Finally finished the Scrappy Friendship Quilt

      Yes, I finally finished the 'Scrappy Friendship Quilt' for the workshop. Our workshop was canceled due to icy conditions last Saturday so, it's rescheduled for the 27th (next Saturday). I will post a picture after I show the gals at the workshop.

      I did take a couple pictures the past couple weeks. Remember the bread I said I was baking while writing a post well, it didn't turn out too bad and its, of course, long gone.

     Met up with a good (longarm quilting) friend  for breakfast the Thursday before Valentines Day and look what she brought me. 

     Mary has a super blog go check it out at Quilt Hollow Thank you Mary! They were so lovely!

     Got to go work on some customer quilts, I've spent way too much time on the scrappy quilt but, it is nice to have it done!

Have a good rest of the weekend!

Mira's Mom

Snow's a comin'

    Here I sit with a cup of hot tea and a freshly baked cookie and thought I had better enter a post before I get into another project. 

      The weather folks are predicting snow or freezing rain, sleet and ice accumulation... YUK! DH just came in and he said the temp is dropping but, no sign of the wet stuff. He's headed out to get wood in the cart, to stay warm with and put sunflower seed and suet out for the birds. The cookie jar is full of spicy molasses cookies baked this afternoon, the crock pot is full of bean and ham soup and  there's fresh bread dough resting, waiting to be put in the pans to rise.
     I have been in a baking mood the past few months. Started right after I finished the last quilt for the quilt show and we had the first day of the show under our belts; I made fudge at 10pm that night. I can't tell you the last time I made fudge. Fortunately, I was able to take most of it with me the following day for those working at the show. Then just before Christmas I started making yeast breads and cookies. I bet I haven't made yeast bread since the mid eighties. DH and I have been trying to keep the weight down and I pretty much quit baking anything since 2002. I would make 'pumpkin pie' for Thanksgiving, at the request of our son and an occasional batch or cookies.
      Having lived in Michigan most of my life, I find I really love the weather here in NC. (NC the last 24 years) Can't say I look forward to getting the 'dismal' (snow, ice or freezing rain). We find it really funny when the weatherman says the "S" word , people flood to the grocery stores. Mainly for bread and milk but, while standing in line this morning (yes, I went, too) I watched the lady ahead of me unload cases of soda, candles, snacks, kerosene, ice cream and batteries. The guy the aisle over had two buggies filled with cases of soda, another had beer and plenty of it. What's wrong with this picture I asked. Don't they have faucets? Even with a well we have plenty of water and if the electricity goes out (Please, Lord don't let the electricity go out. I have sewing to do.) we put some back for cooking, drinking, flushing, washing up and of course Mira. Go figure! I went this am after walking to get shortening, yeast and marshmallows. Yup, I like marshmallows in a cup of hot chocolate especially, when its snowing. Guess we all have our little quirks!
     I have my quilting to tend to and have kept back some squaring-up just in case we are without electricity. Tonight, I hope to get the bulk of my sewing done on making my blocks or rows. Haven't decided which I want to do. Here's half the quilt in the following picture, five rows of 44 blocks each.

 

      I should be able to get these done pretty quickly and can hope to get the rest tomorrow. I'd like to have them together for the guild meeting on Thursday. I think I can! I think I can!

    Hope you aren't in the path of this storm system but, if you are have a cup of hot chocolate (with marshmallows ) and think of me.

Stay Warm!

Mira's Mom

getting there...

     Yup! I'm getting there, slowly but surely. Here's some proof; these are the 220 squares that are stitched, cut and pressed just waiting to be squared-up. There are 440 in these little stacks, whew! and I think I want to make another one. Pattern calls for 128 (256 after stitching) but, I decided I didn't have a bed that would work with an 80" x 80" quilt so, I am enlarging it to fit our king size bed. DH get's to help paint the bedroom since he... PROMISED! He told me when I finished a quilt for our bed we could paint the bedroom. Like the TV room I'll probably do it myself.

 

That's my sewing machine behind that stack!

 

      I  have to finish a couple customer quilts before I can continue with this one. Darn bills keep coming in.

     Tomorrow I have a class with Michelle Linder. She wrote the book ' Square Magic' pictured below. There are a hand full of us from the guild that are 'testing' out one of her classes, she just developed for a quilt show in PA. It's a neat book and terrific technique, you might consider it the next time you are looking for something new. I think she might be working on another book. No confirmation on that though.

 

      

     Since, I'm on the subject of books: I just love this one on 'William Morris In Applique' by Michele Hill. There is a quote by William Morris 1834 - 1896  "If you want a golden rule that will fit everything, this is it: Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful."

 

I hope one day to get some applique done but, today I have work to do so, I had better get at it!

Have a great day!

Mira's Mom

     

Remember back in November...

     Do you remember back in November, after the quilt show, I told you I won the raffle quilt. Well just before Christmas DH thought it would be nice to hang it in our TV room. So..... I did and here it is...

It is pretty in there and cozies the room up. If there is such a thing.

Next month I am facilitating a workshop for our quilt guild. It's one of those freebies you get in the mail from one of the quilt magazines. One of those quilts that looks so cozy for all this nasty weather we've been having. Can't wait to get mine done. Below are the fabrics I'm using. I don't have anyone to trade with but, I think I've got enough fabric to cover my bases. LOL It's a good 'stash' reducer or at least a start.

 

 

This is just part of the fabric some of it is hidden beneath other pieces.

I'm going to go get started on this one and I'll post as I get some of it done.

Have a great day!

Mira's Mom

Cold out there!

    I haven't been at my computer much lately since, the temps have fallen. My computer room has been as low as 38 degrees and is at about 60, right now. I've run in and read or printed e-mails and run right back out.
     I finished the quilt I was working on and have mounted another one. That means I really need to keep this post short. I was talking about nostalgia and pictured some of the quilts I had done over the past couple years. So, I thought I'd continue on with a couple more that I worked on this last year. There was the 'Endless' quilt I did for Ms. Cheek. It was absolutely beautiful but, I went diagonally thru every single rectangle (there were thousands of rectangles) in the quilt and it seemed endless.

 

     Then I did a quilt for my friend Ruth. She made this one for her granddaughter's graduation and it was off to NY. This was such a sweet quilt and the stars in the center are dimensional.

I got to pick out different motifs and since her granddaughter likes flowers I was able to work in several plus  butterflies. The feathers were a different story. When I got to the star center I just knew I had to try some feathers.

     I took a class from Karen McTavish the week before and I was just really wanting to put to use what I had learned. These stars just needed something special around them so, feathers it was and my first attempt at freehand feathers on a customer's quilt.

I was very pleased with the results and so was Ruth.
     The following picture is one taken with Karen McTavish at the 'Wild Women of Quilting' trunk show, Karen and Sue Patten did for our quilt guild.

     Karen is a hoot and I so enjoyed her classes, wish I could have taken more. I do think I got the hang of feathers, Karen! Hope you agree...
     I have since done an entire quilt with feathers meandering all over it. It was for our quilt show and was posted in a previous post.

     Better get going. No feathers on the quilt I just put on the frame. Looks like dog bones, balls, fire hydrants and maybe dog houses for this one.

Hope everyone is having a great year so far and it continues to be terrific for all of you out there in blog land!

Mira's mom

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year, All... Do you get a little nostalgic this time of year? I do... So, thought I'd bore you a little with stuff from the past couple years.I got my Longarm quilting machine a couple years ago and hit the road running so to speak.
My first quilt to quilt on my longarm came, the night before my machine was delivered. Scott from our quilt guild knew I was expecting the machine at any time. He brought his quilt top to our meeting because , he wanted to have the "first quilt off my longarm". My machine was delivered on Friday and we set it up the following Tuesday. Needless to say I sat and looked at Scott's quilt and 'Blossom' (my longarm's name) for at least two weeks before, I ever turned the machine on. I was petrified. What was I thinking? Scott is a nationally know quilter and judge????  Oh My!  Well, after I got over the nerves, I thru a couple of practice fabrics on to try this contraption out and then Scott's went on. I knew that our quilt show was coming up soon and Scott wanted to enter this quilt if, I got it done. I did! and he did! Turned out to be quite the surprise for both of us. I actually won the Carolina Longarm Association's ribbon that year. ON MY VERY FIRST QUILT! Wow! No pressure, now!LOL Scott's quilt was also in the Jan/Feb 2009 issue of Quiltmaker magazine.

Scott on the left with his 'Electric Boogie'.  My ribbon hangs on the quilt, much to my surprise.

If you read a previous blog after the 2009 quilt show you will see the same quilt only in 'Girlie' fabrics that I made for the 2009 show.

Left is my original quilt design  that I used to teach beginner quilting classes. It was in the 2007 show.

The quilt on the right was one of my students (Susan). She showed hers in the 2009 show.

The 'Pumpkin' quilt was for our 2007 silent auction. It brought in $50. so, I wasn't unhappy with it.

My fourth quilt was huge. You can see it below as well as part of my studio. Formerly, the living room.

It was a real challenge as I didn't really know what to do with it. So, I did 'stitch in the ditch' around the melons and a motif in the center.

It turned out well and Ms. Maness was very happy with it. It now resides in her guest bedroom.

Below is the cancer center quilt made by the Randolph Quilters Guild.

I volunteered to quilt a quilt that the Randolph quilters volunteered to make for the new cancer center at Randolph Hospital. Little did I know it would turn out to be an art quilt. It really is beautiful and I feel privileged to have quilted it. It now hangs in the lobby of the cancer center under Plexiglas. There are a zillion little things that are visible if you really look closely. There are dragon flies, butterflies, birds, turtles, bunnies and the initials of some who worked on it as well as a prayer quilted into the center of the quilt, that says: "May God bless you and keep you in His tender care" You have to really look for it but, it's there.

The top picture gives you an idea as to how large the quilt is.

This picture only gives you a look into the complexity of the quilt. It is absolutely gorgeous! I had no part in the design or the execution of the piecing and applique that went into this gem. Different people from the guild contributed to it's completion as a top. I only did the quilting and it took me about 125 hours to complete.

 Some of the detail is visible in the close-ups below.

I did not quilt the little quilt on the fence. That was Scott's contribution. I did however, do the wood graining on the fence.

Most of these pictures were taken while the quilt was laying on the frame of my longarm so, they might look a little askew. Like the arbor in the lower right corner really looked better than it does above.

As you can see some of these were taken before the quilt ever came off the frame.

Well, I have been at this for hours and I have a customer's quilt on the frame so, I better get back to that.

Please forgive any typos. Hope you have enjoyed the eye candy.

Have a wonderful New Year!

Mirasmom