The Blah, Blah Blahs of Winter

Are only good for one thing, quilting of course.  So it's on to the next UFO, my owl quilt for the lovely little raven, Nora.  I call her a raven because she has black hair and seems very smart for her all of 2 years old.  From what I recall about ravens, other than the poem, although I guess it did "quote", they are quite intelligent and crafty about getting food and attention.

So off we go into the wild gray yonder and turn up the music and put the sewing machine pedal to the medal and get something finished!

WooHoo!

Don't Show Your Works in Progress To Your Kids!

Quilter family members may or may not know how blessed they are.  I bet it's far and few between amongst their friends that have beautiful quilts to adorn their beds.  I imagine they are even a little envious of our kids and family members that are recipients of the quilt legacy we leave.

Those of you that have experienced ichatting, know that you can talk to your kids in New Mexico or wherever and they see all of you and what is behind you.  I must be careful not to have a quilt on the wall that I have intended for my daughter that I ichat with, in New Mexico.  I am careful to do just that, but, it does not mean that if she's my work in progress wall while ichatting, she will make a request.

Right now I'm working on 3 quilts.  Two of them are baby quilts, one is a scrap friendship braid quilt, the other is an owl quilt.  Don't you know she wants the owl quilt.  I told her she'll have to wait, because I'm so far behind getting this baby quilt out to Nora.  She's 2 now and so it's time.  Plus, my focus is finishing my projects I've started and I've been working on this for 2 years, so it's in the cue.

The Snow Days pattern is also on the wall. It's for me.  My mom bought a pattern for me for my birthday.  It was the same pattern, so she's keeping it and making it herself.  Like mother like daughter.  I hope that's a good thing.  I hope my girls are like me in all the ways that are good and they take all the good things from their dad as well.  Life is pretty hard sometimes.  We get thrown a lot, so why shouldn't I pray they get only the best our genes have to offer.

Worked on 3 UFOs Today...Huzzah!

Yes, it's me the lone quilter at it again.  Hmmm...maybe that's a name for a blog, The Lone Quilter.  I'm not actually alone, with the internet, you can be in touch with about a million of you closest friends.  You know the ones that have a deal for you if you just send them your name and address and bank account.   Or the ones that tell you you've one a million dollars just click here.  Never click-doesn't that go without saying?

Quilters are generally a group of people with some common sense, except when it comes to looking ahead to new projects and moving toward that light when they know darn well, they will be zapped.  Maybe not soon, but, a quilter is gonna buy that next project, even if they have more than a few to finish.

Such is my life in quilting.  And now, I'm resolved to do something about it.  Julie's Little Quilt Shop is now open for me to take things from, so I won't be purchasing any new fabric.  Until I've finished at least 3 projects.  Then maybe I'll reward myself.

Table Topper Done

Our quilt group will be teaching another free class. It's a Table Topper, which will be taught by Loyce on September 21st. I can't make it that day, so I got the scoop on the pattern and instructions. It's pretty large, probably 2 feet across. I don't know what I'll do with it yet, but, I'm sure there is a table in need of a top, somewhere.

Recipe for feeling simply quilty...smile

You know for some reason I was dragging a little bit today. From my dusty piled high book case of quilt books, I pulled out an old, old quilt book I bought on the internet and went shopping at my favorite LQS. First I started in my backyard, more or less, at the Gathering Room, and to their credit they took one look at my pattern and suggested I go to Forget Me Knot Quilt Shop, where I found a huge selection of light medium and dark blues in dusty to clear colors. Fabric selection done I headed home.

At home I had to crank up my favorite radio station, 91.9. Yes, deep down, I never grew up and I have to say I like what the kids like. In this town, this station, plays the unique tunes I am partial to. When songs come on from a past Waterfront Wednesday concert I might have attended, it's icing on the cake to listen to. Because when all things line up and the live performance is magic it is so great to hear, again and again.

Piecemaker Quilt Pattern-every quilters nightmare challenge

Piecemakers Quilt Calendar is a quilter's challenge. You can get a pattern book if you like and maybe it's laid out a little better, but, the blocks are large and the pattern pieces have to be joined together by flipping through pages and finding the connecting pieces. Piecemakers is an organization of sorts that supports various causes and is a quilt shop as well.

I'm working on the 2003 quilt calendar and have completed several blocks. I've actually put it down for years and am now picking it back up again as I have felt the need to finish some of those pesky UFOs.

On my design wall are a few of the blocks for my calendar quilt, which is a 12 block pattern with a medallion center all trees and crazy quilt designs. Next to a couple of those blocks is a block of the month from one of my favorite LQS's. It's a Christmas quilt using strip it material. This is a striped fabric that makes making half square triangles a cinch as you are cutting into the printed strips of fabric and basically sewing squares together, instead of piecing the triangles.

Part IX-2 newer quilts that are cut out and need sewingget

Did you see this fabric? It's the Wizard of Oz, of course, and I couldn't resist. I had big plans for a baby quilt, but, you know, life gets in the way and I'll get around to it. I am so blessed!

This is another project that I've cut out. My mom already did this one too. I don't have a picture of it, but, when I do I'll let you know...smile.

Part VIII-UFO's that are pretty darn close to finishing

The story of my UFO's continues. Hmmm, now should I count them, I don't know. My theory is, they never go bad on the shelf and I'll get around to completing them. Some are closer to being finished than others. I've got 3 quilt tops ready to be quilted, so I don't count those, except for the fan quilt from my father, which, in the time I've been writing these posts, I have completed! Yeah me!

So, here is a kingsize pink and brown quilt. I've made postings about it on the blog, you can click on the label for it to see the process. Whenever I need to use up a color of fabric, I'll add a white on white to make a scrap quilt out of the colors I've chosen.

This is the Flight of Swallows quilt that I've posted as well on the blog. I just need to applique the birds and baskets on the borders, then quilt it.

Part VII-Holiday themed UFO's

I'm almost there, to the end of my UFO listing. This list, in it's various parts, does include some really oldies but goodies, in different stages of completion. But, what makes it really, really long, is the fact that I've included projects before I started them. In other words, I've already pulled the fabrics and boxed them up.

In this post, there are none of those. I've included 2 quilt UFO's, first is the Old Glory Quilt pattern. I felt like my kingsize bed needed a patriotic quilt, so some time ago, while in Kentucky, I started this quilt.

Our YMCA has a quilt group that I joined for a short while and this is one of the two quilts for the bed for Christmas, that I've yet to complete. One of the problems I'm going to have, is I pulled fabric from the Holiday Heritage quilt to finish the other quilt. Ah well, there's always another quilt shop to visit to finish any of my projects.

Yes, I think it's time for me to attend multiple retreats-3 days at least, where I can bring my machine and focus, focus, focus. I think I'll try to do just that this spring.

Part IV-Baby Quilts

Baby quilts are a really good place to start to develop your skill. If you are new quilter, I'd highly recommend doing a sampler quilt, taught at a quilt shop. This will give you some ground on which to begin playing with design. I'm not selling anything, if you click on the sample quilt above, you'll see just a sample of a simple quilt you might choose to do.

This box contains panels for baby quilts. The creativity, as far as a quilter goes, is in the border. After your sampler quilt, you make a baby quilt and play with the borders. I bought this for my niece. When I finish it, I'll show you the panel, it's flannel.

Part III-Life in Kentucky an unfinished horse quilt

I guess no respectable Kentuckian that is a quilter, should live in Kentucky unless they've made a horse quilt. Especially here in/near Louisville, it's certainly a must. Here is my Kentucky Spirit quilt kit, from one of my favorite quilt shops in town, Forget Me Knot Quilt Shoppe. It was a block of the month and I still had too much going on to finish a BLOCK A MONTH! Ah well, life gets in the way of our quilting sometimes. Sorry for the blur on the pattern picture, I'm afraid I'm a little lazy today to get the camera out and take another shot. Maybe I'll edit this WHEN I FINISH THE QUILT...smile.

Part II-Life in Kentucky, Round Robins- UFO list at long last my longest post, over time...smile

BEGINNING 2 QUILT GROUPS WHEN I MOVED HERE:

So we moved to Crestwood, Kentucky in 1996. After floundering around looking for a new quilt group, the time looked ready to start another one. So, meeting at the County Home Extension office in Oldham County, myself and a handful of other ladies began a new quilt group, Log Cabin Quilters. This is now a very large quilt group, but, at the time, I felt like I needed to start another one at our church, Northeast Christian Church. So, in June of 2000, I went to our, then Women's Ministry Leader, Laura and said Laura, we need a quilt group and she said okay Julie you're it! This was the beginning of Northeast Quilting Friends quilt group. So, long story short, we now have 20 members on our roster, but, weekly anywhere from 10 to 15 come regularly. If all 20 came every week, it would be impossible to meet where we do.

Anyway, in the beginning we did some round robins and these are the results of those round robins. The first one dates back to 2004. The members that wanted to participate, started out with a block for the beginning of the passed around inspiration. I've always liked to embroider and this was my homage to Aunt Martha, you know the inexpensive iron on transfers that have been around for 70 years or more.

This is a Sunday design. I enlarged it and made it an applique pattern. I've included the original iron on to embroider when I put it together. I'm so glad to have this blog. I'm famous for hiding things from myself, and I haven't been able to locate this box that contains these blocks for quite some time and now I have pictures and proof of where it is!! Yes, it's in this closet, on this shelf...somewhere...smile.

After that UFO, on my shelf, we have the Lemons to Lemonade Round Robin, in which, you guessed it, ugly fabric exchange for RR inspiration. I had some hideous bird feed material and the ladies came up with these lovely blocks.

My last RR UFO is an embroidered heart block exchange. I can't wait to finish this one as it has some very uplifing messages from my quilt group.