CIVIL WAR QUILTS

T.G.I.F. What a week it has been and I'm glad it's winding down. I'm so thankful for my quilting because it takes my mind off things I have no control over and an opportunity to create something beautiful for myself or somebody else. I've posted this quilt before and it's at the same stage of completion now as it was then. I need to quit it and I'm not sure what design I want to use. The fabric used in this quilt is 19th Century Reds.
So I'm searching the web for quilting ideas and I come across http://www.civilwarquiltsblogspot.com and found so much more. History was never a favorite subject in school but link it to quilts and it's a different story. I really like Civil War Reproduction fabrics. Not many of the quilters around here do, so I'm often on the Internet looking for fabric and patterns. My favorite quilt shop is Bonnie Blue. Twice a year there is a Web Sampler Celebration on the net which involves 12 different quilt shops around the country. It's very cool, check it out. Google Web Sampler and it comes up. I hope you will check out this interesting blog. I think quilting will have a whole new meaning for you.
Have a blessed weekend.

MARVELOUS MONDAY

Greetings. As I start my week I can't help but wonder how I was able to get so much accomplished and work full time. Now that I am retired and have more time it feels like I am accomplishing less. What's up with that? On Monday's I review the past weeks To DO List and carry forward the things I didn't get done to my new list. Some of the things get deleted because they are no longer important or necessary. It's a beautiful day, the sun is shinning bright and the blue sky is dotted with puffy clouds. I want to sit in front of the window and enjoy the beauty of it all. It's truly marvelous. We have a lot of days like this and that could be part of my problem when it comes to getting things done. Ya think?

Thursday I attended the Umpqua Valley Quilters Guild and joined. Cheryl Malkowski did a trunk show and shared stories of her adventures. I wasn't sitting where I could not get the best pictures of her quilts but here are shots of a couple of my favorites.
I love the colors in this quilt. I was told that Cheryl's quilts hang at the Country Lady quilt store so I will have to visit with camera in hand. If I get better pictures I will post them.

You can check out her web site. www.cherylmalkowski.com She sells her books on the site.

I'm working on a quilt that contains about 340 half square triangles. It's like a sampler. I love the colors and I have some great ideas on how I want to quilt it. I will post a picture when it's done. I'm hoping that will be some time this week.

Have a blessed day.

Blogger MIA

I've been missing in blogger action but not quilting, shopping, baking, eating, and having more fun than you can imagine action. The first week in December I was off to a quilt retreat in Bandon Oregon. The weather was fabulous and we had some great meals in different restaurant every day. I happen to love fish and the selections were great. We visited Forget-Me-Kots in Bandon and had a great time checking out their fabulous inventory. The shop is wonderful and the staff is great too. Of course we traveled up and down the coast and hit quilt shops in nearby cities. Threads That Bind in located in Coos Bay. They are closed on Sunday's but when we called to inquire the opened the store for us. I have to admit, the five of us made it worth their while. I love their sign. It's so quilty.

I love the ocean and I did spend one afternoon walking on the beach and enjoying the wonder. We live a couple hours from the Bandon and I'm looking forward to many return visits.

The picture below is a whale carved out of wood. I didn't want to walk up private property so this is the best picture I could get. Ocean front property is landscaped creatively and on this beach everybody had something unique and beautiful. I'm looking forward to Spring so I can start designing my landscaping at home.

After returning home I got all my Christmas shopping done, wrapped and in the mail. I also did some baking and finished a quilt that is a Christmas gift for somebody special. I will post the story and picture next week. I want it to be a surprise.

This is Missy in her sweater getting ready to take Paul for a walk. She loves to go for walks and for a dog with little legs she sure can move out. We bought her a little rain coat because the sun may be shinning when we leave the house but it doesn't mean the rain won't fall before we get home. We always have breaks in the rain where the sun comes out and it's too beautiful to stay indoors. I love it here!!!!

Mary is coming by this afternoon with her grandchildren, who are visiting from California. I have some quilt blocks to sew and who know what else I will work on. I will try to stay on the grid now that things are slowing down.

Have a blessed day.

What's been going on?

I just haven't had time to sit at my computer and update my blog. We are doing well and enjoying life. It is very different from what we left. We feel so blessed. I've been too busy having fun and discovering all that's new in my life. Today we have sun and rain, at the same time. As I look out my window I can see the mountains with a dusting of snow on the tops. It doesn't seem cold enough to have snow but it's in the forecast until Sunday.

I've been cooking and baking and enjoying my new kitchen. I've also been quilting. I've been trying to upload some pictures but this site isn't letting me. I finished a quilt for the shop and it looks very cute hanging there. I also finished a quilt for a Christmas gift. Can't talk about it yet. I've also been going through stuff and organizing. I'm still looking for stuff, like quilt books and gadgets. I'm getting a routine going and changing some of my goals. We continue to meet new people and are amazed at how friendly people are here.

I will try to post pictures and share more at a latter time.

Friday Fantasy

I got an email the other day announcing the Gammill Vision 22. OMG, I gotta have it. I went to their web site and watched the demo video and OMG, I gotta have it. The quilting in quilts have always been my favorite part of quilts. I have seen some butt ugly quilts turned into masterpieces by the quilting. I've seen plain simple blocks stitched together and quilting made them spectacular. I have been trying to hone my quilting skills on a Viking Mega quilter. It stitches fine and is doable, up to a point, the point being 8 inches of throat space. It is very difficult and sometime impossible to quit a twin or bigger size quilt in that little space. Have you ever tried stuffing a marshmallow into a piggy bank? Viking did come out with a new version of their Mega Quilter with a larger throat space but I'm ready for the big leagues. My DH is looking at buying a truck to replace my 93 Honda, I'm looking at this New Gammill and to heck with a truck. So I'm cranking up my creative problem solving skills, film at 11:00.
You really should check out this little jewel. I see a road trip coming up for me in my future.

Wishing you a blessed day.

Whoo-hoo

Yep, that's what we heard off and on for three days. I spent three days at a Ricky Tim's seminar. Alex Anderson and Libby Lehman were part of the fun. I learned so much and got so much inspiration from the three of them. In addition to teaching techniques they also shared their journey in quilting and some about their lives. Ricky started quilting in 1991 and shared his first experiences, first quilt and his goals. He is a terrific entertainer and he performed a concert for us on Friday night. It is hard to believe somebody can be so talented in to many areas. I wanted to share some pictures with you. This is Ricky in front of two of his quilts. We were allowed to go up on the stage and take pi cutes and get up close and personal with the incredible work he does.

This quilt is by Libby Lehman. She is so funny and tells great jokes during her demonstrations. She is very knowledgeable about sewing machines and threads. Believe me when I tell you, these pictures do not do these quilts justice.

This is one of the quilts that Libby demonstrated the technique for us. I do think I could do something like this. She sure made it look easy. The machine attachment she used to do this technique happens to be part of my "what the heck is this thing for" box. Now for those who don't have one of the attachments, Meissner's was there with a store set up and you could purchase any Bernina sewing machine made, including sewing machine tables and quilting frames. They were even offering 36 months, no interest financing.

I have always admired Alex Anderson. She did a trunk show at Manteca Quilt guild and that's when I first saw this quilt. Alex is known for her HGTV show, Simply Quilts, and her hand quilting. When you get up close to this quilt it is almost unbelievable that some one could hand quilt all that. What a work of art.

This quilt is another example of Libby's quilting and thread art. It is so beautiful.

This is another of Alex's quilts that show cases her beautiful hand quilting. She did a lectures on how to chose the right quilt design for your quilt and other very useful information . She also demonstrated hand quilting.

This is another quit by Ricky.

This quilt is demonstrates a new technique he is working on, using photo's. Looks like he perfected it to me.

This is Ricky's quilt tool It was hanging on the stage and I studied this one up close. He quits his quilts too and doesn't use a long arm. That was the message I needed to hear. He explained his process and I'm ready to take on my stack of quilt tops.

This is another one of his quilts. He explained the process, from designing to binding this quilt. He breaks each step into small increments so you get motivated to give it a try. If you ever get the chance to attend a Ricky Tims' Super Quilt Seminar, DO IT. I'm sure you won't regret it.

The quilt pictured below is the first quilt Ricky made. His message throughout the three days is never give up. Everything you do will be a learning experience and a step closer to your goal of becoming the quilter you want to be.

I don't know what's up with the corner of this picture but I think you get the idea. Ricky is a great story teller and when he tells about his first quilt he credits other quilters who encouraged him and shared their quilt tips and techniques with him.

In two weeks I will be in Sister's Oregon for the fabulous outdoor quilt show. I'm working there this year but I will find a way to take hundreds of pictures and get more inspiration.

I hope you enjoyed these pictures, your Sunday is blessed and you have a fabulous week ahead.

Wishing you and yours a safe a memorable Memorial Day. My DH and I are nursing a very sick dog and we haven't had a good nights sleep for three nights. The upside to that is the down time we have to reflect on what Memorial Day means to us. DH was in the Navy during the Vietnam War and we have a son in the active Army Reserves who served 18 months in Iraq.

I haven't posted for over a month. There has been so much going on and I feel like I'm going non stop. My computer has tried to flat line on me twice. I had to use the system disk to boot up and I think I'm getting an outside sources trying to invade my system because I restore my system to a latter date and it works fine again. What's up with that? So now I don't shut down the computer, I just let it sleep. I'm trying to keep this computer alive until July and then I can purchase a new one, which I hate doing because I like Windows XP and I've been using this computer since 95. You would think a computer would last longer when you consider what you pay for them. Oh well, life happens. I'm thinking about buying an Apple computer.

On the quilting front, I'm ready to quilt my Sister's Choice and I only have two rows, and the inner and outer borders on my 19th Century Red quilt and it will be ready for quilting. I'm not sure what I want for the blocks but I differently want some full and fancy feathers in the borders. Film at 11:00! I pre-ordered the EQ7 upgrade and I signed up for a block of the month. There are more quilting surprises on the horizon.

On the home front, the main bathroom is done and it's beautiful. I still have to make the window treatment and hang it but after that, mission accomplished. Now it's off to the dining room.

Praying for peace and joy throughout the world.
Sandi

Keeping Busy

This is a picnic quilt I made three years ago. The pattern and fabric came from Fons and Porter. I love their magazine and the quilt kits they offer. I started quilting this soon after I got it pieced but need to put the binding on. Finally, a finished project. I think it is so cheerful. I was putting all my projects together that I need to complete but it has gotten to overwhelming so I have stopped. I will just take them as I go.

I've been spending a lot of time on the Internet because my car has been in the shop. That's not exactly true. I'm going to quilt a couple of tops I finished last year and I'm not sure how to quilt them. I've been spending hours looking at different blogs and trying to find the best designs to use on these quilts. This is really a tough decision. Since I'm looking at three hundred plus to have them quilted I will work through this process. I have taken four different classes on how to quilt your quilt top so it's time to apply some of those lessons.
I'll keep you posted on my progress.

Cars. Where would we be without them? Home!!! That's were I have been stuck a lot lately because my car keeps getting sick. My 93 Honda has 99,580 miles on it. Honda's are supposed to lost 200,000 plus miles so I wasn't worried about it. I have never had any real problems with it but now it seems things are creeping up on me. I get it in the shop to fix one thing and another thing pops up. What's up with that. I keep telling myself it's cheaper than a new car payment and life goes on.
Have a blessed day.

Viola Longacre

Viola Longacre

March 6, 1923 - February 18, 2010

Farewell gifted quilter and friend. You will be missed by the many who shared in your life. Viola and I had a few things in common, like quilting, painting, and we are both members of the Manteca Quilt Guild and retires from the SJC Welfare Department.
Viola enjoyed sharing her talent with others. She was a generous quilter and donated quilts to philanthropy.


Viola incorporated her painting talent with her quilting. She painted on fabric and sewed that fabric into quilts. Pictured below is a quilt she made that won an award at the State Fair. She painted birds on squares of fabric and sewed them into her quilt. This quilt is beautiful and unique. Because of the way the quilts were hung I wasn't able to get a picture of the whole quilt so I took a picture of the top and bottom.

Memories are stitched with love and your memory will live on in the beautiful fabrics you so lovingly stitched.

Saturday Planning

Greetings.
It's started raining yesterday and it's been off an on since. I love the rain. When it stops everything outside looks so clean and fresh. The rain relaxes me and my brain kicks into the creative mode. I started listing the creative projects I want to try. It's Saturday and I would like to work on some of the things on my list. Unfortunately I have other things that have priority over what I want to do. In 66 days, everyday will be a Saturday.

This is Ethan's quilt. I finished it Monday and delivered it to his Grandmother Tuesday. I love the little bunny's and the activities they are performing. It's all boy. I quilted airplanes and clouds in the border and stars in the solid squares.
The back shows up the quilting. Sorry it doesn't show up too good in the pictures. I wish I had the fabric to make two. Now I will focus on my Turtles and Tadpoles quilt. Film at 11:00.

This darling quilt pin was purchase by my friend Donna. She isn't a quilter but she does appreciate the art of quilting and what goes into it. This is hand made and she found it in a catalog. I was going to order one until I found out the price. When you look at the detail and workmanship in it, it's worth it. It's beautifully done. When I was in Michael's last week I found some discounted jewelery making supplies and I purchase them. Jewelery making is something I've always wanted to try. I've been buying sale items and putting them aside for the time when I can start creating. The creative list I mentioned early has a make a quilt pin listed on it. I'm always inspired by other's works and I need to work on some original projects.

It will be a busy and productive weekend if I sign off and get busy. I hope you have a wonderful weekend.

Peace be with you.

Update on Activities

Life is a stitch. I've been sewing up a storm since I last posted. But before I share that I want to share a few pictures I took at the Diablo Quilt show. All the quilts were fabulous but a few really caught my eye. This little quilt is so cute and this picture doesn't do it justice. I have a few close ups so you get an idea of the detail. The quilter used fabric paints for shading and yarn for the hair. This is one close up that shows the painting on the legs and knees and face. Isn't this as cute as can be?

This is another example. Those are actual bows. I might try something like this in the future.

The President's challenge was all about fruit. I thought these pears were beautiful. I couldn't do this with paint let alone fabric. I would live to hang this in my kitchen.

This picture had some incredible quilting on it. What a work of art.

These are the fruit ladies and I have this panel. Now I know what I want to do with it. This is one fruitie quilt and so cute. We also went to Quilting in the Garden at the Alden Lane Nursery. I'll try to get some pictures posted. It was too hot for an autumn day.

This is quilt is one I made while on vacation for a co-worker who retired. She loves Maxine and I bought an embroidery disc with a dozen different Maxine's featured. I kind of put the horse before the cart and designed the blocks and quilt before all the Maxine blocks were embroidered so some were too big. I scanned some office photos on fabric and had her co-workers write their well wishes on the blocks. We had a lunch for her and people were able to write special messages to her. I'm pleased to announce, she really liked it. I've gotten a few thank yous from her. I really enjoyed making it too. So this is the back before a lot of messages were written in the white area.

This is the front being held up by Cindy's immediate co-workers. Cindy is the happy lady on the end with glasses. She has emailed me and says she is enjoying retirement and her quilt.

So today I put the borders on my brother's quilt I'm making for his birthday. I think he will like it and it will be a surprise. I also got my One-Block Wonder arranged on my design board. It's going to be a Christmas quilt. When I get it sewen and the first border on I'll post a picture. I'm not too sure what I'm going to use for the outside border. Then I have one more baby quilt to finish. It just needs the borders sewen on and then quilted.

Well tomorrow I have to be at work all day so when I get home I will probably sew one row of my OBW quilt and put the borders on the baby quilt. Wouldn't it be nice if all I ever had to do was quilt? Maybe someday soon.

Wishing you a blessed week.

Just Whining

I have been trying to finish up my Sister's Twister quilt for a month. That would be the quilting part. I practiced a free motion leaf pattern for weeks and I'm very proud of it. Now, if my thread would stop breaking and my machine would stop falling of the rails I could have this quilt quilted in a few hours. I'm using a thread brand called Presencia, 50 wt. This thread is expensive and not worth a dime. If your wondering why I bought this brand and why I'm not buying something else it's because the local quilt stores in the area don't carry anything else. I've been told the products that JoAnn's carries aren't any good. Well we'll see about that when I start my next project. I didn't want to order thread on line because I am concerned about the color matching. I'm always saying I want to be a long arm quilter until I start a quilting project. I have been attending various workshops and classes and it would appear, when looking at the books in my bookcase, that I have every book written on the subject, yet it's one thing after another. I have changed my needle, re-threaded the machine, and checked my bobbin and that hasn't made a difference. As many quilts as I piece it really is necessary for me to master this skill because I would need to win the Lotto to have the $$$ to pay a long arm quilter to finish all my quilt tops.

I have been looking at the professional long arm's like APQS, Nolting, Tin Lizzie and Gammill but we are talking 10 to 20 thousand dollars, not to mention the space they take up. I would have to commit to starting a business to pay for this. We'll see. Thanks for letting me vent. I'm going to have an ice cream and watch Two and Half Men. Maybe tomorrow I will try quilting again.

Have a blessed evening.