Hello happy quilters where ever you are! I have been so busy lately, but I did get the baby quilt finished and mailed to Ohio. My neice likes it and so do I. Now I am finishing up some projects for a school fund raiser. Its not even Billy's school. It is a school on the sounthside near the shop where I work. Did I mention that I have a part time job. I only work 2 or 3 days a week but it does provide me cash to support my quilty pleasures! And I love where I work! It is at a well known fabric shop (and it is not JoAnns) and I feel like I have the world's biggest stash! I spend my time caressing and folding the fabric and planning this quilt and that bag for this person or that one. It is tons of fun! I am known there as the "Material Girl". But I digress, I am making some lap quilts and some baby quilts, quilted bags, etc, etc. I will be at their craft show next month selling my little home made goodies.

I am also in a "fall"mini quilt swap and I have been playing with several designs. So far I need to quilt one, which I will keep, and put together the 2nd one which will go to my partner as soon as I find out who that is. I have just mailed off the 2nd square in my block swap with 2 sisters and 2 friends.

Oh yeah..I do have a sister story to tell! Only because I did promise her this would end up on my blog. My youngest sister (who shall remain nameless and lives in Vermont) sent me a beautiful Maple Leaf block in pale, muted blue and green. Two of my favorite colors. I was soooo impressed with her work! All of the seams were exactly 1/4 inch, they were all pressed in the right direction and the square was as pretty on the back side as it was on the front. I found out she also sent the same pattern block to our sister in Illinois. I was proud to call such a talented quilter my sister! I even bragged on her work on my Facebook page! The night after that she called me and said she had a confession to make. The blocks she sent to us were not made by her! She received them in a round robin and decided to send them to us because they were extras! She thought this was funny! Now to make up for her conniving deception she is sending me 20 more to complete a whole quilt! I guess she had a "quilty consciounce" But I am the winner, I have a whole quilt to put together and she has to make me another block for the swap! Yipee!

OK..enough tonight, I have about 3 lap quilts that need some binding hand hemmed on the back side and a grandson who wants me to play Hangman with him....so peace and prayers till next time.

missd

I have been away from blogging for awhile. As you all know, work and responsibilities take time away from my quilting life. This little blog is a big-time WIP. I have changed the picture a couple of times now. Granny Gigglewings could not be made into a "clean" image, so I switched to my Pieced Peace Dove. This is the middle square of my oldest quilt. I designed it myself in another lifetime. So we are trying it on for awhile. Maybe I will put up 2 or 3 and let you all vote on which one you like.

I just discovered siggies and I want to do this. They are sweet little signature quilt blocks and I am going to design one that says "ME"! Take a look at this: http://quiltsandsiggies.web-log.nl/quilts_and_siggies. I am excited about this and am looking forward to making my first ones.

I have finished my grand-nephew's baby blanket. He is not even born yet, hopefully it will arrive in Ohio before he does! So hang in there Patti, it is on the way! It is the first one quilted on my new sewing machine. I am so happy I made this purchase. I can't wait to see how I take to free motion quilting. I can do that with this machine. I am so happy happy!

Today was not a good day when I first got up this morning. But blogging has made me feel better. I am blessed and I am going to make this a great day. 

Peace and Prayers for you too!
missd

Mail Surprise!

I got a real pleasant surpise in the mail today, well, ok, it wasn't a surprise after I saw the return address. I knew it would be my first square from my friend Patricia in California. The surprise was how she knew the fall colors to choose. Fall is my favorite time of year, well next to winter ( and spring) and Patricia has made me an absolutely beautiful quilt block for our first 12 Month Block Swap! This is going to be a great year for quilts, I am Block Swapping with 2 sisters and 2 friends and we all live in different states. It will be an exciting year for surpises in the mail! And what a great way to start a friendship circle, I met my friend in California at a GetQuit Summitt for people with special stories to tell. I will have "more on that" in another blog. My other new friend is in the military, stationed in Alabama now (Roll, Tide, Roll!). I met her last Soccer season because her daughter was on the same team as my grandson. I have one sister who lives in Vermont and another who lives in Illinois. That rounds out our little swap circle. Unless I can talk a long time childhood friend in Battle Creek Michigan into joining us. "More on that" later too! But today I received this lovely block from my new friend,and she is such a quilter! All the seams look to be exactly 1/4 inch and they are ironed flat and beautiful! This is what I strive for and now my friend has challenged me to be more exact in my own measurements and seams! And I will Patricia, my friend...Thank you!
Peace, missd

So, today I paid a visit to the Southside Hancock Fabrics store. I wanted a chance to talk to the quilting teacher in that store because I need ideas for my own classes. Oh, yeah! I forgot to mention, I am teaching quilting classes on Monday and Wednesday evenings at the store near my house. I missed her by one day, she is there on Wednesdays only. I am so excited about this, but of course I do tend to get excited about my Quilty stuff! I live such a blessed life! Henry David thoreau said "Go confidently in the direction of your dreams! Live the life you have imagined". I am so doing that. I think I have been living my life to get to this point. I get to create such beautiful things, I get to be close to family and friends (the people I love the most), and I get to work doing what I love! I am living the life I imagined and it is all because the Lord has blessed me! I hope all who share my "Quilty Pleasures" journey will live a happy, peaceful life too. God bless you for being who you are and what you do!

Peace, missd

 

 

OK...I did promise the story behind the dark green and rose quilt you see above. All quilts have their own story and evey story deserves to be documented. This quilt, particularly, is special to me, for the memories it holds. My husband and I purchased our home at the lake in 1990. I started this quilt for our bed in 1991. So it is now 18 years old. (Of course it was put away for awhile). It was to be all hand-pieced and hand quilted. I pieced every block a different pattern. The center Peace Dove is my own design. The colors matched our bedroom decor. I would set with my husband in our living room and sew on the quilt blocks while we watched TV. Night after night this would be our routine, our time together. I got all of the blocks done and he watched every shoot-em-up ever made! I finished the sashing and borders in the summer of 1993. I finally sandwiched the quilt and started on the hand quilting. My sweetie use to say that this quilt will never be done in his life time. It wasn't. He went to be with the Lord on Nov 9, 1993. That's when it was put away. For 16 years. Then one day I unpacked the quilt and one look at the 3 hand-quilted center blocks and I had an epiphany! This quilt will not be done in my life time either! Mahatma Gandhi said "You must be the change you wish to see in the world". My wish was to see this quilt finished, on my bed, and loved as it was intended to be. I knew I had to finish it....Now!! Being the sensible, practible person I am, I also knew it would be done a lot faster if I machine quilted the rest of it. So I did! In Feb of this year! No, it is not ALL hand made, but it was made by me, it is mine, and it is already 20 years old! It is finished, it is on my bed and it is loved for all the memories that keep my heart warm.

 

I was going to blog every night, but last night got away from me and it was very late before I turned off my machine. I have been planing a quilt for by best friend for Christmas and I found this beautiful Asian Jar material and it just screamed Maria's name. It is so her! I just cannot find the right pattern for it because the print is big! I did put together this Attic Widow sample, on my design board. I kinda like it..Maybe someone out there has an idea....I am so open to suggestions right now. Here is a picture of the pretty print. I have paired it with a warm maroon, a peach and a black. They look lovely together. What do you think?

Peace, Donna