An Old Quilttop

After we had moved to Michigan, there was an sale in the house across the street from us. When I went over to the sale, I found a box with some old fabrics which I didn't really look through very well but paid $5.00 for the box. This was in that box. Obviously, someone had no idea that there was anything worthwhile in the contents. I have no idea how old this is, but the fabrics really do appear to be older. No matter - it is a lovely old top and I should have it quilted one day. For the past few years, I have taken this and another old top that was given to me by an old classmate to our show to be used to cover the tables at the door.

Don't forget to click each picture to enlarge if you would like to see the blocks closeup. Aren't digitals cameras just awesome!! I have another old quilttop out to take to guild tonight that ties into the program--will photograph that and post pictures of that in my next post. It's pretty awesome, too.

A Really Old UFO About Finished

The week before last when I was going through things in the basement and finding some of my unfinished projects, I came across this applique piece that I did way back in the 80's. The pattern is by Nancy Pearson, a designer who does beautiful work. I hand appliqued this piece and never did anything with it. I also found some some old striped fabric that I had bought to go with it and just about sent it with the fabrics to the quilt show bazaar, but pulled it out at the last minute. What I thought was so wonderful twenty- five years ago didn't have the same effect on me now. The other day, I got out the applique and the striped fabric and cut out a border.

I attached it and mitered the corners! Don't do that often but it's not that bad. Actually that stripe looks pretty darned nice with the basket of flowers.

Then I did my machine quilting. Used the invisible thread all around the appliques in the ditch followed by some loopy quilting in a cream sulky in the background.

Switched to a dark red sulky and did the wavy stitch that I love on the borders. I thought I was going to have a lot of trouble with the border being wavy, but it seems to be okay. The wavy stitch looks really cool especially in the lighter red. Part of the wonder of the quilting is the pretty shadows that it creates. Then I tried something new in binding and made a long continuous strip and finally figured out how to turn the corner and have it mitered.
I still have to sew down the binding. Glad that I pulled this out of storage and happy with the way it turned out. (Click to enlarge)

For Beth at The Best Hearts are Crunchy

To all you moms out there and for Beth at http://thebestheartsarecrunchy.blogspot.com/ on Friendship Postcard Friday. Hope it's okay just to find a pretty one on the internet to post. And I think this is a very pretty card. :-)

Fashion Friday

In all of the activity last week, I completely forgot Fashion Friday, but here is a picture of Dan and Maggie and their friends, Sherm Hunt and wife, for this week's photo. The occasion, I believe, was a long trip taken by the two couples. I have no idea where they were posing but they all look splendid. Dan, on the right, is wearing his hat at a very jaunty angle and the chain to his pocket watch is showing on his vest. He has a cigar in his hand in a lot of the pictures, but I don't think he is holding one this time. Sherm, as is Dan, is dressed in a nice dark suit and hat and tie. The ladies, Maggie and Mrs. Hunt, are looking very pretty in their very fashionable outfits. Maggie stands next to Sherm on the left. She is wearing a darling hat with a very pretty plumb. Mrs. Hunt is clad in a lovely outfit, also, and wears a dark hat to complete her ensemble. Both ladies are carrying gorgeous bouquets--I wonder what they were all celebrating. The old pictures really bring up things to think about and wonder about where they were, what they were doing, etc. Hope you enjoy these old photos. (Click to enlarge)

Our Quilt Show Continued

I was able to get to our show on Sunday afternoon before it was closed and did get a chance to take some more pictures. This top one is so pretty and I think it was featured in a magazine. I also think I know who made it, but don't want to make an error. It's a beauty.

These two were done by Kathy - who has absolutely mastered the beauty of machine quilting. Her work is incredible. The little hanging below is the one she did in the class I taught on machine buttonhole applique a few months ago. Glorious. Her colors are wonderful. To the left, you can get a glimpse of a gorgeous applique quilt that took best of show in Bay City, our neighboring town, just weekend before our show. Another masterpiece.

We had so many quilts they had to do some creative hanging. This lovely going around a corner is Leslie's and it is wool and hand buttonhole appliqued. What a gorgeous quilt it is. A lovely bargello is one one side and a sampler quilt with embroidered centers in the blocks that is really eyecatching. Janna, the one who supervises the hanging of the quilts, has an eye for color and coordination and really gets it right when putting the quilts together. She has done it every year and always does a masterful job.

This little cutie is Amanda, and, I think, our youngest member - if not, than one of the youngest.

She made this incredible scrap quilt that has over 8000 pieces in it in the form of little triangles forming little squares. Amazing! It's so nice having her in our guild - she's a joy.

Now you have a little idea of some of the work done by our members. If you would like to see more, find the little yellow duck on the sidebar to the right, click on it and go over to Pass the Tiara, the guild blog that Julie and I have going. There is a slide show that you can click on and go to Flickr where the pictures I took are posted. It was a great show and the most successful one we have had out of seven. (Click to enlarge)

More Old Pieces

With getting my entries ready for the quilt show and our weekend in Ann Arbor, I haven't been doing much else lately. In rummaging around through my pictures, I found some I had not put up on my blog. The first one is probably three or four years old and came from a book by Judy Sisneros called "9-Patch Pizzazz".

The feature fabric in this quilt was a fabric that is probably twenty or more years old. It is so very pretty. The quilt was fast and easy to make and I did my quilting with invisible thread. I used that a lot as I learned to machine quilt and still use it in some situations. Love the way going around the petals of the roses and other flowers creates a puffy look.

The one above is done in batiks and is another of the first ones that I machine quilted. This is also one of the few quilts I've done where the corners are mitered. Actually, that is not such a hard job if you don't need to match lines. I can't recall the name of the block - but it is a common one.

This is just a little one that I did from a block I found on http://www.quilterscache.com/
which has tons of patterns for blocks. That website has been there a long time and is fun to look through. The music tends to be annoying but that can be muted, I think. Lots of paper piecing and that is how this one is done. I just used some not so great batiks I had and it turned out not too bad. It would make a pretty cool large contemporary quilt. (Click to enlarge)

Hannah's Big Weekend

This was Hannah's big weekend - her graduation with high honors from the University of Michigan after three years. We are all so very proud of her and it was a joy to celebrate this great occasion all together as a family. Norah and Chad came from Chicago, Molly and Doug came from Portland, Uncle Bill and Aunt Ann were here from KC. Here she is with Mom and Dad just before leaving for commencement. The speaker was President Obama and the crowd was huge! I think there has only been one other time in my life when I was in in a crowd that large. It really makes you see that we're like a grain of sand on this earth. I had also never seen a seated president and, although you could hardly see him with the naked eye from the stands, they had the big screens showing all that was going on. It was just great!When we got back to the house Hannah shares with five other girls, it was party time. Above are Hannah and Her Sisters involved in a little game of Beer Pong with three other folks on the other end. These three girls are my pride and joy, if you haven't guessed already! There was pizza and lots of other good stuff for the party goers and some good sparkling wine with strawberries. Very festive! At least five parties were taking place up and down the same street.

Hannah came back with us and after awhile got out a book to read - that didn't last long. Our little graduate was pretty well tired out after her wonderful weekend. Then this fall, she will be going into the Peace Corps. Needless to say, we are all so proud of her in all that she has achieved so far and for knowing what she wants to do and then doing it. Congratulations, Hannah Alice! We're all right behind you backing you up in anything and everything you do.

(Click to enlarge)