Finally...Back to the Computer

I apologize for not updating the blog for a bit. I'm having some work done in the house (walls knocked out, new flooring put down, painting done, etc.). I haven't been able to get to the computer without moving furniture. All my living room furniture is in my dining room and in the computer room; it is really a mess here. I think we'll really like it when it is finished, but right now it is a real pain in the......

Anyway, today I was "stuck" in my sewing room all day! There wasn't any place else I could go. (Now you know I hated that!) I did get quilt a lot of sewing done. I finished six (of the twenty 6-inch) blocks for The Quilt Show 2009 Block of the Month (Stars for a New Day) quilt. I also finished several more of the 4" border stars. I even made four little Monkey Wrench blocks. Check them out.Here is a closeup of the blocks that measure 6 1/2" unfinished. They really take a long time to do. Each of them has lots of pieces (as you can see). The seams have to be pressed open and each seam has to be pinned. It is fun, though, to put the different fabrics together. The blocks are exactly the same, but look how different they look depending on what fabric is used and the placement of each fabric. Some would say I'm in half-square triangle hell! I may feel like that before I get all twenty done!I mentioned making a name tag in my last blog. I finished it and wore it to the guild meeting last week. I used a couple of fabric beads I made to decorate it and attached a piece of an old necklace so I could wear the name tag on a cord. The shapes were cut from hand-dyed and batik fabrics and were fused in place. They were then stitched down with clear polyester thread. I printed my name out on the computer and used that as a pattern for the letters in my name. The edges of the name tag were satin stitched with variegated thread. I used boot Pellon (a Timtex-like material) for the base. The name tag measures 4" X 6". I think I may make a couple more. I'll post them if I do.

I'll be heading to the Chicago quilt show later this week. I'll try to get some pictures to share with you, so check back!

Time is at a Premium

Due to family issues, I haven't gotten to do much of anything quilting related. I did get a new quilt guild name tag started. I'm thinking that a program including techniques for making new name tags might be fun to present to the guild in May. We have so many new members that we really need to be wearing name tags. Currently, most of the tags are pretty "run of the mill," so it might be fun to do something a bit more creative. I'm not sure...regardless, I'll post a pic of mine when it is finished. I'm having so much fun playing that I may make more than one. We'll see what time permits.

Nate and I worked on our taxes today--not fun! It did turn out that we will be getting a refund! Whoopeeeeee! Now that this is finished, I may be able to work on some machine quilting of this month's UFO. I'd really like to be finished with the quilting and machine work on the binding so that I can hand stitch the binding during the upcoming Dirty Monday meeting. I'll let you know how that turns out!

Back from AR/April UFO Chosen

I just got back from Fort Smith, Arkansas, yesterday. Emily (my daughter), Cade (my 2 year old grandson), and I had to drive back on our own. (Nate was called back to Indianapolis for a meeting and had to fly back to Indy on Sunday.) Being in a car with a 2 year old for ten hours is a real interesting experience. All in all, he was REALLY good. He didn't spend a lot of time sleeping; I spent a lot of time singing "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" and naming the color of every semi we passed.

The UFO due in April has been chosen. Mine is Number 5--Jan Patek's Four Season Quilt. It is wall hanging/table topper size. (See it in the blog Finally--UFO Challenge Choices.) I have layered and pin basted it already. I think I may have some of the quilting done. I have a lot of running around to do in April--Indianapolis, Rosemont Quilt Show, Paducah Quilt Show, etc. Also, I'm having some work done on the house. We are having hardwood floors put down in the living room, dining room, kitchen, and hallway. I'm also having a wall taken out from between my living room and dining room. I think my house will be a mess for awhile. All of that might hinder my ability to work on my UFOs just a bit! I'm planning on taking the UFO with me everywhere I go--maybe I can steal a little time to do some handwork on it.

Gearing Up!

I'm gearing up for the big UFO drawing tomorrow--what will be chosen? I am unable to attend the Stitch & Bitch meeting where the new project will be chosen, so I have instructed my friends to email/call me to let me know which one is picked.

I've been trying to work on some of the ones that will take me the longest to finish. Last night I started working on the machine quilting of the Amish Shadow Quilt (in blog January UFO Chosen )--Number 6 in the UFO Challenge--just in case that one is picked. I always spend way more time machine quilting than I plan to. That one was not finished because I couldn't decide what quilting I wanted to do. I made those decisions last night, marked it, and started the quilting. Monday I finished my Red/White/Blue Table Runner. Maybe that one will be picked! There won't be much time in April to work on the project, because I'll be attending a quilt show in Chicago and the Paducah quilt show.

Yesterday, I spent some time pulling things (yarns, beads, pics, threads, etc.) I thought I might use on my felt piece. I have picked a horse cave drawing for the piece. Now, I'm looking for some linen thread to use to stitch it. The picture of the cave wall looks like the drawing was "scratched" into the wall rather than painted on the wall. I'm thinking the linen thread could mimic the etching. I thought I had some but haven't been able to find it--what a surprise!

Wet Felt Workshop

I have to say...I just loved taking this class! The "Felting Flat, Wet Felt Workshop" given by LAFTA (Louisville Area Fiber and Textile Artists) member Judy Goodwin was such fun. We were taught how to make a piece of hand-made felt. The size of my piece is approximately 11" X 12 1/2". All the pieces were very different. There wasn't a great selection of colors, but the point of the class was to learn how to make the felt--not specific design. I really love the process of making the felt--the "something from nothing" concept; I love the feel of the fiber.

After all the pieces were finished, each class participant showed their piece. Suggestions were made as to the possible uses for the pieces. Several participants thought mine reminded them of a horse hide. (It reminded Robin of a squished "yipper dog." She suggested I call the piece "Yip No More!" It reminds me of "road kill" or an animal pelt of some kind. While I was working on it and the wool roving pieces were all wet, it looked like the stuff you would find in your shower drain!) I'm thinking of doing some hand embellishments on the piece--maybe similar to cave paintings of horses or African masks or... Now that I have the piece, I'm not sure what to do with it, but it will be fun experimenting. This is my second "art" piece of the year. I "vowed" to make 12 fiber art pieces by the end of the year. We'll see how it turns out. Hopefully, it looks better than squished yipper dogs and road kill!

I'm a Bad, Bad Blogger!

Okay...my intentions were good...I took my camera to Quilters Day Out (Tri-State Quilt Day); however, I did not take one single picture! This is the problem with me dragging a camera everywhere I go; I just don't know what to take pictures of. I will try to do better when I attend the Chicago Quilt Show and the Paducah Quilt Show in April. As for Quilters Day Out...it was a really nice day--good show, nice quilts, great speakers, vendors, good location, nice mix of contemporary and traditional quilting (contemporary speaker showing her quilts; mostly traditional show and tell by local guilds)--all in all, a very nice day.

I'm excited about attending a wool felting class tomorrow. I know nothing about it and am anxious to learn something new. I'm hoping I can use it in some of the art quilt projects I have rambling around in my brain.

I mentioned that I would post a picture of the quilting designs I drew up for the latest UFO I'm working on...here they are. I repeated the larger of the two designs in all four corners of the quilt--two were reversed. I used the smaller motif several times. I used the "deli-wrap method" of transferring my designs to the quilt. (See my Transferring Your Quilting Design to Your Quilt blog entry from January 2009.) That method worked very well for these quilting designs. I also machine quilted smaller "roses" in some of the smaller blocks of the quilt; I did those without predrawing them. I will be hand stitching the binding on the UFO Monday and will post a pic when I get one taken. Stay tuned......