Modern Quilting

I find myself on the fence about modern quilting. Do I like it? Do I not like it?

I like the bold colors. I am so over Civil War prints and some of the muddy looking colors. Never mind that I just bought some. On the other hand, there is only so much of the sixties I can revisit

Let's here it for piecing that leave room for imperfections. So what if everything doesn't match exactly. On the other hand sometimes they just look sloppy. I am trying to screw up my courage to try improvisational piecing but I suspect I already tried that and didn't know that is what you called it.

I giggle every time I hear "negative space." Really? You just named the background. Yes, sometimes the background is important. We have been using some kind of negative space in quilting for like, forever. Check out the Amish. They were all over background/negative space. Any traditional two color quilt is all about the negative space. <snicker>

What do you think of straight line quilting? Pretty much what I already do. But lines after line after line after line? Maybe not. Thankfully, modern quilting is not all about the feathers. So not digging feathers but still. Sometimes they are okay.

Still not sure about the modern quiting thing but evolution is inevitable. As Dr. Ian Malcolm said in Jurassic Park, "I'm simply saying that life (art), uh, finds a way."

Carry on!

So…long time, no write?

 Yeah. That would be me. I have been in a dark place lately between airline “excitement” and hospitalized hubs. And winter is never kind to me. It takes me till early March to climb out of my hole every year. I would describe my sewing as listless. Is that possible?

The Dallas Quilt Celebration runs from today till Sunday at the Dallas Market Hall. I love seeing all the quilts. I alternate between two states-“My work is as good as that” and “OMG these people are freakin’ talented and no way is anything I do that  good.” And so it goes that the quilt I wanted to submit is still not completed. Maybe next year…

Ready for some fabric porn?

I swore that I was not going to buy any fabric this year until I saw this...

I LOVE ribbon candy. This is from Timeless Treasures. I could not resist.

Then I saw the fabric on the bottom and badabingbadaboom the other fabrics just did it for me so they had to come home with me...

Then I found this panel and coordinating fat quarters to make a cute wall hanging so they had to come home with me...

And these fat quarters just would not stay on the shelf...

And a magazine and a book and I made myself leave. There is only so much tempation a girl can handle at one time. Since my camera had issues and I didn't get to take all the pictures I wanted, I might go back tomorrow. I will leave my credit cards as home. I promise. 

Wow! Do I feel better. Big thanks to Quilt Mercantile, Material Girls, Ruby's Gone Quilting, Front Oorch Quiltshop,  Joy's Fabrics and Gifts, Bernina of Dallas, and the rest of the merchants who keep my addition alive. Many thanks goes to the Quilters Guild of Dallas for all their hard work. You all rock!!

May your needle never get rusty.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year everyone. May this be a great year for you.

My new happy is that my fancy Bernina can sew without the foot control. It is so easy. Just unplug the foot control...

There is a green button on the front...

Push briefly and it puts the foot down. If you need to move things a bit, push it again and it hovers. Ready to go? Push and hold the button. Just push it again and it stops. I love using it when I am foundation piecing.
I use the speed control a lot too. I can't sew too fast or my table get too shaky.

(Sorry for the not so great photos. I am such a bad photographer and I have just a little point and shoot.)

DH bought me a new 34D foot for Christmas. It has a clear plate so it make is so easy to see where you are stitching. I understand that Bernina does not like clear feet but this one is just what I had been needing.Thanks love.

I can finally post a picture of the placemats I made for Christmas. I used slightly different fabrics in each of the pairs but here is my favorite:

The pattern is from the December 2012 issue Quilter's World. The minute I saw them on the cover I knew that they would be presents this year. I have the fabric to make some for myself but have been carried away with the project I am foundation piecing so I guess they will get made for next year.

Happy Sewing, ya'll!

Christmas Eve

Almost random thoughts...

Merry almost Christmas everyone!

We are spending the morning with our DS and DIL. I am so happy that they aren't morning people so I get to sleep in. She is promising monkey bread so we are looking forward to that.

The weatherperson is saying that we may get snow. Imagine ...a white Christmas in North Texas! How amazing is that?

Big thanks to my dear aunt in Auntlanta ( I couldn't resist) for the Honey Baked Ham. It will be the centerpiece to our Christmas dinner which may be either two, four, or six people. How is that for a definite plan.

Sad that we have to have the holiday without our DD and SIL. They will be here next month so woot woot Christmas part deaux for us.

Christmas present, ya'll!!

Prettiness

So I really liked the ________'s that I made for Christmas gifts so I decided to run out and buy some more the focus fabric. <play sad music> Apparently everyone else like Blizten by Moda and they bought some too. Like most of it but there were some other really pretty fabrics at the store. Here is what I ended up with:

I can't wait to start working with them.

Here is the current state of the studio:

It looks like I have been hard at work but it is all a lie. Work has been nutso so not much has been accomplished. I am taking Thursday off so I have big plans.

See you soon!

Before Christmas

Ah, the trauma that is the holiday season. What to get? What not to get? Did I spend enough? Did I spend too much? Will they like it? What if they hate it? Argghhh!

DH and I surprised everyone by putting up the tree last weekend.

Usually it doesn't go up until after the 15th. You could have knocked me over with a feather when hubs asks where the tree is. So off I go to the garage attic and there it is. The ornaments faired pretty well this year especially since I kept the fragile ones in the house. We did have a box of red balls that had managed to vacuum pack themselves into the container. I had to pop them out and was afraid that I would break one. Lots of our old ornaments did not make it out of the tissue paper this year. They were either too big for our five foot tree or they were just too hookey. Sorry moose collection.

And the tree won't come down until mid-January when dd and sil make it to visit. So much for the 01Jan deadline!

Happy Holidays!

Pointless Wonder

I have not made many bed quilts but here is first one I made.

I saw the pattern at Quilt Country http://www.quiltcountry.com/ in Lewisville and just had to make it. So I bough some fat quarters in  assorted batiks. The fabric may have come first since I was in an intense stash building stage back then. No idea of a unified color scheme except what said "pretty" to me.  Followed the directions and made lots blocks.

Pretty but how to make it my own and bigger?

Alex Anderson had a guest who showed an attic window setting on a quilt. That's the thing. So off I go to find blue (why blue? cause I like it!) fabrics for the sashing.

I used a fold and sew method to make the windows Now it didn't seem quite big enough so I cut squares out of  the leftovers and added side borders using the same fabric that was in the sashing.

Quilting was not so successful at first . I  had tried four or five times to quilt it but couldn't figure out how to baste it and no clue how to quilt it. It was finally basted with safety pins. I auditioned quilt ideas and even started quilting and then unquilted it.  It was finally done with a big loopy meander in the stars and swirls in the side borders.

Start to finish:Eight years.

That is why I say I am not a bed quilt kinda girl!

Would I use the pattern again: Maybe. Great directions but might want to make smaller blocks.

Keep or give away:Keep!

Happy Sewing!