Alien Abduction!

I was just sitting in the sun, minding my own business, which is to say napping. Ssuddenly, I was picked up by this UFO!

 I was a little worried at first. I've heard that when aliens abduct someone,  they do a lot of probing.

 But then I remembered that it's usually veterinarians who do probing, and I didn't smell a vet anywhere.

 And, I realized that this UFO felt an awful lot like a quilt, so I decided to continue my nap.

I wonder if all UFO's are this comfortable?

Stil At It

I'm still quilting away at this month's UFO. I'm getting there, though. You can see that I am quilting the outer border now.

Next,  I need to bury my thread ends. Way too many thread ends, in fact, because I like to change thread colors frequently. After that, I put on the binding.

Then comes the scary part. I'll need to wash this to remove some of the markings that I used for quilting. Normally this would not be an issue. But, this was a group project, and I've discovered that one of the dark fabrics used by another person bleeds terribly. And, one of the threads that I used to quilt may be a bleeder, too. If anyone has any advice for me, I'd love to hear it! How would you handle this?

Weekend Retreat Report

My Mom and I spent a wonderful weekend at a Quilt Retreat in New Hampshire. Not only did we have a good time, but we also managed to get a lot done. And, as a bonus, we were completely inspired by the talented people around us.

The retreat was held at The Inn at Mills Falls, on Lake Winnipesaukee. Our rooms all had fireplaces, and balconies overlooking the lake. It was so amazing to wake up to this view.

 

The classroom was a large conference/ballroom. We were set up mostly two to a  table, with a big, communal cutting table in the center. That was the site of many discussions, as we all sought advice or offered opinions on projects at  various times throughout the weekend. At some retreats, everyone makes  a specific project, or learns a specific technique. We chose a retreat where everyone was working on their own individual projects, so there was a lot to see, and to comment on, and learn from.

In that last picture, you can see this month's UFO hanging from my sewing machine. Across the table is my Mom, also called Sue, by people she hasn't given birth to. On the right is Jane, the owner of Quilter's Way, the shop that sponsored the retreat. We called our table "The Cursed Table". I managed to lose the free motion foot to my machine, only to find it in my accessories box (where I swear I had already looked three times) after searching the trash cans very thoroughly. Not fun, but I can now say, unequivocally, that different quilters have very different ideas of what an unusable scrap is.

Mom managed to lose a large section of her project, only to find it later at the ironing station. What can I say? Strange things happen when you sew from 7:30AM to Midnight.

And "what about Jane?", you may ask. After all, she was at The Cursed Table also. Well, she spent the weekend sewing and unsewing a broomstick skirt, interspersed with bouts of sewing "Snoballs From Hell". See them?

Actually, it's going to be quite nice when she's done, but that is a lot of octagons. She designed it using the shop's Kit Designer, which allows you to design a quilt, and pick out the fabric for it. The Kit Designer calculates yardage, you pay for it, they cut it, and either mail it to you, or you can pick it up at the store. It's a pretty cool feature for a quilt shop to have. You can check it out here. Meanwhile, I'm going back to work on my almost finished UFO.

Working On UFO's

Last week at quilt guild, I got to show off the past month's UFO, all finished.This one was from a commercial pattern that I was helping a friend with, and I don't remember the name of the designer. It is pieced, not appliqued, which is probably how I would do it if left to my own devices. 

I really like how the sky turned out. It looks like the weather is getting ready for some action.

 
Unfortunately, the feather design that I quilted into the border didn't work out so well. I should probably have used a different color thread, so it would show up better.

 This was a very small quilt, so it was easy to finish up. Actually, I had been hoping to get that one in November or December, when life gets busy. Oh, well. For this coming month, they picked UFO number 9, which is much larger. It's a round robin quilt, a guild project from several years back. I made the center block, friends added the borders.

My Mom and I are going to a quilt retreat this weekend, so I'm going to take this along to quilt. Should make some good headway on it, while Weasley and his Dad are home having a bachelor weekend. We'll have chocolate and fabric, they will have beer and sports. I think we will have more fun.

The Second UFO

Last Thursday at our guild meeting, we got this month's UFO assignment. It was UFO Number 2 from my list.  This would be the cat/koi quilt. In the distant past, I had already started quilting this one. And looking at it, what I had quilted wasn't done very well. Also, I probably wouldn't quilt it with the same patterns now. I was actually thinking about ripping out the quilting that I had already done, but a friend talked me out of it. Instead, it will be my record of how much my quilting has improved (if all goes well). Here it is, currently under the needle.

I have some decisions to make about the background of the central panel.This indecision stopped me from finishing this one in the first place. Now it's time to stop waffling!

First UFO Done!

Well, all done except a wash to remove the last of the chalk markings from the grid in the outer border. It grew a bit from the original square. I added everything starting with the yellow borders, to make it  larger and  rectangular.

 I quilted the yellow center pretty densely, to make the butterflies and flowers pop. This meant I ended up putting more quilting into the entire piece than I had originally intended, so that it would keep its shape. I used a variegated thread in the triangles around the yellow center, which helped the light and dark of the fabric blend better.

 I wanted  some extra leaves in the black triangles . Instead of using fabric, I decided just to quilt them in, which gave a lighter effect. For the inner horizontal yellow border I added a center flower based on the flowers in the black triangles, with feathers on either side.

 I used the variegated thread on feathers of the yellow border, which I quilted in a continuous line around the quilt. If I use this motif again, I will use a solid thread, as the light portion of the thread disappears against the yellow background, even though it is a different color. I didn't pay enough attention to that all important consideration of color value.

I can't believe how much I like this quilt, which I might never have finished without this Guild Challenge. The romantic look of it was perfect for February. Tonight I get to show it off at the guild meeting, and then they pick the number of the UFO we will work on next. I wonder which one it will be?

Like Most Rabbits

I'm really good at making rabbit ear shadows, and I don't have to use my hands to do it. I'm so good, I can even do impressions. For example, this is my impression of Harrington.

Do you see it? Isn't it good?

If I weren't so tired after our recent adventures, I'd show you my impression of Biff, too. Full lops are hard, though, and I need a nap first.

When Mom took these shadow pictures, I was sticking close, 'cause she was listening to a horror program on NPR. It was about how Burmese Pythons are taking over the Florida Everglades, and eating all the small mammals, and some large ones too, like adult deer.  That's pretty terrifying. Can you imagine the Everglades (or anywhere else, for that matter) with no rabbits? Darn Slytherins!

On a happier note, my oldest (emphasis on oldest) Sister is having a Birthday today. She is 24 years old. People call me old, and I'm only 9 years old. She is ancient! Mom and I got her this cake thing. It's pretty ugly, it's not made of carrot, and she wouldn't let me set it on fire.

But boy, it tastes good. This last picture is blurry, 'cause Mom was grabbing me to keep me from eating too much. Hah! I can still move faster than her when I want to!

So that's it for today, except, if you were wondering, that's Mom's UFO in progress that I'm sitting on. She's been alternating between working on it, and saying "interesting" words. You know the ones I mean. Have a great day, every bun. And to you , Sister,

Happy Birthday!

Knees Are A Pain In The Neck

I finished putting together the backing for my UFO. Took a little longer than I thought, as I discovered some of the fabric I wanted to use had big holes cut in it. Sometimes when I'm grabbing a piece of fabric for an applique quilt, I get impatient, and just cut. Of course I regret that later....Anyway, the back is done, but the basting will have to wait. The knees have had enough for today, and kneeling on the floor to pin the layers together is out of the question.( Also, I need to vacuum up the bunny pellets, but we won't talk about that!)

I'm liking this quilt more and more. Can't wait to start the quilting.

On The Work Table

I've expanded this month's UFO from a 30 inch square to a larger rectangle. Next up is to piece the backing. I'll be puzzling that together from this bunch of fabrics.

Then, I'll baste the layers together, and start the quilting. What are you working on this week?

UFO Update

Unfortunately for everyone who was hoping that I would be working on the Bunny UFO first, the number pulled at last night's guild meeting was Number 6. That means that I have until next month's guild meeting to work on the Butterfly quilt. I'm trying to decide if I want to quilt the black corners in black thread, or a colored thread. If I use a colored thread, I will have to be much more careful with my stitching than if I use black thread. That will slow the process down, but it's a small quilt, so that shouldn't matter much.

Also at the meeting, we got a surprise. They decided to extend the challenge through next holiday season into January of 2013, which gives us time to do 12 UFOs. I had to go rooting around in the piles for two more projects. Here they are.

11. This dragon quilt seemed appropriate for the Upcoming Year of the Dragon (but only because the Rabbits are Humoring them). It was started for a challenge put on by Keepsake Quilting over eleven years ago. I know it is at least that old, because I started it before we moved to this house.

12. One of my more guilt ridden projects. In elementary school (maybe first or second grade, maybe even kindergarten) the Youngest Daughter did a 100 days project. For each of the first 100 days of school, they had to collect an object, that they would have 100 of on the 100th school day. She chose fabric squares. I said I would make them into a quilt for her. These are small squares, and it's a small quilt, and she's in college.... Sorry, sweetie. You'll get it sometime this year!

And that's it, the end of the list, for real this time. And yes, there are still so many more hiding upstairs. Yikes!

UFO Challenge

Like so many other quilter's who you may have seen around the internet, I have a lot of UFO's. That's "Un-Finished Objects" to any of you who might not know. The Material Girls Quilt Guild, which I belong to, recently decided to have a UFO challenge for the year. We each made a list of ten UFO's that we would like to finish, and turned that over to the leader. Each month, starting tonight, she will pick a number. During the following month, we must finish the quilt on our list that corresponds to that number. Apparently there will be prizes. I'm just happy for a little incentive to finish these projects.

I went digging into the piles to find my UFO's. Ugh! Not fun! The dust was really flying. Some projects that I want to finish, I couldn't even find. Some project I don't even remember starting! A lot of them are group or class projects. Over the years, I have stopped participating in these, for the most part, because I realized that I rarely finished them. Now is the time.  So, here is my list.

1. A stack and whack quilt (you can see the book in my picture) started in a guild workshop, the very first time they offered this project, probably ten years ago or more. There are some borders to attach, and then it needs to be quilted.

2. A quilt with cat/koi, inspired by the center panel, which had sort of an asian feel to it.  This panel came out of a pile of fabric donated to make comfort quilts. I think this might be too delicate for that purpose, so I will have to make a substitute for that. This is mostly quilted.

3. This was inspired by the fabric on the right-hand side, which was part of a guild summer challenge many years ago. The giraffes were a piece that was designed and screen printed by my friend, Chriztine Foltz.  I don't even remember where I was going with the design on this one, and I didn't make any notes. Could be a problem.

4. Christmas blocks from a small group exchange. We each made one block for ourselves, and one for every other member of the group. I couldn't figure out why I had doubles, then I remembered that the Oldest Daughter had participated, also, and I have her blocks. These were made sometime within the last eleven years. Don't laugh. I have some UFO's (the ones I couldn't find) that are around two decades old!.

5. A very small landscape made with a another friend when she was trying out a pattern that she had bought, and was unsure of. I don't remember the designer. Since this is small, I may do another small UFO the month that this is chosen. Or maybe I'll just enjoy having an easy month.
 

6. This quilt was part of a guild Round Robin project. If you don't know what that is, let me tell you. I made the center block (at least I guess I must have. I really don't remember doing it.). Then the quilt is passed from person to person, each one adding a new border around the center. I really like this one, but for some reason. I never quilted it. It's not too big, and should be fun to finish. 

7. This quilt top (table runner sized) was made at a quilt retreat in Maine that I went to with my  Mother, over eleven years ago. The retreat was sponsored by Heartbeat Quilts. I used Thangles to make the triangles. No idea why I never finished it, because the colors really make me happy.

8. This Arizona (or maybe Utah?) landscape was started in a class at Ralph Jordan's, which no longer even sells fabric, and hasn't for a long time. The photo was taken by either my Mother, or youngest brother, not sure which. If Mom could figure out how to leave comments, she could let us know, but.... I don't remember the teacher's name, but the main focus was on sewing curved lines into landscapes. I've seen the technique attributed to several different teacher's around the web, so I don't know where it started. I've used the technique many times since then.

9 .This dragonfly quilt is another Round Robin project, but it turned out much larger than Number 6.  It was made within the last eleven years, but probably earlier in that time.  Not sure. It has a lot of open space, so it will need significant quilting. I'm afraid of this one.

Here is a closer look at that goofy dragonfly. The wings are a sheer fabric, under tulle. They definitely need some bling.

10. And last, but certainly not least, is my collection of bunny blocks, made in another guild block exchange. I might add blocks representing all the bunnies we have had here, but if I do, this will be a huge quilt. There are a lot of funky embellishements on these blocks. I really love them, and I'm worried that I won't be able to do them justice.

 

So there you have it. My collection of blocks for the guild UFO challenge. Oh, boy! I really have my work cut out for me. The really scary part? There are so many more quilts that could be on this list, but aren't! I'll let you know tomorrow which quilt will be up first. I hope it's an easy one....

First Art Disaster of the New Year, and a Name Change

     One reason for this blog is to prod myself into producing more, and better, artwork. I am hoping it will help me to FOCUS on my art goals, and ignore all the opportunities for procrastination. As a furthur prod, I decided to make FOCUS my Word-of-the-Year, ala Christine Kane. There was a small UFO from an on-line class that I didn't finish last year (lack of , you know...), which I thought could make a good sign to remind myself of this word. This piece already had a hummingbird zeroing in on a flower. I added the word FOCUS in red chain stitch, very slowly, because my hand stitching skills are rusty.
     Next, to FOCUS attention on the bird reaching the flower, I decided to add a gold leaf frame. I applied a frame of fusible web, carefully positioned the gold leaf, and ironed it on. Due to my past lack of FOCUS on this UFO, I completely forgot that at some point I had coated this piece with Gel Medium. Gel Medium, which acts as a what? That's right. Glue. The gold leaf stuck to the entire piece, not just the fusible. In desperation, I frantically scraped at the surface, but couldn't save it.

     I almost pitched this right in the trash, but decide to color in part of the bird and flower with marker, and hang it directly in front of my work space. Do you think it will help my FOCUS in the future? Or at the very least, keep me from making the same mistake again? Have you ever done something like this?

     You may have noticed that the profile name on this blog changed from Top Doe to Karen. This is because Ginny had a little talk with me, and let me know that I am Top Doe in my dreams only. Sometime I will tell you more about the power of rabbit disapproval, but for now lets just say, could you tell this face "No"?

Daughter's UFO and Mom's Purses

This is a quilt top made from blocks that my First Daughter started making about 10 years ago , when she wanted to try sewing. She made 3 1/2 blocks, and then they sat. Recently the unfinished blocks started calling to me. Maybe it was the bright colors, lightening some cloudy days. I certainly have plenty of UFO's of my own, but I found myself finishing that 1/2 block, and then making 2 more.

Each block starts with a chunk of animal fabric, and then random strips are added crazy quilt style. The piecing was done in a flip and sew style, on a paper backing. You can see the paper being removed in the following picture. This will be sandwiched up with a pieced backing, and quilted, and then given away as a charity quilt. Hopefully, this quilt of many colors will go on to brighten someone else's day.

These next pictures show First and Second Daughters after unwrapping purses made for them by my mother for Christmas. She made 8 in all, for eight granddaughters. Beautiful work as always, with each girl getting fabric that suits her personality, with sparkle, and lots of pockets. They were well received, see the big smiles?

It has just stopped snowing here, but the clouds are still very thick. I'm hoping they will break up, and let us see the Blue Moon this evening. Have a fun and safe New Year's Eve, and a Very Happy New Year.