Matilda Quilts

A Larryboy helmet! A real Larryboy helmet!

2011-12-19T07:54:00.000-08:00

If any superhero ever needed something available on the commercial market it's this guy. You can absolutely not find a helmet ready to buy! That being said I embarked on a six week crusade to make a helmet that would stay on, whose plunger ears would come on and off, and that wouldn't pose imminent danger to the child wearing it.
I played around with a lot of different prototypes. I even had a retracting mechanism for the ears, but that proved bulky and dangerous if I child rolled over onto their head. I also wanted real plunger ears, but that would have hurt a lot when rolling around.
In the end I settled on fleece. A nice stretchy fabric that would fit snugly around the head and hold the helmet together.
I sculpted the comb out of furniture foam and then covered it in fabric and hand sewed it to the hat. I hand sculpted two plungers out of furniture foam and then carefully covered them in red fleece, with velcro on the ends. (I made it sound so easy here, but I think there is still furniture foam bits lingering in the house from carving them out).
The ears come on and off really easily and when Larryboy goes to the rescue, he can roll and tumble all he likes and his helmet will bend and flex with him.
Only about 42 hours worth of work!

Dahlia had a lot of fun modeling the helmet and running through the house with it on.

The Water Quilt

2011-12-19T07:42:00.000-08:00

This is the third quilt in a series that I have made with these firetrucks. Each quilt has been about two years apart. The first one focused on the firetrucks, the second on the fire, so I thought this one should be about water. I swirled water in to the quilting and used a lot of blue fabrics.
When I went to photograph it Dahlia had to be in all the pictures. It was a struggle to get her to stand to the side, but the one above was my favorite photo so I had to put it in.

T-Shirt Memory Quilt

2011-07-20T13:43:00.000-07:00

This memory quilt was made from 38 t-shirts all bordered in black. It has a backing made from the same gray as in the border. It's a full size quilt and it was a ton of fun to make!

Kindergarten Memory Quilt

2011-07-20T13:40:00.000-07:00

This was a memory quilt for a student in my daughter's class. We had all the kids trace their names and hands on paper and I transferred them to the fabric.

A Baby Memory Quilt

2010-12-22T18:53:00.000-08:00

This is a small memory quilt I made for a friend. She had a bunch of receiving blankets, burp cloths, and wash cloths that she wanted incorporated into the quilt. These were items from all 3 of her children. It's a great way keep everything without keeping everything.

A Quilt of a Different Color

2010-12-14T21:13:00.000-08:00

While thinking of something to sew for a friend's baby girl, suddenly it occurred to me that I was done with pink and blue - at least for now. I put together this Beatles quilt for her. I know it's different, I know it's unorthodox, and I know it's not for everybody, but I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it!!!

Little Girl Skirts

2010-06-27T10:03:00.000-07:00

I've been making a whole bunch of skirts lately. This ice cream one I made for my daughter because she loved the fabric. Skirts are so much fun to make, and so easy. This was basically a giant circle with a hole cut in the middle for a waist, using a dinner plate to determine the waist size. Well, maybe I just like doing the math.

Memory Quilt

2010-06-12T13:12:00.000-07:00

This memory quilt is for a girl who is just graduating from high school. The quilt had some difficult pieces to work in - a dress, a pennant and a teddy bear. A lot of work went into designing the block placement so that the quilt looked balanced.

I sewed a pocket into the quilt for the bear. It's the first time I've ever put a pocket into a quilt. I bordered the block just like the others and quilted around it. The pocket was made with the fabric folded over so that it's double sided.

I have to admit that I'm extremely partial to the back. The panel and the "There's no place like home" fabric seemed really fun. The light spots really show up in the photograph, but up close you don't see that so much as just twisters all over the fabric.

IIMC Conference Wall Hangings

2010-05-20T16:14:00.000-07:00

I made two identical wall hangings. They measured about 40 inches square. The flags were silk and sewn into a white cotton/poly border. It was tricky but I love a challenge. They turned out gorgeous!

Patriotic Skirts

2010-05-06T07:19:00.000-07:00

Go see my wall hangings at Hello, Gorgeous in Henderson

2010-04-21T07:29:00.000-07:00

Making A Memory

2010-03-17T13:53:00.000-07:00

This was a memory quilt for a boy and girl. All the blocks were from receiving blankets, baby blankets and towels. There is also a piece of an afghan in the quilt. The afghan piece was a challenge, I had to make sure it was anchored to the backing fabric and I serged it onto the backing instead of cutting the piece out, I really didn't want the yarn to unravel. I quilted some of the kids sayings around the borders. It was a really fun project. It's about 45x55" and completely machine washable. Sweet.

Bean Bags

2010-03-17T13:46:00.000-07:00

Bean Bags for primary. Thanks Jeanette!

Silhouettes

2010-01-11T14:40:00.000-08:00

I made a set of four wall hangings for Veronica's new shop. She wanted vintage silhouettes. I made them up real simple so that the silhouettes really stood out. I absolutely love them!

A Double Sided Wall Hanging

2009-10-31T07:36:00.000-07:00

I don't know why I do these. You would think I would learn how hard they are. First both sides have to be the same size, second I have to have a binding that matches both sides. So with one side Halloween and one side Christmas I was practically tearing my hair out trying to find a binding that would work with both. In the end there was a tiny bit of black in the Christmas side, and the Halloween side was dark enough that I could get away with it. It's a miracle I pulled it off. And now it's on it's way to a very happy life in Iowa.

Dahlia's Quilt

2009-10-14T08:47:00.001-07:00

For Dahlia's birthday this year I wanted to make her a nice quilt for her bed. She has a full size so as I was working on it, I realized it needed to be bigger than I thought. I love the way it turned out. It is so bright and pink, just like her personality. I had enough fabric for matching pillowcases too - that was a nice bonus.

A quilt for Tige

2009-09-20T19:36:00.000-07:00

Jamie brought over fabric for a military quilt for Tige's birthday. She said I could do whatever I wanted for a pattern (yaaay) and quilt however I wanted (double yaaay). It turned out so great! More later.

Alterations were in order

2009-09-15T15:03:00.000-07:00

Dahlia started pre-school this week. She has twenty students in her class. Six girls in her class have this same backpack, and all over the rec center were little girls with this backpack. I couldn't send Dahlia to school and expect her to bring the right one home every night. So I trimmed the edges with pink feathers and added buttons on the front to look like jewels. I ran ribbon down both straps so she would know which one was hers from both sides. "It's Fabulous" she said, in her princess voice. Yaaaay!
Lining up for pre-school, I heard a mom ooooh over my backpack with her friend. Double yaaaay!

Iysha's Tesselation

2009-09-08T06:21:00.000-07:00

This year's Quilt of Dreams quilt was influenced by a number of factors. First, as I was getting ready to look at the fabric, a 2 year old girl passed away in our old ward. I wasn't really close to her family but her story really affected me. I have never named a quilt after a person before, this is the first one. These are all the things she could have learned and I loved the idea that this was a quilt of knowledge. I began selecting blues and purples representing water and the sky. I decided on a tesselated pattern that really had a lot of movement to the eye.
The next factor was looking at the dreams of the children. A few of them said that their dream was to go to high school. I started thinking that I could put high school into the quilt. I doodled and looked up references for things from high school. I made a list of subjects and started filling in information you would learn and fun things about high school. I ended up with more than I thought and a lot of fun things went into this quilt.
Biology - a plant and an animal cell, a heart
Chemistry - part of the periodic table
Math - the tesselation, also acute, obtuse and right angles.
Art - a pre-raphaelite painting by Millais (thanks for the book Dad)
P.E. - footballs, baseball and a badminton set.
History - I put three WWII planes a British Hawker Hurricane, a Japanese Zero and a U.S. P-61 Black Widow. I also wrote about the Berlin wall. There is also, and this was for my mom, Charlamagnes throne.
German - a few words
English - a quote from Shakespeare and one from Charles Dickens.
I also put in a locker and some fun things about high school.

Around the edges was a list of classes and also a list of some clubs from school.
In the end the quilting turned out to be more what I did in high school so at the very bottom I put FIS class of 92. I had a lot of fun making this quilt and it became very personal.

The Finished Product and the aftermath.......

2009-09-01T13:24:00.000-07:00

So the quilt is wrapped and ready to go out the door. I took a photo and looked up at my sewing table strewn with little bits of fabric and even the ball of tape that was used when I sewed in the straight lines on the pillow shams. What a mess, but what fun it was!

Four Alarm Frenzy? Fire It Up? Oh I can't decide!!!

2009-09-01T12:43:00.000-07:00

This is quilt number 2 for Mrs. Thompson. She is having another boy and using the same fabric I needed to make another quilt, different enough that they would be able to tell them apart. The first one was all fire trucks and the quilting was all fire trucks. This time I quilted flames into the quilt. So the first one was TFD#1 (the fire department) and this one is the fire. I hope that it isn't indicative of their personalities. This one is backed in red, and the other in blue so there should be no question as to which is which. She also asked for a pillow sham, so I made two because there will be two boys and I've learned from experience that they argue over things and they will both need one.

Here's the message I attached to the quilt:

I made the plain sham first, and then realized that my boys fight over everything and if there was one there had to be two. I found some scraps from the last quilt and used those to make the second sham – which actually matches the first quilt nicely. This way there are two quilts and two shams. When I made the first quilt the fire trucks were very much in my mind, this time it was the fire. I made flames and little fires all over the quilt. When I was done I realized that this really reflected my boys personalities, the fire and the one who puts them out. Thanks so much! It was so fun to work with the same fabric and do something completely different with it. I hope you love it as much as I do!

Bibs, Bibs and more Bibs

2009-08-18T07:33:00.000-07:00

As fast as I can make these little bundles they are out the door. I moved on from just the bib of the month, where you get 12 bibs, one representing each month. Now I do dozens for girls, boys, Christmas, summertime and more! It's crazy. I used to use scrap fabric to make these, now I have to go hunt for novelty fabric that's got patterns just the right size for the bibs. I actually enjoy hanging onto them as the bib turns the corners and you can feel the fabric pulling. I really like sewing.

In The Garden

2009-08-04T09:32:00.000-07:00

It's so rare that I actually use a pattern that I have to give thanks to my source, probably my favorite quilt book "Tesselation Quilts" by Christine Porter. She made a similar quilt called "Saturday Market" and I never had any intention of making that same quilt but I had gathered the fabrics to make a quilt and when I saw the pattern it fit perfectly.

Colors of the Sea

2009-07-06T14:49:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I did a big project, so this is big in size, but actually went together super fast. It's a panel from Hawaii, all I did was sew a border on it, make the backing, and quilt it together. Easy. The big part was it's size, it's a nice roomy twin size quilt. It's on it's way back to Hawaii next week, I finished just in time.

It's Summer! Maybe i'll get some sewing done.

2009-06-29T19:39:00.000-07:00

This is the July wall hanging of the month, notice that June is absent. Where did the time go? I have a couple projects i'm working on now, so with the kids tracked back in we'll see what I can get done. This one was really fun, it's a moda panel and I snipped around the edges for a frayed border. I really like the effect.

A Dozen Bibs

2009-06-15T06:54:00.000-07:00

It seems like lately I can't get anything finished. I have lots of UFO's at the moment but nothing complete. My only finished project is a stack of a dozen bibs for boys, in assorted prints. Although the achievement here is that I made 3 dozen, but only sold 1 dozen. So i'm ready for next time, unless I need girl bibs.

Washington's Sidewalk

2009-04-20T18:33:00.000-07:00

Mom found some really fun fabrics the last time she was in Delta and sent some to me. I made up this block, thinking I would donate it to Fabric Boutique for their customer appreciation quilt. I didn't get it done in time, but now I really want to design a whole quilt around one fabric, made even more difficult by the fact that there is no more of the blue. I can always just enjoy it. It's a lot more fun to look at than the purple blocks.

April wall hanging of the month.

2009-04-02T09:16:00.001-07:00

The pattern for the bunnies was modified but did originally come from Quick Quilts magazine. I used a coloring book for the egg shape, then sewed strips together and cut out the eggs. They are machine appliqued. I had a good time with the quilting too, close quilting around the shapes makes them pop out. A tight stipple on the yellow border, and flowers on the Peanuts fabric.

The whole thing is about 24x30. Bigger than the last few, so hopefully it will fill the space on Melissa's wall a little better.

Do you see what I see?

2009-03-17T07:36:00.000-07:00

Jeanette and I have been doing blocks of the month since last January. It would have been nice to put these side by side, but - can you tell the difference. Just by looking at the top I can tell which is her block and which is mine.

Jeanette sews to perfection and often I don't really try all that hard to make my points match up and my pinwheels perfect in the back. This is my new goal for this year, to make my stitches as perfect as Jeanette's.

As soon as you see the back, you can tell that she put more care into her construction. To be fair she doesn't have 3 kids pulling on her as she sews but I am going to see that my points match up better this year. It's my late resolution. Perfect points.

Around the Corner

2009-02-25T15:49:00.000-08:00

This is a great wall hanging made from the Around the Corner block. I wish the colors were brighter but when I went to mess with the photo it just looked weird and orange. I have this up in my living room and I love the colors. It feels really warm to me. I made this when we were buying the house. I figured we couldn't move into a new home unless we had a new wall hanging. Strange logic, I know. But there it is, living proof that I won't pack or move until I have a new wall hanging.

New Curtains, okay I copied

2009-02-16T21:11:00.000-08:00

Well, Dahlia didn't like the pillow but she liked the curtains. Dahlia pulled the curtains off the wall last week and bent the curtain rod. It was a cheap metal rod that just bent in half under the weight of a swinging monkey of a girl. So I got a big 1 inch thick dowel from Lowes and replaced it with that. I took the curtains, washed them, ironed them and sewed ribbon all over them. I copied the idea from Maddie's curtains, they aren't exactly the same but I liked the effect. Took about 15 minutes, now that's an EASY project.

Easy Pillowcase with French Seams

2009-02-12T14:02:00.000-08:00

I was up at Fiddlesticks today, one of my favorite shops, and picked up a kit for a Valentine pillow. It had directions for the roll tube, something I haven't done before. So I brought it home, thinking this is going to be a snap, the pieces are already cut and it should sew together in just a few minutes. Well.......20 minutes later i'm still looking at the instructions trying to figure them out. The instructions say things like: "fold the fabric in half" well, which way? So after a while, I did figure it out, and it did sew together pretty quickly. I hope Dahlia loves it when she gets home. So really this should be titled:

Easy (if you know what you're doing) Pillowcase with French Seams

Aprons

2009-01-28T07:03:00.000-08:00

I needed a new apron, i've been wearing one that my Grandmother made, forty or fifty years ago. I used that apron as a pattern to create two aprons. It took two half yards of contrasting fabric to make two aprons, and now my daughter and I can cook together with our matching aprons! (Thanks for the fabric Nat)

A Valentine

2009-01-24T13:24:00.000-08:00

"Love"
The first for this year, a classic wall hanging. This was made using the "Love is in the air" charm pack from moda (thanks Nat!)and some solid pink and yellow batiks. The white, well I couldn't find my white fabric, so Snoopy is made out of a Lands End no-iron pinpoint shirt (sorry Steve, i'll replace it). There wasn't a pattern for this, I got the idea because of MT and wanted to create a Snoopy, I was looking at the Peanuts fabric that is interspersed with the charm squares, there was one Snoopy holding a Woodstock. So I sketched it out, created a pattern (pattern available!) and began the applique work.
I made two of these, one went to MT and the other I delivered to Bec because i've been wanting to surprise her with something for ages! Look back over my blog, she always leaves such thoughtful comments, I really wanted to give this to her. Okay, so even though CJ was outside, I duct taped it to her door (sorry if that causes problems), took a picture and ran (well not really ran, that just sounds dramatic). Happy Valentines a bit early!

Corn and Beans

2009-01-21T07:38:00.000-08:00

I'm working on a Civil War reproduction quilt and I came across a book of quilt blocks, some of which I wanted to incorporate into the quilt. The blocks need to be 12x12 so the quilt blocks in the book are exactly the right size. I started cutting up the Union Square, but there were so many pieces that I quickly moved on to the corn and beans block. I cut pieces for four blocks. They sewed up pretty quickly once the pieces were cut, I laid out the different sections and took a photo, to remind myself when I made the other blocks so that I didn't have to keep refering to the instructions. So once the block was sewn up and trimmed, it measured exactly 11x11. Wow! That's a whole inch off! It's still a beautiful block but now i'm faced with putting a border on them to get to 12 inches or just hoping there will be another project later in life where I can use them. I can't decide.

Fabric for Christmas

2009-01-17T19:46:00.001-08:00

I got a surprise for Christmas last year, fabric from one of my favorite places Hancocks of Paducah. I love to browse through their sumptuous catalog and dream of fine fabrics. Thanks to Nat it was a dream that came true. So with a little wise and careful shopping I got 8 1/2 yards of fabric, three 5 inch charm packs and two patterns. All told it is fabric for two aprons, parts of several quilts and wall hangings, one of which i'm working on now. I got a whole bunch of patriotic/civil war fabric that i've been collecting to make a quilt for me (shocking I know). So thank you very much Nat! Merry Christmas!

I'm not a computer

2009-01-07T10:07:00.000-08:00

This morning the great MT asked me about the bucking bronco from the John Wayne quilt. She wondered how i'd done it. So, I want to clarify that I made that. No computer sewed that using a program, I sewed it. I found a picture of a cowboy and taped it to my bookcase. Using it as a kind of inspiration I sewed it freehand, I usually wouldn't even have done that but animals are kind of hard for me, I have to watch to make sure that their necks aren't too long, or their legs are in proportion and have the right depth. That being said, no freehanded image is perfect. Here's the outhouse as an example.

Another one for the Duke

2009-01-05T18:26:00.001-08:00

Another One for the Duke

A John Wayne quilt - twin size, approximately 60x80 inches. There are eight printed 8x10 pictures of John Wayne, four vertical and four horizontal. The pattern is divided into four quadrants, each identical. The sewing was challenging because the corners don't match. Sections were sewn together and then pieced by only sewing halfway down the block, finishing the next section and then completing that seam. It's very time consuming. It was a really great project, I had fun in the quilting too. There are signatures of John Wayne in the dark brown strips, movie titles, famous quotes and some cowboy illustrations randomly placed but mostly on the larger blocks. My favorite is the outhouse. And as will all my quilts I learned a lot, this time about John Wayne, I think this may be the surprise bonus, more learning.

Giddy-up Santa!

2009-01-05T18:19:00.000-08:00

A quilt for Jarrod. He gave me very specific instructions and a drawing. He wanted to the quilt to have a big Christmas tree on it with a Santa. He said he wanted to cuddle up by the tree with the blanket. Well, obviously, I didn't do exactly what he wanted. There is a Santa, but no tree. I made a John Wayne quilt for Jarrod's Grandpa and had a bunch of extra fabric. I used it to make the front, then kept with the cowboy theme and found the cutest cowboy Christmas fabric i've ever seen (it's Alexander Henry - of course!). So - for Jarrod - "Giddy-up Santa" and he had it in time for Christmas.

Sublime Perfection

2008-12-21T20:47:00.000-08:00

I am actually really excited to announce that after dozens of patterns, sixteen boots and some that I can't count because they are really just awful (the McDonalds one for example) I have finally found perfection. It came in the form of the interior lining, once folded over creates the perfect fuzzy furry top. I have found perfection and I have spent the evening admiring my own work. Not very humble I admit, but to be fair, i've spent weeks on this project and attaching the fur at the top has given me trouble from the start. Aaaaaaah perfection. Now I can create a finished pattern, one that i'm happy with.
So with a finished pattern, I made my boot. Isn't it pretty.

A Snow Day

2008-12-18T09:18:00.000-08:00

For once it looks like Christmas in Las Vegas. It snowed and snowed. Then they cancelled school, so here are the pictures of Wednesday night, and the Thursday morning that school was cancelled. This would never have happened in Salt Lake, only in the desert. So for once, you won't find me behind my sewing machine, i'm going out to snowball fight.

Christmas Boots

2008-12-17T14:57:00.000-08:00

So I have now completed 14 boots. It seems that demand for them has been ever increasing. So I put them all under the little tree and took a photo. They are so merry and bright.

Christmas Trees

2008-12-12T07:42:00.001-08:00

This wall hanging had no pattern, I wanted to make trees so first I cut triangles, and then created a background that would make a rectangle. I added the bottom to the tree and then a final piece of fabric to separate the tree from the sashing. It was a pretty fun project, not too difficult but creating the pattern was half the fun. For the quilting I did stippling around the tree and on the sashing, quilting the fabric like that around the trees, which I left unquilted, really makes them pop out of the quilt. A great project.

It's a Charlie Brown Christmas!

2008-12-12T07:38:00.000-08:00

This great wall hanging is for Jamie. It was supposed to have retro colors to go with it, but when the time came to sew it up I looked at the fabric and thought - green with stars. So that's what it turned out to be. Neil says it's the coolest wall hanging i've ever made, probably because there is Charlie Brown on it. Subject matter counts after all.

A Christmas Boot - Hooray!

2008-11-26T13:44:00.000-08:00

After extensive reverse engineering and six prototypes I proudly present The Boot. Now modifications have been made to create a more durable, more pleasing boot. The original boot was made from felt with heavy batting glued around the outside. Something that could be made in an hour or less, a quick craft, then the empty can was dropped inside. I created a liner for the boot to conceal the can. The boot laces and has fake fur around the outside, only messy while you are sewing with it, and true to the original has a cardboard cut out from a cereal box as the base of the boot. The toe is stuffed with batting until firm. So for my Steve, Merry Christmas, it only took 11 years.

Happy Thanksgiving

2008-11-25T07:41:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving!
I feel like I need to put this up before it's too late. I'm buried under Christmas projects right now, so i'll start posting those soon. This is one of the wall hangings fron the wall hanging of the month club. The Thanks part is tricky, you can fold it back and not have it showing if you wish. Clever - I know. Still, I have much to be thankful for so here's a great big THANKS to everyone.

A #10 Can in A Christmas Boot

2008-11-10T14:16:00.000-08:00

Steve has been asking for a boot for Christmas for years. Apparently in his family they all had them growing up. This year I decided to tackle the project. So having never seen one, and with only a few things to go on - like it's red, has a toe, and a big can is inside I set out to create one. I stared with the green boot and Steve said it had more of a toe. Then I made the red one, which certainly has more toe, but again, not quite right, He said the toe wraps around. So, after some searching I came across a pattern that I hope is closer, although it eliminates the nifty lining for the can that I created. If the look is right, i'll rework the pattern so that it satisfies me and Steve's memories. Let me know what you think, does anyone (other than the great MT) have one of these Christmas boots? Also, i've stopped using Christmas fabric for my prototypes, i'm saving it for when I get this right.

Happy Halloween!

2008-10-30T14:07:00.000-07:00

Dick and Jane Go To School

2008-10-27T12:06:00.000-07:00

Okay maybe not the best title, but it's not too late if you have a better suggestion. I can easily change the tag. Neil suggested, Fun Bubbles for a title. I really need something that works here.

This is the quilt I made for the Harvest Hoedown at Marcus' school. Each of his classmates wrote their name on a block, and some drew pictures. I themed this around Dick and Jane because I wanted to do something different than the Cat in the Hat quilt I made for Mrs. T two years ago. It's a little smaller than that quilt was but I really love all the bright colors, and the kids did a really great job with their names and spelling different words and trying to follow instructions. I did much better this time around by taping up 1/2 inch around the edges of the blocks so they wouldn't write in the seam allowance. That was a huge success, i'm patting myself on the back for that one.

So my thanks to Mrs. T, Marcus (and his Jedi Starfighter), Cole (and his dog), Toby, Taylor, Mckenna (who drew the cutest girl on a bike), Jasmin (who makes cute hearts and rainbows), Isabella, Daniel, Rachel (and her tree), Alexia, Talon (and his great alphabet), Jessica, Shyanne, David (in the nick of time), and Brody (awesome car Brody).

If you wish to see it, it will be at the school in the silent auction during the Harvest Hoedown on Thursday night. Hope for high bids- it's for Marcus' class.

My favorite Foot #5

2008-10-27T11:52:00.000-07:00

This is my new favorite foot. It stitches in the ditch like a dream. How could my last machine not have had this - I think it's an essential. It gives perfectly straight lines and total satisfaction. A must have. I would put it on my Christmas list if I didn't have one.

Not too Scary, Not too Cute

2008-10-20T07:20:00.000-07:00

When I went to make this one I wanted to be sure that it wasn't too cute. This went to a family of boys and I didn't want it to be girly, but then it also wasn't supposed to be scary.

Way too many restrictions if you ask me. So I got this great fabric, used in the center, made by Alexander Henry, one of my favorite designers. It's called "house of the haunts." Then the rest are scraps, the whole this is very busy but I love the effect. You just can't stop looking at it.

3 Quarter Moons

2008-10-15T06:47:00.000-07:00

Neil and I were at Phil Larsen's office yesterday getting Neil's feet molded for his inserts. On the wall there was a small quilt made by one of the other doctors patients. It had four cowboy boots and the words "All I do is feet" across the top. So the first thing I do as soon as the door is closed and we are alone is go and examine this quilt. I had to look at the piecing, the stitching and the quilting and you know I turned it over. There was a nice label on the back which gave the name of the lady who sewed it and who it was for and when, and then of course the best part which was the title " A Direct Quote". So I thought about it for a minute and realized that the quote must be the "All I do is feet" part. But still, what a clever title. Some of my titles have been odd, and some don't seem to fit, but mostly they come from inspiration like the title floats out of the air and makes it's mark. So here is "3 Quarter Moons" - really it's 3 3/4 moons and I know that, but I thought the other way was more interresting. What's in the title? It really is just the name, but it does give you an opportunity to get a look into the mind of the person who made the quilt. So next time, turn it over, and see what it says.

Trunk or Treat on the 10th! I'm not ready!

2008-10-11T20:28:00.000-07:00

So the ward had the trunk or treat on the 10th of October. I was sewing up until the moment we walked out the door. Dahlia had to have all her pleats or the skirt wouldn't have the right effect. Sorry the pictures aren't so great, I could not get the kids to hold still no matter how I tried.

Neil is a character from the Lego Star Wars game - an Ewok, Clone trooper, Jedi combination.

Marcus is Mario.

Dahlia is a princess (she wanted to be Belle but I put blue in the dress which made her super mad and then she refused to wear it - at least until she changed her mind.)

At least i'm ready for the 31st!

It's October! Halloween fabric here I come!

2008-10-09T12:48:00.001-07:00

Hooray! I can break out the Halloween fabric. I wait all year for this. Hold on! I'm just getting started.

Believe begins with a C

2008-10-01T14:42:00.000-07:00

I got the title off a Cubs shirt. It's how I feel right now. A full size quilt in such a short time. If I can do it, surely the Cubs can. It's been 100 years!

Still 3 days, but now it's 2, or is it 1 ?

2008-09-30T21:34:00.001-07:00

Quilting is done. I put some cubs logos in, two sizes, 8 inch in the center and 5 inch on the outside. There is also a goat. Have to have the goat. No mayo though - thanks for the comment Nat, but you wouldn't have wanted that anyway. I absolutely abandoned making bats, they looked like blobby long things and I had to take them out. Tomorrow i'll start the binding. I'm still trying to decide between red and blue. Neil voted for white, but that's a bad color choice in a binding. I probably won't decide on that until ten seconds before I cut the fabric.

3 Days Left

2008-09-30T07:39:00.000-07:00

The sandwich is made. I have spent this morning getting some images of Cubs logos and of course looking for the perfect goat. There has to be a goat.

4 Days left

2008-09-29T11:51:00.000-07:00

So I was going along very well until I realized this was getting much bigger than I imagined, I think because it's on point I had the dimensions turned in my mind. I am working on setting the corner blocks and the outer border this morning, and later today. Hoping to get the whole top finished today and get the sandwich made. That may be a problem though, I picked up eggshell muslin because it reminded me of the fabric old baseball uniforms were made out of, unfortunately it's just so sheer and cheap looking. So probably one more shopping trip is in order, two if you include returning the backing I already bought. So, here I go.

Chronicle of a Quilt Foretold

2008-09-27T13:36:00.001-07:00

If I were Gabriel Garcia Marquez I would show the quilt first and then reveal slowly how it was created. Instead I have six days to create a Cubs quilt. Yesterday I made sketches of the design and got the center block (the Cubs t-shirt). Today I went fabric shopping and decided on baseballs, with a nice blue back ground, bat fabric, and a selection of red, eggshell and royal blue. I know the blue is too dark, my plan is to use it in the binding. Those corner pieces I still don't have a plan for, but perhaps the baseball bats. I can't "see" it yet. Tonight I hope to get all the pieces cut. Right now the plan is for 12" blocks, with a 17" inch width given that i'm setting them on point. This should work out over 80 inches in width so I haven't yet sketched in a border, I'm not sure I need one yet. So.......6 days and counting.

Decisions, Decisions, Decisions

2008-09-18T07:04:00.000-07:00

I've been putting a wall hanging together for Halloween. I can't decide how to lay it out. Please vote for your favorite.

Flowers Sing Refrain

2008-08-26T16:04:00.000-07:00

Grand Finale

Alice Morrey Bailey

Last night the sky was filled with lyric sound.

Arpeggioed mountain scenes backdropped the stage.

Profundo claps electrified the ground

While ballerina flowers of tender age

Swayed upper left. A chorus line of trees

Swept in from right as silver-costumed rain

Danced in and out to Gypsy fiddle breeze.

One snowy peak, spot-lighted sang refrain.

Duets of rainbows arched from wing to wing

As rapier lightning dueled upstage and down.

A choir of rivers burst their throats to sing.

West-facing windows spangled all the town.

The prima donna sun took bows of light

Before the lowered curtain of the night.

This fabulous poem was my inspiration for the quilting. It feels like a dance to me and so I tried to make the quilted flowers dance. There is a lot of movement in the quilting and the poem. The fabric is all 1930's reproduction feed-sack prints. This one is for Kelli's gorgeous girl.

Happy Birthday Jamie

2008-08-13T10:38:00.000-07:00

Here is the fabulous cake I made for Jamie's birthday. It's a cherry chip cake with cherry frosting (even though it's black). I made it to match the sticker on her truck. She is the self proclaimed president of the i.b.t.c. and don't ask my why that's lowercase. It's made with the barbie cake skirt mold. I tell you, that's the most useful cake pan i've ever had. It even makes Death Star's with just a little trimming. Fabulous.

Ariel the Mermaid

2008-08-12T11:20:00.000-07:00

This is the second of four. Yippee. Here is the great thing about this Ariel quilt. It's actually for one of my children. Dahlia, as is commonly known, is a huge Ariel fan, so I made this Ariel quilt. I fussy cut those ariels and made the blocks, Jeanette helped decide on the orange to tie the navy and the lighter blue fabrics together by using the color of Ariel's hair. But here is the kicker, Dahlia likes the back better than the front. Of course. It's like giving the child a toy, and they play with the box. Still though, I really think it's fun and I like it and that's all that matters.

Variations on a Theme

2008-08-09T16:23:00.000-07:00

Here is number one of the four quilts. Kira made the top, attached it to the back and batting and turned it inside out. I quilted the top for her. I didn't want it to look like Alexanders blanket so I tried to put these caterpillars and butterflies in a garden instead of in a tree. The thing about this is I have never deliberately hidden so many things in a quilt before, but there are seven hidden, or extra elements in this quilt. Quite a number actually (look for numbers). There are also extra words and a cute label. Happy Birthday Savannah (look for your name and initials).

Baby Bibs and Barbie Cakes?

2008-08-08T15:33:00.000-07:00

Baby Bibs and Barbie Cakes?

2008-08-08T15:25:00.000-07:00

Why are the last weeks of school so hectic? Maybe because it's over a hundred degrees and the kids are still in school in August. This week I have four quilts to finish and instead worked on a Barbie cake and a set of a dozen bibs, themed for the year. I made those as a thank you gift for Marcus' fabulous Kindergarten teacher. It's great to sew again. So now we have two weeks off before the next school year starts. Brace yourself.......it's time to sew.

Oh, What do you do in the summertime?

2008-07-13T08:03:00.000-07:00

Apparently I clean up the sewing table, take everything and put it in the closet and go on vacation. I actually took two quilt tops with me but didn't do any sewing. It's nice to be home, back in the 110 degree heat (not really) but it is nice to be home. This is a piece of a wall hanging I made just before I left. This month I have four quilts to finish so I need to get moving. Happy sewing everyone!

Quilt of Dreams

2008-06-20T10:46:00.000-07:00

It's time for the 2008 Quilt of Dreams Contest. These quilts go to children at St. Jude's research hospital. Check out their website:

http://www.quiltofdreams.com/

or go to Hancock fabrics for a brochure. You need to use at least 50% of the 2008 fabric which is now available at Hancocks. The fabric is inspired by children who are fighting or have won their battle with cancer. There is a printable brochure on the website with all the information you need. The quilts are due August 31-September 2, 2008 at any Hancock Fabrics.

This is the one I made last year, Web of Dreams. I was hoping it would go to a girl. This year I am sewing for a boy. I am looking for patterns, so any ideas would be helpful. I know how blessed I am, this is just one way I can give back.

There's something in the air

2008-06-17T16:13:00.000-07:00

Look what Marcus brought home from school today. Apparently they are reading Eric Carle books this week and he made a caterpillar using tissue paper. He was very proud of it. I had to post this because this seems to be the theme this week. I absolutely love this.

A Very Hungry Caterpillar

2008-06-16T20:26:00.001-07:00

This is it! The Very Hungry Caterpillar. I finished this on Wednesday, took the photographs, wrapped it up and airmailed it to Australia. Sometimes it's like giving away a child. This one hurt. Much love went into this quilt. The colors were striking, the quilting was super fun and best of all Dahlia loved it. I always know when I have a hit when she says it's "so so beautiful." I keep looking at the scraps on the table thinking how much I adored this fabric. I think I can make a few blocks to put in my scrap quilt. Thanks to everyone who offered comments on it, and aaaaaahs, you are all so great! And to Alexander - don't let your mom fold this up and put it away, make her let you get it dirty, and drag it everywhere! Tell her that Neil and Marcus used her bibs until they grew out of them and they are quite stained, but in the end I ironed them and put them in their scrapbooks. They remember using them and that is marvellous.

Skeletons in the Closet

2008-06-13T14:34:00.000-07:00

Okay, this is for Kira who thinks I finish things and always get my projects done. I won't take a photo, because this is embarassing enough. I have skeletons, yes it's true, lots of them!

TWO (not one) thirties fabric quilt tops
Unfinished circus quilt top
Unfinished Princess quilt top
Unfinished ocean quilt top
20 trick or treat bags left over from last years fall festival (at least they are finished)
Enough blocks for three "I spy" quilts, not sewn of course
A Dahlia kit and fabric for a quilt for Dahlia (naturally) collecting dust (not really dust)
4 Christmas panels and co-ordinating fabric for some future date when I make Christmas panels and can give them as a gift. Ask me what year.
Christmas fabric which I intended to make matching stockings for the family. Hmmmm.
A half finished Easter wall hanging, pinned together.
Fifteen out of fifty crazy log cabin 12x12 blocks for a queen size quilt which I had hoped to finish in May. (Darn Carpel Tunnel)
Six receiving blankets and burp cloths sewn and turned but not stitched down. Still those are closer to being done than other things.
Forty yards of Halloween fabric. Why? Because I have a weakness.
A collection of newsprint and vintage looking fabric, for what purpose I have no idea. I figure someday there might be a reason, but for now it's just a collection.

I'm afraid if I go on I might start feeling ill. Okay Kira. Feel better?

Sugar and Spice

2008-06-13T07:15:00.001-07:00

Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice! Snips and Snails and puppy dog tails. Matching quilts for two teeny twins. Making two quilts at the same time is something of a challenge. Doing one project is often enough, but getting two ready to go out the door on the same day. Whew. These were made for my good friend Susan's twins. I loved the paper doll fabric.

Convergence

2008-06-10T19:24:00.000-07:00

Jamie asked me to post a photo of the convergence quilt I made for my brother. It's black and white, mostly for contrast. My brother decorates only in white, but making this with only white on white fabrics was not worth the effort, I could have just done whole cloth quilting for basically the same effect. Anyway, the fabric is a variety of small print black and white with a keyboard and circuit board fabric as major components. The whole thing was done in a convergence pattern with rough edged circuit board appliques. Also, here again you will notice the bra fabric. It's been quite popular.

2008-06-09T14:01:00.000-07:00

Today I am working on the most fabulous quilt. It's the very hungry caterpillar and I am just getting ready to put on the binding so there is no finished picture yet. I have so far invested 13 quilting hours into this gorgeous quilt for my friend Nikki's baby Alexander. I may never even meet this little boy but my heart and soul go into this quilt. And I have to share pictures. This has been so much fun to make. I have to send to Australia where I will likely never see it again, but I hope I do, and I hope when I do that it's tattered and worn and stained and loved. That's my dream for this quilt. Nikki, let him drag this thing everywhere.

memory quilt

2008-06-09T13:45:00.001-07:00

Okay, I haven't put up a new post in a while. I have been busy working on an impossible memory quilt. I have never worked with such mixed media. There were jeans and satin, t-shirts and velvet. And I had to bring it all together. It was an amazing but time consuming experience. All the little dress blocks are backed with muslin to keep the 6x6 shape. I think in the end it all worked out but there were definately some worrysome moments. Seems like this is just like life with my kids. So many different variables and I have to bring it all together in the end. It's never what I think it will be in the end.

Hidden Element

2008-04-24T10:32:00.001-07:00

There is usally a hidden element in every quilt I make. Something out of the ordinary that is concealed either in the piecing or the quilting. Take for example this quilt, can you identify the hidden element. If you need a hint, check for fabric choices. This one really isn't that hard to find, at least to me. But look in the McDonalds quilt. Can you find that one?

2008-04-23T16:31:00.001-07:00

So here is Ronald McDonald in the Case of the Stolen Hamburgers, at least I think that's what I called it. This quilt has gotten a lot of comments. Mary doesn't like it, but I like the striking contrast between the orange and purple. It will hypnotize any baby. And it was fun for me too, very nostalgic.

Receiving Blankets

2008-04-22T16:19:00.000-07:00

This week I am making receiving blanks with two burp cloths. Maybe not too thrilling to read about, but Mary came over today and she brought a skirt, so we created a pattern and made a new one. Very interresting, there were seven bias cut panels and it turned out super cute. Although the fabric we used was a touch patriotic. It will be great in July, and the bonus is bias is always so slimming.