While we're on the subject of vintage

I've had a busy week, helping a friend with a quilt, quilt quild meeting and a day out with momma.    Moms had some health issues in the last few years so I try to spend as much time as I can with her.  But anyway while visiting with her I asked her if I could barrow a quilt that I made for her a while back.  She had started it back in 1987 when I was pregnant with my daughter.  And you guessed it she never finished.  When she gave it to me in 2009 it looked like this. 

It wasn't doing much for my creative mind.  Played around with the idea of just adding applique but it just didn't suit me.  So  I took it apart and started collecting scraps of fabric that I thought would complement her blocks.

And the final product!  I love this quilt and so does she!

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Vintage cross stitch finishing

I finished these for mom, she started them years ago and never backed them or put on the lace.  Easy finish, makes you feel like you've done something when really you haven't done much. 

This will be the next project of hers that I'll be finishing.  Theres 36 squares. Still not sure if I'll sash or not.  But I'm prety sure that I'll be hand quilting it, so it may be awhile before it actually gets finished!

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Begging for votes

You know I tried to think of a way to ask for votes that didn't sound like begging or cocky.  So I decided to say this.  I made this and  I love it, and if you do to please take the time to vote.  You don't need to be a member.  All you have to do is click the link scroll down to the bottoom of the page and check the box beside Valentine Tweet.  You can vote 3 times and to be honest there's so many pretty entries you really should, it's hard to choose!   When you do this I will send so much good Karma your way that your life will be overflowing with the abundance of joy that you help me.  Sounds like a fair trade to me!  Thanks in advance for your votes!
 Go here ---> http://quiltinggallery.com/2012/02/17/be-my-valentine-quilts-and-more/

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Humble beginnings

A few times a month I teach a beginners quilting class.  Now let me say, I'm not getting paid and its just totally at random when ever we can all get together at a mutual friends house.  Second, I'm not a teacher, I'm more of the worker bee.  This has been quite the challenge for me, but I'm loving sharing my knowledge and "expertise"  and I say that very loosely.  Its easy to forget that your students don't have all the common quilting knowledge that we have stored in our brains for years.  Occasionally I pull out this photo to humble my over confident quilters ego.   Its okay to laugh!  Made from the leftovers of halloween costumes, curtains, chair covers, whatever I had on hand. 

This is the one I'm most proud of.  It was cerimonial quilt for my dad last year on his birthday.  Every color, ever line, every symbol has a special meaning.  I did about a years worth of research before making.

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Sneak peek!

I've had this on the frame for about 3 weeks now.  Just can't seem to get with it and get it finished.  It seems to be one of those quilts that's jinxed.  You ever have one of those?  Where you spend of a lot of time working on you machine, tension issues, thread issues, seam issues.  Even with all the issues its turning out quite nicely. Pin It

Such a romantic

Went into the studio this morning and found this.  My dear sweet man is such a romantic.  Don't get jealous girls, someday you too could have a man that will go to so much trouble for you.  By the way that's my coffee mug.  And there's a story behind this single red rose.  Five years ago today I was single, living alone with my teenage son, working 10-12 hrs a day in a factory.  There was this man at work that I'd been ogling but really didn't want a relationship, I was content being single. 

Well we had a horrible snow storm 2 ft of snow and ice.  Awakening early making sure to get to work(3am) my neighbor is stuck in her drive and her boyfriend is screaming at her.  So I go out and help the young couple get unstuck.  A friend lived with me at the time she was homeless and going through a divorce.  She too could not get out of the drive, we tried like crazy but there was no moving her truck, so I take her to work with no problems, we even pick up one of her co-workers on the way.   I go home from taking her to work, finish getting ready myself, jump in my mini van and would you believe I'm stuck!  I used all my bleach to give me traction with my hero events.  Rocking that van, throwing salt under it, nothing worked.   I called a gal I worked with to see if she had made it to work and she said she had, she would be there shortly to get me.  Well being the devil she was (she knew I was fond of this man)  she asked him to come along for the ride.  Long story short they rescued me.  While she and I sat in the parking lot at work discussing our big adventure, he said he was going in, he returned with a single red rose.  Opened the car door and this is his exact words "Here this is for you"  and shut the car door.  If you've ever worked in a factory you know that its all joking it helps to keep you sane.  So I assumed this was a joke and dismissed the idea.    We didn't even mention this or act on it for another month or so......and here we are today.  We no longer work together, I lost my job.  And he still thinks that a single red rose is all it takes to make a woman swoon....men don't they know that the price of swooning goes up just like the price of beef!   You gotta love'em, bless their hearts, they don't know! Pin It

Design wall Monday

This quilt has taken so many turns along the way.  I started it about a year ago with the intentions of a totally different quilt.  Since that time it has evolved and become something totally different than what I had planned.  My original post about this quilt can be found  HERE , even though I posted in September the quilt was started much earlier in the year.  The weekend was spent making all these little applique pieces.  My own design, but not my own idea.  Often I will see a picture of a quilt and try to reproduce or use certain aspects of that quilt to make my own pattern.  So this quilt is 100% my pattern but the ideas for this quilt came from several different places. 

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Not a good picture

What are the chances of this little guy coming up by the house?  Go figure!  Not a good picture but it was the best I could do, they aren't real friendly birds.  I scared him away twice and had to wait for him to come back and take the picture from inside the house.  To be honest I thought it was a wild turkey because he's HUGE.

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How long does it take?

I'm often asked how long it takes to make a quilt.  Well that answer isn't straight forward. If I really want it done usually less than a month.  Most quilts take 2-4 months and some longer.  So it depends.  Most days around here are spent sewing something.  Rarely do I work on the same thing start to finish.  Currently I've 18 different projects going, all at different stages.  Some are blocks of the month, waiting to be quilted, waiting for fabric to arrive, lost interest.  Anyway my whole point to this is just how long does it take a Woodpecker to do this!?  I was shocked I've never seen anything like this!

my hand next to one of the holes!

inside one of the holes, they are all like this! 

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I'm up and running again!

Finally!  Its not that I've been neglecting my blog its that I couldn't post anything.  So here's what I've been up to.  Fighting my Dolly has been the main thing these last few days.  I've had a quilting gremlin loose in the sewing room.  I named him "Shandy Shredder".  He's the second cousin of "Birdsnest Bobby" and "Stitch length Lou".   After many not so lady like words and days upon days of threatening to take a hammer to her if she didn't straighten up and sew right, I found the problem.  All's well in Podunk again!  The sun is shining and the birds are chirpin!  I'll get some pictures soon! 





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