Quilting In South Carolina

A Day Of Love!

2012-02-14T06:04:00.002-05:00

Happy Valentine's Day

Off to work quickly but wanted to wish everyone a Happy Valentine's Day today. Make sure you take time to tell those you love how much they mean to you. I don't think we should need a special day to do that. I try to make sure those I love hear it often.

My goal for the next few days is to get a border put onto the patriotic quilt, get the backing together and the quilt into the frame by Friday.

I would love to get this done and checked off my list by this weekend, binding, label and all!

Happy Quilting,
Shelia

Bee Night Fun

2012-02-12T08:24:00.000-05:00

Friday night is Bee night and we always have a lot of fun. Roger insisted that I go this past Friday as it has been a VERY stressful week and he knew that I would feel better after spending some time with the girls. He was right.

We started off at the Ghenghis Grill in Greenville. It was packed but we found room to settle in and have some fun and great food. We each were taken to the line of ingredients and given a quick overview by our server. Then we each proceeded to fill our bowl with raw ingredients that would be later cooked and returned to us to enjoy. Below is my bowl that I turned into be cooked. I had sliced marinated beef, onions, zucchini, squash, mushrooms, broccoli and seasonings. After your ingredients you chose your sauce. I thought mongolian BBQ sauce would be good and I asked the girl behind the counter if it was hot......to which this chick said no. Well let me tell you this chick doesn't do well with hot stuff and I am really a wimp with hot food......AND THIS SAUCE WAS HOT,HOT,HOT!! I opted for fried rice to go with my dish.

When you are done with all of your choices you are given a number and your bowl gets turned over to the cooks.

I loved the cooking surface. They had each dish divided with wooden planks.....kinda looks like a quilting pattern, dresden plate like.....hummmm

Someone at our table ordered an appetizer of edamame. They were sauteed in olive oil and sea salt. Tasty.

This is my bowl that I received back from the cooks. Yum.....BUT HOT! My poor mother got pretty much the same thing that I got so her mouth was also on fire.

To cool off our mouths mom and I ordered the brownie to share....which came with ice cream......thank goodness for ice cream. I brought the leftovers home for Roger. I made sure to label it "hot stuff".

After dinner we were off to Gina's for some bee fun. I am working on my UFO cathedral window project as my take along. I almost completed 2 full panels to add to the mother ship. A lot of good quilting time.

Suzanne was quilting on her mystery quilt for the Foothills Piecemakers quild, Gina was working on a redwork piece, Mom was making yo yo's for a project, Sue was working on her take along project and Susan was hand quilting on a project from QSC english paper piecing wall hanging she made last year.

Happy Quilting,

Shelia

My Grand Parents Place

2012-02-10T15:54:00.000-05:00

I am in the process of helping my dad and his siblings decide what to do with the family homestead. We are going to sell the place and hopefully one of my cousins will be able to purchase the homestead. I met with an appraiser yesterday to begin the process. While he was taking pictures and measurements I was reminded of all of the wonderful times I had there as a child.

The Adams homestead.

Somehow it just doesn't seem the same now. An empty shell of the happiness that once was there. There are three large old pecan trees on the property and they have always put out tons of pecans.....many were still on the ground now. There used to be a muscadine vine behind this pecan tree in the back but was cut down about ten years ago. I can remember some awesome muscadine jelly granny Lena used to make. There was also a peach tree that had to be removed due to storm damage. I used to get in trouble for climbing up the tree to get to those wonderful juicy peaches. I still love peaches!

The back of the property for the past 72 years has been a wonderful garden spot. This is the first time in my lifetime that there is not a garden being grown there. Guess I never thought I would see grass growing over the garden my papa worked so hard to tend. Times change.......and we move on. It is hard for my mind to comprehend that I am now one of the "older" members of the family. (now that will make you take a step backwards!)

Hopefully next week we will have the process moving forward and get this completed and off of my list of items to do.

Off to see my bee girls tonight. Need a little unwinding time. We are meeting at the Genghis Grill http://www.genghisgrill.com/ here in Greenville to eat prior to going to Gina's for bee. I've never been to a mongolian grill before so I think that it will be fun. I'm off to pick mom up before heading over to the grill. Maybe I can post some pictures later. Hope all of the other girls are able to come tonight.

Happy Quilting,
Shelia

Catching Up

2012-02-09T07:41:00.000-05:00

It's been a busy and stressful week this week. Working, going to Neurosurgeon myself, working.......family......yada yada yada.....makes for a major headache and lots of stress.
When I came home last night my wonderful husband had grilled steaks for supper and had me a wonderful salad ready....he and Whiskers (the cat) had also picked me some camelia's from my bushes and had them on the table........those boys sure know how to make a lady smile.

Such a blessed woman! My camelia's bloom 4 or 5 times a year and they are always beautiful. I have the red ones on one end of our house and pink on the other end. I've enjoyed them even when there is ice outside.....they just keep on blooming. Amazing!

I decided to put my yellow braid quilt out on the sun porch to bring in a little sunshine right now.......I just noticed when I took the picture that I forgot to take down the fall quilt hanging over the sofa.

Hope I can do some piecing today.
Happy Quilting,
Shelia

Wonderful Neighbors

2012-02-05T13:06:00.000-05:00

Roger and I are so lucky to have wonderful neighbors all around us. Yesterday Roger mounted a trailer tire for our neighbor Mark while Mark worked in the garage to fix something else on the trailer. Just two guys doing guy stuff.....kinda like us girls quilting together.

Later in the evening Roger sent me a picture at work of something Mark brought over for us......

A dozen fresh eggs from Mark & Amy's chickens.....Yum, Yum. Fresh eggs what an awesome gift. They have chickens in their back yard and he says they get about 7 or 8 eggs a day now.........so they shared with us.

Off to work again today........got to earn some extra for all the upcoming dental work.......So I'll be back home around 3:30 a.m.........sure hope it is a good night that goes by fast. Tomorrow I see the neurosurgeon and dad has a cardiologist appointment so it will be a busy day of running from doctor to doctor.

Maybe tomorrow evening I'll be able get some stitches into some fabric. Until then....

Happy Quilting,
Shelia

New Quilting Tool

2012-02-04T09:24:00.001-05:00

Last night on the way home from checking on dad we stopped off quickly at Hancock Fabrics. I purchased my newest quilting tool......

New Fiskars Rag Quilt Snips. Remember my new leader-ender project is a Halloween rag quilt. These will be used to snip the seam allowances so they will rag when the quilt is washed.

Suzanne taught us to clip close to the seam but making sure that we don't clip the seam itself. This should turn out to be a cute quilt when finished. Wonder how long it will take as a leader-ender project to get this done???

Off to work again, hope you can quilt some today. My bee girls are off to our "gathering of the quilters". It's an annual quilt day where quilters from quilds in the upstate get together for demo's and quilting fun. I know they will have an awesome day.

Happy quilting,
Shelia

UFO Busting Tip #12

2012-02-03T14:33:00.002-05:00

Today is the last of the 12 UFO busting tips from Pat Sloan. She is great at helping us find inspiration to get our projects completed.

UFO Busting Tip #12- "Have You Noticed"

Have you noticed most of the UFO's you have are for you?

Well my last tip is not earth shattering, but it does require you to make a commitment.

A commitment to yourself to add YOU to the list of people who needs a quilt.

Many of us work best on a deadline.. you know...
"The baby just arrived.. 4 weeks early!"
"Guess what.. we just flew to Vegas and got married!"
"Can you do a quilt for our charity, which is next week?"

We quilters are enormously generous with our time. As my one friend said, we may not want to get rid of our fabric, but we'd be HAPPY to make you a quilt with it!

And why is that?
It's because Quilting,

making things,

and sharing what we have made feeds our soul.

It makes us whole, it gives us immense joy, and it is our hobby!

So... back to the first question..

Why ARE there so many UFOs for YOU?

*** Your Assignment ***

Pick the top THREE projects that you want to finish for you (yes I like lists and I like THREE!)
Set a deadline of when they need to be done.
Do NOT move this deadline.
Do NOT take on other work that makes you MISS this deadline.
Now get the first of these 3 projects OUT where you CAN work on it. Don't leave it in a box under the bed in the spare room. Put it front and center in your workspace
Now work to finish something for YOU!

I love Pat's advise here. I am always doing for others and putting off doing for me. So here are my top three projects FOR ME to complete:

My Cathedral Window Quilt- I am currently working diligently on this UFO to get it completed. You remember from a previous tip that I had cut all of the blocks and was sewing, turning and pressing them. I am now sewing together sections to insert windows into. My goal is to have this completed by August 1, 2012.
My second "for me" project is my birthday memory quilt. My goal to have this completed is October 1, 2012.
The third "for me" project is my Kaleidoscope quilt. My goal to have this completed is April 15, 2012.

Looks like I have a lot of work ahead of me......FOR ME!

Now if I could just get rid of this headache things would be much easier to work on. I am really getting "OVER" this headache crap. I see neurosurgeon on Monday afternoon and hopefully she will be able to give me some helpful information.

On another note: Dad back in ER this morning for possible DVT in leg. Thankfully no clot, but progressing restless leg syndrome. He is having such a difficult year and I hate that he is having to go through all of this. Got to get him on a better path. Mom is exhausted and trying to keep herself going also. I'm making them a pot of chicken and dumplings to take down for supper tonight. They always help me feel better. Then hopefully tonight I can sew a few stitches....

Happy Quilting,

Shelia

Cold And Rainy Today--It's Groundhog Day!

2012-02-02T09:14:00.000-05:00

"At 7:25 a.m. this morning, amidst mostly cloudy skies, and temperatures in the low 30's Groundhog Phil saw his shadow in the little town of Punxsutawney, Pa." Washington Post.

So to us that means that we are going to have 6 more weeks of winter weather. It's not really been a bad winter here in South Carolina so far........hopefully it will remain mild.

Off to work today and working till midnight so no quilting for me today.

Hope you can find some time on this dreary rainy day to sew some stitches into one of your UFO's.

Happy Quilting,
Shelia

UFO Busting Tip #11

2012-02-01T11:14:00.000-05:00

I am really getting excited about the classes we will be taking from Pat March 10th & 11th. The Saturday class is her
"Wild and Free" - create quilts with personality

The class is a 6 hour class. Pat's description of the class is:
Learn Pat's tricks to "punch up" your applique quilt backgrounds. No more neutral tan or beige backings. Bring on the Color and the pattern to make your quilts sing! Pat's classic and popular "Mama's Garden" is the project quilt. Then we will spend the day making the most spectacular background for your applique.
Sounds like a wonderful class to me. I really am looking for the inspiration to break out of having the same background for every applique section. This should really help me break an old habit.

The second class which is also 6 hours will be on Sunday afternoon.
"The Magic of EASY Machine Appliqué" - draw, cut, machine stitch, so easy anyone can do it!

Pat's description of the class is:

Fast, Fun and you learn ALL of Pat's tips for making soft fusible appliqué! In class you will create a sample to test your stitching. She walks you through each step of the appliqué process, from cutting to getting a great size blanket stitch on your machine. For your project select "Little Blue Bird" or your "Wild and Free" project (if your group is having both workshops).
I am looking forward to learning Pat's applique technique. You can go to Pat's website and learn about all of the workshops she offers. Maybe you can get her to some to your guild soon. www.patsloan.com

Now back to the UFO busting tips we've learned from Pat.
UFO busting tip #11-Take What You've Got And Go

We all have them.

That set of blocks that never got increased enough for a quilt.
A single block or two from a workshop
a set of swap blocks that came 'out' of the swap due to color (or something OTHER reason)
or a group of blocks that you decided you just didn't like the fabric choices enough to move on.

You may even have a set of Dear Janes, or maybe just FOUR Baltimore Album blocks instead of 16, or how about that BOM project that you lost enthusiasum over?

There are plenty of opportunities for these blocks!
Option 1

Turn those small bits into other projects by looking at them with a critical eye.

Can you take the set of blocks and make a small wallhanging? Give it as a gift or use as a table topper?
How about taking blocks and making them into tote bags, or pillows?
Several blocks set side by side make awesome table runners!
Turn the blocks on point and make a LARGER quilt with fewer blocks... set with alternating fabric squares and magically an even Bigger quilt appears!
How about placemats, coasters, hot pads?

Lots of these project can be converted and called D-O-N-E and even GIFTED! Gotta love it!

If you love the blocks but don't really feel like doing the rest.. DON'T!! Permission granted. ...

((I Shelia like to interject here that there really are no Quilt Police......you can do whatever you want to do with what you have in your quilt kingdom. You are the Queen of your quilt castle! So if you decide to make a pillow out of an orphan applique or pieced block it is perfectly legal....there will be no quilt police to arrest you.)

This is a set of my blocks and bits from 2 round robins, a gift and another random bit.

I may still set them together..or I might take parts and give them homes as other smaller projects!

Option 2
Now hang in here with me.. this is really quite an awesome option! Take a group of our blocks and challenge yourself to set them in a sampler.

Really.. this can be SO FUN! Here is what you do

Find fabric that ties the blocks all together color wise.
Put them up on your design wall
Now lay them out in a pleasing manner in rows or columns (or more complicated settings but this works great)
If some blocks are too small do a sashing all around them.. get the rows or columns so the blocks are the same width or height to be sewn side by side
Pick a sashing size (or not!)
Sew the rows or columns
Border it and there you go.. a 'free' quilt of blocks you have already done

This antique quilt was done in this manner (I like to think!). It is one of my 'true' treasures.. I love what the maker did! She used random blocks... and then controlled the color. Mostly blue, gray and cream. But she has some red blocks, some lavender & Pink fabrics... along with a bit of brown.

A lot of my friends are good at putting blocks into columns and make wonderful quilts. This is a technique that I need to perfect and get somemore projects done. This will definately be one of the techniques I will use as I progress past the first six projects I have slated to complete.

Look at that triangle. I bet she was learning how to do this and had this one block

what do you think?

Oh... see that tan triangle over the black/white ticking?

It's appliqued!

*** So what can YOU do with is tip??? ***

Take a look at your UFOs in progress.
See if you can find some blocks to either re-purpose or to use in a 'sampler'

So Pat has given us some wonderful ideas here to help finish our stash of UFO's, just one more of her tips to go............Hope you are working along with us in getting your projects completed.

I'm off to work and then the dentist today (YUCK!).

Happy Quilting,

Shelia

January 31, 2012 ? Last Day Of January....Really!

2012-01-31T06:16:00.001-05:00

It is amazing how fast the time passes. It seems like yesterday that it was New Year's Eve and passing into 2012. I can say that I have gotten a good start to the year and working on my UFO's. Tomorrow we'll go over some additional tips for getting your UFO pile wittled down.

As you look over what you have accomplished in the first month of this year take time to pour over the beautiful fabric you have in your personal stash. Some of my fabric I have had pieces of since I began quilting in 1992. Some of the fabric belonged to my grandmother, clothing from my grandfather and many fabrics that I have aquired over my travels in the past 20 years. Fabric can contain beautiful memories for you..........so what is your fabric reminding you of today?

Our stash of fabric is a large investment and with cotton prices skyrocketing it makes it even more valuable to us as quilters. Using every inch of our fabric which can cost us $9-$11 per yard is essential. Scrap quilting is not only frugal, it is essential to the bottom line of most quilter's budget. Young quilters have big decisions to make when purchasing fabric to make a quilt. When it may cost $100 to purchase the required amount of fabric for a quilt. Teaching new quilters to work with scraps to create beautiful quilts is definately a way to keep them quilting without making huge investments in fabric.

The photo above is from our last quilt guild meeting when myself and my bee girls took in some scraps and orphan blocks for our quilters to partake in. The response was wonderful.
Consider having a scrap basket at your guild meeting and letting your newer quilters take home a bag of scraps to begin a new project with. You may be amazed at what beautiful quilts emerge from that pile of scraps.

Off to work now......Happy Quilting,
Shelia

Pincushions and Bobbins

2012-01-29T16:25:00.000-05:00

I don't know about you but I seem to love pincushions. I make them, I get them as gifts and I purchase them at boutiques. I have pincushions in all shapes and sizes. Obviously no one needs a ton of pincushions but I think I have them in every room of the house.....just in case I need a pin sometime...hehehe.

I have several pictures here of my pincushion collection. I never realized until today that I had a "collection" of pincushions. As you can see I wasn't kidding about all shapes and sizes. We have fruit shaped, a chicken, heart shaped, wool and even a magnetic mechanic's bowl.

The second picture with additional "collection". Aren't the owl's cute as pie. Sandy W. a guild member made these for the boutique and of course I had to buy some for gifts and these two for me. The triangle shaped one was given to me by Susan and even has a little "bee" on it. Then you have the trusty piece of wool that slips easily into your "carry project" bag.

The next picture is two wrist pincushions.

The patriotic one was given to me by my friend Suzanne, which I love to use when I am sewing at my machine.

The other one I purchased and use on the front rail of my long arm to put pins I may be using while quilting.

Now on to bobbins. Below is a picture of the candy container I got while on our trip to Hershey, PA. I enjoyed the Hershey kisses that it contained and could not bring myself to throw it away....way to cute!

So now it houses my pre-wound bobbins in a multitude of colors. I guess you could call this another kind of quilters candy.

Now do you have a "collection" of pincushions also? Would love to see pictures of your collection.
Happy Quilting,
Shelia

Bee Group Time

2012-01-28T10:13:00.002-05:00

Last night Bee was here at my house. We enjoyed some of the big pot of chili I made the day before. Yum!

Here is some of the fun we had. Gina was sewing binding on a baby quilt for a new grandson on the way. Aren't all of the cowboy fabrics cute as a button?

Suzanne had pieced a donation quilt and got it quilted last night in the longarm. Beautiful yellow, black and white fabric from Studio E Fabrics. The quilt is a donation to Pendleton Place. I loved the fabric!

Mom was piecing on her Orca Bay quilt but brought her finished braid quilt to show. Look at all those scraps of fabric made into a beautiful quilt. Her little arms were not long enough to hold up that whole quilt. She did great. She cut and pieced this one all by herself. Very proud of her.

I was slicing her Orca Bay red string blocks in half and sizing them down for the quilt. Thought I would never get that pile of pieces done. But all done. She was piecing on the 6-inch ohio star blocks. They look beautiful.

Off to work now......hope you can find some time to quilt today.

Shelia

Work Smarter......Not Harder

2012-01-27T12:27:00.000-05:00

Have you ever heard the saying....If you want a project done give it to a busy person..? We workers that are busy are always wondering why someone would ask a person who is always running to do another project....why you ask......because we will get it done! I have always got lists of things to get done in a day and always have. If you are a person who sets goals in your life you know that first you must have a goal written down. Those who write their goals down will achieve 90% more than those who don't write their goals down.

Your brian is a miraculious thing, and if you keep those wheels churning it will help you achieve your goals. If you want to reach those big goals you set you must first break them down into bite size chunks......like when someone asks you how to you eat an elephant? One bite at a time! Have just a huge goal in front of you can be disheartening......all you see is that huge thing looming over you. But if you have small parts like piecing one block or appliqueing down one cathedral window or sewing one hexi onto the piece today when you will not feel so overwhelmed. Put your final goal in front of you but keep those small parts close at hand. Before you know it you will achieve that big goal......one bite at a time.

UFO's are no different than other goals you have in life. If you make them a priority and set up small bite size chunks you will complete them. Pat Sloan reminded me of this today with her e-mail.....

Dear Shelia,

I'm asked a LOT how do I get so much done.

Here are My TOP THREE Tips for Getting More Done!

1. Always have a project out where you can get to it. Do not put everything 'away' where it takes precious time to get it out.

2. Work at least 10 minutes a day, no matter how busy you are you can find 10 min a day. While food cooks, while on the phone (head set!), waiting 'anywhere'... see #1 about having a project ready.. THAT is key

3. Have ONE goal for finishing that is manageable. Such as "I will applique one leaf today"... NOT... "I will piece this whole top tonight"... huge difference.. MANAGEABLE goals.

"Work smarter, not harder."
- Ron Carswell

You are so right Pat. My goal is 15 minutes a day on one of my projects. A couple of years ago mom and I took a Messenger Bag and Tote class at the Quilter's Of South Carolina retreat. I made this messenger purse.....which I LOVE and this tote which I have had in the closet, love it but just have not been using it. It now is in my car as my Take With You Everywhere Bag Project. I am keeping pieces of my cathedral window project and anything that needs binding etc. When I know I am going to be somewhere for a few hours I can carry this in with me and have several things to work on. I am also keeping a magazine in there to read.

Remember the pink zipper bag that I had made out of extra quilted fabric???? It is in my purse with hexi flowers I can do on the run if I have 10-15 minutes or so to work on a project.

So set those goals and give yourself the equipment you need at hand to help you meet those goals.

Happy Quilting,
Shelia

UFO Busting Tip #10

2012-01-27T02:57:00.000-05:00

I know you think I had forgotten to finish my UFO busting tips.....but no no no. I have been giving us all time to use the first few tips before moving on to new ones. I hope that you have been able to use some of the previous tips to get your projects sorted and chosen those you want to work on. I really seem to be making progress on my projects.

So on to Pat's UFO Busting Tip #10
Quick Finish Quilt

Pat says For most of my quilting life I have considered what I do to put the 3 layers of a quilt together (the quilting..and could we have NOT found another word for this.. so confusing... but I digress!)

ok.. where was I?

Oh yes... I have always considered that the quilting really enhanced the quilt and I really wanted to add that additional layer of design to the piece.

But sometimes you JUST NEED TO FINISH something...

Like a baby quilt

A Lap quilt

Even a BED quilt

So Pat is going to share her "Fast Finish" quilting. You are going to love it for things that just need to be done. See that plaid?

It's a minkee .. use any brand.. use fleece. No batting in this pile.. did you notice that?

Clamp that minkee/fleece baking to your basting table

I have owned these "Cheap-o" clamps for 100 yrs..

seriously.. 100 yrs

Just be sure you can OPEN them WIDE enough for the edge of your table

Lay the TOP on the backing right side up

No batting...

Baste in your usual manner.. I adore pins... and my kwik klip (get it here)!

Ready to quilt?

This is the grid I'm going to do

In the ditch and then an big 'x' through all the blocks

Trim the edge so we can do binding!

Don't forget Pat's tutorial on Binding done by machine (CLICK HERE to my tutorial on machine binding!)

And all done!

I am looking at a LOT of my quilts with fresh eyes...

I can do this grid quickly and the piece is soft and cuddly and

DONE!

If you can't find this type of backing at your local quilt shop Pat has an option to help, then click HERE to my partner fabric site where they have LOADS of options!

*** So what can YOU Quilt this way???

This was another great tip from Pat on getting a UFO done and out of your pile. I've never used the Minkie or just fleece as a backing before and not used batting. Guess we ARE allowed to think of a quilt in different terms. We don't always have to have 3 different layers to make a quilt.

Only a few more tips left to help us sort those projects.

Happy Quilting,

Shelia

Cooking Day

2012-01-26T10:02:00.001-05:00

Today I am spending a few hours getting some freezer meals done and packaged up to freeze. I love freezer cooking as it gives me the flexability I need with my schedule. It also gives me great tasting food that anyone can throw together in a minute for a fast meal.

I have several pots going at one time. Today I am starting out with ground beef and turkey. This first pot is going to be Chili.......YES!! Great to have on hand for these cold, rainy days we've been having lately.

This next pot is going to be spaghetti sauce. Once ready and packaged all I have to do is throw some pasta on to cook and simmer the sauce to warm....or better yet pop it into the microwave if time is really short. Mushrooms and onions sauteeing ready for the ground beef to be added.

The last pot is going to be Taco Meat. I love to get this ready and packaged. Then I have flexability to make a taco salad, nachos or taco's in a flash.

Flexability......it's a good thing in a quilters life. Less time cooking means more time for quilting.

My sweet hubby was busy last night adding some extra shelves for me in my studio. He added one above my ironing board. He set my old singer machine that I bought last year on our anniversary trip on the shelf to help "set the glue". I think it looks great there.......maybe she found a place to stay for now.

He also put a shelf below my tv so I can set my boombox he gave me to use with my IPAD 2 at Christmas. It also has FM radio I can use when I don't have my IPAD set in. It is remote control so I can adjust it from across the room....love this thing. More flexability........

Now if I could just get my body to have more flexability...hehehe.
Happy Quilting,
Shelia

My Very First Block

2012-01-25T06:20:00.001-05:00

While cleaning out my UFO's I found in the box of orphan blocks my very first quilt block. It was a hand pieced goose in the pond block.

See the stitching on the back.....glad my skills have improved.

I almost threw it away, but decided it was a piece of my quilting history and I needed to keep it. I may frame it as a reminder of how far I have come in quilting and hang it in my studio.

Off to work another crazy shift in the emergency room today. Hope you are able to find some quilting time today.

Happy Quilting,
Shelia

Bonus Projects

2012-01-24T06:26:00.000-05:00

Bonus projects are one thing that I love about quilting. "Waste not Want not". As quilters we are always looking for ways to use up what we have and not waste any space. One of the things that I do to use up extra batting and backing when I am quilting a quilt in my long arm is to put extra fat quarters or larger scraps of fabric beside a quilt in the frame or below the quilt to use up the extra batting and backing. What I have at the end is quilted fabric that I can make into anything I choose.

Below is a picture of some of the zippered bags I made from fabric used beside or below another quilt being quilted in the longarm. Smaller scraps also serve to let me test my tension during the quilting process when I change a bobbin or thread. I can use these bags as gifts or donate them to our Quilt Show Boutique to be sold as fundraisers for our guild. Bonus projects......they are a good thing!

Two or three years ago I bought a "lot" of zippers on ebay for I think $10. Now I have zippers of all sizes and colors so I have infinate possibilities when I make "bonus projects". Need zippers......check ebay for a "lot" which usually have many zippers in various sizes and colors. You too can have a stash to use for these bonus projects.

Hope you are able to find some "bonus projects" in your quilting world today.
Happy Quilting,
Shelia

A Cold Windy Sunday

2012-01-22T19:04:00.002-05:00

Burrr.....It has been really cold today. The temperature was around 54 when we left for church this morning, but when we got out it was 42.....burrrrrrrrrr. And the wind has been really rockin here today.

When I started cleaning out and going through my UFO's I began finding things that I had not seen in a VERY long time. This is one of those "I forgot I had it" items. After my grandfather passed away I had only asked for his shirts and ties and I have a plan for a quilt, but in that bag of shirts and ties that I received when my father and his sisters cleaned out papa's house was several of my grandmother Lena's quilt tops. Below is one of those, handpieced hexagon quilts. See the shirting fabrics used from papa's and the boy's old shirts? Look at that hand stitching.......not the smallest in the world, but it's stitches placed there by my grandma Lena....PRICELESS!

The front of the same quilt. Utilitarian quilts to me have so much character.

Now back to my UFO's. I've gotten all of the brown kaleidoscope blocks completed, I'm going to set them 5 x 7. I have all seven rows of blocks completed and some are already squared up, but I've got more to square. Now to pick out some brown from my stash for the borders. I really contemplated making this smaller like 5 x 5 but Roger convinced me to finished the blocks I already had cut out.........Since he is 6-ft tall I think he had an alterior motive to have this long enough for him to use in his recliner.......hummmmmmm.
That is o.k. because I love seeing people I love cozy under a quilt that I made. Kinda makes it even more special doesn't it.

Now for this girl............

purrrrrr.....yes mam I found you new scrap bucket.....hehehe! Oh well, I can't complain since I love touching fabric also.

Hope you have had some fun quilting today.

Shelia

Don't Forget To Vote!

2012-01-21T07:50:00.001-05:00

We Voted!

South Carolina Republican Primary is today.....weather is crappy but I hope everyone will make an effort to vote today. Roger and I have always voted at 7:00 a.m. due to our work schedules so today we just continued that trend. I've been up most of the night with a headache and nausea due to the pain.....headache is better this morning but nausea is lingering. Hope the weather clears up some today.

Decided at 3:00 a.m. to cut some of the half-square triangles for mom's Orca Bay quilt.

Happy Quilting,
Shelia

UFO Busting Tip #9

2012-01-20T09:14:00.000-05:00

Pat Sloan is keeping us rolling on our UFO Busting with her ninth tip.

UFO Busting Tip #9--The Art Of The Disassemble.

Pat's tip is generated by her friend Becky who left a comment

during an early tip.

Becky said - "If you don't love the project, but love fabric that you have set aside... break up the set!" Becky wrote that she has done this with great success. She has give away the parts that are done as someone will the love the challenge of working with it!

Thank you Becky!! visit her blog http://quiltingbooklady.blogspot.com

Pat is UP for this challenge.. She is going to show you THREE of Pat's UFOs and How I'd Disassemble them (note I did not say I WOULD do this... it may just be an example of what I COULD do.. just saying) Below is Pat's basket

Project Number 1

This is a set of blocks from Le Fleur De' Jardin designed by Lisa DeBee Shiller. It's an older pattern and not sure you can get it anymore (ok.. if you want to try go ahead... )

Pat has ALREADY changed out the fabric TWO TIMES for this quilt since the project was completed

What to do?

1-Pat can keep the blocks and when she feels READY to finish she can find new fabric

2- If Pat choses to do number 1 then she can put the setting fabrics BACK into her 'Collection' (stash)

Project Number 2

Another pattern pack from 'days gone by'. Susan Powell's Victory Garden applique quilt.

Some of Susan's patterns are out again and you can find a new version of this pattern HERE

ONLY one block done. Pat says "the applique is 'ok'.. not wonderful.", I say the applique is GREAT!

What to do?

Pat loves the pattern and the fabric so deciding what to do with it is a hard choice. Pat kept thinking she could keep the block and add a solid cream border around it and use it for her label

Then start over with new fabric and better skills!

Project Number 3

Some of you might recognize this "Happy Everything" project package from YEARS gone by.

Technically Pat could call this a project PACKAGE as she hardly did any work (Pat cut the panel on the right, think it was a hankie).

Pat pulled all this to do a "Happy Everything" quilt for herself.. yes for Pat!

But it never did happen

What to do?

1- Pat could take the cake panels and do something JUST with them.

2- Pat could sell off one or the other of the panel sections

3- move the raspberry fabric BACK into my "Collection"... remember that's a fabulous word to describe your fabric!

Pat has alot of inspiration for us. Amazing to see how each of us quilters have projects that we have begun over the years and for one reason or another have not completed.

During a conversation with Roger the other night I came to realize that I have loved finishing projects that I have myself designed. I start alot of other projects or patterns but find that I most love finishing the quilts that I myself have designed. Wow......I had never thought about it that way before. So one of my goals this year along with finishing up these UFO's is.......how can I change the project to make it what I truly want it to be in the end. Goes right along with what Pat is saying in this tip. Disassemble the "kit, pattern, fabrics" and make it your own style.

*** So what can YOU Disassemble??? ***

Your assignment

PICK TWO UFOS (YES REALLY) Ones that you REALLY love the fabrics, but are pretty sure you NEVER want to finish
BUST those fabrics back into your stash

I believe I may have already accomplished this one, but I will dig deeper into my UFO's and see if there are any of these type projects left.

Now for an update:

While watching NCIS last night I was able to sew some more of the blocks for my cathedral window quilt. Remember that I already have all of the 9 1/2 inch squares cut and ready to sew by my featherweight machine. So last night I was able to get this big pile done and ready to turn and press tonight at quilt bee. Yippie!!

Progress.....I just love this!

Hope you can get some quilting into your day today.
Shelia

Cathedral Window Tutorial

2012-01-19T13:48:00.001-05:00

While getting things organized for completing my UFO's I realized that I had sewn my last cut out square for my cathedral window quilt. Which meant that I had sewn my "pattern square size example" into the quilt already. I had to hunt high and low to find my handwritten figures for the quilt. whew........

After finding these figues I decided that it would be a good thing if I put the instructions into my blog so that I would not have the problem of losing this information in the future. So a cathedral window tutorial has evolved. I hope that if you have never tried a cathedral window project before that you will at least attempt a block or two and make a pillow or pincushion out of this pattern. Who knows.....you may even decide to do a long term project and make a bed size quilt for yourself.

Here goes:
We will start with a 9 1/2 inch square of your background fabric. This is the fabric that you will need large amounts of yardage depending on the size of the quilt you are making. I am using 28 yars of this background fabric.

Next you will fold the square in half with right sides together and sew a 1/4 inch seam up both sides.

Next you will, keeping right sides together, bring the two side seams that you just sewed together in the middle, matching seams and pin.

This now makes the next side that you will sew together using a 1/4 inch seam. Do NOT completely sew the seam. You will need to leave about a 1 1/2 inch opening in the seam to turn the block inside out.

Below you can see the opening I left for turning.

Next you can stick your finger inside the opening and begin turning the block inside out.

Make sure you completed turn the block.

After getting the block turned inside out you can use a cuticle stick or this "purple thingy" to make sure you get your points crisply turned.

After you have gotten your points crips you will have the block below. Now it is time to press the block. Taking care to keep the block square while pressing. I PRESS, not iron back & forth. This keeps you from distorting the square.

You can also use some spray starch to assist with this part. Now fold two adjacent corners into the middle forming a point. PRESS into this shape.

Repeat the folding and pressing with the third and fourth corners. You now will have the block below.

This is the above block with the pressed points opened so you can now see what will be your STITCHING lines when assembling the blocks.

This below is the pressed block from the back. This will be the back of your quilt.

Once you have at least 4 blocks turned and pressed it is time to make a window block. Lay two of your four pressed blocks side by side and pull up one tab from each block, making sure to keep the points together and the "pressed seam lines" matching up. Pin this into place.

I've laid the purple thingy below to show you where your seam line will be.

Now take this to the machine and sew a straight seam directly on the pressed line.

Repeat this process with the other two blocks. You will now have 2 twosies. We will now repeat the above process with the twosies to make a window block which consists of 4 of the pressed blocks.

I always pin my edge tabs of the blocks to keep them out of my way while I hand whip the windows in. Just my little thing, but it sure does help keep them from flapping around and to me gives it a more "together" look.

After the twosies are together you can press open your center windows on each block. You will now have 4 windows to put your accent fabrics.

I am using "brights" as my accent pieces. So now center a 2 1/2 inch square into each window. I usually stick one pin to keep these in place.

Below is the window block with the four window accent fabrics pinned into place.

The next step in the process is to gently turn back each of the edges around the window fabrics and hand whip into place. I am using a beige thread that blends in with the background fabric. This is the process that you can have ready to take with you where ever you need some handwork to do. I have been working on this project since 2000 as a travel project. I have collected bright fabrics from all over the continential United States, Hawaii, Cancun, Canada, Nassau, Cosumel, etc., as we have traveled. So many memories are connected to these beautiful fabrics.

Photo below shows the four side pinned and ready to be sewn down.

Next is a close up of a completed window.

When you have completed the four windows your block will look like this. You continue adding "window blocks" until you get the project to the size you are planning to make. Each time you sew this window block to another window block you make two new window areas in addition to the four in your block.

This is the back of your completed block. When you finish your last block you will have completed the quilt as this project is not quilted. It is very heavy due to the amount of fabrics and all of the folded pieces so don't worry about not having any actual quilting. Due to the heaviness also this will not be a "hanging quilt". It will be a quilt that is draped or kept on a bed.

Steady progress on your window blocks will give you the following.....a beautiful cathedral window quilt.

I hope that this tutorial has made sense to you and that you will some day attempt this project.

Happy quilting,
Shelia

Great Report And Dad Home!

2012-01-19T08:05:00.000-05:00

Dad had another incident of chest pain and another bout of atrial fibrillation. So it has been a long 24 hours in the hospital. He had a heart cath yesterday to see if something was causing him to have the atrial fibrillation more frequently. He has had this for years but has been very controlled on medications until just this past year where he has had three incidences of return of the fibrillation. So doctor wanted to make sure he did not have some vessel disease that was causing the problem.

In the picture below he is waiting his allotted time before he can be discharged home. His heart cath was clean. He has NO PLAQUE AND NO BLOCKAGES! What a wonderful blessing. Dr. San gave us the report that dad's arteries are as clean as when he was born, "slick as a baby's butt". Awesome! "so can I go home now? dad asks. Dr. San used the radial artery for the heart cath so dad did not have to lie flat for 8 hours and his recovery time will be faster. Due to dad being on coumadin to thin his blood out and his blood being VERY thin right now INR 2.8 the risks of bleeding after the procedure were less with the radial artery than with the femoral in his groin. Plus he could sit up and move around right after the procedure.

Below is the beautiful sinus rhythm he was in during the stay. He converted out of atrial fib right after he arrived in the emergency room Monday night. His chest pain was from the heart beating out of rhythm.

Below he is about to be discharged. No bleeding from the cath site and STARVED!!

I took my hexie flowers with to do as hand work while waiting on the procedure, report and post procedure time. Thank goodness for my quilting and IPAD. Thankfully mom was feeling better from her bronchitis. Maybe this week I can get them both feeling better "at the same time???" Bless them.....they really are doing great for 76 and 78 years old.

Got to catch up on work today, coding patient charts but hopefully this afternoon or evening I can get some quilting time in. So many blessings today. So many prayers answered. God is such a gracious God!! More UFO busting stuff later this week.

Happy quilting,

Shelia

Patriotic Scrappy Bargello Quilt

2012-01-17T06:25:00.000-05:00

Progress from yesterday on the patriotic scrappy bargello quilt for my cousin. I love having everything cut and beside my sewing machine, it keeps you rockin. I pieced two panels last night while watching NCIS on TV with Roger.

Now my plan for the rest of the week is to get the borders cut and on and get it into the longarm for quilting.

I've also got 3 quilt tops out of Mom's that need quilting so I hope to get them also in the longarm this week. We'll see how much progress I get done. Have other things on my plate also other than quilting.......go figure.

Just got a call from mom that she and dad have been in the ER since midnight with dad with chest pain. Atrial Fibrillation again. Just spoke to my ER doctor and they are awaiting cardiologist to see if he will be admitted or not. No chest pain now and in sinus rhythm........getting dressed and off to work and check on dad.

Just noticed in the picture where two of the same colors came together in two of the panels. Don't know if I will rip out or leave since it is symetrical at the end of the 2nd and 4th panels, I'll have to think on that for a while.

Happy quilting,
Shelia

UFO Busting Tip #8

2012-01-16T10:16:00.001-05:00

UFO Busting Tip #8- "Time To Delegate"

Tip 8 is closely related to Tip 7 on Trading.

If you can't find anyone to Trade with what do you do?

You DELEGATE!

Do you find yourself getting stuck on a project at a certain point... maybe the SAME point on each one?

Do you have part of the UFO that you can pay/trade someone to do?

Is there someone you know who loves to do the parts you REALLY don't like? I have friends in our guild who only like to piece the tops but don't do any quilting at all. These ladies send their tops out to hand and machine quilters to do the quilting. There is nothing wrong with having someone else do the quilting for you. Some ladies were hand quilters and due to arthritis now in their hands can no longer do the hand quilting and don't want to learn the art of machine quilting themselves. So they provide jobs for those who do love that process......see the point here? You don't have to love each and every step of the quilt making process.

Below are some of the things that quilters may not love to do such as:

Basting
Washing and Ironing the fabric
Machine Quilting
Binding click on the link to see Pat Sloan's machine binding tutorial.. http://patsloan.typepad.com/quiltershome/pat-sloan-machine-binding-tutorial.html .
Another machine binding tutorial is from Amy Smart http://www.diaryofaquilter.com/2010/11/fast-machine-quilt-binding.html
And another tutorial for binding....just in case I needed another reference. This is from A Quilt Is Nice blog. http://aquiltisnice.blogspot.com/2011/03/machine-binding-tutorial.html

So if these are some of the things holding you up in completing that project, DELEGATE that job to someone who really loves that process. Prior to getting my longarm I sent several quilt tops out to be quilted by longarmers. I was glad to pay the fee needed to get that quilt finished. Now I am blessed to have the equipment needed to do the quilting.......now I just need the time to get it done. I am working on that aspect of the process.

Now you may not be the King painting his own stripes on the road but you are the QUEEN of your quilting kingdom and have the royal power to delegate duties which you do not love to do..........now........what is the first on your list to delegate? The power of delagation has not always been a big one for me as I have always been one to get it done myself. So I will have to think hard about this one.

My delegation (or request in this case) will be to ask mom to remove the remaining backing and batting from my zipper leaders after I quilt the quilts. It is just a part that is always a "pain in my hinney". I'm sure she won't mind that process in exchange for getting her quilts quilted.

Happy Quilting everyone,

Shelia

Progress Update

2012-01-15T19:48:00.000-05:00

An update on the progress of my UFO's from this weekend, but first....some breaking news....

I was able to give my mom her Featherweight today. She was thrilled and totally surprised. It's always nice when you can actually pull off a surprise. Yesterday was their 57th Wedding Anniversary so I gave her the machine.

Now back to the UFO update. My goal was to get my current "at the top of the list" UFO's kitted up or out where I can work on them so this is what I accomplished.

My brown Kaleidoscope quilt- this is one that I really mulled over for a long time while sorting through my UFO's. I kept putting it in the "get rid of pile", but then I realized that I had 25 blocks already finished and more blocks already partially pieced. Seemed pretty crazy for me to get rid of this since I had put so much time in piecing theses blocks. So I decided that this should be one that would be easy to finish piecing. There are two blocks in the quilt, one with dark outer rings and one with light outer rings.

Pretty proud of my center points if I do say so myself....hehehe. I started piecing this block in 1994 or 1995. I could tell from some of the blocks that my piecing skills have GREATLY improved since then. I did take 4 blocks apart and resewed them to make the centers match. One of them looked totally like a drunk had pieced it.....and I promise I wasn't drinking when I pieced it.

When I put the blocks up on my design board I LOVED IT! I know it is a lot of brown but I love the hidden circles that you see with the pattern. Glad that I kept these blocks. I've got some of them squared up and hope to be able to finishing squaring up and then sew the rows together this week. Then I need to pull some border fabric from my stash.

I decided that I needed to have another leader-ender project cut out so that I could have it to piece during all of this UFO finishing. Suzanne taught a rag quilt technique at the guild meeting last Monday and I decided while cutting up some scraps to make a halloween rag quilt from all of the halloween fabric that I have. This should be fun. Below I have kitted up the pieces. I cut 5-inch squares of halloween fabric, 4 1/2 inch squares of scrap batting I had from other projects. (some of it came from the scraps left from the yellow/brown braid quilt I just finished), I put one 5-inch square face down, batting piece, then another fabric piece right side up. I pinned in two corners so I can easily pick up a piece and sew a diagonal line across it as a leader-ender project. When I'm done it will be totally done and quilted. What a great project. Thanks Suzanne for sharing this technique.

Below is where I have sewed 4 pieces into a row. This is the side that will be cut in the seam areas to rag the quilt. Can't wait to get this finished.

The Patriotic quilt project- I had finished strip piecing all of the sections. I have three of the panels already pieced and together. These are the last three sections which I have pieced and cut apart now into six sections each. Now just to unsew some seams and resew them back together into a panel. I am using Bonnie Hunter's scrappy bargello pattern for this quilt and it goes together so quickly. I purchased a ton of patriotic fabric on my trip to Hershey, Pennsylvania and I should have no problem picking out something for the borders.

Cathedral Windows Quilt- I laid all of my pieces together on the floor so I could measure and count how many more blocks that I need to complete to finish the quilt. I started this as a travel project in 2000 and have worked on it everytime we travel over the years, but have never made it a priority to get finished until NOW. I want to get this done.

I did my calculations and I needed to cut out 77 more blocks to complete the quilt to the size I wanted. I started to cut the size down to what I already had done but said no to that idea. I have worked on this quilt for a long time and I want it to be big so even if it takes me longer I don't want to later wish I had continued with more blocks.

I now have all of the fabric cut for the backgroud and window blocks. This is one quilt that uses a TON of fabric. I started out with 28 yards of the backgroud fabric. Now to sew them, turn and press them so I can make the window blocks. I am going to keep some of these in my car for sewing at bee and doctor's visits and the rest of them beside my chair in the livingroom so I can piece while watching TV with my hubby. It is going to be beautiful when it is finished.

Guess that is about all for this weekend, whew.........got alot accomplished and I am very excited about the process.

Happy Quilting,
Shelia

More UFO Busting Tips

2012-01-14T09:57:00.001-05:00

Today my plan is to spend time getting my current UFO project's that I have chosen to move to the top of the list to finish in progress that I can have kitted up to work on when I have those "15 minute" increments.

So my list of 6 UFO's that I have chosen to get done:

Fast to finish: Yellow/brown braid quilt---DONE!! CHECK-A-ROO....
Current Deadline: Patriotic Quilt for Jason. My deadline set is March 1st.
So Love Working on: Roll, Roll Cotton Boll. Mom is so glad that I have put this on the list to get done. She really wanted us to both have them done.
Long Term Project: I've chosen my Cathedral Window quilt.
Gifts: The fishing themed quilt which will be a gift for our Son and daughter-in-law in Washington state.
Love and can finish easily: I chose my brown kaleidoscope blocks that I want to make into a table cover.

So one down and five more currently on my "get it done list". I am so excited on how this is coming together and getting me organized with my UFO's.

Now on to Pat's next tip.

UFO Buster Tip #7--"Let's Trade"

Do you remember trading things as a Kid? I mostly remember trading lunch items... nobody EVER wanted those carrots ... mmm I just don't get that!

Or trying to 'trade' candy or something equally important with my brother.. he was younger. (I differ here as my brother was older and was always trying to figure out a way to trade me out of stuff.....go figure)

Pat says she thought she often just took what she wanted... ahhhh.. childhood memories!

Have you ever thought about trading as a UFO Event?

You have something you would rather not have.. they want it....you get the idea...

You have a UFO your not sure you want anymore... your friend does too... you like hers better and she likes yours better... a match made in Heaven!
How about trading SERVICES to move a project along? You hate to baste, she hates to bind... switch-a-roonie and a UFO is done!

What else can you trade to BUST some UFOs???

Your assignment

Make a list (yes I LOVE lists) of TWO things you LIKE to do that you could trade services for.
Two things you DO NOT LIKE to do that you would want someone else to do.
Pick ONE project would you trade for a better one or Trade services for?

Now you can get with your friends and find out who else has things that they hate to do, project they no longer like and suggest a trade.

I'm off now to start getting some more blocks cut for my cathedral window quilt, getting the strip sets for the patriotic quilt cut so I can sew them back together again and put the brown kaleidoscope blocks up on the design board to figure out my placement and piecing order. That is probably all I will have time to get ready to sew prior to the playoff game tonight. My plan is to have my featherweight in the livingroom and sew while Roger and I watch the playoff. Hummmmmm.......popcorn, quilting and football.......think it will be a great day. Another thought here......started off the day with no headache......Thank you Lord for a wonderful start to this day!

Happy Quilting,

Shelia

Another UFO Busting Tip # 6

2012-01-13T09:35:00.002-05:00

This system is moving us right along in our UFO busting. Is anyone out there moving with me????? I know you have some UFO's.........remember I have x-ray vision....hehehe.

Pat's next tip goes back to girl scout days....anyone remember those? I was never a girl scout but I was raised in the country and taught good common sense.

UFO Busting Tip #6

The Buddy system

A safety practice that groups two or three girls together to keep watch over each other in an activity (for example, swimming, hiking). The system places girls of equal ability in the same grouping.

PUT ON YOUR UFO BUSTING Uniform and get a few quilters together so you can

'report' on progress to each other
share your lists with each other- (o.k. my list is already posted here on the blog)
Call on them for help when you have not touched a UFO in days.. or let's be real... in WEEKS.. ok more real.. MONTHS! Or I add here YEARS!
Get your posse and have a UFO sewing day. Make it more fun and ask your local quilt shop if you can sew there!
Go on a hunt and gather of each other's home to be sure ALL UFO's are accounted for... because that is what good friends are for.

This is another reason I love my bee girls, they keep you honest and real! If you don't have a group of ladies that you quilt with........then get one. The inspiration alone is amazing. My group of bee ladies are some of the most talented people I know. If I get stuck trying to figure out something chances are one of them has already been through the same problem and has an awesome solution already figured out. And sometimes I am able to return the favor to them and help them out of a situation.

Another advantage of a "bee" group is the stress relief from all of the laughter that comes out of getting a group of quilters together. We have a blast when we sit and cut, sew or quilt for hours.

You get the idea now?

You need friends to get you through

So what are you waiting for?

Get your friends together and having a UFO busting party, weekend or retreat.

Let's GO SEW!

Now this seems like a great spot to offer my bee girls an incentive or better yet a UFO challenge...........

Quilting Bee UFO Busting Challenge

E-Mail me with your list of UFO's
Follow up with the tips to organize and sort
Send me your list of 3-10 you choose to finish and let's put a 6 month deadline on these. July 27th at Bee. (that is this July 2012....hehehe)

The bee member who completes the most of their UFO's by July 27th will receive..........

$25 gift card to Outback Steak House

and

$25 gift card to Mary Jo's

So let me know who all is IN!! This is definately better than the last challenge I issued with the machine quilting book and project. Hope you will all join in the challenge....it should be fun.

Happy Quilting,

Shelia

Accomplished My Goal For Today!!

2012-01-12T17:13:00.000-05:00

This morning I showed you pictures of my quilting table and ironing table. Yuck!! I have spent time on and off today cleaning, decluttering, tossing etc., until now..........

drum roll please.............................A Clean Quilting Table

And A Clean Ironing Table.

Now I am "ready" to sew and quilt on my UFO's and I can find them. I feel so much better when I have an organized area to work in. Doesn't it make the whole process easier when you can cut without moving things out of your way and press without having to move things around. YES!

One of the things I found while cleaning off my table was the eight pillowcases that my friends Gina and Dave made for the Shriner's Kids this year. They are already off to a great start for ones we will need this Christmas. Thanks guys for all the support with this project. I think everyone enjoys the process as much as mom and I do.

Another two UFO incidentials today finished also. I whipped the binding down on these this morning while drinking my coffee and watching the news at 4:30 a.m. I have about ten more of these mug mats already quilted but I think I am going to try to do the binding on them by the machine. I'll try a couple first to see if I like them.

Now to get some pieces cut for leader-ender pieces to have beside my machine. I'm going to be sewing on the patriotic quilt tonight while we watch some movie Roger wants to see.

Happy Quilting,
Shelia

UFO Tip #5

2012-01-12T10:33:00.002-05:00

I am really making some headway on my UFO's and these tips from Pat Sloan are pushing me forward.

UFO Busting Tip #5

Search and Rescue.

"Search and Rescue" is VERY important

Ask yourself these questions

When was the last time you actually SAW the top of your cutting table
Is your ironing board piled HIGH with ~~crap that needs put away~~.. .. treasures you purchased?
Do you HAVE your newly selected 3 to 10 UFOs in a spot where you can actually GET to them?
Where are your Scissors, rotary cutter, favorite Ruler, needles and thread (pick one ..or all!)
Can you just SIT DOWN and sew at ANY time?
Do you have a project 'at the ready'..and what is it in? No it does not count if it is in a box under the bed in other room

Do you see where I'm going with this one?

You need your STUFF at the ready.

Don't waste precious time

hauling out the sewing machine
looking for your rotary cutter
clearing off the ironing board
hunting for your hand work so you can take it with you

Your assignment

Identify THREE organization things that make it HARD for you to get to work
Now FIX THEM (yes clear off that ironing board and KEEP it clear!)

Reward yourself when that is done

I am really enjoying these tips from Pat Sloan and can not wait to meet her in person to thank her for all of her inspiration. Even if you do just one of these tips I am sure that you will get some of your UFO's done, or maybe even decide like I have that you really don't even like some of your UFO's anymore. Either way there are not any quilt police going to show up at your door and arrest you for giving or throwing away a unfinished project!

Now I am really going to get down to brass tacks and get my stuff in order. Here are pictures below of the state of my quilting table and ironing table this morning as I post..........yuck! I know why it is crazy, I'm sorting and throwing away stuff and in the middle of that I had to prepare for the guild meeting Monday night......but still......I must kick this sorting project into overdrive and get it finished. So as embarrassed as I am about the yuckiness I am thrilled that I am sorting and tossing.

I have part of the patriotic quilt in the livingroom where I can piece on it in the evening with Roger. My plan is to get parts of my cathedral window in my carry box to take to bee, doctor's visits etc., and have in my car.

I will post "after" pictures when I finish hopefully tonight or in the morning. Until then I must press on and get this done.

Happy Quilting,
Shelia

Great Guild Meeting

2012-01-10T06:04:00.000-05:00

Last night was my quilt guild meeting and it was a wonderful meeting. Our speak had cancelled so our several members agreed to do little mini demonstrations of different techniques. Thanks to all of the ladies who stepped up and helped out at our meeting. It was great.

There were six demonstration stations. Everyone divided up into groups and went to the different stations, each stations was eight minutes, then the buzzer sounded and you moved to the next station.

First Edna Burch did a demo on english paper piecing.

Station two was Joan Derylak did the folded prairie point ornament/pin cushion technique.

Station three was Ginny Gillespie and IIse Perea demonstration Locker Hooking.

Station four was Suzanne DiCarlo demonstrated rag quilting.

Station five was Susan Perham demonstrating wraped line bowls.

Station six was Sue Davis demonstrating how to make a pillowcase without any raw seams.

Below are some of the locker hooked rugs that they ladies had at their table as examples. Beautiful work from scraps.

Below are the books that Susan recommended for the fabric wrapped bowls she was making. These are definately goin on my "want" list for completing some of my UFO's.

The book below is the one several members have used to learn Locker Hooking.

Remember the fabric scraps that I had cleaned out of my studio. Well my bee girls also cleaned out theirs and brought scraps. We dumped them out onto the stage at the guild meeting. Members were instructed that after they had attended the demos they could rummage through the scraps and take any them wanted. It was great.

Here is one group of ladies diving in for scraps. They had a blast. At the end we had to just say.....o.k. ladies we have to get out of here you must get what you want and leave. It was getting so late we had to run them off. Let me tell you there were not a lot of scraps left on that stage. We are going to start having a large box in our library which members can add strips, strings etc to for members to delve through for scrap projects or for philanthropy quilts.

Yesterday I tried to figure out the monogram feature of my machine to try making a new name tag for quilt. The one I wear is 20 years old and looks it. I realized the other day that this month marks my 20th year as a quilter. Amazing how quickly time passes. Maybe I need to host a giveaway........

Off to work now, hope you have a great day quilting,

Shelia

Another UFO Busting Tip #4

2012-01-09T10:42:00.000-05:00

Make A Deal With Yourself To Finish

Then Reward Yourself.

Pat Sloan also equates this to the game show "Let's Make A Deal" with Monty Hall. I loved that show when I was younger and always watched as everyone had the opportunity to make choices, some good, some not so good. Did you ever think you could made better choices than those on the show??? Of course we did.

So Pat's questions:

What motivates you?
What would you like to have as a reward for working on a project that might be a bit 'tough'
Now take a photo of those rewards (book to read, candy to buy, a NEW project to start)

Your assignment

Make a list (yes I LOVE lists) of THREE rewards
Go work on a UFO, then REWARD YOURSELF!

Now Let's GO SEW!

I can do this......now what do I need or want? That is a hard question to answer. Don't think I really need anything.......want is a totally different story. Most of the time I feel a great sense of reward just for finishing the project, but I do agree that as a goal oriented person, having a goal to work toward is a GREAT motivator. hummmmmmm

My next project that I am concentrating on finishing is the patriotic quilt to give my cousin. So what do I want as a reward?

Beaded Name Tag Necklace (even if I have to make it myself) I've wanted one of these so I don't have to pin my name bag at the guild to my clothing. So that is my reward for getting the patriotic quilt done.

Now to get ready for my guild meeting tonight.

Don't forget to get your 15 minutes of quilting in today. I've paper pieced a block for the meeting block of the month tonight.......I was up at 1:30 this morning so I made use of that time.

Happy quilting,

Shelia

UFO Busting Tip 3

2012-01-08T13:01:00.001-05:00

Pat Sloan's third tip for busting your unfinished projects is...

IT'S ALL ABOUT TIME!

Most of us have said at one time or another that we don't have time to quilt. I am one of those. I have a wonderful studio to quilt in but I also work 40-60 hours a week as a nurse, have a business and serve as an officer in a ladies organization with Shriner's Hosptial which requires ALOT of my time. So I too have to organize my time to be able to quilt.

I have always been a goal oriented person and know that you must MAKE the time to do the things you really want to do. Most people spend 20 hours at least a week watching TV, think of what you could accomplish in that same 20 hours if you turned the TV off. That is one of the things that I always think about if I sit down to watch TV. Is there something else that needs to be accomplished besides watching mindless TV?

Pat reminds us that we all have the same 24 hours in a day. What we do with those hours is what matters. As we age we often have nights where we can not sleep. So why not quilt? I have been in my studio many mornings at 2 a.m. just because I could not sleep. Even if you just sort fabric you have accomplished something.

In Pat's words::

"This is UFO Busting so it's MANDATORY to MAKE time

Because if you don't work on a project is't NOT going to get done

While Sitting in a bag or a box the project will NOT finish itself

I can promise you that!"

So here assignment to us is

"Your assignment is to set aside time EACH DAY

Seriously.. we are not being wimpy here!

EACH DAY you can do just 10 to 15 min of sewing and you will be

AMAZED

at how much you'll get done!"

Set a timer for 15 min and then sew sew sew!

So my goal is to sew at least 15 minutes a day. That should be a no brainer.........the thing is doing it everyday. But that is the only way that we can get these UFO's completed and move on to new projects......and we have have that book of patterns, drawings etc., that we want to make someday.

Below is some of the 30 minutes I spent sorting some more fabric to place in my stash. Some more fabric was added to the bag of scraps going to the guild tomorrow night. See the very far right beside the white basket....that is a pile of pieces that need to be cut down into strips, blocks and rectangles for piecing as scrap quilts.

I had two more finishes last night. Below are two mug/snack mats that I had quilted beside or below another quilt in the longarm. These were pieced from leftover blocks and strips from other projects. I sewed the binding down last night. So two gifts to put in the finished pile. These would be cute in a gift basket with a coffee mug and some chocolate.

Below is the backing fabric that I thought was so cute. Love the little flower pots.

So until tomorrow......Happy quilting,

Shelia

My First Finish Of 2012

2012-01-07T21:19:00.001-05:00

Today I started out with the goal of getting my brown and yellow braid quilt quilted and hopefully the binding on so I could whip it down this evening while watching TV with Roger.

I spent an hour or so cleaning the machine, oiling, changing the needle, setting the tension on the bobbin....then quilting. I realized today that this quilt has been in the longarm since September 7th. I had completed it in time for our quilt guild challenge but when I started to quilt my machine was messing up. I missed the window of opportunity to get it quilted and into the challenge due to my crazy work schedule and since then time has flown by. So with doctor's orders to not work this weekend I have spent more time in my studio and getting things ready to quilt. I had enough time to patiently clean and work on my machine and get her humming again. She is doing beautifully today.

Below is some of the freehand quilting I am doing on the quilt.

Now today has not totally gone without problems. See this little "thingy" below. Roger tells me that it is an O-Ring. Well this o-ring is part of the stitch regulator on my machine. I don't always use the stitch regulator and today was one of those free motion days. But when this broke it got stuck in the track and my machine stopped moving. It took me a few minutes to figure out what was up.

Below is a picure of the other wheel that uses on of those o-rings. This is part of a sensor system which tells the machine that I am moving and to sew. That is a great part of stitch regulation, when you move it sews, when you stop the machine also stops sewing. Not so with non-regulated stitiching. When you turn the machine on it runs at the speed you set wide open until you turn it off with your hand. It takes more getting used to than regulated but I kinda like the freedom of movement I have with unregulated stitching. You can really get a rhythm going with your designs and it just flows onto the quilt.

Since I was not using the stitch regulator I wondered if I could continue since I only had a few rows left to stitch and really didn't want to stop. I was able to rig the sensor foot up with a rubber band and continue stitching. Good thing I could do that. I finally found one of those o-ring thingys online, Roger had already gone to the auto parts and Lowe's trying to find one to replace the broken one with no luck. I've ordered 2 so I can replace the other one also since the age is the same and I ordered 2 extra for spares. Don't want this happening again if I can prevent it. Be prepared.....right!

Now back to the quilting......you see I didn't have much more to quilt when the thingy broke.

Finished quilting and decided that I would try to do the binding on the machine to save some time and stress on my neck.

I watched Pat Sloan's tutorial about binding on the machine and thought I would give it a try. Several of my bee girls have done some binding on the machine but I had never ventured there yet. But there is always a first time. I've listed Pat's tutorial if you want to watch.
http://patsloan.typepad.com/quiltershome/pat-sloan-machine-binding-tutorial.html

After watching Pat's tutorial I decided to try a sample out and work with my Janome to get the stitches right. It took me FOREVER to figure out how to mirror image a stitch.......should have called one of the girls.....sure would have been quicker.

Below is my sample piece that I used to practice on.

When I turned to the front on my machine the sewing line was too far over, I decided to just fold the binding in half and try that. Pat used a 1 1/4 inch binding with 1/4 inch folded over and brought around to the front.

Below is me sewing the binding to the back of my quilt.....that was an odd feeling since we usually sew the finding to the front and pull to the back, this technique is the exact opposite. See the beautiful paisly print I used for the backing.......beautiful but hard as crap to see your stitches on the back.......I was upside down with a flashlight checking the stitches. Even my trick of using the mirror underneath and shinning the light on it didn't work with this busy print. But I love the print now that I am done.

Here is my quilt with some of the binding pulled to the front. What I didn't take into account when I folded my binding in half was that it would pull it all to the front. Interesting look, but I'm sure not ripping all that stuff out. Just a different look to this quilt.

I did get better as I went along, but it was all I could do to get the binding to cover the 1/4 inch seam......whew..........I thought it would be less stressful on the neck.....NOT!! Well not the way I did it anyway. I'll have to play with this system again and see if I can get the measurements better. I think I will cut the next time 2 inches and see how that will do on a sample, maybe some mug mats for practice.

I made a picture of my practice piece with the numbers from my machine written on it for future reference. See the word mirror with a circle half colored in???? That is the mirror image button on my machine.....hopefully I will remember that next time.

Here is the label on my finished quilt, already sewn own.

TADA............................The finished quilt!!

Looks pretty good if I do say so myself. Anyway it is finished and many thanks to Pat Sloan's system for getting me organized to finish some of my UFO's. Next time well do her next tip for finishing our unfinished objects.

Until then,
Happy Quilting,
Shelia

Now Onto Tip 2 For Finishing UFO's

2012-01-07T05:00:00.000-05:00

Today I am focusing on Pat's tip #2. In this tip she helps you pick which UFO's to focus on finishing. She warn's not to pick all of the group A's to finish as we might get bored......don't know if I would get bored finishing up some quilts but I will follow her directions here.

So here are her suggestions for UFO's to pick and concentrate on finishing. Pick 3 to 10 projects from your groups to finish.

Pick one that is Fast to finish, I'm picking the yellow and brown braid quilt that is already loaded into the longarm. I should be able to get this thing quilted, hopefully binding sewed on this weekend. Maybe and just maybe I could have it completed and show at the guild meeting on Monday night during show & share.......hehehe.
Pick one that has a Current Deadline. I'm picking the patriotic scrappy bargello for my cousin in memory of his dad. The deadline is being set by me as I am not in any current round robins or such. I want to be able to give him this quilt by March 1st.
Pick one you So Love working on. This will be the Roll, Roll Cotton Boll quilt that I pieced with my mom. As aggrivating as it was to cut out all of those tiny pieces, I truly enjoyed the time we spent together piecing the blocks. She finished hers and had it in our quilt show in October. Now I just need to get mine done.
Pick one that is a Long Term project. This definately has to be my cathedral window project.
Pick one or two that will be Gifts!! The fishing themed quilt for our son & daughter-in-law will be the first one.
Pick one you Love and can finish easily. The brown kaleidoscope blocks that I want to make into a table cover.

Happy Quilting,

Shelia

Here Is My List Of UFO Groups

2012-01-06T12:40:00.000-05:00

This is the beginning

To truly begin you must know where you are starting from,

So I have hauled out all of those UFO's and

SORTED!!

The sorting process is truly an eye opening experience. In the past I have made what I called a UFO list, but now I see that it was in no way all inclusive of the projects that I had in waiting. I love the idea Pat Sloan had of sorting them into the groups. It has felt good to finally get rid of some projects that I had started and had for years given me grief and guilt for not finishing. It is alright to have changed what you like and move on in your quilting life. So are you joining me in this sorting......purging process?

Drum roll please............and here is my list.

Group A: Almost Done

Brown/Yellow braid quilt (it is in the longarm now)
Blue & Yellow Star Quilt (top is pieced, needs quilting, shown on far right in picture)
My First Round Robin (Top is complete, Just needs quilting. Shown on left in picture)
Fishing Theme Quilt (Top is finished, just needs quilting. I am going to finish this as a gift for our son & daughter-in-law in Washington state. Will be a great Christmas gift for this year. to the right of round robin in picture)
Cathedral Window (This top is close to the size I want, think you can pick this one out....hehe)
Black & Brights wonky star (A secret sister quilt from Debbie Miller 2005, all 24 blocks are pieced, forgot to put into the picture above, see below.

Group B: Almost Done.......but I don't really want to finish it????

This was a very hard group and as you see there are not a lot of projects in this pile.......yet. But there will be some suprised quilters who start digging through the bag of scraps at the meeting Monday night.

Halloween Mantle Cover. (I designed this in 1995 and started hand appliqueing the pieces, but have never finished the project. I truly think this is going in the toss pile, loved the idea I had but have outgrown the project) Wow that was hard to do and say.
Burgundy and Blue Block of the month blocks- these were started in 1996 and are going into the bag of scraps for the guild meeting.
Red and Black Card Trick blocks (Started in 1997 and I have 7 completed and pieces cut for others) another group going into the bag for scraps.

Red and Blue Mountain Majesty blocks- (these were left overs from making the border for my "I Want You To Quilt" patriotic quilt you see on my blog. I have 14 blocks left and have hung onto them waiting for another project to use them on...........but think I am done with them now. I'll add them to the bag of scraps and orphan blocks I'm taking to the guild Monday night to give away to any quilter who wants extra scraps or blocks).

Group C: Partially Done--I love and want to finish.

Kaleidoscope Quilt in browns (20 blocks completed and lots of parts for other blocks.)

Crown Royal Star Blocks (Started 5/22/2002 and I have 14 blocks completed and bags to make more)

Purple and Green Paper Pieced Star Blocks (There are 20 finished blocks in this pile and they are pretty, I got these at a quilting yard sale at guild and I want to piece the top, add some borders and get it done.)

Eqyptian Themed Turning Twenty Quilt- (all the blocks are pieced, I just have to piece them into the top, add border and quilt. I want to get this done as one of those throws to have around for cuttling under)

Roll, Roll Cotton Boll- (2010 Mystery from Bonnie Hunter. Mom and I both did this quilt, I've gotten all of my blocks pieced, just need to decide if I want to do the given border or something different. I have all of the border pieces cut)

Jar Quilt- This is from an online exchange I did in 2008. (I have 21 blocks of all different sizes which are so cute, I definately want to make this into a wall hanging or lap throw)

Patriotic Scrappy Bargello Quilt- (This quilt I started a few months ago to give to my uncle who was sick, unfortunately I did not make it in time for him to receive, but I have decided to complete the quilt and give it to his son Jason, I think Jason will appreciate the rememberence. So now it will be a quilt in memory of his dad)

Cheveron Quilt- I have 4 large cheveron borders that I pieced to go with a block of the month quilt I did way back in 1993 or 1994. I pieced the quilt top all but adding these border pieces and a year or so ago I decided that I didn't like the quilt or the colors that I had made the blocks out of so I donated it to our philanthropy group for a Habitat for Humanity Quilt. But I still had the borders. I think I can make a bar design quilt and use something inbetween these pieces to make a throw......or that is currently the plan.....but the sorting weekend has not ended yet.)

Halloween Scrap Pinwheel Blocks--(I have 35 of these pieced using scrap blacks and halloween fabrics in my stash. I think I started this in 2006)

Friendship Star Blocks- ( I have 12 blocks left from piecing my Starts Across Carolina quilt. Enough to add some sashing or just borders and make a throw......I could do that for a Habitat donation quilt!

From making these lists I have come to the conclusion that I DO NOT NEED TO START ANYTHING HALLOWEEN, I believe I have enough of those type of projects in the pile!

Group D: Barely Started

Nutcracker Quilt- (I have all of the patterns for the quilt)
Halloween Applique Quilt- (I have all of the patterns and materials for the blocks, borders, backing and binding. This was a block of the month that I purchased and put into the pile, but I love this quilt and want to get it made)
Halloween Swap Blocks- (These blocks are from an online swap that I did in 2009, there are 23 blocks )
Rooster Table Runner- (I have the pattern and fabrics to make this)
Paper Pieced Shirt/Tie Quilt- (I have shirts and ties from my grandfather and dad to make this quilt. A project for the heart. I have already made all of the paper templates for piecing. Just need to take the ties and shirts apart to use)
Birthday Quilt- This is blocks that were signed at my 50th birthday party, my bee friend Susan sent the blocks for people to sign, so special as some of those people are no longer with us. I WANT THIS DONE as a beautiful reminded of how special each person in my life is.
Patriotic Banner Quilt- (I have the pattern and fabric for this quilt, which I think was purchased in 2002 while in Canada)
Bright and Gray blocks from Secret Sister 2009-Darlene Morse
In this pile I am also putting--10 crumb blocks that I pieced in a Bonnie Hunter class and 6 scrap blocks that I pieced and still like. I can make mug rugs or a small wall hanging out of these. (I put into the give away scrap bag tons of orphan blocks......and I do mean tons......those that are not scrafed up by quilters Monday night will find a spot in the trashcan......but not coming back home.

I have enjoyed this process and now am ready to get to the first tip on how to get these done. I feel just sorting and getting rid of some has made a huge difference. I'll post the first tip tomorrow and how I am doing with it. Now off to another doctor appointment and getting ready for my bee tonight.

Happy Quilting,

Shelia

How To Slim Down Your Pile Of Unfinished Objects (UFO's)

2012-01-05T14:21:00.000-05:00

While reading Pat Sloans blog about her classes and stuff she had a series of posts about ways and tips for getting those UFO's out of your To Do List. Some of these were really intersting so I've decided to go through them to see if it will help with my pile of things to do. If you want to see all of the things she listed you can visit her blog at http://blog.patsloan.com/12-ufo-buster-tips/

Today I am going to start sorting all of my projects into these groups. I'll post my lists and or pictures of each of my groups this weekend.

Group A-Almost Done
Start sorting all of the projects that are almost done and put them in order of importance.

Group B- Almost Done......but.....
From the list above I know there are ones that I have started but truly don't want to finish....right????? I agree with Pat "you don't need to finish everything you have started".
If you no long love it:

give it away
sell it
but under no circumstances keep it. trash it if you have to.....hopefully there will be another alternative, but anyway do not keep it.

Group C- Partially done and I Love the project and I want to finish it.

Now list your partially done projects.....just tops at this time and put them into order of importance.
So here is my list: (If I can do this......you can do this)

Group D- Barely Started projects
This is the last group for you to sort. The ones you have barely started.

Just what is in this group
Are they newly barely started projects
Old barely started projects
You must have done something to put into this pile.......sure you have.
Collections of fabric and pattern do not count right here (great!)
Take a Good.....Hard.....Ruthless.....Look at this pile. Keep only the projects that you truly want to continue and finish.

NOW WHAT? After all this sorting I'll start by evaluating each of these piles using Pat's 12 tips for working on and completing these projects. Hopefully this will inspire me and help me sort through the past 20 years of quilting projects. Help me make some sense of some things and move on from others. Using this system I should have all of the pending projects sorted into 4 piles by this weekend.

Sounds like a great plan to me...........until the next tip.

Bee girls are coming over tonight so I need to have some sorting done but out of the way so we can have some fun........I am so ready for some fun.

Happy quilting,
Shelia

Nerves Are Shot!

2012-01-05T08:34:00.003-05:00

I like to think that I am a pretty together woman and can handle most situations so today I was scheduled for the MRI of my cervical spine to see if we can pinpoint the reason for my headaches. So I had to be there at 6:45 a.m. this morning, no problem, I'm a morning person anyway. No worries, I know the techs since I work with them on a regular basis when we send ER patient's for MRI's. So why are my nerves shot???????? Oh My God!!! I hadn't prepared myself for being totally encased in that MRI tube with a metal cage around my head and face, being pushed into the tube like a roll of sausage.....now mind you I am not the biggest girl in the world so I don't know how they get some of the people we send over there into that tube.

Can't have headphones and music because I'm having the c-spine MRI. So here I am in a tube with no music, my arms, hips etc. all touching the sides of the machine, my hands clenched together on my abdomen and I have 25 minutes to hold still. Then the air-raid starts. I sure think they could have found a way to make this thing a little less loud.........but after a while I could make a rhythm out of the bomb shells falling.

I made it though the test, but when David said he was bringing me out I could not wait to get out of that tube, room, building. I almost think I ran to the outside. I passed lots of people I knew in the hospital but I just kept moving. By the time I got to Roger my hand were just a shaking. Now I know exactly why patient's are always saying they will never have another one of those things. Sure hope his pictures turned out good cause I don't think I can redo that!! David said that I did great during the procedure.... good thing he wasn't in that tube with me he would have felt how hard my heart was pounding. Haven't said the psalms and proverbs that many times in a row in a LONG time. Thank you Lord for your words of comfort.

Whew........Now I just need to unwind and get myself back together. Maybe some fabric to fondle will help. Got to find something to take my mind off that tube.

Happy Quilting,
Shelia

Pat Sloan Is Coming......Pat Sloan Is Coming!

2012-01-04T20:44:00.004-05:00

Pat Sloan is coming to our quilt guild in March and I am soooooo excited. Mom and I are going to be taking both of the classes she is doing and having her for a lecture also. What more can you ask for! Our Vice President Susan has been doing an awesome job of getting speakers and teachers to our quild. We have so many talented women and men in quilting today that our learning opportunities are endless.

On the Saturday March 10th Pat will be teaching her 6 hour workshop

"Wild and Free" - create quilts with personality

Below is the quilt we will be making and I am so excited.

Her description of the class:

Learn Pat's tricks to "punch up" your applique quilt backgrounds. No more neutral tan or beige backings. Bring on the Color and the pattern to make your quilts sing! Pat's classic and popular "Mama's Garden" is the project quilt. Then we will spend the day making the most spectacular background for your applique.

For the Sunday afternoon March 11th Pat will be teaching "The Magic of EASY Machine Appliqué" - draw, cut, machine stitch, so easy anyone can do it!

Her description of this class:

Fast, Fun and you learn ALL of Pat's tips for making soft fusible appliqué! In class you will create a sample to test your stitching. She walks you through each step of the appliqué process, from cutting to getting a great size blanket stitch on your machine. For your project select "Little Blue Bird" or your "Wild and Free" project (if your group is having both workshops).

Then on Monday March 12th at our guild meeting she will be doing a lecture and trunk show. That will be an awesome weekend in March......what a great birthday month that will be.

Tomorrow morning at 6:45 a.m. I am having my MRI done. Hopefully we will have some answers with the results of this test. I've spent part of today sorting through stuff in my quilting studio and organizing some of my scraps.

Hope you were able to do some quilting today....if not, maybe tomorrow. I am now off for the next five days and I do plan on getting some quilting done.

Happy quilting,

Shelia

Electric Quilt 7

2012-01-03T08:19:00.000-05:00

I have started playing with my electric quilt program. Finally getting to do some designing. It really is a great program. Now I just need to get down all that it will do. I plan on using it to help me design the block of the month blocks for our guild meetings each month.

I've been up since 1:50 this morning due to another crazy headache. I see the doctor again tomorrow to schedule the MRI and see what else I can do (except amputate) that can help with these headaches. I am taking off 5 days in a row to just relax and hopefully play some in my quilting studio. Wonder how much I can get accomplished in that time frame??????? I know the idea is to rest, but gosh I haven't had that much time in my room in ?????? I don't remember when. So you know I HAVE to do some sewing and quilting. But I do need to take a quick cat nap sometime so I can work this evening. I'm covering for Amy at Greer so she could go to the Orange Bowl game in Miami.

Now back to my design board, Happy quilting today.
Shelia

Happy New Year 2012

2012-01-01T20:12:00.002-05:00

Can you believe that 2012 is already here? Where does time go. I remember when I was a young girl I was always impatient for the next season to get here and my grandmother would always tell me "don't wish your life away....time goes so much faster as you get older....enjoy everyday"
Well she was certainly right. I can't believe how fast the years are passing. Seems like just yesterday that we were welcoming in 2011.

Hope that you were able to get some quilting in this weekend. I am planning on doing some quilting and sewing later this week since as a nurse I am working the holidays!!

So what are my resolutions for 2012?
1-Stick to our plan for paying off our mortgage in 38 more payments.
2-Spend time everyweek quilting.
3-Finish or give away UFO's. (this is one that I have got to do. I have so many UFO's right now that it is just ridiculious. I am going to draw out the name out of my basket.....you remember the basket from last year with all of my UFO's that I said I would pull one out each time I finished another project and either give away, throw away or finish????? Well I am going to do JUST THAT this year......either finish, give away or throw away.
I think that three resolutions are enough. I am always a goal oriented person so I just have to Get It Done!! Make a plan, stick to the plan and reach the goal.

Many blessings to each of you in this coming year.
Shelia

Cleaning Up and Bee Time

2011-12-31T06:36:00.001-05:00

I've been sorting my 2 1/2 inch strip bin into color families. Looks lots better now. Some of the shorter pieces I'm going to go ahead and cut into 2 1/2 inch squares and put them in their bin.

The sorting is going to take some time to complete. My friend Debbie commented that I needed to get started with these and make a 1600 quilt......I didn't know what that was until I googled it. Sounds like a plan to me and it is an interesting technique. Maybe the blue and yellow strips could become a 1600 quilt.

Last night at bee was a lot of fun at Sue's house. Always good to have some laughs with friends, especially after a crazy day.

Remember the hershey kisses fabric I gave fat quarter's to each of my bee girls after my trip to Hershey PA?.....well friend Debbie F. made us each a wall hanging from some of the chocolate fabric...very sweet.

Happy Quilting on this final day of 2011, I'm off to work in the ER.
Shelia

The Reason I Don't Like To Take Medications

2011-12-30T12:26:00.001-05:00

If you know me you know that I don't like to take medications that affect my ability to maintain a clear mind ie., pain medications. And this is one of the reasons why...

This is what is left of my buckwheat neck roll I have been using for my headache and back pain. I thought I put it into the microwave for 2 minutes......evidently I hit a few more zeros than that and almost burnt my house down. Good thing I was in the quilt studio and smelled the smoke quickly and had a fire extinguisher handy. Now to explain this to Roger. No more headache med for me!! Took many things on my plate right now and I need to be clear headed to keep up. My head is just going to have to deal with it and move on!
Thank you Lord for keeping us safe today.
Happy Quilting,
Shelia

Out Of Control

2011-12-30T09:38:00.001-05:00

Sometimes you just have to admit that something is out of control.......so here it is....my confession........
my bin of 2 1/2 inch strips ARE OUT OF CONTROL.....they are taking over like the andromeda strain.....if you remember that movie then you are getting old...hehehe.

See what I mean......so I have to do something with all these strips. Pull out the Bonnie Hunter and Jelly Roll Books and lets find something to make from this fabric.

You know you have to use it up because fabric is just too expensive to throw these strips away. I have so many beautiful fabrics in this overflowing bin.......overflowing.....you mean volcanic eruption don't you!

Looking back over 2011 I see so many times that we have pieced beautiful things from scraps of fabric. So when life gives you scraps....make a quilt.

Happy Quilting,
Shelia

Merry Christmas On This Twelveth Day Of Cristrmas

2011-12-25T18:05:00.001-05:00

Our beautiful Christmas Tree.

Merry Christmas to all our friends and family. On this wonderful Christmas Day my true love gave to me...a spinpad cover for my IPAD 2. Interesting cover which serves as a stand, works with the smart cover and give you a handle on the back of the IPAD. Truely unique item. I love it.

And on this Christmas Day I gave my true love the two gun cleaning and repair videos that he wanted.

On this day our Lord and Savior was born in Bethlehem. Thank you Lord for our salvation and all of the blessings you give us each day. Thank you for gift of wonderful family and friends. Help us each day to realize all of the things we have to be thankful for. Remind us to have a givers heart. Remind us to spend more time with those we love and doing the things we love to do.
Merry Christmas everyone.

Shelia & Roger

On The Eleventh Day Of Christmas

2011-12-24T06:07:00.001-05:00

On this eleventh day of Christmas my true love gave to me.....A new machine quilting book by Judy Woodworth. I took a quilting class from Judy while I was at MQS in Overland Park, Kansas in 2010. She is such a sweet lady and I learned so much from her class.

And on this eleventh day of Christmas I gave my true love.....his favorite nuts, cashews.

Now it's time to get things ready to snuggle down tonight to await Santa's arrival. Merry Christmas everyone........maybe a few minutes for quilting today???? Not for me it is off to work 12 hours in the emergency room today. Family comes tomorrow for a late lunch, many things to get done prior to their arrival. Until then....
Happy Quilting,
Shelia

On The Tenth Day Of Christmas

2011-12-23T18:44:00.001-05:00

On this tenth day of Christmas I just have to laugh. Roger and I have been married a long time and even think alike. Our tenth presents attest to this.
.........on the tenth day of Christmas my true love gave to me.....a new pair of bedroom slippers to match my new robe.

and on this tenth day of Christmas I gave my true love..... a new pair of bedroom slippers to match his new robe.

So you see why I am laughing. We both had each other bedroom slippers for the tenth present. What a hoot.

Another blessing today......my headache is finally gone!! I've been sleeping most of the night and day today from the medicine but whatever, it finally worked. A wonderful tenth day of Christmas.

Now to get prepared for Christmas dinner on Sunday. I work in the ER tomorrow 12 hours so I need to get a lot of planning done today, but still a little groggy.

Happy Quilting,
Shelia

On This Ninth Day Of Christmas

2011-12-22T06:32:00.000-05:00

On this ninth day of Christmas my true love gave to me....(boy this is a long song).....A new pink bathrobe. I guess we both had the same idea that we needed new bathrobes. Our old ones were almost 10 years old. This thing is sooooooooo soft and warm. My cat jumped into my lap and stopped in her tracks as she felt the softness. You could see the envy in her eyes and she started to knead.

And on this ninth day of Christmas I gave my true love.....The Tim Tebow book "Through My Eyes". I also sent this to our oldest son Roger Jr. for Christmas as they are both Tebow fans. I thought it would be a good thing they could read and talk about together.

Have a great day quilting......or preparing for Santa to come this weekend.
Shelia

On This Eighth Day Of Christmas

2011-12-21T20:14:00.001-05:00

On the eighth day of Christmas my true love gave to me..... a wireless keypad to use with my IPAD....WOW!!

And on this eighth day of Christmas I gave my true love.....a Home Depot gift card......he just loves that place!

Today was Uncle Virgil's funeral at the Veterans Cemetery in Anderson. Really nice service. Taps gets me everytime. The honor guard 21 gun salute and flag ceremony was so touching.

Take some time for quilting today.
Shelia

On The Seventh Day Of Christmas

2011-12-20T10:12:00.000-05:00

Amazing how fast time is passing. So on this Seventh Day Of Christmas my true love gave to me...... A beautiful 2 yard piece of batik fabric, a coffee mug and a tea towel which reads....."I may not be perfect.....but parts of me are excellent". What a hoot!!!!

And on this seventh day of Christmas I gave my true love a new robe. It is soooooooo soft. Maybe I can borrow it sometime........that is if the cat doesn't find it first.

Now off to finish some last minute details for the funeral and get my dad a hair cut.

I plan on doing some destressing in my quilt room this evening. Maybe some cleaning, maybe not, who knows what might be going on in this room. I now have wonderful Josh Groban Christmas music playing on my IPAD and new boom box that I received. Wonderful music that I know Uncle Virgil would be singing right along with me.

Many Blessings,

Shelia

On The Sixth Day Of Christmas

2011-12-19T05:59:00.001-05:00

On this sixth day of Christmas my true love gave to me..... A new quilting book for machine embroidery. He didn't realize that I don't have a embroidery machine.....yet......maybe an idea........hehehe.

And on this sixth day of Christmas I gave my true love..... some gun magazines he's been thinking of subscribing to.

I'm off to work today as family is finishing up funeral plans for later this week. Trying to keep my mind busy. Today is Roger's first Monday off with his new schedule. He will be getting new tires for our Grand-daughter Haley's car and finishing up Roger III's rear-end repair on his mustang. Guess it doesn't sound like too much of a day off for him.
Get some quilting in today,
Shelia

A Solem Fifth Day of Christmas

2011-12-18T06:42:00.000-05:00

On this fifth day of Christmas we are reminded how precious those we love are to us. Yesterday we lost my precious uncle Virgil, my dad's baby brother. He was a precious christian man and I know he is with my grandmother, grandfather and his brother Don at this time. What a joyous reunion at this time of year. It is a reminder of how we should make sure we tell those we love how much they mean to use each and every day as we know not when God will call us to be with him. But as uncle Virgil would say.....o.k. girl what's next.....enough said.

On this fifth day of Christmas my true love gave to me.... A beautiful batik jelly roll of 40 different fabrics, they are gorgeous.

And on this fifth day of Christmas I gave my true love.....his favorite cologne. Obsession for men.

I'll end this post with my favorite scripture...

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not unto thine own understandings. In all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy paths. Proverbs 3:5-6

Many blessings,

Shelia

On This Fourth Day Of Christmas

2011-12-17T04:57:00.002-05:00

The fourth day of Christmas is here and my true love gave to me.....
"Jelly Roll Quilt Magic" book. Wonderful patterns in here. Can't wait to try some fun stuff.

And on this fourth day of Christmas I have my true love a gift card to Lowe's.....which he has already removed from the sleeve.....guess he is ready to use it.

Off to work so got to run,
Hope you get some quilting in today.
Shelia

On This Third Day Of Christmas

2011-12-16T11:00:00.000-05:00

On this third day of Christmas my true love gave to me...... A wonderful Jelly Roll of bright jewel toned fabric.

And on this third day of Christmas I gave my true love.....The beginning of a wonderful movie night together. Three Movies and a voucher to make popcorn and enjoy the evening together. (I think I am really the recepient of this gift....hehehehe) We love spending this time together.

Last night I also attempted again to load EQ6 onto my new computer, I called the tech support line who helped me load the program. But today it states it can't open the file.......grrrrrrrrr.........

Got a few more presents to wrap and get under the tree. Then off to rest, trying to get rid of a headache and prepare for the weekend working. I have so much on my list of To Do's but today I am going to have to rest.......think this 2 week long headache is stress, but I am soooooooo over this thing. So doc says rest......so gona try that.

Happy Quilting,

Shelia

On The Second Day Of Christmas

2011-12-15T06:24:00.000-05:00

I really think I like this twelve days of Christmas. I really needed this uplift daily.

So....on this second Day of Christmas my true love gave to me..... a wonderful Taste of Home slow cooker cookbook. I love the taste of home magazine ever since the first issue many years ago and recently have been using my slow cooker more and more, so this was a wonderful thing for Roger to have chosen.

Now on this second Day of Christmas I gave my true love.....Yaktrax Pro for his shoes. Yes I want to keep my honey safe as he thrashes through the ice and snow this winter. These you can keep in your pocket and put on your boots as you walk out into the winter weather. (got me a pair for my shoes also as walking across parking lots or having to walk to work at the hospital during ice storms is one of the most treaturous events). Don't really want to have to use these, but now we have them if needed.

I hope that you are beginning to get into the spirit of Christmas with all of the hussle and bussle going on right now. Take a few minutes to enjoy the season and the blessings each of us have at this time.

And of course I hope you get some time to quilt today. I just visited Bonnie Hunter's blog and saw the cute little mug rug she pieced from her scraps. I did some mug rugs recently as I was quilting another quilt in the long arm. I like to put extra blocks and fat quarters either beside or below the quilt and use up the extra batting that is with the quilt I am doing. It gives me alot of little quilted items that I can make into zippered bags, mug rugs etc. The possibilities are endless.

Happy Quilting,

Shelia

On The First Day Of Christmas

2011-12-14T06:26:00.004-05:00

Roger and I are doing the 12 days of Christmas this year. It has been fun finding little things to give for each day, some little, some bigger gifts.

So.....On The First Day Of Christmas my true love gave to me...

A boombox to use in my quilting studio with my IPAD 2. YIPPIE!!

Now on this first day of Christmas I gave my true love...

A gun book he has been wanting. He was thrilled.

Christmas blessings everyone......don't forget to get some quilting in when you can.
Shelia

Quilting Friends Are The Best Friends

2011-12-10T09:46:00.001-05:00

I know most quilters will say that they have great quilting friends, but I am so blessed to have a wonderful group of friends that I regularly get together with to quilt.

Last week was such a stressful week and adding in a quick trip to Florida to check on Roger's mother was the back breaker. My precious friends knowing how stressed I was offered to work on some pillowcases for me, they knew I needed to get them done by this week for the children at Shriner's. Suzanne offered to come by and pick up the fabric I had purchased for the cases and the bee group would work on them while I was away. These girls are unbelievable! Suzanne's sister in law Michelle here visiting from Wisconsin herself pieced 25 pillowcases!!! The bee pieced a total of 91 pillowcases for the children, bringing the total pieced for the children to125. So HUGE THANKS and tremendous blessings go out to Suzanne, Susan, Sue, Debbie, Gina, Dave, Michelle, Betty. Youball are angels of mercy for your assistance in this project. We will be giving the children their christmas stockings and pillowcases this Friday the 16th.
Below is a picture of some of the cases on my ironing table.

Now you see why I say I am truly a blessed woman.
Happy Quilting,
Shelia

Suwanee Valley Quilt Shop

2011-12-04T10:24:00.001-05:00

This quilt shop is on the way to Roger's moms house, it's about 30 minutes from her house. It's a unique stor where seven ladies who loved quilting have joined together to open a shop. They have put a lot of time and thought into making this place a great stop for quilters. It is not in a heavily populated city, far from it. It is in a quaint one stop light town. But traffic to the shop is steady. I've been there before when buses of ladies came from the lower part of the state for a day trip. It is well worth the drive.

The shop is composed of two buildings, both jistoric coke bottling buildings. In one is the main quilt shop and cafe and the other is their classroom, longarm quilting, candy shop and antique sewing machines and repairs.

You can see through the christmas room out into the little cafe. They serve a lunch menu of things likensoup and sandwiches and to die for desserts.

One half of the classroom.

The book room.

Part of one of the fabric rooms.

The longarm room

Cute cat quilt hanging in one of the hallways.

Christmas tree quilt outside of the holiday fabric room

One hallway is covered both sides with notions

Beautiful manatee pillow on a display chair.

Another fabric room

Love, love, love the bathroom door.

Their banner quilt at the register.

Holiday fabric room has all of the different holiday fabrics.

Now this is Florida.....pink flamingos!

One room in the antique section.

More antique room.

I liked this room divider, can see quilts hanging over the rails in my room.....need to add this to my "to do" list.

A unique part of this shop is Herb, an african grey parrot. I first met him when I kept hearing a cat meow. I looked everywhere for that cat. The cage was covered and it looked just like a quilt draped over something. Then one of the ladies, "hush herb, you are not getting out". Then I knew just what I had been hearing. They also have a cat and the bird is always immitating the cat. Ever since that first meeting I have had to talk to Herb when I visit.

An antique crazy quilt framed.

More of the crazy quilt. I'm not one who will probably make a crazy quilt, but I sure admire the talent of those who do.

Next is a quilt that I made for my mother in law Alberta using the BQ pattern. This pattern lets you use those large focus and novelty prints. she loves roosters so I pulled every rooster and chicken fabric from my stash to make her quilt.

A close up of the BQ block. Love how it frames the focus fabric.

Looking at the label, yes Susan I made a label...hehehe. I can't believe I made this in 2007 for her Christmas present, boy times flies!

Happy Quilting,
Shelia

Location:Trenton, Florida

Fundraiser For Shriner's

2011-11-20T18:46:00.001-05:00

Today my ladies group held a luncheon to raise money for helping the children at Shriner's Hospital here in Greenville. Each of us who chose to do a table were given a calendar month and were to decorate our table to represent that month. My month was July, so of course I did patriotic theme. Here is my table.

I invited my bee girls to be my guest at the table. we had a great time. I also made patriotic mug mats for each of them as their gift from me. I made them heart shaped because each of them have such big hearts. thanks ladies for helping me in my mission to serve the children of Shriner's.
Left is Regina, right is Suzanne. Regina's sister was a patient at Shriner's Hospital in Minneapolis as a child.

Me and Mom (Betty)

Debbie in her patriotic jacket.

Michelle, Suzanne's sister-in-law an honorary bee girl.

Suzanne left, Sue on right.

I am very blessed in my life to have such wonderful friends who enjoy and share my love of quilting.

Now to see more of the calendar month tables.
Easter table

November Thanksgiving table

Look at the cute little turkey's made out of candy corn

February Valentine's Table

Another November table with autumn theme

October table which used the Breast Cancer awareness theme. Wonderful!

August table which was the table decorator's birthday month so she made it a birthday party table with a mickey mouse theme, she invited her grand children to her table.

March table wich used a St. Patrick's Day theme.

December table who did two tables and used winter/Christmas themes.

Special table was one to represent Shriner's Hospital. The hostess was the nurse doll.. How cute.

Another specialty table was a Clemson/Carolina college table to symbolize the upcoming rivalry game.

Lot's of talented ladies and lot's of fun spending time with my friends.

Happy Quilting,
Shelia

Location:Hejaz Shrine Center

Happy Birthday Roger

2011-11-17T08:43:00.001-05:00

A Very Big Happy Birthday To My Wonderful Husband Roger.

My life is so blessed to have you beside me. Hope today is a wonderful day for you.

Shelia

Quilt Guild Inspiration

2011-11-15T20:31:00.001-05:00

Last night was my quilt guild meeting and Quilters Gallery from NC was our speaker and trunk show. Wonderful quilts that are alot of inspiration.
This quilt used a motified drunkards path for the piecing. Wonderful effects.

Anyone up for some applique...

Kaleidoscope pattern. Always interesting to see the curved effect you can get from the straight seam piecing.

Border prints used to get a great pieced look border.

The border on this shows how she pieces the border as she pieces the rows so that it is done when the rowsnare sewed together, great idea. Let's you use more of your scraps for borders.

This border below used Marti Michell's star border piecing.

Dash to the finish pieced with churn dash blocks. Extends the sashing into the borders, more scraps used.

Anyone for some half square triangles???

Batiks and black, beautiful.

BQ blocks. Use your conversational prints or those you don't want to cut into small pieces. Quick to piece.

More kaleidoscope quilts.

Curved piecing....not for me.

Now I have seen this Cotton Boll quilt several times and I love it.

Boxes anyone?

More applique, halloween with two fabrics.

Drunkards path. The used orphan nine patch blocks to cut the curved pieces. What an interesting effect.

Many pillowcases to get made, guess I will be sewing in Florida in a couple of weeks.
Another crazy day today, hopefully Wednesday will be better. Until next time.......
Happy Quilting,
Shelia

YIKES!! Help Needed

2011-11-14T16:46:00.001-05:00

Time is flying by and I can't believe that it is only a few weeks till Christmas. I have to get the pillowcases done for Shriner's Hospital.
Anyone willing to make a pillowcase or two please let me know. I need a total of 120 and mom and I have only gotten 24 made so far.......so I have a lot of cutting and sewing to do and must get them done by December 10th to be given out to the kids.

Above is a picture of some of the pillowcases from last year. The children at Shriner's Hospital loved the cases and I know they will be thrilled with the new ones this year.
Better get busy cutting.
Happy Quilting,
Shelia

Happenings

2011-11-14T11:38:00.001-05:00

Here's Roger Jr. and Daniel at the Gator Homecoming Game in Florida. They had a blast. Sure miss them when they are not around.

My trainer Heather asked me to make a small quilt to be used in a basket they were auctioning off to benefit Juvenile Diabetes. So I used a chinese coin setting using 3 1/2 x 6 1/2 inch rectangles from my stash to quickly put together this quilt. She is using it in their "princess" basket. Hope the winner likes their new quilt.

At bee Friday night Susan was working on her double wedding ring quilt, she has been working on it on and off for about 10 years. She was really grumbling by the end of the night but isn't it Gorgeous!!

Here is our newest bee member Regina or we call her Gina. She was hand quilting on a flannel quilt for a family member. We had such fun, she is a great addition to our Friday madness.

I was working on some mug rugs to be used for my table at our annual luncheon to benefit Shriner's Hospital for Children. I am making a mug rug for each of the eight ladies who will be at my table. I think they turned out cute.

We are doing tables this year of the different months. I got July so my theme is patriotic which is awesome, except that that theme is hard to find at this time of year. I think I have everything else that I will need for my table. I'll post pictures of the event and the different tables represented. It is always a fun event.

Happy Quilting,

Shelia