Custom Orders

I make quilts because I like the pattern or color. If you take a liking to what I make, then by all means, I'll let you have/purchase it. But making a custom order on something you like or want is a different story. We have a cousin who is expecting another grandbaby and wants something whimsical made. She hasn't defined what exactly and I'm supposed to guess. And then maybe I make something and she doesn't like it?

We're going to Elm Creek this morning to see what they have. I'm going to shoot her pictures and see if she will respond to me in something she may want me to make. The nice thing about that is that if it's a pattern I'd rather not make, I'll not send her a pic of it. HA!

What did I do yesterday? I pressed and prepped the fabric for the Quilt Curve Studio Quilt-Along and then set that aside for a bit. I did a Love Letter block and then started to work a cowboy boot before Jim came home.

After lunch I long armed for a while on the Fireworks block and then resumed working the quilt-along top. When I came out of the studio at nearly 8:00 I had a top!

Ready for marking

All of these blocks need to be marked with a 2" grid and since I chose to do both lights and darks, I'll have to use several marking tools. 

Date Day

Jim and I still try to date. Sometimes it's nothing more than getting groceries and then a mini mixer after at Culvers. We had a hot day on Thursday when we went to get groceries and so Culvers was out. Last night he took me to the Country Corner (I think that's its name) and we got an ice cream there. It was very yummy!

Here's some more quilting going into Iilas quilt...

Those echos take a long time to work

Each of the echo's are a start and a stop so they take a while to get in there but they are so worth it. The customer who stopped by yesterday was in la-la land admiring them. 

After working all day and going to the ice cream parlor afterwards we came home and I did a Love Letter block. I was also able to get in another pinwheel. From there I did this cowboy boot...

Out in the desert

I was able to get the binding finished on the puppy quilt for Paul...

Woof!

Once of my fellow long armers located in Canada is doing a block-by-block quilt along over the next 19 weeks. Sam and I quilt nearly identically and she's a relatively new find in my long arm world. She's basing this quilt-along using grids with the blocks and solid fabrics as her background. Guess what I pulled last night?

Angela Walters has a quilt-along she's hosting also starting in July. I have to purchase the panel to play along but I just don't have the money right now to do that. Which is unfortunate because this one is a feather-featured quilt along and if you know me at all you know I love to do feathers!

Jim is off to do some volunteer work at the food bank this morning. He was able to get my bell polished yesterday while he was in town. Doesn't it look marvelous?

I'll be playing ALL DAY in the studio. First, I'll be making those 12 1/2" blocks out of those solids I pulled. I'm going to do some long arming on DW on the Fireworks top, make a Love Letter block, do a cowboy boot and then start piecing the quilt-along blocks together. 

I won't be able to get that on the frame for a while, but each block needs to be pre-marked and that takes some time so I'll be ready in a few weeks when I can jump in and catch up with Sam on the quilt-along. 

Now We Settle In to 2024

Since we are now officially over the holidays it's time to settle in for the winter. I love winter. I know. I'm weird. But I don't feel guilty not out working in the yard or around the outside of the house. I love gray, overcast days where I can turn on all the lights in the studio, turn the volume up on the music, and lose myself in the long arming process.

I hope to get the bulk of Anns quilt done today; still lots to do on it. 

I did some "self" sewing yesterday. Stitchin' Heaven from Quitville, TX had an all-day sew along via YouTube and I participated with over 1500 others around the world. What a great time! Lots of laughs, give-aways, and even two techniques I knew nothing about. Here are the first two blocks I completed at the end of the five hour cutting and sewing marathon...

Blocks A and B

These are all the blocks in the quilt, but the setting is beautiful and creates a nice pattern. I'll chip away at building the block pieces (along with Metro Rings) over the next few weeks so I can take them to retreat to finish there with larger design walls available. 

The house is back to normal now. All the decorations are down, the tree is being recycled today, and the furniture is back in its place. Jim still has to get the outside stuff put away, but for the most part, we are ready for 2024. With a little luck, our lake will return this year, and that in of itself, is starting the year on a high note. 

Small Project Sunday

I thought the quilt top I was making for the Amanda Murphy quilt-along would be a quick and easy top to make. I should have known, when I was cutting 7 1/2" squares, that while simple in construction, the time to piece would be long. And...there are a lot of "bonus" HST's I'm making along the way to make another quilt. 

Here's the pattern I'm working on...

The upper right hand corner is the pattern

I have selected slightly different fabric to go into this (since this pattern was over six months old, those exact fabrics are hard to come by now). 

I have all but the middle row constructed and will plug away at it throughout the week after long arm time. Since Jim is back home now, it's easier to work on piecing while he's here. Life interrupts the long arming and, getting out of my zen place on the big machines, gets frustrating to me. So piecing is the next option.

And who out there likes this daylight savings thing? I know it has messed me and the girls up.

Sooooo SSSLLLOOOWWW

I worked, off and on yesterday afternoon, on these flying geese units. OMG! They take a long time to make.

Nova Star geese units

It took the better part of the afternoon and early evening to complete just 10 of these. I'll have to chip away at them throughout the week. AND, these aren't the only flying geese units in the blocks. There is another set further into the block so there will be another single 168 units to make after these  double 168 units. Isn't the quilt like just so darn drama filled. LOL!

The new studio set up is working out well so far. We put the iron chord behind the table and put a rug over the chord running across the floor so I won't trip over it...which I'm notorious for doing. I'm going to long arm this morning and we'll see what happens over there and how that worked out in the move. 

After a Little Mini Vacation

It's back into the studio I go. I looked forward to getting away for a few days, but it seems after the first day away, I'm already longing to get back into the thread, needles, and designs. 

This was an "emergency" quilt that came in yesterday. The customer called when we were on Mackinaw Island and said she had a wedding this weekend (the call came in on Monday). 

Jill's Chickens

Not only did it need to be quilted, but bound as well. While fighting a near-migraine headache, I was able to complete the quilt and can call the customer this morning to let her know it's completed. 

After we returned on Tuesday evening, Katie sent a text about a quilt-along. Sometimes these quilt-alongs get rather tedious and supply lacking on my part, so I choose to pass. This one, however, looks pretty cool. It's called the Nova Star. Here is my first test block after working through the pattern Tuesday night and yesterday morning (while waiting for said quilt top above to arrive).

Nova Star Test Block

I plan on doing this with a fat quarter bundle I have in my stash and will only need to add about 14 more to round it out. Shopping at Pieces tomorrow will definitely be on my radar. 

My new friends from the Quirky Quilters Quilt Guild in Oscoda recommended we take the time to visit Paradise, Michigan to a quilt shop up there. We were supposed to take a road trip up earlier this month (the guild members and me), but life got in the way of our plans. 

Jim and I did visit there, but purchased nothing. However, the shop in Sault Ste. Marie (owner Chris) and Indian River (owner Barbara) were worth the trip entirely. Planning on going back to both of them in the future! Purchased some backs and a new chunk of fabric for the pressing table, which we promptly put on yesterday. 

Have another customer quilt to load this morning and another waiting to get on the frame today. I may start pulling more fabrics from my stash (or trying to anyway) for the Quilt-Along after working on Mickey's quilt today.  

 

Good Discussions

Our lake has been lowered because of the flooding that occurred two months ago. We have a 41 foot "beach" now and a lot of baby trees occupying the new situation. Not to mention weeds and other undesirable things growing. After talking to our township supervisor for 45 minutes this morning, learned that we are indeed, supposed to get our lake back. Sometime. But that's good news that was worth the extra time.

Meanwhile, I'm behind schedule, but here's what happened yesterday. 

Mickey's Sunbonnet Sues

I have half of Mickey's quilt completed. Hopefully I'll get that finished today. I worked on my scrappy stars for one of the new tops I'm constructing, and then moved along to working on this new mask.

Go Green! Go White!

It doesn't look like the masks are going away anytime soon, so I made one that really counts.

After the mask, I started drafting the paper piece templates for the next row in the Sugaridoo quilt along. Each row is different and this one is foundation paper piecing. 

I've noticed pictures haven't been as forthcoming as per the usual. Not sure why? Maybe because life seems to be going by faster than normal. I have plenty of things I should be showing and need to get better about snapping my progress on "film". 

Got Long Arming?

Another six hours (or more) on DW yesterday.

Negative Space

The quilt top has this negative space over the barn. After auditioning several motifs, the decision was made to echo around the flowers for consistency within the quilt itself. This is the result.

Prior to long arming though these two blocks were completed. These are from the Leah Day Friendship Quilt-Along.

Leah Day Friendship Quilt-Along #6

Notice the ugly grass outside the window? We still don't have spring-like weather today.

Mom is coming by later today, so long arming will commence this morning until she arrives. I'm hoping the cone of thread I'm using holds out. It's starting to look very thin up there and it's a concern as to whether or not it'll make it through this entire top.

Giving

While I am still an active member of the Across the Square quilt guild, I very seldom attend any more meetings. The proximity of my house to where the meetings are held since our move is roughly 120 miles; or two hours-one way. My membership will expire on December 31, but I am still a member.

Everybody should have a merry holiday and even after the holiday's, have a decent life. I've decided to help out in any way I can for those folks who aren't so fortunate. The ASQ guild does a lot of charity work for the local battered spouse/children's shelter and we typically make quilts for them throughout the year.

But the member who used to cut and then promote the kits to assemble a top for our SIREN chapter has moved to Arizona. Nobody has really taken up the cause since her departure over a year ago. I think a mass assembly of tops took place sometime this fall to make up for our latency. I said I would quilt a few of them for the cause and was given four.

This is the first one I started with. I finished it this morning and  here is a close-up of some of the quilting put into it.

I think just because you have been given a crappy hand in your current life situation you deserve something somebody actually took some time in creating. This particular top was pieced very nicely and I took the time to put some nice detail in the quilting.

The next top is already loaded and I have already started quilting it. It's a busier top then this first one, so putting a lot of detail into the quilting will only get lost in the fabric. Therefore, I'm using a lot of straight lines in the blocks and on the borders to create connectivity in the quilt as a whole.

I received my Build-a-Block from 'Quilting is my Therapy' (Angela Walters) in the mail today. It's like a mini Christmas when I get quilting stuff in the mail. I've already built the block and will look forward to the next block next month.

I'm cruising along in the Vintage Christmas Quilt-Along. Katie and I are pretty much at the same place, and despite our nutty schedules lately, we are keeping up with the group.

Why did YouTube delete all my subscriptions on my iMac? They still exist on my iPad, but after we returned from Missouri, it seems the machine got hungry while we were gone and ate them all.