My First Projects on the New Machine

First a commercial break.  I had removed the moderate comments functionality on my blog, but I missed two weeks worth of comments.  I really enjoy reading your comments and I didn't see them until tonight.  So I turned it back on so I can read them when they come in.  Thanks for all the great comments you all have left!

Now on to the business at hand.  My first projects on my new machine.  First I made an extra block for my Farmer's Wife Sampler.  I paper pieced it, simple and fun!








Labels for Blue Moon

 The first label I made is for the Blue Moon quilt.  I have to admit I did a practice piece on muslin, just to see the size of the letters.  They were big!  Then I realized I could make them small, so I did.  These are the small letters here.  The second label is from the quilt show.



Mystical Horses labels

 Here is my Mystical Horse labels.  I have both sizes of letters in this label.  I forgot to change the size of the font when I did the name of the quilt, that is why it is larger.  My name & Mesa AZ is saved in my machine's memory.  How cool is that?  On my old machine I had to reset it every time.   Maybe that is why I didn't use it a lot.



YoYo Blocks



Well during the quilt show I found this wonderful book called Simple Grace.  There is this amazing YoYo quilt in it that I fell in love with.  So on Saturday I bought some background fabric.  I plan to use scraps from my stash for the yo-yos.  I made about 36 background blocks.  You see all the yo-yos I have made so far.  I plan to work on these when I am traveling for work this summer. 

Happy Stitching! 

2011 Quit Show

The quilt show is over and my quilts are safely home and back hanging on the walls.  Let me tell you I think they look so much better on white walls than black curtains. 

This quilt I found right away, this was taken on Saturday



The Quilt sign for Mystical Horses

 It is so hard to describe your quilt in 50 words or less, especially one you designed.

I need to tell you a little story, it is kind of funny now but I didn't think it was while it was happening.  After work on Thursday I ran quickly over to the show to see my quilts.  I found the first one right away both in the program and one the properly labeled isle with the same number.  It look marvelous, I was happy.  I visited with some friend and then I started to look for the the second quilt.  I couldn't find it in the program.  I walked around and thought since it is for display only it must be in the other room, so I went to the other room.  No it wasn't down the halls or in the other room.  So back around the main room again.  Still can't find it.  I couldn't find any of the 5000 number quilts not in the program or on any signs. 

I heard some of the volunteers speaking that some of the program wasn't printed and some pages were missing so that explains why I couldn't find it in the program.  So I asked them where were the display quilts hanging and they said they were squeezed on many of the different categories rows.  So back around again both rooms.  Still didn't find it. 

I finally asked for the organizer to help me find, she thought it was in the back of the room and we walked there together, she remembered the name and seeing it.  Over 400 quilts and she remembers mine.  I am good with that. 


Blue Moon at the Show

 Sure enough she takes me to it, I look at it and I was thinking that's not my quilt the colors don't look right. Luckily I didn't say the words because it was my quilt.  It just looked so different against black. Goes to prove that the color behind the quilt effects the over all look of the quilt. Needless to say I was relieved and I was able to roam around and enjoy the other quilts and the vendors.  The show is very nice on Thursday night not a ton of people like there are on Friday & Saturday. 


Sign for Blue Moon



I have included the judge's comments.  I really dislike that I am also classified as a professional quilter, I think I should be classified as a quilts for others to support my quilting habit, not to make money.  I don't feel I am in the same class the as the big show stoppers type professional, if you know what I mean.  Somehow I don't think I am going to win that debate.

I do not have a stitch regulator on my machine. 

Last but next the least here is the quilt show label I can add to my quilt.



Quilt Show label.



AQG gave us these nice bags to bring our quilt home in. 

 Will I do it again, I don't know, it is fun, it is work, your friends enjoy your quilt make it a lot of fun.  It is fun to see quilts made by your friends.  Today I think, I'll do it again when I finish my Dear Jane. 

What do all these pictures mean????

 This is not the label I wanted to make but just as I sat at my machine to make the labels I had in my mind, my machine died.  I mean stopped dead, no lights in the control panel.  So I stopped and took it to the shop, they think it might be a dead mother board.  I dropped it off late Saturday afternoon.  The repair man was off on Monday so I hope to find out today (Tuesday) how much the damages are.  So instead of pretty labels I made these ones very fast.

Which serve the purpose.

Since they are covered by these.

In the bags!

This is what I did on Sunday before church.   

And these are what I need to pick them up again on Saturday evening after the show.

You got it it is quilt show time!!

Blue Moon Quilt

Journeys by Whimsical

Thank You for the lovely compliments on this quilt. I was asked if it is a design by Whimsicals by Quilter Laura, and she knows her Whimsicals.  Here is their website, the do fun stuff.

The pattern was from their book Journeys and they call it Rustic Moon, because all their moons where done in a rust color. 

I actually purchased my fabric at a quilt show and it was all in a kit.  I just fell in love with it when I saw it on their wall of the booth.  I have forgotten the name of the shop that displayed the quilt and sold the quilt. 

I have to admit I'm very happy with how it turned out and especially the colors, so not what I usually do.  Maybe I should do more like them. 

Happy Stitching!!

Blue Moon Quilt

Blue Moon on the frame quilted completed.

After I was in bed last night I realized I had not posted about my Blue Moon Quilt. I actually took it off the frame on Sunday Aug 22nd but I did not do a blog post that night or that week. I did free motion Loop de Loops with stars and crescent moons. The quilting in the sashing and borders is more open and the quilting around the applique is a little denser.

More of the quilting

 I'm happy with how it turned out.  I added the binding last Sunday night and I have been sewing the back down by hand a little every other night or so.

How it is today with the binding almost done.

I took it to work today to show my co-workers, they where all very complimentary.  One gal Mendy was so fun, as she noticed the stars and the moons in the quilting.  It is always fun to me to watch non-quilters admire quilting.  She suddenly asked me if I hang quilts on my walls and of course I do.  She came back from lunch with to lovely made quilt hangers.  I have found just the place to hang them, now to decide which quilts to hang on them.  A project for another day.  Thanks Mendy for the quilt hangers. 

Quilting Update

One of my friends told me, "Now that you do Genealogy you hardly blog on your quilting blog any more."  Well Rachel I think I'm making up for lost time today. 

Meandering with stars and moons

Yesterday I was watching this video to learn or improve your frame machine quilting.  I decided yesterday was the day I was going to finish that practice piece I have had on the frame since January.  Yep it has been there for 8 months.  I didn't like the quilting pattern the mystery quilt was showing us how to do.  I'm really glad I was doing it on some practice fabric instead of the quilt I made for the mystery quilt.  I'll do something else with that wall hanging.  So I finished the practice piece with some meandering loop-de-loops with stars and crescent moons.   Boy you can get rusty in 8 months.  It was like meet my machine all over again.

Blue Moon

Yesterday I suddenly felt motivated to finish a quilt that has been waiting for just two borders.  This is Blue Moon by Whimsical.    I pieced the borders and sewed them on tonight.  I went and purchased thread yesterday to quilt it with.  I already have the backing but I have to check if I have batting.  If I don't it isn't a big deal I can buy it right around the corner from my house.  You can see why I was practicing meandering with stars and moons, I think they will look on this quilt.  I will go around the applique, not over it.

And yes since August 1st I have made four Farmer's Wife Blocks.  I'm thinking I might make three more and put it away for awhile so I can work on some other projects.  Quilt Camp is coming up in 3 weeks and it would be nice to have a small quilt for silent auction. 

So that is all I have to report from my little corner of the world. 

Happy Stitching!