It's Time!

I have missed my little blog spot, here in the Quilting Universe! I believe it's high time to get back to putting words to paper and sharing a little bit of my corner of the world with you!

2016 has been quite a year for me. First, a total knee replacement in March. Then, after 17 years, my retirement from my Day Job and training of my replacement, transitioning from Working My Day Job at Home to just quilting (pure joy!), and all along the way, working with my daughter plan her wedding which is coming up October 1, which if any of you have experienced this, it has potential to make blood pressure go up!

Whew! Makes me tired just writing about all that.  But in retrospect, even though I've had some problems with the knee replacement recovery, it has been a good year so far!

I'm spending most of my time in my sewing studio, which is a pure joy for me! These photos are a sampling of what I've been up to this summer.

I've even had time to rearrangement my thread storage - how awesome is that!

So, even though I am beyond busy throughout September, I want to make my blog a regular part of my quilting life again. Join me, if you will, as I love to have company along for the journey!


Quilting with a smile,


Barb

Linking up with:
Quilt Fabrication Midweek Makers
Linky Tuesday
Needle and Thread Thursday
Let's Bee Social
TGIFF 
Can I Get A Whoop Whoop 

Quilty Goodness and Giveaway Winners

My goodness, the days are just flying by. Oh, yea, that's because it's December!  Duh.

Here's a little peak at what I have been working on this week.  I'm still trying to get customer's quilts done up for them in time for Christmas gift-giving, and I'm almost done!

This quilt is nearly king sized and exquisitely pieced. 

The center of each block is different.

A very traditional quilt with a light cream/almost yellowish colored background.

All custom quilted.  I changed thread colors in the maroon sashing and triangles.

I had fun quilting large symmetrical  flowers in the center of each different block.

Smaller flowers for the center stones of the large X blocks.

A sea of quilty goodness!

I've asked Santa for a new camera for Christmas. He just scoffs at me.  Maybe I just need to take a photography class to sharpen my skills :(

At any rate, this was a fun quilt to do!  My client had me quilt up a large piece of the border fabric. She'll cut it up to make matching pillow shams. She also has a bed skirt in the works to coordinate with this quilt. What a wonderful bedroom that will be to walk into!

And lest I forget, I'd like to announce the winner of my Giveaway Day drawing.  Thank you to all 131 one of you who took the time to read my blog and comment. I appreciate it!  I polled the Random Generator and lucky Sandra (sandit1) will receive the two Moda charm packs. Congratulations, Sandi!

Quilting with a smile,
Barb

Linking up with Fabric Tuesday

What keeps you busy?

I know what has kept me busy the past couple of months - sewing, quilting, quilting, quilting, quilting.  It's been a whirlwind to get everything done in time for Christmas, but I've succeeded, and I'm SO happy now!

Here are just a few photos of the great quilts that I have had the privilege to quilt for people. Very fun!

Here is one with custom quilting throughout.  Each big star block is 24-inches square and has been paper pieced.

Up close and personal with one of the blocks.

I like this view with the quilt tilted sideways.  The customer will put on another border and bind it for the finishing touch!

This is another fun one that I had the pleasure of doing. It's a quilt sample for a kit being put together by my local quilt shop, The Sun Valley Fabric Granary.

It's a butterfly quilt made from Fig Tree & Co.  fabrics.

I quilted oval designs to enhance the wings and diagonal stitching across the bodies of the butterflies. There were 30 butterflies in this quilt, if anyone is counting . . .

This would make the perfect spring-time or summer quilt, a great way to pass away these dreary winter days that are surely ahead of us!

 Here's a real pretty quilt that my friend made from a jelly roll.  I quilted an edge-to-edge pattern on it with large leaves to mimic the leaves in the white background fabric.

And this was a fun one, although the quilting probably doesn't stand out too well. Love this fabric!

Last, but not least, I was able to find a bit of time to make something for myself to help decorate the house for Christmas.  It was a fast, simple little pillow, but the ribbon makes it pop!  It's made from Dear Mr. Claus by Cosmo Cricket for Moda.  If you are lucky enough to find this ribbon, you'll immediately fall in love with it! It comes in several different designs and is just luxurious!

After I made the pillow cover, a friend gave me some Christmas gift tags from a panel that goes with this line, so I'll be adding that to the right of the ribbon.

That's what I've been up to the past two weeks. What has kept you busy?

Here's wishing you the very best Christmas season, happy holidays, and a tremendous New Year!

Remember to quilt with a smile,
Barb

Loving this winter!

Living in the mountains near a ski resort, you'd think I'd celebrate snow. I do, in a way, but I have lived here for 28 years (my goodness, that's a long time!) and as my bones grow older, and the winters seem colder, I look less and less forward to winter.

Most winters, except this winter.  This winter has proven to be the best ever. We have had relatively few snow storms, it's been cold, but not sub-zero cold for days on end, and the sun has shone most every day! There is lots of snow on the mountain tops and only about a foot left in the valley. A very mild winter indeed.

But aside from the weather aspect of this winter, I have been so busy sewing and quilting and learning and growing and thinking and planning and formulating - I just love it!  I've branched out from my nine to five job to create an independent business of my own. In the summer and fall I am very busy with my desk job and some associated travel, so winter and spring are mine for creating.

What have I been working on this week? I finished a little table runner and a non-traditional baby blanket. 

Free motion quilting another table runner is on the docket today. And the excitement of the week is that I am ready to load my first quilt on my new long arm machine and have my way with it. (Insert "Squeals of Delight" and "Trepidations of Fright")  I'm excited and nervous at the same time.  But I've prepared for this. Last year I pieced together my Christmas Quilt, which turned out rather large, too large for me to want to run it through my domestic machine.  It's made from Christmas scraps picked up on sale over the years and is the perfect choice for my first quilting project because if it turns out totally horrid, it's mine and I won't care.

So, I'm stepping out of my comfort zone today. Which is good - it keeps the brain active and alert, and it also keeps me from snacking, always a great benefit! 

What do you have planned for this week?

If it's not right, fix it!

I have been participating in SewCalGal's Year of Free Motion Quilting and have been very frustrated. My FMQ was like throwing darts at a wall and expecting them all to come out in some semblance of shape and form - impossible. 

I kept thinking there must be something  I could do to make things better?  I was able to slide my little finger between the quilting foot and the sandwiched quilt - even in the down position of the shank. Looking at videos online, it seemed like the foot didn't squish the fabric as in regular sewing, but it also didn't look like they had as much wiggle room.

So this afternoon I looked at the quilting foot, and decided maybe if I just tweek the arm that fits over the nut on the shank, it would allow it go down closer to the fabric.  Unaccustomed to dealing with mechanical elements, I just went ahead and twisted that little bugger upward. And then I did it again. And once more for good measure.

Wha-la! Success! Now it comes to just above the fabric, allowing the quilt sandwich to glide around the sewing area, but also giving me more control over where the needle comes down. I AM SO HAPPY!

I have suddenly gained a new-found confidence, and once I finish this blog, I am going to FMQ a table runner.  If I mess up, I can either pull out threads, or just make another and try again. I think I'll opt for making another one - I hate pulling out stitches.

Free Motion Quilting Is Not For the Faint of Heart

One of my many goals this year is to learn how to Free Motion Quilt on my domestic sewing machine.  And fortunately, SewCalGal has put together the most excellent year-long tutorial.  I've been practicing on leaves, which still leave a lot to be desired, but it's 100% better than my straight-line quilting that I have always done in the past.

Here's my first sample:

The good thing is, it can only get better from here!  And it's quite fun actually tackling my fear of FMQ and just do it!

It's not too late - you, too, can jump on board and start to hone your FMQ skills. Just click on the 2012 Free Motion Challenge logo on the right, or click here!