Tessellations

I was on a roll yesterday quilting. I finished up quilting my challenge quilt for our May guild meeting.

We picked a crayon several months ago (I received a Plum crayon) and you could only add one color to it. I added a bright raspberry pink and my friend nicknamed the quilt "Wild Berries". I made the binding this morning and hope to get that put on later today. I am not going to post a picture of it until it is completed and our challenge it over.

In addition I quilted this quilt for Betty yesterday. This pattern is called Anything Goes Star Tessellations from a class that many members of our guild took last month. I love her pink version and had fun quilting it with a bright pink variegated thread. The quilt I am making using this pattern is all out of Christmas fabrics but I have only finished a block or two since the end of the class. I really need to move that one up on my "to do" list.

Kathie

Weekend Ups and Downs

The weekend was HOT for April in Maryland. I don't think I am ready for summer weather yet.

Saturday was the second anniversay of my Mother's passing so I tried to keep myself busy all day to keep my mind off of it. I went to our local quilt show, ran errands and worked on my daughter's quilt. I don't know why we can't use those anniversaries to think of all the fond memories, but I couldn't help spending the day thinking of how much I still miss her.

My weekend did end on a good note. When I went to pick up my quilts from our local quilt show last night I had a wonderful surprise. No I didn't win any ribbons, but better than that I won the raffle quilt.

Funny thing is that I quilted the raffle quilt for them back in December so nice to get it back and it is all mine!!! Well the cat is already laying on it so I guess he thinks it is his.

Here is a picture of the quilt.


Kathie

Southern Maryland Quilt Show

There is a small quilt show at our local park this weekend. It is an annual event and always has a good variety of entries. Here are a few pictures of some of my favorites. I would have taken more pictures but since I dropped my camera the battery only lasts a few pictures before having to be recharged.

Retreat

I went to a one day quilting retreat yesterday with ladies from my one quilt guild. We had a blast, good company, great food, a location right on the water and of course a lot of sewing.

I had gradually cut out my daughter's quilt over the last week or so and spent all of yesterday working on it. The quilt is basically made of solid squares, 9 patch and rail fence blocks. I didn't remember how many of each I needed since I am making it larger than the pattern directions. When I checked last night I found that I only need 8 more 9-patch blocks and I have about half of the rail blocks finished. It was great to have accomplished so much yesterday.

Now I have to get back to customer quilts for a couple of days.

Kathie L.

Hospice Quilt #10

Yesterday we had a sew in at our local library to work on Hospice Quilts. Nikki couldn't stay but dropped off this wonderful string quilt as a donation. She did this using the quilt as you go method and did a wonderful job. Don't you love the way she did her borders?



There were only two of us actually sewing on the half square triangles yesterday but a couple more people were helping with marking, cutting and ironing them so we managed to get a pretty good stack sewn.

Maybe if I square up a few of them a day I can have them ready to set before long.

Kathie L.

On the Frame

This is what was on the frame today, a donated top that is destined for our counties new Hospice House opening this summer. The whole quilt is nothing but squares and a coordinating border but it looks great and I know someone will really like it. I quilted a simple swirl on this with a rust colored thread. I will take a picture of the whole quilt once the binding is done.

I also managed to get the rest of the 24 fabrics cut that will become my daughters quilt. I think she is getting tired of using two twin sized quilts on her full size bed. I asked her when it is finished if she thought she could keep it nice and clean with no stains till September so I could enter it in the county fair.

I got one of those look. I guess I should know the answer to that, a 15 year old girl with makeup, nail polish and snacks all over the house!! I guess I will just have to hope that nothing happens to it that isn't washable by then.

Kathie

Hospice Quilts 5 - 9

Last night was the monthly meeting of one of my guilds. We had a program on Wounded Soldier Quilts that was started as a local program I believe in 2003 and delivers quilts to wounded soldiers coming in to Andrews Air Force Base. The program was very interesting and it was great to see pictures of a lot of the quilts.

At the meeting two ladies donated quilts to Hospice House. This black and white quilt was made and donated by Betty. Thanks so much Betty, I am sure it will be very appreciated.



These other four quilts were all donated by Eileen. She recently purchased a HQ16 machine and I don't think she has quit quilting since. She belongs to some internet groups and put out the word to send her any unwanted orphan blocks that people may have and were looking to get rid of. At least two of these quilts (maybe 3) were made with those blocks. If I attempted that it would look like a real mish mash of things (mess) but she really made it work.






Thanks so much ladies, all the quilts are wonderful.

Kathie

Monday Again

I have 14 of the 24 fabrics cut for my daughters quilt. I am going to be using the Me and My Sister Designs pattern called "Crumbs". The pattern is mostly rail fence and 9 patch blocks so once all the cutting is out of the way the piecing should be quick and easy. Here is a picture of the 10 fabrics that remain to be cut out.



Yesterday I decided to work on craft show items so made up this Christmas Heart Runner. I think I would have liked it a lot more if I had only used 3 hearts but last year I was getting a lot of people asking for longer runners so I am trying to make a few of the longer ones for this fall. I have enough pieces made up to make another runner or two so I will make them using only 3 hearts. This is from a pattern that I recently made into a charity quilt that will be going to hospice.



I have been pretty much off schedule the last two weeks so today I need to get back to concentrating on customer quilts for the next few days. Might be a little hard today as it is my daughter's last day of her spring break but I want to at least get a couple of wall hangings quilted and the next quilt loaded on the frame.

Kathie

Spring Break

We went to Norfolk, VA for a few days during my daughters spring break from school. We did walk up and down the beach in Virginia beach but it was windy and a little on the chilly side.

I did my bit to help the economy by visiting a couple of quilt shops while in the area. I purchased several yards of fabric but most of it was for specific projects so I don't feel bad about it. I have been very good about not buying much fabric lately so I felt like treating myself.

Today has been busy catching up on things around the house. I also started cutting out some pieces for a quilt for my daughter. Her quilt is going to have 24 different fabrics in it and will be very colorful, like a rainbow, perfect for a teenager.

Kathie

Poinsettia Quilt

I finally finished the binding on the poinsettia quilt. This is the second out of four commissioned Christmas Quilts I am making. I think I will wait a few weeks to deliver this one and enter it in a small quilt show at our local park the end of the month.

Now to get busy and make hanging sleeves for the quilts that I plan on entering.

Kathie

Summer Sunshine

Wow I can't believe I have not posted in an entire week. I had a minor medical procedure this week but between the prep for that, the actual procedure and the after affects I have not felt well for the last three days so have not been blogging or even reading to many emails.

Several things were accomplished in the last week. I quilted Hospice Quilt #4, Summer Sunshine and Jane was nice enough to do the binding for me so another quilt all done.



I also received 3 quilt tops from my day time guild Quilters by the Bay that will be finished and donated to hospice.

In addition to all of this I received an invitation to be a vendor at our counties second annual Festival of the Trees for Hospice this coming November.

I think between customer quilts, hospice quilts, craft show quilts and a quilt I promised to make for my daugher there are not going to be to many days I am not quilting on my frame.

Kathie