Baby Monkey (Going Backwards On A Pig) - Parry Gripp

Chelsea's Raffle Quilt for the Geology Club

Yes, quilters are either generous or we have sucker written across our forehead and don't realize it.  Well, it's not really being a sucker if you love your daughter and want to help her succeed.  Which is the case for me and my 2nd DD, Chelsea.  She's working on her Master's Degree in Geology at New Mexico State University.  While at college it's important to get involved and Chelsea is trying to help earn some funds for the group.  So guess who she turns to for help in fund raising, her local quilter, me.

I chose this pattern, called Gems which is a no brainer pattern, the best for raffle quilts, most times.  But, it being a geology club, I chose fabric that had a certain stone like quality.  You know if you click on the pictures you can get a close up of the picture and you will see.  I'm liking the floating effect of the bright squares.

In order to make a quilt like this it is vital to have a design wall.  This is one I've had for a long time, it's flannel that's quilted in 2 inch squares.  It's really valuable when you make a watercolor quilt, but, I use it for designing anything.  Another design wall is using batting.  Pin it to the wall and the fabric pieces will stick to it for easy move around design.

Statement Quilting

This is a quilt I finished that was made from a book published by That Patchwork Place.  It is a Tennessee Waltz quilt.  I put some statement quilting in the "rest the eye" blocks.  I was pleasantly surprised by the way it enhances the arches that are an optic illusion created by the pattern.  All the pieces are straight lines but, when combined with the angles that join the blocks it looks like they are curved.

On my horse quilts I made for my girls the quilting is not statement quilting, it helps to enhance the horses on the quilts.  On Chelsea's Japanese Horse Quilt, I let the background fabric design the quilting and went around the squiggles and grass for the quilting.

Sarah Jaffee So young to be so wise....Clementine

Quilters never need buy a purse again

Yes, I've made another bag.  This one is Laurianne, a pattern by Moonlight Designs.  It is very complicated to make and took me all day.  But, I'm pleased with the outcome.  I need to find a good snap closure for it.  Any suggestions?  I've used Velcro in the past, but, it seems to wear out or can't hold all my stuff together, so I'm probably going to Joann's tomorrow to find a good closure.  The beads are from old necklaces that give it the closure for now.

Pictures will follow soon.  What is it with Blogger and the slow recognition of pictures I just took.  It seems it takes a couple of days before I have the ability to upload my pictures.  I think I might be switching to Mobile Me soon.  Does anyone like or dislike Mobile Me?  It's the Apple website/upload place.

Another Dollar Store Find

If you are like me you do some shopping at the giant warehouse stores.  The one we "belong to" is Costco.  They have all kinds of great quality items that come in large quantities.  The best way to open these is with the Dollar Store scissors.  Yes, they only cost a 1.00 and work very well opening the over bundled, wasteful packaging that is done by said warehouse stores.  If you make the Snappy Totes they work equally well cutting the carpenter's tape that is used for the snapping closure of the totes.

My latest project is going to be taught in our class tomorrow, it's a coaster and then there will be a hot pad.  Quick and easy!

Machine quilting with my new Horizon, a learning opportunity

Well, I can't say it's all been a piece of cake, learning this machine.  It's certainly been easy sewing regular fabric.  I put the borders on my quilt top and then started to machine quilt.  My main purpose for purchasing this machine has been to use it to machine quilt.  The wide bed was my main draw to purchase, and that has generally worked out well while using on my Hinterberg table.  It gives me more bed space and less hassle having to stop and roll the bars.

The new challenge is finding a correct tension for my free motion machine quilting stitches.  This is always a challenge for the perfect stitch while machine quilting.  I should say if I use a regular stitch to machine quilt, instead of dropping my feed dogs and doing free motion machine quilting the stitches are just fine, so if you are doing cross hatching, it's probably a perfect machine.

At Moore's Sewing Center this Saturday, I have my first class to learn the ins and outs of the machine.  So, I'm sure, there must be a quick fix for my stitches that I've not figured out yet.  It seems to be "hit and miss" on perfect tension stitches.  This might also have to do with the speed at which I'm trying to machine quilt.

My husband and I are going to the YUM! Center concert, My Morning Jacket with Wax Fang and the Louisville Youth Orchestra on Friday night, so I hope I'm awake enough to absorb all the things I'll learn in my class.

Oh yes, and the endorphin express goes on and on.  Bob and I rode a total of 30 miles this last weekend.  I rode 12 miles around my neighborhood, Briar Hill, which is like riding 15 miles in any other neighborhood as ours has many many hills.  Again, sitting at the machine needs to be offset with the same amount of exercise, in my opinion.

These pictures are of me in my dining room, what a great place I have to quilt!  Plus roses my hubby bought me and last but not least, a little bag called the Lantern Bag I just finished.

Life is simply quilty right now...smile.