Internet Americana UFO

This is what I was working on the past week. Im taking the weekend off from sewing because we have company coming plus some fun Labor Day parties. Yesterday the last block came in the mail (these are from a BC Americana swap I won). There were a total of 17, signed blocks. Didnt all the ladies at BC do a great job!?!! I wanted to create a quilt that uses all 17 and came up with this design. I'll be filling in the blank spots with piecing and different color pieces of Americana fabric. Bought a few this moring at the LQS ;) Hopefully, this quilt top will be done next week.

Arent these the cutest cards?! A good friend, whom I share fabric with, is also an artist. She found out I send out cards quite a bit and was looking for some new ones. She surprised me with these last Friday... HOW NICE, HUH?!! WELL, they're too cute to send out... I plan to frame most of them. They're so adorable. I've always admired her work. You can check it out at:

http://www.thegraphicweekly.com/archive/archive-artsy/Artsy080907.html

Another project sitting on my design floor is this Mumbo Jumbo. A group of us in town are making these to use up strip scraps that we have been saving. I have my strips stacked in a shoe box... RIGHT UP TO THE TOP :) This is a really EASY, and fun pattern. I plan to donate this one to the hospital through our quild. Hopefully, it will be done quickly... my list of WIPs hasnt gotten any smaller.

Im working on a quilt from one of my books by Jean Wells, Through the Garden Gate. It's a great way to use up scraps/ pieces of purple and green. I made the first 16 blocks that she has in the quilt and decided it needs to be MUCH bigger so I plan to make 64 blocks and then I'll see if that will work. I'll be adding a border on but not the one she has pictured in the book. Im thinking a softer border with appliqued purple flowers and green stems wandering around the edges... but I dont want to get ahead of myself. I have lots of projects out there and need to finish a few others first.

Saw a wonderful antique quilt

Al and I were out in Traverse City yesterday and decided to stop into a few antique shops. He was checking out the old tools and signs while I made a beeline for the quilts and linens. This is one of the quilts I found AND REALLY WANT! It's marked 250 dollars which is probably a steal for one this nice and this old (30's). It's in WONDERFUL condition except for one block that has what looks like a grease stain (might come off) or black paint (most likely wont come off).

Since I AM a quilter, I guess I need to get myself busy and make this one. I KNOW, I KNOW.. I have an enormous pile of WIPs... BUT!!

Deciding on colors...

What do you think of these colors? I just love them. I'm on a lucky streak lately... I've won two swaps at block central.. the first was the "Roses" happy block swap and the second was the "Favorite Block" swap, which had the theme- Americana. Since I won that last one, I'll get to choose the next color/theme for the favorite block swap that ends in October. The blocks will all be different so it'll make a nice SAMPLER. I thought about fall and winter and snow and Thanksgiving and Christmas.... BUT... then I thought about what kind of quilt I like to grab in the winter to just cozy up in.
I usually want something soft and pretty with flowers. SO, these are the fabrics I pulled out of my stash that feel the best to me. I havent "officially" mentioned my theme yet but I'm pretty sure it'll be SHABBY CHIC.
I also think this would be a great quilt to give for Christmas... to a friend, a new baby girl, mother, sister...
A while back I asked on a poll what colors you love in a quilt... pinks, yellows and orange rated pretty high, so I think, peachy-pink, buttercup yellow, soft olive or moss green, and creamy/buttery whites.
SO, WHO'S GOING TO JOIN US? There will be two lucky winners! Stay tuned :)
And about that lucky streak..
I just won the door prize from one of the shops on the SHOP HOP last week... A wool batt! Think I need to head out and buy some lottery tickets!

Shop Hopping!

This is just a few of us... we had 3 van loads travelling from store to store. I bought some fabric... you all knew I would, didnt you? Found fabric for some pillows for mom... for the family room. Bought a bunch of fqs (20% off) to use in a mini quilt, and lots of cute fat quarters for my daughters (Amy Butler fabrics, mostly). We all had lunch in Bellaire at LuLu's... I had a yummy sandwich of roasted pork with horseradish slaw, homemade potato chips and a thick hunk of old fashioned barrel pickle... mmmmm! Also had a cup of tea, which they served on platters with individual tea pots, little bowls of raw sugar or cubes, tea bags. Each person having tea got a cute little setup. And the tea was the best I've ever had. I took the label from the bag so that I could see about getting some for home. Today was supposed to be mid 70's but it was a little cooler so the tea hit the spot.

Denise's medallion

YEAH!! Check off another thing done!

This is the border I added to Denise's medallion. We're doing a round robin with www.thequiltandneedle.com. We are almost at the end... I will be getting one more medallion to work on before mine comes home :) !!!

This round had a fabric sent with it that I REALLY wanted to see added to the quilt... it's the flower fabric in the center of the circles. I didnt want to use too much because I was afraid it would get to busy but I wanted enough so that when Denise gets it back, after one more border, she will have the fabric somewhere else in the quilt. She plans to add a final border using her flower fabric. I cant wait to see this one finished! It's going to be a beauty.

Weird weather up here!

What a spooky looking sky we had the other day... It was beautiful blue until this big ugly cloud moved in. No rain but lots of wind. Blew a few branches off a delicate maple tree. 

More sewing room storage...

This is my template/ruler shelf. I had Al cut slots into the bottom of this shelf so that I could insert my rulers, squares and templates. I LOVE THIS SPACE!! This is a hutch I bought at a resale shop. I needed more storage and wanted something pretty. I have three nice drawers for tools and papers... plus all these great shelves. I keep pictures of my online friends and letters from them on the one shelf... like having company when I'm sewing alone :) I also keep one of my first quilts (a UFO) on the top shelf. I am VERY SLOWLY hand quilting it. I started in the 80's and the stitches are toenail catchers. I've improved some since then...

This is more storage... under the cutting table. I have boxes with Xmas fabrics, solids, SCRAPS (a very important box) and more.

The sewing closet...

We were talking about sewing rooms on BC and I thought I would post pics of mine. I have to label everything... my family thinks I'm nuts (maybe I am) but I love to be organized. It's so much easier to find what Im looking for ... gives me more time for important things like quilting! This is my closet and all my cottons. I have them boxed up by color... at least the smaller pieces are. The large ones are in boxes marked "backing" or "large pieces".

I hang up some of the quilt tops on hangers at the back of the closet... plus shirts that will be cut up and used in "Green" quilts.