I'm Getting There

I have been working on customer quilts and working on my neutral storm at sea. It is finally taking shape. I have a few more diamonds to make to complete seven rows. I hope to get it all together this weekend but I do have some outside chores to do. With all the rain we have had lately the grass is hard to keep up with.

UFO Eliminated

I made this Thimbleberries quilt many years ago. I quilted it last weekend and finished stitching the binding down last night. I used the pantograph Maple Syrup. I would like to think that my piecing skills have improved since making this one but it looks okay. Guess it's time to get some of the other fall quilts out and scatter around the house.

Carol

Heartstrings

I finally got started. I am trying the leaders and enders, so far - so good. I need to get a lot more strips cut and in a basket by the machine. Just kind of got a feel for it last night, I think it will work. Working on the strings I remembered that I made a string quilt for myself last year. It must be in the to be quilted basket or maybe the waiting for borders basket. I will have to look it up. I remember it was done in aqua and brown and was very pretty. Maybe I will pull that out and get it on the machine between customer quilts.

I did get one of my quilts quilted last weekend. I machine stitched the binding down last night and will take it to Kendall's and hand stitch while she naps today.

Carol

A Little Sewing

Progressing on the neutral quilt. These are the large SIS and I am almost finished with the smaller SIS's. Then I will be ready to start assembling the quilt.

Carol

A Productive Week

I finished 4 customer quilts this week. Three of them were small. The first one is three dimensional so I just did a meander on that one. The next one I used Ebb and Flow, followed by Popcorn and then on the last one Butterfly Flurry. The last quilt had 4 pieces of embroidery so I just stopped the panto at the embroidery rectangles and meandered around the embroidery.

Carol

Making a plan

I think I have figured out I am going to finally begin helping with the Heartstring blocks and get my other goals accomplished as well. I am going to try and do the Heartstrings blocks as leaders and enders. I recently viewed the quilts that Bonnie Hunter has made using this method. It's amazing. So - this weekend I am going to cut my foundations and get some strings cut. Hopefully this will be a productive plan.

It's a rainy, rainy day here in Hubert. My Wed. morning bike ride had to be cancelled. I was so looking forward to it. I did put the time to good use, quilted a couple of hours on a customer quilt and got 20 minutes in on the elliptical trainer. Now to get ready to head over to Kendall's to babysit. I should be able to get a few stitches done on my applique while she naps.

Carol

Judy L's questions

1. Why do you quilt?

Quilting gives me a feeling of accomplishment, it keeps my mind thinking. I love the feel of a quilted quilt. I love the feel of fabric. I love quilts, to look at, to snuggle under and to decorate with.

2. How long have you been quilting?

I think I started quilting in the 70's. I couldn't devote very much time to it then because my kids were little and I was busy with them, so it kind of went by the wayside until my oldest was in college. So I guess I started devoting more time to quilting in the 90's and it has been non stop since then. I bought a Gammill Classic in 1999 and began quilting for others.

3. What made you start quilting?

We always had quilts in the house. My Grandmother was a quilter so I grew up having them. When I was newly married I belonged to a Home Economics club. One of our guests was a quilter. She showed so many beautiful quilts, much prettier than the utility quilts we had when I was a kid. This lady gave classes so I signed up. Although the classes were hand piecing and hand quilting I fell in love with the process.

4. What sewing machine do you use mostly for piecing?

Bernina 440

5. What machine do you use mostly for quilting

HQ16

6. If you could have any sewing machine you want -- money isn't an issue -- just get anything you want . . what would you get?

I would buy exactly what I have, the Bernina 440. I would buy an A-1 quilting machine or an APQS if I had the space.

7. When you buy a sewing machine, how long do you expect you'll keep it? Til a newer and bigger and better model comes out? Til the old one refuses to make another stitch?

I have a Bernina 153 that I dearly love. I would not have even thought of buying the 440 if it had not been for the quilting sensor foot. I sold my Gammill when I moved to North Carolina a few years ago and thought the new Bernina 440 would satisfy my quilting needs. I wasn't going to quilt for others. I soon realized that wasn't the case so I bought the HQ. I am happy with my set up and unless I get a bigger house the HQ will stay. I can't imagine any feature making me want to replace my Bernina.

8. On a scale of 1 - 10, how much do you love your stash? (10 means you LOVE it! 1 means you'd get rid of it all today if you could!)

Maybe a 7 or an 8.

9. Why do you have the stash? How did it come about? Why is it the size that it is?

I started a stash just about 5 years ago when I worked at a quilt shop. I could purchase fabric for 50% of cost so I stocked up!! Then it kind of became a habit. I realize now that I have way more than I will ever use and really watch what I buy.

10. When we talk about "stashbusting", what are your thoughts? Use every crumb of the stash? Use as much stash as you add? Shop the stash first but don't feel bad if you have to go buy additional fabric for a project? Don't mind buying for a project but not buying just for the purpose of having the fabric . . with no project in mind?

Use what I have first but if I see something that I just have to have I don't feel guilty buying it as long as I have a project in mind for it.

Carol

Time Is Flying

The last couple of weeks seem to have just flown by. Nothing new here. I am continuing to work on my neutrals quilt and the DWR. I hope to get some templates made and some rings put together this weekend. I have a goal of getting both these quilts finished and the OC mystery done by Nov. I will be visiting CA in Nov and can deliver the wedding quilt.

I know it has been hot across the country with no exception here. The humidity is really high which makes any yard work rather difficult - but that darn grass keeps growing. I think I will have to cut it tonight if it's not raining. This is the first morning in a couple of weeks that it seems a little cooler. We did get a little rain last night, don't know if it is to continue today or not.
I did manage to take one bike ride this week in the early morning. It was good to hear the birds chirping and get some fresh air even if it was hot.



Carol