Happy Thanksgiving. . . already???

Well, Thanksgiving is already here, can anyone believe it?  I'm not sure where the last few months have gone.  I know I feel like someone pushed me off a speeding train and I am still living back in July.  I never seem to be ready for this time of year, but like it or not, I've had to get a grip and come to terms with the fact that the holidays are really here.



I thought I was actually ahead of the game for once when I was inspired in early September to work on a fall-inspired quilt.  Originally the plan was that it would be hanging in my house during the months of October and November.  Oh well, maybe next year!

I had wanted to capture a softer autumn feeling in this quilt and as I was also going through my fabric stash, I realized I rarely use orange fabrics, but I have way too many of them!  I had started cutting and using scraps for the sashing, which I foundation-pieced.  I auditioned several different options for the blocks and loved the look of scrappy Dresdens.  It took a couple of months to get it all together and completed, but I am happy with the finished look, although it still needs to be quilted.  I've titled it Tupelo Honey, partly after the Van Morrison song and partly because I started reading about Tupelo trees that grow in northwest Florida.  The honey that is produced from the tree's flowers is the gold standard that all other honey is compared to.  The trees also turn a beautiful orange color and since we don't really have traditional fall like the northern states, this is my version of fall!

So let's catch up. . . I had mentioned in my previous post that I had been notified that I had won an award at the International Quilt Festival in Houston in October.  We flew out there for several days and attended the Awards Ceremony.  I was completely taken by surprise when my quilt, Grandmother's Cabin, won first place in the Traditional Pieced category.  What an honor!  And for those of you that may not know this, they do not split up the categories in the Houston show with long arm quilted quilts and domestic machine quilted quilts, they are lumped together.  So the competition is very high, to say the least.  Some of the very best long arm quilters, whom I greatly admire, were in the same category.  Having my quilt achieve such an award is quite an honor for me, since I quilt on my home machine and never felt I could really compete with the long arm quilters.  Here are just a few of the quilts that were in the Traditional Pieced category:

Stargaze by Susan Liimatta, Wisconsin

 

 Stargaze (detail)

 White House Hexagons by Fiona Bell, Australia

 Cardinal Points by Gail Stepanek and Jan Hutchison, Illinois



Cardinal Points (detail)



 Starstruck by Carolyn Hughes & Errol A. Hughes Jr., Texas

Starstruck (detail)

Houston is always so inspiring, the number of quilts on display as well as the immense variety is overwhelming.  One of my favorite exhibits there was the Quilts de Légende Brouage 2015 exhibit by French quilters.  These quilts are pieced, appliqued and quilted entirely by hand and they are breathtaking!  All are copies of antique quilts and done in reproduction fabrics.  They are exquisite.  Of course, photos don't do them justice, but hope you enjoy some eye candy, just the same.

Somerset by Marie-Francoise Gregoire 

Somerset (detail)

Potomac by Yvonne Calvez 



Potomac (detail)

Bouquet d'ananas by Laurence & Eric Durth 

Bouquet d'ananas  (detail)

Legende by Simone Patouillard

Chesapeake by Aline Joulin 

Chesapeake (detail)

 In Memory of Ann Randoll by Martine Lanux

In Memory of Ann Randoll (detail)

 Cephee by Marie-Josephe Veteau

Cephee (detail)

 Champ de Tournesols by Gabrielle Paquin

 Champ de Tournesols (detail)

 La Bertauderie by Monique Hovette

 Wales by Aline Joulin

 Wales (detail)

 Miss Rosetta by Dominique Husson

 Miss Rosetta (detail)

 Antique Basket Quilt by Ghislaine Lucas

 Scaramouche by Dominique Husson

 Amish by Anne-Marie Uguen

 Sunburst Avec Etoiles by Louise Marie Stipon

 Jeu de Dames by Anne-Marie Uguen

 Potomac by Annick Tauzin

Potomac (detail)

Hope all of you have a safe and wonderful Thanksgiving holiday with family and friends!  Happy Quilting!



Instant Gratification

Well, I'm off porch cushions and back onto quilting for a bit!  I'm sure most of you are relieved!  Here are several pictures of a simple 25-patch quilt I finished up this week.  I am gearing up to machine quilt a top that will require a substantial amount of time, so I needed something to do quickly to get back in the groove. 

I had pieced the top back in April when I was on a mission to use up a bunch of leftover scraps laying around from another quilt.  I am considering this to be a "fall" quilt for me since I really don't care for the color orange in our house (but yet I LOVE Halloween, go figure!) and this is probably as close as I will get to a fall-looking quilt.

Here is the top prior to quilting.  The small squares finish out at an odd size at 1 1/8".  Since I was using up leftovers, it didn't matter to me since this is an easy pattern to adjust accordingly.  Sorry if the lighting varies from photo to photo, they were all taken at different times and in different rooms.

This is after I have marked the entire top and am pin-basting the layers together.  And yes, I do mark every single line.  I want my quilting to be even and uniform and following the lines exactly is the only way I can get that look.

And here I've completed all of the quilting.  I approached this very simply, quilting vertical lines through the entire quilt at about 7/8" apart from one end to the next, all with my walking foot.  The quilt is small, at approximately 50" by 60", so the quilting process went very quickly. 

Next I quilted a grid in the opposite direction, but only in the 25-patch blocks.  I did this by free-motion quilting the lines.  I started at the far left side of each block, traveling down the first line, then over to the next line by quilting in the ditch, then back up the second line, then over to the third line by quilting in the ditch, down the third line, etc.  I could actually travel from block to block within each row with this method without having to stop and start.  (In the photo above, the free-motion lines I am referring to are horizontal in the picture.) 

I used Wonderfil Invisafil for the top thread and Mettler Metrosene in the bobbin, both of which are polyester and very, very fine at 100 weight. 

So now that I feel like I finished a project and got a sense of instant gratification, I am ready to tackle my next machine quilting project.  I have been laboring over what to do on the quilt you see below for three years now.  I am finally ready to get on with it!  I have a couple of deadlines rapidly approaching so this is as good a time as any to tackle a couple of tops that have been in "waiting" mode.  Here is a peek of what I will be working on, below.  The half-inch grid stencil is from The Stencil Company and I am using fine-tipped blue water soluble marking pens to mark the quilt.

I may disappear for a bit so I can focus on getting this quilt finished, but don't worry, once this quilt is completed, I will share plenty of pictures!  Until then. . . .enjoy the rest of your summer and Happy Quilting!





Happy Thanksgiving!

Wishing you all a Happy Thanksgiving and safe holiday weekend!