A Special Friday Finish

Ten years ago or so, I started making quilts for all my mother's great-grandchildren when they turned 12. This year, the first of my mother's grandchildren celebrated a 25th wedding anniversary. I've decided the silver wedding anniversary requires a special quilt!

JoLynn and her husband David often host me when I am returning from quilt camp in Idaho. She seemed very pleased with this king-size Triple Irish Chain. And I even sewed the binding down by hand! Sonya Chin did the custom quilting.

JoLynn took the photo for me -- thanks Jo, and quilter holders David and Levi!

 

Linking up to Thank Goodness It's Finished Friday, hosted this week by Molli Sparkles.

Come back tomorrow for my Quilt Wyoming road trip report!


From the desk of your

WIP Wednesday: A Busy Month

 Did you miss me?

I had a wonderful time at Quilt Wyoming -- truly nice, nice people, the best classes and most impressive door prizes ever! I promise a road trip report on Saturday!

But now I really have to buckle down and sew like the wind for the rest of July -- there are five (yep. FIVE!) quilts that must be finished -- sewn, quilted, bound and blogged! by August 2!

First up is today's WIP, the September Jelly Roll Party sample. I feel strongly that next month's sample should be finished for this month's Jelly Roll Party! So I must have the September sample ready to show by the August Jelly Roll Party.

The September quilt is "Windmills" by two of my favorite designers, Pam and Nicky Lintott:

The fabric is "Blueberry Crumble" by Moda.  I think it really looks like September, don't you?  This is only 16 of 48 blocks, so I need to get back to the sewing machine now!

Linking up to WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced.

Friday, I am judging "Heritage Arts" 4-H projects for the El Paso County Fair. I can't wait to see what this year's 4-H'ers have made.



From the desk of your

WIP Wednesday in Wyoming

The DH and I are driving to Wyoming this week so I can attend Quilt Wyoming. 

I'm excited to be taking two classes from teachers whose work I've long admired. First, "Prairie Windmill" with Kathleen Moorhead Johnson. This quilt calls for eight fabrics in graduated shades of two color ways. Here are my fabrics:

Next, "Easy Pieces" with Margaret Miller of "Angle Play" fame. I'll save the photos until I start sewing the fabrics together!

Linking up to WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced.

This post is a test of Blogger for iPhone. It's not fast, but I can blog from the road!

Saturday Stash: A New Shop!

I love it when a new quilt/yarn shop opens nearby! Today is the grand opening of "Fabric Bliss -- the Colorado Springs Edition."

The original Fabric Bliss is located in the Denver Santa Fe arts district. In keeping with their "artsy" roots, the Colorado Springs Fabric Bliss is located in the West Side of Colorado Springs, where there are many art galleries, artsy shops and great restaurants.

The Dishcloth Diva, Deb Buckingham, and I were at the shop minutes after they opened for the first time on Tuesday.

Look! Modern fabric on the right-hand side of the shop! You know how I love a shop that has fabric I haven't seen anywhere else.

And yarn on the left! Madelinetosh, Pigeonroof, Shibui, Dream in Color, Cascade, Abuelita, and Lion Brand. (Plus, a sock knitting class with the Dishcloth Diva herself!)

I bought yarn for My Little Sailor's next birthday sweater. (It's a surprise, so no photos!) 

Sharon (L) rings up Deb's purchase of a lovely Abuelita hand-dye to make a sample for Deb's next book!

In Colorado Springs, Fabric Bliss is located at 2616 W. Colorado Ave, Suite 21. Hours: Tuesday - Saturday: 11a - 7p, Sunday: 12p - 6p Monday: Closed. Phone: 719.646.2370

I finished piecing my next Scrap Squad quilt today -- quilting, binding and blogging tomorrow for Quilty Pleasures blog!

From the desk of your

Friday Finish: Schnibbles

My last finish for June was my "under the wire" Vintage Schnibbles quilt. The pattern is "Dulcinea," and the fabric is "A Simpler Time" by Holly Taylor for Moda. I used Moda Bella Solids "Natural" for the background.

When I started to square up my 3/4 square triangles, I realized I could trim them to 4" rather than the 3.5" as instructed in the pattern. Of course, that meant I had to fiddle with the borders to make them fit. I had to add one 1" strip to the strip pieces on each side of the outside border. The quilt finished at 37.5" square -- perfect for a wall hanging. The colors just match the mountain condo of my friend Lori, so it will be a belated hostess gift!

You can see other "Vintage Schnibbles" at A Quilting Life and Pink Pincushion.

Linking up to Link a Finish Friday at Richard and Tanya Quilts:

As well as Thank Goodness it's Finally Finished at Quokka Quilts:

And also, "Can I Get a Whoop Whoop?" at Confessions of a Fabric Addict:

Come back tomorrow for a peek at the newest quilt shop in town on Saturday Stash!

From the desk of your

Happy Independence Day!

I know, I should be working on my Scrap Squad quilt. But I want to show you some of the red, white, and blue quilts I've made over the past few years. Out of  more than 100 quilts, not many are RWB!

First, though, here's a photo of My Little Sailor the day he enlisted in the Navy. December 14, 2011:

They're back on patrol in the Western Pacific:

And now for some quilts! First up, "American Valor" from Fons & Porter's Love of Quilting magazine:

It's promised, but not bound and delivered yet! (I haven't forgotten, Casey!)

This is my most recent RWB quilt, "Hexagon Gardens," which we'll be working on at Jelly Roll Party this Friday:

Another recent finish, "Stars from Strips" by Cozy Quilts:

"Lover's Lane," a Fat Quarter Fun project from 2012:

Here is a photo of my friend Jane with me from the 2011 Jelly Roll Race at quilt retreat. She won first place, and I took second:

Fair winds and following seas on this Independence Day to all the ships at sea!

From the desk of your

WIP Wednesday: Scrap Squad from Scraps

The July/August Scrap Squad quilt, "Turning Points" was designed by Carolyn McCormick. Carolyn is the genius behind the "Add-a-Quarter" rulers.

I'm seriously behind on my Scrap Squad project -- I have one (one. one.) block complete!

If you're interested in seeing what the other Scrap Squad members did with the "Turning Points" quilt, here are links to the Quilty Pleasures Blog for each quilt that has been posted so far:

Gina is from Spring Valley, Illinois.

Becky is from Blue Springs, Missouri.

Carol is from Schererville, Indiana.

Christa is  from Torquay, Saskatchewan, Canada.

Here is my lone little block:

Eep!  I have to have this quilt finished before I go to Quilt Wyoming next week! Good thing Independence Day isn't a "cooking" holiday!

Linking up to WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced, guest hosted by Stacey from The Tilted Quilt.

Luckily, I already have Friday's "TGIFF" quilt finished. Come back then to see what I finished this week!

From the desk of your