String Quilting

The quilting's done; this close up of the front (and back... lighter blue) is the most color-accurate  of the pictures that I took on this cloudy day. I'll spend the afternoon today working on a hanging sleeve and binding for this one. I put a hanging sleeve on every quilt that I make, no matter where the quilt will be used. I apply the sleeve (from extra backing fabric) before the binding, incorporating it into the finishing process, that way I never have to think about adding one again... it's already there! This one is destined for the back of the rocking chair in our guest bedroom. This quilt is the result of a workshop on String Quilting that I took from Ami Simms three years ago at Mid-Atlantic Quilt Festival in Hampton, VA.; I'm extremely happy with the final outcome!

Life is Good!

A Turn At The Wheel

 Mid-Atlantic Quilt Festival in Hampton, VA last week was all that I expected it to be... and more! 

Quilts! Classes!! Vendors!!!

I drove the 300 miles up there on Wednesday and traded in my steering wheel for a wheel of a different type on Thursday morning. I was enrolled in Augusta Cole's "Wheel of Fortune" class; here's my first completed block. This will be a great stash-buster quilt. By no means is this a block that I can mindlessly skate on through, though...piecing  it takes vigilant monitoring of every single piece. Augusta recommended, at the outset, that we label 5 ziploc bags and keep our individual cut pieces in their own designated bags each and every time we handled them. She couldn't have overstated that directive! Ask me how I know. This block is worked in quarters and those two wheel background pieces are not the same. I made the same mistake of switching them at least three times before it all began to sink in; I get it now. Once home, in the quiet of my own sewing space, I was able to concentrate and get the components of three more blocks together. I'll be adding in some more white background fabrics and chose not to stitch the blocks together quite yet, as I want to scatter the backgrounds and incorporate them into the mix.

Here are four blocks laid out together, I love the secondary pattern that emerges where the corners meet. These colors remind me of jelly beans, I may be naming this one "Starburst Spin" in honor of my favorite brand of jelly beans, the tropical flavor assortment that usually hits the store shelves at this time of year.

I don't have much of a Festival report this time, I will pass along my observations, however. One trend that I did notice, and found interesting, this time at the Quilt Show was the presence of more hand quilting than I have seen in years past. Of course, the phenomenal machine quilting and embellishments on the "big winner" quilts only gets better and that bar is raised higher.  Another trend that's going away, I would say based on my observations, are quilt "kits" from the vendor's booths... there were still some, certainly, but not nearly as many as I have seen at  past Festivals. Specialty rulers of all sorts utilizing quick cutting techniques for block accuracy couldn't be missed, they were everywhere; as were longarm machine vendors, there seem to be new manufacturers popping up overnight! I did my fair share for the economy in the booths, picking up mainly essentials; a few of those rulers to combine with my cutting dies for setting purposes followed me home. I was also able to collect quite a few black and gold FQs to make a Boilermaker quilt (in the future) for my Purdue alumni husband; that happy hunt took up most of one day without doing too much damage to my wallet... oh, a few low volume FQs may have jumped in my shopping bag too. As always, it was an energizing and inspiring time away; I can't wait to start planning my trip for next year! 

But for now, it's back to those wheels.... 

they're in motion and I can't lose momentum!

Life is Good!

Quilter's Road Trip!

I set aside today to prepare. I'm heading up to Hampton, VA next week for the 25th annual Mid-Atlantic Quilt Festival; by my rough calculations I figure that I've been to more than half of them.  I am taking a class from Augusta Cole again this year. I loved the class that I took from her last year (although that quilt is far from finished) and enrolled in her "Wheel Of Fortune" class this time. Today I pulled fabric from the stash closet and chose a bright palette and a white on white for the background. I can't stress enough the importance of keeping a well-stocked stash closet at home, just for times like this. Saying this makes me feel better; less guilty for the sheer volume of fabric amassed in there. Following the directions for class preparation I cut all the strips and packed them up to carry with me for Thursday's session. I'll be sure to report back with show and tell from not only this class but from the Vendor's Mall and the Quilt Show too. I've already put together a shopping list of exciting new items to look for.

All packed up and ready to go!  Is it too soon to start packing my clothes and snacks?

I finished quilting this sweet baby girl quilt this afternoon and applied the binding, then basted it down into postion for the finishing hand stitches.  This quilt measures 42" X 48".

Here's a close-up of the quilting, a simple pantograph design called "Cloud Stipple".

I'll be taking these two quilts along for finishing, in the evenings. There's nothing like four days of shopping, a quilt class and one fabulous Quilt Show to look forward to; not to mention happy reunions with friends. I should be able to squeeze in some productive hours during "down time"... we'll see.

Life is Good!

Spurred To Action!

I have declared this year as the one where I will take control of my UFOs (if I don't do it, who will?); spurred to action by a recent blog post by Lori Kennedy I have come up with my own plan of identifying what is necessary to see a long list of UnFinished Objects through to completion. I don't need to cull them at this point, a few years ago I did just that, those remaining (there are twelve, NOT counting my queue of quilt tops waiting to be quilted!) have been deemed worthy enough to merit their own storage boxes. My plan is this: using the form pictured below I will document each unfinished project and take a close look at what's in the box and what else I need, supply-wise.

I'm not concerned with when I began the project, why I abandoned it or what inspired me to begin it in the first place. My goal here is a simple one; to finish them up and move them out.  The beauty of this plan, for me, is placing the forms into a loose-leaf notebook; this way, I can prioritize the projects and switch up the order if I choose.  Also, I can remove one page and carry that to my LQS for supplies, I can easily insert fabric swatches inside the page protector for matching purposes. It's not coincidental that I am developing this notebook before I attend Mid-Atlantic Quilt Festival next month and visit the HUGE merchant's mall there!  I have vowed to not be tempted by any new projects there this year; rather, I will shop for needed supplies to finish what I've begun and return home inspired and energized, not toting bags full of future UFOs! Lori's linked post (above) asks the question: "what do our UFOs say about us?"; I hope to answer that question through my action of developing a plan and taking charge. You know me, I love a good challenge! It all boils down to is who's in control; I'd like to think that it's me and not my unfinished quilt tops.

Wish me luck. 

Life is Good!

Mid-Atlantic Musings

There is much to report from my recent time away. First, this photo was taken in the vendor's mall by Marcie's friend with her camera. Marcie posted it on her blog over at Patchalot and I lifted if from her! What a huge delight to run into my bloggy-buddy early on Friday. The Princess of Patchalot is fun and friendly; we picked right up where we left off when we last saw each other... two years ago! In fact, we lingered together at a table where we compared purchases and traded tips on products and patterns. I introduced her to my friends and she did likewise to hers, the conversation was easy and free-flowing. It was a great meeting of minds and hearts; hard to believe that we haven't been longtime, real-life, friends. Cultivating friendships is what Quilt Festival is all about.

The first purchase that I made on Wednesday evening at the Vendor's Mall preview was this book. I shopped from a list (much less dangerous that way) and this newly published one was first on my list, I found it right away. The remainder of my purchases were slow and methodical, all from that same list; threads, needles and a few long arm tools. The impulsive buy was limited to a few clever short-cut rulers, (and a few unplanned fat quarters), I easily rationalized those: better tools, more quilts in a shorter time! Shopping fun is what Quilt Festival is all about.

There was time for dinner out with long-time friends, and not just any dinner either; Surf Rider serves up the very best Crab Cakes I have ever tasted. We waited outside, in the rain, for an hour just to get a table inside this restaurant... that's how good the food is here! Do any of us look unhappy or disappointed in this photograph? Time spent strengthening old friendships in familiar places over delicious meals is what Quilt Festival is all about.

I attended a lecture presented by Ami Simms: Living With Quilts... A Survival Guide, it was fun and humorous, she shared photos and told stories of her quilting life at home. Ami has a wicked sense of humor. There were door prizes awarded before the lecture began and I was the lucky recipient of this book. I already have a copy here at home and would like to offer this prize to one of you. If you find yourself burdened by blue ribbons or overloaded with cash awards from entering your quilts into judged competitions this book covers the finer points that will help you out of that dilemma! Leave me a comment and I will draw a lucky name on Friday morning. Surprises is what Quilt Festival is all about.

This is a small portion of a the AAQI traveling exhibit that was part of the quilt show. This exhibit, "Heartbreak to Hope" raises funds and promotes awareness, through art quilts, of the dreadful disease that is Alzheimer's. The long purple banners bear the names of those who now have, or have had, Alzheimer's or a similar dementia diagnosed. These panels represent friends and loved ones; seeing them displayed, row after row, is a powerful visible reminder of the people behind the diagnosis. This exhibit had a profound effect on me; I couldn't take it all in at one time. I visited "Heartbreak to Hope" in several different time segments, going slowly and reading each and every story one at a time. Quilts with a purpose is what Quilt Festival is all about.

I took a class on Saturday, String Quilting, from Ami Simms. The class was relaxed and educational all at the same time! I learned a new technique for piecing some fast (and cute) string blocks and came home with this stack of twenty-five blocks all ready to set together. Learning new tricks and gaining inspiration from knowledgeable instructors is what Quilt Festival is all about.

As usual, it all went by too fast! I can't wait to make plans all over again for next year; it's always good to get away and yet, even better to come back home again. My quilt battery is fully charged and my energy level has been boosted through all that I saw and experienced; because, like the hokey-pokey, that IS what Quilt Festival's all about!

Life is Good!

Update: The book giveaway is officially closed, a winner has been chosen. Congratulations to Liz A.!

Stroll Through The Show With Me...

I'm back from Mid-Atlantic and will share a teeny-weeny bit of the quilt show first, through my eyes... click here and c'mon along! Take a good look at some of the hand quilting details where they appear. It was a terrific show, enjoy!

Yes, this is a squirrel quilt that you see... it was so well done, ("corn" quilting) I laughed out loud at the title: The Squirrel's Speech; it does look at though he is poised at a podium.  Tomorrow I will share more from the road trip up to Hampton, VA. I had a wonderful time... well, seriously, who wouldn't? What's better than a few days away surrounded by friends, quilts, fabric, classes and shopping? I can't think of a single thing; well, maybe the fact that there were snacks too!

Life really is Good!

Stripping For Class

I've signed up for a class at Mid-Atlantic Quilt festival later on this week and have spent time this weekend cutting strips in preparation. I can't wait. I need to pack a suitcase, and a bag of snacks. Oh, boy!

Life is Good!

~very, very good~

YAY!!

Mid-Atlantic Quilt Festival 2008

Life is Good!

...check out these quilt highlights, and you can't help but agree...

*In response to those of you who would like the photos to appear larger, I'm sorry... the slideshow format only allows this size. I'll pull a few and make them "clickable" in a future post.
In the meantime, enjoy!