Blogger’s Quilt Festival

This is my first year to enter the Blogger’s Quilt Festival. And I decided that my entry would be my interpretation of Bunny Hill’s 2009 BOM A Tisket A Tasket and which I named Baskets and Lace. I completed the blocks in December 2009 and the full quilt was completed in January 2010.

This was my first attempt at any kind of applique. I did fusible applique and was very pleased with the outcome. Then the baskets needed to become a quilt. I went through all my fabrics and shopped in several different fabric shops but nothing seemed right. Then one day I remembered a ream of lace I had bought several years ago. That lace was perfect for the sashing and then one of my stash fabrics looked perfect. I am always surprised that fabrics speak up at just the right time.

The quilting was free motion machine quilting. I varied the filler in the blocks and followed the lace pattern in the sashing. Because the border fabric was so busy I only quilted loops.

I always label my quilts and usually with a machine embroidered label. It is always fun to hunt through all the designs I have collected to find one that fits the front.

This quilt will be entered in it’s first quilt show November 11-13. The local quilt guild is putting on a quilt show so Baskets and Lace will be making it’s debut.

Be sure to head on over to the Blogger’s Quilt Festival to see the online quilt show.

Memorial Day

Today is the day Americans in the USA honor first our fallen military and next all persons who have served our country in the military. For me I firstly remember my father who served in the Navy during WW II. He was a Quaker who chose to enlist rather than be a conscientious objector. My father-in-law also served in the Merchant Marines. Our next family military service came when our second son enlisted in the Air Force. He was still serving during the first war with Iraq occured but was not called to serve there. And lastly, one of our grandsons is in the Air Force. He has served both in Iraq and Afghanistan. Currenty he is in Japan and is due to be discharged in August. Needless to say, I am very proud of them all.



And now to my design wall, which today is really my design table.

This is my design loosly based on a quilt design, Peaches and Dreams, by Judy Laquidara. Mine is called Going Dotty. I have had the fabric for a couple of months but didn't allow myself to start it until I had some other projects completed. I will be cutting the fabric tomorrow as well as some other fabric for a DNP baby quilt. How about that, two new projects with all those UFOs sitting around. Oh, well. Be sure to check out Judy's blog to see what everyone else is working on.

And here is my final completion for May: Baskets & Lace. I am really happy with how this has turned out and as of now am planning to hang it in my studio where I can enjoy it.

It Is Summer in AL

Saturday night it was 82F at 10:30 pm and Sunday it got up to 97F. For this reason I have spent a lot of time in the studio.


This is my design wall, today. I have had stuff on and off of it for the last week. Currently there are 10 string blocks and 4 Snowbound blocks (Bunny Hill BOM). I am almost caught up with the snowman, am only one behind. I figure I will make block 5 after block 6 comes out, do the two of them together.

Along with the above blocks I finally got the binding made and put on Purple Rails. I am very pleased with how this quilt turned out.

My big accomplishment is getting the quilting done on Baskets & Lace. Not only that but I embroidered a label and made the binding for it. I have the binding all sewn on the front and pinned down so I can hand sew it to the back.

Did I mention that these blocks are also Bunny Hill designs?

One of the advantages of summer is the flowers. I am in no way a gardner but each year I have tried to add a little something/color to our yard. We live in the middle of the woods and have done little to civilize it but I do like to add a few cultivated plants, now and then. I am especially proud of my hydrangeas. Isn't that a beautiful blue?

My roses are Knock Out roses and once they start blooming, all one has to do is water them and dead head them when the blooms fade.

Be sure to stop by Judy's blog so see what other quilters are up to.

Busy, Busy, Busy

I have finished quilting the blocks on Baskets & Lace.
And, I believe I now know why I was having so much trouble with the bobbin. I believe the culprit was the thread seen to the right. This is some thread I bought when I first started longarming (I don't know where I got it). It is cotton and I have never seen anything as "linty" as it is.

Here you can see the lint both on the thread and attached to the bobbin itself. I was having to clean out the bobbin with each block and would come up with enough cotton lint to weave a sheet.

I even found some lint sewn into the quilting on the back of the quilt when I rolled the quilt.

I have taken some steps to make sure this doesn't happen again. Firstly I got a Bobbin Genie to put in the bobbin case. It is a DSM size but if it seems to help with tension problems, I will order the M size.

And secondly, I threw out the offending thread.

Now I just need to quilt the corner stones and the borders (with poly thread) and this quilting will be done.

When I get frustrated or tired from quilting I turn to the sewing part part of quilting. On the left you can see Block 6 of the Jelly Roll Sampler. I quite enjoyed making this block.

I also made up two more string blocks and finished appliqueing the flowers on the last border of the Eleanor Burns BOM (Egg Money Quilts).

My, my, I seem to have been busy, don't I?

Monday, again

The design wall has not changed, much. I have added one string block. Actually there are two new ones but the picture was taken just before the second one was completed.

I have now completed three of the four appliqued borders. I plan to get the fourth done this week and then sewn on. It should be easy peasy after that, just complete and sew on the piano borders and the top will be done. Quilting will be another matter.

I started quilting Baskets and Lace and almost immediately had tension problems. First I was getting bobbin thread poking up on the top. And now I am occasionally having the bobbin thread just jump out of the bobbin and not have any tension at all.

I have gotten 8 of the 12 blocks quilted, with occasional stops to clip out the affected thread, reset the bobbin thread, and start again.

I am really happy with the look this free motion quilting has given these little baskets.

I don't know how much I will be getting done this coming week or two. DH has two weeks off between semesters and I am planning/hoping to get some house projects done. I guess we will see how many projects get done: at home or in the studio. ;-)

Design Wall Monday

My design wall is only a little different from Wednesday. I have two borders appliquéd with two to go. I did get one more string block completed and a sample rose log cabin block. Check out the other design walls at Judy’s blog.

Not on the wall is this quilt I am now calling Baskets and Lace:

I put in some time on Saturday stitching the batting together and then the backing. I had planned to start quilting on Sunday but DH surprised me with plans to return to Pensacola for brunch and time at the beach. We had a wonderful time. And we got to watch lots of other people having a great time, too: lots of laughing going on all around us. At the beach the water was clear, the sky was blue, the temp was mild with a cool breeze and there were even dolphins going by. Who could ask for more?