Holy cow.....

.....what a summer......and fall!

I can't believe my last post was June 30th!  Cripes!  AND.....the last line on that post said I was gonna post more often!  HA!  Who was I kidding!?!

Truly, the summer got away from me!  We had company most of the summer, and I hardly even stepped into my quilting room!  Crazy, but true!  But I did manage to get to the Maine Quilts show, and I took a 2nd Place ribbon for My Jubilee quilt there!  Woot!  So, a 2nd Place in Vermont, and then Maine.....woohoo!

AND THEN.....I entered it into my NH guild's show, (Cocheco Quilt Guild), which was just this last weekend, and I won BEST OF SHOW!!!!!

HOLY COW!!!!!

I'm in shock, needless to say!  And I still can't wipe the smile off my face!  lol

My hubby was so sweet, too......he had flowers for me when I got home from the show!  :o)

Life is good!

Of course, these last few months haven't been ALL about my quilt.

Our son, Chris, just got married to a lovely girl, Liz, on Columbus Day weekend in Sunapee, NH.

They had the ceremony aboard a dinner cruise boat, and then we sailed the lake for the reception!  It was beautiful!  The fall colors were at peak, and made for a perfect day!  We're so happy for them.....they really are perfect together!

Speaking of fall colors, this is a shot at a local golf course my friend and I played in the last month!  Gorgeous!

And, of course, our beautiful maple tree in our front yard put on a lovely show this year again!

As I said, we had a ton of company over the summer, but I managed to get a pic of the hibiscus a friend gave us while it was putting on its show!  Lovely!

Part of the summer was spent flying kites, and doing 'kite making for kids' events around the state. Always a fun day when the kids make kites!  They decorate them with markers, and minutes later, they are flying them in the field!  Awesome!

Speaking of kites, way back in May (seems like ages ago now! lol), I made a kite quilt for the fundraiser auction at the Wildwood Kite Festival in New Jersey.  My hubby is asked to fly at this event every year, and often gives kites for the auction.  Our good friend, the coordinator, asked if I could make a quilt (which I had no intention of doing!), but then thought about it, and figured "Why not!?!"  Of course, crazy me decided to do a machine applique quilt.....a process I'd NEVER DONE BEFORE!  What was I thinking!?!

But I think it really came out great!  Each of the appliques is of a very recognizable kite to flyers, and the pieced rail fence background sets it off nicely.  (I had seen the rail fence background on a guild member's applique quilt, and really liked the effect.  If I ever do another applique like this, I'd do that again!)  This quilt finished at 60x72.

And last, but not least, of my news is that we are becoming snowbirds this year!!!  Yep.....we are heading south to Florida in 7 days, and we are not returning until May!  Woohoo!

We never thought we would ever do the snowbird thing, but this past winter was so brutally cold, it cost us a small fortune to heat our house, and we just can't do that again!  And then we figured out that we could rent a condo AND play golf 2 times a week for the same amount......why wouldn't we head south!?!  And we're very excited that we found a nice place about 45 minutes from Chris and Liz.....not too close, but close enough!  :o)  And we have cousins galore and one of my sisters in FL, too, so there will be plenty of visiting down there!  Awesome!  We can't wait!

And I've kitted up 10 quilts to take with me!  LOL  Any bets on how many I even touch!?!  LOL

Wow......writing this post felt really good!  I sure missed blogging this summer!  I hardly had the chance to even look on any blogs.  Once in a blue moon I'd have a few minutes, and I checked a few.  I hope to scroll back on blogs and see what the heck everyone has been up to these last few months!  I've really missed keeping up!

And a big hug to the gals that checked on me over the last few months.....making sure I was ok!  You're awesome!  Love ya!

I'm thinking my next post will be from sunny Florida!  Of course, AFTER I've played a round of golf, and had a Krispy Kreme!  LOL

regan

I'm still here!!!

I really can't believe it's been nearly 3 months since my last post!  Cripes!  But I can honestly say that I've been crazy busy......and it was well worth it!

I finally finished My Jubilee quilt, and just in the nick of time to get it into the Vermont Quilt Festival!  The festival was this past weekend, and my two good friends, Pat and Suzanne, joined me for 3 fun-filled days at the quilt show!  And I have to say......I'm crazy-happy right now, because I got a 2nd Place Ribbon on my quilt!  Woohoo!  (Disclaimer:  ribbons are awarded by points system at this show, so there could be several 1st, 2nd and 3rd place ribbons......not just one of each!)

But I got one!  Woohoo!  :o)

I was never dreaming my quilt could ever take a ribbon......mainly because MOST people don't like orange!  And my quilt 'smacks you in the face!' with orange!  So I was really shocked and totally delighted that the judges could get past that!  Yay!

AND.....their comments were kind and constructive......except for the one judge who gave me an 87!  (The other two gave me 95's!)  He didn't 'get' the different borders on the front of the quilt, which was inspired by my favorite quilt from the Red & White Show in NYC......antique, lovely, bold and independent......the 3 different borders were the best part of that quilt!  Why would I change that!?!

"Gotta think outside the box, Mr. Judgey!"  LOL

And I'm excited to be entering it in the Maine state show at the end of July, and my NH guild's show in October!  The validation from a ribbon is wonderful, but I just really want to share my work!  It's pretty fun and exciting to see your own quilt among the others at a show!  This was my first entry in a show, and I'm thinking it won't be my last!  :o)

And now that my quilt is done......I'll be back to blogging more often!  Really!!!  lol

regan

Progress!

While my current quilting project is not quite ready for pictures, we do have progress to show on a different project!  The transformation of our dining room!

The wallpaper has been peeled off......and the spackling has been completed!  Woot!

Hubby is about to do the sanding, and then we can start painting!  Yay!

When we moved into this house 15 years ago, we knew we wanted to restore it, and that it would take some time.  Of course, I didn't think it would take THIS long to get to every room.  But I'm so glad that hubby made a comment about getting started on this room the other day, and I didn't let that idea sit for even a moment!  We went right out to Home Depot and got busy!  (I've learned that if he makes any motion towards a project, I better jump on board......or it could be years before we think about it again!  lol)

Every restoration project in an old house like ours (circa 1864) is a daunting task.  The dining room is 14'x24'.....no small feat!

Once the painting is finished.....we're gonna get a crew in here to redo the hardwood floor.  It's in sorry shape, and it needs professional care!

Ok......I need to get back to that quilt project......it's nearly done!  Woot

regan

I'm so sorry......

I just had an email from a member of the quilting group whose applique quilts I had just posted about over the last few days.

Evidently the group is terribly upset that I posted pictures of their quilts.

The gal told me that there were signs posted at the show that pictures were for personal use only.

Honestly, I never saw even one of those signs.

If I had, I would never have posted a single pic.

So, to any members of that group that might be checking back on this blog, I've deleted those 3 posts.

And I'm terribly sorry.

regan

Is it Spring yet?

I don't know where February went, but I suspect my brain was numb from the cold weather!  I can't believe it's been over a month since I last posted.  I know I haven't been on the blogs much, and haven't commented much on anyone's blog.....so I guess I just wasn't thinking to post anything, either!  Yep.....I'm blaming it on the cold!  And hubby and I are doing everything we can to be snowbirds next winter!  I need to be golfing.....not shivering!  lol

But I did spend February doing a lot of sewing...... I was not idle!  :o)

Unfortunately, I don't have any progress to show on my Jubilee quilt, but for good reason!  It's at the point of sandwiching it together, and that means hundreds of safety pins to be closed.  And because of this horribly cold weather, I have had cracks on the ends of several fingers and my thumbs for the better part of a month, which means trying to close a safety pin would be pure torture!  And yes, I've tried everything, including nearly finishing this pot of Working Hands, which I must say, is awesome stuff......but I just don't think it can compete with the bitter cold we've had.

So, my fingers.....at this very moment!......are all healed, and I should be able to sandwich the quilt tomorrow!  And then I can get busy quilting it up!  Woohoo!  I'm so excited!  I'm also excited that because of the finger/cracking issue.....hubby is back to doing all the dishes again!  Yippee!  (Gotta save those fingers for quilting, right!?!)  lol

Ok.......so on to what I've been trying to keep busy with while my fingers healed.......

First up......I purchased more grey solid (which I LOVE!) and put it with the scrappy strips I had made months ago!  I just love it!  It finishes at 78x88 and is for my bed.

The scrappy strips are all the leftover bits and pieces of the thrift store shirts that I've made a bunch of quilts from lately.  These scraps were sewn onto 5" strips of phone book pages, and when covered, were then joined into long strips.  Easy peasy......and it used up a bunch of little scraps!  I love everything I've made with the shirts......and I'm so happy I still have a ton of them left!  They make a very homespun, cozy quilt, and being very thrifty myself, I love that they are so easy on the budget!  :o)

Next up.......I picked out one of the kits I prepared while cutting up all my Xmas fabrics a couple months ago.  My good friend, Pat, was hosting the mystery at our guild, and I chose to do it in the Xmas theme.  So, of course, while I was cutting for that, I might as well cut for something else, right!?!  So I planned out 4 other quilts to make in Xmas, and cut them all at once!  Boxed them all up with labels, and they are ready to go when I have a bit of time to mindlessly work on something.  I don't have to think at all because all the figuring, drafting and cutting are already done......just run those pieces through the machine!  I like that!  :o)

It's hard to see, but it has a 6" white border on the outside.  It finishes as 58x68.....a good size for the couch.  And I'm happy to say, I used up every little bit, including the bonus triangles from the piecing.....they became the borders on the ends.  Yay!  :o)

I've also been working on another quilt, but haven't anything to show yet.......so that will be in a future post!  :o)

Ok.....well, that's about all of me right now!  Except to say that it was really nice having it light out when I was making dinner tonight!  We love Daylight Savings here!  :o)

Have a good week!

regan

It's been so long......

....since I've had an empty design wall!  Yay!

Nearly 2 years ago, I started my Jubilee quilt, and the top was finished in just a few weeks.  Then I started working on the back, and I got STUCK!  My brain just wouldn't settle on an idea, and everything I drafted just looked weird.  I just couldn't figure it out.  So I let it sit for a while.....and that 'while' turned into nearly 1 1/2 years!  Cripes!  lol

Everything I've worked on in that time has been pinned over the pieces of that jubilee back.  And every time I took a picture of something on that wall......little bits of orange Jubilee would be peeking out!  lol

So a couple months ago, I decided I needed a deadline to get it done!  FORCE myself to figure it out!  So I decided to enter it into a show, and the deadline for the entry was TODAY!  I needed to have a picture of both the front and the back to enter it into the Vermont Quilt Festival, and I DID IT!!  Woohoo!

It's not complete......it's not even sandwiched yet.  But both the top and back are finished!  Woot!

 The Front.....

and the Back.....

I'm so happy with how the back turned out.  The orange section with the milk in it is 'made fabric' and was a total blast to put together.  And I'm loving the wavy line between the two sections.  My plan is to embroider the story of the quilt along the wavy line in the orange section with white floss (in tiny little letters!).  It will become the label for the quilt!

I need to organize my sewing room a bit.....and then I can start the machine quilting on it!  I can't wait!

Now, if you will all cross your fingers for me that my entry is in the first 180 they receive!  That's all they take for the show....so I could use all the good mojo I can get!  :o)

Happy Groundhog Day tomorrow!  And.....I think there's some sort of game on tomorrow, too!  lol  But I definitely know that Downton Abbey is on tomorrow!  That's all I really care about!  lol

regan

An inch is an inch.......really?

I don't know about you, but when I'm quilting, I'm using a ton of different rulers.  I grab whatever is handy at the moment to get a quick measurement.  I nearly always use a rotary-cutting type ruler when measuring out blocks, yardage, and certainly that 'perfect 1/4 inch', but every now and then I grab a measuring tape.  I have one that is 12 feet long, and it makes it very easy to smooth it out over the length and across a quilt to give me an idea of how much binding I'll need.  It doesn't have to be exact, because I always make more than I'll need.  But I never thought I had to question if it was correct or not!

So I was very surprised when my hubby just showed me this!

In his sewing room (yes, we have separate sewing rooms!  lol), where he makes kites and canvas bags, he uses measuring tapes a lot!  They are always great for measuring circumferences, like when he's making a duffle bag.  And NOW he knows why so many times, things just didn't go together quite right!

Over the course of 48" of this tape measure, it added 5/8 of an inch!  Holy cow!  That's HUGE!

Here's the proof!......

Needless to say, we have checked all the measuring tapes in the house (with a machinist's ruler), and have thrown out the evil-doers!

Beyond the quilting and piecing issues, if I had used those tapes to take my measurements while losing weight......that could have been really discouraging!  Right!?!  lol

Anyway, hoping to have some pics of quilty stuff soon.  I just spent the last 4 days cutting up my xmas fabrics for 5 different quilts!  My friend Pat is heading up a mystery quilt at our guild, and I thought to make it a xmas theme.  Well, since they were all pressed and ready for cutting, I figured, "kit up several quilts while I'm cutting for the one!"  And now my xmas stash is nearly gone!  I think I have enough left to piece for the backs, and that's it!  SWEET!

regan

Yet another top!

Ok......so I REALLY need to start quilting some of these tops up.......but I just couldn't resist making this last one!  I had a lot of the pieces already cut when I had my caffeine-induced cutting marathon a few weeks back.  And the pieces were calling to me!  Quite loudly, too!  lol

I'm in love with this quilt!  And it was totally fun to make, too!  I paper pieced the flying geese sections, and it all went together very quickly.  In fact, I started the paper piecing on Christmas Eve, and finished the top Monday night, the 30th!  Woohoo!

My inspiration was this pic I've had for ages.....not sure where it came from (maybe ebay or the quilt index?)......but I just loved the block!  I was going to go with the repro browns and pinks, but changed it up with repro browns and reds instead!

Now that I have this top done, I'm going to start tackling the stack of tops that need quilting!  And I have several dozen in the stack......cripes!  That's so daunting!  How did I let it get so out of control!?!  Wait!  I know the answer!  Because my favorite part is the piecing!  lol

But it's a new year, and a new focus......GET....THESE....TOPS....QUILTED!!!!!!  Here we go!

regan