No picture today

Just an update as I get ready to leave on vacation. At long last our trip to Seattle starts in just 38 more hours. I am very excited to go out and spend some time with my brother and behave like a tourist in Seattle and the area. Not to mention we had snowflakes this morning as I came in to work and it's about 20 degrees warmer in Seattle this week!

I have been working on several sewing projects but not making a lot of headway. I am taking out a homespun quilt for my brother's new house and will have to get pictures of it somewhere along the way, right now it's in a suitcase! I purchased a vintage sewing machine in an oak desk (yeah Craigslist!!) and had it delivered to my brother's house so I am taking out a huge suitcase full of home dec fabrics to do some window treatments and other stuff while I am out there! I sure do hope he likes what I'm bringing!

My quilt for the Ronald McDonald House Crayola challenge is sandwiched and just waiting quilting when I get back from Seattle. I love this quilt and can't wait to share it with you! The colors are so unique and not what one would choose but that was the challenge!!

This past weekend I had the absolute joyous experience of dinner with a childhood friend who was in town for a conference. We had not seen each other in 30+ years, so a lot of catching up - but it seemed like the years just melted away. I am really looking forward to staying in touch and getting together in the future. I should have a high school reunion in 2 more years - maybe then we can make it happen again!

Well that's about all the news. Work is great -busy at year end - but I do thrive on that so I am happy and the family is all well so what more could I ask for? Stephen will be joining us in Seattle for Thanksgiving and Thomas will be flying to NC to participate in a regional cross country run, which he is hoping will get him noticed for some collegiate scholarships.

As soon as we return from Seattle the Christmas season will be upon us with decorating and gifting and entertaining in addition to the work we do through Lions Club and American Legion. Someday our lives will calm down, we hope.

Hope you have a wonderful warm safe holiday and I'll be back!!

2008 Scrap Challenge

The Scraps to Treasures challenge is over for 2008 so I can finally post my quilt. This is an annual challenge that quilters sign up to participate in on the HGTV bulletin board. As many quilters as sign up is how many quilts get donated back to community organization or individuals. This year it was 54 - so quite an impact. Every quilter must send in 2 6" squares of fabric for every participant. Then depending on your previous year's performance you can also be allotted additional fabrics to add in. Each quilter makes their quilt, sends in pictures, then waits!

My quilt this year was donated once again to be raffled to benefit the activities of the American Legion. I called it "Loose Change" . The shape of the blocks are called 'coins' and loose change is what the legion membres collect at various times of the year for fundraising, through Poppy Days if you are in the Auxiliary or GTTYWG (Gifts to the Yanks that Gave) if you are a legion member.

So here's my quilt - it measured about 75 " square - so it was large enough for a double bed. It is backed in a tiny all over flag print. Sorry for the fuzzy pic - it was taken with the phone!

Enjoy! Now home to start the Crayola quilt for Ronald McDonald House Charities!!

Another oldie that I loved

I write this title and am not sure if I am referring to the quilt picture or the person I gave it to many years ago.

I found the cat fabric made by Red Rooster and outer border by Moda in a small shop in Phoenix AZ when I was out there working one summer. The antique stuffed cats reminded me of the mother of a friend of mine when I was a child. Pauline had a wonderful house filled with antiques and collectibles and one of the things she collected was stuffed tabby cats made from fabric panels. I don't know when the panels were originally printed, but they were reprinted in... I believe the 60's. Anyway, Pauline would find the cats at sales, then people would bring her cats they found at sales and she ended up with many many stuffed tabby cats. About 7 years ago I went back to my hometown in Western New York, reunited with Laurie my childhood friend and when we went to visit Pauline she had all the cats lined up on the stairs to the second floor of her house (now unused). They were looking like they had all been coming downstairs and stopped for a short sit and then you walked in!

So when I saw this fabric I had to buy it and make Pauline a quilt. I bought all there was of the cat panel and it was just enough to make this quilt. But once I got it made, I loved the quilt so much I searched for months on ebay until I found more of the cat fabric. The seller had a large quantity and was selling it whole piece. So I now have 9 yards of the cat fabric in my stash!

I mailed the quilt to Pauline that Christmas and do I have to tell you she loved it? I visited the following summer with my son Stephen, we road tripped the day after school ended from Illinois back to Western New York and of course visited with Pauline and saw the quilt spread over the couch in her home. We were there to shop the 100 mile yard sale and Pauline and Laurie and Stephen and I really did most of the miles! Well, don't you know Pauline gave me a couple of her stuffed cats to bring home. I was so touched. Seeing them justtakes me right back to being a kid.

Pauline passed away early this year. I regret I didn't get back again to see her. But she was a wonderful woman and mother, who never failed to make me feel as special and cared for as her own kids. Some day I'm going to have to make that other quilt for myself and put it on the bed with Pauline's cats and enjoy the many happy memories of my youth and Pauline.

Quick Update

Well - it's almost fall in Illinois, in fact with cold weather this week after Gustav's rains blew through here it really feels like football weather! From running the AC one day to wanting a fire in the fireplace the next night - it's quite a change!

I finished my Scraps to Treasures challenge quilt on schedule but can't post a picture yet, because the challenge is not closed. That will be in two more weeks I think. I've been busy unpacking fabric from the garage into my new sewing space and getting rid of lots of old stuff. A major remodel is a great opportunity to identify how much you really can live without!!

I also finished my flutterbye block swap on the HGTV boards and someday will get those blocks put together into a quilt top!

The attached picture is my first HGTV swap quilt from when I joined the boards about 5 years ago. It is an Autumn Log Cabin (queen size) and I love it - I keep it on my bed in the fall. Right now it is in the family room and after many washings it is so soft and snugly. The blocks are signed by the women who participated from all over the country so it's a nice trip down memory lane when I look at it.

I also finished a table topper for my brother this week done in beautiful batiks that I bought in Boston last month and I have signed up for a new challenge using the Surf and Sand collection from Marcus Brothers. It is lovely blues, taupes and cream in retro designs and paisley. I used it for a throw for my SIL this past winter (which I mailed away without taking a pic!) and I loved it , so I am happy to be in this new challenge. I am supposed to have 8 blocks done by mid October! EEPS!!!!

After that it will be the RMHC Crayola quilt which is due in December, I have my pattern ready, I planned it in EQ5 (my quilt design software) in fact I designed two - one for the charity and one larger for me to keep!

Thanksgiving we are heading out to Seattle for a visit with my brother and his family. It is sure to be a good time and I will get to make a mess in his kitchen instead of in mine!! I am shipping out a spare sewing machine and fabric in advance so I don't have to carry it on the flight and hope to put some things together for his home while I am there! I'll leave the machine for future trips.


Stephen will be 21 soon, so I hoping to finish his Celtic quilt that has been waiting over 2 years to be quilted.....part of a long line up, but his is getting moved to the front of the line. Hard to believe 21 years have just flown by, but I am very proud of him and the man he has become.

Well - That's it for today! More soon!

Long time no chatter!

Came across some older quilt pictures, so I am going to post them over the next little while, until I get new pictures taken I guess!

I have not taken pictures of all the quilts I have made over the years. Many I finish just in the nick of time to pack them up and ship them off or give them away. I don't feel as strong a need to memorialize my efforts as much as I really just want the recipients to enjoy them. Here is one I made for QWL, Quilts with Love. I have been associated with this group for 4 or 5 years. A military mom friend in MO started it with a quilt request for her son on his way to the middle east. It has turned into a huge undertaking with volunteer quilters all over the country participating and has resulted in over 1,000 quilts being sent directly to soldiers.

This one I made from our Legion Post 1084 in Roselle, IL. The white squares have personal sayings and prayers from the Legion members. I really liked this one!!

Window shade is up in Family Room

The window shade finally went up night before last - had issues with getting the rod in the right place - but it's done and works well to block all the light. I used some great fabric I found at Calico Corners in Brookfield, WI when I was there in March. Had intended to use it for pillows on the couch, but was able to purchase more by phone last week, and one of my team was going there last week and picked it up for me! So that worked out and tomorrow I should have the new in my hands and am ready to make the pillows for the couches. I picked up the pillow forms a week ago so progress is being made - not perfection! Not yet anyway.

I am struggling with the pattern to use for the charity quilt that will be raffled off on Aug 1 weekend. I have over 100 6" blocks of all different fabrics. I can add 2 fat quarters more, plus one yard more. And from that I must cut each square at least once and use at least 2" from every square. Sound easy? Not when you are trying to make as large a quilt as possible so that you can get a lot of sales on it at the raffle! It will obviously be very scrappy which is my favorite style. I may play with some fabrics tonight and just do it!! That's how I approached it last year.

This past weekend Mark was sworn in as Director of our Lions Club again. This is a one year term, then we'll see what's next. I get sworn in next month I think as President of our American Legion Auxiliary. Exciting times for a Canadian! LOL!

Have shopped some more for my brother's new home and looking forward to my next visit to Seattle.

More later - will post a pic maybe of the valance material - very funky!

Lots of work, very little sewing!

Have been working hard and skipping lunch breaks, eating at my desk all week, so very tired at night. Not much new on the sewing front. The boys are clamoring for the window shade to be done in the family room so they can better view the TV, so I worked on cutting that last night, but sewing machine is in new studio and french doors are not yet up and the TV was blaring and I just couldn't sit in all that noise and didn't have the 'oomph' to haul the machine back upstairs, so maybe tonight. I already have the rod so it should be a quick job.

I have been receiving the 'flutterbye' blocks from the exchange I am doign via the HGTV quilters BBS and really love them!

We went to dinner last night with Sara (h?) , my son Stephen's new girlfriend. She's very nice - very cute freckles. Didn't open up much but I am sure her first time around the family was a little uncomfortable. I do remember that feeling, it takes some time to get over. I look forward to getting to know her better as their relationship progresses.

We had a tree man at the house yesterday and he will be back today, trimming our maples of old growth, doing some de-stumping and cutting all the wood from our 3 tree removal project last year into firewood sized pieces. They got about 30% of that task done yesterday and hopefully will be all done today. Then I get to go buy new trees or shrubs and replant the area in the patio that I cut down a few years ago! oops!!

Last week I went fabric shopping at Walter E Smithe. They are a high end custom furniture store in Chicago area and I am fortunate to have their outlet store right down the street from me!! I have got some great deals through the years, and love the shop! When they custom upholster a piece they often have leftover fabric and so send the leftovers to the outlet and sell it for $5 a yard! This is usually $45 and up a yard fabric - so it's incredible! So last week I was looking for fabric to recover my brother's dining room furniture after he moves. His home style is mission and his table and chairs are black, so I really needed the right fabric to bring a 'mission' flavor to them. Well, I bought a piece in a deep rust shade with a cross hatching of same color velvet which is gorgeous and works with the black and brings in the graphic lines of mission styling, but then I got home and looked at a piece I picked up a few months ago for my own family room and decided that might be better for him. I have struggled with the decision all week since I might cut the one for my family room window shade and have finally decided to fly both out with us at Thanksgiving and let Fred decide for himself. I have a spare sewing machine that I was going to pass on to my mom anyway, so I will just take that with me and leave it at his house for the future. Oh - I also found a 10 yard bolt of a beautiful chocolate brown, taupe, seafoam, teal, cream striped chenille that I just couldn't leave. I'll use it someday.....somewhere!

Got to run - more later!