scrappy bits...

Rain, rain, rain...got to love it! We have had a really dry end of summer so the past few days have filled the water barrels and cleared the air. All good.
It also gave me time to work on my crab tree quilt (Leaders and Enders, by Bonnie Hunter.)
Once the stack of 9-patches was made the trees went together pretty quickly...as quickly as 1-1/2 inch squares can that is! I used a variety of yellow to orange cornerstones, 25 different greens for the trees, 24 browns for the trunks, three different beige fabrics for the setting triangles, maroon for the sashing, double pink for the inner-border, and pink and maroon plaid for the outer-border. I think I am safe in calling this a scrap quilt....Needless to say we are finding 9-patches under every chair and in every corner or the house...Brownie even seems to think she can pull them out of the quilt-top - yikes! I better get those last two borders on soon so I can quilt it and keep those blocks safe....

A quick thank-you to the American Quilters Society for naming my blog the quilting blog of the week! My first reaction was "wow, they really like me!" Then I remembered it was a random drawing and it became "wow, I'm really lucky!" What-ever...it is all good!

Speaking of drawings...I am closing in on a couple of milestones (number of posts and number of followers and number of clean square feet in my sewing room) so watch for a drawing soon....

New things...

Usually I stay pretty traditional but when my friend Margaret (SCQuiltaddict) offered to show me how use inks on fabric I remembered my goal to try new things this year....

Margaret has been working with a local artist, Jefferey Callahan, and with his permission we used some of his sketches. He does great southern scenes. Cool...even I can color inside the lines!

It think the goal was for them to find out what they need to teach the totally artistically challenged and I sure fit the bill. For instance...shading...there is no shading in quilt piecing! At least not in my quilts! So I learned a lot and I think Maggie learned that maybe there are some folks out there that could a lesson or two (or a book!) before tackling this!
I was surprised how much fun I had with the project...time flew. Still need to piece some borders but that is something I can do with no stress! (ok, maybe just a little...but in a good way!) then some thread-painting (duh, there is real I-am-trying-new-stuff-stress there!) Good thing is it is a small enough project that I can work on without having try and stand or walk too much right now.
And a quick report on my guild's donation quilt...we drew last weekend at Arts in the Heart (booth photo above) so Cora Lee's Orchard is going to her new home. We raised over $3,000 for Camp Rainbow, a Camp for Children with Cancer. Our next quilt, Vintage Southern, is being quilted this week. So we need to start another one...takes almost a year to get them done!

Short vacation

My DH and I had big plans for this week. We booked a cabin in North Carolina, made reservations for a horseback trek, and mapped out several antique stores. Well....

We had made a stop at a Diner in South Carolina along the way and their star specialty of onion sausage tasted really good but....need I say more? I only ever got to see the cabin....and only vaguely remember that!

OK, maybe not that bad but we did come back early. My big excitement was a brief stop at a roadside stand to buy bags of apples and a pumpkin (and almost perfect pumpkin!) The apple orchards around Hendersonville are really nice. We did stop quickly there and I got to gimp around one antique store in town that had some really nice quilts...can you believe I was too worn out to even buy one? You know I was hurting!
Anyway, I am doing better today and plan to put in my hours at our guild booth at the local arts show. We are selling tickets for our donation quilt and trying to find or create new quilters.

Do you belong to a guild? Do you find that sometimes you love it and other times you wonder why you bother? I am sort of in the latter phase right now...sometime it just reminds me of the scene from Galaxy Quest when they land on a moon and see the wounded alien miner....(yes, I am a geek and only geeks will get the reference!)

Ironing board blues....

Been playing in fabric a lot since Bonnie's lecture last week. Not getting a whole lot accomplished other than cutting up lots of scraps and "organizing" them. I now have a lot of 1-1/2 inch strips and squares so started a tree quilt from Bonnie's Leaders and Enders book. Several of the folks in my guild are going to make this quilt so I may have a chance to trade scraps and make it even scrappier!
A delayed thanks to Kate at Empty Field for the fabric she sent me! She had a contest to name her new featherweight...and it just looked like an Elvis to me. She agreed and now I have some fabric to introduce to the stash!

Today I am ironing backings...loads of backings. No need to go to the gym as my arms and back are getting workout! I love using a solid piece backing but it is so heavy to get from the washer to the dryer and across the ironing board....I need to finish the one for our donation quilt and maybe one other before my DH complains about having the ironing basket so full and realizes it is all fabric (with maybe one shirt of his at the bottom!)
The second backing is for a birthday quilt several of us made for my friend Paula. OK it isn't really a quilt yet...we did get the top done in time! The pumplins and the leave are just so autumn. The pattern was from a magazine out this past summer...

Blogger is being difficult with posting photos today so guess I better just get back to the ironing....

Bonnie's Trunkshow

My guild was lucky to have Bonnie Hunter (one of our members from long ago!) present her trunk show at our Fall combined meeting. We may have set a record for attendance at this one! We have about 100 members and about 65 were on hand for the meeting...not bad!
Bonnie gave an inspiring talk on how she goes about planning her quilts and using her scraps.And as always it was fun to see her quilts in person...and she brings a lot of quilts!
We also asked members to bring quilts that were from Bonnie's books, website or just inspired by her scrap system.Show and tell was a lot of fun...
enough so that folks didn't complain about lunch being late! And that my friends is saying something!

Adopting leaves...

A whole week went by without posting...I knew it had been crazy but that crazy!I have been working on my leftover quilt...adding these orphan leaves and a border and calling it a day...maybe!
As I cut the first quilt I sort the leftover bits into several bags. First I cut the remaining strips into either 2-1/2 or 3 inch squares.Remaining pieces larger than 1 inch square go into the bag for random scrap piecing...and the pieces that are truely "scraps" are used to stuff pillows for the pets. As Macbeth gets older he needs more comfy places to nap...
Goldie just takes over the chairs in the Dining Room (sometimes sewing room since it gets such great light!) So I guess it is safe to say that the scrap bag is sort of like the sourdough bin on my counter...take out some then add a bit and it just seems to keep on growing!
Also finished up a small Amish influenced wall hanging. I have some thin perle cotton that I am going to use to hand quilt it...I need a low vision haul around project....behind the "amish" quilt is the batik scrappy bargello I am making for a local soldier (he likes purple and Hawaiian shirts!)

A lot of time was spent working on a mystery quilt...not a real mystery quilt...just one I can't post on the internet for a few more weeks...

Little Leftover Quilt...

Playing in the leftovers was fun...a bit addictive even. Last night I sewed the strips together and told myself to "back away from the scrap pile!"
This is what I finally finished (for now) using the scraps. Not quite big enough for a baby quilt...too big for a table topper...hummm, maybe just aadd few borders or use it as a medallion to anchor some orphan blocks....
On the pet front...Macbeth is doing better. I think having Graybeard the cat around is helping. Mac checks the windows four or five times a day to keep an eye on his nemesis...the activity is good for him.(Who knows what that cat could have done while Mac was taking his bath!)
Even if it wears him out sometimes....

Left-overs

My most recent quilt top has left an avalanche of left-over bits all over my cutting table/dining-room table. Lots of 1-3/4 inch strips, 3 inch strips, 3 inch (unfinished) four-patches and HST's....hummmmm...it looks like fun!
First, I used a lot of fabrics. Some of the scraps didn't even make it into the blocks! My "process" for the original blocks was to focus on each one separately and not to worry if it would "go" with the rest. When cutting the fabrics I would often cut two components (like a couple of 4-3/4 inch squares to use in the large HST and a couple of 1-3/4 inch strips to use for the four patches.) It helps on folding and putting away time but does create more left-overs. And since these aren't sizes that I use in my scrap "system" I figured I better do something with them now...These are the layouts I have been playing with....

a. basic four-patch alternating with a scrappy patch on point....
b. put the little four patches together and make a larger 4-patch out of the 3 inch squaresc. or maybe a scrappy sashing with the 3-inch squares
d. or make a alternate block and sort of make a chain (saw something like this in blogdom today but can't remember where...my apologies! Also after taking these photos I spent a bit more time at the ironing board!)
On the pet front...Mac is doing ok. He and Graybeard haven't come to an understanding yet but in a way it is helping Mac...keeps him on his toes! Graybeard on the other hand is looking so much better than when he showed up in our yard all skinny and beaten up. He even purrs now when I pet him. On the sad side, neighbors tell me occasionally he still goes to his old home and cries by the front door...

Cat and quilt guilt...

My cat Brownie was gone but is back again... but all of that made the last 24 hours a bit tense.
Urggggg....she slipped out which isn't all that unusual but when she didn't come back within the next hour - then couple of hours- then the next morning. Needless to say I didn't sleep much. I got up this morning searched the neighborhood (again) then printed out "lost cat" posters using the photo on the top.

About noon I got a phone call from a really nice painter who spoke almost no english however my high school Spanish kicked in enough for me to figure out he had my cat and my cat was sick. Long story short they are working on a empty house a few doors up the street and she got into the garage without the workmen knowing. Luckily today he was back this afternoon to check on paint job. The heat was over 100 and she was really dehydrated and scared. So today I am staying close to home to keep an eye on her.
To make matters worse I was feeling really guilty for having yelled at her just before she went missing. I was laying the quilt out on the floor and she was "stealing" blocks and hiding them. (which by the way is why I made 21 blocks instead of 20 and have a stack of 2-1/2 inch squares for corner-stones...she likes little squares!) On top of that she and Goldie were block surfing (run really fast then jump on a block and surf across the rug...) So I guess she will be spoiled the next few days as much to heal my conscience as to make her better...
Besides recreating the vintage block we have also finished the top for our guild's donation quilt. (Blackbird Designs: Simply Vintage) Lots of folks worked on this but as the quilt-mom I felt very nervous about getting it done in time! Now to just get the darn thing quilted (have a volunteer to bind it...insert happy dance her since I dislike binding so much!)

All it took...

With my DH away on a golfing outing this weekend I had lots of time to work of the sewing room...but did I? Ten minutes into the digout I found a vintage block that had fallen off my inspiration board. That is all it took...
It was time for a break anyways right? And drafting the block is as good as Suduko for exercising the "little brain cells." (I do my blocks the old fashioned way with graph paper, a ruler, pencil and an eraser...)

And well then I need to make up a test block to check my math....
Maybe I will change up the fabrics a bit...
OK, so now it is Monday and all I have done in my "organize the sewing room closet quest' is pick up this one block. But I now have a dozen of these blocks that hopefully will be made into a quilt and not just fodder for the UFO pile....

I did do a few other things...appliqued a few more leaves on my guild's donation quilt (which is so close to being done!)...made a big pot of corn chowder using lots of fresh corn from the farmer's market which I served to some fellow quilters on Saturday with melon salad and cherry coffee cake (I'm living off of leftovers still which means I have more stitching time....)

This morning I have to go to the Y but after my "balance" class I promise to empty that closet...unless of course I find another block....

ps...the pincushion and luggage tag in the photo on the top of this post are gifts from a quilting buddy's Mom. Aren't they cute! And things I can sure use!

Goals and such...

It has been hot...hot...hot here in sunny, humid, sticky Georgia so I've been spending lots of time fussin' around the quilt room but not getting a whole lot done. I have however spent a lot of time thinking and planning....
On the quilting front I played with some orphan blocks left over from my Moda phase. (Do you find you go through "phases" where you use a lot of one line or type of fabric then move on...I made three or four quilts from these pink, brown, green and red Modas. I must still love them since I can't seem to part with the scraps!)
I've had this little scottie dog figure on my shelf for years and had the brainstorm of adding a little wool pincushion to his basket...a perfect place for my needle while I am working. Can't tell you how many needles I've "lost" in the regular pincushions....
I'm gradually pulling out the projects from the sewing room and making a list of what I need/want to finish, boxing up ones that I "may do," and putting the "what was I thinking" projects into bags for our next guild sale.

Now a little non-quilt musings...for the past few months I have been going to a really good physical therapist. Besides the fact he looks a lot like a young Robert Conrad (think Wild Wild West original TV Series...) with a Ukrainian accent...he is also very philosophical in his approach to PT.

A few weeks ago he asked me why I fight having MS. It struck me as a really dumb comment and I must have given him one of "those" looks. "You Americans want everything to be perfect and if not you fight it or ignore it...why don't you just accept and work with it." Coming from a man with a 24 inch waist who didn't come to work one day because he has a pimple on his nose this was pretty funny...but it did get me thinking.

My initial approach to MS was an all out battle...I was determined not to change my behavior at all. And how did that work out for me? Not good. I had repeated episodes and my life was pretty much in chaos since day to day my physical capabilities were all over the place.

So change to "I accept I have MS and I am going to fix it!" So I went in search of the magic formula of medications, meditations, nutrients and exercise. Think of Type A personality in search of the Holy Grail, Fountain of Youth or the perfect little back dress....I'm not sure who I drove crazy first: my doctor, my husband, or me. (They both claim the honors.)

What I did not change however was my image of what success would be...this is where that Type A thing becomes a problem. I'm not going to ever be the athlete I was while in the military, nor wear a size 6 (or even an 8!) and I'm certainly not going to stitch another Baltimore Album Quilt but in the past f my MS cure didn't get me to those goals I was moving on to the next "cure."

And when I looked over my turning 50 goals there all those perfect things were just waiting to be abandoned....So I am revamping my list to being more experience vs end result. For instance I am changing my "be able to walk two miles in under 24 minutes" to "participate in PT or modified cardio-aerobics 3 times a week." Instead of "win a ribbon at the next guild show" it is "sign up to do quilt appraisals at the quilt show."

Being less competitive and participative...my new matra...if I only could say it three times quickly....

Pre-clean and sorta flat

I know I am not the only one who cleans the house before the maid-service comes over....in that same vein I am now de-cluttering my sewing room a bit before having some help come in to work on a better plan for the closet.
So as I de=cluttered I also found some projects that weren't quite UFO's...more like DFI (delayed for inspiration....)First was my take on V's (Bumblebeans) waverunner project. This was a lot of fun but as it grew it started taking on a life of it's own. I swear if I even looked at this it stretched out of shape. Ya, I know it is supposed to be liberated but I just wanted it to be sort of flat...that isn't asking too much is it?

Yesterday I did a bit of work...trimming here, inserting a bit there, using an entire bottle of Mary Ellen's Best Press and lo and behold - I pretty sure if I get is basted quickly I can "quilt out" any fullness. (That is my definition of "sorta flat...")
I confess however to being a border person and so kept looking at it this morning and thinking what if? So instead of cleaning like I planned...I put on this Gwen inspired border. I used 5 different grays...I didn't even know I had 5 grays! (BTW...the borders are on the bottom and left sides of the quilt...cannot get this to load correctly and I have run out of time and patience!)The photo above is another "unearthed" project...I was trying to use up some of the batiks that have been "aging" in the stash. This is one of Bonnie Hunter's patterns...Scrappy Trip Around the World.And then there was this...one of the antique/vintage liberated type blocks that were hiding in the muslin.....I remember putting this block on my design board when I challenged myself to be "free-er" in my use of stripes. It helped!

Not so nice...

I know there are a lot of Gwen Marston fans out there so I thought I would pass one bit I learned while at Knoxville.
A year or so ago Gwen self published this book. It is also available from Amazon but what you get isn't really the same book. What, you ask? The book you get from Gwen is on beautiful, heavy glossy paper which allows you to appreciate the photos right down to the quilting stitches. The book from Amazon is on a lighter, duller paper which distorts to colors and makes most of the quilting disappear. Since this is primarily an quilting inspirational book the Amazon copy is a washout.

I am posting a review on Amazon today but thought it was best to let ya'll know. Generally I am a big Amazon fan. On this one however they really dropped the ball....take the time to opt for the original....

Donation quilt deadlines...

Where is the time going? In only one week it will be August and that my friends is the deadline for having my guild's 2011 donation quilt top finished! Whoops....
So after spending way too much time in the doctor's office yesterday to get more and better drugs for my eyes I came home and got the courage up to lay the donation quilt blocks out on the bed...Now I love applique but the scariest moment in quilting has to be squaring up the blocks...eakkkkkk. Just think of it - hours and hours of work goes into each of these blocks and for the next couple of moments all that work will be at the mercy of my rotary cutter.
I have only ever made a "squaring-up-error" once...but that "error" was on a Baltimore Album block (which became 1 inch too thin) and has stayed with me for a long time. The "measure twice cut once" mantra has become "measure twice...get more coffee...measure and mark again...take a deep breath...get another pair of glasses...check the measurements...then cut...say a prayer...check to see if the block is the right size...if so, do a happy dance"...then repeat the entire sequence (with perhaps a glass of wine somewhere in the middle of the project....)
Each block was made by a different quilter in the guild and I am happy to say only one leaf and one bud needed to be moved. Phew. One quilter ran into some health problems with only a couple of stars left to put on so this morning that block will be handed off to another volunteer. If I don't have it together by the first of August the first week of August is a definite possibility....
This quilt design is from Simply Vintage by Alma Allen and Cherie Ralston of Blackbird Designs and used for the charity project with their approval. It is a good design for a group project since some blocks are very involved but other very accessible for new appliquers. Most of the fabric came from various members stashes and leftovers from a donation quilt made a few years ago. (We have found that applique quilts tend to raise more money than our pieced ones...just a local observation!) The donations go to Camp Rainbow, a summer camp run by the Medical Center of Georgia for children with critical illnesses.

Now off to try a new recipe for an upside down fig cake! A guild member brought a huge basket of figs from her tree to bee...Years ago I had a great cake somewhere in the Med (think it was Malta?) and am trying to recreate it...wish me luck!