Let me eat cake!

 Did you see this beautiful cake!! Wow.


Now onto the blog...














I was tempted to whine my way through February - but passed it by. What's the point, anyway? To make yourself and everyone around you miserable? Who needs that? So, here is why there was no post in February: the DH and I were both down and out for almost 2 weeks with the flu that has been going around. Period. Now onto other things.

Spring is in the air around here. The pear trees are blooming and the daffodils are in their glory. The DH even found a crocus bravely poking up it's blossom. Ain't she purrdy.

The big news is that the insurance company finally decided to put a new roof on the house! We had some wind damage from a couple of storms last year. They pushed the chimney flu off it's moorings, creating a leak. So we hired a roofer, and now we have a beautiful new roof. (And the bid came in under the insurance estimate and with better shingles!)

Off with the Old

On with the New - Affordable Roofing

And, Voila!

Appalachian Heritage Quilt Show is coming!

Irish Pinwheels

The Appalachian Heritage Quilt Show in Gray, TN will be March 31-April 1. It will be at Crossroads Christian Church, 1300 Suncrest Drive (hwy 75). I will have a few quilts in the show as will many quilters from the guild and the region. There will be a boutique too! I will have some of my patterns there on discount, and maybe a few quilts for sale. We will have a drawing for the "Opportunity Quilt" with 100% of the funds we raise going to our charities. None of our costs for the quilt or supplies will come out of those funds. It's called Irish Pinwheels. I'm working on a pattern for it as we speak.

News from the studio

 

Miss Margie Longarm is on vacation.

Wayne Waldroup - message me if you want his contact info

Yes, her mom (me) probably stripped a thread in her needle bar. Poor thing. I did the same thing to my sewing machine a couple of years ago. What is it with me and needle bars? Oh, well. My favorite machine service guru, Wayne was supposed to come look at her a couple of weeks ago, but I had to cancel because of the flu. He is only in our area once a week, but he makes house calls!! He will be back this week with tools he needs to finish the job.

Working on Hunter's Stars

A blessing of Margie's vacation is that I got to spend time working on my Hunter's Star blocks. AND, I discovered an easy way to attach a diamond shape to a trapezoid without a lot of anguish! Just mark the edges of the diamond's seam line, and line up the marks and the edges of the pieces - and Bob's your uncle!

Can you make out the pink marks? Be sure to sew scant 1/4".

Sabrina's Garden is at Pigeon Forge for Quiltfest!

I hope you are planning to go to the Mountain Quiltfest in Pigeon Forge this year! (March 23-25) My Sabrina's Garden will be there! God is good! He got me on my feet for one day while I was sick, and I was able to drive Sabrina down to Pigeon Forge to drop her off. Yea!

Wish I'd invented that

Bloc-loc rulers

My Hunter's Star blocks are trimmed to 8 1/2" square. I ordered a 9 1/2" square Bloc-loc ruler hoping it would make it easy to trim the blocks. And wow, does it ever! I had one little "issue" with my new ruler, though. It hung onto the blocks for dear life and would not slide easily to allow me to position it correctly. A light bulb went off over my head and I thought of how we used to slick-en up the slide, down at the park as kids. We rode a piece of waxed paper down the slide a few times. And we could just fly down that thing.

So.... I rubbed the back of that ruler really good with a piece of waxed paper! Now it just locks onto the diagonal seam, and slides easily into position. It will make quick work of squaring the Hunter's Star blocks!

Learning for the week

Taxes aren't as daunting as I always make them out to be. Whew!

Stripping can be fun!

No, not that kind of stripping! And not even strip poker - which, actually, is especially fun when played with other quilters. (With fabric strips, of course.) Anyway, after I finished the "Sabrina's Garden" quilt (see below), I needed to cleanse my quilting pallet with a sewing activity without purpose. As you may know, I am not a stash builder, I am a project buyer. Over the years I have collected a little stash of leftovers. I rarely go to the leftovers when I am ready to select fabric for a project, so they are just "going to waste."

So, I collected all of the fabric left-overs I could find that had at least 1 good 2 1/2" x wof strip's worth remaining. I pressed them and cut between 1 and 4 strips each. I needed one box to put them in, but wound up ordering a bundle of 50 to get the size I wanted. (acid free document boxes) I'm willing to share at my cost. Just let me know.

In just a few hours, I had prepared the fabric, and cut enough strips for 3 1/2 jelly rolls!! Who'd a thought. And so, what will I do with the strips?  Well, there are at least 3 charity quilts in that box waiting for the next pallet-cleansing activity.


 
In the last post, I told you about my desire to make a comprehensive index of all of the quilts I have made. And, I DID! Okay... so I found 2 more project boxes buried in the studio closet yesterday - both UFOs. I wonder how many more there are....  But this has been a great project. Not only did I dig in all of the closets to find quilts and projects, I examined every quilt to see if it needed a sleeve or label, and made a note of whether it has been in any quilt shows or if it wants to be in one. There are a few shy quilts in my collection that would have a hissy fit if I tried to put them in a show. If you would like to have a blank version of the Excel spreadsheet for your own index, just shoot me an email.

News from the studio

Sabrina's Garden

Sabrina's Garden

Panto: Pipeline

All done! Including sleeve and label. Sabrina's Garden has had a few names along the way. When I first designed it, I called it "Fancy Pants Dance".  It has always reminded me of happy dancing, and America's Funniest Videos once had a toddler who did what her dad called the "fancy pants dance". That gave way to "Promenade Home" - no doubt the result of a brain-cramp. But when I took Sabrina off of the longarm, she was too elegant for a promenade. People dancing in a garden... reminded me of the movie Sabrina, and her dancing in the atrium. Ah - perfect. Sabrina's Garden.

Current Project: Hunter's Star

I have wanted to make a hunter's star quilt for a good while, ever since I saw a beautiful powdery blue and white one at the 2013 or 2014 Sycamore Stitchers' show. So, not long ago, I was snooping around pinterest for hunter's star quilts, and ran across a very scrappy and adorable project from the Hopeful Homemaker called Scrappy Hunter's Star. The pieces are all cut from layer cakes! Do you think I have some gorgeous layer cakes in the studio? Of course I do! I was totally overwhelmed to think about making the quilt all scrappy like the pattern, so I'll just use all the same fabric in a block, and scrappy up the block layout.

New panto in the studio: Pipeline

Pipeline

Learning for the week

There is a difference between a hissy-fit and a conniption-fit, and southern girls know what it is. We also know the difference between a smidge, a hair, a tad, and a bit. It's just a fraction.


Enjoy! Now let's go quilt something!

Mastering the art of avoidance behavior (and Happy New Year!)

The end of the year is here. Time to rejoice that you made it through another productive year, and look forward to the "opportunities" that lie ahead - and the quilts we will complete and cherish! Unfortunately, it is also time to start thinking about taxes and year-end reports, bringing the books up to date, and finding all the documents you need that are buried in the piles at the office. Today, I started that process and haven't made any progress to speak of.

Instead I am fully engaged in honing my skills in avoidance behavior. You know - you start one thing, get distracted from that to dig into something else, then something else, until you have no idea how you got to where you are. But you managed to avoid real work!

I did not keep track of what led to what, but here's what I am sure is an incomplete list of things I have done: Put away, filed, and stashed clutter in the office (which has now been replaced by other clutter); ordered stuff from jjill (30% off sale!!); opened a box from Amazon; put 2 sweaters in a dryel bag (for dry cleaning in the dryer) and they are now done; entered some expenses into my business software; watched some stuff on the dvr; sent a quilt picture to Urban Elementz for their suggestions for a pantograph for it; re-watched some of a Craftsy class: Piece Like a Pro, and asked 3 questions; went and got the mail (1 piece of junk mail - ugh); changed my clothes twice (but I'm still wearing bed-hair and no makeup); mailed a name badge to a new guild member; and I am actively ignoring anything that smacks of "chore". By the end of the day, I will be a whiz in the fine art of avoidance behavior!

I wound up trying to create a list of all of the quilts I have completed or which are under construction. It is overwhelming me at the moment. (So I'm avoiding it to write this post.) I found a file I had started in 2010 or something, and a printout of it that I made in 2015 with some hand-written additions at the bottom. And, there are SO many more that need to be added to the list.


My "project" will be to compile an up-to-date list, complete with pictures. Although, today it feels overwhelming, it will be a blessing to work on. With each quilt I will think about where I was in my quilting journey, why I made the quilt, who I made it for, what I had learned during the process, etc. It will be an opportunity to review my quilty life and discover just how full it really is.
 
Oh, please pray for us -- we are going to be ringing in the new year with friends over a rousing game of Mexican Train Dominoes. It has probably been 40 years since I stayed up until midnight on new year's eve!

News from the Studio

Promenade Home

Promenade Home

I finished this quilt top yesterday. Now that I see it - it needs a new name. It will come to me. This one started with my tinkering with a hunter's star block. What was I thinking!! About half-way through making the blocks, I took Donna Lynn Thomas' Craftsy class: Piece Like a Pro. Wow, what a difference a few simple "habits" can make!

Here's the list of "habit" adjustments I made or improved during the rest of construction: lighten up with the iron (even more), make sure the edges of the fabric line up exactly as you stitch the seam, press in the direction of the GRAIN to avoid distortion, and always use a "stylus" or seam-ripper to guide your pieces under the needle. (I use a crafter's awl.) If you would like to be able to just sew your seam and have the points just automatically line up perfectly - I can highly recommend Donna's class.

Tips and Techniques

For nice flat borders, it is necessary to measure your quilt, and cut the borders accordingly. We've talked about this before, I'm sure. But with Promenade Home, I had a duh! moment (one, I'm sure, most of you had years ago). I measured the quilt with the border itself! Easy. I draped the quilt over one of my longarm rollers, but,  I'm thinking you could spread it on the floor, or across a bed, or any flat surface that is large enough for the dimension you need to measure. Try not to stretch the top, just lay it nice and smooth. Lay your border across the middle of your quilt and mark the border at the edges of the quilt top. (The border should be parallel to the side you will apply it to.) Cut it to length. Make 2 exactly alike. Sew them on, press, and repeat for the next border. Golly, this is easy.


So, let's raise our ruler's high! Here's to a Very Quilty 2017!!

Now, let's go quilt something!

And, he licked the bowl clean!

It's a little late for a Thanksgiving story, but it's the one I "enjoyed" the most. I spent the morning making my family's famous (scratch) chocolate pie. The crust was ready, I had everything I needed (I always do), so I jumped right in.

Now, the magic of this recipe is that you don't put meringue on top. You fold it into the pudding! So, once the pudding thickens, you just stir it occasionally while you make the meringue. No sweat. I put 1 egg white in the bowl of my (new) mixer, and was dismayed to discover that the whisk DIDN'T EVEN TOUCH THE EGG WHITE!! And it's a Kitchen Aid! I tried whipping the egg white by hand – but that, clearly, wasn’t going to work. I finally added a second egg white and that did the trick. Once the whites were frothy, I grabbed the little jar of cream of tartar - yup, it still had the seal on it. That thing must have been attached with super-glue. I couldn't pull it off, and had a terrible time finding something that would penetrate it enough to be able to pry it off! Grrrr.

Finally, I got the egg whites the way I wanted them, and turned my attention back to the pudding. I yanked it off of the stove in the nick of time. The final preparation for the pudding is to add some butter and vanilla. Guess what I discovered about the vanilla. Yup, it too, had an in penetrable seal! But, ultimately, stronger wills prevailed and the pie was cooling on the counter.

The trick with this pie is to stop whipping the meringue just short of "firm peak". All of the delicious goodness will fold into the pudding smoothly and lump-less. Anyway, the good news is with 2 whites, there was lots of meringue, and I was quick to put extra in the pudding. Amazing stuff. Listen, when made right, this pie is so good, your eyes roll back in your head, your heart will leap with joy, and drool will cause you great embarrassment. Of course, the DH made sure the pudding pot and the meringue bowl were "clean" before they went in the dishwasher! 

Oh, the crust. You need to make 2 crusts for my chocolate pie. The crust is simple, easy, and wonderful. The secret? It has an egg and sugar in it! Why 2 crusts? Well, how else are you going to have enough left over dough for cinnamon and sugar pie crust cookies?

News from the Studio

Dawn's Quilt 

Don't you just love Arlene's quilt? It is so  beachy and happy! The Wave on Wave pantograph worked beautifully on it! I hope Dawn loves it as much as I do!

Wave on Wave Panto

 Christmas Heart Song

Here is Joyce's version of the Christmas Heart Song quilt. So bold and happy. It just makes your heart sing. Again, the Trumpet Vine pantograph looks great on this quilt, and the shiny gold thread pulled it all together. Great job, Joyce!

Trumpet Vine Panto

Piano Key Heart Song

Trumpet Vine Panto

This is the 4th Heart Song quilt I've made this year! SO easy and quick. I had enough left over fabric for the star and first border, but not for the outer border. So I cut up all of the leftovers I could find and made a piano key border. I used the ever popular Trumpet Vine panto. The pattern for the version with a standard outside border is now available on Craftsy. Just click here: Christmas Heart Song Pattern.

AHQ Opportunity Quilt

The Appalachian Heritage Quilter's "opportunity" quilt which will be given away at the April quilt show, is a "pinwheel chain". What a sweet and gentle quilt. Save up your money! Soon you will be able to purchase Hershey Kisses and be given tickets to enter the drawing!

Wave on Wave Pantograph

The Wave on Wave panto  adds a little bit of "whimsical" to it, don't you think?

Heart Song Workshop

I mentioned in the last post, that I was preparing for a Heart Song Workshop. Well, we had a great time. Everyone made great progress on their quilt tops. It's amazing to see how different they are!
 

 

 

Great job, everyone!

Have a blessed and joyful Christmas! And, here's to a happy and prosperous New Year!

Now, let's go quilt something!

Smoke gets in your eyes

Other than the election, the news this week around here is the smoke that fills the atmosphere and my sinuses! There are a number of forest fires in progress in NE Tennessee, SW Virginia, and Kentucky. Yesterday, the skies were filled with an acrid smoky haze. There are actually mountains in the distance that should be visible, but as you can see - not so. I had to go out twice yesterday - and paid the high price of raging sinus and stinging eyes for it.

Today, the winds have changed and the smoke is not as bad as it has been for the last few days.

News from the studio

Brick Town

This is Kay's latest creation. I love the way she uses color and her free-spirit approach to design. We used the Bauhaus pantograph:

Bauhaus

 Maple Leaf Quilt

Isn't this a wonderful celebration of Fall? It was created by Linda, from Catskill, NY. I love her joyful use of color. We used the Poplar pantograph.

Poplar

New pantograph 

Greenhouse

There is a new pantograph on the shelf just waiting for the right quilt. I sized it down, some, so it will be fairly dense for lots of leafy texture. It's called Greenhouse.

Tips and Techniques

Securing those seams for longarming

Both the backing and the top are placed under tension when loaded onto the frame for longarming. That's in order to keep the quilt stable and avoid accidental tucks and shifting.With all of the seams under some sort of tension, there is the possibility that unsecured seams can un-sew themselves. If the seams in the top have inadvertently missed the mark or are even slightly open, the machine can catch itself in the opening and cause damage to the top or backing.


Here are a few common methods of securing seams during the construction process:

Back-stitching

Most of us have used this technique at sometime or other. It definitely will keep the seam secure at the ends.

Tiny stitches at the ends

This one is my go-to method of securing seams, especially when sewing longer seams and backing seams. Just change the stitch length to a 1.0 or 1.5 to stitch the beginning and ending 3/8" of each seam. None of the seams will separate themselves at the ends.

Reduce your piecing stitch length

This is the fastest method. It is a little less secure than the other two, but definitely reduces seam separation. Just shorten your stitch .5 or more from your usual stitch length and go for it. A little trial and testing will lead you to a stitch length that is fairly secure but doesn't slow you down to much.

Tidbit

Some of you may be wondering what the pink square of fabric is all about in the "backstitch" picture. Well, do you ever get a bird's nest of thread develop as you start a line of quilting? To avoid that, just start your seam using a thread "leader". A thread nest will show up on the leader and not your piecing. When you come to the end of the seam, keep sewing onto another thread leader and you'll be ready for the next seam! If you are chain-piecing, start with a thread leader, and end the last seam with a thread leader. No more thread nests!

Learning for the week

Before you call your cell phone to find out where it is, ... check your pocket.

A mountain top experience!

A couple of weeks ago, my dear friend from Colorado Springs, my sister from  upstate NY, and I, took a few days off and spent some time together on top of about a 3,000 ft mountain near Winchester, VA. Of course, we had lots of fun, and thoroughly enjoyed our little reunion.  Very quiet, not many houses around - a great place for a personal retreat.

HOWEVER. getting to the little cabin was a big challenge. First, the path up the mountain had 9 turns off of the main highway to get there, and all of it significantly uphill. All of the roads were narrow 2 lane residential roads EXCEPT the road that took you to the top of the mountain. It was not only very steep, but it was only about 1.5 lanes, with 4 blind switch-backs. It looked more like a paved goat path than a road. Sorry, we didn't get any pictures of it - but we were all hanging on for dear life and praying like mad that we wouldn't meet another car!

Isolated! We were the only house on the road.

We were so intimidated by our ascent, that we stayed up there all the next day, and only came down the third day because we were running out of food. Thankfully, that trip down the mountain and up again after lunch wasn't quite as intimidating as the first time. We did meet a pickup when we were headed back up the road - not at a switch-back - and both vehicles had to hang off the road to get by each other.

I can't recommend the place for anyone with a weak heart.

News from the Studio

AQS Chattanooga Quilt Show

A friend and I went to the AQS quilt show in Chattanooga, TN in September. It wasn't as large a show as I had expected, but inspiring! So many amazing quilts. Here is one of my favorites. It won Best Hand Workmanship!

Of course, I always save time for all of the vendors. My favorite was my delightful APQS dealer, Sheridan Carter!  Sheridan Kay Quilting.

My very favorite quilt was in the "unusual" category: the duct tape quilt. Yes, it was all made out of duct tape, decorative plastic tape, and plastic stick-on applique!














 

Christmas Heart Song 

Since the last post, I've made 2 Christmas versions of the Heart Song quilt I showed you in the previous post. One is for sale at a local interior design store, and here is the other one. The guild will be doing the Christmas Heart Song wall-hanging in a workshop in November. Guess I'd better get busy on my handouts and demo stuff! I used the Trumpet Vine panto on this one.

Tips and Techniques

 

Press backing seams open

 Always press all backing seams open. I probably mentioned this in a previous post, but it is important for longarming. Vertical seams pile on top of each other as the backing is wound onto the rollers, causing the fabric between the piles to bag. Think unavoidable tucks. Another issue is that bulky seam "intersections" on the top might wind up aligning with bulky seams on the bottom. If a high speed needle tries to pierce lots of layers of seams and thread, serious damage to the machine or the quilt can happen. Not a happy thought.

Learning for the week

Stink bugs are annoying when you are on vacation - especially when you find them in the bed! Just ask my sister!

Have a wonderful week! Now, let's go quilt something!