When you've got a good thing going….

It's fun when you discover something about your sewing machine that makes you love it more than you already did. Take my Bernina, there is a stitch, a standard "menu" stitch that if you alter both the length and the width, gives a quick and fun wavy line to use on a quilt. (A smililar stitch is on some Pfaff sewing machine models as well). I've now used it on 3 quilts and 1 pillow. It's fast, it's easy and is a nice change from straight lines and basic meandering.

Front

The details:
"Open and Shut", 66" x 66"
Various quilting cottons including Kona solids in "chinese red", "charcoal" and "snow"
100% cotton warm and natural batting
100% cotton, Mako 50 wt Aurifil thread in: several light to medium grays for the piecing and the quilting (2600, 2620, 2625).
Original design with pieced circles and disordered sashing.
Piecing and quilting: by me.

Close-up front, wiggly line quilting in light grey thread

Back

And I did something I'd done once before, but will do again, added my makers mark and date discretely to the quilt, close to the bound edge.

"signing" the quilt

A Single Shining Star

Title: "A Single Shining Star"
60 x 60 inches
Various quilting cottons, Kona bone, additional Kona solid (light turquoise blue), Kona Chinese Red binding.
Aurifil thread, for quilting and piecing, # 2012, 100% cotton, Mako 50 weight
100% cotton batting
Adjusted Bernina standard stitch for the wavy quilting

For Sarah.

More from Fabricate

I'm up in Boulder more than I thought….. if anyone is interested, I'll be adding an additional class to the  Free Motion Quilting Classes I've been teaching. The Jane Market Tote,

come take a class with me in Boulder, it will be great fun. You can check out all the classes at Fabricate, here. (Corey picked out the fabric for this sample tote- I love all the pattern and color).

2013 Capitol Quilt Show

It's such a beautiful venue for hanging art…. quilts.
Here goes:
The quilts were hung, 3 stories high in the central, north and south rotundas

I'm just noticing how they mimic the ceiling

 And here are some of my favorites:

"College Bound" by Nola Greenwald

"Starry Night" by Flo Williams

"Circles of Life" by Marsha Loewenberg (quilted by Jeannie Swanson)

"Golden Wedding Ring" by Neoma Garl, made for a friends 50th wedding anniversary and hand quilted!

"Walk the Path" by Pat Moore.  (Quilted by Rita Meyerhoff).

and….. one of the reasons I was so keen to go

my "Tail Wind" quilt

Such an important doorway, flags and all.

sneaking a peek from the first floor of the south rotunda, right by the  Capital Tour desk!

If you want to see the show, it's open until October 10th, 2013. Monday through Friday 7:30 am until 5:00 pm. No weekends. If you want you can vote for your favorite quilt when you go. There are so very many greats ones to see.

Coming Full Circle, or should I say Square?

As some of you know, I sent my eldest off to college a few weeks ago. He went with 2 quilts, one for himself and one for his roommate.

And as most of you know, the road to college is paved by many people; parents, relatives, teachers and friends, all helping your child. One of those teachers who played a big role in developing Bridger's foreign language skills is having her first child. And so…….

another quilt

"Coming Full Square" A baby's quilt

Front

51" x 41"- original design
Kona snow (solid), various 100% cotton quilting fabrics in gray and vintage 100% cotton kimono fabric. Metro circles: binding
Aurifil thread (piecing and quilting) # 2021, Mako 50 wt.
100% cotton warm and natural batting

Medium detail, front

Fine detail, front
1/4" gray strips surrounded by tiny 1/4" gray squares

Fine detail, front
100% cotton vintage, striped kimono fabric  that mimics the tiny pieced gray squares.

Back

Detail, back
The quilting was done by altering a common machine stitch, making it 3x longer and 2x wider than expected.
The only detail on the back is a small rectangular pieced strip.

I wanted this quilt to be precious without being fussy. I also wanted to convey calmness, hence the lack of busy color and pattern. And I washed the quilt, something I almost never do, since I want the parents to know it's meant to be used.

I know this baby is going to be a girl. I can't wait to meet her.

FMQ teaching at Fabricate

Just a few fun photos of the very enthusiastic and fun group of talented ladies at my first class on Free Motion Quilting at Fabricate, Boulder.

We started out with some of the basic FMQ techniques (stippling/meandering/ circles) them moved to doodle quilting using Pilots' FriXion pens.

Finishing up the class with a pot holder/trivet in their choice of FMQ design!

If you are interested in joining us for a class, here is the link.

Move in day

Move-in day:
It finally happened, packing up the car…...

After unpacking at the dorm room (This is about as neat as you'll ever see it). Both quilts looking good.

 Wiggle and Dash quilt in it's new home

 Trying them out for size…. (I'm just looking at how dirty their feet are…….)

 Smiles all around.

Sleeping already? …….

Taking snap chat photos of his new place for his sister….. Thank you Lisa and Tom for the Colorado flag and Ruchi, Mark and Claire for the wonderful memories of our summer travels.

 Everything in it's place.

Time to go! (sniff, sniff)

Fractured Cosmos- Cameron's Quilt

The story started here and takes a pause here…...

Bridger (l) and Cameron (r)

and here…...

and here…….

and most recently, here…….

So, when 2 quilts were asked for, 2 quilts were happily made….

Fractured Cosmos- Cameron's Quilt

Front 

Back

Cameron's Quilt and the selection of the Caribbean Blue color was totally inspired by the fabric, Robotic by Birch. Cameron aspires to be a Aerospace Engineer and that is his major in college. There is a Kona solid, Caribbean Blue that is the solid match to this print, coincidence? I think not!

I snuck a few pieces of this fabric into the front and featured it prominently on the back. The design needed to have both college colors (black and gold) as well as a "heavenly" vibe. This quilt is my interpretation of 2 fracturing spiral galaxies.

 The Specifics:
 94 x 71 inches ( a little bigger than a standard twin, for those extra long college mattresses).
Design inspired by Jacquie Gering's Swirling Medallion Quilt done with the stitch and flip technique (pieced and quilted by me). Straight line, jagged and meandering FMQ with coordinating colored Aurifil thread.
Materials: 100% Kona cottons, solids in: Charcoal, Iron grey, Curry and Caribbean (front). Addition of Robotic, by Birch and Bella by Lotta Jansdotter for Windham Fabrics (back). Aurifil 100% Mako cotton thread in 50 wt: 2021 (off white), 2630 (dk grey), 2625 (med grey), 2140 (yellow), 2810 (Caribbean blue)
100% organic cotton batting

close-up front

Larger Fracturing Spiral Galaxy

Hanging side-by-side in our home
Same colors used in both quilts, Cameron's (l) has the addition  of Caribbean Blue
and Bridger's (r) has Chinese Red.

Soon to be featured in the same college dorm room.

Quilt designs reflect my take on these outstanding young men's choice of studies and their complimentary yet unique personalities. I hope to get pictures of the quilts in their dorm room. Perhaps between the tears I can snap a photo or two.