New Home

I've got a new blog!  Check it out HERE.

Apology

Wow, I just switched to the new Blogger interface, and it has cool stats!  Unfortunately, I have had trouble uploading pictures for months, which makes it difficult to post.  I know you all visit for the eye-candy, LOL! So, I am going on hiatus from this blog, and I will investigate other services.  Meanwhile, you can find me in all the other familiar places: facebook, Ravelry, SeamedUp, and Tumblr.

As George Carlin once said, "Be excellent to each other. "

Centennial Project Detail

More from the Arizona Flag Centennial Quilt.  The blue in the border shows governors' names, and I used a variety of  dense fillers in the yellow and red rays. I used some of the AZ Centennial commemorative fabric on the back.  This quilt gets delivered next week and it will be out of my hands for over a year!  Just like dropping your kids off at school, that make me kind of sad.  But I am excited to see the show next spring.

Centennial Project Complete!

Grrrr. I'm having trouble uploading photos today. Check back later in the week!

My quilt for Arizona's Centennial is finished! This photo shows the border where I quilted each governor's name (in blue, on black fabric). Kinda like Where's Waldo...easy if you know what to look for.

Going Retro

Just some random musings. My daughter goes to Kindergarten in two weeks, and the memories of her infancy are fading. So it goes for everyone, days pass slowly and the years quickly.

One year ago, I was doing pretty much the same thing as today: surfing the internet, quilting, and taking a little girl to the pool.

Five years ago, I had season tickets to the WNBA Phoenix Mercury and we were waiting for our daughter's birth.

Ten years ago, I was a newlywed and taking summer classes for my masters degree.

Fifteen years ago, I was adjusting to single life after my first husband walked out.

Twenty years ago, I saw "Terminator 2" before my senior year in college. (Funny how those random facts pop into your head!) I had a computer in my dorm room, but I went to the library to do research. I used a push-button pay phone to call home on the weekends. We watched VHS movies and Garth Brooks was a superstar.

Check out the Beloit College Mindset List for other things that today's youth don't know.

And the classic quick reference to the 20th century:

Northern AZ Shop Hop

The 2nd Annual trip for a group of my quilting friends took place this last week. Last year, we were maniacs and managed to visit all seven shops in one day, the furthest being almost 200 miles from home. This year we scaled back and only visited six shops (of nine possible).

Here is some of the fabric I found: 1... fabric designed for the Arizona 2012 centennial celebration. I plan to use this on the back of my Arizona Flag quilt.
2... adorable kitty cats and a mouse companion print from Alexander Henry. If I fall in love with an animal print, chances are it is from this company!
3... gorgeous rainbow print, to make a dress for my daughter. She wants me to start sewing right away, but finding a pattern may be difficult since she has stringent requirements for clothes.

Each shop gave us a small pack of 2.5" strips, along with this block pattern.
This is my EQ6 rendering of the block called "Kansas Dugout." It should be a fun scrappy quilt to put together, and I love designs that take advantage of jelly roll fabrics.

My other treausres...a pattern called "Modern Pickle Relish" from Modern Quilt Relish. It's a cool quilt with a very graphic geometric look. And the "Lil Twister" template to make tesselating pinwheels.

Summer UFOs Part 3

And a few more projects that need to be finished...

11. Wonky Trees, blocks I won from Block Lotto, need to be pieced and quilted.12. Twisted Sister. This actually a completed top, I just need to quilt it. The plan is to donate it to Quilts of Valor.
13. A process picture! I started the Glorified Nine Patch in a class with John Flynn at Quilt Camp in the Pines. I'm on the left, and my quilting budy Jeanne is on the right.
14. No photo at the moment, but the last item on my list is to quilt my Butterfly Kaleidoscope, from the 4-Patch Posies pattern.

Summer UFO List Part 2

More projects from the UFO pile:

6. Rainbow charms. Squares from a Ravelry exchange, laid out in ROYGBV order, light to dark.7. Quilt of Valor, Persimmon Quilts Mystery pattern #12, just needs binding, label and a wash before mailing to a deserving soldier.
8. I-Spy...squares from a Ravelry exchange. Simple blue sashing for a quick finish (she said hopefully)
9. Turning 20 pattern in Christmas batiks. Needs to be quilted and bound.
10. Sedona Stars, a quilt along pattern from Judy LaQuidara. Needs to be quilted. I offered this to a friend's son since I have made quilts for his brother and sister, but he hasn't told me if he likes it. I want my quilt gifts to be appreciated, so I haven't decided who the actual recipient of this one will be.

Summer UFO List Part 1

The Quilters on Ravelry cheer each other on to finish UFOs...the enticement is a fat quarter for completion of at least one project each session. This is my official list for the summer:

1. Gold Sash QOV. These blocks were donated by quilters around the country for Moda's Just One Star project. I have 200 blocks to work with, so there will be many many many QOV posts in the foreseeable future.
2. My second design for the Just One Star blocks. I am making alternate square-in-square blocks, named Stars-n-Squares.
3. My third design for the Just One Star blocks is a simple Log Cabin Style. I am adding red and blue strips around some of the odd size blocks.4. Quilt and Bind the Boxy Stars (pattern from Bonnie Hunter). I'd love to teach this as a class at my LQS, and ultimately donate to Quilts of Valor.

5. Arizona Flag Centennial Project. I overlapped the pieces so it looks complete in this picture, but right now, the red and yellow squares are in 8-patches, and I am going to add a black border. This needs to be quilted and bound by Sept 1, assuming it was chosen for the state traveling exhibit.Stay tuned for Part 2!