Update: Thread-Sucking Quilt

I really must find a name for this quilt...  it's such a lovely thing, but I am afraid I have dubbed it the "thread-sucking quilt"...

you see, I just sew and sew, adding more and more thread, and still it is not finished !!!

But, I will give you an update:  here is the whole piece -  looking more and more finished (forgive the blue marks)

The center medallion is almost completely done.

 And several of the sides are making good progress,

 The filigree corners take forever... and yes, if you are wondering, I have stitched down the green in between each of those little areas...

here's what it looks like stitched down in the green area...
















and one that is not yet done

 oh, there's so much more to do!  But it is fun, fun....

And look at my gorgeous cactus - it has never bloomed before - we have had it four years, and suddenly it put out these gorgeous flowers...

 

Hope everyone is having a great weekend !

 

Kate

FURRY VISITORS !!!

Awww, goodness, look who is staying with us for a few days:

 They are 7 weeks old, and completely adorable... We are just keeping them until the big Adoption Fair next weekend, but we are having so much fun...  See their red and green collars?  We nicknamed them "Stop" and "Go"

 STOP IS THE BEAUTY

 OUCH - TINY SHARP TEETH

 Go is the most snuggly - - 'pick me up, mama' !!

AND, NO, NO, NO, WE ARE NOT KEEPING THEM PERMANENTLY...  they will be adopted in the wink of an eye - and we already have our maximum amount of cat hair in our house.

Happy Weekend...

Kate

Panel Memories

Last week was our Guild's Sale - lots of fabric, notions, etc., at rock-bottom prices, all donated by members... I usually clean up, but this year decided to be a bit more moderate.

I like to buy panels, cause they make up into little charity quilts very quickly, and they look great... 

So - I bought about 30 panels,, all for $20 ...  want to take a walk through some memories?  You will remember many of these - yes, some are dated, but little ones don't usually care , and some will go overseas, where they may not be dated at all - I'll bet dusty pink and blue never had the same rise and fall in Peru as it did in the US !!!!

Here goes.......

I'm gonna have fun making these into some cute, cute charity kids quilts!!!!!  This is great raw material...

Happy Saturday everybody.
Kate

The Superbly-Traveled Fabric

Hi all.... 
Life is really busy for the Quilting Professor this time of year, because it is the end of the year - lots of ceremonies and receptions and things like that...  three more weeks until the quieter summer schedule begins.

I bring you a top today that has quite a story...

I often make quilts for an organization called Wrap -A-Smile, that sends those quilts out with surgeons who do facial disfigurement surgery in third-world countries.  Well, one of the people on that medical mission saw our quilts, wrapping beautiful children post-surgery, and wanted to help.  She bought some fabric in Africa, and brought it home to the US, for us to use in quilts... 

And from it, I made this kid-sized top: 

The African fabric is in the center of each of the blocks... it's just a gorgeous fabric, and so fun to sew on...

And, once this is quilted, it will go to Wrap A Smile, and go off on a medical mission... why, perhaps it will go to Africa !!!

What amazing fabric - Africa to the US, and then off to some unknown destination!

Quilting is so amazing sometimes. 

I close with a couple of photos of my kitty, Mystic... he is so hard to photograph, to capture his nutty, goofy self...  but I think these show a bit of his true personality...  They are taken from his favorite perch, way up high on top of the china cabinet...  doesn't he just have the most gorgeous amber eyes? 

Goodnight everyone... 
Kate

Look Who Came Out to Play !

Happy Saturday to all - it's five minutes to midnight here, and I stayed up late for some quiet time in my sewing room.

I moved tons of fabric around today - stash got moved from bins to fill empty spots on the shelf (hooray for empty spots that used to be full).... crumbs got made into blocks ... blocks got bordered and ironed.... strips got made into a quilt top............. lots of stitching, power stitching.

And then, suddenly, my Bernina just wasn't sewing right, and nothing I could do would fix the tension...  So, it was time for a servicing anyway, so off it went to the repair guy...

But there was more to stitch - so I went to my 'fleet' and brought a new friend out to play...

It's a Bernina Nova... made in Switzerland, between 1982 and 1985.  Isn't it just too cute?  I found it on eBay about a year ago.  But the time it came I was stressed out about something, and learning a new machine wasn't in the cards, so I put it away... til today

 

These were designed to be portable machines - see the Jetson's handle on top?  It has a very nifty case that literally wraps around the machine... but the case was lost on mine, so I am still searching for a case. 

 

 

This funky little orange mushroom is the foot pedal - it works on compressed air... it's a little strange, but very sensitive after you get used to it... 

a closer look.  If you saw that alone, you would never think it went to a sewing machine, would you?

Well, it did just beautifully - and I gradually learned it's various nobs.  A beautiful stitch. 

The machine has a great reputation for being very sturdy and running for years and years - sounds good to me!

It's so nice to have backup machines...  I'm glad I had the opportunity to get acquainted with this one today!

Happy Mothers Day to anyone who is a mother ....  my kitties think I am their mother, so I am going to bed and dreming of the breakfast they will make me in the morning and serve to me .... 

off to sleep am I !!

Kate

Thank You, SnowCatcher

What makes all quilters such darned generous people? 

Do you think we quilt cause we are nice - - or are we nice cause we quilt??

I was on one of the Yahoo Quilting groups a couple of days ago, and someone mentioned that they were going to the Denver Quilt Show, so I said offhandedly, "say hi to my quilt - it's there and I can't see it myself"...

So, this person wrote me and said "I will take a picture for you" - - how cool is that?  

and then, just so I could totally bask in it, she took a closeup of the ribbon !!!  haha, yes, I do love it!

My new friend's name is Deborah .. and her website is www.snowcatcher.net.
 Turns out she is a photographer (what luck), and a fiber person as well. 

Here's how she describes herself:

Fiber, photographic and digital art tickle my creative desires, itching to escape my soul. I love to quilt, crochet, knit, sew, embroider, design, digitally manipulate, garden, bake and write when I'm not on my bicycle, cross-country skis or any of the awesome trails anywhere in Colorado. I'm almost always found with camera in hand. And smile on face.

Deborah had a serious car accident a few years ago, and wrote an ebook about her recovery.  It's called "Heels over Head", and you can find it here: You can find it here... 

http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/304664

Thanks, Deborah !

Kate

 

Oh My Goodness, This is So Exciting !

Oh my friends - my heart is racing and I am flying high!

Elizabeth's legacy got an 'Honorable Mention' in the Denver National Quilt Festival !

 

Oh I wish I could be there to see it!!

 

I can't wait til it gets home, to see a ribbon in the box...I'll take a photo with the ribbon and share it with you...

 

good job, baby !!!!  Hurry home....

 

 

The Denver Quilt Festival opened today - three more days - go by and see the show, and say HI to my quilt!!!!! 

 

 

..signed, a happy girl,

 

Kate