A Quilter's Christmas

First Steps to Free-Motion Quilting by Christina Cameli, The Elm Creeks Quilts Collection by Jennifer Chiaverini, a lovely made-in-Colorado Nantucket basket felted wool pin cushion, an Omnigrip 20 1/2 x 20 1/2" ruler, and a reel extension cord with outlets to take along to my quilt guild's all-day sews.  

How's that for a fabulous assortment of Christmas gifts?!

Merry Christmas!!

You can read more about these cards here.

Blessings on your Christmas!!

Pillowcases for Christmas!

I was stumped as to what to get for Christmas for my 11-year-old nephew, especially since he now has an iPhone; and, Playstation 4 was on his Christmas list!  :(  When I give a gift, I like to give something that is representative of me, yet meaningful or enjoyable for the recipient.  (I can assure you, electronics are not an option!)  I was thrilled when I found this fabric this afternoon while fabric shopping with a friend - perfect for a last-minute Christmas pillowcase!

I LOVE the various Santa motifs!  I made two pillowcases - one for me and one for my nephew.  Hopefully he'll love it as much as I do!

Poinsettia Quilt

Can't wait to stitch this Christmas quilt, not to mention the one I never got around to last year!

Quilting with a Modern Slant

What a fabulous read!!  Inspiring, moving....  

(I got my copy from my local library.)

Update, 1/10/15 -  A few quotes:

"If you keep on practicing, you can't help but get better and better."

- Jane Sassaman

Elizabeth Barton - How did you beome grounded and focused?

"I supposed is comes from years of being a psychologist, where you see people trying to fit themselves into categories that other people have created."

"Narrowing down our choices helps us create."

- Denyse Schmidt

What Was I Thinking??!!

Where am I going to go with this HUGE roll of Warm & White batting??  It weighs a ton!  But, it was a no-brainer, since it was a deal at 52+% off from Joann.com and free shipping (my Black Friday weekend shopping!).  Can't go wrong there, especially since I don't have any on hand.

But, it can't sit in my living room forever!

A Few More Finishes

This top will shortly be on its way to Kathy O.  

I had stalled out on it because it just felt so boring, even though I loved the fabric when I first bought it about 5 years ago.

While I could easily quilt this smallish 56 x 70" quilt top on my domestic machine, I knew its ho-hum design needed some help.  Kathy's amazing freehand stitching will bring it to life.

In exchange, I finished piecing this top for Kathy.  It's so fun stitching/swapping with someone else - you get to try all kinds of fun fabrics and designs!  I love the giant hexagons!

(The fabrics are Color Me Retro by Jeni Baker for Art Gallery Fabrics.)

Can't wait to show you the magic Kathy works on these two tops!

In Progress Overload

 I have been desperately trying to finish up my stack of UFO's before starting any new projects because 1) I have totally reached overload on all those unfinished quilts floating around in my brain, and 2) because my Baker's Bun Pan Rack has no more room to hold any more works in progress.  BUT, that means that everything I need to work on isn't the easiest thing.  Usually, the reason I put a quilt project aside is because I hit a snag, couldn't make a decision on the next step, or just wasn't sure I liked the project enough to finish it.  

This is one such project!!  My Seaside Roses quilt....  I got to the borders and couldn't make myself stitch the borders.  I hate borders.  (I think my border skills are getting worse with age.... )  I usually avoid borders at all costs - probably the reason I've become more of a modern quilter of late - no borders for the most part!  I knew this one would be extra tricky with needing to match the stripes.

Also, I couldn't decide if I wanted to tackle the Prairie Points.  As much as I liked the effect, I knew they would be a bear.

I ended up skipping the Prairie Points.  Good thing, or I wouldn't have these pictures to show you!

I just have to stitch the applique motifs on the borders yet.

I need to get this quilt finished before I paint my bedroom another color!

A Few More Pillowcases

Instead of working on some pesky UFO's, I stitched these - all from fabric I found at the thrift shop (minus the cuff and band)!

Way easier than a UFO any day!

:)