Friday Fury

Yesterday flew by, I quilted two baby quilts for a customer and continued to work on my Maple Leaf quilt.  I have made some progress, but I hope to make even more today.  I switched places with two pairs of leaves in the layout because the actual blocks were too close in value.  The arrangement looks much better.  I found a good background fabric and got the setting triangles all cut.  I have the blocks sewn together in rows, today I hope to sew the rows together.    I need to get another customer quilt on the longarm, and gosh I guess I better do the grocery shopping too. 

I had a brainstorm over the border, but won't say too much about it, I have to try out my idea and see if it works. 

My maple leaf design

I did this design in EQ6, a software program for quilters. I am anxious to see what it really turns out like.  The setting triangles and border will look different because I don't have that exact print, but everything else is pretty close.

And we have a finish!

Scrappy Trip Around the World

I finished the binding last night watching TV, glad to have another one finished.   It is worth mentioning again that the pattern is from Bonnie Hunter's website, click here for all of her wonderful free patterns.   And now on to the Maple leaves.

Getting close to a finish

I'm getting closer to finishing the Scrappy Trip Around the World.  Here it is on the longarm.  I'm hoping to get the binding on and finished sometime tomorrow.

Leader and Ender project

   

Leaders and Enders project

Here is a peek at the Leaders and Enders project that I have been working on. It is 1/4th of the quilt center, so I have 3 more quarters to go. Then it will have a couple of borders.

Is it Tuesday...already?

Don't know where the time has gone!  I spent the weekend working on my scrappy trip around the world.  I have the center of the quilt finished, and the border fabrics prepared and ready to get sewn on today.  But today and Thursday are my busy days at the Y, so I try to fit in the quilt work when I can.  I hope to have a picture of the flimsy (unquilted top) later today. 

Remember I was telling your about the leaders and enders I was working on?  Well I got a pile of those pairs completed and went to my EQ6 and designed a pattern to use them in.  I just named it Scrap Bin.  I did a practice block, and I'm not sure about how it's going to turn out, so if i have time I may get a few more of those blocks done and see how several look together.  And I have a customer quilt to start.  I guess I'd better get going then.

The design wall

Leaders and Enders

I pieced these 3.5" squares from my scrap bin along  with and while I was doing the blocks.  If you want to know more about leaders and enders from Bonnie Hunter, go to Quiltville  and scroll way down along the right hand side where you will see "Leaders and Enders".  Learn how to do two projects at once!

Design wall
Quilt in progress

Yesterday I worked on piecing the blocks between errands.  I completed all 24 blocks and have them on the design wall to arrange.  Not as far along as I would have liked, but still made progress compared to this time yesterday.

Lookie; a gift...of FABRIC!!!!(giddy with delight)

This fabric arrived in the mail from my sister-in-law in San Diego.  On one of her trips she found this and thought of me.  We have 5 cats, and although they are not allowed in my studio with the longarm machine, or customer quilts, they are everywhere else in the house.  So it fit me perfect!

Isn't it cute?  She issued me a challenge to come up with a neat idea to use it.  Hummm...my first thought was a new curtain for my studio door, but I'm going to think on it some more.  3 yards worth, could do a lot with that.

Scrappy Trip Around The World

Okay the decision has been made, with the help of a few members of the Stashbuster group.  Since most of the blocks were already finished, I know I can complete the top in a timely manner.  So let's get to work!

Which UFO to finish next?

A UFO in the quilting world is an unfinished object.  I have a couple plastic bins full of them, most quilters have at least a few projects unfinished.   I try to pick out a few to concentrate on, pick one and then finish it before I start the next one. 

The maple leaf blocks I've had around for nearly 5 years, so age wise, this one deserves to be finished.  It needs sashing and posts, and a border.  If I get going on it now, I might get it done before our leaves start to fall.

These blocks above are from a pattern called Scrappy Trip Around the World.  The pattern is designed by Bonnie Hunter of Quiltville.  I truly love scrappy quilts, the more cluttered the better.  This one has been sitting only about 2 years, but most of the blocks are finished.  Just a few more to finish up and I can put borders on.

 This last choice is a pattern from a book I bought in Alaska, along with the fabric at a store called Northern Threads in Fairbanks.  It has been aging as well.  The book is called Woodroses in Winter and the pattern is called Morning Frost.  Sherry K. Falls is the designer and her website is called This & That.  Check it out!  Since my son and his wife live in Fairbanks this one is dear to my heart.  It deserves to be finished as well.

So the question is, which one should I pick to finish first.  Hummmm, may have to sleep on that one.

Book time this afternoon

Yup, I will have earned it.  I did an hour on the treadmill, plus all my circuit training.  I am starting a customer's quilt any minute now, and around 2pm I will be putting my feet up and reading this book.Ahhhh!

Tuesday Workout

Tuesdays and Thursdays are my busy days at the YMCA.  I have water aerobics early in the morning and then stretch yoga mid morning.  In between that and after lunch I worked in my studio.  Tomorrow I have circuit training and treadmill.  Ugh!

Something good arrived in today's mail!

Pajama Quilter Rethreaded!  I like the freehand machine quilting that Dawn Ramirez does.  I have her  DVD and Workbook, Pajama Quilter Reloaded, so I knew that I'd like her new DVD and Workbook.  If you'd like a copy click here to go to her website for ordering.

I worked on a customer quilt today and have another on the machine ready for me tomorrow morning. 

Quilting over the weekend

I managed to finish a quilt I'd started oh so long ago, which I call Patriotic Bricks and Stepping Stones.  The pattern is free from http://www.quiltville.com/.  This quilt will be donated to a good cause but I will keep it hanging in my studio for a bit.

The rest of the day is dedicated to working on customer quilts, of which I am blessed to have many of.

Juggling my work plus a new healthy lifestyle is a challenge but so far I'm hanging in there.

Still new at this

I don't know what happened to my pictures that I posted yesterday but they didn't come out right.  Sent a question to the help people but haven't heard yet what I did wrong. 

Anyway yesterday I did finish the Patriotic Bricks and Stepping Stones quilt and I plan to quilt it today.  I hope to report in later today with a picture of my progress. 

Hitting the Trail

I missed my workout yesterday, so this morning DH and I headed to the trail. We did about 2.5 miles and the walk was really nice, hot, but very pretty.

The trail leads to Mobile Bay

Water aerobics cancelled today, a mixed blessing

Even though the Y's pool is indoors our class was cancelled today because of lightning.  I was up at 4am, so I should be able to accomplish my goals for the day given the extra time. 

• Finish a customer's quilt
• Make some phone calls to customers
• Clean studio, this could take some time
• Make a grocery list and shop
• Work on Patriotic Bricks and Stepping Stones borders
• What's for dinner?  hummmm

Up at the crack of dawn

I awoke at 4:50am and had to hurry to make my water aerobics class which starts at 5:45am!  Made it in time, enjoyed class and came home to shower and work on a customer's quilt before it's off to yoga class.  I have been trying to eat better, exercise more and work on stress management.  The weight is coming off slowly, but the rest is going well.  Love that yoga class.

I did a silly thing the other day and ordered a book that I already had!  ugh!  Good thing Amazon will take returns.  I love the Woods Cop Series by Joseph Heywood.  My son got me hooked on the series.  I forgot that I had ordered his latest book in April, forgot it under a stack of other books.  Must  have been a senior moment! 

This week's goal

I've been working on a patriotic version of a quilt by Bonnie Hunter called Bricks and Stepping Stones, from Bonnie Hunter's  Quiltville.  This has been a UFO of mine for a couple years now, and thanks to Stashbuster's Yahoo group I've been able to whittle away on my stack.  This particular quilt came about after I'd made one other one almost like it for Quilts of Valor.  I had cut so many blue bricks that I had enough for this second quilt. 

As you can see I have the center of the quilt finished.  I will do a red inner border and an outer border with a patriotic theme print.  If I can fit it in amongst my customer's quilts I may have it quilted and bound by the end of this coming weekend.

First Post

My first post, simple and short.