Birthday Blocks - Woo Hoo!

Seven Birthday blocks arrived in the mail this week!  They are pictured here.  My EZQuilter friends in Southern California are doing a birthday block exchange for each birthday girl in her month.  The blocks are maker's choice, finishing to 8" and we will all finish our own quilts.  Since there are 18 of us, there may be more than one due in a month.  May is for Peggi and Jane.  I finished the rest of mine today (June-Feb), they will be in the mail to Nicole to hand out as the months come.   I can't wait for the rest of mine to arrive to put together the quilt for 2010.

Thank you to Lori, Sandra, Mardell, Jamie, Helen, Mickey and Nicole.  They are wonderful!  The two Churn Dash blocks are ones that I made and decided not to pass along, I have rescaled the block and the next ones the EZQuilters will be seeing are a little different.  For Lori, Donna, Melinda and Peggi, and the blocks I have already given, I can make you new ones if you like.  Just send yours back to me and I will re-do them. I will use the ones you send back in my quilt, or re-do each block at the better scale.  Today, I officially have one more UFO off my list for the year.  Double Woo Hoo!

Bloggen Fargenugen, Oy!

This blog thing is a whole new experience.  You can get trapped on the computer for hours just looking at the choices in design and not make any changes.  For my faithful followers (all 3 of you), please bear with me and this learning experience.  Do you like the purple background?  Did it stick?  That's the extent of my online creativity for today.  Thank you to Nicole (check out her blog, see link on my page) for creating a whole new hole to throw my time into (smile).  I'm off to a quilt show meeting this morning.  Shasta Lily Quilt Show, Sept 4, 5, 2010.  Any vendors out there interested in a spot?

Guild Retreat is spelled FUN!

I have been missing in action for two days.  Here is why.  Our Shasta Lily Quilt Guild held a two day retreat this week and finally, I was able to attend both days.  Like day camp for quilters.  We all brought our own projects and got lots done.  Some of my To Do items got knocked off my May list, hooray!

I put buttons on a baby sweater I just finished...now I have a gift for the next baby shower I go to.  I am in the process of making the matching socks before I box it up.  I like to knit at night when I am relaxing, it keeps my hands limber.







I finished the pillowcases I wanted to make.  The main fabric is a map of France, this may be the only way I get to travel to that country.  I actually chose it because I like the colors and it matches my new sheets.  The map is the bonus.  Thanks Joanna Figueroa from Fig Tree for such beautiful fabric.

I also finished making the top for the EQZ block exchange from 2004(?), my basket blocks.  The area with the white vertical strip will get a chunky stem,  and 3-D flowers and leaves once the quilt is quilted.  This was my stretch toward asymmetrical.  I plan to machine quilt it so I can show it at the Labor Day quilt show up here in Mt. Shasta.  Helen C, I found your block in a bag in the box, it is featured in the upper right hand corner border.  I almost missed it, my sample block will go on the back for a label.  Thanks girls, I love it now!  I can't wait to finish it.


I also got some other little tasks accomplished, too numerous to mention here..Ahhh, such a sense of satisfaction.  Good times, good friends, and pizza, what could be better?

This is Julie and Dustin Andolsen's wedding quilt,  Circles of Love.  I enjoyed making this quilt and may even make another using this pattern.  With the templates, it was pretty easy.  I was honored with a ribbon for piecing at the Flying Geese Quilt Guild show in 2009.  The quilt is hand quilted.

Little Ol' Art Quilter Me, Really?

This is the art project in which I am currently participating.  It's a reproduction of a photograph by Jeremy Franklin of the Sprague River (OR).  There are 7 panels, each done by a different person.  Mine is the fourth from the left, there are two "slices" missing from our 5/8/10 get together.  This is a mixed media type of project and anything goes.  It is amazing how well they are fitting together.  We turn them in for binding in August, and the project will circulate for 2 years to shows and galleries, etc.  This work is a stretch for me, Yoga for the mind, I guess, so it's a good thing.

Just Get To It List

I might as well own up to it, I have ASODD (adult-shiny-object-distraction-disorder) too, must be where Nicole got it. I have a hard time working on just one thing at a time. I am always preaching “just do it” to friends and family when they have a hard time working thru a task. It’s time I practice what I preach, and since I know I do better with deadlines, or accountability, here is a current list of ACTIVE works in progress, which I would like to finish this month and what’s left to do on the project.

• Pillowcases for my new set of sheets (cut, sew)
• Quail Hill quilt (machine quilt)
• Linus Project Kite quilt (finish top, machine quilt)
• Baby sweater (knit one more sleeve, hood, lapels)
• Slice of Life art project (not sure what’s left, I’m learning)

I have other projects in the works which are too many to list, but I will add them to my Just Get To It list as soon as some progress is made. As these are finished up, I will post pix and post a new list next month. Wish me luck!

Finishing Up...

The label shown here is one I made recently for the Shasta Lily Guild Opportunity Quilt for 2010. It is shown against a black background, but I sewed it on the white back of the quilt today at the meeting. You can find a picture of the quilt online if you Google "Sunshine Rose Garden" or "Kathy Nakajima." Mind you, I don’t always do such a fancy, labor intensive label such as this, but I at least try to document the important information. This quilt is really special and we will be sorry to give it away at our quilt show, we just hope that one of us is the lucky winner. But, back to the importance of labels on your quilts. I have a beautiful Grandmother’s Flower Garden quilt I inherited from my Grandmother Jane. Since I had not yet been “schooled” in the history of quilting (it was just something we did to keep busy), I never asked her about it’s origin. It has a great pink border and the hand quilting is superb. Was it something she made herself? Was it a product of a quilting or church group? What year was it made. I wish I knew! That’s why, even if it’s not an “heirloom” quality quilt, I always try to put a label on it when I am done. Pertinent information you should always include is 1) the quilt’s name or pattern; 2) the maker’s name, and include the quilter’s name if you send it out; 3) the date the quilt was finished; 4) whereThe label shown here is one I made recently for the Shasta Lily Guild Opportunity Quilt for 2010. It is shown against a black background, but I sewed it on the white back of the quilt today at the meeting. You can find a picture of the quilt online if you Google "Sunshine Rose Garden" or "Kathy Nakajima." Mind you, I don’t always do such a fancy, labor intensive label such as this, but I at least try to document the important information. This quilt is really special and we will be sorry to give it away at our quilt show, we just hope that one of us is the lucky winner. But, back to the importance of labels on your quilts. I have a beautiful Grandmother’s Flower Garden quilt I inherited from my Grandmother Jane. Since I had not yet been “schooled” in the history of quilting (it was just something we did to keep busy), I never asked her about it’s origin. It has a great pink border and the hand quilting is superb. Was it something she made herself? Was it a product of a quilting or church group? What year was it made. I wish I knew! That’s why, even if it’s not an “heirloom” quality quilt, I always try to put a label on it when I am done. Pertinent information you should always include is 1) the quilt’s name or pattern; 2) the maker’s name, and include the quilter’s you live; 5) add some inspiration or words of wisdom to personalize. What you might think is not important or not so special may be a treasure to someone a few years from now, and once a quilt leaves the first “owner’s” hands, the history is easily lost without a label.




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First Post!

I attended the "First Saturday" get together at the Tater Patch www.taterpatchquilts.com in Merrill, Oregon this morning. It's a day to meet up with your friends, be inspired by Show and Tell, have lunch out. It's a long way to drive (70 miles), but you take your fun where you can find it. It's always fun, inspiring and the shop owners, Diane and Robin are so inventive. It occurs to me that my obsession of "Quilting" offers so much variety, it's no wonder it's difficult to really peg what I like (I like it all...or most all), and what I am going to do next.




This year, I have tried to concentrate on getting some of my UFO's finished (Un-Finished Objects). I got out all my projects (yikes), figured out what I really wanted to finish, and gave away some that have fallen out of "favor". Some class blocks I just put away to admire again some day. I know I will likely never finish some of those projects, but it's nice to look back. The ones I decided to tackle this year have a note on my bulletin board. I have actually finished 3 Linus project Quilts, and two Block of the Month projects (I stopped at 4 blocks on one, but the mini quilt is finished so that counts as a project completed). I have two other projects at the machine quilting stage, and one queen size swap block quilt I am hand quilting. Two knit projects are done, a scarf/hat combo and a kimono vest. Also since January, I created a complicated label for the Shasta Lily Quilt Guild Opportunity Quilt, Sunshine Rose Garden, by Kathy Nakajima. It turned out so well I will post a picture and some simple instructions soon, as I am quite proud of the quilt (made by the whole guild, can you believe it?) and the label.



My guilds, friendship groups and kids keep me inspired and help me grow. What inspires you? Could you use some encouragement? I have found that my quilter friends are, for the most part, generous in spirit and deed.



I am fortunate to have quilting friends who inspire me, both close to home, and long distance.



I'm off to sew!