Amy's Passions BOM for January Done!

I finally got another photo in the sunlight of my Double Delight quilt. This is my favorite quilt so far even though I try not to have favorites ;)!

Amy's Passions Block # 3 for January. This is a Four Square Variation. Tonight I put this one together (after putting the backing together for Hannah and Jeremy's quilt) and have been smiling at it ever since. These blocks just make me happy.

So here are all three of the January blocks (Rocky Road to Dublin, Four Square Variation and Four Square). I am loving them! Can't wait for more! Thanks Amy!

Pillowcases, Coasters and Such

Went by Zoe's Trunk today and discovered it was closed--I need to read my emails better! I missed a really good sale, but Mary was there and kindly let me in and I went a little nuts! I haven't done that in so long--it felt great. One of the items I got was the brown and white fabric above that I turned into pillowcases (the red fabric is left over backing for the Double Delight quilt) so I happily have some pillowcases. Still need to decide on curtains, valances, etc. and make those to match.

Kathy picked out some cowboy fabric as well, and we whipped up fifteen coasters for her craft sale...plan is if they don't sell we have two or three people we know who can use them so they will get them for Christmas presents...not sure if I am hopeful they will sell or not! The ones on the right on the chair are made from leftover fabric from Cindy Lou Who...they are cute too!

Here is a full bag of coasters all ready for the craft show...they have gone together suprisingly quickly because Kathy helped alot! We work well together on this kind of stuff. She also helped me cut some borders and triangles for Christmas Lights today too, and we managed to find the new Quiltmaker today! YIPEE...so I can finish that one anytime too. I need to find one more Christmassy border fabric for that quilt and decide on a backing too. No idea who is getting that one yet either!

Worked on some other stuff today too, but will save that for another post when it is done. It was a great weekend here at our house!

Double Delight is Quilted and Bound!

Both NYE Mystery Pictures for 2008!

This isn't the greatest picture, but here are my first six Colonial History quilt blocks I am doing in bluework, I just finished the seventh one last night while watching Slumdog Millionare which was good, but haven't taken a photo yet.
I need to iron them and they will get a border...trying to decide if I should go with blue or red? Let me know if you have a suggestion or reccommendation!

Ann B. Smith's mystery for NYE 2008 is all quilted and bound. I finished it up at my Quilt History meeting! I love it, and it doesn't have a home yet! Sorry for the wrinkles in it!

And the borders are on the Double Delight from Bonnie Hunter's NYE Mystery!

The top border hangs over the wall and it is a bit smushed for the picture, but I didn't have two people available to hold it! I couldn't be happier with the end result for either of these quilts!!!!!

I have a freelance job in a bit, but after that I plan to do something sewing related!

Productive Weekend at Quilt Camp!

I hardly know where to start...Here is the room we were quilting in at camp. You can see our quilt auction quilts on the back wall and my sewing station is the second machine in from where I am standing. The only glitch in the whole weekend was when my dang Janome machine went kaplooey four hours into the whole deal! Sigh. I ran in to Wal-Mart and got a cheap machine which ran like a top all weekend. The gals all could not believe how fast I returned and got to sewing!

Here are the sleeping quarters. My roommate was Tina. She was a super nice gal though I dind't really get to talk to her much since we were only in the room awake together for about 10 minutes total! Our room is the one right next to the bathroom opening.

Here is the inside of the room. Nothing fancy and I should say that the first night I had the bed with the post...I had to LAUNCH myself in by the light of my cellphone at 2 AM without waking up Tina..not easy to get in a sleeping bag, it involved hitting my head a few times, but I slept all the way through breakfast Saturday morning. I had some migraines, but by Sunday I was finally feeling well.

Had big plans to post what I would be working on before I went..never happened and actually I never got time to make some of this stuff because there just wasn't enough time...so I have these bags all cut out for the nieces and nephews for Christmas but that is where they are at. I did manage to make progress with the two Streak of Lightening quilts in green and pink!

I also brought my completed NYE Mystery designed by Ann B. Smith. I sewed the binding on and got half way through hand sewing it on. It looks great!

One needs the pink border put on but they are together!

And what I was doing all afternoon and until 2 AM Friday and again ALL DAY Saturday finishing around 5 PM is my Double Delight border! You can see it partially done in the first picture, but by the time I got the blue border on the sun had gone and the pic isn't great...will get another one when there is daylight and I am home!

This took forever but adds so much to the quilt that I am happy I did it. I will save this quilt from our house if it ever burns down...seriously...someone posted how many pieces are in that quilt and I can't remember but it is ALOT!
I finally met an online quilt friend who belongs to the group (Hi Becky, that is you) and coincidently she was working on Bonnie Hunter's Carolina Crossroads quilt! She got her whole top together and she was seated across from me by luck and it was such fun. We talked about Bonnie and Quiltville, she brought Bonnie's book and some of the gals were so excited to go buy it and check out the website so that was fun! So here we are side by side (we sewed in the chapel of the camp) with our quilts under us!

Here was our camp mascot. He is a service dog in training (two of the gals train him) and he was very well behaved. The only time I heard him bark was when they told him to speak just after this photo! We made many more quilts than this all told, a few gals left by the time we hung them and a few didn't find space to hang them or didn't come out til later but their quilts were gorgeous too! I have more pics of the individual quilts I may show later on...I feel like I really got to know all the gals or at least most of them. I can't say that I have ever joined a friendly group--seriously nice people who made me feel right at home and who I hope to get to know in the years to come. I will be going back to camp in November!

Giraffes, Fixing the DD, Quilt History Block and Tablerunner of the Month Progress

The whole family went to the Wildlife Zoo last Sunday and the highlight was feeding the giraffes! Aren't they cute?

Here is my Country Lanes block from my quilt history class. This one went together extremely easily! Very happy with it!

Did some repair work on the Double Delight...turned that messed up block around...didn't find anymore so it is ready for borders. Last night we cut strips so I can make a cheddar border and then a nine patch border...thinking blue on the outside at this point.

At my tablerunner class I put together this butterfly April tablerunner.

I have only worked on the machine applique of one of the butterflies, but am liking it so far...a vast improvement from my last machine applique. The teacher helped me understand how to do it and I have lots to do before the next meeting!
Quilt Camp next weekend, so I am working on getting things assembled by project. So far I have my Double Delight borders all ready to go and a charm square bag for Suli (since I gave my mom the last one I made!). I have to get more stuff ready to go...decisions, decisions!

The Whoops on my Double Delight and a Norway Linen

Migraines bad lately...not doing much sewing...my parents are in town this weekend (at my sister's an hour away) from Texas so I will be going up there this weekend. Hoping I feel better for that. Other problems....

Check out the close up of my Double Delight....it is hanging waiting for borders and I noticed a WHOOPS block the other night...one of my nine patches is messed up...sigh. I can't leave it or I will lose sleep, so I shall rip it out and fix it! Also plan to scour the whole thing for more whoops!

Last weekend Randy and I stopped at an antique mall for a huge outside flea market they had and for $2.75 this brand new (but who knows how old) linen about Norway on it! Pretty sure it was purchased there because it had a price tag on it that looked like the ones I remember from when I was there. Randy and I visited Norway a few years ago...I was tickled to death to see that the linen had the Stave Church on it which was one of the things we visited while we were there. Here is one of my pictures of it!

We got to see the coast of Norway at Arendal (and stayed on an island there) and travelled by train all the way up to Solvorn where my great grandfather Anton Walker was born and raised before moving to Wisconsin at age 18. I need to type up a blog reminiscing about this trip from the handwritten journal I kept at the time...so the linen brought back a lot of good memories of the trip of a lifetime I got to take. Oh and to make this fabric related too...I bought several meters of a blue plaid and red plaid fabric when I was there and I still don't know what to make with it. I may try to combine it with this linen. If you have any suggestions let me know! Also, tell me about your trip of a lifetime!

Double Delight Clue Six Done!

Here she is...we took apart my digital camera and several shocks later went to the store and bought a new one. Sigh, there goes the budget! But hey at least I can post a picture of my Double Delight. Now to determine borders!

Double Delight Clue Four and Five DONE!

Since my camera is giving me a lens error message at the moment I have no pictures to prove it, but I am done with my Double Delight step four and five blocks! I added another row to what I already had so only two more rows to make and the top is together (not sure what to do with borders yet) so that is my goal for this afternoon...to get that baby done! Kathy got called in to work today so dinner is in the crock pot and on the stove and I have caught up on my TIVO and finished my audiobook (Change of Heart by J. Picoult) and decided to catch up on blogs and update any of you who follow along on my quilting! Special thanks to Amy for motivating me to keep on keeping on with this quilt. I had hit a bit of a slump and her progress really got me motivated again! If you don't read Amy's blog you should--she is prolific in her quilting and on a side note she runs and motivates me to at least think about physical health! http://skattebo-skattebo.blogspot.com/ if you want to check it out. I haven't learned how to imbed links corectly yet so there it is.
As for the rest of my life...Saturday I went to the AQS in Mesa. It was a lot of fun and I met up with several gals from my online Quilt-Talk group. B.J. I had met once before and I liked her even better the second time around, and then June and Charlotte I met for the first time. It took all of five minutes for us to be talking like we have known each other forever. Funniest part is we are quite diverse in age and background and quilting is for sure what holds us together...not sure we would ever have become friends any other way...so I am so happy for internet blindness and the kind hearts it leads me to! I would post a pic, but the other three have yet to post theirs and I have none til I get it from them! (later note, they sent me the pic! left to right Charlotte, me, B.J, and sitting is June)My favorite quilt at the show was a gorgeous crayoned quilt--with Arizona flora and fauna in it. It was rather muted in color but I was just struck by the overall effect of it and the idea of it. It got my vote for best of show. There were a few knock out Bargellos there which reminded me I should get out mine and do something with it. I bought six green fat quarters (to hopefully work on Amy's March challenge) and a pin to commemorate the show as well as some applique needles I needed.
Yesterday Randy and I went to the Ostrich Festival here in Chandler. It was fun though I got sunburned because I didn't think about sunblock in March (lol can't tell I am from the Midwest can you). Saw my first ostrich races and heard the Grassroots band sing some 60's tunes. Plenty of people watching and of course I ate several fried foods that are not on my normal diet. HAHA! However we walked a zillion miles so hopefully that counteracted some of it. It was a great weekend which only could have been greater if I had my camera working! Randy has my old camera somewhere so I may have to borrow it from him when I get DD together.

Colonial Quilt Bluework and DD Continues!

Hard to see in this picture, but I traced out four more blocks for the Colonial Bluework by Ruby McKim. Tonight I plan to watch Beverly Hills Chiuahuaha and work on a block or two. I am awaiting my darling and my Indian food dinner!

This quilt will be bigger than my design wall, but look two little rows on the other half so only THREE more rows to go! Of course other than that lone block up there the others aren't yet put together! Starting to feel like I will get it done though so I will keep on plugging away at it. I am not really pinning anymore...started out being really good about that, but now I am happy with how they come out when I carefully lay the blocks together and sew slowly and eyeball things. If I am not happy I frog stitch. There has been a bit of that, but I want to be delighted with this quilt when it is done (doubly) so I am taking my time with that.