Wholecloth done!!!!

Well, almost.  I need to go over it very carefully today to see if I missed any spots.  I'm guessing that I probably did.

I have so much enjoyed making this quilt, even though it meant hours and hours of going cross-eyed with my nose to the fabric.  I really should invest in a magnifying glass for my machine.

Here's a sneak peak.  I don't want to show the whole thing quite yet since I will be entering it into a show.  Not that many people even view my blog, but showing just bits and pieces of a quilt before entering a competition seems to be what quilters do...so that's what I'll do too....lol.

 

You can see I decided to quilt my name right into the quilt.  I put my last name in too.  I don't want my kids to ever wonder if I made a quilt or not, so I always quilt my entire name.  Also, if anyone steals it, they sure can't claim it as their own.  Mostly, though, I do it for my kids.

 

Now back down to my studio to finish up. 

Jessica

Grandbaby keeping me from quilting today

Today I had big plans to get a lot of work done on that Christmas quilt I showed you yesterday, but life got in the way....stickiness to be exact.  Having a baby living in my house sure makes things sticky and just super messy in general.  So today I washed all the stickiness away and cleaned up the clutter.  Not nearly as fun as quilting but it had to be done!

Then I went out and bought him his first toy truck and little red car.  He sure does like them!  I raised three girls who liked dollies and coloring books so this is the first truck I've ever bought.  So fun for me!!!

Here he is enjoying his new toys.

I sure love this little guy!!!

Jessica

What I have on the frame

Here's a tiny peek at what I'm working on lately.  I'm back at it after taking a few days off to stare at my daughter before she moved away.  It's a real joy to quilt....so beautifully hand stitched as well as perfectly pieced.

 

 

I'm using wool batting to give it a nice loft.

And I drew a bunch of snowflakes in various places, stitching on the lines of the snowflakes three times with a metallic silver to make them stand out a bit.  I like it!!

Happy quilting,
Jessica

Comfort sewing

Often when I'm sad about something I will sew.  I have found that hand sewing is the best remedy for sorrow.  So yesterday that's what I did for hours and hours and hours.  I sat on the couch with my big blue crochet hook and worked on a blanket that I started a couple of weeks ago after my oldest daughter, Emily, taught me how to do a simple crochet stitch.  Its red.....red for Russia....that's where she flew off to yesterday to live.  Those Russians are going to love her!!!!

That's Emily on the right and Molly on the left.  Such sweet faces.

Back to crocheting.

Jessica

A quilt for my daughter

I just finished this quilt for my daughter.  I wanted to make it look modern...since she is 16...and so I designed one big block with a gray background.  That's modern...don't ya think?  The modern style of quilting nowadays seems to be just a lot of straight lines but I like a bit more variation than that, so I did what I usually do....my own thing.  I'm not sure if she will like it, but oh well...I like it.  Lol.

I used wool batting for added dimension and matched the thread color to the fabric except for the feathers.  I went with a light gray thread there so the feather design would stand out a bit.

Freehand quilting

Back in the saddle again...sort of...and very excited that creativity is still possible after so many months away from the machine.  Sooo happy about that!

This is something I am making for one of my daughters.

It's just one big block.  I kinda like it. 

Jessica

From Painting to Quilt

I have been frustrated at my inability to work on the projects that I have hanging on my design wall.  My biggest sewing problem is that my left wrist doesn't work so I can't use my rotary cutter at all.  You need two hands for that.  Ugh!  My right shoulder doesn't work too well either, but in spurts I can use my right arm.  Anyway, I am going to try to make something that does not require a rotary cutter.  Here's my plan.  I am going to take a section of a painting that my daughter made and turn it into a quilt.  Doesn't that sound fun?

Molly, my daughter, was visiting with my new and super adorable grandson yesterday.  I was painting and so she joined me.  I threw my painting in the trash because it stunk....really stunk.  Her painting, however, showed some potential, so I cropped it down till I found a piece that I thought would be asthetically pleasing and make a nice quilt.  Then I blew that little piece up to about an 8x10 and traced it onto acetate.  My traced design looks very complicated, kind of like a paint by number, so I may need to simplify it a bit.  I'm not sure.  Tomorrow I will look at it again and adjust it where necessary.  Next week I will take my design to Staples and have them blow it up to....well....I don't know exactly what size yet.

Anyway,  check back next week.  I will know by then what size my quilt will be, will have blown it up and will start making my templates.  The quilt will be almost entirely machine appliqued....no rotary cutter needed. Now, lets see how many minutes I can use a scizzors before being put out of commission.  Lol.  I am so stinkin determined!!!