Donation Quilt

Each year I make a quilt for the silent auction at a national nursing convention.  I am a member of the foundation board and this silent auction benefits the foundation.  I made this quilt in a queen size for a friend- it's at the quilter.  With the fabric I had left over- and some more I purchased- I was able to put together this throw size.  Those who like lime green and tourquoise will like this quilt.  I quilted it on my home machine.  It's 72" square- a size that's pretty easy to handle on a domestic machine.  I tried to use different designs in different places.  Since there are long lines it was easier to do. 
I actually make a quilt and an afghan- so now it's time to get to the knitting since the convention is in 2 weeks!

Fleur de France

I bought this fabric and pattern this summer from MesAmis quilt shop in New Orleans.  It was to make a throw quilt for a friend who just renovated a cottage in Bay St. Louis, MS.  I set it aside to finish other more pressing projects.  You can relate, right?  The GSQA board president challenged the board members to make a diamond quilt for our October 20 program- Diamonds are a Girls' Best Friend.  So, last weekend I pulled this out.  It served 2 purposes at once!  This is my first diamond quilt.  It's not as hard as I thought once you get the hang of it.  I always wanted to make Kaffe Fassett's diamond quilt.  But, it intimidated me- all those different diamond shapes, even though there are templates, so years ago when I made that quilt I changed it to squares on point or "fake diamonds".

Charity Sew Day- Quilts of Valor

The Stitchy Fingers Quilt Guild had a charity sew day last Saturday.  This year we made quilts of valor quilt tops.  About 12 of us sewed and we ended up with 17 quilts.  We tried to make the blocks before the sew day and just construct the quilt tops on the sew day.  We used a variety of different patterns.  This one was one of the easypatterns- The Jelly Maker's Cabin. 

Sisters and Sisterscape

Oh, what a treat!  I went to the Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show last week.  It is something every quilter should experience at least once.  The show was awesome, but the real beauty was in the setting.  What a gorgeous part of our country. 
In January I began working on one of my Wish List quilts- Sisterscape- which was the 2006 show quilt.

This is my progress.  It's better than it looks.  I have completed the mountains, the trees, the fish and am working on the 100+ new york beauty blocks that make up the flowers in the meadow.  I am about 2/3 done.

One of the real thrills for me was to see the actual Sisterscape quilt in person.  Here it is!

I can't wait to finish mine!  I will post a picture when I do- but it may be a while.
Happy Quilting!

GSQA Quilt Show 2012

I entered 4 quilts into the Gulf States Quilting Association 2012 quilt show held this weekend.  Of the 4 quilts, 2 received ribbons. 
The first one is titled "A Day at the Beach".  It is a Flavin Glover pattern.  Pictured with me is Loretta Webre who did the beautiful hand-guided quilting.  This quilt won "Judge's Choice"!

My next one is "Total Eclipse" which is a Judy Neimeyer pattern.  I took her class at the GSQA seminar in March 2011.  This one received an Honorable Mention.

The 2 other quilts I entered are ones I did several years ago.  This one is "Poinsettia's".  It adorns my bed at Christmas time.

The last one is "Mardi Gras Masquerade".  It adorns my bed during Mardi Gras season.

When entering these last 2 quilts one thing I noticed is how much my quilt construction has improved since I made these 2.  I hope I am always in a position that I am learning and improving.
And last but not least, this is what I went home with!  Plus a cash prize for Judge's Choice.  All in all, a very nice weekend!

It's Been A While....

I guess I've been on a quilting hiatus.  Not intended, but the first part of the year was very busy.  I started a quilt in November, a quilt that is entirely paper pieced, and I keep putting it aside to make gift quilts. I hope to finish it this month.  But, after these 2 baby quilts I have to make a wedding quilt.   Here are 2 baby quilts I am working on now.  My go to baby quilt pattern- Baby Hearts.  The second one is made with scraps. 

 

Poodles, Poodles everywhere!

My friend Betty got a new toy poodle.  I have a 3 year old toy poodle. My poodle just loves quilts.  He thinks everyone I make is for him.  So, when I saw this french fabric it was just great for our french poodles!  If you look at the fabric closely, in the light pink and light blue fabric there is a girl walking a white french poodle.  These are small, big enough to fit the spot they sit on the couch.  Love my poodle- he's the sweetest, smartest little dog.  But, he's leaving again soon.  Most of the year he lives up in NYC with my daughter.  His new quilt will go with him.