My First Day in the Club

I love to tell the story about how I joined my local quilt guild.

We live just outside a small town in northern Indiana. We moved back here a few years after we married because my mom was having some health issues. Within a year, she passed away. I found out I was pregnant with my first son the day she died. We had just bought our first house and were still getting to know the community.

One day, when my son was just a couple of months old, I came home from work and my husband met me at the door. He was all excited. The local paper is delivered free to everyone on Tuesdays and he had read in the paper about a Quilt Club that met at the local Purdue extension office. I had been interested in quilts for a couple of years, but didn't have a lot of time to sew, what with the job, the house and the baby.

He had called the number in the paper and talked to Sue H., the president of the club. She told him what time they met and that they usually had a carry-in meal. So, he met me at the door and said (practically in one breath), "There's a quilt club in town that meets tonight, I'll take care of the baby and here's a dish to take to the carry-in meal!"

Off I went with my casserole dish. Of course, everyone wanted to know what was in it and could they have the recipe, and of course, I couldn't tell them because it was one of his make-it-up-as-you-go-along casseroles. This was a first for the women in the club--a husband who signs his wife up for a quilt club and also cooks! Sue is still telling the story today.

There were about 20 women in the group at the time. Now, we have over 50 members and we long ago outgrew our meeting place at the extension office. These women have been an important part of my life and I've made a lot of friends there. They make this town a community for me. I've learned so much from all of them.

So, do you belong to a quilt guild? Every group is different, but I find that the support I get from my club is very important in my development of my craft. Sometimes I'm discouraged because I'm not as productive as the others, but they support my little successes as well as my big ones.

I couldn't ask for a better group of quilting friends.

The people I meet here in blogland are another group of fantastic talented artists and, while it is great to have the convenience of getting together anytime of the day, I do encourage you to find a quilt group in your area. I have found it to be a great source of sharing and community.

It's all good.

Kris

The picture above was one of my favorites from the Appleseed Guild Quilt Show from a couple of years ago. (It's not mine.)

Out of Sight

Sometimes my world is less than fantastic, even though my blog name might suggest otherwise. My computer crashed this week, presumably from some evil virus, so now I'm on my husband's laptop. Oh well, better than nothing.

I've been soooo busy with getting the kids finished up at school. Two weekends before Memorial Day, I went on the overnight fourth grade field trip to southern Indiana. We visited Squire Boone Caverns, climbing an ungodly number of steps into and out of the cave. We also saw the first state capitol in Corydon. After "sleeping" overnight on the floor of a school gym, we visited the Capitol building in Indy and the Indiana State museum. This is my second year to do the trip, but much easier, as last year I had had knee surgery 6 days beforehand. Whew!

The same weekend, I took my older son on his first Boy Scout camping trip. Fortunately, they let us stay in some rustic cabins because no one else was there and it had rained horribly that day. It would have been a wet and yucky weekend. Again, we had a great time, but I must say that indoor plumbing is not to be overrated...

So, have I been sewing? Well, I have, but I can't show you yet, because of the computer business. I'm making slow progress on my pink and yellow promise stitching quilt, although I did take it on my field and camping trips. Gotta love the portability of hand work!

I'm also revisiting a project I started last year. It is the Victoria bag by Sue Spargo that is pieced and has wool applique. I had completed the bag panel, sewing it from bits of home dec fabric as well as wools and cottons from my stash. In the pattern, the bag is lined with batting, but it is not quilted. I decided to quilt it using perle cotton and big stitch quilting, to add to the bohemian look of the bag. I can't wait to show it to you.

I'm going to a quilt show in Columbis, Ohio in 2 weeks. Since it is so close to her hometown of Uniontown, Ohio, I'm hoping that Sue Spargo will be there. I have been fascinated by her use of mixed fabrics in her projects. She uses everything--home dec, wool, quilting fabrics--and then embellishes the projects with all kinds of fancy embroidery stitches, beads and trims. Wow!

I am also working on three different colorways of the backpack I made in the orange batik fabric last fall. I want to practice more FMQ on the panels and make some things for a few friends. I'm also trying to use fabrics from my stash.

At our quilt club meeting the week before Memorial Day, one of our members talked about her methods of organization. She was lucky enough to attend one of Bonnie Hunter's workshops a while ago and shared her scrap organizing ideas. So, this week I started taking a more liberal view toward my fabrics as I cut them. As I cut, I make extra cuts in the sizes I want to save, 1 1/2, 2 1/2, and 5 inches, and I make larger squaring up strips to use in string piecing. And each item has its own box to go in. It's so nice to see the strips piling up. It's like making your own jelly rolls!

Summer has officially begun, now that the kids are out of school. They aren't going to camp this year, so I want to come up with some new ideas for them to creatively expend their energies.

I'll show you some pics as soon as my sick computer comes home. Maybe I'll have a finish or two, as well.

Something New to Show

I have joined the BOM at my LQS that just opened in February. Two of the women from my quilt club opened the store. Jo, my Promise Stitching teacher, developed this BOM based on the life of her grandmother who taught her to quilt.

This BOM is different, because we picked out our fabrics from the shop according to the fabric recipe they gave us. My focus print is an orange floral from Red Rooster that I love. (Jo said she immediately thought of me when the fabric came in, because I like orange so much.) I picked out fabrics to go with the floral and they are all kept at the store. Each month, we go in to pick up our pattern and fabrics from our collection are given back to us in the kit for that month's block.

Each month we also get a story about Jo's grandmother. The first month, she talked about how her grandmother introduced her to quilting. Her grandmother was a kind, positive influence on Jo's life. The first block is the Shoofly block.

The second month, Jo told a story of some difficult times that her grandmother had as a child. The block for that month is Broken Dishes, because although the events the occurred should have "broken" her grandmother, she came through it with a strong positive spirit.

I loved the fabrics Jo and Kathy chose from my collection this month.

This month, Jo told the story of her grandmother's wedding, so the block is Steps to the Altar, of course. That's my focus fabric in the smaller squares. (Please ignore any cut off points you may notice.)

Jo has a fabulous way of telling stories, so I look forward to hearing the next installment about

her grandmother. I also can't wait to see what fabrics might have been chosen for that month. I haven't told you all the details of the stories because Jo wants it kept between the BOM participants for now. I think the story is bookworthy, myself.

I know I picked the fabrics, but don't you just love these colors?

So that's part of what I've been working on lately and I'm so glad I get to show it to you.

Promise Stitching 3

Well, don't fall over in a faint! I have PICTURES! I finally got the camera (with batteries and SD card), my projects and me in the same room together. For a while there, I thought it would never happen. So, now I'm back with progress to report.

First of all, this is my first Promise Stiching (PS) project completed. It is the pillow I started a couple of months ago. I got stalled in the process because the PS teacher was busy opening her quilt shop here in town. But I kept plugging away at the parts I knew how to do, until she had time to tell me how to finish.

You must remember that, in PS, everything is done by hand. Which makes me even more proud of my pillow. This project is supposed to teach some of the basic techniques in PS. Remember that each seam is reinforced by the promise stitching, the topstitching on the side of the seam allowance. Then, when the quilting is done, it is stitched along the other side of the seam. The front of the pillow is pieced, starting with the block with the turquoise button. "You don't know where you are going unless you know where you started." Then the borders were added. Flannel and muslin are the batting and back.



The lace is hand crocheted (by me, of course). I also made some of the same lace for a friend of mine (that doesn't do the small crochet) for her pillow. Sometimes the lace is crocheted directly on the pillow, using the railroad stitch, used for closing, as the base of the crochet. I'll do that next time.

The back of the pillow demonstrates the "on piece" method of sewing strips to a flannel foundation. Each seam is again secured with the promise stitching.

The applique I used was inspired by a quilt from the 50's that I saw in a book. The bird is similar to the one in the quilt, but the rest was just made up as I went along. The fabrics I used in the strips were special--some were from several quilting friends and the butterfly fabric is to remind me of my mother. I randomly arranged the strips, but when I see that red slash across the middle, I think of the sunrise and the birds singing.

I used muslin behind the flannel and then quilting along the lines I had not promise stitched. The applique is added last.

My last picture for today shows a detail of the quilting and the lace on the pillow. The back and forth meander in the border is done by making big loops around your thumb as you go along and is called "mashed potatoes quilting" (maybe it resembles the shape of a potato masher?) or "chicken tracks".

Items made in PS are meant to be used, not just for show. Besides being a sample to learn on, the pillow is then a place to support your arms when you are sitting down sewing on other projects.

I'm so proud of my pillow because every stitch was done by me and the colors and design represent me and the things I like.

It really didn't take me long to do the actual sewing. It was waiting to be told the next step that kept me from getting it done. Oh, yes, and the troubles with getting the camera. Sigh... But it's good for us to learn patience.

I am working on my next PS project, a Snowball and 9 Patch quilt, that is a lesson in volume. It is the second of the 3 projects that have to be done first when learning Promise Stitching. I am so glad my quilting friend and teacher Jo Crace is patiently teaching us. And Jo learned all she knows from Linda Lee Peterson, the original Promise Stitcher.

So I'm glad to be back in the blogging saddle again. I have several posts planned, so stay tuned for the next installment!

What's the problem?

This is just a quilty picture from one of our favorite quilt shows in Topeka, Indiana. It used to be held at the United Methodist Church in that town and we went every year to look and sometimes to buy. The first time we went was the day before my second son was born. It was so neat, but a lot to absorb. So, the next day, while I recovered from my spinal anesthesia, my husband went back to the sale and brought back a bunch of wall quilts to decorate my hospital room. Within in a month I went back to the hospital with some problems and the quilts came with me. Do not underestimate the healing power of quilts! Those quilts still hold special meaning to me.

I am waaaay behind in blogging. I've had good intentions, though. My husband and kids went to his father's over spring break because I couldn't get off from work. I thought, "What a great time to post on the blog!" But that week, he had installed some new spyware that wouldn't let me get into Google reader, so I was locked out. Waah!

And every time I want to take some pics for you, the battery on the camera is dead, or the SD chip is gone. It's unbelievable. I have so much to show you (well, don't get too excited). I've made some progress on my promise stitching projects. I'm doing 2 BOM's, one with my quilt guild from the Women of Influence book and another from the new quilt shop in my home town. I'll have pics of those blocks soon, too.

My husband and I went on a quilt shop hop in March, here in northern Indiana and western Ohio. We were shocked and amazed when he won the grand prize from the shop hop, a Janome DC 2010 sewing machine. I finally used it this week, putting together one of my BOM's. It is sweet! I really love the 1/4 inch foot!

So, here I am, once again promising pictures, but at least you've heard from me. I'm still alive. There's just so much going on with the kids and work! At least I'm getting some sewing done, which is amazing for me. Usually that's the first thing that goes to the side.

I'll be back soon, I promise.

Sunny Days!

Of course, that means I can't stay inside and sew! Actually, this weekend I dragged by boys on a jaunt to 2 shops that are on shop hop this weekend. They were really, really patient and let me do a little shopping even. I had to reward them with a trip to one of their favorite parks and ice cream afterward. Bribery works every time!



So, I purchased my first jelly roll on the shop hop, Garden Party by Blackbird Designs. I just couldn't resist all those soft springy colors. I've been studying Bonnie Hunter's Sister's Choice pattern as one option to use it. I've always loved the block and Bonnie's method for making 9 patches from one strip set is fabulous. You can find her directions here.



I started a Sister's Choice quilt once, using solids and a cream background, but there were all these HST's to make... (whine, whine!) This technique might be my salvation. Thanks, Bonnie!



The last few weeks have been hectic for me, but our workload has been down at work, too, so I've been able to take a couple of extra days off. Tomorrow, my DH and I are going out to do the eastern leg of the shop hop. Then I have to hunker down and get back to work again.



Unfortunately, all the running around means I'm not sewing much. I finished the blocks of a Quilts for Kids project, so that's ready for borders.



I'm still working on my Promise Stitch pillow. I'm putting applique on the back, as is usually done. I have some quilting to do on the front panel and I've finished my hand crocheted lace for the sides of the pillow.



I'm doing a BOM quilt with my quilt guild. I got the first block done. I'm still picking colors for the second block. This block is all applique and I like to do that by hand. I'm doing it in Civil War fabrics. I'd better get started this week.



Sorry, no pictures again. I have mislaid the camera...again. It will surface when I least expect it.

Hope things are sunny in your world today!

Where did I get all this stuff?

I'll bet I'm not the first in blogland to sort through their sewing room and be amazed, nay, horrified at how much fabric is in there. What's the matter with me? What right do I have to buy more? I have so many fabrics that I bought enough to do a significant project and (hopefully) not run out. This is a hoarding mentality.

Jo told me that one of the next projects for Promise Stitching is to do a 9 patch and Snowball quilt using 1 yard each of 2 fabrics. The goal is to make the biggest quilt you can and have the least amount left over. The point of this exercise is to show you how to get the most out of your fabric.

I think this is just what I need.

Jo said that she bought over 10 yards of fabric to make her first quilt (twin size) because she had no idea how much fabric she would need. I've bought so many yards because it was a "good price." And there it sits in my cabinet.

But this is going to change. I've already pulled out some fabrics to make some Quilts for Kids and some pillowcases. I'm going to start working through my stash like I've seen so many in blogland do.

One of the interesting things about Promise Stitching is the idea of sharing. Suze told me that when she evens out her fabric, she cuts one string off of one end to use herself and one off the other to share. That's a great idea, I think, and helps to build your scrap stash.

I know I can always share with my quilt club members. A friend of mine volunteers teaching sewing projects to some women who can't afford much fabric. It's good to pass on our good fortune to others. And I might be able to walk around in my sewing room!

I'm sorry I don't have my camera charged for photos. Words will have to do. I'm always jealous of the finishes everyone has to show. I'm still working on my DH's (belated) Valentine. I'm working on my Promise Stitch pillow and some more string pieced blocks. I actually finished a BOM block for my quilt club. I'm doing it in repro fabrics, which I love. Usually, I don't participate because I never have time to sew. But I think I can at least expect to finish one block a month!

Speaking of Promise Stitching, I heard from a blog reader about another blogger who has been in contact with another of Linda Lee Peterson's teachers. Carol Jo's information that she shared with Tammy here correlates with all that I have learned. I should also mention Linda Lee's website again, www.thepromisestitcher.com You will be amazed by the beautiful quilts there.

Keep warm and keep stitchin'!