A Quilter's Christmas

I LOVE getting quilting books for Christmas.  It's such a wonderful thing....   During the rest of the year if I purchase a quilting book, it feels extravagant and somewhat irresponsible.  But at Christmas, there are no guilty feelings involved whatsover - it's pure joy!!

Here are the books I received/purchased with Christmas money this year:

All Points Patchwork by Diane Gilleland - My sister Renee bought this for me last July at the Quilt Odyssey quilt show in Hershey.  She refused to let me have it until Christmas.  She hauled it home to CO, wrapped it up, then shipped it back to me in December.  I tried to convince it would be cheaper and easier for her to just give it to me then, but she didn't bite.  I've been eagerly waiting to get my hands on this book!  It's an outstanding resource for English Paper Piecing (EPP) which I am becoming more and  more addicted to.

The Farmer's Wife 1930's Sampler Quilt -  I already have the original Farmer's Wife Sampler Quilt book and love it, so was eager for this 1930's version.  The letters from farm wives are so endearing.

Quilting on the Go by Jessica Alexandrakis - This is a great book on portable quilting projects and is where I first heard the term "quilting in public" - don't you love it?!  In fact, it makes me want to gather some friends together and meet in public to stitch together for the next "World Wide Quilting in Public Day" on June 20 (I think that's the date!).

Sara Feilke's Quilting from Little Things -  I love Sara Fielke....  I love her approach to quilting - to slow down and do more hand stitching, to savor the process vs. rushing through it.  I had the chance to meet her last summer at the Sister's Outdoor Quilt Show and see several of the quilts in person that are featured in the book.  So, this book immediately was placed on my Christmas Wish List when I got home.  :)

Sara was kind enough to let me snap a picture of her at the Stitchin' Post in Sisters.  I celebrity stalked her for a while before I worked up the courage to ask her if I could take a picture of her.  :)

This is one of her quilts that is featured in the book.

Isn't her detail work fabulous?!

Also, my younger sister gave me...

...a gift certificate to The Old Country Store in Intercourse, my favorite local quilt shop.  I love everything about that store!

And last,

... this charm pack of Jen Kingwell's Gardenvale from my dear friend Kathy O. of Stitch by Stitch.  She knows me well enough to know what fabrics I love - that's a dear friend indeed!

Aaaaahhhh, I love this year's Christmas quilting goodies!

 

It's that time of year!

Nothing like a pillowcase to help get me into the Christmas spirit,

... especially when it's made out of such fun fabric!

:)

Machine Quilting Sampler Quilt

I just read Crazy Mom Quilts blog post announcing her 9th blogging anniversary where she requested photos of projects inspired by her blog or patterns, etc.  So, I raced outside to snap a few photos of this Machine Quilting Sampler Quilt that I finished in time for the Etown fair in August.  It was totally inspired by the two very similar quilts that she completed.  I am so grateful for her blog and her generosity in sharing her work with the quilting community.  It has inspired hundreds of quilters like me.  

Here are a few close ups of the individual squares.  I'll write more details about the process soon, but I wanted to at least get this blog post loaded so I can link to her anniversary giveaway!  :)

Manheim Farm Show Results

I'm so glad I made the effort to enter my quilts in the Manheim Farm Show this year, but it's just not the same experience when it's not in your own town!  (And, no fun when you're taking your own pictures!!)  Half the fun for me is looking at the exhibits of people I know and looking at them with friends or family; that just wasn't the case here.

Anyway, it was a good experience.  I met up with another fellow competitor, and we enjoyed admiring the quilts together.  Here's my assortment of entries:

Wish I hadn't been too lazy to carry my camera into the exhibit hall with me; a cell phone just doesn't capture the quilting details very well...

Funny thing, "the first shall be last and the last shall be first" most definitely applied in this case - almost all my quilts had the exact opposite results from the Etown fair - ha!  So, my competition strategy remains the same as always - take any and all quilts and hope for the best!

I thoroughly enjoyed examining this "Metro Rings" quilt that got Best of Show.  I happened to be in line when the exhibitor was dropping it off on Sunday and had the good fortune to chat with her about it.  I was thrilled, as I'm just getting ready to piece the exact same pattern for a customer.  It uses the Quick Curve ruler.  

I thought her quilting was spectacular.

Can't wait to get started!

Manheim Farm Show Newbie

I'm heading off the the Manheim Farm Show with this stack of quilts - a first for me.  

Wish me luck!

:)

Fort Hunter Day 2015

I had the fun of participating in Fort Hunter Day again this year.

The weather was glorious!! 

I demonstrated English Paper Piecing (both my beloved EPP stars, as well as some hexagon flowers) in the tavern.  

I love those big windows and all the light they allow in; it makes stitching indoors a pleasure on a beautiful September day!

(Kathy O., your swirls on my Suburbs quilt made the perfect backdrop for my display!)

These two Grandmother's Flower Garden quilts from my mother's side of the family were hand pieced instead of EPP'd, but I still wanted to showcase them, as this pattern could easily be EPP'd.

To keep sticky fingers away from my quilts and projects, this year I set up a table next to me with some plastic shapes identical to EPP shapes.  That way, young ones could touch and play and be creative to their hearts' content after seeing the real thing up close.  

Please know, I do believe quilts are meant to be seen and touched, but not by multitudes of sticky fingers!!  :)

I stitched a few more EPP stars between chatting with visitors.

Meanwhile, my quilt guild was over at the Centennial Barn gallery with their fabulous display of quilts.

I was honored to be able to display a few of my creations along with the other members of my guild:

And, here is the first peak of the quilt our guild made for the 230th anniversary of Dauphin County, commemorating African American involvement in the county's history.  

It's really quite remarkable....

So grateful to be able to participate in such a fun event!

One Last Day...

... of EPPing on the beach for the season!

More EPPing at the Beach!