Travels

 I may have mentioned in a previous post that I am a nurse and work as part of a compliance team for a company that owns and operates long term care facilities. When I took this job (just over a year ago), I decided that one of my goals would be to visit a quilt shop wherever my travels took me. Well, that doesn't happen a whole lot because when I am visiting a facility, my work day usually takes me past (sometimes long past) 5pm - which is when most quilt shops close for the day.

This week I was in Colorado.  I left the facility in search of lunch and had stopped at a Wal-Mart neighborhood market for the much needed bottle of water and CHOCOLATE! I headed out of the parking lot in one direction and decided to turn the car around and head out the other way when I saw the sign in big letters - QUILT SHOP.  Well, needless to say, that lunch hour just got extended as I pulled up to the front of the shop, parked, and got out!

I was at Fabric Expressions in Littleton, Colorado.  What fun to check out quilt shops and get a feel for the personalities that go into the them!

This shop (like many others), carries a lot of Moda fabrics. Being a lover of pre-cuts, I was thrilled to see so many jelly rolls, charm packs, and dessert rolls! The owner of this shop seems to really like the fabrics and patterns of Fig Tree & Co. (Joanna Figueroa). Of course, I love her creations too and was able to purchase one of her Vintage Stamp Collection patterns and a couple of charm packs.  The shop had many quilts hanging up throughout the store - always eye candy for me!
I guess this was one of the best lunch hours I have had in a long time!

Well of course I had to pick up some Christmas!!!!

 



Needing Encouragement Part II

Well, I got it done. I finished an hour ago and have managed to take photos and clean up my mess. Now I have to pack and head out to the airport (with the quilt).  Seriously though, WILL I EVER LEARN???!!!!

So, the positives of this are (because I am the person who always looks through rose-colored glasses!):    * This project is done          *My sewing area is clean           *All the mending is done          *I am free and clear to work on . . . . (see below)

Here are the photos of this baby quilt:

 

 

I Started with these

 



 

And ended up with this

 

 

I meandered in the big areas

 

 

Outline stitched in the pinwheels and half square triangles

 

I pieced the binding together with strips of the different fabrics.

 

I sure hope they like it!
Now, for what I am free to work on . . .   (drum roll please)

 

 

The quilt I started around 8 years ago for Nick and Kathryn

It is the Wedding Star by Judy Neimeyer (sp)

Kathryn chose blues with a white background.

 

 



 

 

The plum and lighter shade are for the star

 

 

All of my arcs have been completed (actually, they have been done for a couple of years!)

The next pieces to put together are the melon pieces.

 

Another goal?  YES! This quilt must be done this year! (help me)  :)

Will keep you in photos as I progress!

Christmas is coming . . .

When I was a young girl (long, long ago, in a faraway place . . .) I used to pull out the Christmas albums in July and start playing them on my Dad's stereo. My parents thought it was "cute" and through the years, they were accustomed to this practice.  I have done this with my own family and my kids "tolerate" me after much groaning.
Two years ago (in October), I went home to Vermont, loaded up my Mom, and we went driving through Lancaster County, PA, to see the beautiful Amish quilts. I got a smile out of Mom when I put in a Christmas CD!  At least someone appreciates my zeal for the holiday!  :)
Knowing this about me, you can just IMAGINE how excited I was to see a Christmas blog hop in July (well, OK, mostly August)! 
I signed up and I'm in!   Woo Hoo!! I am a happy camper!
I invite you to check back often, and most of all, check back in August during the Ho Ho Ho Blog Hop!

Life Happens

Wow! It is June 8th already!
Tomorrow little grandson Christian will be a year old. Today my son and daughter in law had a little birthday party for him. The little bugger managed to keep a whole bunch of adults entertained for several hours. The most fun of all was when he ate his birthday cake. His father was wise to remove his shirt, knowing there would be chocolate frosting all over everything!!

 

This little cutie made us laugh! He got all of that cake into - AND all over him!

 

 

So, of course, things like this trump anything else - like finishing up projects.

Gotta get that quilt done! More photos to come . . .

Needing Some Encouragement . . .

I'm sure you have heard the saying "If it weren't for the last minute, nothing would ever get done" . . . Well, that pretty much describes me and how I work!
I was asked a few weeks ago to make a baby quilt for my boss's new grandbaby. I thought, and I thought, and I thought. I looked, and I looked, and I looked (at quilting web sites for ideas). I finally decided on what to make. THEN, I got it in my head that I just HAD to make this quilt out of the Lilly and Will green and brown collection by Moda.
I just hate it when I HAVE TO HAVE A CERTAIN THING!!!! So, my search began. I checked out quiltshops.com to look for this fabric that is at least 2 years old. I found a fat quarter bundle at a shop in Oregon, so I ordered it.
I absolutely LOVE these fabrics! I have purchased them in the past as charm squares, layer cakes, and yardage. Now I have a fat quarter bundle!!!

Here are some of them. Aren't they just so Wonderful?!!!!

These are green, brown, and cream colored fabrics.
Soooo, next was what I wanted to create!
Half-square triangles are pretty easy! Let's cut some 5 inch squares and make some HSTs! But then, let's arrange them in pinwheels for added interest!
I started with the middle of my quilt (not sure how many people like to do it that way)

The pinwheel row is the center of the quilt. The row underneath has some baseball applique motifs I downloaded from a place called SWAK.  Not the best photo but the end will be worth it!
I want to but the baby's name on it so ABOVE the pinwheels will be another row with appliqued letters.
I love my sister! She listened to what I wanted and digitized letters for me. This was the first attempt:

 Cute, right?!!! BUT, I thought the satin stitching was too dense and not quite wide enough. After MANY phone calls back and forth, she re-did it and I stitched out this one:

It might be hard to see a difference in the photo, but the look and FEEL of it is far better!
The internet is wonderful, I must say! Sister Diane lives in Vermont and I am in Arizona - without the internet, it would take forever to get those files from her. 

So, the encouragement I need is. . .cheering and checking in to get me to finish this. I hope to be able to post again tomorrow evening and show a completed quilt top so that I can quilt it next weekend. BUT, work I must for I do have a job. I just need to be organized like Madame Samm from Sew We Quilt so that I can get it done!

Oh, the REAL encouragement will be needed when I pull out this project I started EIGHT years ago! I need to make this the year I complete it!  I will post photos of that project later in the week.
Well, when I get back from my next trip (I travel with my job. This week, it is off to Utah).
Hoping to hear from you soon. . .

April Showers. . .Bring May Flowers!!!

Welcome to day 4 of the April Showers Mug Rug Blog Hop!!  Many thanks to Mdm. Samm (Sew we Quilt) who thinks up these wonderful ideas, and to Erin Davis (Sew at Home Mummy), our organizing Cheerleader!  Without the hard and diligent work of these women, the blog hops most likely would not happen.

When I saw the idea of April Showers, I automatically thought of May Flowers! I just love flowers, don't you? Daisies are my absolute favorite!

Last fall, our local quilt shops had a hop and I picked up this pretty clever plastic thingy called a Clover Kanzashi Flower Maker. So I decided to try it out on this project. While watching a show called "Call the Midwife" (you gotta love Apple TV), I knocked out these two little flowers. (the one with 10 petals definitely looks better!)

Here's my mug rug:

 So, the little flower is actually attached to an elastic

to hold a spoon in place.

And who wouldn't want to use a chocolate dipped spoon in their morning coffee?!!

 I had to hurry with the photos so I could down that cup of

coffee while it was still hot!

 

Hop on over to these other blogs and check out the creativity of these wonderful ladies!
Hope your day is a good one! Thanks for stopping by!

THURSDAY, APRIL 11th

Kathy @ Kwilty Pleasures

Jill @ Apple Avenue Quilts

Cathy @ Cathy's Chatter  (you are here)

Quilter Kathy @ Kathy's Quilts

Marsha @ Quilter in Motion

Pat @ Life in the Scrapatch

Connie @ Shepody Mountain Crafter

Vickey @ Gingersnaps Quilts

Danielle @ A Geeky Crafty Life

Gwen @ Get More Done...Today

Rachel @ Sew Happily Ever After!



Getting Ready. . .

Once again, I have managed to go a long time without writing! It's funny how life just happens - then the next thing you know, a month or more has passed.
I don't usually talk about work here. BUT, just to explain why I haven't written, I have been very busy with work. I am an RN who has worked the last 22 years in Long Term Care. (Before that, I worked for 13 years in acute care). My roles in long term care have led me from floor nurse, to staff development, to Director of Nursing, and now to compliance. I travel now and when I am not traveling, I work at home. Sometimes I think I am going to have a couple of weeks working from home and then I will be asked to go check something out! To give you an idea of how much travel I have done since the first of the year - I have already made A-list status on Southwest for 2014!!! Gotta love those frequent flyer perks!

OK, so enough of work!  I am getting ready for . . . .(drum roll please)

The April Showers Mug Rug Blog Hop!!!!

 

 

I am sew excited to start hopping through the blogs to see the creativity of a lot of women out there!

So stay tuned, I will be featured on April 11th!

 

See you then!