Cool Fabric Shop

Not that I need any more fabric, but I can't resist looking. If you have some time today, check this fabric shop out!

You Either Like Them or Hate Them!

If you like them, I have a recipe for you! Circus Peanut Salad. I'm off to check out more of Jolene's recipes.

Have you Sashikoed?

My Japanese friend Yumi sent me two of these beautiful Sashiko kits and some colorful Sashiko yarns. I'm a crappy embroiderer, but I found this technique kind of easy. Just follow the lines! And you can load up a few stitches on your needle, so it goes quickly. Isn't this one pretty?

Wave Runner Progress

What a fun quilt to make! No exact cuts, some fun curves, and an endless possibility of layouts. I'm dying to sew everything together, but I think I'll let it gel a little. Sure wish I had a design wall. A design floor has to be picked up! Plus, I had to vacuum first! At least my studio got vacuumed. Cleaning is done for the day. Back to sewing!

If you want to give this quilt a try, there's an awesome tutorial button to the right. Thanks Bumble Beans!

Ours, All Ours!

Today we paid off our mortgage! We officially owe no one this minute! What a great feeling! Yay!

More Quilts

Do you think I like bright colors?! No Civil War prints for me! Well, maybe....

Sunday Stash #12

Amy Butler's new line, "Love." I do love it! To see the entire collection click here. Prepare to drool. I need a yard or two of each print. This is what I've amassed so far.

Never ask your teenager to fix your label maker. Hmmpf!

A Kaffe Fassett Finish!

A year later, this puppy is bound and finished! I bought the Kaffe Fassett squares and backing fabric at the very first quilt show I attended. That was all I bought too! How's that for restraint? I'd really like to have a yard each of all those fabrics. If you ever see them on sale, let me know! The gorgeous quilting was done by Eagle Mountain Quilting, which has been the best longarmer I've used so far. Wonderful service, quick turnaround, talent galore and excellent pricing.

The backing is always a challenge for me. I was rushing to get this one done and I made some bad cuts. Oh well, pieced backs aren't so bad! And I had these really long binding strips, which was kind of nice. I have tons of those left, so you might see the backing used as binding again.

Bones has to give it his approval. The colors are a little better in this shot.

Wave Runner Start

My Great Grandmothers' Quilts

My father's maternal grandmother gave my parents this quilt when they married. It is gorgeous! Velvets, wools, and other luscious fabrics. The backing is satin. I wish you could see the hand embroidery on this quilt. Very pretty. The crazy quilt is treasured for its beauty, but the story behind it is interesting too. My mom sewed her own clothing or would buy scraps of velvet when she was dating my dad. Mom worked at the five and dime and spent most of her salary on fabric and makeup! Great grandma saved these scraps and made them this quilt when they married. It's in pristine condition and has never been used. I take it out of storage every now and then and admire it.

 

This same great grandmother, Ella Martin, was an accomplished seamstress. She also published a hymn. She lived during the depression in West Virginia. In 1933, she made a quilt for President Roosevelt. I have a wonderful magazine article about that quilt and her life. The quilt now belongs to the state of West Virginia and resides in a museum.

Grandma Martin was very special to me and I have many fond memories of spending time with her. I don't remember her sewing in my presence, but there were handmade items all around to admire. My parents and I visited her almost every weekend when she lived in St. Petersburg, Florida. She was making doll clothes by that time and my dad has one of her dolls. I have fond memories of her and was lucky to know her.

My dad's paternal grandmother gave this quilt to my parents when they married. I suspect it is quite old and was possibly an heirloom when they received it. It was the first quilt I ever saw or touched and has always been my favorite. I used it all the time as a teenager. My mother gave it to me for my home when I got married.

I love how it is made with scraps of clothing. The simplicity gives it charm. This great grandmother also lived in West Virginia during the depression. She died of lung cancer before I was born. Never smoked a day in her life. A very religious, thrifty woman and a wonderful cook.

It's interesting how the quilting bug came full circle. I think both of my great grandmother's would have been happy to see the tradition and hobby continued.

Sunday Stash #11

My goal this month is to organize the stash. I already sorted my scraps by color. The bigger pieces are getting there. I need to sew faster or get more storage room! Does anyone else have this problem? Ha!

Mr. Bones is showing you an oldie but a goodie. What's really sad is I have no idea where this quilt came from! I think I bought it at an estate sale and was going to sell it. This was before I quilted! It didn't sell thank goodness, so it's mine! All mine! It's one of my favorite old quilts now.

This grandmother's flower garden I found in my travels. I think the patch is one of the most interesting parts of this quilt. I fall in love with a new print each time I look at this quilt.

I bought this one on the "World's Longest Yard Sale." My aunt and I took the trip and had a blast! We filled my trunk with treasures. I've always loved the contrast between black and white and this quilt is no exception!

I hope you've liked the little show and tell.

Blah Blogtober. I Got Nothing.

His Name Is Falcon.

Okay, I know it's not funny, but my daughter and I experienced this news story on our drive to the eye doctor. What a freaky story. We burst out laughing (inappropriately, of course) as soon as we heard it. We were imagining the child being lifted by Mickey Mouse, Dora the Explorer, etc. mylar balloons. I watched the rescue on the eye doctor's television. Thank goodness "Falcon" was found safe and sound, but my cheek muscles are killing me from laughing. Just too many funny and ironic things. Watch the "rescue" for instance. It was just an odd story. And I'm probably going to hell for laughing so hard, but I just found it hilarious. I'm sorry in advance, but I'm still laughing!

Doll Quilt Finished and Received!

My partner received the doll quilt I made for her. I have been collecting bright homespun fabrics since I started quilting and have always wanted to make a coin quilt with them. Here is the mini version! The actual quilting was kind of a challenge, but I'm really loving wonky line quilting. Especially since I broke the little tab thingy that holds the measuring bar in place. I also made a pincushion with the leftover strips. My partner is a new quilter so I thought she might need another pin cushion and new pins.

Sneak Peak

Today I had a little time for some applique for a future e-book. I even changed my ironing board cover for the shots. It's so gaggy Laura Ashley (sorry Ms. Ashley). You can't get picky on the clearance rack! It's a really nice cover and reversible. The other side is even worse in my opinion.

If you want to read about a superstar, click here.

Want to Make a Doll Quilt?

Do you know someone that would like to learn to quilt? I wrote an e-book in June that features a step-by-step photo tutorial for making the little quilt above. It's perfect for a beginner and offers some tips and tricks I've learned over the two years I've been quilting. To see more about the book, click here.

I'm working on a new e-book that should be available later this month. Stay tuned!

Wonky Log Cabin

A lot of quilters in blogland are making these wonky log cabins. I decided to make a mini version yesterday. I used a few strips from a honey bun of Soirée by Lila Tueller.  I always get turned around doing log cabins, but these have no rules! I like that! My kind of quilting! Now if the free motion gods could smack me in the head!

Sunday Stash #10

American Jane Snippets by Sandy Klop. For petting pleasure only at the moment. Too many projects ahead of her. 

Just Playin' With a Mosaic Maker

Cute(buns) Doll Quilt

This one came all the way from Canada! I love the embroidered center panel! So sweet!

Giveaway Day! My 50th Post!

I started this blog to enter a bunch of giveaways, so it makes sense to celebrate my 50th post with a giveaway. Just look at this beauty. Note the stern facial expression. The uncomfortable clothes... Mrs. Bunny is clearly not a happy camper. Which is exactly why I have been tormenting my daughter with this dollcatstrophe. We have a long standing tradition of scaring each other with hideous dolls. I won't divulge how this beauty made it in to the house, but she has been showing up in all sorts of unexpected places. I giggle when I hear Lauren scream! I know, I know, "Mother of the Year!" So, in honor of my 50th post, I'm giving away...

These funky batik coasters! They're oversize and have wild spikes. Handmade by me and crafted with scraps from my beloved batik fabric collection.

The second giveaway is one yard of this pretty batik. It has dragonflies and pretty flowers. To win either of these prizes, simply leave a comment on this post. I'll randomly choose a winner from the comments. And you thought I was giving away that frightful rabbit, huh? I wouldn't do that to you!

The end. Yep, the tail is sticking out of the dress! Freaky.

A Nice Distraction

My mom and her husband came today to take me to lunch. Le Coq a Vin is an Orlando institution and is always a hit! I had Grouper Hester, which is sauteed with capers, tomatoes, cheese, and buerre blanc sauce. Guess I'll start that diet tomorrow! I've been reading Mastering the Art of French Cooking, and would love to be able to make the French dishes my grandmother made. She came from a long line of talented French cooks, but the only cookbook I have of hers is Betty Crocker's Picture Cookbook. I love her beautifully handwritten notes in this classic American cookbook. I would love to have more of my family's French recipes, but not many were written down.

For Yumi: I tried the Japanese curry last night with some leftover roast beef. I bought the medium-hot version, but it wasn't very hot. We added more chili sauce. It was pretty good, but I think I like making the sauce from scratch better. This boxed version had TONS of sodium. It easy to make though. I just added carrot, celery, onion, green beans, tomatoes, red and yellow bell pepper, scallions and fresh parsley. I served it over Jasmine rice with a sweet and sour cucumber salad on the side. Okay really, the diet starts tomorrow!

This doll quilt needs to be quilted soon. It's hogging valuable table space! Tomorrow is giveaway day!

Fresh Veggies

No time to goof off today. Hmmph! Tomorrow is looking good though! Yippee! I'll have the pedal to the metal quilting away. Stay tuned for pictures! Also look for a giveaway Thursday. It's my 50th post giveaway! In the meantime, I need to think about dinner. My husband is sad that we ran out of these. Boy, were they good!

Why Do I Hate Binding?

Why, why, why?! I'm down to seven quilts from various and talented longarm quilters, but truthfully they've been sitting in my studio (and laundry room) forever! There's this really neat bargello, a French braid, a quilt I made with Kaffe Fassett prints, a donation quilt, etc. Maybe if I out myself here in print I'll motivate myself to finish these seven quilts by the end of the year. I need to dust these suckers off and get into bind mode. Send me binding vibes people!

I had a pretty photo of my haul from the veggie market this morning, but the new camera has disappeared with my son. I'm tempted to make this with the lovely Tennessee tomatoes I bought. If you haven't seen this guy's blog, check it out. He is such a creative cook! I seriously want to try every recipe he posts! But instead, I'll be a healthy gal and use my tomatoes for a fresh pasta sauce with grilled shrimp. But you know I'll be dreaming of that bacon, cheese, and mayo-laced tomato pie! Bon appetit!