Rags N Quilts

Archive for November, 2009

Today I cut some applique shapes with my GO cutter to take to Mother when I go next week. When I got to the last couple,  there were places that didn’t cut as cleanly.  When I looked closer I saw why!   I think I need to order a new cutting mat…can you see the cracks?

This particular mat probably gets more use than some of the others, as it fits 4 or 5 dies.  No problem, I just ordered 2 new ones. And these are the shapes I cut…lots of stuff for flowers.

I just realized I didn’t post a picture of Mother’s finished quilt either..well here it is.

If you look closely, you can see I stitched the binding on the top too. I did that with the longarm and even made a video lesson on how I do it.  It’ll be available  as a free video on MQR, just as soon as Suzanne has a chance to post it.  All the “frames” in the blocks were done with the Circle Lord “Aztec” template and then embellished. I also posted that step by step on MQR as a Premier video.  So check them both out.

It’s been  a busy week…trying to finish up several projects before heading to Virginia next week.  And today it rained all day…in fact it’s still raining. Very unusual for us this time of year. But it’s always good to have rain in the dry season.  You get spoiled though, and when you have a day without sunshine, you really notice it. But the good news is, the rain is preceding a cool front, so we’ll finally cool down and be able to turn the AC off.

So what did I do this past week?  Well, I worked on stitching some appliqué  down, finished up Mother’s quilt(except for sewing the binding on), did a little fabric coloring, worked on another quilt due by Feb. for a special project, and pulled fabrics for 2 new projects.The first are batiks.

And these are batiks, but the background is one of Vicki’s hand dyed gradients.

We’re also doing some kitchen reno…so we pulled down the old drop ceiling and old embedded florescent lights and the old ceiling fan; then installed the  new lighting.  I did my semi annual floor grout scrubbing; and prepped my kitchen cabinet doors for an new artistic treatment, and installed new cabinet pulls.  Also picked out all the new tile  and fixtures for the guest bath rehab.

Tomorrow we rest and enjoy a quiet Thanksgiving with the kitties.  And speaking of the kitties, here are pics I got of them yesterday.

And with that I’ll say goodnight. I hope you all have a Happy and safe Thanksgiving!

It was a gorgeous day here in paradise…warm, not hot; low humidity, and not a cloud in the sky. Good wind and a great sail this afternoon.  The rest of my day was spent working on Mother’s quilt.   One more full day to go.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Well, among several other things, I’m making small leaves for the edge of “Harvest Moon”  this is one of those edges that will take way longer than doing the rest of the quilt, but worth it in the end to achieve the look I want.

As you can see, I have a lot left to do.

Another thing I’m working on is Mother’s quilt.  I am embarrassed to say I’ve had this one on my shelf waiting for nearly 2 years!  And Mary had it a year before me! Mother probably wonders if she’ll ever see it again, LOL!  Well, never fear Mother, it’s finally being done.  I’m on  mission to get it finished so I can take it with me when I go to Virginia the first week of December for Mother’s birthday.

I’m using Quilters Dream wool batting….but no dense background fills (yes, you heard me)  it’s a bed quilt and it needs to keep some of that loft for warmth.  These are the tools I’m using in addition to some freehand work:

My Circle Lord Aztec template…2 different motifs come from this template.

Tracey Browning’s no frills 3″ clamshell template

And of course, Janet-Lee’s favorite ruler for all the SID

And here is a look at the outer border and inner border

The cornerstone

And one of the alternate blocks

I’m just getting started, so there’s lots more to do.

I’m still working on stitching down all the appliqué on the frogs & lizards and continuing to work on my quilt for for another project…secret for now.

What are you up to?

This was the first project using Vicki’s hand dyed gradients.  I decided to use it to teach.  So I worked on it in segments, filming as I went.   The first part was posted as a Premier video on MQR last month.  The final segment is done and currently uploading, so hopefully we’ll get it posted and available to Premier members tomorrow.

I designed this pattern specifically to go with Vicki’s fabric…the fabric really makes this quilt glow! SO be sure to get some of these gorgeous gradients from Vicki.

Soon, the pattern and fabric will be available as a kit…just as soon as Vicki and I (mostly me) get it all together.

So, I guess you want to see the quilt….  Well, I still have to do the edge finish…it’ll be faced with some additives along the edge.  But it’s done except for that.

I used two layers of batting; Quilters Dream wool over Warm & White.  Threads used include Superior metallic, So Fine, King Tut, and Lava.  The leaves are dimensional with finished edges and beaded centers; the shadows are painted Lutradur; the moon is painted Lutradur and Angelina.

A simple yet elegant wall quilt, 17″x 40″.

I was recently invited to join a group of fiber artists for a new 2 year challenge project.  Fiberactions is the name chosen by the group. It’s going to be an exciting project full of wonderful art and many opportunities for growth. I am thrilled to be a part of this talented group. There are 13 of us and we each will take a  turn issuing a challenge theme to the group.

And you will be able to follow along  to see what everyone creates!  We have a blog (click on the badge in the sidebar) dedicated to this project where you can find links to the blogs of all the artists involved in the project.  It is where we will issue our challenge themes and post our work.   The first challenge will be issued November 15.  The finished  quilts will be posted on January 15,  and the next challenge theme announced at that time.

So check in now and then to see how the challenge progresses!

Today my class added the color to the little quiltlets you’ve been looking at in my posts for the last couple weeks using Irena Bluhm’s technique.  We all had fun and they easily mastered the technique .  So I’ll leave you with my ladies and their beautiful work. You can click on the photos for a larger view. Then click your browsers back button to return here.

Some of them are obviously still working on their masterpieces, but I think they all did wonderful work!

Since this blog is called RagsNQuilts and all the photos lately have been of the quilts,I figured it was time for one of the Rags.

Today, they were pretty lazy….but still cute!

I’m back to working on some other projects. I’m in the middle of my “Harvest Moon” project for my premier video series on MQR.  The appliqué is done and the quilting is in progress and will be finished tomorrow.  Here is a peek …I had just loaded it on the frame and was explaining my quilting plan and thread choices.

I also have been working on the appliqué of the frogs & lizards…almost done with that appliqué too.

Don’t Vicki’s hand dyed gradients just make both of these pieces glow!

I’ve decided on my quilting plan for Mother’s toile quilt and it’s ready and will be loaded later this week.

And I’ve gotten all my kits made and ready for the class to color the mini’s  coming up on Tuesday.

I have a ton of other things in progress too, but that’s enough rambling for today.  I’ve got to go enjoy my extra hour that the time change gave me today!