A Prairie Home Quilts

Last night as I was trying to square up Jessica’s quilt top before sewing on the binding, our youngest quilt inspector, Ludo, would not leave me alone to get it done. First he jumped up on the cutting table to see if he could help…

Can I help?

Then, unfortunately, he decided it was a good spot for a nap…

Think I’ll take a catnap right here…

Later on, I finished trimming and went to sew on the binding. Guess who showed up to help again?

You *have* to let me help now…

It’s impossible to sew when he’s laying right there. He attacks my hand the minute I try to put the presser foot down. [sigh] I just let him be and a short time later…

Hmm… think I’ll take another catnap!

Today I finally got the binding sewed on. Not without more “help” from Ludo, I might add… (What is it with cats and quilts?)

This is the mystery quilt pattern Jessica and I both started over Labor Day weekend last September. The mystery quilt is called Chain Event and it’s from an email loop called A Pocket Full of Mysteries. Mystery quilt designer Dorothy Young hosts a mystery weekend a couple times of year. She shares her pattern for free during the mystery weekend. I actually started 2 of this particular pattern and I’ve finished one. It’s my Autumn Night quilt. I entered it in the Fiber Arts Show that’s this weekend. (I can’t believe that there are only 2 pictures from the 2005 show on that link… somebody needs to get some more up there!)

Tomorrow morning, dd Rachelle, dfs Alice, Cindy and I are going out to breakfast and then heading over to the quilt show. Hopefully, I’ll remember the camera and have a few photos to share afterward.

I missed posting yesterday… forgot it was Wednesday. I don’t have any pictures anyway. I finished machine quilting Jessica’s pink & white Chain Event quilt top. While I was working on that, I cut out and basted 14 heart yoyos from the 3 different fabrics Jessica used on her quilt for 2 or 3 pillows. I realized that my idea of using the heart yoyos on pillows was one of those perfect “final touches” that I manage to pull off without any preplanning on my part. You see, Jessica’s quilt is machine quilted with a pattern called, Straight Heart Vine. It looks like a flower stem with a heart “flower.”

(Machine quilting pattern from Munnich Designs)

I’ve decided to applique stems and leaves on the pillows with the heart yoyos to match the machine quilting design. I just love when things come together like that. :) I’ll take pictures tomorrow when I have sunlight so that you can see the quilting design and some of the heart yoyos. I still need to find some fabric to use as a background for the pillows but the LQS isn’t opened until Monday.

I found this heart yoyo today while checking out some quilting blogs. Penny of Penny Sanford Porcelains has posted a free tutorial on how to make them. I thought they were darling and that it might be cute to make up a few pillows with them on to match Jessica’s pink & white Chain Event quilt. Her quilt top is on the quilting frame right now. I’ll post pictures in a day or two.

I hope you all are spending the day with those you love. :)

Try as I might, I can’t seem to get a lot done on my weekly goal list. [sigh] I even thought this week’s list was doable. LOL This was my list:

• Machine quilt 2 QOVs
• Mom’s wallhanging top together
• Please Pass the Ranch top together
• Cut fabrics for my wallhanging
• Continue work on Psalm 8 quilt

Thankfully, it’s not like time escaped me and I didn’t get anything accomplished. I just didn’t get done what *I* wanted to. :) I did manage to get 2 WIP projects moved into the UFT category and:

• Work on my Psalm 8 quilt — background is half done and applique pieces are drawn
• Get one QOV machine quilted
• Turn in entry form for local quilt show
• Machine quilt 4 of Rachelle’s repro doll quilts for resale
• Machine quilt 2 table runners — 1 for resale and 1 for Rachelle
• Finish Jessica’s Montana Hugs & Kisses quilt top
• Help Jessica finish up her mystery quilt from Labor Day weekend (Chain Event top)
• Finish 2 Ohio Star blocks — 1 for Mom’s quilt and 1 for resale quilt (only 4 more to go)
• Get 12 quilted sayings started for resale

Let’s hope I can get more done this week on *my* list.

What does that have to do with quilting you ask? Well, I guess if I wasn’t having so much fun gardening and quilting my life away, I could be sitting in the casino playing penny slots and winning like one local gentleman. Unfortunately, I prefer to drop my pennies at the LQS for $1 FQs and $4 a yd sale fabrics. Besides I don’t gamble so it’s unlikely I’ll be winning the megabucks jackpot soon. Instead I garden and quilt which is probably cheaper than a gambling habit (really!) and definitely more fulfilling. At least I think so. :)

I finished 3 small machine quilting projects–2 table runners and small wallhanging. (I think I made the picture clickable so you can see a closeup.)

The one at the top of the photo is a repro doll quilt that Rachelle made from scraps to sell in the space that Mom and I have at the local craft and antique mall. I quilted it with a loose allover feather pattern. The pink one on the left is her’s also… another scrap project to sell. It’s quilted with roses and rosebuds. The table runner on the bottom right is something I whipped up quickly for my Mom to send to her youngest sister in NB, Canada from an extra bit of fabric she had leftover. I quilted it with a pinecone and pineneedle pattern. I have 2 more repro doll quilts to machine quilt for Rachelle before I start on the 2 QOVs I have to do.

I’ve also finished up the borders, sewed up and ironed the binding and put the backing together for Jessica’s Montana Hugs & Kisses. Her quilt will go on the frame after the 2 QOVs.

And I’ve got the parts of the backing piece done for my Psalm 8 quilt. The top section is done, the hills are done and the ocean piece is sewn to the hill section. Thank goodness for steam and spray starch! I had a difficult time with creases forming on the top curve of the middle most hill. I think it was because the fabric wasn’t as thick and stiff as the others I was using all around it. Next time I notice that, I’m going to try to remember to starch the piece first and see if that helps. I’m working on the most tedious portion right now… the “S” curves where the night and daytime sky come together. There’s much too much pinning to be done–it’s literally going to take me hours to sew this seam. [sigh]

Tomorrow I’m going to be getting together with a few friends to spend the day sewing. We used to get together frequently but haven’t for about 6 months now. It’ll be fun to “show ‘n tell” and catch up with what’s been going on with one another. I’m taking Mom’s wallhanging to work on.

I finished up the freezer paper templates for the quilt. The ocean at the bottom isn’t done yet. The only thing I might do is something rock-like in the ocean but that can be the last thing I do, if need be. Here’s how the design wall looks tonight and a closeup of the hills:

I’m going to start sewing the pieces together tomorrow. I’ve never used this particular template method before so we’ll see how it goes. :) If it doesn’t work out like planned, I’ll switch to fusible applique. I suppose I *could* hand applique the whole quilt but really was only planning on hand appliquing the details and words. I’ve added a page with the words to Psalm 8 over in the sidebar so you can picture how it all fits together.

Piecing: 14 days of 23

I started the freezer paper templates for the top half of the background.

I’m still unsure of how I want the hills to look in the bottom half, and I definitely have too many green fabric choices that are muddying up my thinking. I decided to just go ahead with the top half of the background for now.

Late last night this is how things looked on my design wall:

I’ve decided for one thing I need a bigger design space! Hmm… but where to *put* it? LOL The idea for a tree doesn’t work for me when I see the fabrics on the wall. It makes the scene look too crowded or something. I’m not liking my large rock formation at the bottom of the sea either. I *do* love the fabric though and want to use it somehow. We’ll see what I come up with… I’m off to do some machine quilting and piecing.

Piecing: 14 days of 22