A PHD Challenge Done!

I can't even remember when I started this quilt, it's been that long ago. Years ago, I had a Secret Sister and I hand appliqued a block for her and one for me every month for a year. When it was time to reveal my Secret Sister, I used my finished quilt top for show and tell and that's how she knew I was her SS.  It layed around my house for a while long time and then I took it to a machine quilter. She and another friend talked me out of having it machine quilted and thought I should hand quilt it because of the hand applique. So I brought it home and it layed around for a long long long time again until finally one day, I decided I was going to take it again to be machine quilted. I was sick of it laying around and thought DONE is better than NOT! I had the border and sashing MQ and I hand quilted the blocks themselves. I guess it was sort of a compromise on the quilting. I entered it into Myra's PHD Challenge last year and it's late in getting finished but it is DONE and I am GLAD!!! The pattern is in an old Piecemaker's quilt book and it called "Heart's A Plenty" and it is a calendar quilt as the blocks represent the 12 months of the year. I hope you like seeing it, sew until next time, have a "Stitches" kind of day.

Jo Morton Retreat

This post is a belated report on the Jo Morton retreat that I attended on Sept. 23-25. I am really slow in getting this on here so here it goes. My friend, Betty and I left on Thursday, Sept 22, to drive to Nebraska City to join some of the gals for a get acquainted dinner. (that was nice) I think most of the time, there were about 22 gals in attendance and we gave our undivided attention to Jo, (most of the time) beginning at 8:00 o'clock on Friday morning.  She showed us how to back-baste applique on a small Rachel's Reel, we learned how to hand piece a little bow-tie block and we English paper pieced a small flower. I had not hand pieced much at all and I find that I really enjoy it.



This was everyone's Rachel's Reel's





Everyone's Spool blocks

 


My little pile of "stuff".

 

My little hexie flowers



  Salt Cellar Pincushion, a gift from Elaine P. at the retreat, nice!!



Every technique we did would be a great "pick up and take a long" project. Kathy Hall, from Andover Fabrics, joined us and worked right along beside us. Kathy talked to us one morning about Andover Fabrics and showed us some things she had been working on. Beautiful things!! Kathy was a delight and I am so glad that I got to make her acquaintance. We had lots of show and tell and got to see every ones progress on our lessons. Breakfast, lunch and dinner were served every day right at the retreat center and that was nice, no cooking and no dishes to do. After dinner, we could sew some more into the evening, if we wanted. TJ Lane came one day with her silver jewelry, thimbles and lots of accessories, they are really beautiful.  I've had one of her thimbles for several years and it's the only one i wear and guard very carefully, lest I misplace it!!  And on Sunday morning, Stephanie Grace Whitson came and gave a presentation with quilts and her new book, Home on the Plains, Quilts and the Sod House Experience.  



The Book



I love this book!!  She co-authored this book with Kathleen L. Moore..Stephanie's coming was a bonus highlight for me as I have been a fan of her novels for many years. She has written many books and I love reading her stories. They are very inspirational books and I recommend you read one of her books, I'm sure you will love them.  All in all, the whole retreat was a great experience and we met many wonderful people, we had a good great time and hope to go again sometime. Jo is a very easy going, low key teacher but gets the lesson across to everyone and is most willing to help, if you need it. Can you tell, I really enjoyed the retreat?




Stephanie's Botch Handle quilt

 

Sew until next time, have a "Stitches" kind of day.

Souxland Sampler's Quilt Show 2011

I went to the Siouxland Sampler's Quilt Show on September 17, in Sioux City, IA and took a "few" pictures. Here they are if you want to look at some of their great quilts.

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Isn't fall all about tons of quilt shows in your area?? I've been to several and there are more to go to. I guess us quilter's never get tired of looking at quilts, the workmanship, patterns and colors that other quilter's pick out. It's a great time!! Enjoy the pic's, sew until next time, have a 'Stitches' kind of day!!

Cottonwood Guild Meeting and Kathy Kansier

Back on September 20th, I went to the Cottonwood quilt guild meeting and enjoyed the program by Kathy Kansier from Ozark, Missouri. She was a very delightful person and had a wonderful sense of humor and many wonderful quilts to show us. Her program was entitled "Quilts with Great Edges". Most of them were antique quilts, mostly hand quilted and some hand pieced. Very pretty and I loved the old soft feel of them. Here are a few pictures of her quilts. I love this fan quilt and the border, it was so neat.

Another fan quilt, another edge treatment.

And yet another Fan quilt.                                                                                                                                                                             If you look closely at this pink and white border, the "scallops" are hearts.

Large scallops

This was a nice quilt but the prairie points were large and floppy. There are spider webs quilted between the blocks and I think the flowers are Daffodils.

This looks like a difficult border treatment to do.

This is a large Yo-Yo quilt but what was so unusual about it? It was completely appliqued onto a background fabric..It was really gorgeous!!  I have more to tell you about that trip, we found some bargain's at an "Outlet Store" or I like to call it a Flea Market. I hope to be back soon, I've so much more to tell..Sew until next time, have a "Stitches" kind of day..

I'll Try to Catch Up Soon!

The last couple of weeks have been on the busy side for me. I have been to the Siouxland Quilt Show, 2 guild meetings and the Jo Morton Retreat in Nebraska and tomorrow I'm going to the AQS show in Des Moines.  The above picture is a quilt made by Katy from the Piecemaker's quilt guild, I think it is so cute!! Lucky little nephew!  I hope to get some posting done on all of these, maybe even today so stay tuned..Sew in the mean time, have a "Stitches" kind of day..see ya soon

9/11 Not Forgotten

I watched most of the specials on TV on 9/11 and thought they were done with reverence. The new memorial looks wonderful and something we can be proud of for years to come and I hope that it will bring peace to the memories of all who were lost. I made a wall-hanging for my son in the month after 9/11 and want to show it to you now. My son is an Omaha Firefighter and I just knew when I saw this free pattern on the internet that I had to make it for him. It still hangs in their living room today, it's getting a little faded around the edges but still instills patriotism in those who see it. I hope you like it.  Sew until next time, have a "Stitches" kind of day.

Old Friends

On Friday, I went to a nearby town to meet my friend and old classmate, Dixie. She was home from Maryland for just a few days so when we got together for lunch, 3 more classmates joined us and we talked and laughed for a couple of hours reminiscing. It was a great time. Before we got in our cars and headed home,  Dixie said, "You know we probably only have 10-12 more good years in us so we better enjoy the time right now". ehhhhh! That got my attention for sure!! Well, we still had a good time but she put our future in prospective, more or less..but one never knows from day to day anyway, right? Dixie came to my house and spent the night and we chatted and laughed and chatted and laughed some more until almost 1 a.m.  Dixie and I started to kindergarten together so we have been friends for lots of years. We graduated in a class of 15 so many of us were close and we still love getting together. Now, for my big disappointment, in myself!! I didn't take one picture!!! Oh, I was so mad at myself as I had my camera in my purse and couldn't remember to take any pictures. How could I do that? Not of our lunch bunch or even Dixie and myself..could just hit myself over the head with a hammer!  I think I will make an appt. with the Dr. and have my camera permanently affixed to my hand,,,oh, wait a minute. I don't think that will work as I am planning on getting a new camera (maybe this week) and I wouldn't want to go through surgery twice, that would be a stupid move on my part..duh!! So the picture you see at the top of this post is Dixie and me. Me on the left, Dixie on the right, taken in April of 1947!! We were about 10 years old so you can figure out our real ages by yourself, aaaaah!  I didn't get to see Jim, her husband, as he was at a high school class reunion for Central HS in Sioux City, however, I did get to talk to him when Dixie called me on Saturday to tell me she had taken my car KEYS!  She thought they were her rental car keys, I guess. Thankfully, I have another set so it wasn't a big deal, she will mail them to me soon, I know.  It was a good 20 or so hours that we were together but not long enough since it had been 5 years since we had seen one another..but we do talk on the phone occasionally so that keeps us in touch.   It is so great to have a friend like Dixie, where we can just pick up where we left off even if it has been several years since we were together...Love her a lot!!!!  Do you have friends like this too?   On Sunday, I went to the Omaha Community Playhouse and saw "Becky's New Car" and laughed most of the time. It was a really good play and the actors did a great job with their characters..needless to say, my jaws actually ache today but I'm hoping all that laughing has helped to lift and firm some of the sagging muscles in my face..One can always hope!!! Sure hope you had a "Stitches" kind of weekend too!!!

Civil War Blocks 26 thru 34, still not caught up!!



#26 Barbara Frietchie Star




  Here are a few more blocks to show you, I've had them done for over a week but just didn't find the time to get them posted.  This week is turning out to be a busy week so don't think I will get more blocks done soon.  But I'm still pretty happy with myself for getting these done and posted. For some reason, they photographed lighter than they really are and I don't know why..



#27 Irish Chain





#28 Next Door Neighbor



#29 Railroad Crossing



#30 Peterson's Stars & Stripes - I did my own version





#31 Empty Spool - I think this will be a re-do, with 4 little Spool blocks





#32 Carolina Lily





#33 Indiana Puzzle





#34 Rosebud



I am seriously thinking about starting a garden blog but just can't decide on a name or if I should really do it. There are some really great ones out there!!!  Maybe it isn't so wise to start a blog this time of year when everything is winding down and soon it will be time to up end the flowers and get ready for winter...blah!!!! I've been reading a lot of garden blogs and have gotten so inspired by them and it is such a good way to keep track of what your flower gardens  looked like and have a great time line to compare with for another year. I'm still contemplating on it so if anyone has any thoughts about it, I would appreciate anything you have to say.  I'm sooo on the fence about it..Help me decide, please!!!!!!! Well, until next time have a great "Stitches" day.

More Civil War blocks #20 thru #25

I'm gaining on my conquest but some days it seems like 2 steps forward and 1 step back!  Does anyone else ever feel this way? I think I am getting so close to being caught up and Wham!!! another Saturday arrives and Barbara posts another block!  These weeks are just flying by too darn fast for me!  So here are 5 more Civil War blocks and actually I have a few more done but don't have pictures taken of them yet.  I really enjoy going on Flickr and looking at so many of the blocks and all the different color combinations that others have used. It makes me wonder just how many different fabrics there are out there in the quilt world, it has to be mind boggling!!

#25 Calico Puzzle

#24 Ladies Aid Album

#23 Illinois Roads



#22 Blockade





#21 Underground Railroad



#20 New England



The yellow lily picture is from my garden a little earlier this summer. I call it Lemon Lily, it was here when we moved to this house almost 40 years ago and is still blooming nicely. Aren't lilies just the best? You can always depend on them and they become like old friends, very trustworthy and stable...I just love them!! That's all for today, sew until next time, my wish for you--have a "Stitches" kind of day.



Bugs? Have you seen any BIG bugs lately???

These are my lilies..Chicago Apache

A couple of weeks ago, I went to the Reiman Gardens at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa.  Our first reason for going was the quilt show at the gardens. I have posted pictures of the quilts on another blog, if you would like to look at them, the link is Piecemakers Quilt Guild.  Three friends and myself left my house at 7:30 a.m. and headed for Ames.  We left early so we could be there shortly after the quilt show opened but there were several quilt shops along the way and they just seemed to get in our way!  Our best intentions went right out the window but we had all day so it was no big deal. Right? When we got to Ames, we were all starving so lunch had to come first before the show...we got to the Gardens between 1:00  and 1:30 p.m. so we made good time (not). ;-)  After viewing the quilts, we tramped around in and through the gardens in the misty rain and looked at the "bugs". There is a display of wooden bugs, that are 10x larger than life sculptures that were designed by  New York artist David Rogers and will be on display until the end of August. Enjoy the Smilebox slideshow and let me know what you think about the bugs!!!

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I am working on my Civil War blocks feverishly again too and will get a few posted in a day or two..gee, I think it is time to quit for today. Sew until next time, have a "Stitches" kind of day.

Noodles, straws, fritt & slumping, what? My Tuesday Treasure

This is my Tuesday Treasure and I hope you like it, if you want to see more Tuesday Treasures, just click on the picture on my sidebar and it will take you to The House on the Side of the Hill blog. Be sure and say "hi" to Melody for me......A couple of weeks ago 4 of us gals went to a stained glass store and made some little pieces like the one above. This one is mine and I was really pleased with it when we got them back. It was a fun thing to do and we all learned some new terminology that day. We started with a 6" square piece of clear glass and then we proceeded to decorate them. You could do anything your little heart desired, any colors and any pattern that you wanted. I chose to make a dragonfly (remember, I like dragonflies) I had to cut and shape the wings, it wasn't hard either, just scary. I probably could have messed with them a little more, if I had had more experience but for a first timer, I think they look okay. The little skinny pieces are called straws and you can just break them off any size you want. The squarer pieces on the blue I just cut little pieces off a longer noodle. They had lots of little bubble dots so we just picked through them and picked what we wanted, they had a slightly flat side to them. Lastly, I sprinkled on fritt where I wanted it. It comes in lots of colors and reminds me of sand. Then we had to decide if we wanted to leave our piece flat or have it slumped, mine is slumped and I think you can see that it is slightly rounded now. I need to buy a little easel to stand it in so I can display and enjoy it. Now you know some new words too, isn't it fun?? If you have a stained glass store in your area, you should check it out and give something like this a try. It was a fun to learn a new technique and fun to do it with friends also. Sew until next time, have a "Stitches" kind of day......

Harrison County Fair Quilt Turning - 2011

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Well, hurray for me!!!! I have been working on this slideshow of our Quilt Turning for about 4 days!! You have no idea how frustrated I am. I could get the Smilebox loaded but when I previewed it, it would not play. So finally I posted it for real and it PLAYED!!! I guess it just won't play in the preview, anyway it didn't for me...I'm hoping you all know about Quilt Turnings? It is a great way to have a "sit down" quilt show. Anyone can bring a quilt to show on the day of the turning and they are taken home with them the same day too. No sorting or hanging of quilts for a show.  The quilts are placed one on top of another on a faux bed, and then they are shown one at a time. We had each owner write a little story about their quilt, who made it, who owns it, the name of the pattern, antique or not and etc. Then we have someone read each story as the quilts are being held up for the ooh's and aah's. There were some interesting stories connected with these quilts and I wish I had them to share some with you. I hope you enjoy the slide show because it took a lot out of me and now I think I'm going to make myself a little Peachie whilst I cook myself a chicken breast...what's a Peachie, you ask?  If you want to know, you only have to ask!!! Sew until next time, have a Stitches kind of evening...

A Visitor in my Bedroom!!

I had a little visitor in my bedroom on Saturday night and it wasn't really a welcome one. In my dimly lit bedroom, I saw a little glob on the carpet and thought it must be a dried leaf that had clung to something and got in the house. I don't know why I didn't just reach down to pick it up but something told me that I had better investigate it before I did that. So I got out a flashlight and was surprised to find a little tree frog sitting there. Now I'm thinking 'what should I do?'  I told him to stay put and I would be right back. I ran to the kitchen and got a plastic bowl and lid (which by the way, did not fit the bowl very well as I discovered in just a few seconds). I ran back to the bedroom, hoping and keeping my fingers crossed that he was still there and hadn't jumped under the bed or somewhere that I couldn't find him.  As luck was with me, he had obeyed and was still waiting for me so I put the bowl on it's side in front of him and like the trained frog he was, he jumped right in and I put the mis-fitted lid on top..of course, he was jumping and jumping around but I ran to the back door and gave him his freedom in some hosta's..For the life of me, I cannot figure out how he would have gotten in the house!! .I was telling a friend about him yesterday and her remark was " you mean you didn't kiss him?"...Oh my gosh, I forgot to do that in my haste to get him out of the house!!  Now I have missed another chance to find a Prince Charming, what was I thinking?? I guess it just wasn't meant to be, but maybe I'll have another chance someday..Sew until next time, I hope you have a "Stitches" kind of day!!