Debbie's Quilt - A Finish!

The last time I shared with you about Debbie's quilt the top was finished, the backing was ordered, and I was getting ready to mail it off to my quilter friend, Shirley Jackson.   The pantograph and thread choices are perfect for this quilt.  But, of course. Shirley always does a beautiful job.

In 2017 Debbie asked me to make her a new quilt because the one I had made for her 36 years earlier was worn out, I was more than happy to. That's why this quilt will no longer be known as "Debbie's Quilt", but rather "Because You Asked".   (I'm not usually any good at naming quilts, but I like this name!)

This is my first finish for 2019.
























I was excited to be able to make a trip to St. Louis recently to gift it in person.  Partly because it weighs a ton, and I didn't want to mail it. 



















Mostly because I wanted to see Debbie's face and bask in the glow of her love and admiration.  Not really.  I just wanted to love on her a little bit.  I don't get to see her often enough.

So, it's finally in Debbie's arms.  Seriously.  It's probably actually in her arms this very minute.  She was so happy when I gave it to her the other evening I feel certain she's yet to let it go.

Debbie's Quilt - Part Two

I'm determined to keep Debbie's quilt from the UFO list when I update it at the end of the year.  I don't know if that's been my driving factor lately or if I just can't wait for her to have it, but it's "this close" to being done.

My design wall isn't wide enough to lay out all the blocks so I ended up setting out two piles of blocks next to my machine, the "A" blocks and the "B" blocks, and sewing them together fairly randomly.  The rows extended at least 6 inches over the edges, and I would have needed a step-stool to get all the rows up there at the same time!  

The larger it grew the more "fun" it was to work with.

I could only get a photo of the whole thing when it was spread out on the living room floor.

Now, two of the borders are on .....

..... and the backing fabric is ordered from Fabric.comhttps://www.fabric.com.  Isn't it perfect?

It looks like I'll be able to send it off next week to my longarm quilting friend, Shirley Jackson.  There is no way I could man-handle that thing to quilt it on my domestic machine!

I will be happy to have this quilt finished, Debbie will be happy to have it on her bed, and it might just be another sister's turn for a new quilt.

Linking up with Confessions of a Fabric Addict

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Debbie's Quilt

I got into a crazy mood a while back and started cutting up a lot of my batiks into 2.5" strips. Having a health supply of pre-cut strips readily available would be handy and they might get put to good use.   So I cut .....

..... until I had this!  Gulp!  

(I hate to admit it, but this didn't make much of a dent in my batiks stash.)  Earlier this year I used some of the strips to make a wedding quilt for Stephen and Kailey.  You can read about it here.

I used a few strips and made a big mess.

Last year my sister, Debbie, asked me to make a replacement quilt for the one I'd made for her hope chest back in 1981.  I didn't quilt much then so I'm pretty sure I used broadcloth for the backing.  Maybe that's what held it together all these years.  Polyester never really dies, does it?  I would say my work has evolved quite a bit since then. I've changed a little bit as well!  

I figured since she had made that quilt last for over 35 years she deserve a new one!  Plus, I was happy to have another opportunity to use more of those strips.  Bonnie Hunter's "Strip Twist" pattern would be perfect for this one.  Strip sets made then sub-cut into 144 squares .....

..... then cut again into 288 triangles .....

..... and then sewn back together into 144 squares. Squares with a little different look to them, though.  

Now the fun starts.  Or even more fun, I should say.  Laying them out on the design wall and sewing them into rows. Like this --

The goal is to have it finished by the end of the year so I can give it to her when I'm in St. Louis for a family wedding. I'm pretty sure this one will last for at least another 35 years.

Excuses, Excuses.........And a Finish!

Excuses, excuses.  Or should I say, Reasons, reasons.  I have been too busy to sew lately let alone blog about it!  I guess I should have just been blogging instead about my crazy life, at least then you would know why I'm not sewing.

The last sewing I did was at the June retreat I told you about.  Here are a few of the things that have kept me busy the last several months.

Two of my sisters, Barb and Dee, came to see me for a weekend.

My sister, Debbie and her girls, Natalie, Carrie and Emily, came to see me for a weekend.

Hubby and I took our grands to Seattle for a week to visit our son, Aaron, and see the sights.

We spent a week in Destin, Florida with our son, Adam and his family.  

I celebrated a birthday!  


This is what my sewing room has looked like for over a month.  It was turned into an extra guest room and it has stayed that way.  Hard to sew like that!

The one thing I did manage to finish was the NewFo I started in May.  It was a completed top so it only needed hand-quilting and binding.  That's not work, though.  That's therapy! 

And here's the reason I managed to get this one quilt completed at all.  Little Gracee Mae-Rose, our newest great-niece.  After all, every new baby needs a quilt!

This has been a whirlwind summer.  One last thing will keep me from sewing this week - the AQS Quilt Show in Grand Rapids, Michigan.  I'm going with my sweet friend, Faye, where I know I will be inspired and motivated to get sewing again.  I feel pretty certain that I'll be in my sewing room when I get home from that.  

Sisters Trip 2012

This year it was Barb's turn to plan our trip, and we all decided it was the best one yet!  She booked our weekend at the Great Wolf Lodge in Kansas City the weekend of The Renaissance Festival.  The lodge has a humongous indoor water park.

Hubby couldn't believe it, but my sisters talked me into going down one of those crazy slides!  I was terrified, but I have to admit it was fun. And, NO they could not get me to do it twice!



Saturday morning I stepped into the bathroom while Dee Dee was showering and said, "I'm just taking a picture of you to put on FaceBook."  You should have heard her scream when the flash went off!

This is how Barb puts her makeup on when there is only one mirror for five people.

I had bought T-shirts for us, but ordering online makes it difficult to get the right size and they were way too big.  We all decided they would make better PJ's so Carol modeled one for me.

None of us had been to a Renaissance Festival before and we loved it.  You do see some interesting people there!

It was not always easy to tell the customers from the performers.

Even so, the costumes were great.

The fairies were especially cute!

Debbie and Barb were flirted with.....

.....Dee Dee braved a snake around her neck.....

.....Carol did some shopping.....

.....and I got a cute shirt that totally fits my personality.  (It's hard to get a picture of yourself when you are the resident photographer!)

Five hours was not enough to see everything, but we gave it our best shot before we were totally worn out.  That night we ordered pizza for dinner and played cards in our room.   I really do "heart" my sisters!

You can see more photos on my Flickr page if you aren't already tired of us!   

Ashley's Quilt

I really believe that each quilt I make is special, but every once in a while I am involved in the creation of a quilt that is incredibly so.  Such is the case with Ashley's Quilt. 
When my brother lost his wife in 1999 he gave me all of her sewing things.  Among them was an embroidered quilt top.  You know the kind -- big flowers splashed across a very thin white top with little blue dots for quilting lines.

I didn't know it at the time, but not only had my sister-in-law Debbie worked on this embroidered top, my brother Ronnie had, too, along with their children, Jason and Cathy.   Cathy was no longer living at the time Ashley was born in 1983, so two of the four people who worked on this project were already gone.
  
I decided to somehow figure out a way to cut up this top and make two quilts from it -- one for Ashley since she was getting married soon, and one for her older brother, Jason.  (You know I love a challenge.)


Even though I only had a very rough plan in mind, I went to work cutting up the original top into pieces I thought I could work with.  Then I got input from a lot of quilty friends.  (Always a good idea!)

This project had its obstacles.  The fabric in the original top was so thin I could actually read through it, so it had to be lined.  Then I faced design issues because I wanted to have enough of the original left for a second quilt.  And last, you cannot just cut through embroidery.  The thread has to be picked out, threaded through a needle and knotted.  Ahhh, but it was worth it.

Ashley was married a few months ago, so I went by her house last week to present her with her gift. 

I think 

she likes it.

So now all I have left of the original quilt top is a stack of 9" squares from which I hope to create a second quilt that is every bit as special.  

Nothing like committing myself to another big project, is there?