Ditch It!

Quilting in the ditch was the least preferred method when I began quilting way back when.  Have to admit I felt guilty every time I've resorted to it since.  But I was delighted when I read an article about it in my new American Quilter magazine.  I learned a few new tricks, which usually involve "unlearning" some old rules.  One starts at the outer edge of the quilt, not the center, and bastes 1/4 inch all around.  Then moving inward, stitch in the ditch all the borders,  then the sashing, and finally within the blocks.  Also gave some tips on thread...finest possible...and needles...#70...needle position to the right...and more.

Well, I put on some country music and put the pedal to the you-know-what and before I knew it, quilted the whole darn thing this afternoon.  I used a decorative stitch in various colors for the Color Block Challenge blocks.  That took the longest, but it highlighted each block so well.  Now all that's left to do is bury those threads and get an ice bag for my aching neck.  But it was worth it.

Now You See It...

...Now you don't.

The Disappearing Nine-Patch strikes again!  It is becoming one of my favorite scrappy-looking methods.  Very easy, very fast , and I like those little bow-tie thingies that always happen.  I am making this quilt for the Thoman Knauer Baby Challenge.  I took on the challenge last spring as a summer project, but the summer whizzed by and it's soon due.  Better get quiltin' now.

White Lightning Progress

Am adding my zigzag blocks slowly and working horizontally.  Reason?  It is a real mind-bender for me (borrowing Nifty's phrase) and it is not so easy doing black and white.  Achromatic, I believe it's called.  It is making me a little dyslexic too!

Any Excuse

Do I really need this fabric?  I can usually find a reason.  I hadn't checked the weather before I went to Quilters Take Manhattan on Saturday.  When I came out of Penn Station, I was hit with a brisk breeze and wearing my too summery outfit.  First impulse...go to City Quilter and get something to wrap around me.  Well, this fabric just "said party"....and it was half price!  So when I was seated at the event, I whipped out my yardage and covered my shoulders,  ignoring the titters from the folks behind me.  Yes,  I could have bought a shawl off one of the many street vendors, but my Dots 'n Roses is going to appear next on the back of my Color Challenge quilt!

Does anyone have a favorite excuse to share?

First Love

What a delightful surprise!  My cousin Merle flew in from California for the Open and stopped in for a visit.  Have to admit I had my first real crush on him when I was nine and he was twelve.  It's pretty evident that my feelings for him haven't changed!  "True love never dies"....


....and I still feel the same way about quilting after forty-six years.  My Dump & Sew project has me pumped today.  Love to see what happens when I just put scraps together.   Call it chemistry?

Back to School Colors

A flashback when the school bus appeared on our block this week---the brand new box of Crayolas!  I just had to start another quilt today using my basket of solid scraps.  Beth's Dump and Sew Linky Party is my inspiration.  Gotta go and sew now....

September Storm

Yesterday's tornados in New York did not deter the Empire Guild members one bit!  We had a wonderful guest speaker from Australia who had some stories from her home country about indomitable quilters, too.   The photo above shows a detail of one of her exciting landscapes.  You can see more on www.glorialoughman.com/

Aftermath of the storm involved picking up the sticks.   And the lucky Block of the Month winner took home over sixty "Orange Pick-up Sticks" blocks!

Luckily, no one was hurt....and a good time was had by all.

Tada!

Naomi made this quilted back-to-school Ipad cover for her grandson.  Looks so handsome in that blue plaid, doesn't it?  She is on her way to the Apple store to check out the fit.  Bet she will be taking orders for more when everyone sees it.  Great tutorials online for these, folks!

Kindle Sllp Cases I & II

I made this quilted case for my son's kindle today.  It took less than an hour to make!  My first attempt took all day and has quite a few "mistaeks" so I will keep that one myself.

Little Quilted Gifts

Naomi and I began making little holiday gifts for our special guys today.  We don't want to spoil the surprise here, so we can only say we are using One Shabby Chick's tutorial for ***** cases.   They are small, so they should be finished in no time.  Yeah, right....only if we could cut the chatter.  But that's no fun!

Was a struggle getting that little ***** on to my free arm to sew in the lining.  Kinda like squeezing into shoes after a barefoot summer.   Stay tuned....more to come.

Approaching Storm

My lightning blocks are so easy to make that I am on auto pilot today.   

Ooops, something happens when I add another row....hmmmmm.   Not so easy as I thought.  Maybe I should recalculate.  Better put my brain in gear again!