The Quilt Rambler

Merry Christmas

2011-12-24T21:37:00.001-06:00

Here's to all the friends who are hurting this holiday season. Perhaps they are alone because their family lives far away, perhaps their loved ones have to work in this 24/7 society, or perhaps they are separated by death from someone very precious in their lives. Here's to all the friends who have hurtful relationships, illness, loss of job or serious calamity in their lives this holiday season...My prayers for you (and me) is that we would see Christmas for what it truly is - not the expectations, not the disappointments - but the awe and wonderment that God took on the form of mankind in that precious baby, His Son, who came to live among us - the only sinless man in the world because He was both God and man, the awe and wonderment that He gave His Son Jesus to be born, and then to die that we might live. John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him shall have everlasting life.. Put aside your hurts, fears, worries for a brief moment in time, and reflect on the BEST GIFT ever - Jesus. He knows your sorrows and your joys. Receive His gift - His love for you and His sacrifice for your sins and mine. Tell it to Jesus my friend, you'll find that He understands. And have yourself a merry little Christmas!

(reposted from FaceBook)

Busted: Island Quilters Caught Playing Strip Poker!

2011-12-18T15:50:00.007-06:00

It started out innocently, honestly it did...

Mild mannered quilting ladies gathering for their annual Christmas party...who would have thought?

Eagerly rushing through the business portion of our monthly guild meeting....

Sharing,among other things, all about the charity quilts donated during the year and plans for the upcoming year...

Taking a little time for show and tell...

"When do we eat!" was the resounding question...

Finally it was time to party! Bring on the good times!

Quilters are known to be good cooks. (All but this particular quilter, but we're not talking about my lack of culinary skills...)

It was evident by the spread that these ladies were serious about their food!

Who would have thought that this nice group of "little 'ole quilting ladies" were fixin' to get wild!

*** warning Will Robinson***

Disclaimer:

Due to the nature of the topic

photos are not published of what happened next!

Truth be told - photos weren't taken!

The paper plates were cleared, the deserts revisited, the drinks refilled (non-alcoholic of course - after all we are NICE little ole quilting ladies).

It was time...

The much anticipated hottest entertainment event of the evening...

The excitement had been building....

Many members, myself included, waited all year for this!

An opportunity to let our hair down...

An excuse to throw caution to the wind...

A chance to be a little reckless...

The room was electric with anticipation...

The cards were distributed among the tables. Dealers were chosen. (I'm guilty. I participated eagerly with my Las Vegas alter ego leaping out of no-where as the deck was shuffled).

GASP!

Island Quilter's Guild Ladies Playing Strip Poker!

Yep, it's true, my good friends and fellow quilters with utter confidence were quick to ante-up a 2.5 inch STRIP of fabric! Cards were dealt, high card drew first from the pot. From high to low quilters chose their coveted strip of fabric - "battling" for position when there was a tie. Such reckless abandonment - I've never seen anything like it.

For four games we did this. Fast paced dealing and grabbing - hoping for the best draw and not being stuck with the "ugly" fabric. Game five was winner take all! High card won the jackpot. Oh the joy of victory, oh the agony of defeat. It's not easy letting go of fabric!

Time to switch tables, dealers stayed. New group of quilters, new fabric to covet - choices were made - do I play the pretty fabric or offer up the dogs?

Laughter could be heard among the five tables. Some dealers were faster than others (just sayin') playing more than the five games per table while waiting for other tables to finish before the shuffle of players to a new table to begin all over again ...

Yep! The Island Gals got a little wild at our Christmas party - we un-ashamedly played strip poker and I betcha' we do it again next year!

Now the challenge is what to do with my winnings!

Making Memories

2011-12-05T14:36:00.004-06:00

This is the time of year when families get together and "make memories" - typically kicking things off with a big Thanksgiving and then the countdown begins for Christmas!

For some people the holidays can be both joyful and painful. Seems there are a lot of people I know who have family members with serious illness or have lost loved ones recently, many are entering into the first holiday season after a loved ones' passing. It never seems to get easier - as I too have once again walked through the anniversary of my dad's passing some 8 years ago....yes, the ups and downs of the holidays....

Everyone deals with their own grief in their own way. Some like to hold on to special items from their family member, some enjoy photos, others just want to keep their memory alive by recalling special times together.

Every once in a while I'm asked to make a "memory quilt" from a deceased family member's clothing so that those left behind have a tangible remembrance, a "hug" so to speak as they cuddle up in a quilt that is unique and one of a kind, one that holds special memories and can bring comfort during times of sorrow.

Recently I was given men's suits and ties along with a few special photos to make a lap quilt for a granddaughter to remember her granddad...

A few scatterings of blocks made from ties and a few photos are sprinkled in among a wide variety of fabrics from pants and suits, tied together with a little red fabric to add to the colors of the clothing with hopes to make this holiday a little more special...

It's always a privilege to be entrusted with a family's heirloom, and it is my hope that this quilt brings joy to the receiver not only this holiday season, but for many seasons to come.

As with my own dad, there are so many times I miss him....and I think of how much he'd be enjoying the family right now as my two sons have chosen their soul mates - oh how much he's approve of the girls! How he would tease them and laugh with them, and love welcoming them to the family...sometimes these thoughts are painful as I truly wish he could share things with all of us...yet because I know where he is I realize how selfish it is to want him back...the separation is truly the hardest on those left behind . Every now and then I reflect on the fact that my dad certainly knows a whole lot more than me about heaven, angels, the saints who have gone before and oh how wonderful it must be to gaze upon the Redeemer...our Savior...face to face! One day I'll share that knowledge....

2 Corinthians 5:6-10 Therefore, being always of good courage, and knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord— ⁷ for we walk by faith, not by sight— ⁸ we are of good courage, I say, and prefer rather to be absent from the body and⁾to be at home with the Lord. ⁹ Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him. ¹⁰ For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.

Piece by Peace

2011-11-18T11:13:00.005-06:00

Sometimes scraps happen. Well, if you are a quilter they happen a lot! I have several baskets for scraps and this particular one is all strip scraps - you know, the kind that happen when you are cutting strips and you make an oops and it's not exactly straight, or the kind that happen when you don't have enough fabric left to cut the exact size you want for a certain project, and of course, there's those strips that come from trimming the over sized backing off a completed quilt that's been done on the longarm.

Strip scraps. Strip therapy. Yep. That's what I needed recently..so I took photos to share my therapy journey with you...

I didn't really have a plan when I started. Truly I just needed to hear the hum of my sewing machine to make me happy. I've done foundation flip and sew type string quilts but that's not what I wanted to do. That requires a lot of pressing, generally with each added strip and who wants to do that when all I wanted to do was sew!

So sew I did! It didn't matter what width the strips were or even if they were a tad wonky, I just wanted to sew. I discovered that most of my strips were full width of fabric, with a few odd sizes mixed in, hum...perhaps by cutting them in half and making them 20 something inches instead of 40 something inches I'd be able to vary the placement better... It was then that I came up with an idea to us my Go Cutter, but I'm getting ahead of myself...

I don't think you can really see it in the above photo, but under the first strip there is a neat little gadget called The Strip Stick that I highly recommend! I purchased this tool at a local quilt show and have found it most useful in my pressing - it's got a raised surface that makes it easy to press the seams open and flat! You owe it to yourself to view their video (but it can wait until after you finish reading the blog - smile). One thing I liked about it was I could save pressing until the end of the strip strata...a bonus on a day I just wanted to sit and sew with little interruptions.

I hinted above that I had a design inspiration while sewing to use my Go!Cutter - I decided on which die to use and determined that I needed my strip set to be at least 9 inches wide and 18 inches long...this also would work well with the smaller strips in the scrap basket, the strips didn't have to be only vertical or only horizontal, just 9 x 18... so the first set was sewn, pressed and loaded into the Go!Cutter...

And this is what came out the other side! (minus the trimmings of course)

Instant gratification! Well, almost, it's still got to be put together - but it was pretty exciting! So I tried out another strip set (notice that the strips truly weren't even, which adds to the charm wouldn't you say?)

And yes, all the trimming away with the Go!Cutter left me with still more scraps...but I determined that I'd be able to "let go" and recycle these to the studio trash can with little or no guilt. Some of the bigger scraps I've kept for future projects.

Keep in mind, Pixxie, my professional quilt model is only 6 pounds 6 ounces so that's not too much guilt in the collection of scraps next to her...

As I was merrily sewing and cutting away my mind was busy thinking of the background fabric I would need to complete my little therapy quilt....every now and then I'd hop up from the machine and go audition a fabric...there were lots of colors to choose from and I knew from previous experiences that I could make this quilt be whatever color I wanted. If I chose a yellow background it would read yellow no matter that there were multicolored scraps.... It wasn't an easy choice as I did have a lot to choose from in my stash...hum...it's been a while since I've made a purple quilt so I began to look on the purple shelf for possibilities...

It may be hard to see unless you click on the photo to enlarge - but I chose what I like to call a "dizzy print". You have to admit, it does have lots of movement!

Not only that, but it sorta fit with my therapy....seems I needed peace in my life because things do have a way of getting dizzy and stressful. The dizzy fabric represented my mood at the time and the peace came from being frugal with my strip scraps and the peacefulness of the hum of my machine while listening to my praise and worship music on the iPod....

This quilt isn't a quilt yet, only a few of the blocks are actually pieced, but it's on the design wall with the goal of piecing a little here and there as I need more "sew therapy" during this busy time in my life.

Piecefully yours,

karen o

You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You. Isaiah 26:3

As promised: Quilt Market & Quilt Festival 2011

2011-11-09T18:51:00.007-06:00

Oh the places you'll go and the people you'll meet!

In years past I've been a roving reporter sharing with my online friends and family my view of the annual Houston International Quilt Market and Quilt Festival - and this year the exception is the majority of "my view" is from my booth at Festival...couldn't resist this photo of a passer-by-er ... a wonderful example of a good pack mule!

what I don't know is if his wife went wild purchasing Christmas gifts or if he was restocking a booth...either way, I'd say he's a jolly good fellow wouldn't you?!?!

I love this time of year! My friend Trish and I look forward to making the daily commute north into Houston for this annual extravaganza. I don't know how many years Trish has attended, but I've been going since 2000 - that's when this Texan/Tennessean moved back to the H. Town area... In 2004 I began going to Market in addition to Festival, the trade show for those with wholesale licenses. In 2008 I became a vendor at Festival with A1 Quilting Machines - so my wandering of the isles at Festival is no more....BUT! Trish and I make up for it during Market the weekend prior to Festival....

The isle ways at Market aren't as crowded. The vendors offer a lot of hands on demos as they are marketing their newest gadget, book or patterns to shop owners. I was having so much fun that I forgot to take photos (sigh) But here's Trish at one booth's "make and take"...

Fun stuff wouldn't you agree? Since I'm not a retail or online shop a lot of items were just eye candy for me - a time to be inspired and learn new things and take a peek at the upcoming fabric lines from all the major manufacturers.

I do however have my favorite vendors...because I teach beginning piecing and fun patterns in both my studio and area quilt shops I always make a bee-line to Aunties Two Patterns - boy did I buy out the booth! I can't wait to make some shop samples - check out their rag rug pattern and just one of my favorites - the breezy weave bag... this bag lady is going to be stylin' in 2012 that's for sure!

And what market venture would be complete without stocking up on thread for the longarm (and piecing). Bob at Superior Threads always has a well stocked booth and that's generally where all the longarm guys and gals gather during market...this year was no exception. I stocked up on Rainbows and the new Omni line. Fun fun colors!

During Festival I visited the Fil-Tec booth where I purchase my Magna-Glide prewounds and met up with Dusty Farrell at the YLI booth where he was introducing his new line of thread...Yep, longarm quilters invest a lot in thread!

I think if you click on the above photo collage that it will become larger in your screen....at least I hope so. I'm trying to share a lot of photos in a little amount of space so I hope this works for ya'll.

I've got things a little jumbled sharing vendor photos from Market and Festival mixed together but oh well... To get back into the chronological order of things - first things first! Market is not only a time for Trish and I to purchase things for our businesses but it's sorta a reunion with all our quilting friends, and a time to celebrate!

The first person I ran into at Market was Tom Russell and we had a bit of celebrating to do! The new book Lone Stars III, A Legacy of Texas Quilts 1936-2011 was released and his quilt is on page 3oo and one that I quilted was on page 248. Woo-hoo! I didn't learn until after the fact that there was a reception for those included in the book, I didn't get the memo....so I missed the wine and cheese but I've still got my name in the book and that's what counts!

Did I mention that Market/Festival is a reunion! Oh my! I didn't take enough photos! Not only did I get to visit with local friends but I actually met up with several "facebook" friends and friends from longarm lists and blogville friends, and even long lost friends from high school! What fun to get to give and receive hugs - I think I have sore face muscles from so much grinnin'

All too soon Market was over and it was time to set up the A1 Quilting Machines booth for Festival. I do hope you can click on this and see the close ups of the beautiful quilts I borrowed from award winning quilters Mark Sherman from Florida and Clem Buzick from North Dakota.

Here's a close up of Mark's quilts, and "me 'n Mark"

If you have never been to the Houston show you can't imagine just how big it really is! This is a view from an upper floor window. I have no idea the square footage of the show nor the number of the vendors, but in the past I do know the show boasts of over 56 thousand attendees! Truly a quilter's paradise! And plenty of other things to tempt those non-quilters too! This photo is not even half of the hall - the isles were numbered 100, 200 all the way to 2000 - so it's TEXAS BIG!

One of my favorite things is getting to introduce people to the joys of longarm quilting. Many have never seen nor had their hands on a longarm - that's why we bring them to the shows, to allow people to try them out and see if this is something they might be interested in....many come to the show with an agenda to test drive all the major brands and then make a decision on which longarm is best for them. We welcomed many new A1 quilters to the family this past weekend!

A real blessing to me this year was having my A1 customers, or my "A1 family" as I call them, assist me in the booth. Special thanks to Trish, Dwain, Ida, Lou Ann, Ellen, Vonnie and Janice for being so wonderful with customers...I received some good feedback on them as well as comments from them concerning the experience...

From a future customer on our feedback form:

... this is the first time I am SERIOUS about making a long-arm happen for me. You'll be hearing from me and that is largely due to the warm greeting you and the other reps (and customers!) gave me during the multiple stops at the show booth this weekend. I've now sewed on about everything - I want your machine. It's the one that wins hands down for control, smooth motion and value overall...and I've LOOKED!Cheers!

From my customers who worked the booth:

I had a ball helping and would love to do it again along with all the other fun helpers! It always amazes me what all you learn even when just enjoying the A1 family at a show. Karen thanks so much for asking all of us to help.

... thank you for the opportunity to work in the booth and tell more people about how great the A-1 is. To be able to say, "I'm not a dealer, just a very happy customer using the best longarm. Just try all of the other longarms and you will not find a smoother running machine." Visiting with Stewart and (others) was a plus also.

From my one of our new customers:

It was so nice to meet you and all the other A-1 quilters. I feel like I have found a family! Everyone was so nice and friendly. I am very excited and looking forward to getting my new machine!

This is what makes those long days worth it that's for sure! I am so blessed to have the best machine out there, the best "boss" Stewart Plank, and the best customers!

But in reality, the highlight of my week wasn't seeing my name in print or my quilt in the exhibit, it wasn't the reunion with friends or meeting online friends in person, or even being among all the "famous people" of the quilting world or introducing new quilters to the A1....it was a special visit on the last day of the show...

...with my mom! This was the first time she'd attended the Houston International Quilt Show and got to see first hand what I'm so passionate about! Thanks mom, for your continued love and support!

Before we knew it the quilt show was over. We were joined by Trish's husband Frank and my hubby Johnny to help tear down the booth....looks a little different doesn't it? I've always loved those behind the scene photos!

SO here's the final parting shot from my full-time A-team volunteers Trish and Dwain...and yes, those are bags under our eyes - we are tired but most happy! It was a great Market/Festival - I'm still digging out and sorting through all the wonderful things I came home with from Market and busy answering emails from new customers and future customers who want to be put on a mailing list. OH! and I almost forgot! I was totally blown away by having some folks come to the booth to inquire about my quilting services - thank you to my fellow vendor friends who passed along my contact information! I'm looking forward to working on some very special quilts in the near future!

I'll sign off with this parting shot...taken the next morning on my walk to the bay....

Karen O Needs Your Help!

2011-11-09T07:50:00.002-06:00

I'm interrupting my plans to blog about the recent Houston International Quilt Market and Festival to ask a HUGE FAVOR of all my blog friends.....

Background: My new daughter in law (January 2011) recently became a Mary Kay Consultant. As any good mother-in-law would do, I'm supporting her business. Funny thing is, I was actually looking into the Mary Kay line and considering changing when she became involved with this company,so the timing was perfect for me.

When Alena asked if I'd participate in a makeover contest I said "Absolutely" who can't use a makeover!! And the opportunity to have a complete makeover in New York!

So here's the favor! The first phase of the contest is determined by popular vote. The voting began Nov 1 and goes through Nov 10....and of course I was involved in Quilt Market and Festival...so I'm needing to make up the lost time by soliciting votes.

https://www.mkmakeovercontest.com/US/EN/Gallery/

Once you click on this link you will find hundreds of thousands of women all vying for the same grand prize - the chance for a make over in New York City! At the top right of the page there is a search box, type in Karen O and this page pops up.

They are real tricky, sometimes I'm on the right and sometimes my humbling photos are on the left....Above I'm the one in the purple on the right...

SEE! This quilter could really use a makeover! You can vote 5 times PER EMAIL ADDRESS per day. Hurry, there's only two days left!

If you are on facebook share the link with the following comment:

"Help this quilter get a makeover, type in Karen O in the search box and vote for the one in purple, 5 times a day per email through 11/10"

I would truly appreciate all the help from my quilting friends and all their friends. I think it would be a blast to take my new daughter-in-law on a trip with me to New York - and it would be worth the humbling photos to get there!

Tomorrow I share about the Quilt Show - so go vote and stay tuned!

karen o in Texas!

New Direction

2011-10-25T09:03:00.007-05:00

I love sunrises and sunsets. If you are a face book friend you know that I upload a lot of photos with this central theme. Something about the beauty, the total art of God, that is new every morning and spectacular every evening. If I had a camera that could capture the full moon there would be a lot of those photos too!

Seems these canvas in motion events totally distract me, mesmerize me actually, and I find that I do a lot of reflecting. When I posted this particular photo on FB I got a lot of comments about keeping my eyes on the road!

Sometimes my quilting is like that, I get distracted and a bit disorganized in my direction. Sometimes things are just so crazy that I can't focus on something that needs to be done, instead I find something that's not on my to do list for a little refreshment - a little change, so to speak.

Such was the making of this little quilt....

It was sometime this summer during all the remodeling mess. I had been sent a link to a fun little pattern called JellyRoll 1600 Quilt and it looked like fun. "Jelly rolls" are typically 2.5 inch strips all rolled up together, generally from a fabric manufacturer showcasing a collection of fabric, you know, fabrics that "go together" nicely, usually 35 to 40 strips. Any quilt shop can offer you a wide assortment of jelly rolls. Well, this quilter makes her own 2.5 inch strips and keeps a drawer full for quilt emergencies such as this....

So I found myself in need of a mental break. So many things were swirly around me that I seemed to have lost my path.....actually I think I just wanted to get OFF the path for a little while (grin).

With the instructions on the internet and my chosen 40 strips I began the process of sewing the strips together end to end until I got the "1600" or so long strip...next you take the two ends and begin sewing the sides together until you get to the end of that, then you join 2 rows to make 4, 4 to make 8, etc...I've shared photos of my progress but since this isn't a tutorial if you really want to make one visit the above link and watch their fun...

After a few short hours I had myself a Jelly Roll Quilt. Lovin' the instant gratification. Much needed at the time I might add.

My plans were to spice it up later with a border or something. Hated to admit, but my random act of pulling out 2.5 inch strips didn't lend itself to the pretty coordinated look that comes from a true jelly roll collection...oh well. It was quilt therapy.

Several sunrises and sunsets had past before I thought about the little quilt again.... the more I thought about it the more I didn't like it. It was too linear or something. I loved the pattern and the fun of making something quick. What was it? Did the colors not play nicely together? I couldn't understand that as they were my "chosen" and I do a lot of scrap quilts. I'd look at it and just toss it aside. I had other things to do. For months this became a quilt in waiting...

Until one day!

I decided what I didn't like about the quilt was indeed it was too linear for fabrics that weren't "blended" as a collection - instead of just tossing it in the pile of unwanted projects I decided not to waste the fabric or my time and energy. Goodness, it's fabric right, so why not cut it up and do something different!

Since I do like some sort of balance, or evenness I cut it into 5 equal parts and then switched those parts around to break up the long streaks of similar colors. (Lovin' my new design wall by the way)...

The process wasn't as painful as I thought. It was just more time than I wanted to commit to a project that seemingly didn't have a purpose...

Indeed, I felt like it was an improvement. Pleased with my extra efforts of time, the little quilt was tucked away again for another day..

I don't get to walk to the bay every day, not even every week, but when I do I am rewarded with reminders again that nature is indeed God's canvas. Its times like this that I sit and ponder the direction of my life, questioning the things that I am currently going through, wondering if I'm on the right path, curious as to what is around the next bend....

And then I get a brain storm! It's time to teach my husband more about quilting as it is our desire to have him join me more in the business (currently he is my right hand man in setting up the A1 Quilting Machines we sell). Yep, it's time to learn to actually quilt a quilt!

When I was learning I never enjoyed that blank canvas of muslin - we didn't need practice quilts mounting up to use as doggie quilts - goodness Pixxie is just a 6 pound Chihuahua and sleeps on real quilts! Nope, I didn't want to do muslin, I practiced on "real quilts"...so what if they weren't perfect, they were still useful. With that in mind I sacrificed my little jelly roll quilt to the mercy of a new quilter (grin). Okay, so it wasn't that dramatic, but it is the FIRST quilt that I've piece that I hired out the quilting (double grin).

Yep, something new for the both of us. And with good results if I do say so myself. PS, I do plan on teaching him to piece so he can do his own quilts from start to finish...

And that brings me back to the thoughts of New Directions. Many times I fight the thoughts of change, more so the trials that sometimes come with it. Those hard times when you can't seem to understand why mess is happening to you...why you are being uprooted or disappointed or torn apart. Those nights of anxiety, the endless oppression, the constant wondering of just where in the world are you suppose to fit in. I know I'm not alone. It does seem to be a universal experience at some point in everyone's lives...

It's times like these that I have to stop looking in the rear view mirror no matter how beautiful the sunrise and put my eyes totally on the road in front of me. The past is the past, it's time to look to the future. I may not know where I am going, sometimes it' only clear enough for the next step - but its times like these that I must put my total trust in my Creator God, the one who loves me more than I can imagine, the one who sent His Son to pay the price for my sin by dying in my place, the risen Jesus. I know I don't have all the answers to life's problems but I do know that He loves me and will never let go of my hand - new directions and all.

And like that little quilt that went through the painful process of waiting to be useful, then the pain of being cut up and redesigned....I've surrendered my will to His, if He wants to shake things up, move things around, and rework me then that's okay, because I know through the wait and the process that I will be better for it. Sometimes He shakes things up to move us where He can use us!

I'm ready for the next step in this wonderful journey called life! And like quilting, it's meant to be shared so stay tuned!

Up!

2011-09-14T10:57:00.008-05:00

"It's 'bout as bad as it could be

Seems everybody's buggin' me

Like nothing wants to go my way -- Yeah, it just ain't been my day

Nothin's comin' easily.

Even my skin is acting weird

I wish that I could grow a beard

Then I could cover up my spots

not play connect the dots

I just wanna disappear

Up--up--up--

Can only go up from here

Up-up-up-Up

where the clouds gonna clear

Up-up-up

There's no way but up from here...."

Shania Twain lyrics.

I really like that song as there are a lot of days I can echo the sentiments. 2011 has been a whirlwind of a year (and we're only 3/4 of the way done!) Many times I've had to hold on to hope just to make it through the day. My best laid plans didn't always materialize ....

For example, this little quilt that I now call "Up!" was suppose to be called "Class of '37"

I designed it back in January using AccuQuilt's Block of the Month patterns and with the setting design inspired from Circle of Nine, a book I picked up at the Houston International Quilt Festival last year. The idea was two-fold. One to teach a piecing class using the Go!Cutter and two, to teach longarm design elements.

Okay? You still don't understand the Class of '37 do you? See, I was going to divide up the outer borders into quadrants as well as the inner borders...if you counted all the opportunities for designs (sashings, blocks, borders) it added up to 37...I see said the blind man.

Teachable moments!

But sometimes the best laid plans just don't work out as intended. Due to my studio redo and being displaced for so long the quilt top didn't get pieced until my birthday in July.

But that was okay, because it then doubled as my annual birthday quilt. Since 2004 I've made a quilt on or near my birthday. With the exception of my 47th year, that one carried over into my 49th year and is still waiting to be quilted. But! I made two last year for my 50th, so I still can say I've made 8 birthday quilts (grin).

The fun thing about procrastination is that I learned something new prior to piecing and quilting this little fun quilt. The Rose of Sharon block was cut out my with Go!Cutter (as was the entire quilt) and based on a block from Sharon Pederson's book The Rose of Sharon Block Book.

I'm not an appliquer so this was a bit of a challenge. It was made easier by putting double sided fusible on the back of the fabric prior to cutting and then I simply ironed it on my background fabric.

That's as far as I had gotten. Had no idea how to go around it. Would I do it on my domestic sewing machine? Clueless.

Well, on my birthday the Island Quilter's Guild holds an annual sew in - they don't just do it for me on my birthday (grin) but it always falls then because my birthday is in the third week of July and that's the time of the event! No better place to learn something new than at a guild sew in. With a little help of my friends I learned a new term "appli-quilt" and I decided to be brave and do it on the longarm because I am much more comfortable with my longarm than my home sewing machine. So instead of going around the parts and pieces during the piecing process I simply waited and did it all when it was on the frame - thereby securing the parts as well as quilting them all in one process!

Okay, so back to my original intent...to use this quilt as a teaching sample. The pressure was on. I'd been displaced so long out of my studio that I was guilt ridden to do this sampler when I knew I had customer quilts to do.... but my A1 reunion was fast approaching and I'd promised my A1 family a "class of '37"

Quilting is hard on the body, let me tell you. I've got multiple chiropractor receipts to prove it! There's been years that I have totally blown out parts of my body that have shut me down from quilting...some is due to the repetitive motion and some is due to stress....sad to say, stress has hit me big time this year (many many contractor woes that I haven't shared) and I've been physically suffering (trying to do it silently, but lately I've been a whiner).

So between physically hurting and my deadline fast approaching, parts of the quilt didn't get finished...namely the inner borders. So much for 37 design elements. Sigh. But the reunion went on and the quilt has sat unfinished for over a month.

Opportunity knocks sometimes at the most inconvenient times. My guild holds an annual show in conjunction with the Galveston Historical Foundation. I've always tried to have a quilt in the show but for the past couple of years haven't....I wanted this little quilt finished and hanging in this years show - well, it's an exhibit actually...runs from Oct 10-Jan 6 in the 1861 US Custom House on 20th Street.

Problem....crippling pain in the neck and left shoulder that radiates pain all the way down to my finger tips. Multiple chiropractor visits (wish I could trade quilting for their services! Ouch! in more ways than one). Instructions to take it easy, no heavy lifting, light quilting (or no quilting) while things heal...UGH!

But the quilt needed to be finished! All I had was the inner borders, 4 sets of 3 little parts....alas, my brain was somehow fried too and I couldn't come up with a dozen new border designs...

Instead I did what I love to do best, and that's feathers....and I repeated them instead of multiple designs. Fire me.

It's almost finished. I still need to do the binding and a hanging sleeve before the deadline in October. A little here, a little there. It will get done. I work a few hours a day playing catch up on my customer quilts and one of those days I'll work for me. Recovery is slow from injuries and I'm not the most patient of women. I've tried not to whine, at least publicly, my closest friends are probably VERY tired of my comments...can I help it if I have a low pain tolerance (grin)

As I was gathering the photos to put on webshots of all the close ups I noticed this close up....my favorite feathers and notice -- they are pointing UP!

Shania's song is fun and upbeat, but my true "upness" comes from the love of my friends and family and the promise that no matter what my Jesus is always faithful to me even when my faith isn't strong....He is my healer, and even though this seems like the long way home He is faithful and I'm trusting Him to work things for my good.

So here's all the close ups of UP! or "Class of '37 minus 9" (grin).

UP!

by quiltsnkaboodle

Life is Short, Eat Dessert First!

2011-09-05T18:12:00.004-05:00

Believe it or not, that's the name of this little quilt.

I began this quilt top at my "49 and holding" birthday retreat in July 2009. It's a pattern called Nickel Bricks from my friend LeAnn Weaver's book Loose Change.

...you'd of thought I'd put into practice what I preach (grin) - and quickly quilted this little delectable delight - but this little quilt has been in the "quilts in waiting" pile for quite a while. So much for the urgency...

I thought it would be fun to throw in some jelly beans with all the fruit and veggies, thought the fabric on the back was just perfect too. Oh, and did I mention that I used Soy batting? I thought that appropriate!

Well, the quilt top was started in 07/09 and the border added 03/10 and there she sat.....until this weekend. 09/11, when I needed a little selfish quilt therapy.

See, sometimes life throws curve balls. Kinda like having to "frog" out a quilt when there are puckers in the back...or feeling like you are missing out on all the fun when everyone else seems to be having a holiday...or being discouraged because there was more month than money... its easy to focus on the rough parts - the ole devil likes it when you do that - getting all full of self-pity and all...

But that's not reality! Life is good! The blessings always outweigh the disappointments. Trials only make you stronger, and more appreciative for the things you do have. And bottom line, it's about the people in your life more than the stuff that clutters it. Yes, life can get serious sometimes for all of us, in many different ways - perhaps that's when it's time to give yourself permission to eat the dessert first!

Lighten up and have a little fun. Laughter is the best medicine to chase away the mullie-grubs. And this little fun lap quilt is going to be my reminder to enjoy each and every day!

Life IS short, but as long as He gives me breath, I will try not to waste my time on the distasteful but to enjoy each sunrise and sunset that I've been given. And the only shadows I want to experience are the ones I find under the safety of His wings!

Psalm 34:8

Taste and see that the LORD is good;

blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.

A Little Bird Told Me It Was Time To Break Out!

2011-08-28T14:50:00.032-05:00

Once in a blue moon it feels like my creativity has been pushed behind a closed door, barred, locked, with the key no where to be found.

Oh, for the most part I can function, I've learned to go about the daily duties. Even to the point of enjoying myself, not being too burdened with the same ole same ole, recognizing that this is just the normal ebb and flow of life.

I remind myself to be thankful that I'm alive, to enjoy the simple act of breathing, to live, love, laugh, to share the journey...

But it's the lack of creativity that seems to make me restless.

I found myself in that mood a week or so ago and had a temporary fix by staying up late one Friday night to make the little basket above that is holding my little Beanie Baby kitty....it was satisfying, it was productive...but it wasn't true creativity - well, choosing the fabric perhaps, but the basket is a store bought pattern (one that I would recommend, it was fun to make! Aunties Two Biscut Basket) . A temporary band-aid fix to my desiring a little creativity. I longed to do something uniquely mine - no pattern....

It's difficult to stop long enough to recognize the quiet beckoning of creativity. Its gentle call to unlock the door, to take a chance to walk through to the unknown, to relax, to play, to explore new things without the pressure of being productive. The killer of creativity is not only time, but the fear factor...the biggest killer is the combination of both - the fear of wasting time!

It was time for me to BREAK OUT!

This weekend I was given that opportunity. A small window of time to escape the routine, to toss off the burden of being productive, to surround myself with gifted Quilt Angels who were willing to share of their experiences in this journey of quilting by providing a place of creative retreat...

Destination: Inspiration Station!

My exact location is to remain anonymous, a secret, a guarded treasure - least the masses want to break out and join us. (I did manage to smuggle out this google image to verify that I really was there!) Plus the fact, a couple of the attendees have to worry about the paparazzi and were looking for a quiet escape themselves. So we were Quilters Anonymous At Inspiration Station.

Creativity sometimes desires intimacy and seclusion, to be among those entrusted individuals who encourage and nurture your thoughts and ideas to take wing without the fear of ridicule, rejection or condemnation. I was so looking forward to this escape.

My journey was one that took effort and determination just to move towards its promised reward - almost like Christian's journey in Pilgrim's Progress...

First there were obligations on the home front/business that delayed the journey by several hours, more than half the day actually, pushing back my departure time to the time I had hoped to had arrived..... Then there was the road block ... the interstate access to my destination was closed due to a major accident forcing me to give up my reliance on the GPS and pull out the good ole paper state map to find the back roads.... only to find another detour due to a road closing for a major accident with a fatality. It was then that I recognized my morning delays for what they truly were - a protection, an avoidance of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. God's sovereignty.

The detour on back country roads caused me to lose my bearings. And my GPS was of no help - for "Jack", the voice of my module, kept "recalculating" trying to lead me back towards the original interstate route. Where or where is the manual override to these things! Thank goodness for real men! A quick stop at the corner convenience store rewarded me with a half a dozen good ole Texas working men not city transplanted wannabe Texans (remember, I was in the country) who were more than willing to help a lady with directions. (Can't say enough about REAL Texas men, the definition of a true gentleman). Soon I was pointing the right direction, and shedding the pressures of all my delays.

My back roads journey was just what I needed, of course God knew. There's nothing like a good road trip with the radio cranked up full blast with praise and worship songs while viewing God's uncluttered (country-fied) creation out the windshield!

My Inspiration Station was in the home of a gracious Quilt Angel who so willingly shared her studio with myself and another Creative Quilt Angel. Two others, themselves Creative Quilt Angels, were unable to join us. Their paths are difficult right now, so thoughts and prayers were lifted in their behalf, and continue.

I wish I could share photos of my Hostess Quilt Angel, but that would disclose our whereabouts. All I can say is I was truly surrounded by inspiration! The studio housed EVERYTHING one could need for a fabric journey in creativity - books, notions, threads, fabric, projects! 30+ years of a seasoned quilter, one who generously shares of not only her knowledge but of her vast quilting supplies.

Okay, I had to quick gawking, set up my machine and try to get a little quality sewing time before curfew (curfew? who am I kidding, quilters are known to quilt through the night!)

Our goal...to try something new, something creative. Something inspired from a recent workshop with Ellen Anne Eddy....thread painting. My two Creative Quilt Angels, who had a better grasp and understanding of the process, gently took my hand and guided me into the unknown.

First I chose a design - a cute tree frog taken from a dollar store coloring book...He was drawn out on my prepared work materials....and I jumped in with both feet, however, not without a lot of fear and trepidation. Oh me of little faith, I was encouraged, oh so encouraged by my Creative Quilt Angels!

We were going to be doing bobbin work, on a domestic (home) sewing machine. I had to ask how to drop my feed dogs - something that was necessary for this free motion embroidery (for those unfamiliar with these terms, don't ask me to explain as I'm a student myself!)

I quickly found that bobbin work is like working backwards and working somewhat blind - my design was actually a mirror image of my drawing.... First order of business, outline with thread... Here's what it looked like on the right side (my blind side).

Next began the "painting". Much like color book coloring, filling in with thread....

I couldn't wait to turn my little project over to see how he was turning out...

It was love at first sight. I'd kissed my frog and he became a prince in my eyes...perhaps this little frog prince held the keys to unlocking my creativity...perhaps...

My Creative Guardian Quilt Angels were very generous to share from their thread stash and were kind enough to ohh and ahh at all the right places to encourage me to continue and not be too harsh on myself because things weren't perfect.

Slowly, gently my little frog came to life. The final touch, adding his eyes - for I've been told the eyes are the windows to the soul. My little fellow didn't have a soul, but his eyes certainly gave him character!

Wow, I did it, actually did thread painting on my domestic! Now came the hard part. Was he just going to be a practice piece or did I want to stretch the imagination and try to make him a project to be productive.

Time to stretch, to enjoy my surroundings and the company of my two Creative Quilt Angels. Marvelous meals, fantastic fellowship...wish I could share a photo of my accommodations - the quilt on the bed and the one on the wall were simply beautiful. My Hostess Quilt Angel had beautifully adorned her habitat with things that refreshed this weary quilter's heart.

I found this little hidden treasure tucked away in a well stocked bookcase....and had to chuckle!

The decision was made, my little frog prince needed to be a part of a project, a future quilt....the only roadblock...no fabric. Seems in my haste to pack for Inspiration Station (and not really knowing what to bring in the first place) I somehow managed to arrive with only one fabric - yards and yards of the tie dye used as the background...I had discovered that having a contrasting background fabric meant I had to paint very densely. If I could use a different color for the rest of the project things would be different....less dense equals less thread equals less time.

Permission to ram-shackle through my Hostess Quilt Angel's stash produced this beautiful batik that I could transform into leaves to fan my prince. (Again, thanks to both my Creative Quilt Angels for sharing their thread stash, fabrics, supplies, knowledge, etc - were it not for their generosity I would have been without a clue and missed this opportunity to explore.)

Using variegated thread in the bobbin produced a wonderful effect, but it was sooo hard to imagine how it was turning out while working on the back side...being the impatient person that I am, I kept stopping and turning over to check out the results...It truly was a mystery during the process. I had to give myself permission to mess up and not be worried if the shading was in the wrong place or not...

Once the leaves and tree frog were pronounced good it was time for the scary part....that of trimming them so they became a 3D type applique. More new territory -- I've always been afraid of the A- word but my Guardian Creative Quilt Angels so aptly took time away from their own thread play journey, held my hand, and encouraged me forward..... oh oh.... would my prince and his leaf fans look best on my one and only fabric? should I wait until I get home to go through the stash drawer I forgot to pack?

Never fear, Inspiration Station is really a magical castle...I was given free reign in this new found creative kingdom and gifted a beautiful piece of hand dyed fabric on which to lay my applique.

Sadly, other obligations prevented me from more than 24 hours at Inspiration Station, but my what WE accomplished in those 24 hours! This was truly a group project and I am so thankful to my friends for sharing this journey with me.

I want to continue adding to this piece before I pronounce it finished, but for right now I am more than pleased to have my little frog prince gracing my design wall in my studio. This was so much fun ....

In keeping with the anonymity I am only providing a glimpse of a few thread paintings done by my sister Quilt Angels, including the little bird at the opening of this post...

The birds were thread painted by my Hostess...

The sea turtle was thread painted by friend #2...she shared a beautiful project that she's been working on since our original class together....but it is for her to share....Truly she has a talent for this and I can't wait to see her masterpiece in an upcoming quilt show this spring.

All to soon it was time to pack up the sewing machine, return spools of thread, and give appreciative hugs all around with promises of doing this again in the spring, with hopes that our other two quilt-journeymen can join us....I can only imagine having FOUR Creative Quilt Angels mentoring and unleashing my creativity. I am truly blessed to know such talented generous quilters!

I can't say the return trip was uneventful, but it was without detours! It was eventful because I was able to observe one of my favorite times of day - the revealing of His Majesty in the amazing sunset as observed out my windshield.

My reminder that my God is the author of creativity, and all I have to do is ask Him to unlock the doors to inspire me....and sometimes He uses Quilt Angels (grin).

Indescribable - Chris Tomlin

From the highest of heights to the depths of the sea
Creation's revealing Your majesty
From the colors of fall to the fragrance of spring
Every creature unique in the song that it sings
All exclaiming

Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.
You are amazing God
All powerful, untameable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God

Who has told every lightning bolt where it should go
Or seen heavenly storehouses laden with snow
Who imagined the sun and gives source to its light
Yet conceals it to bring us the coolness of night
None can fathom

Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name
You are amazing God
All powerful, untameable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God

Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.
You are amazing God
All powerful, untameable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God
Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.
You are amazing God
Incomparable, unchangeable
You see the depths of my heart and You love me the same
You are amazing God
You are amazing God

Chronicles of Karen...

2011-08-18T09:18:00.014-05:00

Chronicles of Karen, now that's a walk down memory lane! Many years ago, 1999 to be exact, I began an email journal of my families wanderings "The Great Overton Adventure" when we were modern day gypsies living in an RV working on the road...back then email was my way to reach out and touch...at least verbally of my ramblings. Time marches on and here comes blogville, and I can add photos!

Hum...I sometimes have wondered why I want to chronicle my journey...I mean after all, do I really think someone is going to write my life story and need all this material for their book (grin). No. I've decided that I chronicle for selfish reasons - to be reminded of the blessings that have come my way when my way is clouded and I have lost focus.

Life can get busy, it can be boring. Life can be troublesome, it can be joyous. But pretty much it's all the above and everything in between.

Life happens, memories are made, some are forgotten.

It's been quite a long time since I've journal-ed my journey. .. Truthfully I had to go through my photos to refresh my memory of what has happened since I last posted. Thankfully there are a lot of photos so I plan on letting them tell my story.

As I've reflected over this year that is just totally flying by I've sometimes thought that it's been a difficult time. The first of the year was mixed emotions as we started out with my father-in-law in the hospital as we planned my youngest son's wedding. What a whirlwind! Trying to catch up on quilting and then it was time for the Dallas show and setting up A1 quilting machines. As my home was being repaired and remodeled I relinquished my quilting time to a time of waiting .... lots of Tiki Hut hours racked up that's for sure.

Finally the day came where this became my morning view...

Oh the joy of being back to work in my cheerful studio. Seems I was starved for anything quilt-ie and yet found myself in such need of inspiration to get me back in the saddle.

The opportunity presented itself in the form of a workshop with Ellen Anne Eddy, a fiber artist who was a guest of one of the local quilt guilds.

Ellen Anne's work is inspiring to say the least. And soooo far from my comfort zone it's not even funny. Thread play? on a domestic?

I truly enjoyed her trunk show and getting to see her work up close and personal. I loved her hand dyed fabrics (and came home with a little stash to call my own). It's my hope to take some time in the new future to attempt a little thread play myself, both on the domestic and then try to translate it to the longarm...

I have always loved nature and have tried to capture the beauty around me with my camera, even though I don't get professional results with my attempts, it's the memory jog that I relish. Who knows, after Ellen Anne's class I might be inspired to capture the memory in a quilt...

Here's a glance of my backyard critters this summer..

Do you think any of these are quilt worthy?

I'm not really into bugs, but I do love lizzards...and have to admit, I used to collect the discarded shells of this bug..

Some critters are more welcomed in my backyard than others....but God did make all creatures big and small...

Maybe I should stick to flowers for my inspiration, like the ones for my birthday...

Yep, July was my birthday month, and in keeping with tradition I celebrate as many times as possible. Including going to the circus (that explains my opening photo!)

The Island Quilter's Guild has an annual sew in and it generally falls on my birthday. I missed last year, in fact had missed all the meetings this year (I mentioned that it was crazy). But I decided it was time to join back in the fun, so I went this year!

Also keeping with tradition, I like to make a quilt on my birthday, so this is the 2011 model.

This quilt not only was my birthday quilt but also a quilt I made for my A1 reunion (more on this later).

Meanwhile back at the studio...my youngest son had been working on a wall mural for me and was determined to finish it ON my birthday so he could date it 7.23.11

By the time I came home with my finished quilt top and hung it on the design wall he was signing his name to his art....

The next morning I went back and put into practice a technique I learned from our guild speaker during the sew-in...I'm making a rug to go in front of the lime green door in my studio. It's still a work in progress, so more on that in the future.

One of the joys of being a quilter is having talented quilting friends. A greater joy is seeing their work, especially if it's in a show. Several of us took time away from the sew in to take a side trip to view fellow guild member, Peggy Baldwin-Clayton's quilts featured in an exhibit there on the island. Story Quilts
I took a ton of photos, and truly, this side-trip deserves a blog post of it's own.... Peggy was inspired by Mary Lou Weidman in her style of story quilts....many of Mary Lou's quilts were on display in addition to Peggy's. The show runs through the end of September so if you are in Galveston you owe it to yourself to take the time to view.

Peggy's story quilt documenting her 50th birthday was very inspiring...I think if I were to make a quilt of my birthdays I'd have to include this year's surprise photo!

Yes, Pixxie actually took a taste of my birthday cake!

But we left her at home when we had the family celebration at La Brisa

Did I mention that I really like to celebrate my birthday? Never just one cake or one party (grin).

All too soon July has turned into August and my, it's more than halfway over already! Here's a few photos from my A1 Reunion held the first weekend of the month. We invite all our A1 customers to join us for a couple of days of training and fun.

Johnny teaches part of the maintenance class, and I share my tips of the trade... and then we shared our LaBrisa with several that wanted to join us for dinner.

Several of our customers couldn't stay for the second day of design class...I regret that I didn't get a group photo the first day....but here's a glimpse of part of my A1 family, and the star of our show Pixxie.

We really had a fun two days together and ended it with those who wanted to join us at Dickinson BBQ.

Inspired by my customers or just the first opportunity since the remodel... Johnny is quilting his first quilt!

And Pixxie is proud of him.

As someone has said, if Pixxie wants to model with your quilt that's a high stamp of approval!

Like I mentioned earlier, this year has just flown by and been nothing but unusual...the only guild meeting that I attended the first half of the year where those held in my own home (longarm guild). I've not been able to attend any local quilt shows either until I visited the one featuring Peggy...I've committed to try to change that! Actually visited a show last weekend where one of our longarm guild members had several quilts in the show.

Here's Barbara Staten with one of her quilts. Many of her customer quilts had ribbons as well.

It was a nice show. Very refreshing. Made me stop and realize that it's good to take time to refresh. Many times we get so busy in trying to juggle what life throws at us that we forget to take time to refresh. For some, like me, it could be taking time out to be among like minded folks (quilters for example) or just being outside enjoying the beauty of God's creation... Simple things like a ferry ride across Galveston Bay....

At sunset...

Letting the wind and the waves bring a comfort to a tired and weary soul...

with the beauty of an almost full moon...

Yes, I think I truly blog for me. It's nice to have an audience, but it's really my chronicle. My reminder of the things that God has placed in my life. The friends who come along side me and encourage me, the peers whose work inspires me, the beauty of my Lord's creation which is truly the only encouragement and inspiration I need...to know that He loves me.

The Quilters Come Marching Two by Two Hurrah, Hurrah

2011-07-10T17:01:00.010-05:00

The quilters come marching two by two, hurrah, hurrah...some far, some near, but all here on Saturday for the quarterly gathering of the Bayshore Longarm Quilters.

This is an informal guild made up of quilters who have a longarm, shortarm, midarm, quilt with their home sewing machine on a frame or just wanta'bees...the one thing we have in common is our love of quilting and finishing a quilt on a machine, either hand guided or computer guided. We recognize and celebrate it all, including hand quilting, quilted purses, wall quilts, bed quilts, show quilts, charity quilts.... just any thing quilts!

Our group is made up of many members at various stages in their quilting passion. Generally our gatherings are just an organized show and tell, although at times we have had guest speakers or a general topic of discussion. But mainly...we love show and tell and the opportunity to ask questions.

We go around the room, introduce ourselves (always new members, and due to distance some aren't able to come all the time). As a way of introduction we usually share what type of machine we have (or if we are still in the research and planning stage), whether we quilt for hire, or for just ourselves and perhaps a few friends and family.

Members are encourage to bring show and tell and sometimes will share a quilting tip or a new gadget they have found as we go around the room with our "introductions".

The talents of our group is amazing. I love seeing different colors, different styles of not only piecing but how something was quilted.

It's so much fun to get to exam the quilts up close and personal.

To be amazed at the custom work, to see a new panto design and ask "where'd ya get that?" And always the request "we want to see the back!" Yes, after we have admired the visual impact of a quit, longarm quilters really want to see the quilting and generally the back is where that shines!

Sometimes we don't all have show and tell, but we still share the laughter, the ohhs and ahhs, and the community spirit. I always love having my quilt-ie friends over, many I only see at the gatherings or our annual pilgrimage to the Houston International Quilt Show.

As mentioned, many of our members drive an hour or more to join us. Several make a day of it, some planning lunches together afterwards and more times than not, a shop hop to this area's fine quilting establishments.

We are blessed to have several award winning quilters in our group who share their talents and wealth of knowledge with us, as well as our "resident celebrity," Tom Russell. Tom is the most down to earth celebrity I know (and he's going to fuss at me for calling him a celebrity), we all just love him. He speaks words of wisdom encouraging us to all be the best we can be, to take time for our own quilting (and not just focusing on our customers for those of us with customers). And he amazes us with his creative mind. His quilts are simply amazing, many having won awards in national shows, and one that will be published in an upcoming book on Texas Quilters...

In the above two photos Tom was sharing an inherited family heirloom that he will one day quilt. Then he surprised us with blocks from a current project...one that he has shared photos on his blog...if you aren't already subscribed to his blog, then you need to be! What inspiration! Tom Russell Quilts

Nothing like see works of art in person and still on the "design board" - Tom, we can't wait to see the finished quilt - but as you have taught us, the process is the true journey.

After everyone had their turn it was my turn, and my show and tell was my newly remodeled studio...

It was sooo much fun to share my joy! My only regret is that I didn't have personal one on one time with all the attendees. Ah, but as they say, the road to a quilting friend's studio isn't long....

After everyone had headed out to lunch or the area quilt shops I asked Tom if I could pick his brain...I had a project that needed help...

I'm putting together a sampler quilt using the Block of the Month patterns from AccuQuilt for an upcoming class...I knew I wanted batiks, but other than that I just pieced, didn't really take into consideration the color flow, etc.. Tom is a master of color...

And he matched my room! Don't you think he just belongs here? Oh I can only wonder what creations would come out of my studio if I had Tom as an in-house mentor (grin).

I pulled out my stash of batiks and then we started playing. I am sooo glad I listened to him and my friend Dianne Anderson of The Quilter's Cabin about adding a design wall to my newly remodeled studio...even if it's a design DOOR to my laundry room ...

This is my 8 blocks before Tom came...I knew something just didn't feel right...and I needed a little help from my quilting buddy...

He suggested that I take out the lower block in the 6 o'clock position and helped me pick out new colors to replace it...

Then I asked him to help me with the center blocks colors...I wanted to try my hand at applique, not something I do, and something Tom is a master of...Okay, so I'm "cheating" I am doing all my blocks with the AccuCut Go!Cutter, but it's a start... Armed with instructions I pulled out the fabric and Go!Cutter after everyone left and had that machine a humming..

Taking advantage of my new design wall I auditioned the background fabric we had picked out..

Hum...

I didn't care for it as much with the cutouts on it as I had thought I would. If I'm going to try my hand at applique it's going to show up by golly!

I liked this much better, so now the little parts are all fused down and I don't know what to do with them (grin)... but look Tom! I've actually almost made an applique block!

So here's the design wall by the end of the day....the 6 0'clock block position has been reworked and I have a new center block...Stay tuned for the finishing setting solution!

I plan on having it ready for the next Bayshore Longarm Quilter's gathering!

The Walk

2011-07-07T06:43:00.006-05:00

I wanted to share some thoughts I had during my morning walk this past Monday, July 4th. As I walked and took in my surroundings the Lord showed me deeper thoughts.

Let me explain.

The area in which I walk sometimes has a lot of barking dogs. Most of the time they are harmless (behind a fence) and are easily defused when I answer their bark with a sweet response (with no fear in my voice) calling out "hey puppy" as I continue to walk past their teritory. But to be on the safe side I have this big stick I carry with me as there are many dogs not behind a fence. Armed and dangerous (grin) I'm prepared for my journey to the bay and back.

As I'm walking along the pavement I noticed that my stick was in rhythmic timing actually off the road, and at time the ground was rather uneven making my steps difficult.

It was then that I realized not only physically but emotionally and spiritually I'd been walking on the edge of life, teeter-tottering along trying to appear that all was well.

As I neared the bay this caution cone caught my eye, more importantly it caught my heart - reminding me that some of the road I'd been traveling recently had caution warnings that I wanted to ignore...but if I would look further down the road I'd see that the caution cone was really a precursor to the stop sign - these warnings were not to be ignored as they were for my protection.

Many times in my life I've ignored the warning signs....The pot holes on my path were my reminders.

Even things we enjoy and that are good can sometimes need warning signs for our protection. (Our area was under a burn ban, so no fireworks for the 4th of July).

The good news, repentance leads to repairs (forgiveness in a believer's life) and restoration.

He leads me besides still waters and restores my soul. Yes, Lord, I'm listening Lord....

On my return from the bay my spiritual eyes were opened. I began seeing all sorts of analogies on my path...

How sometimes my journey seems dry and barren.

How many times I'm at a crossroad and unsure of the path, or which way to turn.

Then I recognize that I've been down this road before, the brokenness over repeating the same sins, and the grace that patches up my life and covers those sins.

Many times I forget to stop and dump all the worries, cares, concerns, problems and feeling of hopelessness in God's trash can. I forget that all I have to do is clear out the clutter, the unconfessed sin, to continue my journey in restored fellowship with Him.

He gives us pleasures along life's journey, breaking up those hollow times, those times we feel abandoned or that we can't go on. Sometimes its in nature, sometimes through special friends and family.

The sweet fragrance of His grace and mercy....

Many times those wondrous blessings seem scattered and too far in the past...but He calls us to remembrance. To remember the good things He has blessed us with. He reminds us that He heals the broken hearted, that our greatest blessing is His forgiveness. That He allows trials in our lives to draw us nearer to Him. And yes, that there will be blessings again!

And when the way seems unclear, all we have to do is truly look and there will be a path provided, for He has promised to never leave us or forsake us.

The path leads home.

Tour My Studio!

2011-06-25T01:03:00.009-05:00

Welcome to Quilts 'N Kaboodle, my name is Karen and I'm going to be your friendly tour guide (grin)

It's been a little over two months since my remodeling began...and finally, tonight I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, and honey, it's NOT a train!

I may be a little premature in showing off, as there are still items that need to be done...but as with most things it's a work in progress...and I just need to share the progress!

So take a little trip, take a little trip, take a little trip with me...(did ya' sing that with the Low Rider voice? - if not, go back and do that, we'll wait)

I'm starting this tour at the entrance to my studio instead of meeting you at the front door of my home. If you were a customer coming to drop off a quilt top to be quilted I would have met you at the front door, holding a wiggling Pixxie as she gets so excited when we have guests....she just thinks everyone comes to see her... But since the other areas of the house are still impassable I'm going to begin this tour at this location, the entrance to the studio off my living area.

OH! Interruption. A big thank you to my sister-in-law who came over to help me today. She certainly helped keep me on track and encouraged me. Interesting side note, she's a teacher, has been for a long time. Longer than she's been my SIL...so as we were working together and I'd go from one side of the room to the other jumping from one thing to another I asked her...do you think I'm ADD? .... I think I've just got a busy brain (grin) and get easily distracted. Anyway...walk with me through my studio and enjoy the ramble...

As you enter the studio and look to your left you will see the longarm side of the room (to the right is the sewing side, but hold on, that's later). Above is the view of my 10 foot A1 Quilting Machine - this is my new baby, the one I received just days before the remodeling began...

The white cabinets are pretty much full of thread, except the first one with doors - that's full of prepackaged batting. How do you like my wall cabinet? I've always wanted an antique pie safe, the kind with the pretty glass doors. I have thought that would be way cool to house my quilts all neatly folded up showing off their colors....well, that dream has never materialized, besides I really don't have the floor space - so this cabinet is my reality, and I love it!

It was so much fun folding my quilts and adding little fun things to the shelves. The top shelf in the bottom picture has a big Polly and Ester quilt my grandmother made. Sitting next to it is a stuffed bear that I made her, and he's sitting on a little quilt I made for her with the same fabric - the label says " To the best quilter in the world, this is my first machine quilted quilt" I did it on my domestic in 1997.

Part of the reasoning for enlarging the studio was my desire to have two longarms. The one on the left is the new 10 foot one and the one on the right is old faithful, my 12 foot table. In the middle is Pixxie (grin) asleep on my sleeper sofa.

These photos were taken about 10 PM, Pixxie is so sleepy she can barely keep her eyes open. She worked really hard decorating too ya'know.

Okay, back to the tour...

I've shared this little corner before...

Here's a view of some things that cheer me...including the most fabulous tree frog in the rain screensaver...I want my very own tree frog, right here in the studio...the thoughts of simple things like this bring a smile to my face.

This is the sewing side of the room. I just love my new island - so much room for sew many creative fun stuff!.
Here's another view...the fun end piece on the island is actually a bulletin board of sorts - if I wanted to I could stick pins in it..had thought of using it for my schedule and cards perhaps, but then I decided I liked the lime bubbles too much to cover them up. Yes, this is a happy room and I am going to love sharing it.

Just another view....I can already tell that this area will probably stay cluttered with many creative projects...ah! but that's why I have it, room to work!

And yes, those are giant M&M's...they are tins that hold only dark chocolate M&M's - I'm on a strict diet.

Eventually I will have my sewing machine inserted in the cabinet .... or not... I might like it this way. I do love my A1 saddle stool, it will go high enough for me to sit at this 36" table and it's so comfortable to sew with as well as quilt at the longarm...

The ironing station is 3' x 4' - I covered a board with padding and a fun stripe fabric. Below is an inside peak of one of the cabinets - this is where I keep my Go!Cutter dies and my two Go Cutters (the original and the Go!Baby). Behind them are plastic shoe boxes with fabric shapes cut with the Go - instant scrap quilt waiting to happen.

Eventually there will be a storage unit added so I can move my freezer out as well as have a place for all my extra batting...right now things are a tad crowded, but I'm not complaining! I've gone from a 20 x 20 room to a 20 x 30 room and am loving it!

This Faith banner has been around a long time, like a faithful friend. It's only right that it continue to have a place in my life.

And here's the lime green door and the lime green laundry room. Again, a work in progress. The doors will eventually be covered to make a design wall and the surrounding wall will be covered in a tropical mural.

Here' a close up of my son's future masterpiece...

And if you look real close at the bottom you can see his sketches for the next phase... I can hardly wait!

Right next to the laundry room is this section that is actually to the right of the entrance door. This little area packs a big punch. The rod is for hanging completed quilts for photographing. Behind it I will have my TV mounted so I can watch all those cool quilting DVD's I've been collecting. Did I mention that I plan on having fun in this studio!

I played around with my camera and took a video with my rambles as the view changed around the room. It's totally unscripted and I have no way of editing. But if you've made it this far then perhaps you'd like to see a full 360 tour of my studio.

For grins you might want to check out views of how the studio has changed through the years. Visit my webshots and look for My Ever Changing Studio Album

Thanks for stopping by...ya'll come back now, ya'hear?

Taking A Break From Remodeling

2011-06-18T21:49:00.008-05:00

Nope, this isn't my studio. And it's not outside my studio. This has absolutely nothing to do with my studio.

In fact, I'm taking a break from my studio. I'm several hundred miles from my studio.

If I'd of had these sort of deer in my studio instead of the deer on the paneling in my studio I think I would have liked the way my studio was before the remodel... NOT!

I'm just messin with ya' ... are you curious yet? Wonderin where this Quilt Rambler is...well, I think you've figured out I'm not in my studio!

Yep, taking a much needed break from the remodeling....how about a road trip? One that is shared with friends....

When Quilter's Gather:

Ever wonder what longarm quilters do when they get together?

Yep, we show off our newest panto patterns and then pull out the show and tell!

I just loved the way the embroidery was incorporated into the quilting on this quilt...I really hoped Ellen would have donated this to my new studio, the colors were certainly perfect don't you think?

Vonnie has been mastering feathers! When I saw this posted on her facebook I commented that I just had to see it in person! The photo just doesn't do it justice. It is fabulous!

Yep, girls just wanta have fun! Again, I though perhaps Vonnie had made this one just for me, it's my colors!

I hope she doesn't mind a sneak preview of an upcoming quilt that will be in one of the guild shows....the quilting is stunning.

Both ladies have done an excellent job with their quilting....but the party wasn't all about show and tell - it was about sharing among quilting friends... friends who are welcoming another friend into the A1 family!

That's right, we were all gathered to set up Janie's new A1. A story that started with quilting friends who decided they needed longarms....Vonnie got her's first in March 2010, Ellen welcomed her A1 October 2010 and now Janie has hers. These ladies are going to have sew much fun together with many many more quilting show and tells in the future!

Thanks for a fun filled day Janie, Vonnie, and Ellen. I look forward to you "heading south" in a few weeks to visit my studio and can't wait to see more show and tell!

Okay...so you've figured out that I'm not in my studio, I'm not even in my neck of the woods....so where have I been this week?

Enjoying friends and family that's where!

And playing games! While out of town we stayed with cousins Jimmy & Linda and enjoyed several intriguing games of Jenga along with the lots of good food and the joys of deer in the driveway every morning. It was truly a thrill to have one eat out of my hand!

So, how about a little Where's Karen ....can you tell anything from this photo that would give you a clue...yep, I'm enjoying the sunshine....

Probably a better hint with this one... Don't you just love the beautiful trees? Hum... deer, old twisted trees...any idea yet?

Perhaps a little checking up on mom by my son on his cell phone will give you a hint...

We truly enjoyed a little time away from the gulf coast with our fast and furious trip to the hill country. Wishing there were more days to play, but the laughter and fun was larger than life and we welcomed the much needed break from the remodeling of the studio.

But there's no place like home....and the welcome committee is outa this world!

And what a welcome that was! Including a surprise in my studio! My youngest son has begun my mural and I couldn't be more excited about it!
Stay tuned, there's more fun planned for the studio....

In my own little corner in my own little world...

2011-06-15T07:48:00.006-05:00

Can't you just hear Cinderella, in Rodgers and Hammerstein's musical version, singing "In my own little corner, in my own little chair"... as you see my colorful new pink broom and orange dust mop next to my A1 Quilter's apron so beautifully hiding the obvious (a roll of batting!) Guess I sorta feel like Cinderella - just looked it up on google to find out how to spell R&H and wikipedia says "the title character is a young woman living in unfortunate circumstances that are suddenly changed into a remarkable fortune"

Well, that's a tad drastic, even for me...but I can relate to her sweeping up (grin) as I've been trying to dig out from all the remodeling. And I can relate to circumstances being changed .... but certainly not suddenly (as remodeling has taken its tole) but remarkable none the less.

So here's my progress thus far...and it really is just one little corner in my own little world...the other corners of the room haven't come together yet (grin).

This is the longarm side of the newly remodeled studio. Bare in mind, I do have two longarms now, but only my faithful original A1 has it's corner all nice and neat and ready to get back to work.

The above view is to the left as you look into my room. The couch at the far left of the photo is located in front of my exterior window and separates my two longarms. As fore-mentioned, the area housing the new A1 isn't ready for public viewing just yet... nor the view if you were looking right as you darkened the door to the studio - that's the sewing side and it's in despairing need of organization...a story waiting to be told. Sigh.

In the meantime, wanna take a look behind my longarm?

How do you like my shocking pink floor? Can you see the raspberry trim peaking out? Unfortunately there's not enough of it showing in my room after all the hard labor of painting it... I just have so much stuff lining the walls. Ah, but I know it's there and I like it. Matches my basket....my inspiration for my wild coloring.

And behind the curtain (quilt)?

Some of my fabric stash as well as drawers holding customer quilts. My original intent was to just drape a quilt across the top to make a counter area for my things, then decided that it was a good way to show off another shop sample - this one is called The Goose Flew East and was made after we sold our goose-neck trailer years ago after coming off the road as national special events operators (we sold Ben & Jerry's, Nestle, Dove, and Lemon Chill at places like Kentucky Derby, Indy 500, Oshkosh Airshow, Houston Rodeo, NASCAR and such)....so good memories....but the real reason it was chosen was (1) because it fit and (2) because it shows an example of all over/edge to edge quilting proving once again that not every quilt needs to be custom quilted.

So, is the remodeling over you ask? Yes and no. The contractors have finished their part, now we are doing the final painting of cabinets and the tedious task of moving things back in. Never in my born days did I realize just how much my passion of quilting had accumulated so many much needed items! Fabric here, books there, various tools, batting (oh my the batting! and it comes in so many varieties! 80/20, 100%, wool, bamboo, poly, soy...) There's a lot of sorting and putting up to be done and it's not a quick task. But yes, the hired help has completed their portion...

This project hasn't been without some calamity. In previous posts I've shared about the accidental unplugging of the freezer, or should I say the accidental I forgot to REplug the freezer event....well, add to our version of the Hee-haw song "if it weren't for bad luck I'd have no luck at all"...

On Saturday a week ago the workers finished installing the flooring in the newly enclosed laundry room....on Sunday I washed a load of clothes, noting that the hot water didn't work, so just simply switched to cold until hubby could take a look at it...with all the things going on it slipped my mind...fast forward to Wednesday a week ago today....what's that smell in the man cave? No one else seemed to smell it...fast forward again to Friday night trying to have dinner and a movie in the man cave...yep, now it was no question about it. Something stunk...and it wasn't Pixxie's bed (which had been moved in there due to the living room being taken over by all the POD items)....poor Pixxie, being so displaced for so long.

Long story short, we discovered the carpet under the couch was wet. Yep, the man cave shares the same wall with the laundry room and seems the hot water that wasn't working was indeed leaking, a slow steady leak for almost a week...

Fortunately, it's only a small area, but it did require removing the padding and drying out. It's still waiting its turn to be replaced...oh so many things to do! We've started calling this the Money Pit....will we ever have all the rooms back to normal again? Sigh.

In my own little corner in my own little room... One corner at a time. It will get there. And it's going to be great!

But I have trusted in Thy mercy;

my heart shall rejoice in Thy salvation.

I will SING unto the Lord,

because He has dealt bountifully with me.

Psalm 13:5-6

May I Have Some Swiss Cheese With My Whine?

2011-06-05T21:30:00.018-05:00

It's been almost a month since I've reported in. I remember the old saying if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all. That pretty much sums up my month. My family and close friends have heard me whine (and I'm publicly apologizing)...but I truly didn't want to whine all over blogville so at least I've held my tongue, somewhat.

My world has been turned upside down. But in light of recent world events (earthquakes, tornadoes, flooding, etc) and considering several quilting friends have lost loved ones and others are facing serious issues in their lives, I am ashamed that I've whined at all.

For you see, my little disaster was by choice...big difference.... Okay, I've repented (thanks to today's sermon actually) and I'm ready now to share the good of the past month and gloss over the trials. For as I was reminded this morning "In this world you WILL have trouble."

To recap...it all began with Hurricane Ike, Sept 2008....we had roof damage that wasn't resolved completely. Fast forward to August 2010 when we were introduced to a contractor who negotiated with the insurance company. As a result this past April 2011 construction began on a new roof as well as a new ceiling for the living room/kitchen/studio area that was damaged due to the leaking roof....

This began the spark of doing a little remodeling along with the repairs....Some of you may remember my Jericho wall that I wanted to come tumbling down....this wall separated my studio from a rather large laundry room which lead to the back door...

The end of April that wall came down! Take a good look at that lovely paneling. I've lived with these deer, hunters, and flying geese since we moved in October 2005 (this room must have been a man cave in it's previous life). Little by little some of the walls got painted...three outa four's not bad...oh how I won't miss that paneling!

So began the ceiling re-do, and if you are positively pumped to ponder on my past events you can go back and read Two P's in a POD....otherwise, trust me, it was a puzzling month...who knew it would take soooo long to do these repairs....sigh...excuse me, I feel a whine coming on...

I have to say that I was truly spared from some of the "down time" by my adventures with A1 Quilting Machine's A Team at MQS in Kansas the first part of May...I promise, I will recap that adventure in the future...but for now, it's all about trying not to whine as I share about my studio redo...(grin)

I've learned that the root word for construction is one part delays and the other part patience. I haven't done well with either of those new vocabulary words, but I'm getting more used to having them as part of my life. Rather familiar actually.

For clarification, I have two different contractors, one doing insurance repairs and one doing remodeling. As a refresher, we had to remove items in the rooms that were getting the new ceiling installed with Contractor #1 (the POD story again with the overflow being the other two rooms in the house, bedroom and man cave - I told folks the only place that wasn't messed up and had a place to sit was the bathroom, but that didn't count) In the interim we asked Contractor #2 to tear down the wall so the ceiling would be nice and purdy (that's Texas slang for pretty) across both the studio and the new expansion. Did I mention that POD's come with a one month rental? Hum...

Don't you think it makes sense that while everything is removed and stored safely in the POD that it would be a good time to make the newly expanded studio floor look all nice and purdy too? After all, the old studio had this old carpet and the annex (former laundry room) had old chipping painted concrete.....shouldn't there be some sort of continuity? And shouldn't we take advantage of the full month rental on that POD? I mean, seriously? Would we ever want to move all this stuff again?

Re-enter Contractor #2...yeah! Remove that old carpet!! Time for something new! I had big plans for a special floor!

During the "wait" time between Contractor #1 finishing up the ceiling and Contractor #2 ordering the flooring it was time to finally paint ALL the walls the same color. Good bye flying geese paneling, good bye ugly white paneling behind the washer and dryer....hello Purple Mist...finally, all walls the same color!

Only Purple Mist didn't look so purple any more. It actually looked like a pale pink. Hum. I'm not a pale-pink-person. Really not a pale-pastel-of-any color sort of person. Sigh....

Did I mention my few days away from the construction dust? I came home from MQS with some very yummy Sew Batik flannels...seems I'm just drawn to tropical island type colors...and ya' see that basket above...I have several of those sprinkled about the studio (or rather I did before they all ended up in the POD). Seems these are pretty colors together....

Soooooo... DESIGN CHANGE!

Yep, I have the most wonderful husband...he'd no sooner finished painting all the walls Purple Mdist when I asked him to repaint in Tiggerific. And he did!

In the meantime I learned from Contractor #2 that the mat flooring I had dreamed of for the studio was on back order and the manufacturer didn't recommend it for my intended use. Another design change.... (and that delay word again)

Pixxie is just so helpful. Here we are trying to pick out VCT tiling... I'll spare you the story of coming up with a quilt block design for the entire floor...that was a painful design process as the color palette was limited (not bright enough for my taste) and then the colors that I thought would work were back ordered and then I changed the quilt design and things still weren't working out....remember that vocabulary word delay...it's kissin' cousins to disappointment .... well, that's one of the whines I'm trying to gloss over...

So in the meantime....what goes with orange walls?

How about Lime Pop and Bright Black Raspberry?

I know, I know... some of you are thinking that all this down time from quilting has totally thrown me off my rocker...well, there have been days that my family threatened to have me committed....but it wasn't over the paint colors!

Who else do you know that has a lime green laundry room?!?!?! And I painted that room myself - only because it's going to be behind closed doors! This was my first attempt at painting and hands down, hubby is much better than I am! By the way, eventually those accordion doors will become my design wall....stay tuned! (at the rate we're going, it may be awhile).

Delays continued and I was getting antsy. I'd been away from the longarm and sewing machine way too long. My niece's graduation was fast approaching (and her birthday came and went) - it was past time for my promised Autograph Quilt...

Oh, did I mention that the POD rental had expired? Yep, all that STUFF had to go somewhere... The living room is impassable, trust me. There's just a path to a small cleared off area for Pixxie to reclaim "her spot" on the couch. (Now technically there is another place to sit besides the throne in the bathroom).

So back to the quilt...I found it almost impossible to work in chaos...the pressure was on, the following day was her last day at school...kinda hard to get autographs AFTER school is over...and did I mention this was the same day I discovered we'd unplugged the freezer while painting trim four days before and neglected to replug it at the end of the day...oh, I'm sorry...pass the cheese please...it will go well with all the frozen fruit that is no longer frozen. Sorry about that favorite bag of "Sonic ice"and all the smoked turkey and chicken... who's cooking these days anyway? Did I mention that I can't find the kitchen cabinets either... Okay...sorry, got distracted...I did get the quilt top pieced and she picked it up on her way to her last day of school...one day I'll get it back and quilt it (and post photos).

This too shall pass...or melt as the case may be...on to happier things! What else can a quilter do who is displaced? Hang quilts of course! Or at least some of them. Yep, it was time to trick my mind into recognizing that this will one day be a studio again....and that there WILL BE a floor to go with it....

By the way, this is hubby's favorite quilt. I made it in 2004 around my birthday, it's called Somewhere in Time, Past Meets Present...It has always hung behind my longarm, so it's tradition...(did you say that like Fiddler on the Roof? if not, go back and re-read that line with the proper enunciation). Tra-di-tion! Or in my case, some sense of much needed normality!

Okay, with all the design change and delays something unique happened. I found a hum-dinger of a deal on Shocking pink floor tiles. Yep, no pastel for this gal, hot pink or bust! Can you see the stack of tile on the end of the longarm? Better yet, click on Shocking and you'll see it up close and personal! And those folks at Home Depot just thought they'd never find someone crazy enough to take that return off their hands....I've gone back several times since purchasing this for other items and they all know me at the lady who bought all THAT pink flooring....

Those cabinets were another fire-sale-deal-buster. Gotta love those Memorial Day sales! Technically, they were free or almost...from the money I saved on the flooring....it's that higher form of math that only women understand (but honey, I saved this much so I spent it on this other thing...)

Okay, so they were unfinished, no problem, I've learned to paint!...White Fur is a perfect blend to the other furniture that will go back into the studio. And I wear it so well ... I'm an overly messy painter, my new shorts are now my painting-only-shorts-never-again-to-be seen-in-public-shorts. I must say there's a nice mixture of Lime Pop, Bright Black Raspberry AND White Fur that shall serve as my future fond memories of this experience one of a kind outfit. (I didn't do any Tiggerific painting, left that to the expert!)

Finally, the much awaited day arrived! They were coming to lay my floor! All the remaining Big Stuff that could be moved outside had to go...did I mention that we hit 100 degrees that day? Broke all sorts of records...

What wasn't easily removable was put on the "top level" that used to be the large laundry room behind that deer/flying geese paneled wall. Notice my precious pup, she's once again taking her modeling role seriously by showing how these two areas are not level (honestly, she stood that way on her own) ...indeed, there's a upper level and a lower level...an issue due to the fact this used to be a garage (prior to our purchasing of the house, as mentioned, the room claimed as my studio was wall to wall flying geese and deer paneling back in October 2005). This "step up" is an unresolved issue at the time of this writing - stay tuned for a creative solution....which I hope will come soon...I know what I want to do, but am having a hard time finding the right materials...sigh...I'm beginning to spell delay in my sleep, that and design change....

Let the flooring begin!!!

Doesn't Pixxie look fabulous surrounded by Shocking Pink and Tiggerific Orange?

And that's all she wrote. On that day at least...another delay....sigh...that was 6/2, Thursday ( 4 days ago) and this is as far as they got. But it's a start and I can visualize it, can't you?

Life does go on, and I realize this blog has too. Bless your heart for sticking with me this long! The above photo was last night...The lower level was laid on Friday and the upper level and newly enclosed laundry room was laid Saturday -- see my Bright Black Raspberry trim on the floor to the left of the longarm? Sigh...that's all that's separating me from moving back into my studio....did I mention that I painted that? Outside...on the day we hit 100 degrees.

So while I'm waiting I've finished painting the cabinets - that's where they are going to wind up (above photo), as an island, one side on the lower level and one side on the upper level, helping to camouflage that "step up". This will be added storage as well as my sewing and cutting center. I can hardly wait! More photos on that progression to come too.

And yes, I'm a little stir crazy...I painted the breaker box Bright Black Raspberry to match my trim and the outlet covers...yep, probably the only gal in town with a colorful breaker box!

So, that's my edited whine. It's been a difficult month (or more) having workers in and out of our home. Crippling almost, there were times I felt like I was held captive. I don't function well in chaos, so most of my time was spent under the tiki hut reading magazines or on facebook. Not real productive to say the least. A forced vacation that wasn't as relaxing as it should have been...only because of my attitude and lack of gratefulness....something I seriously repented of today.

Yes, life is full of struggles. Some we bring on ourselves, some we have no control over, all can be handled if we remember Who is in charge...something my pastor once said "what is over your head is under His feet. He will deliver and respond at the perfect time."

Tonight I am reflecting on being grateful. Grateful that an insurance problem was resolved and we now have a roof over our heads that has passed windstorm inspection. Grateful that these repairs included the ceiling which gave me the opportunity to enlarge my studio. Grateful that the original flooring I wanted wasn't available and that the floor that was provided was not only more "me" (hot pink) but also at a fraction of the cost of the original design. And yes, I'm Grateful to my friends who have put up with "the rest of the story" and "behind the scenes" whines and frustrations. Soon I will be grateful to be moving back in my studio. I hope you will continue to share the journey with me--- there's oh so much more!

And it's all good. Ultimately it's all good.

...for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. Philippians 4:11 (for me, personally, I'm learning...)

Turn your eyes upon Jesus,

Look full in His wonderful face,

And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,

In the light of His glory and grace.

Two P's in a POD

2011-05-07T17:00:00.026-05:00

Only two P's?

Hum...recently I think I've experienced a lot of P's...Plans, Phases, Passion, Patience (or lack of), Persistence, Perseverance, Progress....and a little Pleasurable Playfulness along the Path...although that wasn't a true Picnic....

What in the world am I rambling about now? What is the Purpose of today's blog and why Prolong the suspense?

Well, in Part it has to do with my Passion of quilting and taking advantage of an opportunity to increase the Perimeter for this Pleasing Pastime of mine... and it all began with the Pursuing of the re-Placement of our roof instead of the Previous Patching Performed Post Ike (Hurricane 2008)....

Yes, by the Provision of the good Lord we now have a roof over our heads that no longer leaks. This was Phase One of our Plans... (And because I hear your cry of please I will slow down the P's, well, maybe).

Phase Two (sorry, don't know another word to substitute for phase...well, I could have used development or episode, but I like the word phase...) Uh, hum. Phase Two of our repairs would be to replace the ceiling in the living area and the studio that had been damaged due to the leaky roof....but Phase Two got interrupted by my Perception that now would be a good time to enlarge my territory...so Phase Two got Pushed back to Phase Three...How's that for a Prologue.

You see, my Plans have been in the dream stage for a long time now to remove a Partition behind my studio that separated it from the "laundry room" and back door....a good sized room.

All that was Preventing me from this additional growth for my quilting Passion was this one wall...
Disclaimer: you have to realize that these Photos on either side of the wall were taken in Progress, Prior to removal of the wall but after the removal of lots and lots of stuff. Imagine that junk drawer of yours, you know, the one where everything gets dumped in when you don't know what to do with it? Now imagine an 8 x 20 junk room and you've got the Picture! Disclaimer Number Two: none (I repeat NONE) of the things stored in this area could be considered Junk - more like displaced items that need a home (or should I say Proper Placement).

Okay, back to my Jericho wall....you know, the one that needed to come tumbling down... Well that wall also had a closet attached, so that came down first...

Okay, clarification here, those buckets aren't dye buckets as someone asked (a logical question considering I'm a quilter)...they are buckets full of wheat kernels - the type that one would grind up to make whole wheat bread. In my earlier life I was the Little Red Hen and baked 40 loaves of bread every Thursday for a health food store...but that's a whole 'nuther story. These buckets have been moved more times than we'd care to confess since those days and now that they are exposed to the light of day I hope to once again bake bread, only not on a large scale, just for family and close friends...

Once the Paneling was removed from the laundry room side of the wall it was revealed that it was a true Jericho wall and would need lots of Persistent Pounding for it to come down! This house was built around 1968, with our Purchasing it in 2005 (found another P!!!!). Obviously it was well built - ship lap (or tongue and groove - a nice word Picture) makes for one strong wall! Something to be thankful for during storm season, but not during remodeling...

I thought you'd enjoy my Preparedness. I Purposefully Protected my longarms from any Possible Pieces of rubble or dust from the Project...

Oh, and for the record of this Proclamation, here's the Profile of the laundry room area showing my Procrastination of Pursuing a Palatable Practice of Provision for order.

Ah, sometimes it's best to fall back and Punt...we called in Professional Participants and that wall came out without Protest!

As did the Partition around the water heater, which Presented a Problem and Propelled us along yet another Path Pushing back Phase Three to Phase Four, or Perhaps from a different Perspective, Phase Two became an upgrade now known as Phase Two Point Five (2.5 for those I've Perplexed with my Prolific Publishing of P words).

Yes, it was Prudent that we not Play around with the Possibility of the Past Passable leak becoming Problematic in the Perceivable future, so in Popped a new water heater in the middle of our best laid Plans.

Now isn't this a nice Perspective, Progress at it's best. Phase 2 and 2.5 are near Perfection. I can begin to visualize the Possibilities of this Portion of the Project and it's most Pleasing.

With the wall removed the Preparation for Phase Three must be carefully Planned...the replacement of the ceiling tiles...

Oh! Stop the Press, I forgot! It's time to Primer and Paint over that Preposterous Paneling that has Plagued me for years! Phase 2.9 Perhaps?

Here's a Peak. Although in some light the walls have a Pinkish cast, they are really a Pale Purple... Purple Mist according to the Paint Pail.

Have you been Perplexed and Puzzled over the POD at the Preface of this Post? Well, here's the Proof that it has a Part in this Play by Play ramble of our remodeling...

I could write a Preamble and a Point by Point outline on "How to move your studio and living area into a 16 foot POD" but I am too Pooped just recalling the Procession of Packing my Provisions into such a tiny Pocket.

All this must go into that? I Pondered...

We Poked and Prodded and Pushed ....
As we Painstakingly Packed with Persistence (and Perspiration!) Do you see my Palm tree, my longarm heads and my sewing machines? These are a few of my Precious Possessions (but not to be confused with my Purpose for living).

After a Period of time, which seemed like a Perpetual Parade to the POD, the Prep work was done, leaving only a few Precarious items Present in the rooms.

Pursuant to Professional Prodding I Painstakingly covered the longarm table, thread cabinets, and sleeper sofa in Plastic to Prevent dust from Permeating in areas that I don't wish to be Polluted.

Preparation for Phase Three Performed. Time for some Postponed Pleasure, the Perks of Persevering .... a walk in the Park and the Pursuit of high Priority Purchases (new jeans)....

The calm before the storm.

Little did I Perceive the upcoming Postponement....I was Prepared, but the Procession was Prolonged...An emotional day full of Pouting, as I was Perturbed at the delay and Pestered everyone I knew with my Problem...a day that would have been better spent in Prayer for Patience...I've since repented.

Today was a new day! Full of grace and mercy. While my faithful Pup Pixxie and I set up Peripheral Provisions in the back yard under the Tiki Hut (to not Put out the workers or be in the way of Production), the Process has begun - the removal of the old ceiling!

With Piles to Prove it!

My Perspective has improved, I know it's a long Path on this Phase Three....and that I'm sure to be Perplexed at times. (and Pester my friends)...but I'm too Pooped to Ponder those Possibilities. I think it's time to call out for a Pizza!

Jeremiah 29:11 (New International Version, ©2011)
¹¹ For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

Quick Bias Binding Tutorial

2011-04-27T17:50:00.017-05:00

The old saying what happens at retreat stays at retreat is a wonderful saying and at times a necessary unspoken rule, especially when one stays up until the wee hours to work on a project and may be prone to saying or doing silly things that would be potentially embarrassing if fellow retreaters shared said events on their blogs...

As true as this may be, some things gleaned from retreats just needs to be shared! Take for example this really quick and easy method of making bias binding...

Trust me, its fast and simple! Much faster than the time it has taken to upload the photos to blogger that's for sure! So are you ready to learn something new?

Whoa-up for a moment....I neglected to discuss the fine merits of bias binding and why I've embraced this new method....

First of all, I love stripes. Don't know why, but I gravitate towards fabric that is striped. I don't care how wild it is, actually the wilder the better....I love the way it adds movement to my quilts when used in piecing and I love love love the way a striped binding finishes off my quilt.

Because of this I had to learn how to do bias binding. Ugh. I personally like the ease of straight binding, it's a no brainer to cut strips selvage to selvage to join the edges for my binding, and I tend to do this a lot....but gee, it just doesn't have the barber pole effect that I can get with stripes (once I found some fabric that had the stripe printed on the bias and I thought I'd passed on to quilter's heaven, the look of bias without the trouble!).

Okay, so I pulled out all the books on binding, all the magazines that had tips and such and I tried to make that tube-thingie that is somehow suppose to end up as continuous bias binding. All the drawing of lines, cutting with scissors, it wiggled, it didn't look like the photo, I gave up. (Hate to admit defeat, but hang on, this has a happy ending - pun intended!). So my stripe fabric stash increased for a while as I figured I just needed a little more experience under my belt, or someone to hold my hand while I attempted this method again....

Enter Houston International Quilt Festival....the quilter's shopping delight for all sorts of marvelous gadgets all under one big roof - better than a circus! I don't remember the year, but I found a gadget that solved my challenges of tubing to make bias binding - a ruler that allowed you to cut strips on the 45 degree angle from the fabric coming right off the bolt! Wonders of all wonders!

After a few trials and errors of cutting double folded fabric and ending up with stripes going opposite directions I had mastered bias binding and added my barber pole effect to many of my personal quilts.

Okay, so you are saying that you can understand the need for bias when using a pretty stripe, and we all know about the need for bias for curved quilts....So why a new method you say? If it ain't broke why fix it? you ask...because I'm proving that an old quilter can learn new tricks! And I've not only learned a new method but I've learned a why.

I like it when things are explained to me in a logical manner, one that I can wrap my brain around. I've now discovered that bias binding is truly better on any and all quilts. WHAT? Yes, that's what I said, bias is better and now with this new method I'll be making bias for all my quilts, regardless of fabric (striped or not) and regardless of scallops or straight edges.

Several of my grandmother's quilts that were made in the 1930's (and earlier) have had their bindings replaced, some circa the 70's based on the fabric...this is because the binding wore out. We've always heard that the binding is the first to wear on a quilt, and I always assumed it was because the quilt was much loved (as in drug around by a kid who didn't know any better) or perhaps because it was always being tugged to pull up closer on those cold winter's nights. Well, that's part of the reason...

The true culprit, most likely, was the binding was either folded over from the back (a lot of my grandmother's were) and/or they were straight of grain bindings. The theory is the added stress caused on the fibers due to them running parallel to the quilt - exposing sometimes a single thread (indeed, they become thread bare). As the quilt is used, loved, laundered, it wears along that edge and you are left with a gapping split necessitating replacement A bias binding, on the other hand, has the fibers running cross-ways, or on the diagonal, and that makes it stronger, especially when double folded as most of us like to make our binding. No single thread line to wear out. It also stretches (which is why we use it on curves) and that little bit of give helps with the wearing, or lack of wearing out. It's enough to make me think twice about ALL my personal quilts having bias binding stripe or not...

Okay. Ready for this new adventure? It's a twist on the tubing method but was modified at retreat as we collaborated on finding a way to make this easy easy easy...easy enough to want to use it all the time...

Start with a half a yard of your binding material ( or any size if you just want to practice).

Lay the fabric right sides together folding selvage to selvage. Square up the two cut sides as well as remove the selvages. Leave it folded in this manner and move to your sewing machine. Sew a quarter inch seam allowance on the three open edges, do not sew through the fold. (One big U shaped continuous seam - sew cut edge, turn corner, sew selvage edge, turn corner, sew other cut edge, stop, do not sew across fold).

For photo purposes I've marked the corner where I turned so you can see the edges. It does help if you do this too so you have a visual for the next step. You can use a blue wash-away marker or a sharpie, it doesn't matter, it won't end up in your finished product. Trust me. Make it easy on yourself, none of those pale pencil lines that you struggle to see (or at least my eyes have a hard time seeing them).

I also marked the folded edge (photo below) These got a little out of order... Above you can see where I'm lining up my ruler to go between the 90 degree angle made by my quarter inch seam.

And I've lined up the ruler with the corner that was made with the folded edge and my quarter inch seam.. Draw a line from these two points. Go ahead, use that sharpie, I promise it's okay.

Now here comes the tricky part - you know, where you have to hold your mouth just right to do it. Pick up the piece by the bottom two corners and flip it to the other side (turn it over). Then mark your corners as above and draw another diagonal line.

If you are chicken to use the sharpie before fully understanding if you indeed held your mouth just right and flipped the correct way, then take a gander at the next photo...

To double check to see if your drawn lines are going the correct way, when you take a peak at the other side the line will be going the opposite direction - where if you were to hold it up to the light you would see that the two lines make an X. Does that make sense? See, it's easy, and trust me, that's the hardest part of this entire tutorial. So be encouraged!

Next you are going to take a pair of scissors and lift up the top layer, make a little nip on the line to be able to insert the blade of the scissors and cut through ONE LAYER ONLY on that drawn line (see, told ya' the sharpie wouldn't be in the finished product).

For now, just sorta ignore those corners. Don't clip through them, just up to them... It should look something like this:

Next flip it over and repeat the process, making a slit to insert your scissors and making sure you only cut through one layer.

When finished it will look like this, sorta crazy, but trust me, this works.

Start to give it a little shake...

Pick it up and you'll discover you have one of those tube-ie things.... but wait! This method truly is different. You've made it this far, keep reading!

Shake, tug, pull, or do whatever to make it lay out like this on your cutting table. Yep, it's a tube alright, a bias tube...would ya looka there!

Time to do a little ironing. Rolling around as necessary (the tube, not you silly) press open the seams.

It's going to get a little strange when you come to those corners that you didn't quite know what to do with when cutting the diagonal line.. I don't quite know what to tell you to do with them here either...don't worry, this is okay. Just press your best around it (and ignore the goofy part, it too will all work out in the end).

Once the seams are pressed open, again lay out the tube on the cutting mat.

It's now time to square up the edge and begin to cut the bias binding... (ah ha! this is where those goofy corners get trimmed off and they shall bother you no more!)

Okay, up until now you're thinking This is just making a tube, maybe a little different than other ways but come on, what's so new about this... and perhaps you are right. Well, right on it being a tube that is. The difference really happens from here on out. There are folks much smarter than I who can tell you how to cut this where the bias is one continual strip,drawing lines and such, but that's not this method. This is where the retreat brain-storming came in... we did it a little different and a little less confusing... ready?

After squaring up the edge and making sure the tube is laying flat, you are now going to cut strips just like you do for straight edge binding. Yep. That's what I said. Cut strips. All the way from the bottom to the top. Just like strip cutting for piecing or straight edge binding.

I cut my 2 1/4 inches but you can cut yours whatever your favorite binding width is.. when you are done, it will look like this:

And when you open one up, you have a circle of bias binding. Amazing. And totally not what you expected, or what you need to bind your quilt. Hold your horses, there's more. (but wait! there's more!)

Now it's time to do a little unsewing, or frogging (rip it rip it). I know, it's not a quilter's favorite thing to do, but it works. Trust me. Find one seam on the circle and open it up.

Oh joy! You now have a bias strip with the ends cut at the 45 degree angle making it easy to join to all the other little circles of bias that you will be unsewing...are you beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel? I promise it's not a train!

See, this looks familiar now doesn't it? Simply take the ends of these strips, join them together and you now have continuous bias binding from a tube without all the confusion of drawing lines to make it come out right...

How easy is that? Okay, here's my disclaimer... you will end up with a strip or two that will have these goofy looking seams (see below). That may or may not bother you...

If it does, then simply cut the offending section out, using a 45 degree ruler...

Making sure to cut both sides with the same direction on the ruler and not the direction of the seam - otherwise they don't want to sew together nicely (voice of experience speaking).

And for those of you who really hate to frog (unsew) you could actually cheat and cut across the seam and none of us would be the wiser (what happens in the studio stays in the studio). Much faster to cut than rip...the choice is truly yours.

Occasionally there are little flaws in a well laid plan. Not even going to worry my busy little brain over trying to figure this one out, but gee, the angles are going the wrong way and I can't sew them together nicely... what to do, what to do?

Whack it off and make it play nice! After all, you are the boss!

Just make sure that both sides are going the same direction and you can continue to piece your merry little heart away.

Oh, and did I mention that these little cut off parts make great additions to your stash collection? Little triangles of stripe make for interesting conversation pieces in your next scrap quilt. Waste not, want not..

By the time you have sewn all the parts and pieces back together you have this wonderful pile of bias binding that's just itchin' to get you stitchin' this luscious bias binding on your beautiful quilt!

Even with my little trimming boo-boos I still ended up with over 350 inches of usable bias binding from my half yard of fabric. ( Actual length varies upon the width of the strips) It was quick, painless, you didn't have to worry with drawing lines on some tube to make it continuous, and you were able to make quick use of a rotary cutter to make the strips all the same size...and with a little pressing and folding I ended up with the roll of beautiful candy-striped bias binding that you saw at the beginning of this long winded ramble.

See, I told you it was quick and easy. Much faster than the time it took to tell about it! I hope you enjoy my sharing the secrets of discovery from my last quilting retreat. Thanks to my group "Quilters Autonomous" for being so giving, creative, and sew much fun!

Karen

Freight Trucks, Friends, Family & Furniture!

2011-04-16T18:11:00.015-05:00

So, what's the deal here? Freight trucks? I'm kidding, right?

Friends and Family is easy to figure, but Furniture?

What's the common denominator here? It had better be quilt related you say...

Well....get comfy at your computer, pour yourself that second cup of coffee, perhaps nibble on a (healthy) snack for a bit - sit back, relax, and reflect with me on the happenin's in the life of this Quilt Rambler...

Okay, so you saw the truck..but you'll have to wait a tad to see what was inside. The above photo is the friends part and you'll have to wait on that part too if I'm going to tell this tale in chronological order..

And before anyone wonders, here's Pixxie - my blog/life wouldn't be complete without including a photo of my favorite pup preforming her job as a Professional Quilt Model (thanks Dot for understanding that she's just got to pose, I hope there wasn't any Pixxie dust on your beautiful quilt)...but this too is out of order...so let's move on to FAMILY!

Here's my girls, and my guys --- I just love it when we can all get together and enjoy our favorite local establishment...A night out at LaBrisa is always a night to remember! We started the month of April off in style!

Yeah, yeah, that's part of the family part, but the big news this month was getting all of us together ( my guys and gals) along with my sister, brother-in-law, nephew, nephew's girlfriend to celebrate my mother's 75th birthday.

And yes, I can publicly declare that mom's a cute 75 - in our family we've always been proud of our age, counting each year as a special blessing from the Lord. No one denying all those years of His grace. Mom loves the Astros - when she and dad lived in the Houston area they would go to a lot of the home games, especially around her birthday...so it was only fitting.....

Now you have to know, we are known for being cheap dates and don't mind at all sitting in the nose bleed section...hate to admit the stairs took a little longer to navigate, but exercise keeps one young, right?! Up until this date the Astros were on a losing streak...they must have got the memo that it was mom's birthday celebration and they rewarded her with a fine win! It was truly a good birthday celebration (love those Super Pretzels!)

Adding to an already busy month, on Tuesday April 12th we celebrated our 31st Anniversary with a lunch date at Joe's Crab Shack in Kemah on the boardwalk. My how time flies when you are having fun!

And yes, that's my hubby cleaning the carpet in my studio....what a guy! The story behind this photo had to do with some clean up due to my precious pup's few rough days of tummy upset....Nuff said (and yes, she's back to normal, thank you for asking). Of course, if furniture gets moved for any reason it's my excuse to move more!

You guessed it, this is where the furniture part of this ramble comes in.

Time to re-arrange the studio...below is just one of many messed up studio photos. My youngest never understood why I messed up to clean up...but that's how I operate. Move everything to the center of the room, find a new place for it and before you put it up sort through to organize, discard, rearrange, etc. Spring cleaning at it's best...

Ah, but I'm not telling the whole story behind the rearranging...that's where the freight truck enters back in....This is one of several rather large crates that arrived this past week...can you guess what's inside this 10+ foot crate???

My new longarm! Actually my Second A1 - yep, I love my machine so much that I bought a second one (grin). This one is 10 feet whereas the first one is 12 feet... And how convenient that my studio is right off the carport....

My fellows must love me.

My youngest has been wanting to go on a set up with us to learn how we put together the longarm tables...well, he got his training this week by being his dad's helper. I got the day off (yea, right - that studio was all tore up remember?)

Oh, and did I mention that I have guests coming so the machine has to be put together AND the studio all put back together...by the next day!! ah, but I'm getting ahead of myself again (grin)

Normally the Professional Favorites package with A1 comes with our patented Eurgo-Lift hydrolic system already installed on the table - since I special ordered a 10 foot table instead of a 12 foot and since the company just happened to have one already crated without the Eurgo-Lift installed and since we are dealers......well, we had a extra step, a good learning experience on how to install the Eurgo-Lift to the table, something that is normally done at the factory....It wasn't hard, but took more time that normal so it made for a long day...

Oh! I neglected to mention why a second machine....

drum roll please....

For several reasons....one because my husband would like to join me in the quilting adventure (above is his "training" on how to load a quilt)...other reasons include work load - having one longarm for all over/edge to edge quilting and the other one for custom quilting - this allows me to have two waiting lists - since all over quilting is typically faster that line will move faster, where as custom quilts can sometimes tie up the frame for weeks....my idea of working more efficiently which will reflect in a better turn around time for my customers...

AND! One of the exciting reasons - to be able to offer more open studio days for demos to those inquiring about longarms and offering longarm classes here in the studio! Two machines means more hands on time for students. Plans are to begin this summer. (If you are interested in either a demo or classes please visit my website www.quiltsnkaboodle.com and let me know of your interest).

So, back to my narration... by the time the machine was together, the studio cleaned it was well into the night. But there was still a little time to train on using the panto (edge to edge) side of the machine...other lessons will follow. By the way, he was a good student (grin).

Here's a look at the new studio red0....less than 24 hours old as of this writing - and subject to rearranging as I live, work, and settle into a new layout....

The above view is at the doorway coming from the kitchen entering the studio. The first machine is the 10 footer with the 12 footer behind.

If you were to look directly right as you entered the room you'd be at the sewing side of the room...this is a temporary arrangement as the wall behind the tables will "come tumbling down" soon as we enlarge the room to take in the laundry room behind it. For now, a little crowded, but it will do (grin).

Standing at the edge of the sewing side (by the laundry room door) you have the view above of the larger longarm - again, still some work to do - I've got to rearrange the quilts on the wall too!

The photo below shows what's behind the machine...my "tunes", necessary fan (this is hot humid Houston remember), and plenty of fun fabrics to encourage me to finish up my work so I can take time to sew!

Here's another view from the laundry room vantage point that shows both my machines. There's a love seat/sleeper sofa at the window which is fondly called "Pixxie's perch" - she loves to look out the window, so when shopping for a new couch we had to audition the back to make sure it was wide enough for my precious pup.

Here's a peek behind the new longarm - the top shelf is loaded with my personal quilts (and batting) with part of the lower shelf housing finished quilts as well as my personal "quilts in waiting" - again, a visual reminder that I want to finish what I've started...don't want my kids inheriting unquilted tops...but then again, they'd at least inherit the machines to finish them (grin). The drawers behind are my thread drawers - the same ones that used to be behind the original longarm (see photo where the carpet is being cleaned for reference).

Okay, here's a look at the unfinished area. The door to the right with the lilac trim leads into the kitchen and the door to the back is the wall that will come "tumbling down" (I keep thinking about Jericho and the song I learned back in vacation Bible school as a kid). Needless to say, this is a work in progress. But hey, never let it be said I hold anything back! I show the good, the bad, and the ugly - er - potential!!

Whew, if you've hung on this long through my ramble you are to be commended! Now comes the friends part....getting the studio back together last night was well worth is as the Bayshore Longarm Quilters joined me this morning for our quarterly gathering.

Not everyone that came is in the photo....a couple of gals had to leave early and if you'll refer back to the photo above you'll notice that two of us "switched places" to take the photo (grin).

A little history...I founded this group as a gathering of like minded folks who wanted to be "community instead of competition" And we are true to our motto! We gather, share, encourage, laugh, talk, breath quilts! My favorite part is show and tell....I'll let the photos speak for themselves of the many talents of our group - many driving well over an hour to attend!

Show and tell includes "how would you quilt this? (above)

(This pattern of Texas above is an original of Mary pictured below - if you are interested email me karen@quiltsnkaboodle . com and I'll put you in touch with Mary to purchase the pattern)

Some of us really get into sharing our show and tell (grin)

After show and tell we moved to the studio and several were able to play on my new machine...yes, my mom taught me, "it's nice to share".

I realized today, and not for the first time, how truly blessed I am. I'm blessed with a fabulous network of friends and family who love me, support me, encourage me, and sometimes "set me straight" (grin). It's truly amazing how many things have come together just recently for me to see a light on the path I'm on. Sometimes things haven't been as clear...but all God asks is for us to trust Him one step at a time. It's my goal to continue to grow - in my skills as a quilter, as a quilting teacher, as a person, and in my faith. I like the way Paul put it in Philippians 3:12-13.

Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected, Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended BUT RATHER - I forget those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead.

Truly the days ahead are full of unending joy - because I walk with the Lord and am grateful for the precious gifts He's given me. The gift of life and enjoying His creation!

My Colorful Past

2011-03-30T00:50:00.003-05:00

If you are thinking this is going to be a blog of true confessions you are partly right (grin) - however, it's not what you think!

These blocks are part of my colorful past...bits and pieces of leftovers from previous quilts or parts that didn't quite make it in design and were discarded - what we as quilters often refer to as "orphan blocks".

My goal - to make these orphans into a family, how be it, with the chance of being a dysfunctional family - but these blocks needed to feel loved and needed, proving that they indeed had a purpose.

So out of the hidden places in the studio they came. Blocks that haven't seen the light of day since being carefully packed away waiting for "some day" when they could be used as intended.

Some day came today. An opportunity to remember the past and rejoice over all the fabrics. As my friend Annette said today "you certainly aren't afraid of color!" Yep, all these fabrics were -are - my friends. I bought them because I liked them, so if I chose them then they ought to play together nicely shouldn't they?

I like the memories too. There's a couple of blocks that were the results of classes with national teachers at International Quilt Festival(s). There's the log cabin block from one of my very first quilts- make 10 years ago! There's parts of quilts that I no longer own - one was gifted as a baby gift and blocks from a quilt that was given to a family after a fire. Two blocks aren't mine - they were a gift from my friend Delores, the pink basket and the blue basket. These are adopted orphan blocks (grin).

Little by little parts and pieces were added together as the puzzle began to take a life of it's own. Try this, try that. Trim this, add to that.

Back to the design wall, try again. Nope that one just doesn't seem to want to work out for now.

Finally all the ones that were suppose to be in this quilt top found their place.

There were many that were hopeful of being in the quilt, but they just didn't make it.

Next came the audition of border fabrics. It's a good thing I had a nice stash in the back of my car to choose from. Who would have thought? It wasn't prearranged, but it came together.

By midnight the borders were pieced but haven't been added to the quilt yet. I plan on mitering them and that takes math. Something I love, but am better at fresh in the morning.

Yep, it's a quilt I call "My Colorful Past" because it holds memories of other quilts or just favorite fabrics that I've picked up along the way of my quilt journey. Somehow they fit together - a little crazy for some people's taste I'm sure, but the blocks are now functional in a quilt as they were created to be.

In a way, this reminds me of God and us as His children. He created us to spend eternity with Him. He wants us to play together nicely as a family. Some of us are a little wonky. Some of us shine the best in supporting roles where others stand out boldly as the leaders of the pack. Each of us unique. Sadly, some of us wander off the path and are like the blocks that were discarded - not making it into the family...perhaps to be given another chance another day. That's the neat thing about God - He's a God of second chances...adopting us into His family, where we belong, fitting us in and making it all come together....to be useful as intended. And to be loved.

Oh how He loves you and me.....

Off on another adventure

2011-03-28T23:22:00.002-05:00

It's amazing what one can pack in a car if one has the desire!

I'm off on retreat this week - and I have high expectations.

The blue fabric bowl is full of scraps from recent quilts that are waiting to be "tamed" with my Go Cutter - that's what all the green things are - dies for my cutter.

See, I dearly love scrap quilts. And I hope to put together a really wild and wonderful one this week.

I've also brought several project boxes (far left) with UFO's to choose from. You can never have too many projects when you go out of town on retreat...cuz ya'never know what mood you'll wake up in and which project will catch your fancy that particular day.

Notice the drawer system in the middle? Well, that top draw is all my 2.5 strips and it just seemed easier to bring my drawer system (there are four drawers) with some of my fabric stash and work out of the back of my car instead of trying to pack things in a suitcase and lug it all in...

And behind all this is two suitcases with fabric bolts so I'd have some yardage to choose from as I work through my scraps.

Today's project was a UFO - I had already completed all the blocks from Debbie Maddy's Simple Stars Beautiful Quilts book - the pattern Broken Star - I adapted it to be cut with the Go Cutter and actually pieced the blocks using Bonnie Hunter's Leader and Ender technique - in other words, the blocks were pieced as I worked through other quilts (customer t-shirt quilts over the past few months). My goal this afternoon was to use the design walls at the retreat center for the proper layout. A task that took much longer than I anticipated, but happily accomplished while chatting with my fellow retreaters.

The beauty of a retreat is not only having uninterrupted time to work on personal projects, but to share the journey with my fellow quilters. Everyone works on something of their own...some are finishing up a project previously started while others have chosen a new project just for the week.

We love to celebrate the "ta-da" moments when someone has all their blocks together. It's a shame she forgot the border fabric. Oh well, on to the next project!

I can almost guarantee by the end of the retreat this t-shirt quilt will come together very nicely.

Mission accomplished for day one - by 10:30 PM the interior of this quilt is now complete. I too forgot the border fabric, so it's still a UFO, regardless, I'm a happy camper!

Stay tuned....there's more to come!

Website UP and we're in DALLAS!

2011-03-11T20:42:00.004-06:00

We are in Dallas at Quilt Celebration - set up on Thursday...opened today. What fun! I have more photos and will catch you up on things in the next few days, but today I'm just plain tired, happy but tired.

The big news is after hours and hours of hard work my website is actually up! Only right now it's at .co and not .com

LONG story. Seems my new host isn't allowed on the company who owned my domain, so I've had to transfer domain providers. I've got a .com, .co, .us and .net with everyone pointing to .com

well....the transfers are extremely slow and for some crazy reason the .co got through the process first --- so! Please please go visit. www.quiltsnkaboodle.co and tell me what you think. If you find a typo or have suggestions fill out the contact us form on the site and be my editor(s)!

There are a few pages that I didn't have time to develop prior to the show...so hang on!

And I do promise more photos from the Dallas Quilt Celebration - it's a fabulous fun show and the quilts are amazing!!

more later

Still working!

2011-03-03T01:00:00.006-06:00

Progress is slow going sometimes, but anything worth doing is worth doing right!

That said, I've been glued to my laptop for over 15 hours today (with a nice outdoors lunch break) uploading data, resizing images, editing my thousand and one typos (grin) all in an effort to regain my presence on the world wide web - and hopefully before the Dallas Quilt Celebration next weekend! I'm eager to share with quilters the beauty of being an A1 Quilter! If you are in the area, stop by booths 154-155 for a proper Texas howdy and a hug to boot!

Yep, progress equals change, and change sometimes takes professional help! I'm so pleased with my web design company Lew Sew Websites. We've worked over the phone

and through email to get the background design of my new website "just right" - now it's up to me to fill up the spaces. Not an easy task for this chatty lady! I've got so much to share!!

Currently the site isn't "live" - but again, I hope it will be within the week. I am certainly

enjoying learning a new content management system. It hasn't been painful at all, I guess because I'd created and managed my last website...oh but this one is sooooo much better! I'm no longer limited to someone's template, I'm able to add design/layout elements to my little heart's content! Pages and pages, images upon images...and with this new host I'm not limited to a certain number of pages! I can even have PDF files for my viewers to download! How exciting!

Lest you think all I've been doing is webdesign...I've managed to kick out a few customer quilts in addition to some personal quilts to hang in the A1 booth in Dallas next week...

This beauty occupied my frame for more hours than I'd care to admit... and yes, this is the back...I sorta like looking from that side first (grin)

The one pictured on the frame is one of mine....there's a story behind this one....10+ years in the "quilts in waiting" category... it's finally finished...that and two others...

....hum...somehow I've got to factor in time to do the binding on three lap quilts before Dallas...oh my...no rest for my wrists that's for sure!

Strength will rise as we wait upon the Lord....

I just love ~~my job~~ ....er....this passion called quilting!

Quilting Around the World - Or Where in the World Is the Quilt Rambler!

2011-02-12T16:06:00.006-06:00

If I could have music playing on this post it would be good ole Johnny Cash singing:

I've been everywhere, man.
I've been everywhere, man.
Crossed the desert's bare, man.
I've breathed the mountain air, man.
Of travel I've had my share, man.
I've been everywhere.

I haven't quite achieved "everywhere" yet, but I'm working on it! And trying to keep it quilt related (grin)

If you've been keeping up with this Quilt Rambler you know that 2011 began in a whirlwind! New Year's Day was spent in Midland doing a set up for our new A1 Quilting Machine owner and straight back to H.town to join my husband's family at the ER where Pappaw was being admitted to the hospital with double pneumonia... I'm happy to report that after many weeks of illness that he is daily improving (thank you so much for your prayers!).

And if that wasn't enough to spin my globe my youngest son made his life commitment to the prettiest young bride on Jan 26th.

We couldn't be happier! Here's a family photo to prove it! My hubby, myself, my mom, the handsome groom, the beautiful bride, the proud big brother and his lovely lady. Yep, one happy day!

Oh, and to keep this quilt related - instead of a guest book at the reception the guests signed 5 inch fabric squares with their well wishes - this will later become an heirloom quilt for the happy couple as photos from their special day and their honeymoon will be added...

So, what's a busy gal to do after all this excitement? Take a tropical vacation of course!

As the honeymooners went on a 7 day cruise out of Galveston to the Bahamas and Key West, momma and dad took a 5 day cruise out of Galveston to Progreso and Cozumel looking for some relaxing time away from all the craziness. Bring on the sun!

Cruises are a lot about the food - my weakness, BREAD! Don't you think somehow this could be worked into a quilt design? Hum? I don't know....

I posted a lot of cruise photos on facebook and one friend commented that they weren't too surprised that I brought my own quilt...Yep, I truly am a quilter through and through!

I mean, how many gals can sniff out a fabric store in a foreign country!

Or bring their quilt magazines to read by the pool....(what else was I going to do on the deck? you certainly wouldn't have caught me in a swimsuit!!)

Cruises are a wonderful time to relax, regroup, and refresh. I'm so thankful that we were able to make this excursion. And the weather couldn't have been nicer - especially when we returned to find that the Houston/Galveston area had experienced extreme cold including ice on the roads! Yep, give me a tropical vacation any day.

Patiently awaiting my return is a beautiful batik basket quilt. This beauty has been on the frame for quite a while. In all fairness, it's HUGE! 98 x 112, a good sized king being quilted with a double layer of wool batting, creating a faux trapunto look, especially in the vase of the baskets..

Stay tuned for more photos as the quilt should be finished this next week.

Today was the quarterly gathering of the Bayshore Longarm Quilters here in my studio. We welcomed several new quilters - it's always fun to applaud their first quilts. I just love show and tell! It's also been a good time for me to get back to my roots so to speak...

Do you ever get somewhat overwhelmed with so many things going on that you find you've forgotten some of the simple things that bring you joy....I know on my cruise I took a jillion photos of sunsets and the beautiful flowers....nature brings joy. So does being around fellow quilters, sharing knowledge, ideas, inspiration. I've been reflecting this afternoon on the blessings I've afforded due to quilting - the people I've met, the things I've learned, yes, the places I've been that I wouldn't have gone if it weren't quilt related. Things that I sometimes take for granted.

I've also been contemplating where I want to go in the future....instead of floundering around direction-less, what is it that I want to do with my quilting? Sigh. Those thoughts are still swimming around in my busy little brain, but I do know that I have way too much fabric and way too much fun to retire my needle and thread (grin)!

Thoughts of doing more teaching: piecing classes using the Square in a Square technique as well as developing patterns that make use of my Go Cutter and Go Baby Cutter; and longarm classes to help beginners get off to a good start not only with the knowledge of using their machines but design ideas to help them not freeze up when handed a pieced top with all those spaces that need to be filled (grin)...and lots of thoughts of continuing to do customer quilts, further develop the t-shirt quilt business and definitely finding time to use up my own stash, finish up some UFO's and then go shopping for more! Sounds like a plan don't ya'think?

Oh, and I really really really want to be more grateful for every day that the Lord has given me. I want to try not to measure my day by what I achieved or marked DONE on my To Do List, but to measure the day with simple joys and appreciation for what I have instead of wishing for things I don't have. I want to be as kind to my family as I try to be to strangers. I want to focus more on what my friends are saying and doing instead of what I want to share with them that I'm saying or doing. I want more time in my hammock (grin) Okay, that might not be a lofty goal, but this gal is sooo ready for warm weather!

Simple joys. A walk on the beach (or memories of such), a day in the park with a friend, the feel of fabric, the hum of my machine, the sunshine on my puppy as she sleeps on the back of the couch in front of the window, nights with a full moon, and ice cream (grin) for the record, Ben & Jerry's Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough is my all time favorite.

And to you my dear friends, I wish you beautiful sunsets! May they be a reminder to you daily that God is an awesome creator. Next time you see one will you think of your Quilt Rambler friend? I'll be enjoying it too and reminding myself that it's the simple joys of life that matter most - and we don't have to go around the world to find them!

This is the First Day of the Rest of Your Life

2011-01-19T09:01:00.002-06:00

Time marches on. Every day is a new adventure. Some days I feel like mountain climbing, other days I want to climb back into bed!

When I started this blog several years ago it was with the commitment that I'd ramble once a week....last year it was more like once a month (sigh). I'm repenting.

Typically between Christmas and New Year's I take time to quilt my own quilt. This year was a tad different....our Christmas came late, celebrating with our sons and their lovely ladies on 12/30 due to conflicting work schedules...the following morning we headed to west Texas and on New Year's set up a new quilter with her A1 Quilting Machine.

Our return trip was to include a stop over at a cousin's in San Antonio for a little relaxing time. That was cut short as we drove straight from San Antonio back to Houston, without going home but straight to the ER. My husband's father was being admitted for double pneumonia, fluid on both lungs, and a blood clot in one lung.

Prior to our belated Christmas celebration I had loaded a personal quilt, thinking it would just take a day or two to complete....that quilt became my therapy during the 8 day hospital stay....in the evenings I'd try to quilt for 20 or 30 minutes just to unwind. Needless to say, the quilt was on the frame much longer than my previous "between the holidays" intentions. But quite honestly, it would have been difficult to try to focus on a customer quilt, so I continued to quilt it a little at a time. I took a lot of close ups as this was the first time I tried out this new border design

Personal Projects 2011

Here's a link if the slide show doesn't work.

Sometimes boo-boos make for creative flow. I had originally planned on curly Amish feathers in the outer border, quilted in the circle spines and then discovered I had the wrong ratio - no way would I rip out seams...so I decided to use the circles for my feather puffs - if I messed up, oh well, it's only fabric and it's my quilt!

Finally things appeared to be normal again, my father in law came home to recover, my personal quit was finished and I quickly loaded up a customer quilt to try to redeem the time....but who am I fooling?!?!?

My youngest son is getting married! They have been engaged since the fall and are having what I call a "planned elopement" - they are going to the justice of the peace (by themselves) and having a wedding reception afterwards to celebrate with friends and family. Did I mention that this is happening next week?!?!?! Somewhere between now and then I will find time to alter her wedding dress. What a privilege to be included in this special time of their lives!

Yep, now you know my excuse for being AWOL from my ramblings. As soon as I catch my breath and get caught up on customer quilts I'll return to my chatty little self, at least that's the plan!

I'm excited as I look forward to a new year - lots of beautiful customer quilts already lined up, some personal quilts that I hope to squeeze in, especially before the next show (will have an A1 booth at the Dallas Celebration in March), along with sprinkling in some fun classes this year (my favorite tote bag, piecing a quilt using the AccuQuilt Go Cutter, design ideas on the longarm)....oh, and I am soooo looking forward to warmer days so I can enjoy my hammock again!

But right now, it's time to reflect and be thankful for all that God has given me - a wonderful family, a future daughter-in-law, supportive friends, and just the joy of living. Today IS the first day of the rest of my life, and I will rejoice in every breath!

Taking time to enjoy the journey!

karen

Just in time for Christmas

2010-12-25T12:38:00.015-06:00

The phone rang just a few short days before Christmas. I wasn't where I could answer it so it went to voice mail. Upon checking my messages I discovered that someone had been referred to me, as a professional quilter - their inquiry? the possibility of a "memory quilt" for a daughter who was to be laid to rest the following day.

As I listened, my heart broke for this family and their sorrow in losing a precious daughter, especially at the holidays - as I too have lost family members during this season and know first hand the emotions.

That was Christmas 2009. I returned the call to find out more details. Their beautiful adult daughter had just passed and they had been told that I could take articles of clothing and make a quilt. Yes, I could do that. Would it be possible to have a snowman on the quilt? Jennifer loved Christmas and especially snowmen.... there was a special black velvet dress that would be perfect for the top hat....

We agreed to meet after the holidays to develop a design for their memory quilt. Prior to our meeting I sketched out a rough draft in Electric Quilt 6 (above) to see if this would meet with their approval.

Mid January 2009 I met R. & C., lovely people who obviously had a deep love and a deep sense of loss for their daughter Jennifer. As we got to know each other a bit they shared about their daughter, a woman full of grace and beauty with lots of love to share to those around her, both family & friends as well as strangers. We talked about some of the quilts on my webshots/website and how collectively we could come up with a pattern that would best honor their love for Jennifer.

I'm not exactly sure how we came to the conclusion that what they really wanted was a wholecloth with a snowman, but that's where we landed.

A wholecloth quilt is just what it sounds like..a whole piece of fabric, no piecing, nothing appliquéd, where the design is done simply in thread. Traditional wholecloths are white fabric with white thread, and have also been called white work. Artist license in modern quilting has embraced non-traditional wholecloths where the fabric can be any color, the thread any color, and may even include fabric paint or embellishments. Ours would be traditional. I remember my thoughts at the time what an honor to be a part of something that is going to be a true heirloom.

My quilting schedule was pretty booked for the spring, and I knew that the quilting would take a lengthy time to complete. I wasn't sure of a time frame... R. & C. were most gracious in not wanting to rush things and allowing me time to develop and implement the design.

Knowing that the design's focus would be a snowman I began researching images on the internet for snowmen, snowflakes, and cardinals - the family mentioned that cardinals were very symbolic and sentimental in their memories so three cardinals were to be a part of the plan. Several sketches later I emailed the design below as a starting point for developing the look they wanted to achieve.

It was then that I felt the quilt should be called Essence of Jennifer. We made an appointment to get together to tweak the design. I felt like a school teacher with my red pen (grin) as we tried to make some notes and ideas of how he really should look...

Weeks later we all agreed on this design.

By now the spring had turned to fall. So many interruptions to this mission .... delays included the fabric being on back order for weeks, as well as my other obligations - other customer quilts, traveling to set up quilting machines, etc.

The day finally came when the fabric arrived and I could begin the marking. Our snowman was enlarged to become the center medallion of a queen size quilt. Using blue marking pens, that are water soluble, I began the lengthy process of transferring my "idea on paper" to my "design on fabric".

In keeping with traditional wholecloth design elements I wanted to include radiating lines to help draw the eye towards the center where the focus would be on the snowman and the three cardinals representing family memories. During the design process we all three agreed that we liked the traditional feather cable design...I had just the perfect stencil for that!

Marking was tedious work, it literally took all day...and a little more...OOPS! All the careful measuring and math didn't compute... coming down the side and turning the corner - GASP! the design elements didn't match up. Time to pull out the "eraser" - a special pen designed to remove the blue markings.

That was slow going, so I got out a spray bottle full of water - after all, it is water soluble marking pens right? And I had a lot of territory to undo...

Of course, the negative to all this water is having to wait for the area to dry before remarking. One might think you could speed up the process by blow drying with a hair dryer or perhaps putting in the dryer...however, heat would set the blue marking pen permanently. Not desired!

Finally the border, radiating lines, and the outline of the snowman was complete - all that was left was a little detail work. Back to the computer for snowflake images to trace.

You might notice the pen at the base of the snowman and that big blank area - that's another small oops (grin) This time instead of using the "store bought" eraser or a squirt bottle (whose over spray erases more than you want sometimes) I used a water marker from a kids toy called AquaDoodle. I prefer this as it's not only efficient (time wise and no over spray) but it's economical - simply refill with water as needed.

The day finally came when it was time to load the snowman on the frame....

You may wonder where the blue lines are... well, once I quilted the area I would spray with the spray bottle to temporary remove the lines so I could "see" my work. It was a temporary fix as the blue lines would sometimes reappear. Not to be alarmed, this is normal until the quilt is fully immersed in water and not just sprinkled.

Life has its interruptions and so does the ebb and flow of quilting. The snowman had to be unzipped from the frame for a short period of time, but only after it was stabilized - meaning I had outline quilted all the border (before the details were added as seen in the photo above) and once the snowman was outlined as well as all the radiating lines quilted....couldn't risk any fabric shifting that could cause potential problems later on.

This short "time off" gave me an opportunity to hang up the quilt to better see the design and the progress instead of just the exposed area on the quilt frame. It was beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

The final element was adding all the tiny detail and background fill. I wasn't really sure how to implement this, what sort of design did I want to do? Hum...this has been my year for "feather puffs", a design I developed earlier in the year and used on several customer quilts (including one that won a ribbon and one that was published in a book)...seems like that just might work, it would certainly add some movement and perhaps convey the illusion of snowflakes around the snowman...

You can see how tiny the feather puffs are...that's the top of a flower head pin above and the hopping foot on my longarm below is a quarter inch from the needle to the outside edge...gives you some perspective.

Here's a view of the snowman being surrounded by the background fill.

Once all the quilting was complete it was time for the true test to see what it looked like without all the blue lines. Into the washing machine it went. Only a rinse cycle with NO detergent.

Hallelujah, all the blue lines disappeared in the wash. But to make sure I had to air dry the quilt instead of putting it in the dryer, again, heat sets in the blue lines...the proof that all would be well would come the next day after it was dry.

Sigh of relief! All dry, very wrinkled and not looking like I envisioned, but knowing it wouldn't look "finished" until it was. Now it was time to draw the scallop edge...

Then add the bias binding, then trim the excess away...then hand sew the binding down on the back...

Then back in the wash again. I did this for two reasons, I wanted the binding to "pucker up" just like the rest of the quilt and I also wanted the fabric to loosen up a tad. This time I used a mild detergent and indeed dried it in the dryer on low heat.

He came out happy!

Here's Essence of Jennifer in her full glory

Designed & Quilted by Karen E Overton

Unfortunately I'm not a professional photographer, and the lighting isn't always the best, but I hope you will enjoy looking at the close ups. I believe if you click on the photo that it will enlarge..

I couldn't resist...wanted to see how she looked on a bed...

and of course Pixxie couldn't resist the opportunity to be in a photo!

I'm not 100% sure, but I do believe that R. & C. picked up their heirloom a year to the date of calling me....

As I worked on this quilt, or thought about this quilt, throughout the year my thoughts and prayers were with this family - that they would be comforted in their loss and that somehow the works of my hands would give them joy in the mist of their sorrow.

Christmas is truly in the heart.

Merry Christmas to all!

Bodacious Longarm Gift Basket

2010-12-19T18:12:00.008-06:00

It's been a while since the Houston International Quilt Festival....but I need to revisit that time for just a bit and update on the Bodacioius Gift Basket that was drawn among the new longarm quilters purchasing an A1 Quilting Machine at our booth this year....

Since my last post we have been two steppin' all over Texas setting up new A1 Quilting Machines and in just a few short weeks our winner of the Bodacious Gift Basket will join the ranks of a new A1 quilter!

...now I want to share just what was in that basket and take time to thank our sponsors for making this gift possible.

Thank you to Stewart Plank, owner of A1 Quilt Machines for the tote bag and Towa Gauge - the tote bag has multiple uses of course, but for those of you unfamiliar with the TOWA, it's a tool to assist in determining the proper tension on the bobbin, thus eliminating half of the tension headaches (grin).

Thank you to H.D. Wilbanks and Darlene Christopherson of Pellon Legacy for their contribution of a 9 yd x 96" wide bolt of 80/20 batting and a queen size bamboo prepackaged batting.

Jamie Wallen, A1 dealer and national quilt instructor, along with his partner, A1 dealer Roseanne Campisi donated their newest DVD The Care & Feeding of Your A-1 Quilting Machine. They have joined forces on several instructional DVDs including quilting design elements and fun items like gallery baskets.

Another A1 dealer, Brenda Janovy, donated a handy longarm apron to our new quilter.

Texas designer, Patricia Ritter of Urban Elementz, donated two beautiful pantograph patterns.

Diana Phillips of Cozy Creations donated one of her Line Dancing Books, More Line Dancing - so many beautiful quilting designs to inspire and encourage our new quilter! She has many wonderful design books for machine quilters.

Quilters are such generous people. When I first posted on a longarm forum that I was looking for ideas for a gift basket my online buddy, Dawn Rameriz, the Pajama Quilter , quickly contacted me that she would be happy to donate her newest DVD and workbook, Pajama Quilter Retreaded. Dawn's work just makes you smile! She's sooo cute demo-ing quilt designs in her PJ's.

Almost immediately after receiving Dawn's generous offer to help out with the gift basket, Vicki Anderson of Machine Quilting Unlimited suggested that our new quilter needed a one year subscription to her wonderful magazine. I totally agreed! (It is my favorite longarm magazine!)

Bob Purcell of Superior Threads graciously donated King Tut and So Fine to our new quilter. A special thank you to Bob for being a provider of thread for not only the Houston show but all the shows that A1 Quilting Machines attends. The customers just love the beauty of the King Tut, Rainbows and Metallics that we run on our machines!

Lorrie Coats of Columbia River Quilting donated Superior Thread's Rainbows and Bottom Line threads along with wonderful Titanium needles. As you can see from her flyer, she operates a one stop online shop for longarm quilters - books, threads, needles, rulers, etc.

Chris Meyers of Fil-Tec graciously donated several spools of Glide and Maga-Glide prewound bobbins. Thank you to Chris, Matt & Rachel for your support at both MQS and the Houston Festival in supplying Maga-Glide prewound bobbins to use in the booth for demos as well as in the classrooms for the A1 Quilting Machines. We also enjoy running the Glide as a top thread in the booth.

And from my "neighbors" - another Texas company...thank you Gadget Girls for the donation of the stitch in the ditch ruler, a good start to a new collection for our new quilter. This will work perfect with the extended base that comes with the A1 Quilting Machine!

Thank you to Havel's for their best selling snips - these will come in sooo handy for clipping those threads!

And to sweeten the pot, I added a few of my favorite things... Havel's seam ripper for those times you have to "frog" (rip it, rip it), my favorite marking pens and eraser, Best Press, a longarm centering tape and more snips (can never have too many scissors) AND my purple longarm zippers that will be added to the take up rollers on the A1.

I can't say thank you enough for the generosity of my sponsors for making this gift basket possible - a wonderful jump start for our newest A1 quilter. Welcome to the A1 family Carol - enjoy your goodies!

A cotton-pickin good time

2010-11-18T18:06:00.011-06:00

Where has the month gone! Oh my, I feel like I'm just coming up for breath.

So, did ya think the Quilt Rambler lost her voice? Actually I had a slight scare there for a while....it's been a fabulous few weeks. Non stop quilting fun, and yes lots and lots of quilt talking! So much that my jaw hurts!

For several weeks I've been preparing for the Houston International Quilt Festival. It's my favorite time of the year, 10 days (counting the wholesale buying part called Market) of nothing but quilts, quilts, and more quilts. Anything you can think of concerning making, enjoying, loving quilts all under one roof - a giant roof spanning 9 football fields! As a "quilter for hire" (business) I attend 5 days of Market shopping for new items I can use in my business - fabrics, new patterns to teach, the latest in notions and techniques....very fun, very rewarding and very tiring (grin).

But its the Festival that really get me excited! Once again this year my participation in Festival was that of a vendor - one of over a thousand vendors in a crowd of over 56,000 attendees! So for weeks ahead of time I've been thinkin', collectin' and makin' STUFF to decorate the A1 Quilting Machine booth....Texas Style! By the way, for those unfamiliar - that's a bouquet of cotton picked from the side of the road around Katy Texas...

But back to my story...5 days at Market, then a day and a half preparing the booth prior to 4 1/2 days of Festival... being the proud Texan that I am I figured what better attraction that a quilted Texas flag - along with a split rail fence adorned by a Texas theme quilt, and a few Texas items...

And what Texas booth would be complete without our own Texas A1 Quilting cowgirl showing off her favorite quilting supplies - Legacy Pellon 80/20 batting and a bouquet of thread by Superior Threads and Fil Tec/Bobbin Central?

We even decorated the back of the back wall (grin) To the far right is the 2007 Award Winning Houston Rodeo quilt by Mainland Morning, and another Texas "map" quilt. Yep, comin' or goin' we wanted folks to see the A1 booth and stop by to visit.

And stop by they did! And not just quilters looking for longarms... Oh it's sew much fun to get hugs from your friends! This is one of my close quilting buddies Cindy. Even though she's just across H-town from me, we spend more time talking on the phone than actually quilting together. Gotta change that somehow!

And this is fellow blogger and longtime friend Elaine, she surprised me - hadn't seen her for several years. I met Elaine when we were working on the road as ice cream vendors. We hired her daughters to work in our Ben & Jerry's booth at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo around 2000 and have been friends ever since. Yep, the road is never long between emails!

Met up with several other gals I've known for years through longarm forums, blogs, etc. I wish I'd had photos of everyone - it's sooooo special to get a real hug and not just a cyper hug, and really special to have that face to face contact for the first time. Can't say enough about the joy brought to me when these special friends stopped by.

And here's to a couple of gentlemen in my quilting life. My "mentors" so to speak. Tom Russell, award winning quilter, who greatly encourages me to "develop my style" (and is helping me discover it!) and Jamie Wallen, national longarm teacher, who helped me discover the joy of quilting feathers. I'm truly blessed to have such talented friends, only wish a little more of their art/skills would rub off on me!

Of course Quilt Festival isn't just about vendors and meeting friends, it's about quilts! Oh my, there just wasn't enough time to view the quilts. I did take photos to enjoy later of all the inspiration and the award winners...but just wanted to share this next photo with you...a man on a mission...my hubby trying to locate the customer quilt of mine that was hanging in the Texas Guild Winners exhibit...Have to admit it was exciting to see my name on a quilt hanging in Houston! Of course, I do have several quilts hanging in my booth, but that's not the same (grin)

The weekend was full of reunions and special surprises - blasts from the past so to speak. Wow, I look up and who should be walking into my booth but long time East Tennessee friends who are now East Texans! Steve and Donna of Nevrdun fame (Donna is quite a gifted writer and has a e-zine called Nevrdun News - let me know if you want to connect to good wholesome inspiration). While living in Tennessee we shared homeschooling in common, and for the past 10 years (when we left TN for TX) have kept up through the internet. Now they are in the state and it was such a joy to see them after 10+ years. Nope, ya'll haven't changed a bit!

And then there's Holly....my best friend from High School. We reconnected last year after 20+ years for a brief one day in person visit and have attempted to keep up via facebook .... I'm tearing up again Holly, just like I did when you and Ken surprised me in the booth! We really do need to spend more time together my friend!

Oh! and did I mention that it's all about the new longarm customers? Wow what a show! Pictured here is Carol from Midland, one of many proud new A1 owners and the winner of my Bodacious Gift Basket drawing... more on that in the future as I do want to properly thank and acknowledge all the generous sponsors! That good ole Texas wash tub is FULL of wonderful longarm supplies for this lucky Texas lady! Congratulations Carol, can't wait until your studio is finished and we can set up your new A1 Quilting Machine!

The booth wouldn't have been successful without the help of many people. This is my friend and fellow A1 dealer Brenda Janovy from Sturgis SD helping a future quilter try out a longarm quilting machine. Unfortunately I didn't get a group photo of the entire A1 team - thank you Stewart Plank for making such a fabulous longarm; for Justin Plank who sets them up, tears them down, and maintains the classroom machines during the 7 day class period; the A1 dealers Brenda, Jamie, and Rosanne and my side kick Trish for working with our customers demo-ing the machines, answering questions, and writing up orders. Ya'll are the best-est!
One of the hardest things for this Quilt Rambler is to remain silent (grin) but that was a requirement earlier this year as I was blessed to be asked to quilt for an upcoming book... couldn't share photos of the quilt until the book was published...well, its published and now I can share photos! RaNae Merrill's newest book, Magnificent Spiral Mandala Quilts, was released at the Houston Quilt Market....here's a photo of her booth at Festival...The quilt on the right is called That's the Way Love Is and is the one I quilted for her book.

Since RaNae and I had only corresponded through the mail and over the phone concerning her quilt, it was a real pleasure to get to meet her and have her autograph my copy of the book!

I truly enjoyed this year's Market and Festival. It was a lot of fun planning my "Texas" booth and working with future quilters. So many folks are in the market for longarms, doing their research and test driving all the manufactures - it's a big decision! One thing I hoped to convey to my future customers is that we become a family - I was so pleased that so many of my existing A1 customers came and hung out in the booth - loved it that Vonnie & Ellen were there to welcome a new A1 family members. I truly have the best customers! And they are all so smart - they chose the best longarm!

Festival was "over" Sunday night 11/7 at 5 PM, tear down and loading up took about 2 hours, then there's the 45 minute drive home...but! we didn't go home - we went to Trish's, my "side kick" who helps me at shows to deliver her A1! Yep! Trish went home with one of the show table/machines and by midnight we had welcomed a new member to the A1 family!

The next morning we headed out to the Fort Worth area to set up and train Kathy, another new A1 Elite owner. I wish I'd of taken a photo of Kathy's babies - two beautiful Airedales!

Home again for a day or two and it's time for the Bayshore Longarm Quilter's quarterly gathering...We love show and tell, and so does Pixxie, my professional quilt model. Everyone got a chuckle out of her immediately getting on Robin's quilt to "pose" for a photo (and earn a treat!)

Cindy shared a beautiful quilt that she actually gets to keep for herself as a "shop sample" - love those feathers girlfriend!

Ellen is new A1 family member, having her machine since mid June of this year - she had several quilts for show and tell. Great job Ellen!

As if Market, Festival, two set ups, and a longarm gathering weren't enough for a couple of non stop weeks....on Sunday 11/14 I picked up another A1 dealer, Megan Best from Washington (state) to join me on a combined A1 Horizon and CompuQuilter (CQ) set up and training. Road trip! Shiner....population 2070... where we found ourselves without cell service - which meant no phone, no text-ing, and no internet for 3 days! Talk about withdraws!! Didn't realize how much of a city girl I was until I went to the country without my gadgets (grin) - but we lived to tell about it. Here' our quaint accommodations...

And yes, I travel with my own quilt (grin).

Megan is what I call a double dealer (grin) she not only sales and services A1 quilting machines in the west coast but also represents CompuQuilter (CQ) a computerized addition to longarms that allows the quilter to program a design and the computer implement it. We call it quilting with no hands. And it's sooo cool to watch that big ole machine quilt beautiful designs!

Carol has been quilting on an A1 Elite for over 12 years...she began before the days of stitch regulators and all the bells and whistles we have today... it was very intriguing to me to see the forerunner of the machine I run today...the handlebars are different, the "speed dial" on the side is foreign to me, and there's only one "button" on the handle bar that turns it either on or off - no single stitch button for basting...lots of changes in 12 years! The wonderful thing about an A1 is the casting is the same and throughout the years ANY upgrades could have been added to keep this machine 'current'. Carol's idea was "if it ain't broke don't fix it" - she's run a very successful quilting business without the desire to update her machine. Until now...now she's so successful that she's purchased a second machine...this little workhorse is still gainfully employed!

And now Carol has the newest A1, the Horizon, a big 31 inch throat space with all the bells and whistles PLUS the CQ computerized quilting. In other words, she just got a new employee! She'll continue to free hand on the A1 Elite while the CQ is running the A1 Horizon - doesn't she look pleased! Can't really say welcome to the A1 family as she's already family, but congratulations on growing the family Carol!

Yep, it's been a whirlwind of a month. Now it's time to get back to work on customer quilts - before we know it Christmas will be here! But in the meantime, I do want to slow down enough to take time to be thankful - Thanksgiving is less than a week away but I don't have to wait! I am thankful for the opportunity to have sew much fun in this quilting world, I'm thankful to have so many friends - both the ones that I can physically hug and the ones that I keep up with over the internet through emails, blogs, and online forums with cyper hugs. I am truly blessed.

So if you've hung with me through this long-winded Texas tale (grin) you now know why the Quilt Rambler has been silent, I haven't been AWOL or MIA, just two steppin' across Texas having a cotton pickin good time!

Pixxie is Famous

2010-10-25T18:18:00.004-05:00

My sweet little forever pup has her photo in the November 2010 issue of Machine Quilting Unlimited.

That's right, Pixxie the Professional Quilt Model has been moonlighting as a Professional Batting Model for Legacy Pellon, how be it, just in my living room... but all those late night photo shoots have finally paid off (grin) and her photo is in print!

Seriously, I'm on cloud nine today as I received in the mail the November issue of Machine Quilting Unlimited which contains my article on What to Do With Left-Over Batting Scraps.

If you are a machine quilter, either with your domestic (home) sewing machine or any form of short-arm/mid-arm/longarm quilting machine you really really need to subscribe to this magazine - and not so you can have your own photo of Pixxie, but because it's a fabulous magazine.

Vicki Anderson does a fantastic job of covering the quilting scene - sacrificing to go to as many quilt shows as she can to give us the inside scoop - including "down under" when she recently went to the Australian Machine Quilt Festival (wish I could have been her bag lady, I would have gladly carried the luggage to be able to go!)

Okay, so besides being some what jealous (in a good sort of way) concerning Vicki's travel adventures, I really do love this magazine and have subscribed for years. I love seeing the award winning quilts, I enjoy the articles - especially the ones with regular columnist Kimmy Brunner; and I always come away inspired. This month's cover quilt and feature quilter is Lisa Calle - oh my, do I drool over her quilts and have loved her DVD Feathers of a New Generation. Of course, I love it that she quilts on the same machine I do, an A1 Quilting Machine. Anyway, there's lots and lots of eye candy and inspiring articles in this November issue so if you don't already subscribe contact them and tell them you want the November issue!

Oh, and did I mention that Vicki is generous? When she read on a longarm list that I was putting together a gift basket for my A1 Quilting Machine booth at the upcoming Houston International Quilt Festival she was one of the first to respond and offered a full year gift certificate for Machine Quilting Unlimited to the winner of the drawing! (More on all this in a day or two about the upcoming show and other generous sponsors - so stay tuned)

Okay, so there's my unsolicited commentary and endorsement for Vicki's wonderful magazine, the one that I will never let my subscription expire! And the one who made my puppy famous (grin).

Oh my, I need to get a bigger box of doggie treats, all this fame has gone to Pixxie's head and she's demanded an increase in salary!

I'm Still Here - Updates

2010-10-17T17:14:00.005-05:00

Newsflash!

Someone kick me...less than 3 weeks and counting until the Houston International Quilt Festival and I decide it's time to upgrade/transfer my domain and website... What was I thinking!!!

....all that to say this....

www.quiltsnkaboodle.com can be found at www.quiltsnkaboodle.co during my transition.

It's going to take some time for the website to be all flashy and fun, but it's functional....this also means my email is kinda goofy right now. At the new site you will also find my change of email address until the old one can be reinstated (about 24-48 hrs)....so bear with me as I'm UNDER CONSTRUCTION.

And say a prayer for my sanity (grin)