quickly.  She stocks a lot of the modern lines in her shop, but her blog is a mix of her personal and quilting life. (Photo use pending permission.)

Me and My Sister. I first started following them (yes, they are two sisters) at Road to California, when they launched their first fabric line and handed out quilt patterns on CD-roms (which I still have).  They live in Arizona, have had many more launches since then, and create bright and airy fabric designs.

Material Obsession is a blog from Australia.  Once, when Dave and I were contemplating a trip Down Under, this was one of the reasons I wanted to go.  I know, pathetic, but that’s how it is with quilters. My latest obsession with them is their ongoing Lollypop Quilt kits, and I love seeing how they combine their Aboriginal fabrics with densely patterned Kaffe Fassett prints into fabulous, richly colored quilts.

Pink Chalk Studio. I’ve followed Kathy Mack for a while–strictly a fabric mail-order business, but she has lots of good sewing tips, ideas, and when she goes to Market–lots of giveaways. (Market is being held this week, so check back to her blog to see if she has some giveaways.)

More later, but I’m stopping because it’s Halloween.  Here’s my Halloween, Day of the Dead creation.  It was a guild challenge to use a theme and certain fabrics.  The “before” is with all everything thrown on, much like those curbside memorials with lots of stuff.  The theme was Black and White and . . . .  and I chose “Black and White and Dead All Over,” not because I’m morbid, but because the theme’s deadline was in October.  I wanted a Day of the Dead Altar.

When I got it back from the quilt show (it was shown at the Quilters Unlimited Quilt Show in Virginia) I decided it was too gucked up.  So I stripped it down, found some milagros–those silver charms that people pin to the skirts of the Saints in churches–and tried a different version.  I kept the Catarina, the Walt Whitman quote about death, and the angel flying off the edge.  Kept the chocolate ribbons (from a candy shop in Salt Lake City that’s now defunct), though.  Speaking of chocolate. . . Have a spooky night!