There’s a New Quilter in the House

March 31, 2013 at 4:32 pm (QuilterMan)
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Sometime this past January I showed my husband John how to sew a seam.  Then he sewed another.  And another.  And then he had a quilt top made.  And then I quilted it for him.

Quilt Number One!

Quilt Number One!

He gave this quilt to a young lady who is recovering from distress in her life.  We began with the four patch in the center, then added a couple borders.  Then he found my Civil War reproduction fabrics and made a bunch of squares.  He likes squares.

Nice feathered wreath in the center...

Nice feathered wreath in the center…

Quilting Closeup

Quilting Closeup

Here’s a photo of him binding this quilt.  John is a retired surgeon, and at one point he came into my studio in a huff, saying, “These needles are archaic!” and looking for a curved needle…He has settled on a larger needle, I think a #3 basting needle.  I did explain to him that I’ve been sewing for over 50 years, and it just takes time to get used to the small needles.  He does have the grace to admire my invisible hand stitches…

The back side is Minke, not the easiest to hand sew

The back side is Minke, not the easiest to hand sew

So that quilt (Audrey’s Quilt) was barely out the door and he was ready to make another…

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Whing-Ding-Thingama-Jing

March 28, 2013 at 4:29 pm (Client Quilts)
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My husband and I lived in Elkton, Oregon for seven wonderful years, and we still miss our country life and the wonderful community there. During those seven years, a quilting group was formed that meets at the Elkton Community and Education Center (a wonderful facility just west of town). Elkton Quilters and Friends meets twice a month for a sew day, sharing information and techniques, hosting classes, and working on group projects.
They recently asked me to quilt a sampler quilt the group had worked on, a wonderful appliqué pattern from Piece O’ Cake designs. The beautiful applique is set off wonderfully with a darker background, giving the piece a modern look.

DSC05862The first step in quilting this piece was to stabilize the blocks and the appliqué.  Since it has a modern look, I knew I wanted to do something a little different in the background for fill.

So I scratched around on some paper for a while and came up with this motif that I’m calling “Whing Ding Thingama-Jing” because that’s what I say when I’m doing the quilting!

The applique blocks are wonderful!

The applique blocks are wonderful!

I just put wavy lines in the sashing, wanting to keep in the same whimsical style as the applique blocks.  And here is a closeup of the border:  it’s not as hard as it looks…DSC05875

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I just have to include a couple of small bird blocks so you can see the wonderful detail:

I believe these are actual representations of the chickens and birds from our place in Elkton…

DSC05866Head west on Highway 38 to reach Elkton.  The community there sponsors events all year, and their community center and library features wonderful art shows.  Perhaps you will see this wonderful quilt there!

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It’s All About Time…

March 14, 2013 at 12:36 am (Studio Work)
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I knew I’d neglected my blog, but I didn’t realize I had started neglecting it so long ago!  I have been working steadily; I think I’m now only two quilts behind — which really means I’m caught up…

I did a little more beading and painting to enhance the border

I did a little more beading and painting to enhance the border

Here's a closeup of the beading, just so ya know...

Here’s a closeup of the beading, just so ya know…

Autumn Pathways didn’t make it into the Road to California show.  I was disappointed but my friends all consoled me and then I felt better.  It was accepted to the AQS Lancaster show that opened today, and it received an HONORABLE MENTION!  It is also accepted into the AQS Paducah show held this April. I have always lionized the Paducah show, and really did not expect to have the quilt accepted.  I am thrilled!!

The experience of entering competitions and receiving comments from the judges has been very valuable.  Yes, they did notice all the little details that weren’t perfect.  But yes, they have made very nice comments about the design and execution of techniques.  I know I want to continue to explore this type of work.  I can’t remember how many hours I spent creating Autumn Pathways, but I know it was somewhere in excess of 400 hours.  That’s ten work weeks…if you work full time (and I really don’t)…

I can feel my biological clock ticking, and I want to give myself enough time to make a few more of these quilts. And of course, I also need enough time to make as many SpongeBobSquarePants skirts as possible!

Halie

Halie

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