Hostess Gift

 Today I attended a shower for the fiance of my good friend Cecilia's son Rob. This shower was given by Cecilia's sister Joan, who is also Rob's godmother. For the past week I've been cranking out Mors bags - my goal is 20 to give to the nurses, receptionists, and referral staff at my doctors' office.

As I was leaving the house for this shower, I thought about what a generous act it is for an aunt to give a shower and decided that Joan's efforts should be acknowledged. These two Mors bags are made with leftover fabric from my niece Jen's wedding quilt. Aunt Oralee and I gave Jen a bridal shower, just as Joan is giving this shower. I folded these two bags together and tied them with a ribbon for Joan. It's great to have a supply of bags on hand for occasions like this!

A Wedding Quilt - only 18 months late...

Tim and Kim Gibbons got married in March 2009. Tim is my cousin Dennis's middle child. Between our poor communication and my knee replacements, this quilt has been in process a long time. And the heart of this quilt is from when this blog first began in 2006. These leftover tumbling blocks from the quilt I made for Dodie are what caught Kim's eye. But Tim is colorblind. Then we realized that his eye would easily see the dimensionality of this design. The color order of these blocks is built around Roy G Biv, with the indigo and violet morphing into one row. Although the background looks black, it's actually a very rich blue-black batik. Here's to a lifetime of happiness for them! 55" x 75"

For Cute Little Girls

My niece Laura has three very cute little girls - Amelia, Olive, and Elle. I don't see these girls often, but tomorrow we are celebrating my dad's 85th birthday on June 24, my mom's 82nd birthday on June 21, and Laura's 25th birthday on June 22nd. I've made them little bags before, and I'm sure I'll make them little bags again. These three little girlie bags are what I'm giving the girls tomorrow. Great-uncle John will fill them with some little goodies. Fun, fun, fun!

High School Graduation + Football Jerseys = One Terrific Quilt

During my first knee replacement I met Nurse Meg Fredian, the busy mom of four kids. Her oldest has played on the Nazareth Academy Football Team for four years. In February Meg gave me all of Alan's jerseys and told me that Nazareth's colors are navy and white.

Normally I work with t-shirts and a 12.5" x 12.5" template. But these jerseys had to be cut a lot bigger. Each is 20" x 20" and has been stabilized with a fusible webbing. This quilt has a navy background and has a very light batting. The quilting is very simple. The result is this very usable and washable quilt that holds all of Alan Friedian's football memories. 65" 90"

Crafts for the Crafter

Over the weekend I saw 4 of my 6 White cousins - my parents and I drove to North Judson, Indiana where Kathy White Mattraw hosted a graduation party for her son LJ. My Aunt Betty looked great, and I loved seeing cousins Bill, Larry, and Jerry.

Jerry drove in from Kansas City. He's a mechanical engineer and enjoys woodworking, as did his father and as does his brother John in Atlanta. These spoons and boxes are lovely, and I'm pleased to have them. Click on the picture to see these pieces better. In exchange I'd like to do a house quilt for Jerry and his wife Connie. They have 3 children - one teaches in Virginia, one just started med school, and their youngest just graduated from high school.

Not with us physically but certainly in spirit were my Uncle Leonard (my dad's brother) and my cousin Jim. Both of them are still missed greatly. My visit with Jerry was a highlight of the day - he's become the wise tribal elder of the family. What a rock solid man he is - and a heck of a woodworker! A note about the wood used: the darkest box is from sassafras wood that Bill gave him. A note about the quilted background - it's my table runner made from purple and red scraps.

Quilt Adventures: The Dangers

My grandsons and I often argue whether quilting is a sport. They of course say it's not. I insist it is, complete with injuries. Seriously, look at these pictures. This football jersey quilt has been pin-based and is now ready for quilting. There are three layers - the top made from jerseys, the middle batting, and the navy blue backing - which need to be sewn into a unified whole. To keep the various layers from shifting and sliding around as they are being sewn, a quilter has to baste them together. This basting can be done with big sewing stitches (boo hiss - too time consuming), spray-on glue (boo hiss - too smelly and expensive), or pins (my method of choice). Even on big quilts I tend to use straight pins in areas that will be quilted first and thus removed and safety pins in the areas I'll quilt last. You know how you can't be too rich or too thin? You can never use enough pins for basting. Really. I bet there are over 400 straight pins in the quilt at this point.

I keep a supply of band-aids handy for my hands - there's no way I can keep from pricking them. I wear blue jeans to keep from scratching my legs and a denim shirt to keep from scratching my arms and stomach. I have had scratches in a variety of places. Also, a quilt at this point is heavy and has to be handled and handled and handled. Sore shoulders are another possible injury. Thus, the dangers. But like any other sport enthusiast, I face these dangers because I love the thrill. Starting the actual quilting is my favorite phase of quilting. I have to make myself take a break every 45 minutes or so. I love living on the quilting faultline!