2012

Have had trouble posting on this site so I’ve moved my blog to:

http://villagequilting.blogspot.com/

 

See you there!

Came Home to Chaos

I got home from my travels to my father being released from the hospital and having to stay with them overnight for 4 days.  I was worried and exhausted.  Things seem to be settling in with them and my life is slowly getting back to normal.  I did have one afternoon where I just sat at the machine and made 2 more blocks to complete the scrappy squares quilt.  I do need to come up with a better name for it.  I also have to decide if I want to add borders.

I’ve also started knitting again because it’s easier to do in poor lighting.  I’m making myself some fingerless gloves.  I have one done and working on the second.  I’m really liking the result as well as the process.  I’m going to REALLY like the result as the weather gets colder!

Today I have to do some laundry, ironing and hopefully finish putting to scrappy square top together.  Joe has a meeting in Chicago tomorrow and asked me to go with him.  I just feel like I have to get things back under control here and keep an eye on my parents. I have to go over to my parents’ and get their dinner together then, hopefully, pin the selvage edge quilt so I can get quilting it this coming week.  I do have some other tops that need to be quilted and I think I’m going to give up control of them and have someone else quilt them for me.

I can’t believe a year ago I was in India on a trip with Jinny Beyer.  I made some great friends and wish I lived closer to the Washington DC area so I could see them more

often.  I learned so much about color and being freed from my usual perception of what should go together.  I am intrigued by Islamic designs and want to do a quilt based on some of the designs I saw.  I just need to finish up some other things in the pipeline before I can pursue it. 

 

 

Off to get what needs to get done accomplished so I can have some time to do what I want to do!  I will post some of the pictures of the quilts from Houston when I have more time!

 

 

 

 

Day 3 (So I Skipped Day 2)

Busy time at Festival!!!  It was a fun and exciting second day!  Got up and over to the Convention Center at 10 with about 30,000 of my closest quilting friends!  From what I heard, last year there were 60,000 people at Festival!  I believe it after seeing the crowds on Friday!  I met people from all over the world-Australia, Brazil, Japan, France, India, Germany, the Netherlands and some that hardly spoke any English so I couldn’t tell where they were from!  And there were more motorized scooters than there should be allowed in any enclosed structure!  They should at least have turn signals and brake lights and have to pass a drivers’ test before they are allowed to drive those things!  You could barely move down some of the aisles of the vender market but not nearly as many people in the actual quilt show.  I was really surprised!  I couldn’t wait to see the stunning quilts but I did spend some time checking out the retail booths!  I always thought that most people came to see the quilts but it was abundantly obvious most people were there to shop!  I also noticed most of the booths were geared to the more traditional styles of quilting and more primitive style quilting products than I thought.  Not a whole lot of contemporary (Kaffe and Amy Butler style)  But then again the crowd was definitely older.  Speaking of Kaffe I did see he and Brandon walking past the Craftsy booth as well as Paula Nadelstern, Ricky Timms & Alex Anderson.  I know I saw more quilting celebrities but I’m currently brain dead!

The people here from Craftsy were amazing!  They have done such a nice job and I hope their first appearance at Houston will bring in lots of members.  They really have a lot of new and interesting classes in the pipeline.  I think it has a lot of potential and I have enjoyed taking their classes more than I thought I would!  I did try my best to help spread the good word!

This morning I got up to find a text on my phone asking if I would be interesting in taking a class!  Of course, I said “yes!  And by the way, what is it?”  It was a thread painting class with Nancy Prince.  I had never heard of her but have always wanted to try thread painting.  It was a good class.  I learned a lot and developed enough confidence to try it when I get home.  I have a piece I started a few years ago in a class with Patricia McClouglin that I’d like to complete with some thread painting.

Tonight Tamera, Rick, Hailey, Jenn and I went out to dinner at a good Mexican restaurant that was recommended by someone sitting with Tamera at lunch.  It was a great

recommendation and the margarita was especially appreciated at the end of the day.  Okay-sorry it’s sideways.  Someday I may become computer literate!

I’m back in the room now and packed for the flight home tomorrow.  I haven’t even gotten into what’s going on with my parents while I’ve been gone.  I’ve got to finish packing and get ready for facing reality tomorrow.  I’ll try to post tomorrow night, depending on what goes on with my parents.  I’ll also try to post some more of the pictures from the quilt show.

Houston Day 1

The big day had arrived!  I got up at 4:45-YAWN!!!  Joe had an 8:00 meeting so needed to get me to the airport early so he could get back in time.  My flight was from the new terminal at the Detroit airport and

there were so few people there compared to the other terminal.  My flight wasn’t even half full so I could spread out a little bit.  Got in a bit early and got a cab right away.

 

Checked into the hotel at about 11:15 and my room was ready!  Unpacked and settled then caught the shuttle over to the convention center.  The place is HUGE!  I found the Craftsy booth (the website whose Facebook page I “liked” to win the trip) to check in with the staff. They are incredible!  I got a tee shirt and pin and went off to check out the place!  OH MY GOSH!!!  Quilting overload! I went over to check out the quilt show portion.  Let’s just say, I’m breaking it up over 2 days!  So much to take in!  Incredible workmanship.  The Texas Quilt Show part was outstanding!  There were no pictures allowed in that section because they have a book so I bought it (only $25 for a BIG HEAVY BOOK)  I’m glad I had a place to store it (under the skirts at the Craftsy booth)          I went through a bit more than half of the show then had to break for a bite to eat.  I was able to get a turkey wrap-about the only healthy choice available.  Speaking of unhealthy-I have never seen more people on those little scooters!  I don’t know if quilters are more unhealthy than the general public or if the unhealthy ones all come to Houston.  Either way, these scooter driving madwomen would run you over rather than let you by or come to a dead stop right in front of you with no warning!  They need brake lights and turn signals.  There was one woman who had so many bags loaded on her scooter she looked like a human shopping cart! I’m posting some of the pictures that have inspired me.  I know you can look up the winners online.  They are incredible but I want to show you some of the other ones.  I was fascinated at the different settings for the One Block Wonder/Stack-N-Whack.

Okay, I’m having a hard time putting the pictures in the post and I’m due to head back over to the show.  I will try to upload  more pictures later and pictures of what I bought yesterday!  I have to figure out how to upload more than one picture at a time and in the order that I want.  Please bear with me on this learning curve.  I may also check out other blog sites.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’m Back-For A Day

This is a busy time for me, but pleasantly so!  I just returned from Sonoma, California where Joe and I celebrated our 30th anniversary.  The actual anniversary was in August but the timing for getting away was not great as we had just returned from our family vacation on Cape Cod with the girls and Joe was busy at work.  It was the perfect time to get away to Wine Country as the weather was turning here in Michigan and warm and sunny in California.  I didn’t take enough pictures, though!  We rented a Mustang convertible and drove around with the wind in our hair for 4 days in Wine Country!  It was a blast to drive and I just may consider getting one for my next car!  I don’t think I’m going through a mid-life crisis as I’m really happy where I’m at right now, but after years of driving minivans and SUV’s a little sports car is a lot of fun!

We stayed at The Fairmont in Sonoma.  It was absolutely beautiful!  I felt very pampered.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We hit about 4 wineries a day.  The one of the lessons we learned was to split the tasting.  The first few we each got a tasting, which is just a few sips of each of the wines offered.  Multiply a few sips times 5 to 7 samples and it’s not long before you are feeling the effects.  The wineries we visited were:

In the Healdsburg area:

Alexander Valley Vineyards-Josh’s friend’s parents own this winery and Ally and Josh were there for a family wedding.  It was a beautiful setting and the wine was really great!  (We shipped a few cases back).

White Oak

Starlite-a new winery

We then drove back down the valley to the Sonoma area and went to BR Cohn.

Sunday we stayed closer to Sonoma and went to:

Nicholson Ranch-we were the first people there and talked at length with the people working there.  The thing that stuck out in my mind from that visit was the difference between hand picked grapes and machine picked grapes.  Let’s just say I prefer hand-picked.  The machine shakes the vines to remove the grapes-and anything else in the vines including  spiders, snakes and lizards!  I don’t want extra protein in my wine!  He did say it only takes 8-10 workers 20 minutes to pick a half acre of grapes!  That’s pretty amazing!

Gundlach Bundschu-I liked this one!

Buena Vista-not so much

St. Francis-I liked this one A LOT!

Then back to the hotel for a work out!  We had a wonderful dinner that night at LaSallete-a Portuguese restaurant in downtown Sonoma.  It was incredible!  We split some mussels and I had a seafood stew and Joe had steak.  We even split a dessert!

Monday we just drove around.  We went over to check out the town of Napa.  Didn’t like it as much as Sonoma as it’s much bigger.  We drove up Highway 29 to Calistoga to check that area out.  Lots of vineyards along the way but not really in the mood for more tastings.  Save that for the next trip!  We walked around Calistoga and met a local who recommended taking Highway 128 up over the pass and back into the Sonoma Valley and stop in downtown Healdsburg.  What a pretty drive!  When we finally found Healdsburg we walked around a bit but left before we had a chance to see too much because it was Halloween and all the kids come into town to trick or treat in the business area.  I really liked the area and would like to stay in that area next time we go.  We then drove back to San Francisco to spend the night and flew out Tuesday morning.

The trip was wonderful and Joe was so relaxed.  I hope we get to go back again.

Today is a busy day with a workout this morning, nail appointment and doing Mom’s medicines for the next week.  I then have to complete packing and I’m off to the Houston Quilt Festival in the morning.  I will try to take more picture.  That is my new goal.  Take more pictures to post so I have a record of what I did!

 

Oh, Life is So Busy!

I really do have to get better about posting!  I have been busy with dealing with my mother, construction in the family room and trying to straighten up my sewing room.

My mom’s health issues are ongoing and will be from now on.  We took her in Tuesday for what we believed to be a 4-6 hour infusion to help with the symptoms of dermatomyositis.  When we got there they admitted her and told us they were going to keep her overnight to watch for any adverse reactions since this is the first time she is receiving this treatment.  Four days later we are picking her up.  First she had low blood pressure and they wanted to bring it back up before they released her so they kept her an extra night.  Thursday she started complaining of chest pain after the doctor signed the release papers so they rescinded the order and did a complete cardiac work-up.  The funny thing about this is we have been to her internist 3 times concerning her chest pain and it is from her sternum and rib fractures from 2 previous falls.  She keeps forgetting.  Oh well, better safe than sorry.  They kept her yesterday because the doctor didn’t see her until after 4 and they thought it was too late in the day and would tire her out too much to send her home at that time.  So I’m waiting for a call from my dad saying the stars are in alignment for her release!

We are also doing some construction in our family room to put the flat screen above the fireplace.  We had to lower the mantle and we added bookshelves on each side.  This is mid-project as we have yet to add the doors on the bottom cabinets, replace the crown moulding, paint and hang the TV.  What you don’t see is all the furniture covered with drop cloths.  This is all open to our kitchen so, even though the carpenters are really tidy, the room is a mess!

So, I don’t have enough going on in my life I decide to tidy up my sewing room.  I’ve felt a bit overwhelmed as of late with PHD’s (Projects Half Done).  I like PHD better than UFO as I can tell people I’m working on my PHD and when they ask me what my PHD is in, I can tell them “Textiles”!  Anyway, I “stumbled upon” (have you heard of StumbleUpon.com?-more later) a site that talks about how to spark your creativity and one of the suggestions is to work in a clutter-free area (or something like that).  My sewing room was a MESS!  I was going to take a before picture but was too embarrassed!  I’ve got the majority of it done but have a bit more to go.  This is the design wall with the Selvage

 Edge quilt I’ve been working on.  The Pineapple Star on the left is waiting for inspiration as to what to do next.  The Mariner’s Compass I’m hand piecing.  To the right is the Kaleidoscope block I made in a Paula Nadelstern class I took years ago.  I’m taking another class with her next spring so I’ll probably save this one to put with the new one (or 2) I make.  Below that is a feathered star block I’ll probably make into a pillow.  This is a view of the sewing area and the storage rack where I keep all my less that 1 yard pieces.  I used to work at a quilt store that paid us with “product” so I have more fabric than needed-but that’s a whole ‘nuther story!

To the right on the floor are a bunch of quilts that need to be quilted.  I think I’ve been so overwhelmed because I’m so over these quilts and want to move on but know they need to be quilted.  I have given myself permission to send them out to be quilted.  I know a fantastic quilter for some of the really good ones but want to find someone else to do the not so special ones.  Some of the plastic containers on the bottom shelves and under the sewing table are projects either started or fabrics collected with specific quilts in mind.  In most cases the pattern or a picture of the project is with them.

Here’s the area along the wall where I store my 1-3 yard cuts, wool, punch needle supplies and some of my notions.  Under the counter in the cupboards is batting and other stuff I want hidden.  On the right is yardage I have wound on bolt cardboard.

 

The last two pictures are of the cutting area and the desk area that have yet to be hit.  Maybe later today after I get my mom delivered home.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The other big news in my life is I won a trip to the International Quilt Festival in Houston the beginning of November through Craftsy!  I had the initial contact on Thursday night and they said they would be in contact with me to line up the flights, hotel and my show pass.  I almost don’t want to get too excited about it until I get more details.  They did say they wanted me to spend some time at their booth to talk about my Craftsy experiences so I’ve started watching one of their quilting classes and have found it very good.  I’ll have to check out some more as time permits!  Maybe I’ll watch some knitting ones as well!

I mentioned the site, StumbleUpon earlier.  It’s a great way to explore the internet for fun sites you might be interested in.  Sign up-no cost-and check off what your interests are then start Stumbling!  What to do with your Stumbles?  Sign up for Pinterest!  Again, it’s free and you make up bulletin boards where you can “pin” your ideas for further reference.  You can browse other bulletin boards for ideas and view your friends bulletin boards.  Great-I just realized all the time I waste not quilting!  But on the other hand, I’ve gotten some great ideas from these sites!  Check my Pinterest boards under Villagequilter!

 

Back From Vegas But No Time to Quilt-Yet!

I met up with some gals I met on an online weight loss support group this past weekend!  The six of us had never met face to face but have helped each other lose a total of 475 pounds the past 18 months!  We are from all over the country (NJ, MI, KY, OK, TX & AZ) and are so different from each other but shared the same battle!  This picture was taken before the sixth girl arrived.  I can’t believe I don’t have a copy to the picture of all six of us!  I’ll have to get it from one of the other girls.  That’s me in the middle.

I am trying to get things back on track here at home, getting the summer clothes put away and the fall clothes out, putting the summer decorations up in the attic and getting the Halloween/Fall decorations out and get ready for the process of building the TV in over our mantle in the family room.  Don’t ya know, the TV decides it doesn’t want to work like it should and it’s one month past warranty!  I guess it could have waited until the work was completed before it acted up, so we’re lucky that way.

Anyway, I’m itching to get back on my machine.  I’ve been so tired in the evenings I don’t even have the energy to hand piece!  Now THAT’S tired!  I’m hoping tonight I’m a bit more awake and can accomplish something while spending time with my honey in the family room!  Tomorrow looks better for some one on one time with my machine!

On A Creative Roll!

My mind is going a million miles an hour!  I had to try another easy scrappy string quilt-even easier than the Spider Web!  It’s foundation pieced but easier than any foundation piecing I’ve ever done.  I’m calling it Scrappy Strip Boxes.  I’m going to be sending an e-mail out to the people who have shown an interest in going on the retreat.  I’m hoping since I’m so geeked about using up my scraps (and sharing my scraps) that these ladies will want to join me in the fun!  Besides-we all know that if we use up our scraps there will be room for more fabric!  So far I have not purchased any fabric for these projects.  It’s all taken from my stash-mostly my strip bag!

Another scrap project I’ve been working on is my Scrappy Roses.

I made this a few years ago but I think it will give people another option.

It’s crocheted from strips.

 

And my scrappy bowls and vases.

Can you believe with all these projects I still have so many scraps?  And I haven’t even started making more strips from my stash!

I did  get my workout in this morning so I am feeling extra energized!  I need to get back to stitching!

Happy Stitching!

I’m Back!

I started this blog to try to keep myself accountable. I was also in a bit of a creative slump and was hoping it would keep me on track. Ding Dong! I was wrong! I have gotten my creative juices going again and will share with you what is going on.

I have gotten some of my hand piecing done and am trying to finish a diamond log cabin style quilt I started at the Empty Spools seminar I went to this past April. All I can say is I was “under-classed”. I really got no inspiration and, in fact, I did not like her technique. My problem-I was just excited to get the brochure and wanted to get in a class asap and made the wrong choice. Lesson learned. I have really had to push myself to try to finish it.

This is my design wall from 2 days ago.  I’m going to take one of the stars from the quilt on the right to make it smaller and, hopefully, easier to complete.

While on vacation, I was able to get quite a bit of work done on my hand piecing project.

This will be the center of this quilt with other smaller stars around it.  It will be a long-term project as I have some other hand-pieced projects that need to be hand quilted.  It’s now cool enough here in Michigan to put a hot quilt back on my lap to quilt in the evenings. 

This is the quilt I am currently hand quilting.  I started hand piecing it while on a trip to India with Jinny Beyer.  Not my favorite artistically but it has so many wonderful memories from piecing on the bus with some great new friends.  That trip changed my attitude about color!  Indians are NOT afraid of color and putting unlikely colors together.

I now have to start concentrating on an upcoming retreat.  I have been thinking of doing a “Scrappy Retreat”  The economy, as it is, may lend itself for the participants to want to use what they have and not have to spend a lot of money on supplies.  We can share, and get rid of, many of our scraps.  I started working on an “Organized Spider Web” quilt yesterday and will make a few blocks of other options to show the participants.

Off to work on some other scrappy ideas to put in and e-mail to some people interested in the retreat.

Getting Ready For Vacation

Colleen has had my camera card and the main reason for me keeping this blog was to keep me on track with my quilting. It is difficult in the summer because I do try to spend as much time outside as possible. I read a lot in the summer and just finished “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks” It was a fascinating read and expertly told by Rebecca Skloot. I loved the way she was able to get the biology in without making it dry and boring.

“Pigs” is coming along. I am working on it in the evening. The second bouquet is well on the way. I have started using 100 weight silk thread and we are getting along! I did try silk years ago and it kept coming unthreaded. I’ve come a long way since then and the silk is working out well.
I am appliquéing the flowers together before applying them to the background.

It’s difficult to do applique while driving and I’m not crazy about bringing all the paraphernalia associated with it so I am bringing my hand piecing with me. I have a few blocks cut and marked and ready to go! Here’s what I have completed for the center block so far.
I have about 5 more blocks ready to piece. It should keep me busy for the long ride to Cape Cod. The weather is supposed to be good but I plan to get some sewing done in the morning or late afternoon before the evening activities begin.

I’m so looking forward to seeing all my girls together and hope there’s not too much drama. There’s usually at least one major blow up but I guess that’s normal. It really stresses me because I try to avoid conflict and it makes me extremely upset because of the horrid fights my parents would have when I was growing up.

Off to get more laundry done and beach towels together for the drive tomorrow.