QUILTER'S HOME MAGAZINE

Who is this funny man? I picked up a new magazine the other day called Quilter's Home. I started flipping through it from the back, as I always do (?). After reading some off-the-wall comments, I had to flip to the front to see who the editor was. Mark Lipinski! Obviously I am not on the inside loop of what is going on in the Quilt World. I have seen some of Mark's quilts in magazines, and maybe I should have realized through his quilts that he is a funny man, but I am not psychic. Apparently Mark does have psychic friends, however. Yes, in fact, there is an article in the magazine where he interviews Jane Stickle, of "Dear Jane" fame, with the help of a psychic. And Jane says she loves Mark's quilts and is totally behind his new magazine endeavor. How is that for paranormal support! Talk about a "higher power"! I am not being skeptical, I am one of these people who thinks anything is possible. I am just needling Mark, but it's just a little needle (say a Between #8). I am enjoying the Premiere Issue of Quilter's Home Magazine, I think you will too.

6" CIVIL WAR BLOCKS

I am hooked. Now I can't stop making these darling little blocks. I made these six more in the past two days. There are enough in the book for a huge quilt. I don't know how far I will get, but a nice sized wall hanging is OK with me. I like to change wall hangings around from time to time because--what else? I have a short attention span! Which is why I keep starting projects. I do finish a few along the way. I missed the whole Dear Jane frenzy. How big were those blocks? Anybody, anybody??? The fun thing about making these little blocks is digging around and finding that you have just the right little prints for each block. Really, does anybody love our stuff as much as we do? I really doubt it.

TOILE BLOCKS

Esteemarlu asked about the toile quilt pattern. Here are the two blocks. One is a Snowball block and the other is an Evening Star with Pinwheel (according to M. McCloskey's Block Party book. They are 12 inch finished blocks. The corners of the star block and the center pinwheel are a blue print that is different from the toile. The background of the flying geese star points are toile, so they blend into the Snowball block and make it appear on point. The Snowball corners and the star points are an indigo print. The pinwheel center is a different navy print. They actually could all be the same blue. or even a scrappy variety. This was in a McCall's Quilting Magazine, December 2002. Theirs was red on white toile and called Holiday Elegance.

LITTLE FLAGS

As the Fourth of July draws near we like to bring out our red, white and blue quilts. This is one I made a couple years ago. It is from the book, Patriotic Little Quilts, by the Little Quilts ladies. It is so easy to make that my daughter and I made several for gifts. She gave them to teachers for an end of school present. In the photo you see it hanging on our deck. Isn't it funny that each year we celebrate our independence from Great Britain, and now they are our greatest ally?

RAG BAG

I was just looking at Tanya's blog and saw the rag bags in her photos. My neice in Bellingham, WA sent me one that she made and embellished with a little fish and some shells. She lined it also. I have been carrying it around for summer. Doesn't it look beachy? It is only about 8" x 11". The handles are stuffed.

CIVIL WAR DIARY QUILT

Have you seen the book CIVIL WAR DIARY QUILT? A local shop is starting a class series using this book. There are stories and six inch blocks that go with each story. It should be fun. I jumped the gun and made two of the blocks. Many of the blocks are very strange and look tricky. I tried easy ones! I have been playing with scraps today. I had half-square triangles left from my toile project (below) so am trying to use them up in a tote bag. I think I have just enough fabric left to do it. I will post it later when completed. (Isn't that opptimistic of me?)

MY HAPPY PLACE

I designed this quilt a couple months ago after spending the day with friends at the Mid-Atlantic Quilt Festival here in Virginia. I had so much fun creating this. I mostly used orphan blocks for the border and made a few others to fill in spaces. It is to hang in my sewing room if I ever get it back from the quilt shop here in town. They keep a nice supply of my designs and samples. Most quilters hardly need a pattern for this though. It is just bits and pieces of things on hand. Can you tell there are three little faux American flags? Also left from another project. :0)) Oh dear, is my double chin showing?

CLOSE-UP

I am once again trying to upload a close-up photo of the Oceans Away blocks. They are very scrappy and I know how quilters like to examine and identify what fabrics are contained in scrap quilts. Where is the photo? This is frustrating!

Finally! The blog repair crew got this program working again! Are we having fun yet?

Lovely Lisa

Here is our lovely Lisa all dressed up for prom. Her graduation from high school was last night, plus the all night party at school. I know she is excited to go home to Hong Kong and see her family and friends. She will be missed here in America where she has endeared herself to us all. Best wishes for a wonderful future to Lisa, wherever she may be!

#3. Blue Toile

#3. Blue Toile

#2. Oceans Away

2. Oceans Away, 10 inch blocks, really scrappy. Will have another border added.

#1. Sister to Sister

1. Sister to Sister, 10 inch blocks.

Blue Quilts

Wow, I am getting so creative. Lisa wanted a blue and white quilt and I can't decide what she will like so I have been working on two of them, plus I had one in the closet not yet quilted. Lisa is a foreign exchange student that has been living with my daughter and her family for the past school year. Everyone loves Lisa! She is peaceful and serene and non-judgemental. All very good qualities to have when moving into a wild American family. Wild as in "normal". I know, normal is relative, like everything else. Lisa has brought an element of dignity to my daughter's house. Everyone trys a little harder to be better because they don't want to be a disappointment to Lisa. Lisa will leave next week to go back home to Hong Kong. I want to make her a quilt and she said she would like a blue and white one. It will not be completed before she leaves, but she is coming back in the fall to go to college. Yea!!! So one of them will be ready for her by then. I am letting her choose her favorite. (1)The Sister's Choice blocks I am calling Sister to Sister, because she has new sisters from America now. To me it looks like the blocks are hands reaching to one another. It will have machine appliqued flowers all around the order. (2)The Stars and Flying Geese Log Cabin I named Ocean to Ocean, and it is very scrappy. One of the blues actually has little whales on it! (3) The one in toile is from a magazine and is very pretty. All blue and white and all very different. Which one will she choose???