Off to Houston

Well, here it is my friends. My bags are packed and I'm leaving in the morning for Houston. This is THE big event that I have been working towards for months. All the preparation for International Quilt Market is about to be implemented in booth #935. You have seen my newest quilts and given me great feedback on them. I hope the people shopping at market like my stuff. That's all I can say, I've done my best. Here is a funny little fact for you, my patterns seem to sell the best to Wisconsin and Texas shops. Now why do you think that is? 

 The above photo is one I got from Pinterest. I just love this display. I need to find a cute ladder that I can do this with. I have seen so many cute displays with ladders that I have a whole board on Pinterest with just ladders. Check it out!

 Since I don't have anything new to show you let me refer you to another blog who has a darling free pattern available. I would like to make this when I get a chance. This is from Joanne from Manitoba, Canada, and her blog is Thread Head. Many of you may have seen it already, in fact I saw that Karen at Log Cabin Quilter has made this project and posted it. You may need to scroll through some of Karen's beautiful work to find it on her blog. Thanks to Joanne for this darling project!

Another blog, Quilts by Cheri, has been posting free projects also. Cheri Payne designs darling primitive projects, and I am sure you all know her. Her last blog post shows a quilt she made from a pattern on Lori's blog, Humble Quilts. Lori has posted several darling little quilt-a-long patterns over the past few years. Bloggers are so generous with their time and talent. Sometimes I feel out of the loop because it takes me so long to accomplish my own projects and what I would love to do is just dive into one of these others. I really appreciate the great blogging community and am thankful for the friends I have made. I was explaining to my husband the other night that I have met so many bloggers over the years and even tho we may not keep up with one another on a regular basis, it is so nice to have someone that I met way back drop in to make a comment on my blog, or just to say hello. Such a nice circle of really nice people!

One more blog of note is that of my friend Karen at Sew Primitive. Karen has been making the Suffrage blocks that Barbara Brackman is providing on her blog. Barbara is amazing in what she offers us on her various blogs in terms of historical perspective and quilt blocks to commemorate events in history. Karen is one who follows along and actually keeps up with each block in real time! Check out Barbara's Grandmother's Choice blog, and then check out Karen's version of these blocks. Karen is amazing! If you are familiar with Karen you may know that she has been undergoing cancer treatment for the past year and has been really sick. All the more reason why her work is so amazing, as she just pushes though the pain to get things done that are important to her. Any prayers you send her way will be appreciated.

Thanks Blogging Buddies for all you contribute! More when I return from Quilt Market! And if you are going to market please come see me in booth #935! Patchalot Patterns!

 

New Friends, Old Elegance!

I had fun meeting new friends yesterday! I taught a class at Quilt Expo II at the Hampton Convention Center, sponsored by Bella Fabrics of Carrollton, VA. Nice new friends, and a few that I already knew. It was delightful!

This is the class I taught--Old Elegance. The picture on the left is the one on the pattern cover that you may have seen before. It is on my side bar. Saturday I made up a few blocks to show an alternate color way. I was aiming for fall colors and liked how it turned out. The great thing was that when I went to class and saw the fabric that each of the ladies had chosen they were all different. Not one of them went with the original blue and brown. It delighted me to see how each of them was turning out. Reds and browns, repros and florals and even batiks! I forgot my camera, but hopefully someone will send me photos to share. I sold a bunch of patterns also, which always makes me happy. My new pattern, Pinfeathers, was well received and a visiting shop ordered a bunch for their shop!

You saw the Pinfeathers cover in my previous post, here is a larger pic of the quilt.

 This is the block. It is a Double 9-Patch with feathers, hence the name, Pinfeathers! You can see how lovely my friend Marae Harris quilted it. It really turned out pretty! And yes, very scrappy. My friend Sue Cruthers, here in Virginia Beach, made the quilt using my design. Thanks ladies for all your help! This is the first time someone other than myself has been first to make one of my patterns. It was such a great help and I love the quilt!

On another note, my voice held up all day yesterday! I was surprised and so thrilled! I used a mic in the beginning, but for the one on one I was fine. A quilting friend, Chris, came into my class and told me that her sister in Atlanta reads my blog and told her about my voice problems. Chris, is having some of the same issues and is going to the same doctor that I am. Funny how news travels. Hi to Chris's sister!

Another week has begun and now the race is on in earnest to finish up all odds and ends before market. Remember, you can find my patterns at patchalotpatterns.com. Thanks for stopping by. I hope you stop and shop--hee hee.

 Later Quilt Buddies,

2012 Patterns

As each day passes things occur to me and I often think, "I should mention this in my next post". But then I forget and am on to something else. While others have posts filled with wonderful photos of their works in progress my life has been filled with a constant barrage of computer work. What on earth am I doing? A little of this and a little of that with a load of laundry in between. I am happy to say that I have almost all instructions completed, or almost completed, for new patterns. Plus the covers are printed. This is a huge relief! 

 Here are the three new pattern covers. So glad to have them ready for market and also for anyone who wishes to order them. They will be on my website soon! patchalotpatterns.com

Button Bandits will be available soon also. Didn't the cover turn out cute? I took it on the floor of the deck. I have magnets coming also, so if you order this pattern it will come with a magnet of the same picture. I try to remember to include a magnet in each online order that shows one of my patterns, tho I haven't ordered them for all patterns. They are so cute on the fridge or where ever!
Oh, and I had to raise my prices a bit, but I eliminated the shipping fee, so it comes out about the same. Ordering is very secure as it goes through Paypal, and even if you don't have a Paypal account you can click on to order and Paypal will process your credit card. It is all out of my hands. Awesome! Am I too old to use that term? I will go back to saying "cool"! 

I seem to focus a lot on aging. I guess it is because that is all my husband talks about. He says things like, "when I am gone you will have to learn to manage the money". The other night I said to him, "Just so you know, I am not in a hurry for you to be gone". He said, "I know, you just want me in the other room". I have to keep him around because he makes me laugh! Laughter has preserved our marriage for almost 45 years! See? I told you I was old. Not like I really care. Except for...

Remember that voice issue that I mentioned a while ago? Well I saw a new doctor (one that would put Dr. Dreamy on Grey's Anatomy out of the running!) and he is recommending surgery. So come November I will be having surgery to put a wedge in my throat to force my vocal fold into place to correct my speech. More on that as the date approaches, but meanwhile I have purchased a voice amplifier to use at market in an effort to be heard above my normal whisper. Here's hoping that will do it for the short term.

Feel free to visit me on Pinterest. I have so many quilt photos on my boards it will make your head spin, and with Halloween coming up maybe you were hoping to learn that trick. I try to be helpful where I can.

Later quilt buddies!

Button Bandits

This is a little project that I made a while back and never showed, but now I am working on directions so I thought I would give you a peek. It is called Button Bandits. Did you know that crows love to find little objects and hide them away? Especially shiny objects. So Button Bandits seemed like the perfect name for this. Hopefully I will have a pattern all packaged up soon.

When I showed this quilt, Primrose Hill, last time I forgot to mention that my friend Mary Flynn from Quilt Hollow did the quilting for me. As usual, she did a fabulous job. The design is a beautiful overall pattern with flowers and swirls. It looks lovely. Mary always knows just what a quilt needs. It is a nice talent for a machine quilter to have, and one that I truly appreciate because I want my quilts to look their best. With Mary I never worry, and I have never been disappointed. Thanks Mary!

I was emailing with Libby today and we were talking about mis-matched things and how sometimes it is charming and sometimes it isn't. It made me think of my darling granddaughter, Becky. She doesn't want a set of anything. She loves everything mis-matched. She loves drinking out of canning jars, and no plates that match, etc. She cracks me up. The funny thing is that her kids match perfectly--she has twins! Ironic!

Here she is, the mother of twin boys. Sometimes when I look at their pictures I can't decide who is the cutest, Becky or the boys!

I am pretty sure that Micah is in the red and Grey in the gray. Don't quote me. They are 18 months old now, and wearing skinny jeans. Well what else? They are the coolest! Tho that is an ancient expression and I have no idea what the current term would be.

Later quilt buddies!

Photo Shoot at Stoney's

Yesterday was such a beautiful day here in Virginia Beach. I had a few errands to run and thought I would first go to Stoney's outdoor produce market. It is always so gorgeous there in the fall. I had two quilts with me and hoped to do a little photo shoot to try and capture pictures for pattern covers. The lighting was perfect in the shade and they always have great props around. I really hope they don't mind me doing this. I always ask someone for permission and they are agreeable, but then others look at me like--what does she think she is doing? I hate to intrude on the property of others, but seriously, I get the best photos there! And I always buy stuff before I leave. I bought half a dozen pots of pansies for the front yard. They are lovely.

 This is so frustrating! Blogger doesn't want my photo to be right side up. But try and look at the cute accessories around this place.

While at Stoney's I met a fellow quilter. I didn't know her before, but she saw me with my quilt and stopped to talk. Her name is Tiffany McPherson. She used to own a quilt shop, The Velvet Thread, in Elizabeth City. I bet some of you know her. She was there with her husband and grandchildren. Grandmas just don't look like grandmas anymore! Sorry, this photo flipped also. Aargh!  Anyway, it's always nice to find a friend lurking in the pumpkins!

 Their pumpkins and squash are amazing, and all different kinds. I thought these paint spattered looking ones were cool.

Cute little gift shop within. A few old and weathered items for sale as well. My quilt, Old Soul, was arranged in several locations. It looks good with the fall items. Remember Old Soul from the spring edition of Primitive Quilts and Projects magazine? They have another project of mine coming up that I hope you will like! Maybe it is in the new issue that I am hoping to receive soon.

I have ordered covers for patterns for these quilts and they will be available soon!

Scrap Quilts Magazine

I am very excited to announce that one of my quilts was selected for the cover of the Fons and Porter bookazine about Scrap Quilts!  

Quite a while ago they emailed me and asked if I had anything to contribute to the magazine and I said, as a matter of fact, I do! So I submitted a photo and they wrote back to say that the editors wanted to use it in an upcoming special edition about scrap quilts. Well, you know me and scrap quilts, we are like bears and honey, or cookies and milk, or flags on the 4th of July! I was pretty pleased! Then recently they told me that my quilt would be on the cover of the magazine! Woohoo! I have had a few quilts in magazines, but this is my first cover. So excuse me if I gush all over the place. I hope you will look for a copy!

In other news about me, Cheryl at Polkadots and Rick Rack is involved in Christmas Through the Year and posted a link to my website and the free Christmas patterns that I have listed there. Maybe you will see something that interests you. Christmas is just around the corner...again! Seems like it is always just around the corner! Thanks to Cheryl for thinking of me and my designs.

Quilts and things

I am in the midst of getting ready for Quilt Market, which takes place in Houston in October. The time is fast approaching and I still have much to do. This week I brought home a few quilts from the LQS that have been on display there for oh-so-long. 

Several of them are going to market with me. I am formulating how to set up my booth. The booths there are so beautiful and it is a little intimidating. The hardest part is trying to make my booth attractive in an auditorium filled with so much eye candy. 

 Meanwhile, I got it in my head that I needed a little rug in my booth. I decided to try and crochet a rag rug. I have been wanting to try this for years, ever since a fellow blogger, Finn, showed them on her blog. This was several years ago, but I managed to find her comments on the topic and went to work. First I went through my scrap box looking for long strips, then I trimmed them into 3/4" wide strips. I experimented with a couple different sizes, but 3/4" seems to be the magic number for me. I also learned that a strip doesn't go too far, and it is a little difficult pulling the seams through with the crochet hook, so the longer the strip the better. I was happy to find some really long pieces in my scrap box that had been trimmed off the backing of quilts after they were quilted. And I used a J hook and Finn used a K hook. Finn posts about it HERE and HERE. This is a fun way to use up fabric that you know is going to waste. The problem is that you get hungry for more and you run out of long scraps, so then you start looking in your stash for old or ugly fabric. Last night my husband accused me of using my good fabric for a rag rug. That's just crazy. I used old fabric. "Good" is a relative term, right?

 I have to share this darling doll furniture that my granddaughter just got from her other grandfather (the one I am not married to). He made it for her American Girl Doll. Such a talented man, and such a lucky little girl! Hmmm, maybe she needs a rag rug!

 

Pilgrim's Pride

I was thinking this morning about my ancestors and the great heritage they have left me. I am pretty sure that most Americans can say that they came from families without much money. I know I can. My family tree consists of paupers and Pilgrims, pioneers and patriots. Maybe even pirates, who knows? Yes, Patchs for sure! But no where on my family tree do I see dollar signs. They were salt of the earth, working class people. They did what they could and what they had to do to take care of their families. My grandfather went to college in Chicago to become a chiropractor. He never got to practice. Instead, the depression came along and he drove trucks. My grandmother didn't have a job outside the home, but what a worker she was! Though she was raised on a farm, she ended up living in the city of Buffalo, NY with a garden in her backyard. My grandparents rented out rooms in their home to make ends meet, and their children slept in the attic. Trust me, this was no bed and breakfast! At one point my father's parents lost their home and could not find a place to move into as soon as they needed. My mother's parents told them that if they got desperate they could stay in their cellar. Well, they actually did become that desperate, and for a few months they took up residence next to the furnace in a very small room with only a bed. This must have been in about 1947 because I remember (and I was only a year old) calling down the radiator grill in the floor to my grandfather and hearing him call back to me. A sweet memory for me, not so great for them.

Another family of mine lived on the plains of Alberta, Canada. They farmed their land and fought the elements and whatever else life threw at them. They were Mormons and from them I got my faith and my fat legs. No, not all Mormons have fat legs, I just happened to have been blessed doubly. 

My Great-great-grandfather Davidson died from an accident while chopping wood with an ax. No doctors were in the area and one of the boys rode as fast as he could to Lethbridge to get a doctor. The doctor wouldn't come. He said it wasn't worth the ride as grandfather would be dead by the time he reached him. Turns out he was right. 

When it came time for the crops to be harvested, neighbors came from all around, bringing their own harvesting equipment (whatever they had back in 1897) and they harvested all the crops for Grandma Davidson. I suspect there are many, many stories like this across America. Communities pulling together to take care of their own. 

Granted, this story took place in Canada, but the community spirit is the same. My grandmother used to love to sing Oh Canada.I love to sing America the Beautiful! I love this song! It is emotional and stirring and full of wisdom and inspires us to be better people, better Americans! It unites us! Click on the link and read the words. They are amazing. 

 America! America! God shed his grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood, From sea to shining sea! 

 My heritage was built on the backs of my ancestors, and they came from many different countries to build this nation into something great. They were paupers and Pilgrims, Pioneers and Patriots! I bet yours were too!

At long last I can reveal the quilt that I have been working on. It really didn't take as long for me to complete it as it seems . Well, maybe it did, but I have excuses! Blah, blah, blah.The lovely fabrics in this quilt all come from Marcus. Something old, something new--that's the way I sew. I have a lot of trouble sticking with all one line of fabric.

Now I need to bundle it off to be quilted, and hopefully get it all packaged in time for Quilt Market in Houston in October. That means that my sewing is done for a while because I need to write pattern instructions. I am beginning to feel the panic coming on.

I received a lovely little bundle in the mail this week from Julie Letvin. Julie is the artist behind the lovely jewelry on her website, Me and My Stitches. I have been admiring her work for quite a while and to tell you the truth, I was having a hard time making a decision on which pieces I wanted to purchase. Now that they have arrived I have to tell you, they are even nicer in person! The first link is to Julie's blog and the second takes you to her website. Go-go-go!!!

Thank you for all the words of advice and encouragement in my last post. I'm drinking lots of water! (Pretend you hear that last sentence gargling).

Well, here we are in the last week of August. I don't know how that happened, but already the weather has cooled just a bit. My grandkids are back in school already! They begin earlier in the west than I am used to. Enjoy this last week of summer!

 

Speechless!

 

Welcome to my blog! Above is a Primitive Gatherings wool project that I have had almost finished for several months. I needed a little wool to complete a couple flowers. I even had the binding on it! I quilted the fabric with straight lines before I appliqued the wool in place, which is easier for me since I am not a not a quilter. (I hate to say that out loud)

I have never spoken of my voice problems on my blog, so I thought I might explain what is going on with me. Over the past three years my voice has become increasingly high pitched and scratchy. It began when I was recovering from a flu bug of some sort. The kind that leaves you coughing for months. My voice never really recovered. Finally I saw my doctor about it and he was confident that it was a result of acid reflux. I never realized I had that problem, but he started me on medication. I also saw an ENT who scoped down my nose to look at my vocal cords. Oh well, you probably don't care about all the details, but I saw the ENT again yesterday and he says one of my vocal cords is immobile and dry, this leaves the cords without the ability to vibrate and make sounds. All of this has resulted in my inability to teach or speak at functions. In fact, it is difficult to have conversation at all. My voice is but a whisper at times and it is a strain to speak. I have been referred to a different specialist who may inject my throat with something to stimulate my vocal cords. 

Meanwhile, I was referred to a speech therapist who gave me the best advice, and things my doctors failed to mention. Number one on the hit parade of advice was that I needed to drink more water to hydrate my entire body. I drank a lot, but mostly diet coke, which I found out is a diuretic, as are other caffeine drinks. They don't hydrate. I was using anti-histamines for post nasal drip and to help me get to sleep when necessary. Also a big no-no as they cause drying, as do the menthol cough drops I was using. Luckily the post nasal drip has subsided, as has the coughing, so that is helpful. So I am drinking lots of water, avoiding caffeine, and anti-histamines, and using fruit flavored cough drops when necessary. Since this problem seems to be affecting more people than I realized, I thought I would pass along what I have learned and maybe you can take steps to avoid going this far down the road.  Not looking forward to the injection!

On a side note, I am scheduled to teach at an event in October in Hampton, Virginia at the Coliseum Convention Center. It is Expo II-2012, sponsored by Bella Fabrics. For info, follow the link. They have a great selection of teachers. So after that great build-up on my voice, let me assure you that I will have a microphone! I will be teaching an all day class on my Old Elegance quilt.Come join the fun if you are in the neighborhood! Save the dates October 13th and 14th, 2012.

 Pattern available at Patchalot Patterns!

Here is my bio:

Like most quilters, Marcie is addicted to fabric. She thinks it must have first occurred the moment she was born and was wrapped in a nice soft cotton blanket. As a child she watched her grandmother and her love of sewing, and realized that she wanted to do that also. She began sewing with cotton prints and sewed through the evolution of fabric as polyester blends and then double knits became popular. Now she has come full circle and she is the grandmother, and she is sewing with lovely cotton prints again; only this time she is making quilts!  

Marcie's passion is scrap quilts. She has a large fabric collection focused on reproduction prints. When she makes a quilt, she draws from what she has on hand. She models her designs after traditional quilts and tries to add her own twist to make it unique. She sells her patterns under the name Patchalot Patterns, putting her last name in play.   

She is happy to say that she has had her quilt designs published in several wonderful magazines, including McCall’s Quilting and McCall’s Quick Quilts; American Patchwork & Quilting, Fons and Porter’s Love of Quilting and Primitive Quilts and Projects.   

Spending time with her family takes priority over all and in order to see them she must travel, as they live in several different states. She is blessed with four wonderful children, nine grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. They all know that when she comes, she needs a sewing machine, Diet Coke and Hershey’s Kisses! It’s a family joke—quilts, coke and kisses! Life is good!  www.patchalotpatterns.com

Oh dear, now I have to dump the diet coke reference! But life is still good, and we move forward trying to dodge obstacles that are placed before us!

Beautiful Blues

 I saw this picture of a spongeware pitcher, below,  on Pinterest and got very excited! It is exactly like one that belonged to my great-grandmother that I am now lucky enough to possess. 

It has always been one of my favorite things!

When I followed the link to the page where this pitcher was listed it gave it and the soap dish a value of $380.  I would never sell mine because I am sentimentally attached!  I don't have the soap dish, but I do have mine happily arranged with other items of blue. 

These dishes, the Spode, belonged to my husband's mother. I add little things here and there to the arragement, like the little antique oval dish and the tea pot and pitcher. I have a weakness for pitchers, I must confess. The angel, by Jim Shore, travels around the china cabinet blessing all within. Kinda pretty, isn't it?

 

 Also displayed in the cabinet is a baby dish that was used by my husband's father who is 88 years old, and his siblings. I nested a little bird on the ledge. The cookie jar is an antique that my mom picked up somewhere and gave me many years ago. They are resting on a vintage doll quilt that I believe is from the late 1800's. 

This plate above is a newcomer to my collection. I picked it up at an antique store in Pillager, MN when we were there recently. How do you like the name Pillager? I never gave it any thought until we were there this past July, and then I became curious about what got pillaged. Hmmm. I must do a little research on that!

KISS Quilts, etc.

We made a quick trip by car (that wasn't the quick part) to Minnesota for one week. Enjoyed seeing family there and eating brats and walleye. Saw signs for many quilt shops along the way. Didn't stop. You know how it is when there is a man behind the wheel. They focus on the road and stop for nothing! Still, I enjoyed seeing the signs and knowing that they are scattered in the highways and byways across the country! 

 

I am still working on a couple big quilts, but have also managed to fit in a few small things.One of the big quilts I made is going to APandQ for an upcoming issue. It had tons of the 9-patches and I always make more than the quilt requires. I ended up using some of the leftovers in this scrappy little quilt above, and also in the one below.

This one was for my grandson's dresser.

 Still playing with scraps, I made this one using 1-1/2" squares. It is 24" x 24". I keep a jar on my cutting table and throw spare 1-1/2" squares into it, so I always have plenty. I cut scraps into larger size squares as well, of course. They all come in very handy. My own pre-cuts! When I was in Arizona I used all my 1-1/2" squares for that big project and now I am starting over! By the way, I call these KISS QUILTS. You know that stands for "Keep it simple stupid". Never a problem for me! They are nice little utility quilts.

The big finale is coming Monday night (8-13) for The Closer on TNT. That has been a favorite show of mine. Really great cast! I hate to see it go. They will marathon previous shows the same day in case you missed any this last season, which I am sure I have. A new spinoff will begin right afterwards called Major Crimes, staring Mary McDonnell (Dancing with Wolves). She is a very different character in this role, but maybe she likes those roles. She is awesome. 

One more show that is fairly new and you can still catch up online on TNT is called Perception. Another show with a quirky main character. I must love those shows, like Castle and The Mentalist and Monk. They are my faves! All detective shows too.

 Let's hear it for Eric McCormack in this one!

Back to the beloved Bernina!