Quilting Studio Adventures

In Queue for February

2012-01-27T19:00:00.000-06:00

   1. Machine-quilting and binding the "Candyland Quilt"
   2. Zippered Tote Bag - perhaps from these Home Dec fabrics. And if that goes well, make another one from the fabrics below
   3. Quilted Casserole Carrier for Mike Kaiser's fiance. Palette to be determined.

I'm leaving with John for a week-long jazz cruise. iPad is all loaded, and workout clothes are packed. It's going to be good week!

Blank Wall

2012-01-25T12:48:00.000-06:00

Normally I'd crop a blank wall out of a photo. Except this wall is where this little quilt will eventually hang. I love this stage of a quilt, stitching along and removing pins. I'm using invisible thread. So far, so good!

Zipping Along

2012-01-23T21:56:00.000-06:00

Yesterday was the first meeting of the Chicago Modern Quilt Guild for 2012, and we did little zippered pouches. I love these women, the general atmosphere of the meetings, and how we work together. This meeting was so well attended that we didn't have enough chairs for everyone! It's going to be a growth year for our guild, and I think it's going to be good!

Let There Be Light!

2012-01-20T17:29:00.000-06:00

I really wanted to mount these 43" long color palette strips on black. But I'm trying to lighten up, so I am forcing myself to work with this fabulous Kona bone cotton. Only two of palette strips have their white sides actually sewn on. But I am loving how all the colors are popping in contrast to the light background. After being so up in the air about what to do with these great color palette strips, I'm glad to have finally seen the light.

Goals for 2012

2012-01-18T19:20:00.055-06:00

This scrappy batik quilt top is finished. The back has been pieced out - more batiks of course. And both the top and the bottom are at T and F Quilting Studio in Lemont. When it's quilted and bound, then I can show my first finished quilt of 2012. Founding Chicago Modern Quilt Guild president Mary P recently blogged about her goals for 2012 after evaluating her 2011 goals. Of course that makes sense: I'm an educator. Goals must be SMART - specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound.

So my 2012 goals:

1. Develop my free-motion quilting skills by finishing the India whole cloth and Night and Day, a Jinny Beyer pattern. Both quilts are basted and partially quilted.

2. Find a hand-project, something that is always ready to be grabbed as I leave the house.

3. Make a quilt with a design that explores negative space

4. Update my For-Sale blog.

5. Create a Digital Portfolio and make friends with Flickr.

6. Make a quilt with big polka-dots (dryer-sheet applique) on a light background (which is part of a broader goal to lighten up a bit - I work so dark...)

7. Create one art piece based on a famous piece of art.

8. Do at least one multi-media art quilt.

This is hard - setting goals. I hope these goals provide a great jumping off point for a year of doing new things and approaching projects in out-of-the-box ways.

Red and Black Batik Duffel Bag

2012-01-15T16:25:00.001-06:00

Finally. I've completed something. With the exception of neatening the yellow interior up a bit, this duffel is complete. It's 21" long and 10" tall. Using Soft and Stable by byannie.com means this duffel holds its shape and is very lightweight. We're doing a jazz cruise the end of this month, and I am going to pilot this bag. The next tweak may be slightly less-wide straps. There are interior pockets at each end of this bag.

Air Mail

2012-01-12T08:08:00.000-06:00

The UPS truck came yesterday afternoon. And DH gets the package, stands at the bottom of the studio stairs, yells "Air Mail", and throws the package up the stairs. This is a package of fabricliciousness. The black and white vertical print is going to be a bag with the small print being part of the trim. The lining is going to be the fabric with the lime green in it. These were all on sale. I did however pay full price for some chestnut and purple batik - they are must-haves. The white-on-white print was just too good to pass up. And the much awaited-black batik is there! I'm going to cut that into 8.5" strips, which will then be cut into 1.5" strips. I need 160 of them. Hope the two yards in enough. (could I actually do the math? apparently not...)

We might get our first snow of the season today. I hope it's enough to make me have to stay home!

Everything's in Process

2012-01-11T10:23:00.040-06:00

My studio is a mess. I have stuff all over the place.I get stuck on something and then begin another. I'm still waiting for the black batik to arrive so I can square off these rectangular blocks and assemble this quilt.

So then I begin something new. This red batik was one I didn't use in the batik quilt, but I love it. And wouldn't you know I have a long black zipper. So a duffel bag is in this works. I'm about to start the zipper and always take a deep breath at this point.

Before I started the red and black duffel I came across two sets of Jinny Beyer's 150 color spectrum and assembled those. I left my feet in the picture so you can get idea of the length of these strips. I can't decide what I want to do with these strips - incorporate them into a jacket? make a couple of totes? a wall hanging for the one bit of empty study wall space? And if these do become a wall hanging, dare I try putting them on a light background rather than a black?

Meanwhile I'm trying to get all my batiks back into the cabinets. And each piece I touch makes me want to combine it with another and make something.

I'm lucky to have all this space so I can work on multiple projects. And you should see what I didn't take pictures of!

For 2012

2012-01-07T07:58:00.000-06:00

Don't you love this? Have you met Kelli from Seriously, I Think It Needs More Stitches? I love her sensibility and I love her resolution for 2012. And here it is! I think I may have to add this to my sidebar!

Sash!

2012-01-04T15:21:00.000-06:00

The whole issue of sashing involves the overlook of the quilt. For something soft and melty, no sashing. But I love the drama that sashing gives this quilt. Also, I think the sashing makes the weaving effect very obvious, and that's an effect I like. I've taken the advice of my Left-Handed Blogging friend and split of the pairs of batiks. I also listened to my sister-in-law who suggested grouping my blocks according to Roy G. Biv. One reason I love batiks is that it's hard to nail down their specific color, and that's the one thing that makes this kind of sorting difficult. Luckily the black batik I want to use for the sashing is still en route, so I have some time to work on the layout and play with the colors!

To Sash - Or Not To Sash

2012-01-01T13:40:00.000-06:00

I could go on and on about the 6.5" x 8.5" block dimensions and how adding a 1.5" strip of black to each block would make them 8.5" s 8.5" and how I have 80 blocks so far and how I need to use my EQ software to figure out sizes with and without sashing and setting these blocks ad infinitium ad nauseum. But these two tentative layouts speak for themselves. Just need to decide which look I want to go for...

Here's to 2012!

Dryer-Sheet Applique: A Tutorial

2011-12-31T06:00:00.001-06:00

I love the generosity that exists among quilters. Being a self-taught quilter, I know how to do what I do thanks in large part to tutorials and illustrations in books. So in a spirit of reciprocity, here's a little tutorial on the dryer-sheet applique method. This method can be used for a variety of shapes, but I'm working with circles here.

Place a used dryer sheet on the right side of the fabrics (here a scrap from two fabrics), pin to stabilize, and draw the circle. I used a CD.

Cut all the way around, and sew a scant 1/4" seam all the way around the outer edge.

The back side of your fabric should look something like this.

Pinch the dryer sheet away from the fabric and cut a slit in it, 2" long or so.

Reach in through the slit and turn it inside-out so that the right side of the fabric is now on the outside.

Use a poking tool of some kind and press so that your circle lies flat.

And you get some nice little circles, ready to be appliqued onto your fabric. The dryer sheet is thin, and a nice zigzag stitch is easy to do!

Thanks to Sue Ryan who demonstrated this method last July at the Chicago Modern Quilt Guild. And here's to whittling that fabric stash down in 2012!

Batik Beautiliciousness

2011-12-30T16:03:00.001-06:00

These are just the blocks so far. Not the setting. I am loving how this is taking shape. What a great way to end 2011 and start 2012!

This Quilter's Dilemma

2011-12-27T08:54:00.000-06:00

My main dilemma - and it's such a good one - is choosing the quilt I want to do next. I've been going through my design notebook, looking at the "Inspiration" folder on my computer, and assessing my fabric stash. I bought a bolt of a light bone Moda, thinking I want to do something light. But for this time of year, dark is calling to me. So are my batiks - in fact, they are clamoring to be used. I'll save that bolt of bone for the summer.

So here are all my batiks. Now what to do with them. What I love most about these fabrics is their coloring changes depending on what a fabric is paired or teamed with. And some of these pieces are small. Whatever I do has to be scrappy, unlike the quilt I did for my nephew Nathan, highly planned with only 3 batiks.

These blocks are 6.5"x 8.5", made from 2.5" strips cut at 4.5" and 6.5". So far I'm doing 4 blocks from each pair of fabrics. As I get further into the project, I'm hoping to set these blocks directly next to one another. But I'm also thinking that I could use something dark, a black perhaps, to square off each block and create a woven effect. And of course now that I'm searching for an example of what I want I can't find it.

For half a day I did consider doing something with dots, big ones, made from my scrap table and dryer sheets, the dryer-sheet applique method. I will do this project at some point - it does have possibilities. And this leads into the biggest dilemma: fabric. I have too much. So what do I do? I buy more. Seriously, there are some fabulous on-lines sales. Then I become more determined than ever to use scraps, which is where I'm starting with my batik project. Using the smallest bits first. What fun dilemmas!

Therapeutic Sewing

2011-12-22T13:01:00.000-06:00

Monday was a phone day with my mother's medical people. You know the drill: you call, leave a message, wait for the office to call back. I'm not complaining, just stating. Tuesday was hanging out with my parents, which means driving around and listening to accordion music and having the same conversation with my mother again and again. My poor mom just cannot grasp where she lives or who she lives with. Or what day it is. Or how old she is. Or that my father doesn't drive anymore. Or that she doesn't cook.

Wednesday I went to the studio, ostensibly to do some putting away, cleaning, sorting, and organizing. But I got distracted by these three green materials and the duffel bag pattern that I've made once. I decided to kind of wing this pattern and inadvertently made this duffel 27" wide instead of 21" wide. But it still works nicely.

The studio may still be messy. But I feel better.

The Quiltmaker's Gift

2011-12-16T16:26:00.000-06:00

If this book is one you haven't read, then get a copy somewhere. It's beautifully illustrated and is the essence of the quilter's soul.

I've been living this book the past few days, giving away the bags and totes I've been making - to my doctor, to my parents' doctor, to our dentist, to my yoga instructor.

What a luxury to give away what I make.

The Lowly T-Shirt, Part 3

2011-12-13T15:13:00.000-06:00

What do you do with those pesky t-shirts and medals after you've run a marathon - or a half-marathon? That was the problem Chandra (my own personal physical therapist) and her family had after all of them finished the half-marathon on Oak Brook last September. So I suggested a wall hanging, and here it is. I'm very impressed that Chandra did the 13.1 mile run/walk. She's someone who definitely practices what she preaches!

Not Much Gained...

2011-12-12T13:40:00.000-06:00

My foray into "retail" was successful enough - I sold 2 Amazing Red Scrappy totes, 3 Amazing Technicolor Dream Totes, and 3 shopping bags. But I don't think I'll do anything like this again. Well, not anytime soon

Being at a church was a nice, safe venue. And the other vendors were all nice people, too. The bonus of the day was hanging out with my sister-in-law. I need to send the church 10% of my profits - $25.00.

It was nice today to be able to restore some sort of order to the studio and work on a few things which I've been wanting to get to. And whip up just one more Mors bag. This one is for my dentist who is also a violinist.

This bag is one that John is giving to a woman at our bank who's been extremely helpful to us in the past year.

My brother Doug and I were driving to a family funeral in Indiana years ago, perhaps the one for Judy White, my cousin Bill's lovely wife who died way too young. And I remember we had a long, extensive conversation about the profit motive. We come from a family where profit wasn't part of the work equation. Of course my father worked, but he was paid for his piano tuning and he was paid union scale for his accordion jobs. My years of teaching? Of course I made money, but none of it was profit-oriented. So to sell my work for profit - it's just something I'm not comfortable with. Pricing my pieces was difficult. But once I did arrive at what I thought was a fair price, friend Rich Seidelman made this wonderful graphic which I had with me yesterday.

I value what I do. But I like giving it away much more than I like selling it.

Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained...

2011-12-10T22:13:00.000-06:00

My sewing flurry is over, and everything has been packed. 10 Amazing Technicolor Dream Totes, 4 Red Scrappy Dream Totes, 20 shopping bags a la Morsbags, 30 mini gift bags, 6 envelope purses, 2 MiPad cases, 4 Hobo bags, and a couple of one-of-a-purses. I've never sold my wares at any kind of venue. But tomorrow's event at the LaSalle Street Church seems a good place to start.

And it's only for 10 until 1:30. And one of my favorite people, John's sister Chris, is coming with me.

These little mini-gift bags were a last-minute addition, mostly because I wanted to have something inexpensive on table.

I'm bringing this coat tree to hang things on, and I also have a wonderful poster, thanks to Rich Seidelman, displaying my bags and prices.

These Amazing Red Scrappy Totes are from something I worked on at my Chicago Modern Quilt Guild's retreat last spring. As I was piecing these scraps together, I never thought of tote bags. But earlier this week it seemed like a brilliant idea! Here's one in process...

Here's to trying something new!

Little Holiday Bags: A Tutorial

2011-12-06T16:16:00.000-06:00

Here's how to get eight little gift bags from one yard of fabrics. Cut 8 pieces that are 9" by 20". Make a small hem ( 1/2 - 3/4") on each end of the rectangle . For handles use something - ribbon, binding - that is 12" long. Insert handles one inch on center at both ends of the bag.

Like with the directions for Morsbags, sew the handles into the hem and then fold them up and sew another line of stitching.

These bags won't be lined, and French seaming will take care of the raw edges. With wrong sides together, sew a 1/4" seam starting at the top of the bag, on each side.

Then trim these seams down to 1/8".

Turn the bags inside out, press, and then sew a 3/8" (or so) seam, encasing those raw seam edges.

These little bags work best if they are "boxed" so cut a 1" square out of each corner. Do not include the seam allowance in this!

Open up those corners you just cut and find the straight line. The center of this seam will be the side of the bag. Sew a 1/4 - 3/8" seam.

What you have at this point is essentially like a paper grocery bag. So iron it like that. And remember: Steam is our friend!

Now find a gift certificate or some candy or some little sewing notion and some tissue paper - and VOILA!

Arpilleras and My Grandson

2011-12-05T19:51:00.000-06:00

My grandson Ryan, a junior at Lyons Township, asked for help on his Spanish assignment. He needed to make an arpillera. A what? And he said slower and louder, an arpillera. He then explained that an arpillera is like a small quilt which makes a revolutionary statement. Arpilleras began in 1973 during the reign of the Chilean dictator Pinochet. Women created complex tapestries depicting the harsh conditions. And this movement has extended outside of Chile to other South and Central American countries. Ryan and his partner have to create an arpillera and do a 10-minutes speech/PowerPoint presentation about arpilleras in Columbia. It's due tomorrow.

I showed Ryan how to use double-sided fusible webbing (Steam-A-Seam) so that he could cut out the shapes of what he wanted, position them, and then iron them down. Part of the arpillera had to be 3-D, so he stuffed the clouds with cotton (Yes, this kid "invented" trapunto!!!) and made the banner drape. He also did his own binding by machine. (I have his permission to write this blog entry but not to "tag" him, which I understand. He then suggested that I refer to him as just a kid in my neighborhood - I think not...).

The artists who make arpilleras use their sewing as a powerful creative political tool and a catalyst for change. I'm glad Ryan had this assignment and to know about this art form.

I love my Chicago Modern Quilt Guild

2011-12-04T19:57:00.000-06:00

We had our final meeting of 2011 today. What a good year it's been with these women. Today's meeting was a sew-in, but there were a few other things going on. Of course we had a show and tell. I'm just amazed by what my fellow guildsters do. There was a Scrap Bag Swap, which I couldn't bear to be a part of. Actually I should have brought in bags of scraps -that'd be one way to reduce the piles on my scrap table. And the final round of the Round Robins has been completed. Here's a picture of my piece. It started with my applique of the three cirlcle in the middle. Round Two was "rectangles", and Rachel did this part. Sarah S used some fabulous Oriental prints for the "diamonds" portion. Holly then added the next round, which features "curves." Sue had the final round and used Flying Geese as a way to interpret "triangles." I am floored by this finished piece. It has a unity and flow even though five very different quilters worked on it. And I think that was true of each one of the Round Robin pieces I saw today.

Friend Ebony gave me a purse today, one she designed and made. I've touched it and drooled over it for the past few months. All my hinting paid off! The adjustable strap allows it to be an over-the shoulder or across-the-body bag. It's a generous size and of course beautifully constructed. Temtex gives it some wonderful body! She has named this bag "Mulberry," an obvious choice. Check out the zipper in the final picture.

Ebony also gave me a furishiki, which contained a lovely pair of earrings. How much fun to have such a generous friend and mentor!

I love guild meetings because I can see what the Emilies are doing I can check in and reconnect with fellow officers Beth and Jen and Terri. I can meet new people, like Jacquie and Tina and Tricia. I can get to know Sarah E, Holly, and Mimi better. And I can see how Erika is developing as a quilter. Eileen made me a generous offer to check out her Home Dec stash. Sarah S is doing her first "life celebration" quilt and wanted to talk about the process. Sue continues to amaze me with her idea and choices - her idea for and execution of the Round Robins? Genius. Karen stopped delivering babies long enough to come with her friend Jennifer S. Rachel dropped in despite her daughter's first cheer competition. Connie, Robbi, Sara H, Michele, Mary, Yolande - talented and interesting women.

But back to getting ready for next week's Alternative Christmas Market at the LaSalle Street Church. It's Sunday, December 11, at the Cornerstone Center, 1111 N. Wells - 10 am - 1:30 pm. I had intended to get 16 minibags completed at today's meeting. I finished one. But as I said, I love my Chicago Modern Quilt Guild girls...

Bubblelabra Goodness - and other Christmas stuff

2011-12-03T10:07:00.000-06:00

I will quilt Christmas trees, but that's the extent of my decorating interest for the Christmas season. Good thing my husband is Mr. Christmas - he decorates the house, puts up the tree, does the Christmas shopping, AND even wraps the presents.

Our friend Richard Seidelman worked on the McDonald's advertising for years and always sent us a yearly Christmas poster. And John faithfully displays them on the side of the hallway bookcase.

But it gets even better. Brother-in-law Jerry Hicks created this Bubblelabra, which sits in our front window and bubbles away all day and night. It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

A Perfect Studio Day

2011-11-28T19:25:00.000-06:00

When I started work today, all parts of these Technicolor Dream Totes were ready to assemble. Yesterday I had some trouble with my machine and thread and tension. So today I swapped this older good Husqvarna Sapphire 830 with my sew Husqvarna Sapphire 870, the one I bought on eBay two months ago. My 830 needs new feed dogs and some work on the tension disks. And my Sapphire 870 was perfection to sew with. I sailed through two complete bags and have the bodies of 4 more ready to go. I'm foundation-piecing the bodies of these totes onto to Soft and Stable (byannie.com), which is why these two bags are standing. I love the body and sturdiness of this purse batting.

It was a luxury to have to whole day to sew. I think I'm going to make this deadline of finishing the totes by next week. Perhaps I can even come up with some additional totes - I've got some fabulous red scraps...

These bags are 15" high.

LaSalle Street Church Alternative Christmas Market - December 10

2011-11-22T09:05:00.001-06:00

Good neighbor Pam is on the ministry team at the LaSalle Street Church at 1111 N. Wells in Chicago. This congregation hosts a fair trade market for local craftsmen. A win-win situation! Pam suggested I host a table on December 10, and so I am. Over the next two weeks I'll be adding to my exisiting stock of 20 Mors bags, several envelope purses, some Hobo bags, some one-of-a-kind things (like the MiPad case and the Serenity Purse), and beginning work in earnest on some Amazing Technicolor Dream Totes.

This is a huge step out of my comfort zone. To have to give thought to pricing and labeling and - HORRORS! - handling money are things I'd rather not do. However, I do have this stock of terrific items that just might appeal to some Christmas shoppers. And it's only from 10 until 1:30. Surely I can handle less than 4 hours. The one thing I was fretting about was a coat tree. I knew I would need one to hang my purses and bags from. And guess what John found in the basement. Who knew?

Quilt Dreams

2011-11-21T07:51:00.000-06:00

I want to work on a quilt that has perspective and depth.

I want to do a landscape quilt of nothing but trees and their changing colors.

I want to do a landscape quilt that combines textures, perspective, and colors. These ruins of the Heidelberg Castle will be good for this.

Or perhaps I'll use this one. I was at this ruin in 1973 and am hard-pressed to believe that I actually have to able to return to this very place.

And I can even see which fabric I would use as the water in this picture and what kind of threadplay I could do on it.

Meanwhile, I'll keep these photos in my Dreamin' folder and get back to the tasks of Thanksgiving Week.

Back ... and back to it!

2011-11-19T14:50:00.000-06:00

We're back from our Rhine cruise and mostly well. How do I know? I spent the day in the studio. First, I finished a shower present for QFF Wayne - his son is getting married in February. And just in time - the shower's tomorrow!

Now I can think about the Christmas Fair I'm participating in on December 11 - I'll post about this shortly. So I did two more Mors bags and then prepped another four. Bring on the holidays!

A View from My Studio

2011-11-02T12:59:00.001-05:00

Tomorrow we leave for Basel, Switzerland. We'll get on a river boat and cruise up the Rhine and Moselle River, ending in Amsterdam. Very exciting! If what we see is a beautiful as what I see from my studio windows, I'll be a very happy quilty traveler!

Soup and Christmas Presents

2011-10-30T16:02:00.000-05:00

Our beautiful sunny fall days are over - today is grey, rainy, and cold. Split pea soup is perfect for a day like this, and I made a ton - enough for my parents, a friend with a broken foot, my favorite body-work massage therapist, and us.

And I used today in the studio to finish the 8 bags for Dorothy - she wants to give them to her office mates at the Department of Labor for Christmas. One of her co-workers has a thing for eagles, thus the picture printed out on fabric.

These 10 bags were in all in various stages. After purchasing more handle material yesterday, I was able to finish them and hope to sell them at a neighbor's church holiday art fair. Details to follow!

The heart of Mors bags is "Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle." These last three bags are all from recycled fabrics. Someday I'll get around to making bags out of all the blue jeans I have in bags in the studio!

My Quilter Friends

2011-10-29T08:15:00.000-05:00

On Sunday October 23 QFF Wayne and I lead the Chicago Modern Quilt Guild in making Mors bags. Despite the advanced quilting abilities of many in this fabulous group, the simplicity and usefulness of this project really struck a chord with everyone. Towards the end of the afternoon the girls just assembled themselves into this cute little picture. Thank you, Robbi Ecklow, for snapping the picture!

Need directions for Mors bags? Here they are! Just look for Make One!

A Little Help from my Friends

2011-10-27T17:44:00.001-05:00

My shower present is ready to assemble. Thanks to Ebony of Love Bug Studios I have finally learned to wind binding on empty toilet paper rolls, a great tip from my friend Ebony. And my binding method is the one that Weeks Ringle and Bill Kerr demonstrate in their book Quilts Made Modern. I get by with a little help from my friends!

Texture

2011-10-26T19:46:00.000-05:00

That's what quilting is about. Of course color and design are factors. But for me quilting is really textural. Today I started working on a shower present for QFF Wayne's son. The first step in making this casserole carrier is simply to quilt two fabrics. Maybe it's because I haven't had much studio time lately, but today was joyous. The process of quilting and laying in rows of stitches after rows of stitches was satisfying. Tomorrow I'll continue working on this and put the studio in order in preparation for leaving town for a couple of weeks (doing a Rhine River cruise - woo hoo!)(missing the Chicago Modern Quilt Guild retreat - boo hoo).

Winter is a'comin in...

2011-10-16T16:21:00.000-05:00

The temperatures are dropping. That means swapping our summer quilt out for our winter quilt, which is dark and heavy and changes the whole look of our small bedroom. Bottom line - it's warm. So the summer quilt, made with shirting fabrics from Beijing, is packed away for the winter.

I'm unsettled. The studio has piles all over - prep for my guild's work on Mors bags next week, fabric combinations for projects, and finishing my second vest. And there's something in me that wants to start a big quilt. But the calendar is packed, and we're leaving the country in two weeks. Hard to get my mojo working... It'll happen. Just not today.

62nd Birthday

2011-10-08T19:33:00.000-05:00

This morning I walked - 2 miles in 30 minutes - and it was a lovely morning. To be 62 and feel great - what more can I ask for? I think about roommate Dodie, who died when we were 57. It makes me think these last five years have all been a fabulous bonus.

And here's the icing on the cake. I'm working on a project, another vest, that I'm crazy about. AND I got a new Husqvarna, a Sapphire 870 (used, from eBay, excellent condition), to add to my existing cadre of machines - a mechanical Husqvarna Daisy, a computerized Husqvarna 500, and a Husqvarna Sapphire 830.

Monday I'm heading to the Heartland Spa for three days. Both the new machine and the spa visit are with John's blessing. See what I mean about what more can I ask for? I truly do have it all.

Flush with Success

2011-10-05T19:08:00.000-05:00

My sewing guru and good buddy Marge H came back so that we could work on our vests. We both had to do a dart/tuck thing with the armholes (yes, these were in the directions). I had to do mine after I had bound the armholes, but I figured out how to do it. And my good friend Mr. Steam Iron, a close relative of Mr. Seam Ripper, added the finishing touches. Then - and this is big news - I did the collar all by myself. And more importantly, I finally understand the process.

So flush with the success of this vest, I am going to try this pattern again using these terrific fabrics. I love textured look of the top and the color gradation of the bottom fabrics.

I'm quilting the feature fabric and using Texture Magic on it.

Because I'm all about the process, there will be several more pictures to come. I'll just leave the piles of Mors bags on the studio floor and continue to walk over/around/on them.

A Shout Out to Samantha

2011-10-04T18:27:00.003-05:00

Isn't this a great baby quilt? Just cut strips from quilting cotton fabrics (which are all 40 - 44" wide) and sew them together. The strips can be any width you want. Stick on a border (or not), quilt, and bind. Poof! Instant baby quilt!

Samantha, a student from Coastal Academy in California has tipped me off on a great site that serves as a fabulous introduction to quilting. Look at the Bedroom Furniture Spot and their quilting guide. This is some great information about quilting basics.

Best wishes to Samantha, her classmates, and their Home Ed teacher Allison Smith during this 2011-2012 school year. I'll be eager to see some of their projects and am volunteering to be an e-coach for any of their quilting endeavors!

Catching Up and Getting Ready

2011-10-03T19:21:00.000-05:00

I love making Mors bags. They are practical, they are quick, and they are always appreciated. These are all for a friend who is giving them as Christmas presents to her office mates.

I've talked my Chicago Modern Quilt Guild into doing these bags for our October 23 meeting. In addition to providing the strapping for the handles, I've been going through a donated box of fabrics and preparing "kits", a very cathartic exercise for me and my studio. My QFF Wayne, the person who started me on Mors bags, is coming to the meeting as a guest and to help explain/demonstrate how simply these bags go together.

The teacher in me wants to have every step in visible demonstration. Here are set demonstrating the first two steps.

And I finished this Abbie's Hobo bag. I now have four of them ready to sell but am still deciding on a price.

What a difference a good photo makes

2011-10-02T18:51:00.000-05:00

Mary P, the first and former president of the Chicago Modern Quilt Guild, let us know a few months ago about the 100 Days of Modern Quilting project. I submitted 3 of my quilts and got very nice thank-yous for two of them. The third one was "Out of Africa," pictured here. I asked Marc (see his quilts here) to take a photo of "Out of Africa," a quilt I gifted to the Salt Creek Wine Bar in Brookfield. It's where John and I had our birthday party two years ago. Here's the original blog post from two years ago. I love this quilt and think it would be pretty neat if it became a part of the 100 Quilts project!

My Nemesis

2011-09-25T17:43:00.000-05:00

This is the back of a vest that I'm working on. You can't see the piping that separates the yoke from the bodice, but it's pretty terrific. Flush with success I decided to bind the armholes before tackling the collar. And of course I did this without reading the directions first. There's an adjustment that needs to be made to the front armholes before binding. Ay yiy yiy... So now the vest is sitting by the wallet which didn't turn out, again because I don't read directions.

This forced stopping point seem to be a perfect time to work on a couple of simple things that I'm working on. Friend Carol wanted pretty fabric to use at the altar for her reading, and these three fabric pieces just needed a simple hem. Favored physical therapist Chandra needed a minor adjustment to a beautiful vest of hers, and sister Paula bought a lovely scarf when we were in Kenya. She decided it was too wide to wear comfortably and said if I cut it in half lengthwise and hemmed it, I could keep half. So now I have a great giraffe scarf!

And my good trusty Husqvarna Sapphire 830 is back in the shop. Frustrating, but at least I do have other machines. I'm starting to haunt eBay, with John's blessing, to look for another machine to add to the stable. Just looking so far.

Round Robin - Before and After

2011-09-21T14:30:00.001-05:00

A Round Robin is a quilting exchange where quilters add a round to another quilter's piece. Here is the current Chicago Modern Quilt Guild Round Robin, organized by our lovely Sue. We started with 8" blocks that featured applique. This is Rachel's original block, a lovely rainbow cupcake. The theme of Round Two was rectangles. Holly took Rachel's cupcake and added this perfect border fabric, but only after she added whipped cream and sprinkles to Rachel's cupcake. This was how the block looked with I got it.

The theme of Round Three was diamonds, and this is what I did to Rachel's cupcake. Diamonds are tricky, and I'm relying on the colors of these diamonds to complement and not overwhelm the cupcake.

I like playing with my Chicago Modern Quilt Guild friends!

Something that didn't turn out...

2011-09-16T16:37:00.001-05:00

The best fabrics, directions, and efforts don't always equal success. I've been working on a trifold wallet. I love the fabrics. I've tried to follow directions. And something just isn't working. Do you see my friend Mr. Seam Ripper? He and I and this wallet will spend some quality time and see if we can figure out what I did wrong and whether this wallet can be salvaged. So back to purses - both envelope and hobo styles. I've begun work on this Abbie's Hobo bag by quilting the band and the strap. Love that batik!

The Luxury of Time

2011-09-11T17:20:00.001-05:00

This is my 6th year of retirement. I love this time of year. And I love that I'm able to spend as much time in my studio as I do.

I made another iPad case out of even more leftovers from the Serenity kit. You can see a seam down the middle of the feature fabric on the right bag. And at the urging of neighbor Pam, I'm building up my stock of various purses. She's convinced me to take a table at her church's Art Fair. It's only for 3 hours on the second Sunday in
December.

The envelope bags are one I started several months ago. I'm experimenting with a zipper to close the main part of the purse, and I have learned that iron-on velcro really needs to be sewed as well as ironed.

This week? Perhaps a couple of Abbie's Hobos. And I'm also working on a wallet pattern by byannie.com.

A Liberal Jacket

2011-09-09T11:40:00.000-05:00

This spring John and I toured several national parks of the West. One of the women on our tour loved the quilted jacket I was wearing. Before the trip was over she ordered one of these jackets in Grand Canyon colors and paid for it in cash. Doris is a Democrat regarding Wisconsin and national politics, so of course I have her the Liberal Discount. She and her daughter are traveling in October, and she wanted her jacket by then. Here it is - all ready to go in the mail and then be broken in. Breaking in a jacket? Absolutely, especially a quilted jacket. Despite using the thinnest batting (Thermore), there are essentially five mini quilts (2 sleeves, 2 front, and a back) that have been sewn together. This jacket needs to be washed and handled and worn. So, Doris? Get busy! And stay politically active!

T-Shirt Quilts for a Graphic Jazz Fan

2011-09-06T17:42:00.001-05:00

Marc is a young man my husband knows from the Brookfield Jazz Society. He's a graphic artist/designer with a website. For a few years he's been talking about doing a quilt from some of his t-shirts, and we finally got around to it. His birthday is the 4th of July, so 6 of his shirts are on a red/white/blue background.

This second quilt incorporates two beautiful shirts against a red/dark grey background.

There was an additional t-shirt that I thought was lovely, and this has become a wall hanging.

Nice way to save and honor these shirts that are so special to Marc!

That very clever Annie Unrein

2011-09-02T15:59:00.001-05:00

That Annie Unrein is a very clever woman - she's the brains behind byannie.com. Earlier this week I finished making her Serentiy purse. The kit was amazingly perfect and generous with the fabrics. So generous that I've been able to make a second product from the leftovers. This is byannie's MiPad case. I did have some extra Texture Magic, so the front of this case has a lovely inset panel. The back uses the same fabric but without the Texture Magic.

This pattern was a challenge, which is one of the reasons I wanted to do it. There's a zipper at the top of the bag, and there is also an adjustable strap, two techniques I've been wanting to learn.

What made this iPad carrier project possible for me to do is the series of YouTube tutorials found on Annie's website. Each step of the way was so nicely demonstrated. It was almost better than taking a class! And whatever Annie says? Do it - she's right. I used one of the heav-duty purse zippers for the side pocket and didn't have another one in that color. So I used a regular zipper for the top of the bag. It works - it is just not nearly as nice.

Having enough fabric leftover from Serenity was a bonus. I love this carrier, and it's incredibly sturdy - absolutely perfect for travel. Can't wait to try this out!

Left-Handed Serenity Now

2011-08-31T06:06:00.000-05:00

This purse, Serenity by byannie.com, went together nicely. I was impressed with the directions and the kit. I did inadvertently reverse the purse flap, but it makes no difference. Also, I added a snap to the purse flap - you can see it one of the pictures here. In additon to an interior pocket, there is also a great functional pocket on the back.

When I finish a purse, I'm always surprised that I want to do another. With the leftovers from this fabric, some additionial Texture Magic (that great

product by byannie.com), and one of her iPad carrier patterns, I think I have my next project!

Texture Magic

2011-08-30T05:15:00.002-05:00

You start with a beautiful fabric.
Then you add some free-motion quilting.

If you do your quilting with Texture Magic from byannie.com as the base, then the entire piece of fabric gently shrinks. I like this result and am eager to use this product again.

Here are all the parts of this new purse with the featured fabric as a flap. I will finish this piece and then play with Texture Magic some more. This purse pattern is Serenity by byannie.com

Sew Divertimento: Pay It Forward

2011-08-29T08:04:00.000-05:00

I don't usually post other's blog entries as my own. But I'm making an exception with this one. Read my friend Andrea's post in her blog below - the link will take you there. Everything she says goes for me. Seriously, the first three...

Sew Divertimento: Pay It Forward: This is such a FABULOUS idea! I love these sorts of random "feel good" activities! =) I read about this in my reader and figured I was to...

Yellowstone Memories

2011-08-28T15:07:00.000-05:00

When we were in Yellowstone National Park in May, John found these fabric photos of Yellowstone posters. Perfect for a quilted souvenir. And perfect for the studio bathroom.

August CMQG Meeting

2011-08-22T19:50:00.000-05:00

I love my Chicago Modern Quilt Guild. We do such cool things! At this month's meeting Sue Ryan led us in making quilting postcards. I was pretty skeptical about this. Really. Quilted postcards?

It was a hoot! In 20 minutes I had completed one. Then I walked around the room to see what others were doing.

Look at some of these postcards from yesterday.

Here's the best part: these cards actually go in the mail!

Hmmm, Christmas cards... Can't wait to get a couple of projects out of the studio so I can play with these!

International Left-Handers Day

2011-08-18T21:49:00.002-05:00

August 13 was International Left-Handers Day. Yes, I know it's August 18 today. I'm only five days late acknowledging this date. To right-handers this day may not seem significant. But being left-handed has been a life-long adjustment to right-handers and their world. I have to teach cutting and quilting techniques with someone across from me, not next to me, and use mirror-imaging. Rather than continue to whine, I am celebrating with an entry in the First Annual International LEFT-HANDED Quilters Anonymous Online Quilt Show with my best quilt. This is Jinny Beyer's Around the World design and her fabrics. The center and corners involved paper-piecing, a technique that baffles some left-handers. What I love about this quilt is its luminescence. It hangs in my studio.

I do have to enter a second piece in the category of Best Quilt. Out of Africa is an original design and it represents one of my first attempts to break out of the traditional quilting mold. The center is woven, there's some interesting surface quilting, and the borders are read ethnic. The piece hangs at the Salt Creek Wine Bar in Brookfield, Illinois, where John and I had our 60th-70th birthday party almost two years ago.

For more of this left-handed quilt festival, check it out here.

Birthday Giveaway

2011-08-16T16:16:00.001-05:00

In honor of a friend's birthday I am giving away five things. Last weekend at the White/Johnson wedding I gave my cousin Kathy a purse. And so I am counting that in my "birthday giveaway." Items 2 and 3 are here. I gave my mom her choice, and she chose the purse with blues. My sister-in-law Kim liked the brown ethnic-ish print, and Kim really liked the hidden pockets on the sides of her purse. Both of these have been made with Soft and Stable purse batting and have a great feel to them. After I organized my mom's new purse and the things in it, I took the empty purse and gave that to Kim also - I think my niece Laura might wind up using it as a book bag. Hmmm, does this count as the 4th give-away?

This is the one I gave the Kathy - the first of my hobo bags, the one I forgot to put the pleat in. I love the fabrics, and this too has been lined with Soft and Stable .

If I can just find two more things to give away...

Round Robin - It's Actually Fun!

2011-08-15T15:24:00.000-05:00

The first time I heard of a "round robin," I wasn't at all intrigued. In fact, I remember thinking, "I don't ever want to do this."

A round robin is a quilt that is done in stages by several quilters. Each quilter puts on a different round. This piece above belongs to Sue Ryan, former Chicago Modern Quilt Guild treasurer and current programming committee member. Sue is a free spirit. This is the second time I've worked on something for Sue, and both have been liberating experiences.

This round robin came after the CMGQ devoted its June meeting to applique techniques. Those who wanted to participate in the round robin brought in a 8" block featuring applique to the July meeting. Round One, due at the August 21 meeting, is rectangles. I used rectangles from my black and white collection, especially perfect since Sue incorporates black-and-white prints into all of her quilts.

Rachel has my applique block, gave me a sneak peak, and I love what she's done with it.

http://sidetrackedrandomness.blogspot.com/

I'm really very excited to see all of our blocks with Round 1 completed and hear what the assignment is for Round 2 and what new block I get. So why is this fun now? I think the Round Robin project I saw had too many rules and too many constraints, too many matchy-matchy fabrics. Or maybe I'm just a better team player now. At any rate, this is fun!

Something is different

2011-08-13T13:56:00.000-05:00

In fact, I'm surprised you recognize me at all. My laptop is at the hospital and will be for another few weeks. The way I carry on you would think I'm working with chisel and stone rather than my husband's computer. The parts for the Grand Canyon jacket are complete - with this technique it's like making four mini-quilts before constructing the garment. The collar is all cut out and ready for my sewing genius friend Midge. I'll have to figure out some way to reward her for her help.

The three appliqued pieces done by fellow quilt guild members at a demo day are quilted and bound and ready for next week's meeting. One piece was echo quilted. Another was stippled. And the dark one is one that i quilted each individual shape. Great practce. If one person expresses interest, they are hers!

Bear with me as I reinvent the blogging wheel - and a whole bunch of other things - on this different computer...

For the week...

2011-08-08T11:27:00.001-05:00

There's much to do in the next week, but I couldn't think of starting or continuing anything until I fixed my new duffel. As I was making it, I knew the 1" handles weren't enough. And as I used it this weekend to travel to the White/Johnson wedding in Mishawaka, my instincts were confirmed. So I added 3.5" straps and am much happier. Now on to other things...

I've finally settled on a palette for the Grand Canyon jacket. My friend/client lives in Racine and wants this jacket for her October European river cruise. I haven't made Morninglory's Town and Country Jacket for a couple of years and am looking forward to this project, even though I have never mastered the collar technique. Thank goodness for friends with skills!

The June meeting of the Chicago Modern Quilt Guild was devoted to applique techniques. I demonstrated fusible raw-edge applique. Here are three pieces that groups put together using this technique. I said I would quilt these pieces and bring them in, but I was hoping no one heard me. But someone did. And asked about these pieces at the last meeting. So I do want to get these done for the August meeting.

This one is an odd landscape. Wonder if any quilting can help this...

This one shares the same whimsy at the top piece.

When John and I were out west in May, he found these fabric scenes of Yellowstone and bought them. This piece will hang in the studio bathroom, matching the colors of the walls and towels. A nice reminder of a lovely trip and a beautiful part of our country.

Gotta go sew!

For Erin and Matt

2011-08-02T11:02:00.000-05:00

Erin White and Matt Johnson are getting married this Saturday in Mishawaka, Indiana. Erin's father is my cousin Jerry White

I know two things about Erin - she's an English teacher and she's traditional. She mentioned that she liked my Aunt Betty's quilts. One is a quilt with red thread work (which I don't do). And she also said she liked blues.

Not much to go on. But here's what I was thinking as I created this quilt. Matt is a golf course designer. Erin is traditional. And I haven't got a clue what their tastes are. So neutral was the way to go. This quilt has an architectural feel that Matt may appreciate.

Erin comes from a tradition of quilting. My grandmother Eloise Sheehan White was a quilter. So was my aunt Jean White Gill. My cousin Jerry spent a summer with Aunt Jean in Alaska years ago when she was working on the pipeline.

This quilt has been constructed using all the neutral white, creams, beiges, and greys from my stash with some blue batiks serving at the grout lines. It has a wonderful scrappy but unified look. There were "bricks" left over from the front of the quilt, and I used them to make a pieced backing.

My friend Ebony long-armed this using a big loopy stipple - it's a soft look which contrasts with the hard lines of the design.
The bottom picture shows her stitching.

I'm mailing this quilt to the couple - it will be waiting for them in Virginia once their wedding is behind them!

76" x 92"

Focusing for August

2011-08-01T08:25:00.001-05:00

August already? Wow. Time is flying.

These two hobo bags are complete. I added a D-ring to the brown one to make the strap longer, which is what one of the moms wanted to do. The blue one used the rest of a fabric that I have loved. Both of these will be samples for future workshops. The quilting is simple, and both bags are terrific. So, enough about purses for the time being.

Let's move on to duffel bags. I really love how this turned out. It's big - 22" wide and 10" tall. I used Soft and Stable byannie.com - such a great purse lining. This pattern called for quilted material, and the bag would go together quickly if that was the starting point. Since I quilted my own, I had to adapt the pattern directions. Easy enough at this point.

The only thing I would change now is the straps. For such a hefty bag, they should be wider. Next time.

The inside of the bag has three pockets - the one here and then one on either end of the interior. I like how the zipper goes all the way across the bag, giving easy access to all parts of the interior.

The wedding quilt for this Saturday was quilted by Ebony and is now ready to bind - the binding fabric is in the bottom right corner.

A woman who was our our Great Parks of the West trip loved my quilted jacket and ordered one in "Grand Canyon" colors. This box of fabrics is the start of this palette, and now I just need to make some decisions and get busy.

Finally, a jazz friend of John's has some interesting t-shirts and wants a reversible lap quilt with his shirts. He's a graphic designer and knows precisely what he wants. It was good to work with someone who knew exactly what fabrics he wanted incorporated into his quilt. So far I've stabilized these shirts with a thin fusible interfacing - just something to stop the stretching so I could cut them accurately.

Here's to August and a continuation of the dog days of summer. I love my studio air conditioning.

Perfect Night Out

2011-07-31T07:35:00.001-05:00

20 years ago John and I took the kids and their significant others on a Spirit of Chicago dinner cruise. At the time Julie and Ed were married, and the other two couples were dating. So now, 20 year later, we did the dinner cruise again, even taking our picture with each of us in the same position. Ah, the difference 20 years can make - in so many ways.

The weather last night was fabulous. There's nothing like a view of the Chicago coastline at night. And the evening ended with fireworks from Navy Pier with our ship providing perfect viewing. The two sons-in-laws were designated drivers and provided door-to-door service for John and me.

Party time's over - back to sewing!

22" Purple Zipper

2011-07-29T07:14:00.000-05:00

This 22" purple zipper has been burning a hole in my studio pocket. And while I'm amassing quite a nice little collection of purse and bag patterns, none requires a 22" zipper. So I bought this little pattern and am making the duffel bag. The directions? I don't how they are written and I'm not sure I understand them. They are designed for pre-quilted fabric, which I'm not using. In creating my own quilted fabric, I'm having to follow my instincts, create a lining, and construct this bag the way I see it. I think it's going to work. We'll know by Sunday!

The Thrill of Victory

2011-07-27T17:23:00.001-05:00

It happens every time. I don't care whether the quilter is 7 or 70. When someone finishes a project, there's a big goofy smile that just doesn't leave. Look at Debby and Jenny. They are thrilled with how their Hobo Bags turned out! And I am, too. They did great work in this 6-hour workshop, and it has paid off handsomely.

Although both Deb and Jen have handled sewing machines before, they hadn't done any quilting and did a great job quilting the strap, body, and contrast band of their purses. They also constructed their linings and designed their pockets. Their zippers, with a bit of help from the Good Zipper Fairy, work beautifully, and their strap length was individualized for each.

While Debby and Jenny were learning techniques of purse construction, I too was learning techniques of teaching purse construction. I now know more about teaching machine quilting and about zippers. This workshop went smoothly, and the next one will be even better!

A Quick Quilt Top

2011-07-25T11:32:00.000-05:00

Wow, this went together quickly! Four strips became a set of 8. 8 strips became a set of 16. And finally 16 strips became a quilt that has 32 strips. This quilt top is 70" by 80". Because I was working with scraps from my stash, I had no idea what size top these strips would finish into. And the irony? This top is bigger than the backing fabric, which is what started this particular group of fabrics.

Do I love this? No. But I don't hate it either. Once the back is pieced, this quilt will be a great charity quilt. It's cheery and definitely colorful. But I do love this technique. I am eager to try this again, using a much different set of fabrics. And this technique will be great at our next quilting retreat in creating some charity projects.

Jelly Roll 500

2011-07-24T16:35:00.000-05:00

My quilter friend Rachel is very clever. Because of her I am involved with The Chicago Modern Quilt Guild and am listening to quilting podcasts. At our last meeting she brought in a "Jelly Roll" quilt top. The technique is the Jelly Roll Race Quilt. I started with 3" strips and joined them together like this:

The result was one extremely long piece. Then with right sides together, I began with the two ends of this long strip and sewed them together.

My set is now 4 strips wide. I'm done for the day. I can't wait to get back to this tomorrow.

A Peaceful Saturday

2011-07-23T20:35:00.000-05:00

One of the moms from last Wednesday chose a stony/brown batik with a brown contrast band for the purse workshop. But then when she got here, she changed her mind and decided to go with a great red/green batik. So yesterday and today I took these purse pieces and stitched them us, using a different lining and actually following the pattern's directions for the handle. I'm not sure about using this thinner batting, and I definitely do not like the way these handles attach - I much prefer stitching in the handle strap with the zipper construction. I might have to find one of my good friends, Mr. Seam Ripper, and remove these straps and reattach them. Chicago Modern Quilt Guild comrade Erika described her latest quilt as "Oh, NOW I get it" - and that's what I think with every project I do, including this purse.

Having just reorganized my fabrics, I have become aware of some big pieces. One is shown here - a sheer striped cotton. I "stuck" CMQG buddy Rachel with several yards of it, and today decided to challenge myself to use this fabric with a technique Rachel talked about at our guild meeting. This fabric is going to be the backing, and I'm using its colors for the front. I've got 3" strips of several fabrics and will begin to make one long strip which will be assembled into horizontal rows.

My Day

2011-07-22T18:05:00.000-05:00

Good old Hagar the Horrible. Hat tip to John.

Purse Workshop - Fun!

2011-07-20T15:54:00.000-05:00

The three hours this morning with the two moms just flew by. Even with the constant flow of conversation (these two are seldom without their children and have been friends since childhood) and a change in fabric selection, they finished exactly what I hoped they would. They quilted the bodies of their purses, quilted and made their purse straps, and made their pockets/linings.

We need to pleat the body of the purse to the contrast band and insert the zippers. I think the Good Zipper Fairy - a close relative of the Good Quilting Fairy - might make a short visit this week just to ensure completion of the purses during next Wednesday morning's session.

They had fun, and I did too!

Purse Workshop - All Set!

2011-07-19T18:29:00.000-05:00

Wednesday morning two moms are coming over to begin making purses. They ave hchosen their fabrics, machines are threaded, and directions are being honed. My teaching method is to demonstrate every step. So I too will have a new completed purse. Say tuned for process pictures!

And let our garden grow!

2011-07-16T18:54:00.000-05:00

For the past two days I've been working on a quilt designed by Ebony, making the quilt that will photographed for the pattern cover/directions. It's not my work so I can't show it. Instead, here's what John's been working on. In addition to blinging up our fence and populating the yard with a mob of meerkats and a birdbath, he's been planting - basil, dill, cilantro, mint, oregano, delphinium, knockout roses, phlox, and coral bells. I'm pretty excited about this - he's never done this before!

So back to Sondheim and the final song from Candide: And let our garden grow!

A Day Without Sunshine

2011-07-14T19:56:00.000-05:00

Actually it was two days without electricity. And of course I had Monday and Tuesday blocked off for some major sewing and organization. And - of course - I don't have a treadle sewing machine or a generator. After some major panicking about what I couldn't get done and using my brother's network while visiting my parents, I calmed down. Considering how electricity-dependent we are, John and I survived fairly well, thanks to our e-readers and a break in the hot weather.

Grandson Brandon came over both yesterday and today and continued folding/organizing fabrics to earn money for his Boy Scout camping expedition next week. I don't think we're finished, but these shelves are a vast improvement. We still have a couple of shelves to finish, including the one with the really big pieces of fabric in the upper right corner.

While Brandon was working on the fabrics, I finished piecing the quilt top for my cousin's daughter's wedding. It's going to be 72" x 96". And the backing is pieced from leftover from the front.

The beginning of the week with the power outage was frustrating. It's good to be back on track and ready for the busy weekend.

Making Progress

2011-07-10T17:18:00.001-05:00

This quilt has 18 rows. Each row has 15 pieces. Each row has a grouting row in between. So that's - well, you do the math and figure out how many pieces. A lot. This quilt top is now in 6 pieces. More importantly, I've made some decisions about the borders.

Once the sides and top/bottom have a row of grouting, I will add an inner border of this stony granite light fabric and then an outer border of a blue stone/brickish fabric.To the left of the quilt are some strips of bricks that will be a part of the backing. Since this is a wedding present I keep think about brick walls and marriage. However, no great analogies are coming to mind. I may have to give up on writing a meaningful note to accompany this quilt...

Under Construction

2011-07-06T19:29:00.000-05:00

My Brick Wall is coming along. Most of the horizontal rows are complete. Now I just need to "grout" between these rows. My deadline to get the top pieced is next Thursday, and I think I'm good! The missing row is in my sewing machine. You can see the lines of my blue painters tape on the floor, marking a 60" x 80" outline.

Taking shape

2011-07-04T20:59:00.000-05:00

I'm making a wedding quilt for a couple I don't know at all, and the wedding is in August. I'm working on these two words: traditional and neutral. And I know that blue is good. So here's where I am so far. My white and neutrals have been cut into 4.5" x 8" bricks. There are two blues I'm using for mortar. This rough layout definitely suggests brick wall. Now I'm ready to work in earnest!

For Nancy with the Pretty Feet

2011-07-03T18:32:00.000-05:00

My friend Nancy is on her way to Telluride where her grandson is getting married. After the wedding all guests will walk a path to a gondola which will take them to the top of the mountain, where the reception will be. And guests have been told to bring comfortable shoes for this walk. I asked Nancy if she had an appropriate bag to carry her shoes, and she didn't. So we matched this fabric to her outfit, and I made a Mors Bag.

Nancy is a small woman and this bag is only for her shoes, although I did insert a little interior pocket in the lining, just big enough for Kleenex and lipstick.

My husband met Nancy a few summers ago at a garden party. Later John referred to her as Nancy with the Pretty Feet. And so she remains.

Percolating...

2011-07-01T14:45:00.001-05:00

I'm ready to start a quilt top that must be pieced by the 15th. The palette is neutrals and a few blues. And the recipient is traditional. So I'm thinking. And thinking. I'm thinking a disappearing 4-patch might be fun and still give me the traditional look I'm going for. But I'm still thinking.

Thursday was the deadline for my guild's informal mug rug exchange. Eileen and I swapped in person. What I love about Eileen's mug rug is the zig zag design, the neutral border, the bright binding, and the colorful backing. What I love about the one Elaine made for me is that it's her interpretation of Trip Around the World. I was so touched that she went to my blog to see what designs and colors I like! What a lovely gesture. And I love her "modern" spin on the design. This mug rug swap was great fun. A big thanks to Ebony Love for organizing it!

In addition to starting the neutral/blues quilt, I need to focus on my fabric shelves. Erika Sews recently linked to a fabric organizing tip, and I gave it a try. I LOVE THIS TECHNIQUE! I'm using a 12" ruler for larger pieces and a 6.5" ruler for pieces of fabric less than a yard. Look at the difference on the two shelves above.

Grandson Brandon is coming over Tuesday morning to begin the rest of the shelves. Look for more "before" and "afters."

Rules - Follow? Break? Discuss...

2011-06-27T21:49:00.000-05:00

I've been thinking a lot about rules and quilting and guilds and have been aware of the disdain from traditionalists for "modern quilting." And I've wondered why anyone would impose their quilting rules on anyone else. The word "modern" implies to some a haphazard approach of mixing anything together and careless workmanship. And that is so not true.

I'm crazy about my Chicago Modern Quilt Guild and what I'm learning from these women. I'm learning I can be as precise - or as wonky - as I want to be. I'm learning to appreciate different color and design esthetics. I'm learning I can work large or small. And I'm still learning when rules need to be followed and when they need to be broken. I'm learning to take some risks and work outside of my safe zone. Most of all, I love sharing this passion for quilting with them. There's a palpable energy at our meetings.

We are currently doing an informal "mug rug" swap, thanks to that cute little Ebony Love. Fun, eh? Small little doable projects, June 30 deadline, and I am only making two. Despite telling myself that this exercise isn't a competition, I did think about the women in the group who often work small - I mean teensy tiny - and those who have an eye for design and those who have a sense of the organic. And the pressure was on.

I started with a charm packet and loved what I was doing but not for the mug rugs. Former CMQG treasurer and current program committee member Sue has a thing for fish, and a couple of these fabrics feature fish, especially the eyes. And I decided I would create something for her. Sue has a great sense of whimsy and is a spontaneous quilter. Knowing I was creating for Sue allowed me to play. I used one of the pretty stitches on my machine. I found my couching foot and gimping thread and played with that. And best of all? I tried the rat tail binding that I saw demoed in a you tube video Thank you, Carolann Waugh! This technique is a keeper. These squares are 8" x 8".

Then I moved on to Wayne's beautiful batik scraps and began to play with couching, stippling, and a fusible metallic bias tape. Check out the rat tail binding - again it worked! But these look puny. They are only 5" x 8". And while I was working I thought about one of my favorite designs - Trip Around the World. And I spotted my stack of beautiful fabrics with metallics.

So I cut two 1.25" strips from each fabric and went to work. This picture above has both the right side and the wrong side. My piecing, while not perfect, isn't bad. But here's a great example of a time when a rule is meant to be broken. For the most part I've been ironing all my seams open. And for the majority of what I do, this change from pressing seams to one side has made better quilts. BUT not with this pattern. The success of lining things up depends on wiggle-matching seams. Next time I do a Trip I'll remember to break the "pressing rule."

Here are my two finished mug rugs. They are a bit bigger than I would like (it's always something), but I honored my instincts by not trimming and disturbing the pattern. Also the rat tail binding wouldn't work for these - too many seams around the edges. Besides, I had two wonderful already-made bindings from others projects.

My Trip Around the World mug rugs are ready for the mail. This is an American design made with fabrics that read Asian, and backed with a white that features a metallic map of Africa.

The best part? I received a mug rug today from Elaine, who took the time to look at my blog to make me something I would like. And she used a Trip Around the World design. Thoughtful - perfect - modern.

I love my quilt guild girls and that I'm learning new things about rules.

,

Nathan's Quilt

2011-06-24T18:47:00.001-05:00

Here's my mom helping to hold Nathan's quilt. We talked - several times - about this quilt being the last of the high school graduation quilts for my nieces/nephews and thus my mom's last grandchild to graduate from high school. My dad is hiding behind the quilt. Mom seem pleased to be able to help hold this quilt.

This look at the back of the quilt shows not only the quilting but also the tidy binding, done with just one machine pass around the whole quilt - the method explained in Weeks Ringle and Bill Kerr's books.

Trying not to get chocolate on...

2011-06-23T16:01:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow is my dad's 86th birthday, and he's requested a chocolate cake with chocolate frosting. I love to bake. I love to taste. And I tried very hard - and succeeded in not getting chocolate on my new fabric. Friends gave me a gift certificate to Spoonflower.com. It's a site where you can design your own fabric. That something I thought I always wanted to do until I began working at this site. It's hard! and overwhelming. Instead I looked at fabrics that others have designed, and here's what came in the mail. At $18/yard I won't use this site often, but it's fun to know it exists.

I also didn't get chocolate on the binding for Nathan's quilt, which I picked up from T and F Quilting today. This quilt is big - 82" by 102". That means 12 strips of 2" fabric that needed to be joined, run through the bias tape maker, and then ironed in half. Thanks to QFF Ebony I now know to wind the binding on an empty roll of toilet paper - so much easier to use and keep track of.

A Day Without Eletricity...

2011-06-22T22:00:00.005-05:00

How dependent we are on electricity. Storms came through the Midwest Tuesday night. We, along with thousands of others in Cook and DuPage Country, lost our power. Our cellphones were sort of charged, and we do have one phone in the house that is hard-wired. John did some reading on my Kindle (Les Mis) with its handy-dandy night light, and my iPad was freshly charged so I was happy to continue with my reading. And clever John not only knew where the flashlights were but also knew where the extra batteries were. Our stove has electronic ignition, but I was able to light a burner and make coffee the next morning - of course I now have no hair on the knuckles of that hand. Because I had no Internet access that morning, I headed to the studio where - of course - I couldn't sew or iron. Instead I did some organizing and putting away and planning. John was able to get both cars out of the garage. The LaGrange Library was jammed with people like me using their wireless network. I also heard that local Starbucks were jammed for the same reason. Despite hearing we'd be out of power for days, it was restored late the next afternoon.

This whole experience took me back to Kathmandu and parts of Kenya where electricity is on for only four or eight hours a day. In Kathmandu we saw a student revolution protesting the ruling Communist party policy of 4 hours of eletricity a day. The hotel we stayed in had its own generator. That was also the case on a couple of the nature conservancies we stayed at in Kenya - places that had their own generators and posted hours when electricity would be available.

As Americans we are terribly spoiled. And our dependency is a bit scary...

A Play Day

2011-06-20T14:30:00.001-05:00

There have been a couple of things I've been wanting to play with, and today was my play day! There was a charm packet of Asian fabrics from Moda, including some fish fabric. The rest is all from scraps from my QFF Wayne. He was working on this quilt and packaged up his leftovers. Somehow I talked him into giving me these, and today I joined them together. Here is a Mors bag on its way to a blogger friend in Florida, and I have enough fabric left to make a second bag. I think there are also the beginnings of a couple of mug rugs here, part of an informal swap in my Chicago Modern Quilt Guild. I'm still deciding what I want to do. What a luxury to have a day to experiment and play!

For a friend of a friend of a ...

2011-06-19T19:19:00.000-05:00

When nephew Chris lived in Chicago, he dated Payal, who made her first t-shirt quilt with me. Payal works out with Jason, who saw her quilt. Jason wanted something similar done with his baseball shirts from high school and college. And here it is! 53" x 60"

Top 10 Reasons to Finish Nathan's Quilt

2011-06-18T08:09:00.001-05:00

10. He's my youngest nephew.
9. He did graduate a month ago.
8. He lives in Indiana.
7. I love his parents.
6. He has the straightest hair of all my nephews.
5. I love him.
4. I haven't made him a quilt since he was really little.
3. He's tall.
2. I need to move on to other projects.
1. If his quilt was all in one piece, I could use the ceiling fan without disturbing what's on the design wall - er, floor.

A Request and an Opportunity

2011-06-11T17:40:00.001-05:00

I'm usually not able to see how a quilt of mine wears or how a purse holds up to daily use. Last year when I was in physical therapy I made a purse/laptop carrier for my PT Chandra's daughter. Recently Chandra asked if I would "rehandle" this bag. Lavina has used it daily for almost a year. So what an opportunity to see how one of my pieces has held up. Except for the handles/straps, it looks pretty good. But then the riddle: if the straps are done during construction of the bag, how can I replace them without deconstructing the bag.

When I was making a bag for my sister Paula, I learned how to use D-rings. And these became the way to provide new straps for this purse without taking it apart. Voila!

The quilt for my nephew Nathan is coming along. Of course this is the part of the project when my OCD kicks in, exclusively centered around whether these fabrics are right for him. The pattern/design I'm confident about - in fact I love how it's turning out. But the one batik - the main one - is reading almost more coral than pumpkin. I keep telling myself that this fabric is the color of a sunset. But then I see that coral color and fret. These are some of the blocks on the floor - they still need to be assembled.

Big Day!

2011-06-07T20:30:00.001-05:00

My Husqvarna Sapphire 730 returned from its month-long stay at the Spa. And to welcome it home, I moved my sewing tables. Instead of looking out the window, the window is now on my right. See the Friday the 13th blog entry to compare before and after. Luckily my Husqvarna Computer 500 has been a terrific back-up, but I'm thrilled to have my machine back.

This are the first bits of nephew Nathan's graduation quilt. I think this is a bold and graphic pattern and very manly with these batiks. Can't wait to see how this is going to come together.

All in the Family

2011-06-06T11:04:00.000-05:00

My cousin Jerry's daughter Erin is getting married this summer, and of course there will be a shower for her. My mom and I can't go to Kansas City for this shower, but we are sending this casserole carrier as our present. Jerry's a woodworker who made this fabulous spoon for this project. Should I sign Jerry's name to this present?

June Graduation

2011-06-03T18:54:00.000-05:00

Jimmy Shimizu has graduated from Naz and is on his way to the University of Dayton. He helped his mom Joanne chose which of his hockey jerseys and t-shirts to use in his graduation quilt. What a way to recap a hockey career! He just received this quilt and is pleased.

Good.

All scenes as landscape quilts...

2011-06-02T08:24:00.001-05:00

Every thing I saw in the past two weeks became a possible landscape quilt, whether it was the wide expanse of the Grand Canyon or the gentle reddish tones of the underbrush or the sharp snowy peaks of the Tetons.

Perhaps in 7 or 8 months we'll have a monster snow and be snowed in and I won't have anything to do and I can work on some of these landscapes. Perhaps...

Anniversary in the Great West

2011-06-01T22:43:00.000-05:00

What a great trip to the West! We began in Santa Fe. And then we hit five of the parks, beginning with the Grand Canyon. Words cannot describe the majesty.

We also went to Zion, Bryce, the Tetons, and Yellowstone national parks.

The sunset over the Grand Canyon was as enthralling as the helicopter ride in the canyon.

We know we are privileged to experience the beauty and diversity of our country. Perhaps - perhaps - in another life we could have been cowboys.

The most amazing thing about this picture taken at the Tetons on our anniversary is the snow.

Our adventure to the West is over. Now it's back to the studio. One of the women on our trip saw my jacket and loved it - she's ordered one in "Grand Canyon" colors. While this project is at the bottom on my list of 7 projects, it is of course the one I want to do the most!

Promotions...and demotions

2011-05-19T14:02:00.001-05:00

I'm proud to announce the addition of three new Quilters to the Quilting World - Natalie, David, and Anna - and Quilting Apprentice Rebecca. Here they are with their first quilts, and I am pronouncing them spectacular. But I did make an error with their ages and must do a little demoting. David, while eager to be in junior high, will actually be a fifth grader in the fall. Natalie and Anna will both be in junior high in the fall, as soon as they finish 6th grade this month. I'm truly amazed at how terrific their quilts are!

Here is David's Bear Paw Quilt, a very tricky undertaking. I'm proud of him for his vision and his execution.

Anna is working on tying her quilt with embroidery floss, and Rebecca is picking through the scrap basket.

Natalie is working at my machine quilting the edges of her quilt. Not only did both Anna and Natalie piece their quilt tops, they both did machine quilting, too.

Good Quilting Fairies come in all shapes, sizes, and ages. And moms often make good ones. Here's Natalie, David, and Rebecca's mom working with David on tying his quilt top.

Natalie's "Flying Geese" Quilt.

Didn't they just do the best job on these quilts?

Anna's "Flying Geese" Quilt.

Those Pesky Scraps

2011-05-18T20:33:00.000-05:00

This is an ideal time to clean the studio - we're leaving town Friday, my good machine is still at the spa, the lessons with the kids wrap up tomorrow, my graduation quilts are completed. But could I clean? No. I had to use up the scraps from the last few projects. The bag on the left - the scraps were foundation pieced onto leftover Warm N Natural batting, and the bottom is boxed. The bag on the right is just a plain old Mors bag. Now that these scraps have been used, perhaps tomorrow I can actually vacuum.

Sneak Peak

2011-05-16T12:15:00.000-05:00

These are the various pieces to David's Bear Paw Quilt. David and Anna just left here - Natalie wasn't feeling well today. And in the hurry of getting things done, the kids left before we could take pictures. So they will come back within the next few days and we'll officially wrap things up. (I thought David was nuts for choosing the fabric for his border, but isn't it stunning? I also thought the kids were junior high-ers. They aren't - David is 9, and both Anna and Natalie are going into 7th grade this fall.)

A: A Purse and Two Boxes

2011-05-15T20:28:00.000-05:00

Q: Name three beautiful things made by two White cousins

This hobo bag is my second one from the Abbie's Hobo pattern, and I'm liking how it turned out. John and I are heading to some of the national parks of the West, and I think this bag will comfortably serve as my purse and a daily carrier for my iPad. I'm crazy about this batik, and this is the almost the last of it.

Earlier last week I posted a picture of the fabulous spoons my cousin Jerry made me. And in that photo were two little round things. These are boxes that Jerry turns, and I'm thrilled to have these along with the spoons.

Friday the 13th

2011-05-14T06:39:00.001-05:00

No unlucky ladders or cats in the studio - just four very happy kids. Here's Anna Best working on her quilt, backing, and it was her birthday today!

Anna and Natalie are working on Flying Geese quilts. Here's Natalie's quilt top ready for some side borders.

And this is Natalie taking a break from working!

Anna and Natalie finished their tops and backs and layered them with their batting. After making the "quilt sandwiches," they then trimmed everything even with the actual quilt top. David and I are working with one of our best friends, Mr. Seam Ripper.

David was hard at work connecting his Bear's Paws blocks, a very intricate block for a first-time quilter. Julie Best was perfect at supervising this tricky and difficult step of joining all the block pieces.

Rebecca finished her pillow project - she chose the fabrics, pieced some of the blocks by hand, and supervised as her mom joined the four-patches by machine. She was the envy of all in the studio because she actually left with a finished project. Natalie, David, and Anna will know this feeling when they leave here Monday. Stay tuned for their finished projects!

My Cup Runneth Over!

2011-05-12T17:59:00.001-05:00

With wooden spoons!

My cousin Jerry White finds joy in his family, his mechanical engineering work, and his woodworking. In February I sent him one of my casserole carriers and asked if he would make spoons for future projects. He agreed.

Look at these! They are beautiful!

Jerry's daughter Erin is getting married this summer. Seems like one of these carriers might be an appropriate shower present!

Thank you, Jerry - these are fabulous and nicer than anything I could have bought!

The Good Quilting Fairy - Who Also Happens to Make Purses

2011-05-09T13:08:00.001-05:00

Donna, the Good Quilting Fairy of the Western Suburbs, has been busy. Of her current three junior high students, one of them chose Bear's Paw. Donna underestimated the difficulty of this pattern for the first-time quilting. She has had to play the Good Quilting Fairy so that David can experience some success with this project. Lots of trimming and truing up, but it's now ready for him to assembly-line construct these six blocks. Sister Natalie and Anna Best are doing Flying Geese - both girls will be over shortly to assemble their quilts - their homework was to make blocks of their geese. And today we will connect their blocks with sashing strips.

Once my fairy work was under control, I tried a new purse pattern. With the exception of a too long strap, this hobo bag turned out nicely. I'm especially pleased with the free-motion quilting on both the purse body and the contrasting band. In preparation for our trip at the end of the month to parks of the West, I made a pocket for my iPad on one side of the lining.

I again used Soft n Stable by byannie.com and am crazy about this product for purse/bag construction.

This bag is 18" across and 20" deep.

This last picture shows the bag in relation to the iPad.

For a Local Boy

2011-05-04T04:06:00.002-05:00

TJ Bongiorno's baseball jersey quilt is complete, just in time for his high school graduation. His mom is friends with one of the first people I ever did t-shirt quilts for. But his mom also knows daughter Julie and her family - small world.

The navy blue backing/binding sets off ths gold very nicely. And there's a matching pillow made from the leftovers of two jerseys. I bet TJ's mom will keep it.

Credit goes to Frank of T and F Quilting in Lemont for his terrific meandering quilting.

A Demand for a Vacation

2011-05-03T19:28:00.002-05:00

No, not for me. For my Husqvarna Sapphire 830!

We talked and decided that a trip to the Husqvarna Spa should be scheduled. When John and I go to some of the great parks of the West (Grand Canyon, Bryce, Zion, etc) on the 20th, Husqvy and I decided that would be a good time for the mechanical Spa. But someone decided to put his foot down and leave sooner than was discussed. Today as I was winding a bobbin, Husqvy refused to go back into sewing mode. So Thursday we will head to Lombard, and one of us will begin our vacation sooner than the other.

I took Husqvy out of the sewing table and have installed my old faithful 500 Computer Husqvarna in its place. Thanks to the old faithful machine I was able to finish the second of my three sports quilts.

A lot of time in the past two weeks has been devoted to the parental move and getting them settled in to my brother's house in Lombard. How handy that he lives in the same suburb as my Husqvy's mechanic!

A Different Baby Quilt

2011-04-24T20:02:00.001-05:00

There is nothing usual about this baby quilt. In fact, this quilt is a "first" on so many different levels. First, it's 50 x 70, which is pretty large for a baby quilt. Second, the colors are way out of my comfort level, but I do like these fabrics. Third, I didn't wash these fabrics. Instead I washed the quilt twice when it was completed. Since the batting is 100% cotton Warm N Natural, it has puckered and softened beautifully. The texture of the quilt is what I prefer.

But what really sets this quilt apart is the quilting. With the exception of channel stitching in the outer border, this quilt is entirely free-motion quilted. And while 1000's of quilters do free-motion quilting, this is something new in my repertoire. This baby quilt became a huge practice piece. If you click on the pictures, you can see that each print has a different kind of quilting. For the dark purple bits, I did use dark purple on the bottom, so you can see that quilting on the back of the quilt.

This quilt is for my friend Cecilia's third grandchild, and she gave me permission to do what I wanted. What a great opportunity to try new things on this quilt! This design is "Fashion District" from Weeks Ringle and Bill Kerr's Quilts Made Modern.

A Beginning, A Middle, and Two Ends

2011-04-20T20:09:00.000-05:00

On April 29th three junior high home-schoolers are coming here for their first quilt lessons. Anna and Natalie both want to do Flying Geese baby quilts; Natalie's brother David likes half-square triangles and wants to do a Bear's Paw quilt. The technique used in both of these patterns is similar. David is going to use a dark blue background and has some bold prints for the paws. Anna too is using a dark background with bright geese. Natalie wants a light background with some purple and green geese. We're going to try to do this project in three lessons with homework. Of course I think this will work and be a great introduction to quilting!

This is a rough draft of the third sports quilt. Cutting up the jerseys was first. Then was time for the layout. Mom Joanne came over and tweaked the layout. Now these jerseys just need to be attached to the red sashing, and then it's ready for quilting. This quilt will have a navy background and binding.

This sports jersey quilt is the first one of the three to be completed. It's the one with the camouflage backing. Despite the inflexibility of some of the jerseys, this quilt has a wonderful softness and usability. Click on the picture to see the detail of the long-arm quilting, done by Frank of T and F Quilting Studio.

The other end is this Jinny Beyer tote, and I think it's something I'll use a a lot. It's perfect for toting projects and fabrics. There are two lovely deep pockets inside, and the lining is the same light teal fabric as the feature triangle. The pattern recommended using two layers of batting. Instead I used Soft and Stable by annie.com Soft and Stable has given this bag a great shape, softness, and flexibility. It really is the ideal lining.

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All Projects Great and Small

2011-04-14T15:44:00.001-05:00

While I'm working on the sports jersey graduation quilts, I need to switch over to something small and simple every once in a while. This is a Jinny Beyer Tote Bag (see picture below) along with some of her fabrics. All other bits - pockets, lining, straps - are cut out and ready for assembly.But this is the weekend my parents move from Chicago to my brother Doug's house in Lombard. Brother Al and his wife Pam will be sleeping in the studio - er, guestroom. Good thing my wonderful
Chicago Modern Quilt Guild is having a sew-in this Sunday afternoon. I'll be more than ready to continue working on this bag there!

This tote will be about 20" wide and 15" deep. The construction is foundation pieced. The pattern suggests using a double thickness of batting. Instead I have used Soft and Stable by byannie.com and think it will be perfect.

This isn't how I roll...

2011-04-08T17:45:00.000-05:00

Some think everything I touch turns into a quilted gem. That is so not true. And here's a great example. Why this baby bib? Why not? CMQG friend Jen has made some and suggested there were free bib patterns available. Blog reader Zina showed me a picture of a bib she made from leftover fabrics of a baby quilt. So, leftover baby quilt bits + bib pattern =

This isn't horrible - well, maybe it is. But I wasn't at all happy doing this. At least I gave it a go.

I learned at the CMQG retreat that I work large and I work dark. No wonder I'm not happy with this bib. At least I know why.

I'm finishing up a baby quilt with free motion quilting - it's been excellent practice - and am about to start pin basting sports quilt #1.

Baseball Jersey Quilt

2011-04-05T17:16:00.000-05:00

One hockey jersey quilt is in pieces and in a box, ready to start whenever the mom tells me what colors to use. The second hockey jersey quilt, the one with the camouflage background, is ready for pin-basting and quilting. This third quilt is from baseball jerseys. It will have a navy backing and binding. Nothing's been sewn together yet - waiting for approval from the parents before I start sewing. It's going to be pretty nifty though!