Barbara's Quilts & More

2011-01-01T18:01:00.000-08:00

Happy New Years Everyone!

I can't believe I had to start another folder for my quilting photos for 2011. My folder for 2010 was getting pretty full like probably many of yours was.

But for my 1st post of this New Year - is my newest block for my Layer Cake Sampler.

Not a lot of quilting lately, there has been too much partying and trying to catch up on some needed rest for me. I reviewed my List for 2010 projects and I think that I will probably just throw it out the window and just concentrate on one project at a time. Its easier that way.

Anyways. thanks for reading my blog! I have made new blogging friends and look forward to making more and quilting more this next year.

Enjoy!

2010-12-29T11:02:00.000-08:00

Santa didn't come to our house till the day after Christmas. Whats up with that? Well, with a family our size and with all the different schedules, Sunday just seem to work out best for all 21 of us. My sweet sister Laura and her husband Ken came to Arizona from Pennsylvania for the upcoming birth of a new grand-daughter. It was so convenient for us because it would allow us to celebrate Christmas together which we haven't been able to do for 28 years. With all our children & grand-children we fill up the house and we did just that on the Sunday after Christmas. Laura and I have a bunch of good kids. They all married wonderful people and we couldn't be more happier. For Christmas, we knew Santa was going to come and we didn't think to many would mind that he was a day late. We wanted to Honor the Adult children with an ornament just for them. For example: Karen, we gave her this note attached to a Peace ornament made up with little beads glued to the letters.
Karen wants Love and Happiness
for all those around her
She is the Peacemaker
And for Jennifer, we gave her this note attached to a beautiful gold 3 demensional star.
She loves deeply and cares for
all those around her.
Her dreams are real and beautiful.
Jennifer is Passionate
We gave each adult an attribute that was just perfect for them. It was giving to them via Santa's red bag after, of course, all the kids receive their Santa gift. Santa made it comical at times but as he read the Attribute, I think it was much appreciated. I do know that Laura and I had the best time because we enjoyed so much the time we had together as we prepared this gift's for our children. Happy Holiday's Everyone!!!!!

2010-12-22T16:26:00.000-08:00

Here is Grandson #2. The 2nd of 3 that was going to come in a 3 month period. He is adorable! His name is Enoch and he is the 2nd child for my son Brandon and his wife Ann. Needless to say, I am a tickled grandmother. Next one comes in January!

Enjoy!

2010-12-15T12:40:00.000-08:00

I have been a little behind on my Layer Cake Sampler blocks but because I have been sick the last few days and had to stay home from work, I took the opportunity to play catch up. Easy to do since they are not real time consuming. This is block #2. Its not quite like the pattern but because of said illness, I opted out of cutting more fabric to make it "identical" to the pattern.

Block #3. I never really thought basket blocks were all they cool, but I sort of like mine. Maybe this will inspire me to do other basket patterns in the future.

And block #4. I really like the added corner feature in the snowball block. Way cool!

For any of you that have not seen the Jelly Roll Sampler Quilt Along and now the current Layer Cake Sampler Quilt Along, its not to late to start creating and join in the fun. Hit the side button on the right and it will take you where you need to go.

Enjoy!

2010-12-14T09:17:00.000-08:00

I always seem to the pictures in the reverse order that I intended them to be. Oh Well!

I finally get to post the 3rd baby quilt, which was the 2nd to be completed and is for Courtney and her baby Ryder. She has a jungle animal theme for her nursery so the Ryder's quilt had to follow suit. I found all of these fabrics at Hobby Lobby so if you are interested, you can find them online as well. My sister Laura and I made these at the same time when she was here visiting me. Hers went to her daughter Jennifer. She actually got 2 of them, one of which is in a beautiful arrangement of pink flowers for her 1st grand-daughter. She needs to start her own blog and show off her beautiful creations.

I should of took a photo of the backside. Its white with all the little jungle animals on it and the prints on the front side which you see, represent all the animals on the back side. But, here is a close up of the prints and the boarder of prairie points!

The pattern is on Moda Bakeshop, and you can find it here.

I sure hope they enjoy it. I know that I do. Ryder is really not expected to come till January so it will be a little while before I can post his picture. You saw grandson #1, born Nov. 29th and grandson #2 still has not made his grand entrance yet. One of these days, I'll post a post with all 3 so I can just brag!

This cute baby quilt is quilt #51. Finally being allow to be posted after quilt #52 got to. :)

Enjoy!

2010-12-08T13:03:00.000-08:00

When I decided to try and consolidate my "crafty" things all into one room I found a stash of yarn that was leftovers from other projects from when I used to crochet a lot. Because I can't seem to throw things away, I decided to make covered hangers, which I love!, and dishcloths. The photos don't justify the numbers made. I probably did about 12 hangers and now I am up to about 15 dishcloths. I don't usually use cotton yarn dishcloths, but I now have started because I made them and it has to be put to use or

why even bother making them in the first place. Its been a nice project to do while watching T.V. & I have discovered that they are kind of nice to use.

My hangers I adore because none of my clothes slip off of them and then I like to use them for hanging up my wash only clothes. I still have lots of quilt projects that I am working on, but this has been a nice change!

Enjoy!

2010-12-05T20:38:00.000-08:00

Here is the newest member of my family. Little Jaxon was born Nov. 29th and me, the proud grandmother, went and spent a few days visiting this new pride and joy! Had to come back home though and it was pretty tough leaving them but Stephen and Jodi, the parents, will be fantastic parents. Its so fun watching new parents become parents and good ones they will be. Lucky for me, they are only about 5 hours away and it won't be too long before grandma can see him again.

I do have another grandson that was due last Saturday so it won't be long before I get to post another photo of him. Lucky Me.

2010-12-01T06:35:00.000-08:00

Have you ever made a quilt out of a

Shower Curtain?

My friend Robbie's daughter fell in love with this old tree and wanted it for her bed. Robbie ask if I thought it was possible to make a quilt with it and at first I thought how strange that was. But from looking at the curtain and realizing it was just another kind of fabric and not the "plastic lining" I thought why not!

I cut off the buttonholes off the top and added the triple boarder to jazz it up and wha la, it works! Needless to say, her daughter just loves it. I only did a simple diagonal quilt lines since I really have never work with a whole piece of fabric before and I was afraid of bunching up even with the zillion safety pins that I had on it. The second photo shows a 22 inch pillow, without the pillow in it, to add to her decor. This is quilt #53

Now I am off to San Diego to see my new grandson Jaxon! Photos will come soon

Enjoy!

2010-11-25T08:20:00.000-08:00

Happy Happy Thanksgiving!

to all my family, friends and fellow bloggers.

2010-11-18T13:50:00.000-08:00

As you know from my profile I am about to be a grandmother to "3" new grandsons. I am so tickled I can hardly stand it. One of these precious gems will be coming any minute and I can tell you that I anxiously watch the caller ID on my phone every time it rings! My son Stephen and his wife in San Diego will be having Jaxon and I made him a quilt that I gave his mother at her baby shower a few weeks back. I have posted about his quilt already but you can go Here to view it again.

Now, the 3rd grandson's quilt is already made and I can't show you it because I know that his mother will see it on the blog. That is quilt#52 and I don't know why I made it before grandson #2. Her baby shower was yesterday so now I can show you Enochs quilt. Enochs mother Ann wanted to use Tigers as her theme for the son. I had a difficult time finding anything that I liked that had tigers without all the other animals. Most of the time it would be a lion or jaguar and not a tiger. So I decided to build a quilt around a tiger print. I will admit that it really doesn't look like a baby baby quilt and I almost started over and do something else. Those who did see it that was what Ann would like so I decided to give it her anyways. What do you think?

Enjoy!

2010-11-17T14:46:00.000-08:00

I meant to post about these cute little pumpkins a few weeks ago!

We made these before Halloween, took pumpkin family photos with all of the pumpkins that my sister, her daughter my daughter and myself made. I somehow lost the pictures, which makes me upset because we must of made at least 14-15 of these cuties. We had a pumpkin patch all over my table. I love pumpkins and I am a fan of regular ones rather then the Jack O'Lantern that you see earlier in the fall season. If you would like to see how they are made go here to get a tutorial. You will be surprised at how easy they are to make.

Enjoy!

2010-11-03T16:49:00.000-07:00

Blogger Quilt Festival

Decided to post a photo of a quilt that I made for my son Chase about 1-1/2 - 2 years ago as a memory quilt for his 2 years in South Africa. He sent me some fabric from South Africa with all the panels of the large animals native to the area. I held on the fabric for a while with the intention to do something when I came along a pattern to do the middle with batiks. I thought it would go quite well with the theme of the quilt. I was also quite tickled when I was asked if it could hang in a quilt display in the Gilbert Ariz. museum for awhile. Chase really enjoys this quilt and I hope it reminds him about his time there with fond memories. The interior portion of the quilt was a stack and whack type of thing, which I had never done. It was really fun to watch all the colors blend together and then boarder with the black to make it stand out.

You need to go over to Amy's Creative Side to see the Fall Blogger Festival of quilts and browse around and see all the beautiful quilts.

Enjoy! (again)

2010-11-03T16:20:00.000-07:00

Here is my first block for my Layer Cake Sampler Quilt Along. I was going to wait and post this photo after I got a couple of the others done and then do it at the same time. But - I somehow lost a couple of photos that I was going to post on so I decided to just post this one anyways. I'll have to retake the photos and try later for those other things.

If you want to make this block - go over to Moose on the Porch and join in! Click on the button on the left side of my blog.

Enjoy!

2010-10-28T17:25:00.000-07:00

Here's another quick goody that I made for myself when my sister was in town. She showed me how easy it was to make a cover for my scriptures. The pattern would be so wonderful for different books like journals that my daughter and I will be making some for gifts! You can find it here on the Moda Bakeshop website.

Enjoy!

2010-10-24T14:50:00.000-07:00

This last week has been a fabulous week! My sister Laura from Pennsylvania came out to visit me to do some quilt stuff and other crafty fun and boy did we get a lot done. She also came to visit her daughters family here and she is probably getting much needed rest from our adventurous and exhausting week! Normally, both of us agree that quilting is rather relaxing activity, but not at the pace we did! It was indeed rewarding and loads of FUN!

So here we are showing off our newest joint project! This cornucopia pattern was in the last Quilt Sampler magazine. It normally was created with using felted wool and was beautiful. We decided to use batiks because we wanted it to blend this with a earlier fall quilt hanging we did a couple years ago and plus the fact we didn't want to invest in wool just quite yet! Maybe some day I will do something with felted wool. I have added some bead work to the tendrils since photographing this.

This will be Quilt project #50. The next couple of days I will show off quilt #51 that we also did this week and then I'll show other crafty fun as well! Back to work tomorrow!

Enjoy!

2010-10-16T16:30:00.000-07:00

Here is the finished Project. This t- shirt quilt will be quilt #49 for me and the first t-shirt quilt that I have done. It was a new challenge for me and I learned a lot from doing this. It was definitely a fun thing to be creative with all the different blocks, utilizing fabric that were both from t-shirts and from the scarfs that were made to fit around each dogs neck.

As you can see, this quilt is going to belong to a member of the Arizona Golden Retriever Connection organization. I sure hope she enjoys it.
This is just another close up of an individual block with appliqued blocks on the bottom corners.

Enjoy!

P.S. I don't know why I didn't move that Frisbee out the picture before I shot the picture, its probably been there so long that I didn't even notice it until it was too late. Oh Well!

2010-10-15T17:34:00.000-07:00

Here are some updates on the T-shirt quilt that I am working on.

You see it all ready for the layers to be pinned and trimmed.

This cute label will be added on later after all the signatures get on. Do you like the bones?

This photo shows the bottom sashing and boarder with another t-shirt built in with a quote my customer wanted put in. You don't see it the first photo, I am having a hard time getting up high enough to photo the whole quilt.

Enjoy!

2010-10-06T18:58:00.000-07:00

Been making lots of baby receiving blankets for my future grand kids. Being that I live in Arizona, I prefer to make mine just a single layer and then extra large! I know lots of people have made the same size, but I always hear that the ones I make are their favorite and I assume its because of the size. These are just some boy versions because the 3 grand kids that are coming are all Boy's.

Lucky Me!

Enjoy!

2010-10-02T12:13:00.000-07:00

Here's the work in progress for a T-Shirt Quilt that I have been commissioned to do for a friend of mine from work. She belongs to a Golden Retrievers Rescue Group and this will be a gift for the leader of this organization. I have never done a t-shirt quilt before. Its been an education for me and a time to be creative in a different sort of way. Its been fun. Lots to do still, the boarders are not on it, and then the sandwiching,quilting etc. need to be done. Only have a few weeks to go to finish. The photo on the right is a close up of one of the squares with a scarf sewn into the sashing. The dogs would have scarfs made for them to wear which I have tried to incorporate in the quilt.

Enjoy!

2010-09-22T18:51:00.000-07:00

Here is quilt #48. This is going to be for Jaxon, who will be arriving in November and will be the first child for Stephen and Jodi and my first Grandson.

The fabric is Barnyard Buddies which I had a couple of charm packs for. It took a long time to find some yardage to do the backing and the boarders. Just about every website that I visited had sold all what they had and I was getting desperate.

I guess if I like something, I better buy the coordinates before they go in retirement.

I just did a simple disappearing 9 patch for this quilt.

What I really like is the back. I decided to use up the rest of the 2nd charm pack for the boarder. I will admit, I like the back better then the front.

I sure hope Jodi and Jaxon likes his quilt. I don't have a clue if Jodi and Stephen even read my blog, so just in case you do. Be surprised anyways when you get this at your Baby Shower on Saturday.

My next post will be previews for Quilt #48.

Enjoy!

2010-09-15T10:08:00.000-07:00

This week I made 4 more quilted bags for customers. Pictured is only 3 of them, one of the black and creams I had already delivered to my customer.

I have made several of the bags in black and creams which seem to be a favorite, but the pirate skull bag was a fun one to make

This Pirate Skull Bag with batiks was made for Robbie. This design is a typical style for what Robbie likes and when I gave it to her, she really enjoyed it.

I hope you do too!

The batiks in purple, red and ivory all compliment the skull faces. The inside lining is the ivory batik and is complimented with 2 large black skull pockets. This bag measure approximately 17-1/2 x 17-1/2 squared.

I decided to do something different and layer the batiks piano key style up the side instead of the squared blocks version done on others that I usually do. I think it was a unique change and it came out very nice.

Enjoy!

2010-09-09T08:22:00.000-07:00

Been doing a lot of sewing for a gynecology office again. Here is a photo of all the pretty colors of the lap covers that I sew up for them. Nothing big about it, just hemming, which couldn't be easier.

I am off to sewing more bags today then I really need to start the baby quilt for my new grandson whose mother is having her shower in just a few weeks. Yikes! I better get going. Have a great day!

Enjoy!

2010-08-27T19:08:00.000-07:00

I posted two posts today so you will need to go to the previous post first - before finishing up here! Or go backwards, it really doesn't matter!

I guess I need to learn how to upload more then 5 photos at one time. I suddenly had the urge to get back to my sewing and their was a lot to catch up on.

The first 2 photos are close ups of the Christmas Sampler

This photo is 2 more Bags that I made for my co-worker who is an Alumi of ASU, and they want to use this for their tailgate parties.

I've made zillions of these bags in all sorts of patterns and fabrics. You'll need to check here or here for samples.

2010-08-27T18:52:00.000-07:00

I have decided that one of the reasons that I seem to be lagging in the sewing mode is that here in Arizona, its Hot!, and I really think its wearing on me.

Any Arizona's out there agree with me?

Anyways, Here's a bunch of pic's. I wanted to actually load up more but the loading page only took 5 so I will add another post!

My main focus has been the Jelly Roll Sampler Quilt Along. I enjoyed it so much that I wanted to incorporate the blocks in my
sewing class. We only meet once a month now that summer break is over and so I was going to do 4 at once. I think that was a little too much for one day, so we are going to break it up even more.

I went ahead and finished my original Sampler, which is probably the last photo, and then started making 2 more. One of which is total Christmas scraps. "Make do with what you got" and since I "got a lot of scraps" I went for it.

The same with the bright color ones. I've had that little flower on white background fabric for such a long time that I made that my background and built the colors around that. I really like the bright colors.

You see here a couple of the blocks close up. No sashing yet, I want to utilize the blocks for demo's for the class.

Don't look to close to the carpet, I didn't vacuum. Whats more important anyways, Vacuuming or quilting?

Here's the original Jelly Roll Sampler that I started out with. It's amazing how suddenly it looks so different once all the blocks are in place. Yeah!

Now for the Quilting!

Enjoy!

2010-08-08T18:40:00.000-07:00

My Sewing Class was a success! We have actually had a few other Saturdays where we tried to incorporate learning by doing pillowcases and aprons.

Now we are embarking on some quilting and I chose to start them off with the Jelly Roll Sampler Quilt blocks that I had been doing from Moose on the Porch Quilts.

We had both young and old. Its never to late to start" That's the whole idea of trying to do this class so I can help anyone from any age in learning something new and that it also will be a benefit for whatever life has in store for them

Our next class will the 1st Sat. in Sept. Sure hope they enjoy it.

Off to Tennessee tomorrow morning. See ya around!

Enjoy!

2010-08-06T14:30:00.000-07:00

The 12th Jelly Roll Sampler Block is now complete!

It has been real fun to put the 30's fabrics together for this Sampler Quilt-Along. I had one fabric that I was unsure weather I had used it yet and was determined to use it in this block. It sure makes for a very busy block, but I figured that once all the blocks are in place with the background fabric in to balance the busy-ness it will work out just fine. It was a very good experiment

Now, starting tomorrow, in my sewing class we are going to be making these same blocks. Some of my sewers are just learning, others are more experienced, but either way, this is a great project for teaching basics in quilt sewing and keeping the projects both easy and quick to make.

I will try to post a pic or two of my class.

Monday is the big trip to Tennessee. Does anyone know of a quilt shop in Pigeon Forge?

Enjoy!

2010-07-30T09:27:00.000-07:00

Jelly Roll Sampler Block #11

Hope there is others out there that are like me. I have really landed in a rut when it comes to motivation for sewing. I don't think that I have ever been like this before. I decided that it must mean that I need not worry about it, it must be time to relax and before long it will all come back. It hasn't stopped me from shopping for fabric so I guess that motivation better hurry and come back :)

A part of my family will be heading out to Tennessee for a family reunion Aug. 9th. We will vacationing out in the Smokies and look forward to being with family again. I am counting on the fact that you will start to see more of me after that.

Enjoy!

2010-07-14T19:33:00.000-07:00

Here is Jelly Roll Sampler Block #10.

I've enjoyed how simple the blocks have been, yet there has been a couple that were more challenging. I had to stop and think about opposites so the colors would balance.

Other then doing the blocks, I haven't done much quilting at all. Its been frustrating for me because I don't think I have let so much time elapse in between projects before. There must be a reason so I won't fret about it. Till block #11,

Enjoy!

2010-07-02T10:01:00.000-07:00

I have a grand-daughter turning 2 here very soon! That is her in the top photo sitting on her daddy's lap. Some time back I actually got this idea from watching Martha Stewart on tv. I really don't watch her show that much, but for some reason I did and got the cutest idea for a memory game. I decided to make one set for her birthday.

I got colored copy pictures of all her family including grandparents, aunts and uncles and Modge Podge them on little wooden circles. I bought the wooden circles already pre-cut from Joanns. There is 2 of every picture so she can learn names etc from playing Memory. All that is on the other side is a circle cut from scrapbook paper. Talk about cheap gifts!, but I think that it will be one that she will enjoy for awhile anyways.

I want to make a set to keep here at my house for when the grand-

children come to play.

ENJOY!

2010-07-01T17:57:00.000-07:00

Jelly Roll Sample Block #9.

Can you believe how fast time flies. I remember how I thought that this sample quilt along would be so fun and it truly has been, yet the time has gone quickly and before you know it, it will be time to put the whole thing together. It will be exciting to see how everyones quilts turn out.

I do need to get back to other WIP's and start another one. It never ends, thankfully!

ENJOY!

2010-06-30T09:32:00.000-07:00

I've been so neglectful of my blog lately. You get those times when you have tons of stuff to do your head is spinning and this is one of those times.

I've started my teaching class. Its a free opportunity for those who want to learn for the women I go to church with and anyone else that was interested. I didn't get the response that I wanted but I do have a few and in hindsight, that is probable for the good. Besides that, my gardening is overflowing, helping my girlfriend with her daughters wedding reception, went camping, and just trying to keep sane, is taking all my time up.

Up above you see my 18" long zucchini. I swear I try to not let it get so long, but they seem to grow in just a matter of hours. We are running out of ideas on how to eat zucchini!

ENJOY!

2010-06-09T15:10:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple more photos of bags that I have made and sold. These are pretty deep tote bags, about 17-1/2 inches deep and about 13 inches wide. Its really been fun to make different fabric arrangements and then really really fun to know that people want and buy them from me.

This is my Jelly Roll Sampler Quilt Along Block #8. Four blocks to go and then we will put it all together. I've been saying that I wanted to start making another set using Christmas fabrics but I have not done that. To much to do!

With all that I already do, I am starting another project. I really think that learning how to sew is a dying art. They just don't teach sewing in schools anymore and more and more people are relying on purchased clothing and throwing them out because of not knowing how to mend them. With the economy that all of us are going through, it would just be nice if more of us knew how to sew. In my neighborhood starting this Sat. I will be teaching anyone who wants to learn how to sew, sewing lessons. We will be doing it every other Saturday morning for the summer and then see how it goes once school starts.

Let you know how it goes.

Enjoy!

2010-06-03T15:45:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! Its about time you say? Well, we had a little bugger in our computer and it kept me away from having access to the Internet. It was hard for me to not post anything but after a couple of weeks we were able to get things running again. Then, I also bought a new camera and I am trying to figure all the doo dahs and incorporate them in my head. Its hard for me to change but I like this new camera and hopefully it will do what I want it to do.

My garden is finally growing the way it should. Here in Arizona we get to start planting late Feb. early Mar. because of the heat. I think that I didn't let the manure sit long enough before I planted the seeds and everything seem to grow very slowly. I thought that I stunted the growth somehow, but I kept watering and suddenly a few weeks ago, everything started growing like wildflower. There is something wonderful about seeing fresh produce on you kitchen counter, knowing that it came from your garden.
I have a lot of photos so this post will look like I am trying to catch up. This is block number #7 for the Jelly Roll Quilt Sampler.

These next 2 photos should be in the reverse. I have been sewing tons of bags and maybe you will see more photos later. This one was made for a friend who wanted to gift this to an ASU graduate. She just loved it. If you look closely at the covered button, you can see the devils trident.

Enjoy!

2010-05-11T20:24:00.000-07:00

Heres Jelly Roll Sampler Quilt Along Block #6

Are we having fun yet? I can say that for me and my sister, who is also doing this, that we are kind of fanatic about the whole thing! The whole quilt along process is really very simple and I still plan on doing another one of these in Christmas fabrics if I can only get my act together and do it. Thinking about doing it with some friends and helping them learn to quilt as we go. You can check on the button to the right side of my screen and start your own. Its not to late to do so.
Now for Mothers Day, my kids, their spouses and my 2 grand-daughters came over. Thought you may be interested in seeing a picture of them. At least I'm interested in showing you! This is Esther and she will be approaching her 2nd birthday soon.

And this Rebekah. Shes zonked out as you can see. She is just about 1 month in a couple of days here. Precious isn't she.

Enjoy!

2010-05-04T07:52:00.000-07:00

I started to notice that the time I post another blog is getting longer and longer between postings. I guess life is getting busier and busier. I have been doing little bits here and there in between doing side jobs of alterations etc.

But here a few more photos of bags that I have been doing for friends at work. The photos are hard to imagine size in. They are pretty large, usually measuring 18 inches wide by 13 inches deep. Its a rather good size bag for "totes", so I was surprised when a friend asked for a even deeper version. This one is 18" deep. I can see it being a perfect one for traveling. I will be making more of this size.

This black and cream one is the first of this size and lets just say that I like it.

Heres the combo picture of the 6 of them

And a close up of the flower embellishment I attached to some of them.

Since then, I have done the alterations and more projects that I will be viewing later.

ENJOY!

2010-04-27T08:46:00.000-07:00

Jelly Roll Sampler Block #5

Here it is. This one was just a tad more interesting to make. Had to make sure the angles and placements of the colored pieces were in just the right place. I will admit that I had to rip out a segment and unbelieveably it was one of the inner white pieces. Oh well.

This Jelly Roll Sampler has been addictive. Its hard to wait for the next installment 2 weeks later to be able to "see" and sew the next block. I have been thinking about doing another one in Christmas colors, just trying to decide if I want to buy a new jelly roll or to scrap stash it with what I already have. Better sense says Scrap Stash, but I love using a lovely already matched grouping of fabric.

ENJOY!

2010-04-22T12:34:00.000-07:00

Whats this, A giant Hole in My curtain?

Well to explain this: this room was originally my boys bedroom before I converted it over to my sewing room. The plan was to make new drapes but that project kept getting put to the side. Then I decided that because it gets so very hot here in Arizona and this window catches all the morning 1st rays, I needed to cover it up to make it a more pleasant temperature in my room. I have this grand idea to put another pocketed cover board right in the window space, taking away the awful heat, and providing me more storage spots. But I think I will miss my friends. You can't believe how many times I happen to glance out that hole from where I sit and see birds sitting on that pole you see out the window. Its been sort of fun to lean back, take a breather from sewing and watch my friends, the birds. I almost don't want to take away that awful hole, but it sure will be more feasible to work in a cooler room. When I get my project done, I will be sure to post about it.

2010-04-15T20:30:00.000-07:00

Heres my latest pride and joy, My new grand-daughter - Rebekah. She has the happiest parents, Michael and Anna, being that she is their first child and what a joy she is going to be. I'm so excited as well and I look forward to many many Grandma -Grand-daughter bonding time.

2010-04-12T22:55:00.000-07:00

Boy! I can hardly stand it. This is block #4! Being a part of this Jelly Roll Sampler Quilt Along has been so much fun. I can hardly wait for the 2 weeks to go by so I can find out what the next block is going to look like and then put it together. Now that I have 4 of the blocks done, its starting to look so cute. Check out my flickr for the complete set laid out by each other.

Enjoy!

2010-04-08T08:40:00.000-07:00

I found the cutest crochet bag on bitty bits and pieces for anyone who is interested in checking it out.

Kim is the author of the blog and she does lots of cute stuff. She is also featured on Modas Bake Shop with the tutorial for making one for yourself. Go check it out!

2010-04-06T21:08:00.000-07:00

Been doing a lot of commissioned work for others but last week I did find time to do some catch up on fyi's.

Here is some more of my Stars for a quilt I have been working on. I made I think about 20 of them in a few days and now its back to doing other things.

A little close up of one of them.

ENJOY!

2010-03-30T10:18:00.000-07:00

Here is my Jelly Roll Sampler block #3. I want you to know that I work Mondays and knowing that I need to have the block in for the giveaways I dash in to the sewing room to get it created.

I am starting to visualize the finished sampler.

Its going to be fun.

Enjoy!

2010-03-27T08:36:00.000-07:00

I finally finished Karen and Ammons wedding quilt. It was disappointing for me to not have finished it before the wedding! You know how everyone likes to display the Quilt during the reception, well I did anyways, sandwiched and safety pinned to death! One guest even came up to us and asked if there was a significance to all the safety pins. I just assumed everyone would know that it was just not finished yet. I guess having 5 of my kids get married in 11 months did me in with having lots and lots of things to do!

After the wedding was over, it did suddenly get put in the not so important to finish pile. After a few other accomplishments I started feeling so guilty when Karen started saying how cold she was at night! So.... Now that the weather is really warming up its finished!!! lol, Sorry Karen.

It was really a very cute and easy pattern called Venetian Dream from Fons and Porter. This will be Quilt #47.

Enjoy!

2010-03-25T12:50:00.000-07:00

Its been almost 2 months since Karen got married, but I promised that I would show you the dress that Karen wore. The photos are in reversed order that I wanted them to be in so - This photo is of all my children along with their spouses.

I sure do love all of them. What blessings they are to me. One son, Dallin, who is 9th from the left is the only one that is not married. He will be leaving me shortly as well as he is preparing for his mission later this year.

This photo is in the room where we got her ready. Not the best photo of that lady in black who we will leave "unidentified" but it was a good one of the dress.

Its a 2 pieced dress. The top has trim and beads around the neckline, sleeve hems and at the bottom of the bodice. The skirt has very large beads tacked in where there is a puffed bunch.

She liked it!

You may need to click on the picture to enlarge it for the details

And this is lovely Karen. Don't remember if its before or after the ceremony, but she looks so happy. I love her lots.

I always wanted to make my daughters wedding dress and now I can say that dream has been accomplished!

Enjoy!

2010-03-21T17:42:00.000-07:00

Here is a close up of a new purse that I made for myself. I just love the polka dot and its versatility with all sorts of fabrics. I wouldn't of thought of doing such a thing until I saw the pattern at a exhibit with a kit to go with.

Its a bit more narrower than the bags that I usually tote around but I can make adjustments the next time I make it.

ENJOY!

2010-03-16T09:35:00.000-07:00

Here is block #2 for my Jelly Roll Sampler 2010 Quilt Along. I can tell you that after the completion of square #1, I could hardly wait for the 2 weeks to go by to see what square #2 was going to look like. This will be a fun summer anticipating what will be happening. For those who don't know what I am talking about check out Moosequilts site. I am sure its not to late to start. You can check out flickr to see what others are doing as well.

ENJOY!

PS: I did see my big oops after I posted the photo here and on flickr. As soon as I saw it, I yanked if apart and its now fix. Just didn't replace the photo before some of you saw it. Now I am too lazy to change the photo!

2010-03-11T07:45:00.000-08:00

For my new Grand-daughter! She is still 4 weeks away from coming but the baby shower for her momma is tonight! It still needs the label made and sewn on the back which I will do today! I have loved this Birdie Fabric from Moda ever since it came out and finally, finally purchased some fabric to border and back the charm pack that I already had. This will be Quilt #46, and I sure hope both Anna and Baby enjoy!

Little applique flowers just like Natalia did on her tutorial!

A little snapshot of the backing!

Enjoy!

2010-03-09T09:37:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone, enter here for a chance to get a bundle of Kona fabrics! Check out her blog too!http://sew-fantastic.blogspot.com/2010/03/giveaway-time-kona-cotton-color-wheel.html

2010-03-07T16:51:00.000-08:00

Here are a few pictures of more of the bags that I sew for friends

The first few pics are for my dog loving friends (if you couldn't tell). One of the photos show the inside pockets where there is 2 of them, one on each side.

Thought I would show you both sides. The dogs are really quite cute. I knew that I loved them when I saw one of them drinking

Pupsi Cola! Pepsi rocks over Coke any day!

She also wanted on for her mother out of blue patchwork.

Hope she likes them.

Enjoy!

2010-03-04T10:10:00.000-08:00

Jelly Roll Sampler Block #1

I am excited about this Quilt Along that I signed up to do. Every 2 weeks another sampler block is posted using the same jelly roll materials. I chose a collection of 1930's that I think will work out very fine. In August, the last of these blocks will be posted and then you have another beautiful quilt. If you are interested. go check out

www.moosequilts.blogspot.com.

The button on my sidebar isn't working right. Still having problems with adding buttons I guess! Enjoy!

2010-03-02T17:28:00.000-08:00

Its all finished!

What do you think?

Heres a couple blocks of my finished "all hand pieced" quilt top! You can sure get a lot done during the Olympics! YEAH! I think I will give myself a "Gold Medal" for doing so much hand stitching during those 2 weeks.

Actually, for clarification, the star blocks were all done and was just sitting in a basket. I just needed the right time to put them all together with Muslim blocks.

Now to put some thought on how I will Quilt this up.

Any suggestions?

2010-02-26T16:21:00.000-08:00

Heres my big accomplishment for the day! I got my garden planted in my new raised garden bed. It amazes me that something so simple as getting a new garden started brings happiness and joy to your heart. I havn't had a garden for a few years and so I am so very excited about this new garden.

During the 1 st watering, I discovered a new little problem. My faucet needs replacing with probably a new washer as well, water was going everywhere.

And, besides veggies, you need a bit of color as well, Here is my new Lantana that will bloom red and yellow all year round.

Good luck little garden. May you bring me squash, chard, lettuce, cucumbers, tomatos and herbs.

Now, back to the quilting!

2010-02-20T12:34:00.000-08:00

Heres an update on the "All Hand Stitched" Quilt Project that I have been working on. It has been put on hold several times because of the weddings but due to the Olympics, I have been able to get a lot more done. I have been able to attach all the blocks together in rows, start the triangle units on the ends and will probably be able to put the rows together. Thanks to the required sit down and watch the Olympics that I enjoy doing! Just can't sit and watch TV with not doing something with my hands.

This Quilt project will be entered in the Arizona State Fair in October if I can get it done before then.

Meanwhile, I still need to finish quilting my Daughters wedding quilt, the only one that I did not get finished before the marriage. A baby quilt for my new grand-daughter thats soon to come. Stuff for my Etsy shop etc etc and etc. The list goes on!!!!!

2010-02-16T20:19:00.000-08:00

A lot of the work I do in sewing is commission work. This is only a part of 50 Privacy Drapes that I am sewing for a Doctors office. Next will be the gown part but I probably won't have to do as many. I have done this before, many years ago, but this time they wanted soft solid colors.

There is something really pretty when you get them all stacked up, so I just had to share them on my blog. Nothing very fancy, but beautiful in their own way.

2010-02-09T08:14:00.000-08:00

Yes I am still here! I wonder where the time has flown too. I admit I have been busy with my daughters wedding, which photos I have still yet to put on my blog and I promise that I will soon, and then just trying to get my house back in order. You all know it takes time, especially when you already work full time and you already have other sewing requests that need to get done.

The house (lol) I don't think that it will ever get "back in order" the way it needs to be, even when you are just down to 1 child left living with you, this place is a mess. Besides who out there knows another person that just married off 5 of their kids in the last 11 months. Lets just say that I am pooped. Photos will come soon, I am excited about showing off the dress that I made for my daughter.

Meanwhile, here is a pic of another bag that I made for my friend Julie for her daughters birthday. She wanted a Vera Bradley Look for a tote, and this is what I made for her.

For some reason, this photo won't zoom in for you, but you get a close up shot from the photo at the beginning of this blog.

Now I am off to make some privacy gowns and lap covers for a doctors office, some mending and finishing the wedding quilt that didn't get down for Karen and Ammons wedding. Tally-Ho!

2010-01-12T20:46:00.000-08:00

Well, I'm just as shock as everyone else about how much time has gone by since my last blog entry.

But as you can see, I havn't had much time to be quilting. My daughter Karen who has been engaged for about 1-1/2 years gentle asked me if it would be okay if they got married in 7 weeks. Since I love her and since I have been patiently wondering when they would finally make a day, I just said "Lets do it". I only have one daughter and its always been a dream of mine to do her wedding dress, so here it is. You will get a chance to see it when she is wearing it, because this doesn't do justice hanging on a hanger. Her wedding gown is actually 2 pieces. The skirt is full with bunching with big pearls attached wear its anchored to an underskirt. The top is gathered on the sides causing it to ripple at her waist.

There is wide lace with pearls attached all around her neck, sleeve arms and all around bottom edge.

What do you think. The wedding is Jan. 29th.

Don't count on to much blogging until after the big day.

I'm excited!!!!!

2009-12-16T19:23:00.000-08:00

Here is the Christmas Project that I've been sewing for my kids for one of their Christmas presents. I actually gave each one of them one on Thanksgiving Day so they could use it before Christmas. Its my Show and Tell that I'm participating in. Every couple got one which excluded my High School Senior, so I got him a case of V-8. Yes that seems pretty weird, doesn't it, but he loves the stuff. I should probable count this as 1 quilt project so it will be Quilt# 45

Go here to see everyones projects this Show and Tell season.

2009-12-04T14:58:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone. Here is what I call one of My Pride & Joy's. I'm really happy about Quilt #44. I hope there is others out there who finds such satisfaction when a quilt is completed. You may recognize this pattern from Gail Pan Designs free Christmas BOM, called A Christmas Wish. Following her blog has set fire to my desire to do some embroidery, which I haven't done in such a long time. I will be doing others.

There was 9 total blocks Here's Love

& Noel

& Peace.

Other blocks were Joy, Delight, Hope, Magic, Merry, & Believe.

Don't you think that all these words represent Christmas just perfectly? I just love what those words mean!

I hope we all can focus on those words as we are hurrying around, doing errands, projects, parties, etc. as we prepare for this holiday season. It'll be comforting to our souls. HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

2009-12-01T07:44:00.000-08:00

Look at what came in the mail yesterday. I won this trio of books from Beth Strub and thequiltladies.com. I started reading them last night after I got home from work and looked at the pattern for the quilt that is included in each one. I suggest you visit the thequiltladies .com website and see these and the rest of the series of 12 in this collection. Thanks again!

2009-11-25T07:54:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving

again!

I just had to throw another picture of my pumpkin babies in before thanksgiving was over.

Hope your Turkey Day is warm and delicious!

2009-11-24T11:19:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving to all my family and friends.

What a year it has been for our family!

*I have 4 new lovely daughter-in-laws, Jodi, Ashlee, Anna and Courtney, who I know will be wonderful for my sons.

*I have a new grandchild coming next year.

*I have a home, car, food on the table and a pretty nice job.

*I luckily have a talent that I can use to make things for either income or just to make someone happy.

*And, I know that I have a Heavenly Father that loves me, who has giving me all that I have, that has been my source of happiness. It is Him that I give all my gratitude to for who I am.

Enjoy the Holiday!

2009-11-20T21:00:00.000-08:00

I sure have been busy lately. With all the holiday stuff I am doing, my friend from work wanted me to make some pillows from a nurse scrub top that she had that she loved the fabric, but didn't want to wear it. So...this is what I came up with. I'm substituting a smaller pillow form that I had so it looks a little floppy but you can get the idea.
Here is some close up's of the individual sun and moon appliqued on a yellow batik.

Sure hope you love it Robbie. Thanks for letting me do this for you.

2009-11-18T20:52:00.000-08:00

I decided to participate in

Since I am already sewing like a mad women for Christmas, I my as well do it.Check this one out. I'll add a photo of my project later because its a surprize and I don't want it known. Later! Click on the button on the sidebar and see whats cooking with this project!

2009-11-18T07:30:00.000-08:00

Here is a quick project for you. Somewhere I got this idea to make little hand towels for Christmas that I could give as little presents and of course for me as well. I have been trying hard to use up the stash of scraps that I have and not spend anymore money. I did buy the hand towels which I got from Target where they were sold in 4 packs and not that expensive. I will admit that they are not the best quality hand towels but they are perfect for the season.
The 4-packs only came in these 3 colors and I was hesitant about the sage green, but you can see that it actually came out just perfect with this little print. Some of my friends who see these photos will recognize some of the fabric from the scrubs that I made for them. And of course, with the quilter in me, I added a little quilting for stabilization and it actually adds to the cuteness! Whats your favorite? My favorite is the green one.

Now I am thinking of the other holidays! Whoa!, I guess I better remember the UFO's that I have first.

Have Fun! and Happy Holidays.

2009-11-12T22:15:00.000-08:00

Yeah!!!!! I received all these disappearing 9 patch squares from my first swap to participate in. I am so excited. Now I get to dream up what I may do with them. I already know that I want to piece with white sashing. Should be lots of fun, especially as I get to see how the other people who joined in do with theirs. I probably won't get to start for a few weeks due to the up coming holidays and other projects that I just have to finish up first, but, as soon as I do, you will be the first to see! See ya!

2009-11-05T15:14:00.000-08:00

Here is the finish Brrrrr Snowman quilt hanging that I started with my Sister Laura's quilt day when I was visiting Pennsylvania in Sept. I had only pieced the top with plans on finishing it here at home. This will be quilt #43! Plus, I can count this as one of my finished UFO's for the Joy in the New Year challenge I joined. Yea!!!!!

Lisa came to Arizona for my son Chase's wedding and we were able to quilt our projects during our relax time. It is always fun to share craft time with sisters. Just wish we didn't live so far away from each other. I hope that maybe I can have opportunities with my other sister Kristin, and all the sister in laws in Utah, Texas. Maybe some day.

2009-11-03T08:44:00.000-08:00

Okay, Here is the biggest reason for the time delay on blogging a post for you. My 5th child - Chase married his sweetheart Courtney last Friday. This is just one photo of all my children, minus my Navy son, and Courtney. We didn't get the best of photos from the camera phone and hopefully I will be adding a more suitable picture of the whole family. It was a beautiful day.

Here are just a few photos of my daughter in law Anne making a surprise quilt for her husband for Christmas and of how my sewing room looks like. I thought I downloaded a photo of the UFOs hanging on hangers but you can see tips of them behind the door frame. I store a lot of the scraps that have been cut in these containers which really make it handy when looking for that particular size. Looking at the photo makes me realize that I really need to organize that closet. You can barely walk in there and you can imagine what it looks like now with all the moving around for wedding preparations

2009-10-24T08:30:00.000-07:00

Here's whats happening at my house. Not much crafting on my part, but a craft it is. These guys are from church and are helping me with the labor for this desperately needed roof. Its very much appreciated in helping me keep the cost down. Thank you, thank you and thank you

The other project I have at my home is this new raised garden bed that my one son is helping me with. It still needs the capstones put on the top and then I'll be ready for the dirt. I look forward to gardening again. I just couldn't get up and down anymore so this will make it much easier. Yeah!!!

2009-10-18T17:10:00.000-07:00

When I do a lot of cutting out fabrics I usually throw the usable scraps in a basket for sorting out later. When the basket is full, its time for me to sort, cut and divide the scraps for later scrappy quilting. It occurred to me that maybe I should have a scrappy quilt that I want to do and then cut out for that as I go. Put the rest in divided categories as I usually do and then I would have a project ready to go already cut. Well, this is the box full of the pieces cut and stack just perfectly and

this is the pattern that I am working from. 70 Scrappy stars total

This is the first of those stars ready to go. I figure that this will be one of those projects that I work on here and there, in between other projects.

2009-10-17T19:16:00.000-07:00

Okay everyone. I am celebrating! this is the last of 25 blocks on my hand pieced project.Its almost completed! Its been fun especially after each square is completed. Now I look forward to putting it together with some plain squares, sandwiching the quilt and Yes, I plan on hand quilting it. I hope it will be awesome!

2009-10-05T19:28:00.000-07:00

The past couple of days I have been sick with a horrendous head cold, so with that and that conference was on t.v., I've managed to hand piece a couple more of these blocks that I have been working on for the last 1-1/2 years. I only have a couple more blocks to go out of 25 and then I will be able to piece them with plain blocks for my quilt. The goal is to have this quilt finished by Oct. next year for the Arizona State Fair. It has taken me a lot more time then I originally planned due to all the weddings my family has blessed me with.

As I go back and review some of the 1st ones finished I see remarkable improvement. The decision to tear them out and redo them is still a decision I am battling with.

I was also very excited to find Gail Pans free BOM for Christmas embroidery blocks. I originally over sized the blocks because I was afraid of tightening up the fabric with the stitches. I need to cut them down to 5 inch squares and then do the quilt work. Another WIP. Hopefully I'll finished before the Christmas season

I am still learning all the ins and outs with blogging and I wish that I could "click here" on the site for you, but you can find here at gailpandesigns.typepad.com If you go there, you will be able to see what other people are doing with their's. Its a very easy project to do and needless to say, it has excited me into doing other embroidery quilts.

Any suggestions for where to go to learn how to manage my blogsite?

2009-09-29T12:18:00.000-07:00

Blogging is fairly new to me and one of the things I have discovered while checking out other quilt bloggers is this thing called "Block Swaps" Intriguing! I decided that I would like to be a part of one, but the trick is to find one before it fills up! Well with a beginner's eagerness, I found one via another blogger and quickly signed up.

I am proud to say that I am #88 out of 100 participants in the Aqua and Red Disappearing 9-Patch Block Swap. I'm laughing out loud at how silly I get with this little excitement, but there must be other quilters out there who can understand me.

Here's a picture of my Disappearing 9-patch blocks.

Another blogger mentioned that it was surprising at how difficult it was to find Aqua color fabric. I agree. The Aqua color is easier to see if you blow up the picture.

I wonder how many blocks I will receive with matching fabrics.

Now for the pondering on how I will put together the finished project.

2009-09-26T16:55:00.000-07:00

During my trip to Pennsylvania, My sisters Laura arranged for a little traditional quilting fun. This photo is of my sisters Laura, Lisa and myself.

We have been doing this for 3-4 years now and it has become such a cherish time for us. It gives us a chance to learn from each other as well as strengthen us as sisters who unfortunately have to live so far away from each other. How grateful I am for them and also for this small yet significant new tradition we have.

Here we are in action, along with a new quilting friend Kate with her daughter Josie. Laura arrange tables where we could face each other as we sewed. It was fun to be able to watch each of us as we took little changes in color, placement to suit our taste. And of course to watch each other as we talk, share laughs and smiles.

We only had the better part of the morning and early afternoon for our get together but "ta da" this is the project that we work on. Mine is squished up between 2 sewing machines with the buttons laying on top. Its not quilted yet, but when it is, I'll post another post for you.

I plan on hanging it outside my front door this Winter. I think most of us were so excited about this cute snowman, that a lot of our doors will be adorned by him. I brought enough scraps home that I plan on making more, which some additions from my own fabric stash.

I do have to make a confession. I left with one suitcase and came home with two. Whats up with that? Yep, more fabric. But, I know you will understand. How can someone pass up a good sale. Unfortunately, a quilt shop owner in my sister's community has had to close her doors and I was one of the lucky ones to acquire some beautiful fabrics for a very good price. May her dreams come true as she works on establishing another store.

2009-09-26T16:30:00.000-07:00

Time flies in blogger land. I can't believe that it is already Sept. 26 and 16 days since I last blogged. I suppose I can give myself credit for the last 9 days in which I took a much needed trip to visit my son Stephen and his wife Jodi down in Mississippi and then up to Pennsylvania to see my two sisters Laura and Lisa. Here are just a few photos, not much to show all that happen, just the highlights. One day we drove down the highway along the gulf and stopped to take photos of these wooden sculptures. The sculptures are works of art performed by a man using the trees that were uprooted and damaged from Hurricane Katrina 4 years ago. This bird one was rather striking because each bird is sculpted from a different branch of the tree as it splits off. These sculptures are all located in the island of the highway as you travel up and down the coast.

This second photo is Stephen and Jodi in New Orleans. A little day trip that we took. We visited the French Quarter and because it was so humid, my hair was all plastered down so therefore you don't get to see a picture of me.

My photos are out of order - oops!

In this one Stephen, Jodi and I are standing in front of a seahorse, another one of the sculpted trees. Its hard to visualize because we are standing in a odd spot.

2009-09-10T21:53:00.000-07:00

These are the photos for my wedding quilt for my son Chase and his fiance Courtney. They are to be married Oct. 30th, but the bridal shower is this Saturday, and its usually its at the bridal shower that I give them this gift. This is quilt # 41 and I'll be starting quilt #42 pretty shortly for the next child of mine to be married this year. These weddings have been keeping me quite busy this year. Its been a delite, especially with the quilt making. I sure hope Chase and Courtney like it. I think they will.

This pattern just came out in the American Patchwork & Quilting Aug. 2009 issue. My photos don't do justice compared to the photos in the magazine. When you pull up a close up on this photo you can see my ever learning machine quilting. I don't use a giant long-arm with my quilts. I have often thought of maybe someday purchasing one, but I have mixed emotions about my own ability to maneuver the quilt on my mega-quilter over the computer controlled designs. The long-arm does have its advantages, but because I don't have money or space I guess I'll side with trying to strengthen my own skills on my old faithful machine.

With this close-up, you can see that its a great pattern for using up a lot of your scrappy leftovers. I'm convinced that scrappy never has to look like leftovers. Hope you enjoy!

P.S. - if you see Courtney before the Bridal Shower, Don't tell her!

2009-09-03T17:55:00.000-07:00

I decided to make my granddaughter some big blocks for her 1st birthday. She is 14 months here and she is able to grab on to them and usually just throws them around. Her Dad is here helping her with building this tower. She is just so cute and its such a joy watching her grow. I just love being a grandmother. The blocks were pretty easy to make. I can imagine making pretty swirlly, pocka-dot, multi-colored blocks. That would be fun, maybe I will do that in the future.

Meanwhile, I have been very busy making bags. Just finished a couple of scrub tops for nurses at work and preparing to finish a quilt for my son Chase's finance bridal shower next week. Lots to do. This will be wedding #4 for the year. My daughter will be a couple months later. Soon I will post pictures of her dress that- yes I am making and is turning out very pretty. I am happy that she is pleased with the results. You'll be able to see photos of those soon.

Another project will be starting in 2010. Since this year has been quite a hectic year with a total of 5 weddings etc, my house is in deep need of purging. Closets that have stuff that I don't have any idea of whats hidden in the back, Cabinets with old sheets from way long yesteryear from kids growing and leaving the house. So each month I will pick a area that needs deep cleaning and just go for it. Purge, donate or just throw away.

How funny it is that my craft/sewing room is probable the most organized. Is that a sign of a true Procraftinator? lol Wish me luck!

2009-08-06T21:07:00.000-07:00

I've been making more Bags! I will go in spells making serveral, go on to do some quilting and then back to bags. Actually I make them for serveral of my friends who buy them which helps with my income.

A BIG THANK YOU to all my friends!

2009-08-01T19:28:00.000-07:00

A couple of new tote bags. One for my daughter and one for Me! Think that I will make a few more!

2009-08-01T19:23:00.000-07:00

Heres a project that I have been working on for about 1- 1/2 years. My sister in law Elaine has made several quilts all my hand and has inspired me to make one for myself.

So far, I have 21 of 25 squares done. It has been a great car project and great in front of the T.V. as well.

No doubt I probably won't get much more done till after the next two weddings.

2009-08-01T19:08:00.000-07:00

Its been a busy summer! Like I have mentioned in other posts I have had a lot of my children get married this year. Three so far for the year 2009, and I have 2 more! One in October and 1 in December.

Heres a photo of my son and his bride with all the bridemaids. I made all the skirts which wasn't hard to do, it was just 6 of them, 2 of them maternity.

I also made my other daughter in laws wedding dress. I need get a hold of a photo and I'll post that as well.

My daughter Karen, whose wedding is in Dec., dress in half way done. I am excited about this dress. Its a beauty! You can see how busy I am.

2009-06-22T21:19:00.000-07:00

This quilt is the 3rd wedding quilt that I have made this year. I felt a little rushed getting all of these done, and I think I'll be doing another one a little later on in the year.
My son Michael and his wife Anna received this quilt. I really enjoyed making this quilt from lots of leftover pink and brown fabrics from other projects. This pattern I copied from a mailer that came to my house. I just used graph paper and played around with dimensions untill I got the size that I wanted. Quilt #41

As with all the other married sons that have received quilts, I sure hope they get many good years with them. Can't wait till I can make more baby quilts!

2009-06-22T20:49:00.000-07:00

Quilt #40 is probably the largest quilt that I have made. Its 99"x 99" square, machined pieced and machine quilted. I made this humongous quilt for my Son Brian and his wife for a wedding gift. Ashlee is really into polka dots, so many of the fabrics involved here incorporate the dot theme together. Each of the blocks is a 1/4 of a log cabin square.

2009-06-21T22:14:00.000-07:00

Quilt #38 was a wedding gift for my son Stephen and his wife Jodi. It was meant to be larger, but it sure makes a good one for snuggling. I think that I fell in love with Batiks with this quilt, only the cream in the background wasn't batik. This quilt has lots of greens and purples in it, just right for her eggplant and sage green wedding colors.

2009-06-21T22:03:00.000-07:00

Last July I was blessed with my first grandchild. Her name is Esther. She is the joy in both her mom & dads life and in mine. Anyways, Quilt #35 was for her. Before I even knew she was to come, I found this paper pieced pattern at a local quilt shop and had to have it. Shortly after that the news that my son and his wife were expecting was announced. Ann has always loved Pandas and so it was decided that the theme for the baby's room would be just that. I knew I had the pattern! Yeah. She is just about to turn 1 and she sure is a cutie.

2009-06-21T21:55:00.000-07:00

It has become sort of a tradition now that we try to make something, small or large, when we travel out to each others home. Sometimes it just not feasible, but when that happens, we at least get in a little shopping at local quilt store. My sisters Laura and Lisa live out in Pennsylvania. On this occasion we started making this tulip applique panel. We each ended up doing something different with that panel. Mine ended up in another curtain quilt for the springtime. My profile picture is from this same sister's craft time. Quilt #34

2009-06-21T21:51:00.000-07:00

My sister Laura and I got together and made these little snowman quilts. Mine was designed so it would act as a curtain for my carport door. This quilt was the motivation for me to create other Curtain quilts for other seasons of the year. Quilt #33

2009-06-21T21:43:00.000-07:00

My sister Lisa got Quilt #32 for Christmas. I hope she likes it. I love red white and blue. Red White and Blue don't neccesarily have to be patriotic for these colors to work. Hope she is snuggling with it right now.

2009-06-21T21:31:00.000-07:00

A few years back rag quilts really became popular. Denim has always been popular and has been a fabric other then cottons that I really like. Old ragged soft denim. I can think of lots of projects to use denim with. Wish I had more time! This quilt #16 of course was made with total scraps. Some of which is donated by others who "Spring Clean" their closets and donates them to me. I admit, I do pass on donations to others but a lot of them get put into my own closet.

Remember my post on the pillows. Well this is the quilt that I made for my son Brandon and his wife Ann's marriage. This has been used so much that I have been told that it is now "retired" for safe keeping. Its a beautiful quilt. this was Quilt #14.

2009-06-21T21:26:00.000-07:00

I lot of my quilts come from patterns that I get from subscription magazines that I receive in the mail. One year it had a article about patriotism and a project that a lot of people were making patriotic quilts and this was the featured item she shared with the magazine. So of course I made one. Once in awhile I'll hang it up outside so it can flow with the breeze, but most of the time it stays inside. Quilt #13

2009-06-21T21:17:00.000-07:00

More photographs photos! Quilt #17 is a baby quilt that I made for my Brother Johns 1st child. I did sneak in some poly cotton on this quilt and learned very quickly that I didn't like that. I'll stick to cottons from now on.

Quilt #12 is probable not worth showing you. The glare is very bad. Never-the-less, this baby quilt was for my Brother Joe and his wife Elaine,s baby son Atticus.

Quilt #11. This quilt was a gift for my son's good friend James when he got married. Its hard to see the colors on this quilt as well. The colors were lavendar and sage green inter mixed with cream blocks. James by the way makes great pizza!

2009-06-21T21:09:00.000-07:00

Quilt #10. This quilt sometimes hangs on my wall year round. I intended it to be up for just the Christmas holiday, and replace it with something else for the rest of the year, but it seems to fit and so it stays.

I watched a quilting show on t.v. when they started displaying the patterns measurements for this quilt on the screen. I was frantically scribbling down on a peice of paper because I didn't know and I wasn't prepared to do this. I remember having to look up the episode on the computer to search out the rest of the instructions that I couldn't get. lol

2009-06-21T21:00:00.000-07:00

Yep - more photos of photographs. Quilt #7 is a table runner that I did make 2 of. One for my brother John and his wife for a wedding gift. You probably have noticed that I like to make in duplicates so that I can keep one myself. Once I do make a quilt, I like to go on to another "quest" and don't like to start over and do another identical one. Its better for me to sew in quantities at the same time.

Quilt #9 - This quilt was made for my son Brian. After tying quilts for the other ones, He was wondering when he would get His quilt. So. I thought let me try to make an Arizona Diamondback Quilt for his favorite team. I was totally making this pattern up. Brian helped with the design of the "A" and this quilt was the 1st attempt that I did at free-motion maching quilting. Boy, have I had to learn a lot about maching quilting. But it was a start, and thats what it is all about.

2009-06-21T20:57:00.000-07:00

This quilt is also very special to me. It was my very first quilt pass the beginning stages and hand quilted. I keep this lap size quilt on my bed to take naps with. Quilt #4.

2009-06-21T20:32:00.000-07:00

OK, at the beginning of this blog, I talked about starting off with the beginnings. My intention was to start blogging about those first quilts and go somewhat in a chronicle order. I ended up not doing that because the excitement in starting to blog was basically "impressive to me" that I was able to do it in the 1st place, that I immediately jumped in and started posting all the photos that I had handy.

Well here it is folks. QUILT #1 - Christmas patchwork, tied quilted. Quilt #2 was a turquoise colored patchwork that I had my son Dallin help tie. Quilt #3 is the strawberry,mint green railroad patch and likewise, had my daughter Karen help tie for her bed. Skip #4 and with Quilt #5, the Blue and Big Red stars, tied, for my son Chase. These quilts were when the kids were 6 or so years younger and helping with the tying was much easier to coax them into. I just wanted to practice with the blocking and 1/4 seams etc, plus I was always wanting to get them to learn a little about sewing just for their own benefit.

Now the embarrassing part is that I actually photoed real photographs just for the sake of getting them on this blog site.

2009-06-21T16:01:00.000-07:00

My son Chase served in the South Africa Cape Town Mission as a missionary. While there, he sent home a large piece of fabric that had about 6 different panels of African animals. Held on to it for a long time trying to decide what kind of quilt I could make with it. Close to the time he was to be coming home I chanced upon a quilting pattern that was just perfect I chose a lot of batiks, and African style prints and did sort of a Stack and Whack for the center. I then broke up the panels and border all around it. I gave this to him for his 1st Christmas home as a token of his missionary service in South Africa. One fun thing for me was that I was asked to have this quilt put on display at a Quilting Display at the Gilbert Museum. Kind of a Honor for me. Quilt #37

2009-06-21T15:53:00.000-07:00

These are just a few color combinations of quilted purses that I made. I love the large capacity and also love the comments I get from people while shopping. This was quilt project #39 a,b,c etc

2009-06-19T21:15:00.000-07:00

I made a couple of these pillows for my son Brandon and his wife Ann for Christmas. The purpose of these pillows was to go along with the quilt that I had made for their wedding. The photo of that quilt is ?, but it contained the same fabrics and design that is here on the pillows. Quilt project #26

2009-06-19T21:09:00.000-07:00

My son Brian had a very good friend, Robert, that I made this quilt for his wedding. I was trying to make it romantic! I think his wife thought it more romantic then he did.

This quilt had a large center square in the other wise typical log cabin. If you look closely, you can see the puffed heart created in each square. Quilt #27

2009-06-19T21:06:00.000-07:00

This flag quilt was project #7, and again, using lots of scraps.

2009-06-19T20:59:00.000-07:00

One year I decided to do Nativity projects for Christmas gifts. I paper peiced the pillow and the wall hanging, and of course I had to keep one of each for myself. And just in case you are following, these projects were Quilt projects #24 & 25