Cocheco IV Fabric and Kits!

I just came home from the grocery store and am collapsing for a few minutes. My husband is expecting an apple pie. But before I begin that I need to catch my breath. I left several bags of groceries at the foot of the stairs by the garage. Our kitchen is on the third floor and it about kills me to carry heavy bags up there. I just carry the frozen and refrigerated stuff up and then Hubby gets the rest later. What a plan, huh?

 Here it is again, Old Elegance. I am excited about this quilt being displayed at the Marcus Fabric booth at Quilt Market in Houston. I know you have all heard this before, if you read my blog. The additional great news is that there will be kits available at two fabulous shops. Coincidentally, both are AP&Q top shops!

When I called Michelle Joyner of Fat Quarters Quilt Shop in Vista, California she was very enthusiastic about my pattern because she had ordered this fabric line from Marcus. She now has the fabric and the pattern in stock so hopefully kits are in the works! You can reach her shop at 760-758-8308. Also see the link to find out what other great things are in the shop. I had the pleasure of visiting this shop several years ago and love it! 

Another great shop, and closer to home for me, is Millstone Quilts, right here in Virginia. Millstone Quilts was just featured in the most recent issue of Quilt Sampler magazine. You probably have the magazine so you can take a look at how darling the shop looks. Regina Simmons is the owner and when I spoke to her she decided to order the fabric so she could make up kits. You can contact this shop at 804-779-3535. Wow, make my day!

I can't tell you how delighted I am to have these two great shops kitting up this pattern! It gives me the opportunity to share this pattern with you kitted in the original fabric pictured in the photo. I hope you love it and give one of these great shops a call!

Also, you can purchase the pattern individually at the Patchalot Patterns website, or ask for it at your LQS. I am always happy to take shop orders!

Smiley Babies

I haven't shared photos of the boys lately. Granddaughter Becky posted exceptional photos today on her blog, so I swiped a couple. I can't wait to get my hands on these babies! Isn't this a cute family photo?

 

 I love this one because they are both smiling at the same time and they always smile with their mouths wide open. They just turned 7 months two weeks ago. They are such happy babies! Just don't ask me which is which.

On another note, I was in the LQS, What's Your Stitch 'N Stuff, the other day and they have a darling kit for sale. It is of the ever popular tumbler blocks, pre-cut with the Accucut Studio Cutter. Very handy, don't you think? It is mostly from the Howard Marcus Quilt Collections for a Cause, I believe. Lovely shades of pink and brown--a personal favorite of mine! Give them a call at 757-523-2711 if you are interested. The quilt will finish at 54" x 72" and sells for $79.99. And it is all pre-cut! Just thought I would share, since it caught my eye.

 I am still putting in lots of time at the computer doing so much busy work. I am dying to really spend some quality time in my sewing room. How do I cut the cord to the computer I want to know? When I first got it I never realized that it would take over my life!


Have a happy day!

DOLL CLOTHES

Some people enjoy making doll clothes. I am not one of them. Just let me make quilts day in and day out. But we bought my granddaughter an American Girl Doll for Christmas last year, so naturally I enjoy providing for her. My daughter sent me a link to an Etsy shop that I flipped over. The shop belongs to Terri Wilson, and if you are in the market for beautifully made outfits for an American Girl Doll, or any doll of that size, you must check out this site. 

 This is the dress that I chose to buy for MYSELF! This dress is from Terri's historical section. If you need a doll dress to fit an era, Terri has it! This little dress comes with an Abe Lincoln button and the Emancipation Proclamation. I am afraid I may have to buy a doll for myself now. She has so many adorable clothes that fit the 17th Century.

And below is the outfit I bought for my granddaughter (formerly know as The Plumpkin). How cute is this? And it comes with the saddle shoes! Also see the Poodle Skirts!

 If you are looking for a gift for a little girl, or an adult with a doll habit, take a look at Terri's Etsy Shop. You won't be disappointed. She has a larger variety than you will find at the American Girl website. Love their dolls! Love Terri's doll clothes!

 

 Oh look! She has doll quilts too! I think she is one of us!

And here is our own American Girl Doll! All dressed up and ready to party! Of course she is taking her own picture with the phone, just like the big girls do!

Thanks for reading my blog! It is fun to share.

Helpful Hands

Just checking in to say hello. I have been madly writing directions for my quilt, Old Elegance, as I have named it. That is the one I showed back HERE made in the brown and blue Cocheco Mills IV fabric from Marcus Fabrics. The worst part of writing directions, for me, is figuring the fabric requirements. I always worry that I may have forgotten something. Hopefully that is not the case! I know people count on accurate instructions. The thing is, when I make a quilt I just cut and cut and it is not until later that I have to figure out how much yardage I used. I realize that people need to know that!

The good news for me is that my dear friend Mary Flynn at Quilt Hollow got my quilt quilted and back to me in record time! I am so pleased with it. She always does beautiful work!

For those of you that may be interested in buying a kit for this quilt, please come back later and I can tell you of a couple shops that will be kitting it once the fabric arrives. Don't know about this sideways shot! Blame Blogger.

I managed to make a few blocks for Johna'Lee at the Scrappy Appleyard for the patriotic comfort quilts she is making. Check out her blog for more information. I know she would be so happy to receive blocks from anyone who cares to contribute. They are for the family of a fallen soldier (her daughter's fiance) and his best friend.

The weekend is almost over. I am going to watch some TV while I stitch down the binding on Old Elegance. The rush is on to get it to Marcus Fabrics along with the pattern in time for Houston Quilt Market. Will I make it? Come back in a few days for a progress report. 

By the way, is anyone willing to share the longest amount of time they have continued to stitch after the bobbin thread ran out? Just curious. Not that it ever happened to me or anything...

Lost in the Fabric

We have had a very rainy weekend here.I was content to spend the time in my sewing room playing with fabric. First I spent time on EQ7 designing a medallion quilt. I meticulously sized each border around the center so that I would know just how to proceed with the cutting. Then I sorted through my fabric carefully choosing each piece. I knew I wanted some cheddar in the center and so I added it to the star and corner points. Oh yeah, I liked that a lot!

As I began adding the next round I found that I was spending way too much time making these decisions. Just when I thought I had it figured out another fabric jumped in and I had to change my mind. Finally I pulled this star off the design wall and made a new one.  

I didn't plan on the inner border of blue, but as you can see, the blue got its way. After I added the hourglass blocks and another thin border strip I planned another pieced border. But before I knew what was happening, this striped fabric of blue and red jumped into the action. Seriously, this fabric was not in the equation, but I am merely a servant of the cloth, so in it went. The final border was a fabric that I had been wanting to add since the beginning, and in fact, the center of the star is from this fabric. There is just enough blue in this fabric, along with red, green, brown, tan, etc., for it to work--at least I hoped it would still work. Not being certain enough on that point, I ended up cutting borders of two other fabrics which, in the end, I rejected for my original choice. Do you care? Probably not, but I am hammering this our regardless because you have the choice to stop reading at any point.

I kept looking at that border fabric and telling myself that there was not enough fabric. Finally I got something right! There was not enough fabric! But at this point destiny had taken control and we (me and the fabric) decided it was a go, and so we added hourglass corners, because that would conserve several inches of fabric, and we pieced in other dark fabric on two border pieces because that is what Libby would have done. Right? And I do love that look of substitution. (Did you even notice?) 

So much for my idea with the cheddar. I may have to start this exercise all over again with the cheddar block!


Back to the topic of rain, did I ever tell the story of how our bedroom ceiling collapsed during Hurricane Irene? Well, thank heavens the leak that caused all the problem is finally fixed. Our bedroom has a covered deck above it, and somehow the water was so torrential and the wind was so strong that it blew the water sideways under the deck until there was enough water that the ceiling collapsed. Upon further investigation it was discovered that the leak was immediately below where a squirrel had built a nest under the floor of the deck. He/she ate through an inch of blacktop on the roof and then began chewing on the board below it. 

 The black pieces that you see are the blacktop roofing that was chewed up, and the straw looking stuff is shredded wood from the board beneath. There is also something that looks like quilt batting which, I promise you, I did not give him! The wire that is sticking out of the nest was pushed up from the bedroom ceiling where we could actually see daylight! Don't talk to me about cute little squirrels!

It is still raining and we are glad to be dry. Tomorrow I have an appointment with the eye doctor and will be reminded once again that I am not getting any younger. My solution is to follow Martin Short's advice from "The Three Amigos" and "sew old woman, sew like the wind"! Another great quote from this movie, taking place in Mexico, is, "Do you have anything here besides Mexican food"? I believe that one was Steve Martin.

 

Stars of Comfort

Most of us go through our daily lives without being too much affected by what is going on in Iraq or Afghanistan. We may voice support of our troops and wave our flags, but by and large our life goes on as before. I know many of you have given service in the form of making quilts, etc. Quilters seem to be, by nature, comforters. They care when they see those in need, and try to provide comfort by creating a tangible object in the form of a quilt that someone can wrap up in an hopefully feel the comfort that it provides, knowing that it was made with love. It may not solve problems, but it does show that people care. And we do care!

 How long have quilters been stitching stars?

I am mentioning this today because my friend, John'aLee has put a call out for star blocks to make patriotic quilts. Sadly, her daughter Tory lost her fiance in Afghanistan recently. She is grieving and in deep pain. Her mother, a quilter, wants to bring comfort in the form of a quilt for Tory and for the parents of her fiance, as well as his best friend who was there at his side when he died. If you would like to contribute a star block or two please go to The Scrappy Appleyard blog for more information. Block info can be found HERE. We all know that many hands make light work. Thank you.

How Many Quilters???

I had to call an electrician last week because the light in the bathroom just wouldn't stay on. It would work for a week, then not work for a week, then work for a week, etc. Finally I made the dreaded call to bring in the experts. Surely there was a short in the wiring or something. No, that wasn't it. Turns out the bulb was the wrong wattage and finally burned out. You know where it says inside the lamp, "don't use a bulb with watt higher than...". Well I ignored that advice. The electrician replaced the bulb with a lower watt and went on his way, laughing, no doubt. How many quilters does it take to screw in a light bulb? None, we are busy with other things. My husband said he told everyone at work this story and I told him he should be ashamed of himself, he didn't even TRY to fix it! Talk about burned out!

So what have I been so engrossed in? Well, my friend Pati at Marcus Fabrics sent me a parcel of fabric and asked if I wanted to make a quilt for their booth at Houston Quilt Market.  

 I am not sure if I should be posting this because it isn't even on their website yet, so don't tell anyone, but here are a few pieces of the new Cocheco Mills fabric by Judie Rothermel. They have had four versions of this and I think this is the prettiest one yet! This fabric will be available in October. Watch for it!

And here is what I have done with it. I used the larger brown floral for the borders and the corners in the star block. I brought in creams and shirtings and the tan fabric from other Marcus lines to complete the quilt. It is very old and romantic looking in person. Now I can take a deep breath and get it off to be quilted! I will show more of this when I get a pattern out, hopefully by the end of October.


Hope you are all enjoying nice fall weather!

September Stitches

September first! How can this be? Hurricane Irene has come and gone. We didn't suffer much damage, thankfully. There are many that did, and to those we offer prayers and good wishes.

My sewing room looks like a hurricane hit it, but that is nothing new! I was hoping to dig into a UFO and finish something substantial, but another project came up and now I am feverishly making 9-patch blocks for a new quilt design in an effort to get it done for quilt market in October. I actually love deadlines. They get me moving! 

 I recently got this project back from the framer. It is by Blackbird Designs. I love the way they encourage you to honor your ancestors or others who have touched your life by including their name in a sampler. This one has the name of my great-grandmother, Kate Spencer North. I love samplers, but being a novice at this, and rather ill informed, I didn't realize the photo on the pattern was done in a variegated type of thread, but I liked the look of it, so I changed thread colors here and there to try to achieve the same effect. Silly me! My own accidental original!


Can you feel the chill in the air? The switch gets flipped on September first. Fall is around the corner.

 

A Little Sharing

Once in a while I get emails from people who have completed one of my patterns. I don't always get the time to show them all, but I got two recently that I want to share.

 This little cutie was made by Christelle Taquet. I happened to hear from Christelle because I saw another quilt that she made posted on Lynda Hall's blog, Primitive Pieces. I commented on how much I liked it and then heard from Christelle that she made one of my little quilts (Medallion Doll Quilt, above) and is working on another one. Apparently Christelle lived in Virginia Beach for a while and before moving back to France she stocked up on supplies at What's Your Stitch n Stuff, a LQS. Among her purchases were a few of my kits! It makes me happy to think of her in France stitching along on Patchalot Patterns! Thanks for sharing Christelle!

 I also heard from Michelle Condon, a fellow blogger from Quilts and Stuff. Michelle was in Millstone Quilts, in Mechanicsville, Virginia recently and bought a few of my patterns. She wrote to tell me about it, then later sent this picture of Stitchin' Time that she had completed! Nice job Michelle! By the way, Millstone Quilts will be featured in the next edition of the Quilt Shop Sampler magazine by Better Homes and Gardens (the American Patchwork and Quilting people). I always love to see the great shops they feature in that magazine!


On another front, I had the pleasure of speaking to the Colonial Quilt Lovers Guild yesterday in Camden, North Carolina. I had such a great time and really felt welcomed in their midst! My husband asked if I was going to another support group, and yes, it is something like that, except we kind of encourage each other in our addictive habits. I spoke a little bit while I showed my quilts. Heaven knows that is an easy format for me! I also have to say how impressed I am with the good work they are doing in supplying quilts to Project Linus, and baby quilts to a local hospital as well. Quilters just overwhelm me with their goodness and generosity! Thanks ladies for a great day!

The Joy of Reading

I have spent far too much time playing with my Ipad of late and consequently have not read as much as usual. I enjoy my books too much to let them be overshadowed by ever changing electronic gadgets. Not to say I don't enjoy my Ipad. I do! I also enjoy reading books on it, but it is not the same as gripping an actual book and turning the pages. Plus I haven't outgrown the need to peruse the shelves of bookstores, or scan through the best sellers at Sam's Club or Costco. Many times my husband and I read the same books, and then I often send them to my dad or my children. Good books are meant to be shared! 

Recently I finished reading Dreams of Joy, by Lisa See. This is a great book! Fascinating and frightening in its historical setting in Red China. It follows the journey of Joy, the daughter of Pearl and May in the book Shanghai Girls. You really must read Shanghai Girls first! Lisa See is an American of Chinese descent. Her family's history is amazing (On Gold Mountain) and she draws on this history and their experiences in her writings. I often see books reviewed on blogs that I read, and I find that helpful and enjoyable, so I thought I would add my 2 cents worth.

And then there are QUILT STORIES! I love them! I read two good ones on blogs recently. There are probably lots more out there, but I am not straying very far afield these days. Check these out for good reading, I know you will love them:

• Sweet Home Quilt Company by Melisa Morrison
  
• Bunny Hill by Anne Sutton

Please let me know if you see other stories I can add to this collection. 

And here are those darling twins again. Can you believe how they are growing! Coming up on 5 months old!

Summer Progresses

I was perusing Ebay the other day and look what I found! Not only that, I won the bid for it, so I am now the proud owner of a really straggly, well used, deteriorating old quilt! And so why did I buy it? It was advertised as a cutter quilt, for one thing, and I had to save it from that fate! Also I love the old indigos on the pink. A wonderful combination!

 

 At first glance I thought the block in the lower left was a square of dark fabric! But no, it is a shoofly block with literally no contrast! Do you think quilters of old did this just to be playful as we do today? These blocks are 9" squares. I adore the zig-zag setting! Now here is the funny part, to me at least. It is virtually the same pattern as my Pioneer Trail!

 Pioneer Trail done in prairie colors, but the exact same block and setting! And here I thought I designed this pattern! Seriously, "nothing new under the sun", as they say!

 Meanwhile, back in the sewing room there is little to report. Little blocks that is. These are three inch blocks. Simple enough for even me to accomplish without much sweat! A new design in the works!

 

CONTENTED QUILTS

Long time no blog. We all know how time flies so there is no point in bemoaning that fact. I was in Arizona for a couple weeks in July and then had company when I came home. Fill in a little of the normal ebb and flow and there you are--a full time life! So that's a good thing, right? 

I have to confess, I finally got a few more of Barbara Brackman's Civil War blocks done. I know I am way behind many of you, but I am OK with that. I do what I can do. I am not competitive in that way. I am remembering the Carnation Milk commercial from when I was a kid that talked about their milk coming from "contented cows". Does anyone remember that? So I make "contented quilts"! It's good!

 This is a photo of my darling cousin Brenda. I was visiting at her house in Arizona and she pulled out this quilted coat that belonged to her husband's grandmother (I think it was). This coat is so beautifully made! It is a treasure! I just had to share it with you who read my blog. It is museum quality!

Since I am feeling so contented I thought I would show a quilt that I made a number of years ago while living in Issaquah, Washington. The Good Will in Seattle had an auction where they auctioned off any quilts or parts thereof that had been donated. Of course they advertised the event to the local quilt guilds and it was always mobbed. My husband took me downtown and we ended up bidding on a few things. I won the bidding on this stack of vintage Dresden Plate blocks. They were all appliqued onto muslin squares that were really in bad shape. I picked them off this nasty muslin (that I wish I had kept because old soiled looking muslin is all the rage now) and I restitched them onto clean muslin squares. I found the yellow gingham that so closely matches the yellow in the blocks, and happily stitched the whole thing into a quilt! I even hand quilted it, something I never do anymore for lack of time! This summer I placed this quilt on my bed for the first time and am using it! I guess I was too worried in the past to take any chances with it. But this summer I am feeling contented, so I brought it out to enjoy.

Just check out these great fabrics! What do you think, 1930's or 40's?

I know those of you in the US are feeling the heat! This summer has given us record temperatures across the country. Keep cool and contented wherever you are!