Sunday, September 25, 2011

Look what I found at the fair

This year I had the wonderful experience of going to the fair, and getting to see several of my customers quilts entered into the competition. I had a couple surprises, and... I knew a couple of my customers had expressed an interest in entering their quilt in the fair.


This is my customer with her Thimbleberries quilt. That quilt started quite a following, I have since quilted 5 of them, and I have 4 more waiting for me to get to them. Her quilt received an honorable mention from the judges. Way to go, thank you for letting me quilt for you.


This is another customers quilt. She called it "Canning and Tanning". You can't see much of the quilting detail, so I will try my best to describe it. On the blue border, I just quilted a feather border. On the jars themselves, I quilted detail in the jar lid so it looked like it screwed on, and I put detail on the jars that looked like curves of the jars and then added in cursive the words Kerr and Ball (like you would see on canning jars). As for the shelves, she used all black fabric, so I tried to separate the detail by creating a tile background behind the jars and a wood grain shelf under the jars. I am not sure how well I can explain this, I hope it makes sense. She was very happy to receive a honorable mention ribbon for her quilt. I am so happy for her.


This is another quilt by the same customer. This quilt is all primitive appliqué and embroidery. I just did an all crosshatch with a old style feather border. My customer wanted to keep the era an old style quilt, and asked to keep the quilting to minimum. She received an honorable mention on this quilt also. What an honor.


This is a closeup, maybe you can see some of the detail?



This customer's quilt was a major challenge for me. I put this quilt on the frame three times. When I put it on the third time I decided to turn it, I felt like I needed to change my luck with this quilt, I think I was feeling a little superstitious.


My customer ended up with a second place. What a surprise. It sure was a beautiful quilt, and I think I quilted the hell out of it. It took 10 days and too many bobbins, but... I finally finished the quilt. I was definitely intimidated by this quilt. When my customer brought the quilt to me she told me she wanted to put it in the fair. Now that it is done and I see she has done well at the fair, I am ready to face this challenge next year. (Wish me luck!) Congratulation, and thank you for letting me quilt for you.


This was the grand surprise. This was the first real customer quilt that I ever did. I had been quilting as a business for about a month, and quilting for the ladies at the LQS. This customer quilt came to me by one of the ladies that is in my BOM class, she recommended me to her friend because she had seen my work and thought I might be able to quilt it with more than a pantograph.

This quilt also took me a while, but I learned so much. I put rays behind the birds, because that is what the book that the pattern came out of had quilted (by hand) on it, and then I did my signature feather doodle in the tan border, and in the mariners compass I just did quarter inch inset rules around it, and then some swirls around in the tan part. You want to talk about intimidation. I think I sat and wondered what I had gotten myself into longer than it took to actually quilt it. I remember calling the customer to tell her I had it done, I was so scared she wasn't going to like it. I was so happy to get this done.


She received an honorable mention and an innovative judges award. I am so proud of this quilt, not so much my quilting, but the story behind this quilt. The customer actually had a group of women from her office that worked on it. It was like a quilters guild project, they each made a part of it for a co-worker that had retired. What a wonderful group of friends to make such a beautiful quilt and give it to their friend.

Now I just wish I hadn't waited so long to go to the fair. I had waited until the last Friday night to go, and I had to rush to get through everything. I only stayed long enough to get some photos and get out of there.

What a wonderful surprise the fair turned out to be.
thanks - star

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Friday, September 9, 2011

It is like Christmas around here!

Just look at what the mail man brought yesterday!





I was needing some thread to finish up a quilt, and I just thought would't this be a great time to complete my selection of Bottom Line thread?? So I now have the complete line of Bottom Line thread from Superior Threads.
I needed the So Fine brown color, but it was the perfect opportunity to get the Bottom Line. Lucky me!!






So you can imaging how happy I was to see the mail man had made another delivery to my house today. Just look at this beautiful fabric. My ALL TIME favorite "Fig Tree Quilts" new fabric line Butterscotch and Roses, and the new fabric from "Three Sisters" elegant and timeless Etchings. I bet I never cut into it, unless it is an emergency! I am so predictable.

Here is a closeup of the beautiful colors.





Wonderful creams with brown, green and my favorite tomato red that Fig Tree is so famous for. Not to mention the carmel, pink and the light blue, that goes well with everything "Fig Tree".





Then the fabric from 3 Sisters is so beautiful, it reminds me of other lines of fabric they have designed, but this line has a lot of neutral prints with it. I just love it, I will make a quilt out of this line, I just do not know when. ...

Well it is time for me to get back to the border of the half square triangle quilt. Maybe I will finish it this evening. Wish me luck.
thanks - star

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Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Wishing I were quilting...




The first Wednesday of the month is my block of the month at the Parkland Parish Quilt Co.. I am so excited to get the blocks finished. This was last months block, and...with a little focusing on my part, I should get this months block done and posted soon.



This is a quick look at how the quilting is going on the wedding half square triangle quilt. I am not sure if you can see the little feathered wreath? But ... It is the best shot I can get this late at night, with no natural light. I thought could get this finished, but I ran out of the brown thread. I expect to receive an order of thread tomorrow? Otherwise, I will have to let it sit and wait for the UPS man.

Thanks for letting me ramble on about the life of the long arm quilter.
Star


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Sunday, September 4, 2011

There is something about half square triangles

I just love quilts that are made with any combination of them.



This is the next quilt I am working on, and I am going to do feathered wreaths. This quilt has a nice flannel back, and my customer is planning on giving it as a wedding present. I will try to post the photos when it is done.



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Saturday, September 3, 2011

Working away :)

I seem to be keeping myself busy quilting. This is a quick couple shots of the quilt I am working on today.



This is almost done.



I just love the fan when I put it the wide triangle of flying geese.

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