Pictures of Mom and Her New Quilt

For those of you that follow my blog, you'll remember me "talking" about my Mom who was recently diagnosed with Alzheimer's and went to a nursing home right before Christmas 2009. You've seen the quilt and pillow sham I made for her room. Now, here are the pictures of my mom with her new quilt. I took it up to her when I visited this week. She showed it off to her friends in "the big room," which is where this picture was taken. Then, we went to put it on her bed. She has trouble expressing herself these days; but by the look on her face, I'd say she was happy with it. I think it looks nice on her bed. I told her to think about how much I love her every time she wraps up in it. She smiled and gave me a kiss.

The design is called "In and Out" by Blue Underground Studios.

Yo-Yo Maker Review and Spring Table Topper

Yesterday (Feb. 1) was a "Dirty Monday" meeting. I got a lot done...four wall hanging/table runner-sized quilts pin basted, and two sets of binding strips cut and ironed (ready to sew on). I was happy. Now...on to the quilting...

For those of you that know me, you will know how "out of character" this spring table topper is for me. For some reason, I had this topper in my mind for my step-mom. She has been wanting a new table topper, and I thought this would "fit the bill." I drew it out one day and made it the next. I guess I also thought that since I have every size Clover "Quick" Yo-Yo Maker that I should actually use some of them. I only have the round ones...no butterflies or heart shapes for me, but I must say...I LOVE this product. If you like to make yo-yos or have been thinking about buying this product, go ahead and jump in. It is easy to use and makes lovely yo-yos. They are even fairly quick to make. (I think it is addictive, though, because I made way more than I need to use for this project. I just got carried away.) You too may be surprised to find yourself making a quilting project using yo-yos! This is what the quilt looks like up on my design wall. The yo-yos and leaves are pinned on right now. I thought I'd quilt it before I applique the yo-yos on.This is what the product looks like. You should be able to find it at your local quilt shop, on line, or at quilt shows. They run from about $5.25 to $8.75 depending on the size you purchase.

Hosparus Installation

Yesterday (Monday) two friends and I decided to go to the "Form Not Function" quilt art exhibit at the Carnegie in New Albany, Indiana. Well...we drove down there just to find out that the exhibit is only open Tuesdays through Saturdays 10:00 a.m.-5:30 p.m. (The "Form Not Function" exhibit will be available through March 6, 2010.) Well, that is just par for the course for me! We did end up going to the LAFTA installation at the Hosparus Grief Counseling Center in Louisville and out to eat at the Macaroni Grill, so all was not lost!

I took pictures of the installation at the Hosparus Grief Counseling Center. For those of you who don't know, Hosparus is a fully accredited, non-profit organization that provides care, comfort and counseling for people facing life-limiting illnesses in Kentucky and Southern Indiana. For the LAFTA art installation at Hosparus, 53 members agreed to make a 10" X 10" fiber piece that could be mounted to a stretched canvas base. Any type of art medium could be used as long as it could be worked or placed on the canvas. The canvas background had to be covered or painted, but the work could extend slightly over the edges. The following pictures are of the installation. The plaque on the wall says, "This Collaborative Art Project is donated to the Hosparus Grief Counseling Center by the Members of the Louisville Fiber and Textile Artists, October 9, 2009." I'm really proud to have a piece in this project. Mine is the third from the left in the top row on "The Journey" wall. If you'd like to know more about my piece, click on this link--http://quilterbeth.blogspot.com/2009/09/ive-been-mentioning-lafta-piece-i.html

This is a closeup of the left side of "The Journey" wall.This is a closeup of the right side of "The Journey" wall.

These are on other walls in the Grief Counseling room.

Lots of Miscellaneous

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I finally finished Mom's quilt and pillow sham. I think she'll like it. The pattern I used is called "In and Out" and is published by Blue Underground Studios, Inc. (If you haven't read past posts...my Mom was recently diagnosed with Alzheimer's and went to live in a nursing home right before Christmas. Her room is lavender and green. I wanted her to have a quilt (that I made) to surround her with lots of love and good wishes. This is that quilt--definitely not colors I would normally work with, but I ended up really liking it.)

This is a closeup of the pillow sham. I quilted it with a varigated green thread in a freehand clamshell design. The quilt was machine quilted by Martha Hulsman using the same thread. It is quilted in a larger clamshell design.This is a picture of the back of Mom's quilt. I couldn't find a back that I liked, so I decided I would make one with the left-over fabric. In essence, it is another quilt and makes the quilt reversible. This is a picture of my new storage cubes. (It also shows the corrugated steel ceiling that I love.) I have four more cubes to put together and add to this. The studio is coming along. I'm hoping to get the furniture all moved down sometime next week. Then, after I find and put away all my quilting "stuff," I can actually start sewing down there.

...and last but not least, are my pictures of Libby. She absolutely loves Mom's quilt. Doesn't she look cozy?

She also really likes the batting on my design wall--notice the big hole (where the pink of the drywall board shows through). She pulls pieces of the batting off and chases them around the floor. I have purchased some white flannel to replace the batting; I just haven't gotten around to covering the design wall with it yet.

Update

...just a quick update...

I sent my Mom's quilt off to the machine quilter, and she had it finished in two days. I picked it up today. I have to get it squared up and put the binding on. When it is totally finished, I'll post a picture. I want to make a matching pillow sham too. We'll see when that all gets done!

Work on the studio is finished...now comes the hard part...hauling the furniture down there and organizing all the "stuff" I have. I purchased some more storage "cubes" from Michael's today. These "cubes" are made from a heavy MDF board and are great for mix-and-match storage units. I purchased nine of them in all. I have four of them put together. Luckily the instructions are easy to follow. If you are interested in using these for storage in your "craft" room, they are on sale through Saturday at Michael's. They are 40% off right now. That makes each unit around $18! I'll get a picture of them on the site as soon as I get them all put together.

Class Offering--Mom's Quilt and Studio Update

I designed this simple table runner in EQ6 for a guild workshop. My guild wanted a class on using the Easy Angle and Companion Angle. I made these Variable Stars using those rulers. I think we'll be able to get the top completed during the three-hour class. My daughter will be getting this Tri-Star Table Runner.This is the update on my Mom's quilt (In and Out)--I got the top finished. My current design wall isn't big enough for me to stretch it all out (and I was home alone when I took the picture, so I had no one to help me), but you get the idea. I'm really happy with it. I think she will like it; it will look nice in her room. I'm hoping to get the backing and send it off to be machine quilted yet this week (depending on the weather situation). Now, for the studio update...the room itself is finished except for the sink in the bathroom and some other minor things. This is a picture of the "cubes" I bought from Target. Right now, they are holding a VERY SMALL portion of the fabric I'm moving out of the furniture in my current sewing room. I have to empty the furniture out before it can be moved down to the new studio. Once it is moved, I'm going to have to put all the fabric back into the furniture. Ooooo, I have a LONG way to go till this room is done!

This is the sitting area. I'm thinking I'll be moving this to another location in the room. We'll see when I get all the furniture down here.

These are the cabinets I had put in. I'm having a hole drilled and a grommet put in so I can hide the electrical cords. I have my Keureg coffee pot and a fridge handy.

This is my cutting table (I moved it by myself.) and SOME of the MANY totes full of "stuff." My cat, Libby, likes the new room too.

I can't even believe how much fabric and quilting "stuff" I have! It could take me till spring to get it all moved.