oh pinterest, why must you torture me so?

Work this week was insane, but in a way it's a good thing.  If I'm busy, busy, busy at work, I come home ready to keep going, so I've gotten a few things done...

Quilt-wise (without photos yet), I've finished the purple and lime baby quilt - just needs a label.  I've worked on the Mandarin Express quilt a little and am to a point where blocks should be coming together with the next work session.  I've started a new project with my mom and sister-in-law that is a lot of hand-applique, so I've got a little project pile on the table next to the couch for evenings.

Quilt-wise (with photos), I've quilted another top!  This one will be donated to a charity and was pieced by my friend Colette.  She decided it was a little too large for her domestic machine and asked if I'd quilt it.  It's a lap-size, so nothing huge, but that made it go quicker for me on the longarm!  It's a simple all-over pattern, but every quilt helps me learn a little better how to use my machine, so it's all good.

Non-quilt-wise (with photos) is the reason for the post title.  For those of you who don't know what Pinterest is, they call it "a virtual pin board" - basically you can save photos of things that inspire you on their website, on a page that is your own.  If you do it right, the link to whatever you "pinned" will be available through the photo as a link.  You can follow other people and see what they pin, you can create multiple "boards" for multiple topics, etc.  It's dangerous.  You can lose whole days there just looking.  Sadly, "pinning" doesn't get the projects accomplished.  But Friday night, somewhere in the middle of the night (you know when you wake up with these brilliant ideas at 2am?  yep) I remembered this pin and decided it would make a nice new-home housewarming gift for my brother-in-law and his wife.  For the party they're having about 2 hours from now.

I actually remembered in the morning and found a very good tutorial here.  Then ran to the store for supplies and started work.  I finished about 30 minutes ago - just in time for the glue to dry before it needs to remain upright...

Again with the not-so-good light, but considering this is my first attempt at the technique of quilling and gluing paper on its edge to other paper, I'll call it a success.  I'm not sure I'd call it fun.  And I doubt another will be made any time soon.  But it's done in time to blog about it and then go figure out what dish to pass we'll be taking...

Another Pinterest find is a method of binding a quilt completely by machine AND it looks like it has a flange!  Since I quilted the baseball quilts edge-to-edge with white thread and the back is blue, wrapping the back around for a binding isn't going to look great.  So I volunteered (still working on saying no...) to finish the quilts.  This popped up and I decided it would be perfect not only to give the edges a little pop, but since it's all machine-sewn, it will likely hold up better to a 3-year-old boy's rough use.  (And it will go faster...I think...)

So while there are about 4,000 other things I've "pinned" over on Pinterest (look over there near the top of the right sidebar for a link to my Pinterest stuff), at least SOME of them are getting used!

After the party tonight, I think I'm going to try to get that binding made and sewn down.  Or maybe just get it made to be sewn down tomorrow?

Or perhaps I'll go take a nap.

But with a 3-day weekend for me, I still have tomorrow!  I hope to longarm another quilt as well this weekend and if I get really ambitious, perhaps there will be another blog post with more photos tomorrow!

Happy quilting,

Katie

quilting away

I've seen a few other posts where Blogger is being fussy, so let's see if I can get this to work (so far, I've had to go old-school and use the tab key to move the cursor into the field to type...remember that from before we had mice?)...

I've been trying to be busy quilting and this time I took my camera around to get photos of goodies and some of what I've been working on.

First, because goodies are more fun, I'll share what I got while in Iowa on the family reunion (that turned into something of a shop hop, as I believe I visited 5 different shops!)

Included in this stash are 3 books (Better by the Dozen from Susan Teegarden Dissmore, Log Cabin Fever by Evelyn Sloppy, and Pumpkins and Spice by Terri Degenkolb), a scrap bag that was such an odd purchase for me, but I'm GOING to have fun with it, and a kit to make a little pincushion using the Iowa shop hop fabric.  There is also a fourth book, but it's a gifts, so you'll maybe see it around Christmas...

Two of the books look much scrappier than I usually purchase, but have some fantastic quilts and setting ideas, so it's all good.  The third is just plain cute!

And then there's the goodies from the AQS show in Grand Rapids (a bit more spent here, but whatever...)

Three more books (because I can't help myself when they're $5 - Quilt Fiesta! by Cheryl Lynch, Summer at the Lake Quilts by Susan Maw and Sally Bell, and Colorful Stash Busters by Mary Cowan),  two embroidery patterns (A Cat is a Cat and Love Me, Love My Cat, both by Bird Brain Designs) and half of a quilt kit (the purples - greys are coming in the mail soon) to make the Feng Shui pattern by Janine Burke.

Those purples didn't photograph well (they never do), but this is the quilt that was on display that sucked me right in:

Beautiful, right?  And the purples actually look purple in that light!

I haven't been using my little machine much, but a couple of weeks ago I purchased a rolling clothes hanger-thing and hung up all my quilts that are going to be quilted (not the ones that are waiting in a closet for me to decide what I'll do with them) and realized I had 14.  So I set myself a goal of quilting one per week.  Of course last weekend I wasn't even home until dinnertime Sunday, but I did two this weekend to get caught up.

One was the second of the baseball quilts that I am so not proud of (they weren't exactly square to begin with...) but today I finally quilted the purple and lime green baby quilt!  She's due in October, so it's about time right?

Here it is loaded - me taking a few deep breaths while getting a quick photo before I start.

And I hope you can see the quilting - the finished product!  I had an idea for a more custom design and just couldn't wrap my brain around getting all the nooks and crannies with designs that worked together and then I saw these echoing hearts as an all-over design and decided it would work.  If I step back and look at the whole, I'm pleased.  I have to remind myself I NEED to do that, otherwise I'm far too criticial.

This took a bit longer than anticipated because the back was about 1" longer than the top and I didn't realize it until, of course, I got to the last pass on the longarm.  So I hauled my little machine downstairs, took that end off the longarm and sewed on another 6" so I had room to maneuver the longarm.  You'd think I'd learn from the last time I had to do that, but nope.

But it's finished.  Maybe I'll get the binding sewn on tonight, maybe not...might just go take a nap since I've also baked cupcakes for the hubby and washed the dishes!

Only 12 quilts to go!  (Never mind the few that are in progress!)

Happy quilting,

Katie

under challenge quilts

I meant to post these yesterday when I got home, but it was a LOOOOONNNNNGGGG day and though I'm still tired, I so want to share these quilts!

We didn't win any ribbons, but there were 19 guilds in the competition and all of them were amazing.  And we are all truly thrilled to have gotten chosen to be displayed, ribbon or not.

"Under the Microscope"
Katie May

"Under the Tuscan Sun"
April Brooks

"It's Just Water Under the Bridge"
Kathy Singer

"Uluru Down Under"
Carol Stanton

"Jennifer's World Down Under"
Ruth Hodge

"Under the Membership of Across the Square Quilters"

Christine Helms

"Under Cover"
Carol Randall

"Under the Influence Of..."

Linda Shafe

I believe these are in the order they were hung (renaming them mixed up their order...).  So yes, mine was first!  There are so many fun stories behind the construction of each project.  I've heard trials and triumphs.  We've encouraged each other and worked together and it was an amazing experience.  Though I said I'd never do it again after the stress of getting mine done on time, after seeing them all together, I may change my mind.

The funniest comment overheard (by my mom) regarding these quilts was in reference to mine.  "How does SHE know what those germs look like?"  My mom piped up and told her "because she's a microbiologist."  I kinda feel bad for the woman, but it just makes you realize you have to be careful what you say at a quilt show - you never know who is listening!

There were so many other amazing quilts hanging.  It was overwhelming and inspiring and makes me want to try new techniques and color combinations and start 100 new projects!  I didn't take any other photos because I know what happens to photos...they end up in a file on my computer to be forgotten...

I bought a kit for a grey and purple quilt.  I bought a few books at the booth that had them for $5.  I bought a couple of redwork patterns (that will likely not be done in red) and a few other little things.  I'll try to remember to get photos of stuff and share soon - I'm rather behind on that sharing photos thing and I do have some fun stuff.

The hubby has the night off after working through the weekend and though he does seem a bit absorbed by pre-season football, I think he might like to spend a little time with me, so off I go.  It's going to be a crazy week at work, but this weekend is looking pretty open, so hopefully I'll get time to relax, quilt and take some photos to share!

Happy quilting!

Katie

PS  I know some of the quilts are hanging funny.  We sewed on the proper sleeves and then they hung them on skinny metal bars.  All that extra work for nothing...

a little update

I promised to be a better blogger in August, but here it is, the month nearly half over and I've not posted anything...

My guild's retreat was amazing.  I laughed harder and more often than I can remember and I got some sewing done, too.  The "Quilt Fairy" visited and brought me a bunch of goodies (members attending made little goodies and distributed them to sewing stations when we were sleeping or eating or otherwise all out).  I got a mug rug, a nice pair of scissors, a little pouch filled with chocolate and many other wonderful things.  The amount of goodies prompted someone to say that the "Quilt Fairy" should bring a bag to carry it all home...hmm...  I can't wait for next year!  (My name is already on the list.)

I worked on the Mandarin Express quilt at the retreat, but didn't get much done.  There are two blocks making up the quilt and each at its most basic is a 9-patch.  I worked on sewing units that will be squares of the 9-patch, but never got any of them sewn to each other.  I promise photos as soon as I get back to working on it.

When I got home, the house was far cleaner than after my last absence and the kitties weren't in hiding.  But there was a lot to catch up on, having lost a weekend, so I didn't get to sewing done until this weekend...

This project was half-sewn blocks residing on my sewing table, so I decided, considering the disaster I turned my sewing room into while unpacking my projects, I'd start there and sew my way to a clean room!

I sewed and sewed and finally had a top together!

This is supposed to be a twin, but seems rather wide...hmmm...  It will be donated for charity, so hopefully someone will find a use for it.

I also agreed a few months back to quilt two tops for a friend.  Her mom had made quilts for her grandson (friend's little boy) but decided he's too hard on things for them to hold up well being tied only.  She contacted me (the friend) asking about cost and I offered to just quilt them myself.  (Stuck my foot in my mouth...as usual...)  So we finally found time to get together Saturday and I got the tops, back and batting.

Nothing fancy, but probably a good choice if they're going to be beat up.

Here you can see the fabric up close - you kinda lose the baseballs in the distance, but it's really cute fabric.  I just quilted an overall meander, figuring something that held the layers together would be more important than anything fancy.  But I'm not going to show you the photo of the first one quilted because, well, it wasn't square and I fought with it to get it to look halfway decent and am still not happy.  Had I realized it was so bad before I started, I might have made an effort to fix it, but I'm fairly sure the gal who made these is not much of a quilter.  Her heart is in the right place, sewing for her grandson, so I'm not going to judge.

Tomorrow my brother and his wife are setting up a booth at the AQS show in Grand Rapids.  Though I'm not sure when ribbons will be placed, the show opens Wednesday and I'm hoping maybe they can sneak a peak and see if our guild challenge quilts got one.  I'll be sure to get photos of all 8 of our quilts hanging when I visit on Saturday, but won't be home to post them until Sunday, as I'm tear-down crew after the show ends Saturday and am staying over Saturday night to take my 3 nieces (from my side of the family) back-to-school shopping for late birthday presents.  We've done this ever year since the one who just turned 15 started 1st grade, so I can't stop now!  (And it's a lot more fun now that they can do a lot of the trying on without my help...of course, they also know how to bargain better too...)

Next up in the line to sew are piecing two backs for quilts.  This weekend I purchased a moveable clothing hanging thing and some hangars and hung up the quilts that are in line to be quilted.  There were 14.  Now there's 13, but holy cow!  I didn't realize there were so many, but I don't think any are larger than a twin, so it could be worse, right?  So in the process of organizing all that, I realized two quilts have backs, but they're not pieced, so they got pushed ahead in the lineup of sewing.  Once they're done, it's back to Mandarin Express...unless I get started making bags...

I promise more photos next time.  I need to remember to take them...I've gotten lazy...

Happy quilting,

Katie