Sunday Quilting Upate

After I finished the One Block Wonder for the window in the bedroom, I wasn't sure what project I wanted to work on. The decision was made for me by the late hours maintained by the young adults that have returned to live at home. Krystal works many nights until 10 PM. Of course when you get off of work that late you don't want to go right to sleep. I do remember that from the many years I worked 3 - 11:30 at the hospital. The kitchen light shines right into our bedroom. I'm one of those who likes it dark when I sleep. We do have mini blinds between the glass of our new French doors to our bedroom but light still comes through. So I'm working on the quilts to cover the windows in the doors.

After I had one of the rows joined I measured it against the window, it wasn't long enough, so I added one half a hexagon to each strip. I was going to place some at the top or the bottom depending on the pattern to keep the original balance I had wanted. Then I realized that won't work because it would throw my matching halves off. So I added them all to the top. I was in no mood to rearrange all those rows that were sewn together. Heck who would know but me anyway. And now all of you. I also added the triangle to made a floating border. I'm not sure about side borders yet. This is a design in progress. Isn't that what design walls are for.

I haven't sewn as fast I could because I have been watching a HBO mini-series about John Adams. I have it set to show all the stubborn facts. During the movies they show a historical fact on the bottom of the screen. So I look for those to read, they have been very informative. A lot of sacrifice has gone into making this country free. What a wonderful thing freedom is. I would recommend watching the series.

Sunday Quilting Upate

OK I know you have seen a dozen pictures of this quilt in all it stages, but I'm so happy to have it finished. This was to cover a new window added to our bedroom when the new room was added on to our home. The window faces East, so it gets strong AZ morning sun. The sun comes up about 5:15AM, which means it starts getting light about 4:45. That is early by anyone's standard. So first I lined the window with black out fabric, then I cover the window with my quilt. This morning was our first morning to wake up with it, and very little bright light showed through. I'm very happy with how it turned out. My husband even said it looks very nice. So here it is all it's glory! I finished this binding while in Page and on the car trip back to Mesa.

Saturday evening I drew the 10th blocks for my Caribbean Sea Block of the Month in EQ6 and started sewing it. Today I completed the block. Of course I had it all completed and took a picture of it, when I noticed one of the corners was reversed, so I did some ripping and re-sewing to get it right. Funny how it looks better when it is right.

Trip to Page AZ

Actually I have been out of town for two weeks for work. The week of June 8th I was in CO. I didn't take any picture in CO. I did end up in Urgent Care with Pink Eye. That was fun, NOT. I was even sent to the hotel early on Wednesday since my eyes look miserable. I did go to my room and laid down for 2 hours and slept. I seldom sleep during the day. I must have needed it. I was home for a weekend and on Monday the 15th I and two other co-workers drove to Page AZ.


I did do some hiking and took some pictures of the high desert. This is Horseshoe Bend. I was leaning very close to the edge of the ridge I was on to get this picture. I was leaning against a large rock to steady myself. I did get dizzy after I took this picture, I'm not really crazy about heights that have no railing. That is the Colorado River down there, it's heading to the Grand Canyon.


Here is my picture at the end of the trail. I haven't done a lot of exercise since November because of Plantar Fasciitis, so I was glad to finish this 1.5 mile round trip hike, and did it in good time, 20 minutes back which was mostly up hill. I did take my time. It was a good feeling, so foot pain or not, I'm going back to the gym. My foot was no worst for the activity. Yes I did get rained on during my hike, but it wasn't a hard rain and it didn't slow me down any. Matter of fact it felt good.

I did it!

Now it is blue!! It took a little thinking but I did it. I had a nice time visiting with friends for lunch. They are all old co-workers. Two are retired now, the rest of us are still working!

New Signature

I'm trying to embed my signature in my post so I don't have to add it every time, which I obviously forget to do. Now if I can just figure out how to change the color to blue, I'll be very happy. I did do it in blue but couldn't save it in the right file extension. I guess I have to do some more playing. But first I need to go to lunch with some friends.

Sunday Quilting Upate A Little Early

I'm so excited and I just can't hide it!! I really am. I started quilting this morning on my One Block Wonder. I was just going to do a few rows and do some other sewing. Well things were just going along very smoothly. The next thing I know is I have all the center quilted and all the outside border. So the only thing I had left to do was the green resting border. So I rewind the quilt on the frame and started the green border. I had a few issues there, mostly because I was using sulky thread and it was slipping out of the needle. So I took a break went to dinner with my honey and his sister and her husband our son Kinsen. We did a little groceries shopping. After checking email and blogs I decided to try to quilt some more. I'm happy to report that the quilting is done. Here is the all done on the frame picture. Doesn't everyone do this?
I'm going to trim the edges and prep and apply the binding. I'll leave the hand sewing part of the binding for my evenings on my work trip next week to Page AZ.

Here is a close up of the top border. I did a loop-de-loop meandering with leaves every once in a while. My husband finally noticed that the border fabric is the same as in the window curtains in our Hobby Room. How long has this quilt been on a design wall? Months! Well at least he noticed.

Here is a close up of the green border. I was doing a free style ribbons effect. Actually it is a row of double quilting. It is something Cindy Roth does. You just have to go with the flow. Not the easiest thing for me to do, but I'm learning.

An EQ6 Moment

As you might know I like EQ6, I have used it to design and make a few quilts I submitted one of them to Electric Quilt Company and it was posted on their User Gallery. Here is the link EQ6 User Gallery. My quilt is number 26, Witches Undies. I scanned my fabric into EQ6 so it it hard to tell the difference between the two but the quilt is the one on the right.

Here is the original quilt I designed, but it still needs borders and to be quilted. I just couldn't cut up the Mystical Horse fabric by Laurel Burch. I only had fat quarters of all the fabrics. I only bought yardage of the black with the gold dots for the resting border and some of a purple and pink both with gold dots for the outside borders, also Laurel Burch fabric. I'm thinking I'm going to make each border a different color. The first picture is from EQ6 the second is the quilt center.
You might notice in the actual quilt I added another row of blocks, I wanted it longer. I hope to some day publish this quilt as a pattern. This darn full time job just keeps me too busy.

Now I'm remembered there is another quilt I designed but it was designed in EQ5. I was teaching a class on curved paper piecing. I was using the book by Jodie Davis on Curved Paper Piecing. She didn't have a sample of all the different blocks and I wanted a sampler for my class sample. So I designed one.
I designed this one and purchased the fabric I needed afterwards. Using the Fabric Yardage feature to decide how much fabric to buy.

You will notice that my design has an extra block in it. When I made the block it was a mess. I emailed Jodie about it and she replied that the Gizzards and Heart block did not loan itself to being reduced. So I have it in my copy of Jodie's book of learning examples of what not to do. Even after designing the quilt in EQ6 I do a lot of design wall work.

As I look at this picture of my quilt, I noticed it is upside down from how I would hang it. On the large block the light color travels down to the darker color. Not that it matters too much.

Sunday Quilting Upate

It seems like it has been a long time since I posted but it really was only last Sunday. I have been busy working and I have been coming home tired. I think I have been resisting a cold, so far no major symptoms just mild stuff. I think the Zicam has helped. I need to take more tonight since I'm flying in the morning to Loveland CO. They needed a CL, my job title is Clinical Liaison to go to McKee Medical Center to help the doctors after their classes to use the electronic software. Since I'm at a totally electronic hospital it was my turn to go. I also volunteered, since the girl they requested couldn't go. So since I needed a hand project to take with me, I made these two little 4th of July quilts to take with me and do the bindings. The square one is a remake of one I made in 1997. I had it in 2006 on my cubical wall at work and now I can't find it. I still haven't found it, and since it one of a 12 month series, I decided to replace it.

The long one is one from Patch Abilities http://www.patchabilities.com/index.htmlI like her patterns and I have just the prefect place for them on my cubical. I did her monthly minis last year and I finished six but I have 6 to do for this year. I did this one instead of the sand castles she had. I'm going to do that one for Aug.


My other big accomplishment this week was I finished the binding on the baby quilt I quilt for a friend. I forgot to take a picture of it with the binding on, but you saw it last week when it came off the frame. She picked it up on Tuesday, she was so excited on how it came out that she had me present it to her son and daughter in law who were in her car. The were so tickled and really like it. Any way the Mom to be said the quilt is done he can come now. My friend told the kids it was a team quilt. It was really cute and fun. Sure enough the baby came on Thursday. I also loaded my One block wonder on to my frame. Yes!! I didn't start any quilting, just not in the mood. I'm just happy to have it on the frame. I had planned a meandering with leaves but I may think about doing something else. I'm not sure, so I'm going to wait for inspiration.