Decision made

I thought long and hard about my inability to select fabric for the quilt in my last post. I was thinking so hard, the smoke was starting to come out of my ears. I finally realized that I was trying to put really busy fabric into a really busy quilt design. Subconsciously, I knew it wasn't going to work and that is why I was procrastinating. I am putting all that fabric back onto the shelf and I am going to pull the fabric I originally pulled. Stay tuned.

Swaying To and Fro

Have you seen this year's block of the month quilt from The Quilt Show? I love love love this! ♥

The problem I am having is that I can't make up my mind how I want it to look as an end result. I have gone this way with the fabric and then swayed that way with the fabric.

Here is the latest selection.

The bright green is actually a fabric and not my cutting mat. :)
The white is a white-on-white and there is a touch of gray in the prints. Would it look more modern if I pulled out that light green under the white? Suggestions?

This next photo shows the values.

What do you think? Should I use this combo or start over? I will fully consider each and every suggestion.

Birthday Present

Yes, another year older. The birthday came and went quietly, but I DID buy myself a present. A quick trip to the LQS for a SewLine pencil resulted in a quilt kit along with the pencil. I know, I know. I am weak.

This will be a twin size quilt, just the right size for napping on the sofa. Happy birthday to me!

How's your Friday going?

Shopping this morning was productive. Fig Leaf Quilting had two (2!!) fabrics in the color red that I needed. How often does that happen? One of them is a blue/red Kona Cotton. Should have looked at the bolt end to see the name. *shrug* Now I need to make sure that neither of these fabrics is going to bleed because they are for the Baltimore Christmas quilt.

My new prescription  sunglasses were in and now I can see without squinting in the bright sun on snow days.

Sprouts Farmers Market had some mighty fine looking Sockeye Salmon on special. Into the shopping cart it went along with some pine nuts for the morning oatmeal and some roasted almonds for snacking.

A new yarn shop opened up only 10 minutes away from home. Oh my, this could be trouble 'cause it's the Loopy Ewe. I went in to purchase sock blockers and came out with some Madelinetosh yarn too. The colorway is called Fjord which is perfect for an upcoming project. It is luscious yarn. I would be in deep trouble if this store were closer.

Old Textiles

The only quilt shown at the lecture was made from layers and layers
of old saris using reverse applique and a big stitch quilting.
The batting is assumed to be more saris.

I attended a wonderful lecture last evening. It was the January program of  The Rocky Mountain Creative Quilters. Linda Carlson, Curator of the Avenir Museum at CSU's University Center for the Arts discussed and showed special items from their collection that illustrated the rich history of textiles as it pertains to quilting and creating with fabric. There was yardage and garments and other special items that included laces and molas, ikat and mudcloth . I learned tidbits of information like the style of a Japanese kimono probably relates to traditional Mongol clothing. And the early tie dyes that were shown and discussed were astounding!

Laying on top of various embroidered saris,
this Pre-Columbian textile was astonishing in it's complexity.
The weaver spun the cotton using only her fingers and thigh.

If you ever get the chance to attend something like this and you are really into textiles, and what quilter isn't into textiles, I urge you to go!

Cutting Fabric

Normally, I do not like to cut into fabric. Strange thing for a quilter to say, isn't it? It's always been this way. Way back when I used to do a lot of garment sewing, I would procrastinate on cutting out the pieces. Cutting out quilt pieces, I have found, is no different. So when I DO get into a mood to cut I cut out a lot of fabric.

So can you guess what I've been doing? Yes, cutting fabric. It started with a Mystery Quilt at the LQS. I finally decided on the fabrics and then cut the pieces according to the first clue. Now need to wait until the end of the month for the 'class'. But cutting those quilt pieces got me in the mood to cut more. So I did.

I now have all of this cut and waiting to sew:

• Quilt of Valor - Flag of Valor
• Quilt of Valor - American Glory
• Purple Safari
• Tulips at Midnight 
• Double 4 Patch
• Buckeye Beauty
• Mystery Quilt
• an apron
• a new bathrobe

That's enough to keep a girl out of trouble for a while. You'll know where to find me!

Timing is Everything

or in the right place at the right time.

A GF and I signed up for a one-day Mystery Quilt at a LQS. Normally, I do not do mystery quilts, but we needed a bit of girl-friend time. We were handed our first clue which included the amount of fabric and wonder-of-wonders the requirements were in values.

Inspired by a color choice I saw on a blog, I started pulling fabric. I was able to pull the light, medium and medium-dark yardage from the stash but not the dark fabric.

So I cruised into the LQS where we will be taking this class to look for a suitable dark fabric. Nothing jumped into my arms. But, and here is where the timing comes in, a fabric rep was in the store. I talked with one of the owners and the fabric that I had in mind is now on order and I will get my 4 yards in time for the class.

Goodies in the Mail

The lovely Finn of Pieces from my Scrapbag, sent me these wonderful vintage 30/40s fabrics. When I opened the box they just sproiged out! She included some beautiful yardage too, see it there on the bottom? I found several MAM blocks and a Dresden plate -- I was in heaven. Thank you, Finn, I ♥ this gift!

Wordless Wednesday - Red

Fabric Purchases

Do you remember this post about the three gift certificates I had? Well, two of them have been used. Yes, indeedy, I went shopping. Wanna know what I got? Well, fabric of course!

My friend, MagicLady, and I went on a Saturday afternoon to two different shops in two different towns. The first shop was a new one and I ran amuck. These fabrics came home with me.

Isn't that yummy? The top two are batiks. All but $6.00 of the gift card was used up. At the second shop, I found two portions of a panel by Moda (Red, White & Bold by Sandy Gervais) on the clearance table. I thought they would make good pillowcases/presentation cases for QOV.

These portions were actually the top and bottom sections of a panel like this one:

I need to double check on the required size of the cases. It would be nice if 2 cases could be made from these but if not, then there will be one really nice one with scraps. I did not have a gift card for these. *shrug*.

The next stop was online at Connecting Threads. By adding some money to the gift coupon this kit jumped into the virtual shopping cart.

I significantly added to the stash in the last several weeks. There is still one more certificate to go and that will get used next week when the shop is having their anniversary sale.

I bought FABRIC!!

This happens to be the first fabric that I have purchased (in any sizable quantity) since fall 2009. Yes, you read that right. It has been almost a year of a fabric diet. I have been shopping the stash, doncha know. But yesterday, ah, yesterday. I went to The Rocky Mountain Quilt Festival on both Friday and Saturday.

Friday I test drove all the long and mid arm machines that I could. What fun! I know what I want and now need to start saving pennies and dollars. I also scoped out some booths for a re-visit. I did buy 1 yard each of these three Robert Kaufman fabrics:

Then on Saturday I bought this kit: Pieceful Garden by Mary Sorensen. Pretty cool, huh?

And then the icing on the cake was the discovery of this fabric: Prayer Flag by April Cornell on the Fat Quarter Shop's web site. I had a gift certificate (thanks Suzan!), added a bit of $$$ and was able to buy 6 yards of this luscious fabric.

I did my bit for the economy this week end. Now I need to get busy sewing.

Rainy Weekend Stuff

iStockPhoto

We've had a storm front stalled over the area for 3 days. Rain in the lower elevations and snow (SNOW!) in the mountains. Staying indoors resulted in lots of prep work:

• Made up two kits of this pattern from the Moda Bake Shop. As luck would have it I have twenty-four 30's reproduction FQ given to me so I was able to cut out 2 kits and I hope there is enough left for a pieced binding. Isn't that just the cutest pattern? Love the prairie points.
• EQ7 Upgrade arrived on Friday and got installed. I'm sad because there's been no time to play with it.
• Finished up another applique block in the Hugs and Kisses BOM but need to take a photo. But I am still two blocks behind and did not get any more prepped.
• While I was cutting kits, I cut two more for donation baby quilts using some panels.
• And then remembered two more panels in the stash and dug them out. I cut one more kit this morning from one panel and the other panel went into the garage sale items. It was of a rainbow trout that could be either made into a fish shaped pillow or appliqued onto something else.

Dry Discourse

Several years ago, a study by the Lotion Industry stated that the northern Colorado/southern Wyoming area was the itchiest place in the US. I believe it because of the amount of body lotion used in this household.

But that is not what I came to talk to you about. I came to discuss laundry. That mundane task that happens every week or so, or a least it should.

About 2 or 3 years ago, I switched to plain white vinegar from fabric softener because of the chemicals, dye and scents. I like the vinegar because it not only softens my clothes but it cleaned the gunk (technical term) from the dryer drum. Maybe too well.

Lately, I've noticed static, lots and lots of static. Static when I get out of the car and zap myself on the car door when I close it. Static when I touch the furnace thermostat at work, which, fortunately is not digital. I have had to start discharging my static electricity on metal (like file cabinets) before I sit down at the computer. I even zap CarGuy when we kiss. But the turning point was when I took freshly washed cotton quilting fabric from the dryer and all the raveled ends stood straight out from the fabric!

I went searching for an anti-static something, anything. My criteria included no spray, no chemicals, no scent. I found this product from Seventh Generation and this product from Method. I started with the Seventh Generation product and I think I'm in love. So far everything that I've pulled from the dryer is STATIC FREE!! Woot! Woot! When this box of dryer sheets is gone, I'll start on the ones from Method.

Sidebar: the bagger at Whole Foods Market asked me if I was having a dryer sheet emergency, which I found extremely funny. I told him my story in "four part harmony" and we both were laughing so hard we had others laughing just because we were laughing.

Update later the same day: I just finished doing a burn test on some of that "cotton quilting fabric" and it was just as I suspected -- there were some poly/cottons in the batch of free fabric.

Thank You Gift

Quilting Bloggers are so special and are really nice people. Look what came in the mail from Nancy, Near Philadelpia! What a sweet and beautiful thank you gift. My thanks to you Nancy!

Honestly, I was not planning to buy

...but it was a fiber related yard sale. I actually showed remarkable restraint. Only 20 fat quarters. (Amy, do you have that cat fabric on the top, it is an Alexander Henry?) I had only planned on picking up some acrylic yarn (if there was some) for Project Linus afghans. That I got. I thought the white in the bag on the right was acrylic until I got it home and realized there were 5 skeins of Lamb's Pride Worsted. The real score was the blue/purple that you can barely see: 12 skeins of Lamb's Pride Bulky SuperWash. After a bit of research I found that that yarn was originally $120 -- I got it for $30. O yum. Somebody stop me.

Fourth Blogiversary -- a giveaway.

It is The Quilter's 4th Blogiversary. Four years, can you believe it? This blog was started mainly to have a place to record  thoughts and actions about quilting. But it has morphed into something much more than an online journal. The family keeps up with me through this blog (Hi, y'all!), new work and old is posted not only in quilting but other fibery goodness, plus, occasionally, it is a wonderful place to release a bit of steam. Always one to keep a journal, I have found this blogging format excellent: it is easier to search than a hard copy book. ☺ It is also a good way to track progress on a project, too.

I have met a lot of wonderful new friends here too. Why, if it weren't for this blog I wouldn't have met YOU! I want to thank each and every one of you for taking time out from your day to visit and chat. And to thank you, I am having a giveaway! There is one qualifier to this giveaway: you need to have a viable email address and blog. If I can't respond to your comment, then you will not be in the drawing. Leave a comment on this post and you are in! The drawing closes Oct 25 at 4:00PM Mountain Daylight Savings Time. SO HURRY & COMMENT! Tell your friends! I will close the comment link at that time and do a random number generation for the winner.

Want to know what is in the drawing? I'm so excited about this for you, I could spit!

• Four fat quarters of Kaffe Fassett shot cotton
• Four fat quarters of Kaffe Fassett woven stripes
• One yard (that's four fat quarters if you divide it up) of an older Kaffe Fassett print that just so happens to co-ordinate with the other 

Do you see a theme here?

So there you go! Good luck and remember, it is the luck of the draw.

I Won Fibery Goodness

I won a fiber giveaway from Kelli. Ah, the beauty of these! The FQ bundle is from City Quilter in NY and is mainly architectural with one FQ of apples thrown in. Love it. I am seeing a city skyline from this, maybe. And the hand painted yarn -- it is beautiful and will become a pair of socks. I have never worked with the other which is Make Make and is 90% wool, 10% mohair. Each ball is 25g and I haven't figured out what to makemake yet. Included in the box from Kelli were a jar each of homemade apple butter and spiced oranges and a precious angel bookmark.

Thanks, Kelli, for a very special giveaway.

Bubblegum Pink and Nile Green

I spent some time yesterday picking apart the pink and green border strips that I received for my labor in this post. Then last night the pink was put to soak in a weak solution of Oxyclean. The same will happen for the green today. I pondered how to use this fabric as the hand stitching was removed. The quilt pictured in this post just using these two fabrics plus muslin is a very good solution. Why? Because the pink and green fabrics are very loosely woven and will need a foundation. The diamond blocks in the photo in this post are made on a foundation. Pink and green -- Bubblegum Pink and Nile Green. What a combo!

Working for Fabric

Saturday was spent in a fabric kind of way.

MagicLady rescued this quilt top from an uncertain future. This poor quilt top was made sometime in the first quarter of the 20th century. We think it was made by two different quilters: the diamonds by an experienced quilter and the rest of the top by another, less experienced quilter. The top did not have a chance as a quilt because there was no way it was EVER going to lay flat: all 9 blocks looked like this one. It was not going to 'quilt out'.

It is interesting that the black thread used to piece the sashing and borders and was as thick as modern day carpet thread, did not show through on the top. This thread is one of the items that helped us date the top. Like many scrap quilts the fabric spanned decades. Some of the fabrics in the stars were from the 19th century, some were flannels, some were shirting fabrics. The pink and green were probably from the 20th century around 1930 and both are a very loose weave.

MagicLady knew that it needed to be totally taken apart to be able to use the 45 degree diamonds. A formidable task for one person so I volunteered to help. Saturday we sat on her living room floor unstitching. Sort of a reverse sewing bee. After seeing this pattern, she wanted to put the diamond portions of the stars from the quilt top into that setting. In keeping with the spirit of the quilt, she is going to do it piecing and quilting by hand.

We had a little extra help. Elvis Sweetie Pie, our official inspector, did not care for the star that was tossed onto him.

O! and the title of this post? I received ALL the pink and green fabric as a thank you for my help. Psst, all photos were taken with my cell phone. Not bad, huh?

Gift Certificate

I won a gift certificate at Alycia's blog for suggesting an online name for her hubby (WranglerMan). The gift certificate was from Suzanne's Knots & Bolts.

The booty arrived within several days. It is a wonderful assortment of 13 fat quarters, a baker's dozen, if you will. And the yarn is one I have never tried before called ZigZag. My guys like dull colors and this will make a nice pair of socks for TheKid. There is an off chance that he will actually wear them. CarGuy wouldn't wear them, so I don't knit him any. Me, I like color and in socks the wilder they are the better I like them.

The fat quarter stack stack is eye candy that feeds my soul.