Wrong Picture

Posted the wrong poinsettia runner, that one was made last year, this is the current picture.

Kathie

Finally Pictures

Finally had time to post a couple of pictures. Most of what I have been working on in the last couple of weeks are customer quilts but here are two completed craft show runners. The fall one I am really pleased with, doesn't it look like all the fabrics were from the same fabric line? They were not, purchased at all different times but they sure go well together.

The poinsettia runner I have been making for craft shows for the last 3 or 4 years. You can't tell by the picture but there are crystals fused in the centers of the poinsettias. Really adds some glitz to them.

The day is half over and have not even stepped foot in the sewing room so should head off to that now. I have an orange/lime/yellow customer quilt partially loaded on the frame that I should get going on.

kathie

Thursday Is Here

Thursday is here, friday I am off and Monday is a holiday, what more can you ask for???

Well maybe someone to clean the house and do all the cooking so I could spend FOUR days sewing. Anyway four days to get up when I wake up without an alarm (if the cat behaves that is), not going into work, being on my own schedule etc. sounds great. Will be doing a lot of running around tomorrow but 3 of the 4 days I intend on spending a lot of time sewing.

I finished up a customer baby quilt I was quilting last night and then sat down to watch TV and work on a table runner binding.

Does anyone else watch the show Project Runway? I don't sew clothes and don't have any desire to but enjoyed watching the show the last few years to see what kind of outfits (both wild and nice) they come up with.

Kathie

Weekend Accomplishments

I was on a roll over the weekend since my daughter spent over half the weekend with a friend I took advantage and spent a lot of time in my sewing room. I got three small customer quilts quilted, 4 centers for table runners pieced, bindings machine stitched on a couple table runners and the bindings on a couple more hand stitched down.

Last night I got a couple of fall table runners quilted (first craft show is a little over two months away now) and the next backing loaded on the frame for a customer baby quilt.

I really need to take some time one of these days and get out my Pajama Quilter DVD and watch that again. I would like to learn how to do her flowers and wonky feathers but I have not taken the time to practice them. I would love to somehow add a couple more hours to the day, and of course the energy to do something with those couple of hours.

kathie

Time to Quilt

Mary asked when I get time to quilt with working and doing long arm quilting for customers.

I guess because I love to quilt and it is so relaxing it becomes a priority for me. I work four days a week so have a 3-day weekend every week. I can spread the errands, laundry and other household chores over three days allowing me some time to sew on the weekend. I also cook things on the weekend in the crock pot or make a meal that I know will have left overs so in a couple of nights I won't have to cook. My husband and daughter are fine with that, as long as it is something they like.

This past week was very busy for me at work, plus getting my daughter ready to start high school took up a couple of the evenings with school open house and buying school supplies. Needless to say I didn't get much else done other than dinner on the table and early to bed.

I am trying to make up for it this weekend. I quilted one small quilt yesterday and another today and have the backing on the frame for the third. Luckily all of the customer quilts I have right now are fairly small so they don't take all that long.

For a few days our DSL at home wasn't working so I didn't get a chance to post these pictures before. One is a customer quilt and I wanted to post this picture because I just LOVE the turtle fabric. The other is a couple of really bright table runners I quilted last weekend. Doesn't the flower power backing remind you of the 1970's???

Kathie

Monday Again.....##@@@@!!!!

Even with it being a busy weekend I managed to get several projects done but since our DSL at home is acting up I can't post any pictures today.

I did get two table runners quilted on saturday night. Yesterday I quilted a small customer quilt, got bindings on the two runners and machine stitched around some fused applique on a couple of more runners.

Busy at work this week and a couple of evening activities will interfere with my sewing for the next couple of days but if my internet at home is working later will at least post a couple of pictures from my weekends accomplishments.

Later in the week I hope to get at least a couple more table runners done and then put the next customer quilt (also a small lap quilt size on the frame).

Kathie

Concert

The American Idol concert was great and everyone did a good job with their songs. The downside was that it was WAY to loud. Sometimes the background music and singers were so loud that it overpowered the singers and the words were not clear. I thought it was just that I am getting older and can't take the volume but my 14 year old also ended up with a bad headache. Wish they could have just taken it down a notch and people would have been able to enjoy it more.

We didn't get home from DC till midnight thursday night so I was pretty tired yesterday and didn't get a lot accomplished. I did finish quilting on a rail fence I had been working on over the last few days. This one is destined for the quilts of valor project and will be donated through our guild. I wish I had thought to take a picture of it before it was picked up. It was red/light tan and blue but more medium blues were used than the usual Navy and it looked very nice.

Today is back to school shopping but hope to quilt up a few craft show table runners tonight and then back to a couple of customer quilts tomorrow.

Kathie

American Idol

During the beginning of the year my daughter and I were big American Idol fans and never missed a show. Tonight we are getting to go see the American Idol concert tour in Washington DC. My daughter has already warned me that she will be one of the screaming teenagers when David Archeletta walks out to sing. Now where are my ear plugs? I hate crowds and usually try and avoid them but I am looking forward to the show.

I have been really tired when getting home from work the last couple of weeks but have been trying to use the idea from the Stashbusters group to do something for at least 15 minutes a day and it all adds up. I spent 30 or 40 minutes last night in the sewing room last night and got a couple of feel of my latest charity quilt quilted and machine stitched down a fusable applique on a table runner. Not big accomplishments but it all adds up.

Kathie

Tuesday

Quilt guild was last night and we used the evening to discuss ideas for increasing membership, ideas of what types of programs people would like to see and also most importantly fund raising ideas to supplement a low treasury. A lot of good ideas presented and I think implementing some of them is going to energize the guild.

My goals for the next couple of days are to fully load a charity rail fence quilt that I only have the backing on the frame so far. I like to have something on the frame ready to go so when I have a night with the time, energy and weather (can't run the machine in a storm) I can just start quilting. I also hope to be getting a couple more bindings on and out of the way.

Kathie

Weekend Progress

I had a great saturday, I met up with a few friends and spent a big portion of the day sewing. My idea of a nice way to unwind and spend a saturday.

I made a craft show table runner top and also worked on piecing a large backing out of 10 1/2 squares for a Christmas quilt I made a few months ago.

I was surprised that I wasn't all sewn out and last night quilted these two runners that had been on the top of my stack of ones to be quilted and got them off the frame and ready for binding. I guess I better start doing a little hand work in the evenings before all my bindings back up on me.

I am bummed, a little bit ago I was thinking that it was still saturday for some reason. Then it dawned on me that today is SUNDAY so back to work tomorrow.

kathie

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Blog Ring

My 14 year old always tells me that I am technology challenged. I guess she is right. The one group I belong to Heartstrings is setting up a web ring. I tried to join it this morning and wasn't quite sure what needed to do. I am trying again, and will see if I am TOTALLY technology challenged or not.

Kathie

Blog Ring

HeartStrings Quilt Project
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Its Monday Again

Its monday again and back to my regular job, I sure could get a lot done if I could stay home and just sew.

I did get a lot done over my 3 day weekend though. I finished quilting a charity quilt, quilted two customer baby/kid quilts, made a charity quilt top, cut borders for several table runners and got a backing loaded on the frame for the next quilt I need to do.

I wanted to share a couple of pictures. On is a close up of the one baby quilt I quilted this weekend, don't you love the pastel fabrics she used? The second is a Chinese Coins quilt that was made out of blocks that another lady at out guild (Elsie) and I made a couple of months ago.

I ran into this white/red background fabric (Alex Anderson) at a discount fabric shop in South West Virginia a week ago and love the way it looks with the coin strips.

Kathie

Charity Quilt

And here is the charity quilt picture that refused to post last time.

Catching Up

I have not posted in what seems like a long time, life, work etc. seems to have got in the way. We were away for a long weekend, new boss at work and all sorts of other things going on.

While my daughter was off at camp for those three weeks I did get everything with the exception of customer quilting samples done on my 3 week list. I was definitely a "quilting queen".

Has anyone seen Mamma Mia? I told someone that the song on there should be Quilting Queen not Dancing Queen. Ok ok I am obsessed.

Anyway I wanted to post a couple of pictures of recent projects. Here are two of the craft show table runners I recently finished and also a purple 9 patch quilt. The blocks were made by several guild members and the quilt will be donated to charity.

kathie