I often claim to have a Quilting "Hobby" in attempts to hide my obsession with fabric and color.

Thursday, December 17, 2015

2015 Is almost over, but my quilting has just begun!

Holy cow! Almost a whole year has passed without me posting. I guess it's true. I prefer to sew over typing. I know blogging, and maintaining a website are crucial for a business, but it's my least favorite part. I just want to create!

So, on to the fun part; time to recap some of my work this year. As usual, many quilt TOPS were made and hung for "quilt it later" status. And when I finally decided in November it was time to stop making, and start finishing, my faithful Janome MC6600 said NO! I took my work horse to be serviced, and much to the technicians frustration, even he couldn't get the FMQ setting (feed dogs down) to form a nice stitch. Different threads, new needles, tons of tension adjustments....it just wasn't happening. And this is a machine that I am very good about servicing and keeping clean. Prettiest piecing work you could ever wish for, and simple FMQ with the accu feed system in place, but any real attempt to do stipples or pebbles, and the thread breaks, eye lashing appears, or the dreaded bobbin thread loops start. A long talk with the Janome rep, and it was determined that my machine was just not behaving. So the question became to upgrade and sell it, or move into Mid/Long arm machines. Since the Janome is an incredible work horse, and my mother was so willing and wanting to help me out, I became the proud new owner of my first Long Arm Sit Down machine the week of Thanksgiving. And of course, it's Lily approved.

And now, the quilting frenzy has begun.

I am naming my series of little quilts (36 -64 inch square quilts) "Lil Bits" Quilts, for the little bits of fabrics they are made from. Some are scrappy, some are from Jelly Rolls, but they are are all basic patterns where I can experiment with layout and color, and learn how to do more than Stitch in the Ditch Quilting. A girls could spend days learning about thread weights, needle sizes, and tension combinations, oh my! And I haven't even really begun to learn the stitch regulator that came with my new girl....

So, some of these I have posted before as just tops, and now here they are with their quilting, backing fabrics, and fun bindings. The quilting will get more detailed as I get more comfortable on my new machine, but what fun I am already having.

 I plan to post these for sale as Lap/Chair throws. They are all made of 100% Cotton Fabrics, Batting, and Threads (unless otherwise marked) and make great throws on recliners, the floor for kids, or just to warm a lap.
 This is a shot of the work space before Brian made me a built in cutting station and all my tools got moved.



 I have also made a few gorgeous quilt tops and plan to save them for quilting once I am more skilled. This one so far is by far my favorite:

Thursday, January 8, 2015


Well, where did a year go? Here it is 2015, and the coldest day yet, and I realized I haven't updated my blog in 9 months. Yikes!  Then, I discovered not only haven't I updated my blog, but that I cannot find my pictures. I got a new iPhone, and I LOVE the camera. But I don't love the iCloud, sharing, or any of that silly business. So, I have to take some time, take lots of pictures, and figure out how to post them where I can then use them. But here's a few, to prove I wasn't a lazy bum the whole year. 

This little gem was an exercise in patience and justification of fabric hoarding. I had all these little square (2 inch) drops, so I made them into a little eclectic lap quilt. 


This is a paper pieced quilt, that my mother sent me the kit for, to convince me how fun paper work it. I can say she's right. And the accuracy is a major bonus. All purple batiks, even the light blocks.
This was my first go at an applique quilt, where the entire focus was the applique work. Fun, but very frustrating. The background fabric is very white and sheer, but once quilted, it will be a very nice  piece.
Omg, what was I thinking? Well, lets see. I had gotten this amazing Go! Cutter for Christmas last year, and thought, well of course Hexies are hard to cut out, so a cutter will make them super easy. To cut. NOT to sew. But again, a great use of my hoarded stash of Batiks that my Mom sends my way. Again, light background won't be so sheer once quilted.



And this is Ginger's surprise Birthday Quilt. Had to tell, but the border is this lush, rich royal purple batik.  She likes Southwestern patterns, and I put my own twist on the colors. 

But I am still missing pictures for several other quilts I made. Off to find them or retake them!