New York Finds

I forgot to show you what I bought at City Quilter in New York!  I found these to add to my New York fabric collection.  This one is a grayscale night scene with some sparkle in the windows.

 

This one is a bright depiction of many different places of interest in NYC.

 

 

I am not sure where this NY fabric will end up.  (A few bits went into my grandsons' I spy quilts found here.)  But I am drawn to all things New York as I have many fond memories of trips to New York with my daughters (one lives there now) and with my whole family.

 

I love this Flea Market Fancy and wish I had bought a couple other pieces in this line.

 

 

I also found a backing for my Japanese taupes quilt.

Gotta think of a name for that quilt...never really named my quilts but this one needs a name.  Any ideas?  This backing fabric is not a Japanese taupe but is perfect anyway.  (Oh, I had a Japanese taupe type backing fabric I bought in Washington but I miscut.  $!$!  It happens.)

My daughter took me to the Garment District and took me to a couple of places I had missed on previous trips.  Pacific Trimming is amazing.  I never saw so many trims, cool buttons, and high quality zippers.  The prices were very reasonable.  She also took me to Mood Fabric which is a must see if you are ever in New York.  We hit some other places but those two jump out as noteworthy.

What a blessing sewing is!

:o)

Procrastination

Two weeks ago I was overwhelmed by upcoming events..trip to NYC, houseguest coming, garage sale coming, baby quilt needed started...all good things but crammed into a short span of time.  Like a great big magnet, my sewing room refuge pulled me in to a quilt I had planned a few months ago.  At least this was productive procrastination, right?

My maternal grandmother had a huge influence over me as I was growing up.  She was so awesome.  Yes, she sewed and taught me a few sewing things.  But she taught me a lot of about life and shaped who I became in many ways.  I am lucky enough to have some pictures that belonged to her and hung in her tiny living room.  She loved things to be very simple, and she loved these Asian themed pictures.

They now hang in my loft above a guest bed

 

 and above an antique settee

 from my husband's grandmother.
.

I thought the bed needed a proper quilt of with Asian influence and found these wonderful Japanese Taupes when I was visiting in Washington last spring.

This fabric must be magnetic too because when I entered my sewing room, I went straight for the stack in my sewing cabinet and a quilt began.

:o)

New York, New York

 

:o)

UFO's

I am happy to say I did accomplish a couple of things this summer besides making a skirt for my granddaughter (see this post).  I now officially have two UFO's.  My Ruby quilt is pieced with the backing made and the binding ready.

And my pinwheel quilt is now in the same situation.

The bad news is I won't be quilting them for a while...probably not until January...due to life happening (mostly regular stuff.)  The good news is I am going to NYC in a few days to visit my younger daughter and her husband!  I just might have to visit The City Quilter and PurlSoho while I am there.  And I just might have some purchases to show you when I get home.

 

 :o)

Pinwheel Layout

Right side up

I finished making the pinwheels and now have them all up on the design board in search of a pleasing layout.  Do I want the colors spread or concentrated?  Where do I want the light to fall?  Do I want a random layout, a planned layout, a symmetrical layout, or elements of each.  I take pictures of the layout and then try to look at them in different ways.


Sideways

Black and White

Upside down

I usually leave the layout on the design board for a few days to look at it in daylight and evening light.  I tweak until I am happy with it.  How do you layout your blocks?

 

:o)

Pinwheel Progress

I am back working on my California Girl pinwheel quilt.  I am almost finished with all the blocks.

 

  This quilt will be very traditional with borders.  I love traditional quilts.  They are so warm and cozy.  But I've discovered some things.  This is not the kind of quilt I really enjoy making.  I am not that keen on using solid white either (even though some of my favorite quilts I see online use white.) I know I'll like this quilt okay when I am finished, but my pinwheel days are probably behind me!

Something Fun

This summer two of my granddaughters, ages 5 and almost 2, came to visit while their parents were on a trip.  We didn't get to do a lot of things away from my house because the workmen were here working on my windows.  I have a lot of toys...things I kept from the 70's and 80's when my kids were little...like the Fisher-Price Village and the Sesame Street Clubhouse with the original little people...and Barbies...and whole roomful of other things.  No one was bored. 

 

I asked my five year old granddaughter to help me choose a pattern to make a skirt for her.  She chose this one.  It's all about the twirl!  We then made a trip to Miller Dry Goods in Charm (about 4 miles from my house) where we shopped for fabric.  Look at what she chose all by herself!  The child has a good eye for color.  The blue color in this photo is actually a lavendar shade.  You know.  Princesses wear pink and purple.

 

 

I couldn't wait to get started.  I sewed and sewed and used up one spool of thread with a LOT of sewing left to do.  I had to stop until I could get to the store to buy the next spool.

 

 

I finished just before spool #2 ran out.

 

 

And here is the test drive!

 

 

 

:o) 

Where's my stash?

Did someone ask where I keep my stash?  I keep it behind closed doors.  This is to protect the fabric from the sunlight that pours into this room.  Also, I will come clean...LOL!!  It is NOT organized.  I will bear the shame and show you.  Here...

and here...

There are actually a couple more drawers full and a bin of scraps, but you get the idea.  Maybe someday I'll get this organized and show you the results!

 

:o)

Catching Up!

Hi all -- where did the summer go?  How did I only manage a couple of posts in the past three months?  The summer was a bit HOT, and a bit DRY, and a bit CRAZY.  One of the best things we did was attend a national family reunion in Albuquerque.  It was fun to catch up with relatives and I discovered one of my 'cousins' follows my blog!  Hi Betsy!  We also took our oldest two grandson's along with us.  Here is a shot of them playing on a mountain top...Sandia Peak...they loved it!

My sewing room is almost done...except for six pieces of wood that have to be ordered and restained to match the rest on the windowed doors.  How do home improvement projects always seem to get so complicated?  At any rate, this past week I moved my 'stuff' back in to the sewing room and reclaimed our bedroom as a place to sleep and not a place to just fall over things.

Here are some shots of my sewing room.  I am so lucky to have a dedicated place to sew with plenty of light and a view.  That being said, it is hard to arrange things when all four walls have big doors.  I am trying a different arrangement right now than I had before.  But I have my doubts that this is the final scheme.

 

 

Here is hoping I will be back sewing in no time.  I have a couple of works in progress I'd like to finish up plus I acquired a 'few' stash pieces over the summer.  Glad to be back!!!

:o)

Pinwheeling...

Hi all!  The summer keeps marching on.  My blog posting, blog reading, and sewing do not. I did finally get to work on my pinwheel quilt again this week. 

I am not sure where this quilt is going.  I will finish all these blocks and then decide what to do next.
I love to look at pinwheels but I am not all that enamored with making pinwheels.  They do continue to become easier to make with experience, and the blocks are being completed a little faster than they were in the beginning.

One frustration is the amount of lint coming from the Bella Solid Charm Squares.  There are little bits of tiny white bits that are coming from the pinked edges all over my cutting table, the ironing board, my machine, the floor and my bedroom.  I don't think I'll be using this kind of  precut again.  I would rather cut the squares myself and have less mess.

Oh and a construction update on our sunroom, aka my sewing studio...the windows finally arrived.  They were ALL stained wrong and unacceptable.  So now the supplier and the contractor are trying to compromise on what to do about it.  Sigh. 

Hope you all are having a good summer with time to get in a little sewing!

:o)

Next project...

This is a quilt of firsts.  First time I have used solid white in a quilt (because we have rust in our water and I just never felt like taking a chance with white.  But we have a new water softener.  Keeping my fingers crossed...)  First time I've tried HST's.  First time I've tried pinwheels.  And yes, I have some work to do to get those pinwheels right...

Sewing room update:  The windows aren't in.  They are actually four sets of sliding doors.  The order hasn't come in yet according to the contractor.  Right now the room is sealed shut.  Can't wait for fresh air!  Can't wait to move back in the room!

:o)

Where has the month gone?

I am shocked that I just realized I haven't posted for a month.  I have written posts in my head but never got to the 'new post' page to actually publish my thoughts.  Does anyone else do that?  June has been a busy month with lots of family things and some construction on my house.  The contruction project was to take two weeks and let's just say, I hope it is done by the 4th of July.

Here is what my sewing room looks like right now.  It is awaiting new windows.  I cleared it out in May thinking the windows would be replaced in a couple days.

And here is how my bedroom looks.  I can't find anything when I try to sew.  It's a mess.  And yes, that is a quilt on my design wall!  I am trying to sew, at least.
 

:o|

Liebster Blog

A while back I was awarded the Liebster Award by Sheila at Sew Cook and Travel.  Sheila is the nicest person with lots of great inspiration.  I didn't post the award icon on my blog and I didn't pay it forward.  Today I was awarded the Liebster Award for a second time by Jen over at Quilter's Daughter.  Jen too is an amazing person and an inspiration as well.  I am really happy and honored to have made these two friends in blogland...one on the East coast and one on the West coast with me in the middle.  This is one of the best parts of blogging...finding friends you never would have found without blogland.  Win, win, win!  And now I 'get it' about paying it forward.  So here I go!

Liebster means Dearest in German and the award is a 'share the love arrangement' that is given to inspirational bloggers with less than 200 followers. There is a list of things that recipients are required to do upon receiving the award.

• Thank the person who presented you with the award on your blog.
• Link back to the blogger who gave you the award.
• Copy and paste the award on your blog
• Present the Liebster Award to 5 other bloggers with less than 200 followers.
• Let them know you've chosen them by leaving a comment on their blog.

So here are my choices for the Liebster Award.  They are people who have inspired me to be a better quilter and friend.

Mary at Spoolhardy Girl

Karen at Sunburnt Quilts

Ann at straythreads

Lindsay at Modern Amish

Meaghan at Made by Meaghan

Thanks for all the inspiration you've sent my way!

:o)

Here I go...

Remember when I won the Ruby charm pack from Connie at Quilting by the River?  I bought some yardage to go with it.

And, here I go...

:o)

A Surprise!

A friend of 34 years (and my godmother) gave me an early birthday present last week. (My birthday is next month.) My friend is not a quilter. But her sister, who is a quilter, helped with putting together this gift.

First was a custom-made quilting themed pin cushion and thread catcher combo.

Look how sweet the pin cushion is!  (Thanks Mary!)

Tucked in the thread catcher were more goodies.  There were these way cute quilt pins...the kind you always want but can't justify the expense.  And there was also this great squeeze ball that says 'When life throws you scraps...make a quilt!'  Amen.  Thanks Fran!

:o) 

Bloggers' Quilt Festival -- Spring 2012

I always look forward to May when Amy from Amy's Creative Side hosts the Bloggers' Quilt Festival.  Thanks to Amy for another opportunity to be inspired and to make new blog friends!

I am linking a special quilt to the Festival.  It was a baby gift for a newborn girl, Lucy.  I had the honor of holding Lucy's mother when she was a newborn.  And Lucy's grandmother and I have been friends for 44 years...since her hubby and mine were college roommates! 

There was a theme for this quilt...this adorable bedroom designed and painted by Lucy's grandmother.  It is shown here as the painting was in progress.



The other elements of this theme that I had to work with was a crib set picture from Pottery Barn Kids catalog and this sheet.

There was some fussy cutting and some improv designing (from me, a person who sometimes plans and organizes things to a fault.)

I made a little pillow to match the quilt!

In the end, I was pleased with the results and the recipients seem to be pretty happy too!

:o)