whoops....

I've been bad about posting the past couple of weeks...computer problems. I kept getting dropped off the internet - wicked frustrating. I could read and/or answer about a half dozen emails at a time then bonk...have to go back to the beginning. Grrrrr....

Anyway we are back on the internet superhighway (as opposed to the unpaved driveway I was limping along for the past couple of weeks.) Ended out it was an electrical issue...less than $20 to fix...and here I was ready to buy a new computer!

The quilt above is our latest donation quilt. Each year my guild makes a quilt to raise money for Camp Rainbow - a camp for critically ill children run by Children's Medical Center. This year's quilt is a pattern by Piece of Cake Designs and done in a wide range of calicoes and batiks. It is very pretty. I appliqued the cherry block that is the second down on the right side.

(the top photos is yet another quilt from our show last month...love how this one photographs!)

finish it?

I haven't sewn much this week...lots of looking at quiltbooks, did a demo for the quilt guild, and folded lots of fabric (how does it get onto the floor in the sewing room?) Oh ya...the cats....

Found this little (8-inches by 8-inches total) blue drunkards path that I made almost 15 years ago! It was tucked in with Album blocks that didn't make the cut for my first album quilt.

After our quilt show I am sort of just putzing with my quilting...tired I guess. I don't want to jump in and finish stuff right now. Much rather look at patterns, audition fabric, and just zone a bit....I do have to get my act together on my Christmas projects though. I have about 6 bags cut out and cluttering up the kitchen table and a couple of notebook covers that just need bindings...now I just need to get a "finish it" rush...do you think it is in the Eggnog?

FW update...

Last weekend I sat with some quilting friends and watched a DVD by David McClallum on how to care for my feather-weight sewing machine. It was really good. One of the parts I was particularly interested in was how to get rid of the FW case smell...So for the past couple of days I have followed his directions. They do work but I learned a few things along the way.....
First, putting together the light to go inside is really easy - toughest part was stripping the wires for which I had to dig through my beading supplies. Parts cost less than $8 at the home improvement center (I had a 150 watt bulb on hand as well as some scrap wood.) All good....

Second, the inside of your FW case looks much worse in bright sunlight then in the semi-cave-like depths of the sewing closet. How embarrassing is this! In the past I have done all the FW case tips like spritzing with Lysol, putting soap inside, putting it out in sunlight - all sort of work. McCallum says the smell is primarily cause because the glue used was horse glue which leads to bacteria and mold (all that organic stuff....) Since so many folks have emailed or commented on their issues with the smell then maybe it isn't solely FW abuse on my part...phew.

Third, well I almost got this step right. A 150 watt bulb generates a lot of heat. I put the case on the tiles in front of my fireplace (which also happens to be near the kitchen fire-extinguisher.) Thankfully it was by the back door as well because when that case heated up boy did it stink! I mean really STINK....I turned out the overhead fan, the kitchen fan and sprayed lots of de-stinking stuff. (Even Macbeth turned up his nose and hid in the bathroom!) I ended up stopping at 4 hours, waiting until the case cooled a bit them moving the whole operation outside! In all my case "cooked" for about 10 hours (McCallum says it can be done in 8...but I still had some grey "stuff" in one corner so let it go on longer.) BTW, the lid is closed and one latch snapped for the 8 hours - I just opened it up for the photo...
Fourth, Did I mention how hot a 150 watt bulb gets? Be very careful taking the bulb out of the case. In hindsight I should have worn my oven gloves...enough said. Also, when a mixture of 50% Clorox is sprayed onto a warm surface it is noxious (hope that is the right word...) anyway you need to spray from a distance and not with your head right over the box...no, I did not do that but very well could have!
Bottom line though...it seems to have worked! There is no visible mold or spots on the inside of the case. I'm letting it air-out a bit before I do the sniff test but it seems a lot better.

And to get rid of the smell it has generated in the house I baked a pecan pie....that does a great job of making the house smell better!

Back to sewing...

Why is it I came back from vacation as or more tired than when I left?! Oh, well...guess that means I had a good time. We went on a cruise to the Bahamas. It was nice to catch up with old friends and to not have any housework to do but I found I did a lot of walking (these ships are big) and combined with some late nights I way overdid it. Didn't get much sewing done - I did pack lots of little projects but did more reading then anything.
Today I went to a class on how to care for my little Featherweight sewing machine...boy, did it need some TLC. The machine is in pretty good shape but the case is really bad. Tomorrow I am taking step one to get rid of the nasty smell that keeps creeping back into the case no matter how much Lysol and other mold and mildew products I use. I have to rig up a 150 watt bulb on a small wooden square so it will stay upright and lit for 8 hours....if I smile, look pathetic and go early before the crowds maybe the guy at Lowes will put it together for me...

I am going to try and finish my wave-runner quilt top this weekend. I want to start a new one with some patterned fabric in it but will not let me start anything new until I finish a project....

Wave runner day two and stuff

I've done a bit more work on my wave-runner....there is acually a pile of half-made blocks growing next to my sewing table. I decided this morning to start paying a bit more attention to what had so I didn't end up with enough blocks for two w-runners! Also the photos help with making color choices...I'm being a bit more careful with how I use the goldenrod and the ice blue since they seem to be grabbing the eye..I can either group them in one area or spread them evenly throughout the quilt...not sure I've made a decision yet.
I picked up a copy Intuitive Color & Design of yesterday (sorry it sideways...trust me in my files it is right side up but blogger isn't playing well with others today.) Really a good read and lots of inspirational project ideas. One that I have been doing but not as well as I should is an inspiration journal. In some ways I use my computer for that - lots of photos and links to websites and blogs - but I think I will spend a bit more time on my sketchbook and see what happens.

While my iron heated up a new reservoir of water (I'm using a lot of steam on this quilt-top!) I played with some layouts for some vintage blocks I got at the silient auction table at our show. These may look familiar...yes these are some of the blocks I washed and ironed for the guild. I got a bit attached to them and bought one bag. I think I will piece a background with some blues or pinks (much better than beige carpet don't ya think!) and then applique the fan-circles down.....I'll have to go into the stash and see what works but I'm thinking I like the layout....

Waverunner Fabrics

I signed on to make a waverunner quilt with some other bloggers who visit V at bumblebean quilting. It is a very freeform approach to piecing. I love the look of it and am slowly coming around to enjoy the process.
This has sort of been like a quilting exorcism....as I just cut through the fabric without using a ruler I can almost hear my older sister who taught me to sew take in a deep quick breath...as I run the fabric through the sewing machine and see the varied width of my seams I can feel Mrs. Lynch my girl scout leader's hand on my shoulder...and when I wipe the steamy hair off of my forehead and check to see if the now damp pieced block is finally laying flat on my ironing board I can almost see my first quilting teacher with her lips pressed together asking me if I used steam when I pressed my slightly wonky block. Well, after 5 or 6 blocks these quilting ghosts are all gone. My strips are getting wonkier and more wave-runnerey. I took V's advise and just slashed the block I didn't like into a couple of strips and am using it elsewhere. (You can see it in the right hand side block below) Orininally I use the Jones painting at the top of this post as my color inspiration but now I have tossed the original yellow and went for one that is more brown/gold and pulled a few more very, very light fabrics and one very, very dark red.

(I'm sure the ghosts are still there and just hiding in the applique drawer....where they are very much needed!)

Boots and quilts....

Today I did my bit for the economy...I am not a natural shopper so getting me to go into a department store usually means a major event. This time it was just an ad in the Sunday paper claiming to have boots to fit anyone. Ya right...even when I was running miles a day and wearing silly little dresses I couldn't wear boots off the shelf.

Well I am happy to say I was wrong. These are real honest to goodness grown-up boots (as to say not my red handmade cowgirl boots or the funky wellingtons I got in England.) My Dh didn't even flinch a the price...he was the one that first suggested boots like these while we lived overseas. Now I just have to look for a reason to dress up in the next couple of weeks so I can wear them!

I have started working on the waverunner quilt that is being led by V over at Bumblebeans. Fun - but more work than it looks...having to break lots of very deeply ingrained sewing "habits."

Here are a few more photos from the show. I've been cutting some CD's with the photos for the other members of the guild. I love the colors in this first log cabin by Sandy....

The lone star is by Margaret Hunt from a Piece of Cake pattern. Wish the photo could show the machine quilting. I think she got the blue ribbon for applique on this one.

I love how Sharon's poppy came out...and it photographs so well.

We had a couple of very fun dolls in the show. The blue fairy was done by a member who taught ice skating for years.

This is the wicked witch of the west's rebellious daughter.

Orange Peel Quilt

Don't you just hate it when you see a post in blog-dom and want to get back to it but forgot where it was and who posted it? Duhhh....I so need more coffee.

Anyway, it this post mentioned Orange Peel quilts and it just happened I restacking my closet today so had one of my Orange Peel vintage quilts available to take a photo. It is on a queen size bed so you can see it is pretty large. It is all pieced though I think the blog group is going to applique (definitely what I would do!) The curved triangle between peels is quilted in the curved shape. I bought it in western Maryland in 1991...just realized that is almost 20 years ago!

I'll post more show photos tomorrow...

Day after the Quilt Show

Moving is tough this morning...guess it is a good time for me to drink lots of coffee and post some more photos from the quilt show!
We have a lot of Kaffe Fasset fans in our guild. I'll show some of those quilts today.

His fabric showed up in lots of different patterns.
On a different not I thought I would include my King size log cabin (goes down to the bed skirt on three sides and to the top of the mattress under the pillow shams...we are talking a big, big quilt.) It is quilted with Baptist Fans all over. We didn't have as many repro quilts this year as we did in the past...guess I have to go out and recruit converts again!

A few from the show...

All and all it was a good show...I can barely keep my eyes open so I'll post a few photos tonight and more during the week.

Best in Show went to Margaret Hunt for her Lady Nolly which is painted, then thread painted and heavily embellished.

Judges Choice went to Rachel Thomas for her Character Crusty that I think was called Under my hat
Rachel also was awarded best use of color for the amazing quilt above.
Best hand quilting was much more impressive in person. It is so hard to get good photos in a gym!The skater quilt is one of my favorites. It was a group quilt for Betsy Cade given to her when she hit a certain age....

Almost finished...

Well it was a slow set up day for the show...by 4 pm I was wiped so came home early. There were only 6-8 more large quilts to hang. I also had to frost the peach cake and make Greek Pasta Salad for tomorrow. Two more days than a long sleep-in!

The show looks great though. Really varied group of quilts so something for everybody.

Quilt Show Set up

I love when my guild does its quilt show but it also wears me out! I tell myself I am only going over to the activities center for a couple of hours to help out and before you know it the whole day has passed and I have to run home to get the baking done for the next day....zikes!

It looks like it will be a really good show though. Some great quilts are piled on the judges table waiting for her to do her thing today. We hung the two challenges yesterday. The Breast Cancer awareness challenge which had us decorate/design a bra is very fun.

The second was our vintage orphan block recycle challenge. These also were very creative! We got good participation in both which is encouraging!

Overall we have around 250 quilts in the show plus a couple of exhibits like some antique quilts and a soldiers quilts display which will be given to the residents of the local Veterans Home (The Grey Goose) when the show is over.

Scarf Project

I was looking for some quick Christmas project patterns when I picked up the holiday edition of Art Quilts. Inside was a fun pattern for free-pieced scarves using a variety of material. (my apology for not including the name of the author...it is pouring rain out and the magazine is in my quilting tote out in the car.)
They are fun to make. I used some wools that I had put in my stash while living in the U.K. and some ethnic prints that I loved too much to cut into... Sewing time is less than two hours - how long you spend playing in your stash a bit more than two hours (but time well spent!) I used the pattern for inspiration (ie I didn't really follow it other than making the scarf 7-1/2 inches wide finished....)

I have a couple more ready to go...including one using a lot of denim! I hope my sisters and nieces like them...

One the halloween front...the costume is done! I can't believe how difficult it was for me to follow this simple pattern. I pinned the trousers three times before getting it right! Grrr.....anyway my niece is ready to be ni hao kai-lan...

One more quilt

It is late and my legs are too jumpy for me to sleep. Now I just have to wait for the meds to kick in so I thought I would use my wait-time to post the last of the vintage quilts from Beech Island.

This one has some fun materials in it...check out the pink-ish striped border fabric! The piecing is really well done but the quilting is very rough. Makes you wonder if perhaps they were done by two different people. Unfortunatley the owner doesn't have any information about the quilts. This one was found in her aunt's closet and was being claimed as a bed by the house cat!

I love this pattern but it isn't one I'm rushing to try and reproduce...I save my curved seams for the Drunkard Path. (Which I had been told was called Rocky Road to Dublin....)

I am almost finished costume duty for this year. Tomorrow I just have to make a pair of capri pants then box the costume up and get it in the mail so it will be in New Mexico for what seems like a week-long Halloween celebration!