Texting While Sewing...

...don't you love that title?! It's actually a fun quilt block challenge from Amy, During Quiet Time.

I'm always up for a challenge and for trying something new so here's my entry:

I used Jednoiglec's "Christmas Truck" paper pieced pattern for this 12 inch block. The pattern was also my jumping off point.

Next came the fabric with the girls on it and from there, I knew I wanted it to reflect the fun of girlfriends. The text fabrics with names of beaches and cities seemed perfect for a universal theme.

But I was mostly inspired by my teenage years when girlfriends and I would pile as many of us as we could into someone's parent's car and head out for a good time. Carefree days, huh?

There's a linky party starting today on Amy's blog. Head on over and take a look at the clever and creative blocks being posted...and also the awesome prize list!!

Marilyn

No Prints Allowed Challenge

At the KC Modern Quilt Guild meeting last week, I showed the quilt top I made for our No Prints Allowed Challenge...


The challenge started in December with Kona Solids charm packs...one hundred of them, one for each member, generously donated by Robert Kaufman. We got to choose from classic colors, brights, pastels, darks and, my choice, dusty.


We could use our approximately 44 - 5" squares to make any patchwork project, any size, but at least part of every charm in the pack needed to be in it somewhere. I used all of the fabric to initially make a series of 'flying geese'...


They stayed on the coffee table and I continued to move them around for about two weeks until I was safisfied with my design.


We were allowed to use additional fabric as long as it was a solid. I added a medium gray and a dark gray.


The sun from our living room window was making it difficult to photograph the quilt top. But while I was waiting for it shine elsewhere, I noticed this view from the back--kind of a stained glass look;)


You can see more KCMQG challenge quilts in the flickr group, and several from the LA Modern Quilt Guild also...enjoy!

Marilyn

Doll Quilt Swap 9 Received!!

I planned for my next blog post (this one) to be about Hoop Up! Round 2 and the embroidered blocks I've stitched so far.....but I received my Doll Quilt Swap 9 package Thursday evening and I couldn't wait to share it with you!!!

All the way from Vancouver, BC, Canada, Janet created "Birds of a Feather", a gorgeous masterpiece of a doll quilt, for me! I am so in love with it and it is perfect in every way! Can you believe the incredible quilting she did on it?!


I swear she is the best "stalker" ever! Doll Quilt Swap is a secret swap--we don't know who is sending to us until the little quilty arrives. To learn about our partner and their likes/dislikes, swappers can secretly check out/"stalk" the partner's flickr photostream and blog (if they have one). Janet definitely got it right when she chose colors and design based on what she learned about me! Amazing!


She also sent a quilt pattern that I love and can't wait to make and a bundle of beautiful fabrics. And a mug rug, the greatest mug rug, so pretty it makes my morning coffee taste better than ever!


When Janet completed my quilt, she blogged about the process here. It's really fun to see her photos all together in one post.

Janet, I cannot thank you enough...here I am, two days later, still gushing, lol! Although, really, who wouldn't be?!

Marilyn

Completed Quilts--Then and Now

This is a picture of my first completed quilt (June 2004)...


During part of the KC Modern Quilt Guild meeting this week, we shared a bit about our quilting journeys and our first quilt---either the quilt itself or a photo or sketch. It was really interesting and fun seeing the quilts and hearing the stories.

So, I still had mine out from Thursday night and thought I'd photograph it and show you too.

My grandmother was a quilter and I've always loved quilts. I took a quilting class in 1982 to make a quilt for First Daughter's bed. The class taught hand piecing and quilting, fabric pieces were cut with scissors and cardboard templates--very time consuming. I never finished that quilt:(

Fast forward to 2003...my interest in quilts continued. While planning a trip to Charlotte, NC I remembered an aquaintance telling us about the National Quilt Museum in Paducah, KY! What a wonderful stop that was--exciting designs and vibrant colors--talk about inspiration!!

I started buying quilting magazines and books, including Glorious Patchwork by Kaffe Fassett. I was even more inspired and was especially drawn to scrappy quilts. So in the fall of 2003 I decided that's where I'd start, hand piecing and quilting it since that's all I knew. It took a while to finish, but I did it!

During that same time I found out about rotary cutters and mats and rulers and sewing quilts on a sewing machine--and now I'm hooked!!

Here is my most recent...a baby quilt, finished today, for a baby shower tomorrow;) The baby is a boy due in September (a someday playmate for Liam) and the theme in his nursery is vintage cowboy--cute!

Front (34 x 44 in.)

Back



Marilyn

Ready...Set...Go!

Sooo, the holiday season has started. It began in the most wonderful way at our house Thanksgiving Day---all of the kids and kids-in-law and grandbaby were able to be here for the day. It was a fun, fun time spent with all of them:)

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Looking ahead to Christmas, I've decided to make a Christmas-y quilt...


It all started with a Spoonflower fabric designed by Aneela--the tea set, houses, laundry line pieces in the photo--so adorable that I had to buy some of my own! Then yesterday she posted a quilt tutorial in the most perfect style, and off I went! It's been such a fun project that I've had a hard time staying away from it:)

(2 Dec. ETA: Aneela posted the picture of my project on her blog today...I feel like a celebrity, hehee!)

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Also exciting, my copy of the Itty-Bitty Circus book arrived in the mail over the weekend and it's fabulous! Rhonda, the swap hostess for this round, posted a slideshow of the pages on her blog.


I'm not sure if I posted a picture of the Fairytale Itty-Bitty Book when I received it, but it's another cutie!


And so is Tea Time with it's teacup shaped pages. I didn't actually participate in this swap but received one of the books a week after my surgery from one of my itty-bitty swapper friends. It was such a sweet and touching surprise.



Marilyn

From "I Think I Can" to "All Done"

I have to admit that the I Heart Zines swap turned out to be a very satisfying project.

(my I Heart Zines front cover)
But I had doubts along the way...

The mere size of the zine was somewhat looming--five folded pages/20 sides (I chose a 8.5 by 5.5 format) and did I have enough in my noggin to fill those pages? If I did, how would I communicate my ideas?

I also was feeling some intimidation, without any basis as I don't know who I'm actually swapping with. But, typically, I was sure the other swappers' zines would shine up against my little first attempt:)

Lastly, would I be able to complete 10 copies before the November 13th deadline? I signed up to participate in mid-July...four months = easy peasy...right? But then that little bump in the road, my August hysterectomy, and a few other swaps I signed up for. I'm usually pretty good about timing my swap participation, but perhaps removing one's uterus affects one's wise swapping judgement! Suddenly it seemed that several swap deadlines were falling very close to one another!

(I Heart Zines back cover)
But this is where the satisfying part comes in...I did it! I finished my zine original, compiled 10 copies and popped them into the mail last Saturday, a full six days ahead of the deadline!

I took it one page at a time and focused on that project, not the twenty page project. I wrote about things I know (duh!). It's amazing how easy it is to fill a page with things you know, lol. And I ignored the intimidation, even if it didn't disappear completely...it was my zine--it could only reflect me--and that had to be good enough.

My pages were done in a cut-and-paste style...collaged backgrounds with printed text cut out and pasted onto the backgrounds. That style allowed me to really play with color and pattern and magazine/catalog pictures that I'd torn out and kept in a "I'll use it someday" file.


I included articles about my own discoveries of inspiration for color and creating...and lessons learned:) I talked about a couple of my favorite books and added a few helpful quotes I've come across. I talked about nature and traveling and laundry (yes, color inspiration in your laundry!)...and pinking shears, teehee. I included a copy of one of my smaller mixed media pieces and some quicky instructions for a patchwork pillow that mixes up four different patchwork blocks. And there are a few things tucked in for the other swappers to play with: fabric, ribbon, decorative paper, etc.

When Alma emailed me earlier this week to let me know that my package had arrived, she said some very nice things about my zine and it gave me just enough confidence to share it with others in my Etsy shop.

This is probably a good time for me to thank all of you for your sweet and encouraging blog comments over the past almost two years. It's the give and take of blogging, and the support of one another's artistic endeavors that gives me the push to try new things. What a gift...thank you!!

Marilyn

Doll Quilt Swap 7 - Received AND Sent

For me, one of the best mail days is when a Doll Quilt Swap package shows up in the mailbox...like today!

It's ADORABLE! And it's from Natalie...and did I say it's adorable?


Taking note of my fancy for Japanese prints, she made a coin pattern quilt with some of the cutest prints I've seen!


I think the brown solid fabric really shows off the prints, and I love the decorative stitch she used for the quilting.


The back is every bit as wonderful!


Along with the doll quilt, Natalie sent some gorgeous fabric (the pink & orange dot is one of my favorite color combos and the other, a Valori Wells design, is another favorite)...


and a fabulous embellished Moleskine sketch book:)


How lucky am I?! Thank you so much, Natalie!!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I also sent my Doll Quilt Swap package today. What do you think about that coincidental timing!

I can't say where it's headed just yet...


but I can show you the matching drawstring bag I made


to hold a graph paper booklet, cute tissue, chocolate and any other necessities he/she may want to add:)



Have a great holiday weekend!

Marilyn

Summer Lovin' (Part II)

I'm still giddy! Laura's mini quilt was in my mailbox today and it has to be the sweetest little quilt ever!

(13" x 13")

I love the colors, and I love them with the white. Adorable on the back also:)


The Summer Lovin' theme is sweetly evident in the FUN goodies she sent too...


I've spent an untold amount of time admiring every inch and every detail in this mini--there's so much to look at (and enjoy!!)






Don't you agree?!

Thanks so much, Laura! It has indeed been a pleasure!!

Marilyn

The Very Best Kind of Mail!

Look what I received today!

(17" x 22")

A darling little quilt from Jessica for Doll Quilt Swap 6. I love the fun color combination--orange and aqua and purple!


And those sweet babies in the larger doll's arms--could it be any more perfect to arrive the day before Mother's Day. Don't you love their embroidered faces?


Jessica also sent some really nice extra goodies...a lovely decorated jar filled with lavender and painted clothes pins (perfect for hanging doll quilts), two packages of crocheted applique's, teddy bear buttons and some of the fabric she used in her quilt.

Thank you for everything, Jessica...I love it all!

Marilyn

Swap Til You Drop ~ April

I received the most beautiful mini quilt from Sandi in Wisconsin on Saturday! We were swap partners for April's Swap Til You Drop "Spring Flowers" mini's.

(10.5" x 15")
I LOVE it! Sandi did some incredible paper piecing for this one...even into the border, so cool!!!


The fabric she used on the back is really pretty. Rick likes it a lot too--I may have to look for some to do something with for church.


And look at all of the extra goodies she sent..three pieces of great fabric, a really fun keychain and one of my favorite candies, Neccos, which I've finished off already:)


This is what I sent to Sandi...I wish the photo was better but I took it at night and we all know how those usually turn out! Anyway, Sandi loves it and I'm very happy about that:)

(16" x 16")
When I finished Sandi's mini quilt, I had leftover pieces of fabric and some small half square triangles that I played around with and turned into this quilted notepad. I made the notepad part with graph paper thinking she could also use it to sketch quilt patterns, in addition to making other notes.


This was such a fun swap, so much fun that I'm already signed up for the May swap. The theme for that one is "Alphabet Mania" and my assigned letter is "S". I've got some ideas...let's see what happens!

Marilyn

Big THANK YOU's to Renata and Melinda!!!

Two of the One World~One Heart giveaways that I won have arrived in my mailbox recently.

From Renata in Brazil, a purse-size, vinyl-covered notebook she created with lots of pages to record information or make notes. I love the latch she added to keep the notebook closed.





Renata also crafted this lovely card that she included with my notebook--the Portuguese word "Parabens" translates to "Congratulations". Renata is a very talented paper artist and has recently moved her "scrap PARTY" blog here.

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Melinda has also made a move recently, a big one--from Washington to Utah. But, even in the midst of packing up her house, she managed to create this incredible mixed media art quilt for me!


When I won her drawing for a pet portrait, Melinda asked for a couple good, clear photos of the pet I wanted in the portrait, so I sent her two photos of our 18 year old cat, Emma. When she saw Emma's blue eyes, she suggested a turquoise background and I think it was the perfect choice. She also sensed that Emma was quite girly (so true!) and added some bling around her neck. She really captured Emma perfectly...and, apparently, Emma thinks so too...


It's funny, often when I'm taking pictures of things for my blog, Emma shows up and weasles her way into one or two of my photos, but when she did that today, it actually made sense to have her there!


After her modeling gig, she moved on to some sunbathing. In Emma's world, that is a very busy day!

Marilyn