New online store: Gracie Lou's

I found a new online store (read new new, not just new to me), Gracie Lou's quilt shoppe, and to celebrate their newness they are doing a giveaway.

There is some seriously good stuff they are giving away! Thing like fat quarter bundles and a completed Bloom quilt!

And they carry some really darling lines; Woodland Bloom, Farmer's Market, a bunch of cute juvenile prints... Really, cute stuff. So head on over, it's worth a look!

A non-quilted project... But at least it was something!

Well, still not much going on here. Shocked huh? Since my machine is in storage and I've had to borrow Mom's machine to sew (which isn't a problem) I haven't seemed to be, well, in the mood to sew... But I did manage to make a few non-sewing related presents for my in laws and my grandmother.

I suppose I should mention here:

Grammy and Grampy Jordan, and Grandma Linda: if you are reading this and want to be surprised, stop now!

Okay. I don't think they actually read this, but you never know! So, anyway, on to the project!

Like all parents of young children, I have tons of art laying around. I mean really, there is no way I could find uses for all this art! I also like to send a sorta scrapbook to the above mentioned family members since they are far away and don't get to see the kids much; I figured out to use the art as the scrapbook pages. Yep, then they get the art without having to look at it and say, "Aw, neat! Um... What are we suppose to do with it??". So, without too much more rambling, here is it! Well, one anyway... And I'd better get the other in the mail tomorrow, or it isn't gonna be a Christmas present. More of a "It was gonna be a Christmas present, now it's just a present, present." (So much for the lack of rambling!)

Front. Cause, you know, I like to be helpful.

This way I actually got to put the kids art in there with photos from the year. It's a really fun way to show all the highlights for the family.

I even use the bits and pieces that I cut off the bigger sheets, and the small art. Waste not, want Chocolate. Hah! At least in my house:)
So, yeah, a fun gift to make. And I just upload all my pictures to Wal-mart and have them print them. I'm pretty much guaranteed to be there at some point in any given week so it's easy for me. Anyway, that's about it around here right now. I'm gonna try to get to some scarves tonight. They won't be too exciting (no new mouse traps round here) but I'll show ya anyway.... Can't wait, huh??

Thanksgiving

Well, I know I've been rather quiet round here! We've finally gotten all settled into my parents house while Hubby is away. Though with all that has been going on I haven't, exactly, done much (read any) sewing! With Christmas coming soon I'll be headed to the machine to get some handmade goodies for under the tree. Don't know about quilts, I guess we will have to see! I have a bunch to update, but I'm really here to wish everyone a happy Thanksgiving!

For me, Thanksgiving is a day to stop and remember; it is history and family, it is a day to relax and to think back on the year. My family have been movers for our history, we haven't been in the same town for more then two generations, and on a day like this I think back to their travels, their trials, and I wonder how they would see my newest journey. Would they be proud that I am willing to up and move to somewhere new? Would they be surprised I'd leave the place they worked so hard to get? And I wonder about the future of my children. Needless to say, today the future of our world seems uncertain to say the least. As my family was here at the time of the Revolution and the Civil war, I wonder what they would say to me, what advice they would give me, when I look on the horizon and see the clouds gathering.

But more then that I am thankful to live in a prosperous time, in a blessed land, and that I can continue to share the joy that this nation allows with my children.

So, to all of you, American or other, I hope today is filled with joy and family, of happiness and of the promise of the future.

I am alive

Though, not Frankenstein. Um. You know, the whole it's alive thing... Anyway.

I've been remiss on this little blog, both in not telling you about what's going on and for not blogging in general. Here's the thing. We are moving. Yep, imagine that, a military family is moving! Shocking:) But we are moving to Hungary, which is a little different then moving to Virginia, ya know? I've been packing like a mad woman so we can put our stuff in storage and I've literally touched every item that we as a family own. All of it. Gah. It's shocking how much gunk we were carrying around with us, and it had to go. Like the stinky cheese from 4 months ago that you forgot about in the middle drawer, it was just bad. Bad bad bad. So, now that I am within striking distance from my goal I figured it was time to sit and write.

Now, Hungary. Yep, can't wait! Here's Budapest:

And this is the area we will be in (sorry the pictures are small, can't seem to make em bigger):

We've been overseas before, in England, but this is more of an adventure then that. This is a brand new base, just being set up, in a country with a very challenging language (and only 10% of people speak English). We are both crazy excited and can't wait!

So, that's why I haven't been blogging. No time, and no crafting! And I didn't want to talk about the assignment too early as I didn't want to jinx it! But I hope to be around more... And there is a chance that I'll have actual projects to show soon! Cause I'm moving in with my folks for a few months while the Hubby gets in country and the AF gets everything together. This both means help entertaining the chillins as well as being around someone that inspires quilting! And she has quilting frames! Bonus:) They are actually my Great Grandmother's quilting frames, on which many a quilt was tied. Ah, family, how sweet it is:)

Ruffled Feather and Feet

Over at Ruffled Feathers, Carrie has a way with knitting needles. I'm horribly keen to win one of her scarflettes and so here are my feet pictures!

Me and the kids. Notice Little J lifting her dress so I can see her Strawberry Shortcake shoes better! And also that the only one without cutely turned toes is me!
And this is me, one of the rare times I'm not in tennis shoes.

Do wander over to see Carrie's great blog, I know you'll love it as much as I do!

But I'm still hoping I win:)

Quilt month: 3

Well, time to talk stash.

This is my stash.

Heh, pretty huh?? I sorta went overboard with my stash, and, as a military family that moves often, the stash has to be mobile. Which is, of course, not nearly as condusive to quilt making as, say, this is. But, alas, we work with what we have!

I seem to be the type that becomes emotionally attached to my fabric and I wonder if I'm alone. I am the type to horde a fabric I love, afraid to use it because then its gone. AH! I'm estatic to see that I'm learning that fabric is much more satisfying in a quilt then it could ever be stuck in a few bins in my garage! I'm actually getting to the point of being excited to cut into a fabric I love and see it put into a quilt. Hey, progress! Whoo hoo!

The problem is that we are gonna be moving soon and I have to trim down. The thought of getting rid of any of it is difficult; I end up with quilts worth of fabric where I can just see the quilts in there... I see them... lurking!

I love to have fabric, I love to see it, to mess with it, to re-fold it. I actually take joy in figuring out how to fold the fabric just so, so that it fits perfectly in my bins.

Again because of the move I'm not sure of what to do about the amount of fabric I have. I really can't take it all with me. So keep watching and you'll see some fabric give-aways coming here soon.

The other problem is this:

And this:
I had a few holiday projects planned, that I'm obviously not going to need to make this year. It's kind of a sad thing to put away the ideas of the projects I wanted to do. But we have a great advanture awaiting us! I hope to sit down and write a post letting you all in on the adventure, where we are going, what we will be doing. Apparently I have a few things coming soon! Who knew:)

Quilt Month: 2

Wow! 2 posts in 24 days for quilt month! That just has to be a record or something. Anyway, I figured that now is a good time to introduce you to my first quilt. Please be kind, it was 1996!

It sat at the foot of my bed when I was still at home; we found this great basket at Pier 1 and, amazingly, the quilt fits in there like it was planned!

Yep, that's a biscuit quilt. I told you it was 1996. They were all the rage then, really. I swear I was in style!

I just kinda threw together fabrics; the peach/mint/white strip is a piece of fabric that was curtains when I was 12. Yep, pieces of my past still going strong.

I had fun with this quilt, I still remember working on it Easter day with Charlie Heston's Moses talking in the background.

Though to be honest it isn't finished. Ahem. It still looks like this:

See, this thing is really heavy as is, I've been afraid that if I continue to quilt it it will end up so heavy as to be useless. Though, I suppose, it's useless as is, isn't it! Heh. How bout that. Well, anyway, that was my first. It was my last for a decade, too. Once I jumped on the bandwagon I sorta leapt right back off and it wasn't until last Sept that I started doing quilts again. Apparently that wagon is either really slow in it's turn around or I was way off the beaten track and it took a bit to get back to me.

Next time I think I'll show you all my stash... And try to figure out what to do with it!

Draft....

Well, I started the draft for my first post for quilt month early in the month. When I actually posted it blogger posted it on the day I started the draft. Odd. So if you see Quilt Month: 1 down there, it's actually new, even though it claimes it's, like, 2 weeks old. Eh, what ya gonna do:)

Grosgrain and Kathleen... Does it get any better then her?

Ah, it's been a while since I've had the chance to put my name in for a great outfit from Kathleen! She's done a few for the little girls, sold one for $150 for Nie-Nie, and I would never put in for one I didn't think Little J would love, it would be too sad for something as wonderful as what she makes to sit in a closet not being worn! But this little outfit is right up her alley. Go, look, adore:)

http://grosgrainfabulous.blogspot.com/2008/09/table-cloth-skirt-and-dinner-party-top.html

Quilt Month: 1

Well, alrighty then! I've been meaning to write this post for quite some time now, and Mr. Monkeysuit's quilt month is a good reason to do it! Though it's the 17th already. Heh. Ahem. Oh well, better late then never! (That's my thought on getting quilts done as well, if you hadn't noticed:)

So, my issue is with the controversy over tied quilts. This was my quilt from when I was a kid:

Notice it is tied. Which mean, of course, that I grew up with my quilt being a simple one. It was a few yards of cloth, sewn together to make a full sized sheet, backing and batting added, and then tied. It now looks like this:

Why would I save this? Because it was mine. I remember it from my childhood, it has always been around. This wasn't done by my family, but it was done by the women of my Great grandmother's ward, for my mom, 30 years ago. This is literally a piece of my family and community's history, even if not done by family hands. What was done by family though are these:

My son's quilt, pieced, tied...

My daughter's quilt, pieced, tied...

I dare say that it isn't the stitched quilting that makes it a quilt, but rather it is the effort involved, the love that is put in, that makes it a quilt. Mom made both of these, plus others, for my kids.... And yet I am told that they aren't "real" quilts. So lets look at that, shall we?

QUILT: a coverlet for a bed, made of two layers of fabric with some soft substance, as wool or down, between them and stitched in patterns or tufted through all thicknesses in order to prevent the filling from shifting. (Dictionary.com)

Tufting is tying, really, and all "quilting" is are the stitches placed to keep the three layers together. Tying is simply stitching with a greater distance between the stitches then a more traditional stitch. I say traditional because it was once necessary to stitch closely to keep the batting in place. Modern battings have made tying a very viable option for quilting and for me is the preferred method. I have tried machine quilting, and I have to say that I prefer cuddling with a tied quilt. They fluff and become squishy because the batting is allowed freedom to, well, squish.

Really, what it comes down to is semantics and personal preference. Tying is claimed to not be quilting, and I say it is only the distance between stitches that changes peoples views. Well, are we now going to be stitch Nazi's? With tape measure in hand to see if it's "real" quilting? Please read my smile into that statement, but really, think about it. There are those that claim it is only a "real" quilt with "real" quilting if it's done by hand! Well then, tying is more "real" quilting then machine quilting is, as it's done by hand:)-

My point is that to define a craft that is done to share love seems to be a sad way to perpetuate joy. A quilt, 2 layer's of fabric with a batting in between held toghether with stitches, is a physical embodyment, and manifestation, of warmth... Joy... Family... Friends... Home. It is not lightly that I share my quilts with people. And, possibly, why I don't make all that many. Quilting is personal, I've seen it first hand just what a quilt can achieve in the right hands. So, please, don't judge a quilt by the distance between stitches. Judge it based on the love it represents, and the joy it brings.

Politics

I almost didn't write this post, but I feel compelled for some reason. Tonight I read a crafty blog by a woman who, in essence, accused conservatives of being murderers. Yep. Made the comment that it isn't liberals that assassinate people, it's the conservatives that have the guns. Needless to say I won't be reading her any longer.
My point isn't that she shouldn't say what she believes, it is instead that we each need to understand why we believe what we believe. Does she really believe that conservative kill people? Does she really believe that it is only the right on the political spectrum that have evil among them?? I am shocked at such an allegation.
So, I won't read her. I won't spend my precious free time conversing via blog with someone who is so one sidedly angry.
Which is why I don't post politics or religion here. This is my soft space, my space full of sewing, fabric, family and joy. Not anger, not one sided abuse.

Whew.

Okay, now on a different note, I'm going to start a few new things here in September. One will involve giving away fabric I will simply never use; the other is more posting of quilts done by my family, and of my own musings on what quilts are. I've decided to follow along here with Mr.Monkeysuit (though really all I blog about is quilts as is:) The point is that I've really only blogged about the quilts I've made as I've made them (oh, and cleaning!)... Not much of me in there, so I'm gonna start expanding a little on the things I talk about, even if it is still quilt related:) So I may be posting more regularly, but not always with something done by me! Hope you all will enjoy:)
And hope you all have a soft, safe place to be in your own life.

Motivation apparently, well, motivated!

Seems that this has been a weekend of getting some stuff done. Amazingly, really, as I've been glued to the TV with the Olympics the last two weeks! Maybe now that that is over I can get back to the cleaning, organizing, and sewing!

Here is my motivation at work: (Before pics here)

There are still a few things to find homes for, there always is! But at least I'm making progress. Part of what came out is now just sitting in my garage since there were a few random things of cleaners up there. Now I have to figure out where the local hazardous waste centers are to get rid of that, and that's one more thing off the list! But with the possibility of a big move I've got a lot of motivation to get stuff cleaned up, moved out, sold and tossed. I figure that even though Jade is done, I'll just keep plugging along with her idea:) I'm sure you will see (hopefully) a bunch of great clean rooms in the months ahead!

As for quilting, the project I'm currently working on is one of those I'll-show-it-to-you-after-I-mail-it types... Though I have a ton of things on the list, so stay tuned to see what I accomplish!

DONE!

Holy Moly, it's finished! All that's left is to put it into the washer and mail it. Hallelujah!!I would have prefered to have been able to use the teal print, as the orange makes it a spicy quilt! But it wasn't to be, and the orange is striking. At this point it's gonna stay or I'm gonna chuck the whole quilt:) I'm a happy girl at the moment!

Crafty Giveaways

Jen over at Crafty Giveaways has Disney Princess panels she's giving away. Though I really suggest you wander over anyway as she is a neat lady and had some great giveaways! Check it out: http://craftygiveaways.blogspot.com/2008/08/crafty-giveaway-4-disney-princess.html

Oh, and I'm going with the Orange. Jacquie and I both like the idea of the bias, but as I'm still just struggling to get the darn binding on the thing I think I'll avoid the first time bias thing for today! And since both she and A Spoonful of Sugar echoed my thoughts of the dynamic element of the orange that's what we are doing. I finally got the quilt square and got the orange cut (a very bit larger then the dolphins strip) and have it about halfway attached. So far so good. Wish me luck!

Opinion?

So, how to say this.... I managed to lose the Dolphins binding. Yep. Lost it. And the very sad thing is that I never left the house with it. So, where did it go?? Ah, anyway. That all leads me to wonder what to do instead. I have a few options, lets see if any of you have an opinion:
There's the different, but complimentary, green:

The backing and strip green, on the grain:
Same on the bias:
Or the Orange... But note that I had to get more of the orange and it doesn't quite match:

On a more personally positive note I got the borders on the strip quilt. If you all don't remember, I pieced the backing for Grandma's quilt and it was too much, so the backing ended up as a topper for me. Being smaller then I wanted it (it was a baby quilt size) I added the borders to help make it a full size. I'm really happy with how it turned out; Rob told me it was very summery, which I'll take as a compliment!

An update

Well, I am happy to report that I'm making progress. The Dolphins quilt has finally had the binding pulled off (only took 2 weeks:) and I cut and pieced my first Soldiers Angels quilt. This is for the Blankets of Belief. Here's it all cut out:

I managed to get the whole thing pieced yesterday. You'll have to excuse the pic, it's actually upside down! Oh well, you get the idea:) I'm really happy with it and I wasn't sure I would be, to be honest. When I had the pile of fabric sitting together I just couldn't see a quilt. The fabrics are all so busy that the lack of contrast really threw me. The tan pieces were my saving grace, really, since they bring the busy-ness down and give it some interest.

And the backing:

And now on to the, ahem, fun stuff... Cleaning! Jade at Chikaustin had a series where she exposed herself and I had to go along for the ride! Though, to be honest, I've managed to bust time by a bit. I wanted to get the laundry room and the garage done by the 16th. Well.... Not so much. But we may be moving soon (like very soon) and far away (like very far away) and so now I have to expedite. So here is the first set of my series. No after shots yet, but you can see where I'm starting and will be waiting with bated breath for the after shots! Sure, why not:)

So, this is the laundry room. I'll be out of town this weekend so I'll start in on it on Monday and will post pics of the after. Cause I gotta get it done, might as well let you all come along for the ride!

And last, but seriously not least, is my new layer cake! Oh, so excited! As soon as I saw Lila Tueller's fabric and I just had to have it. I was beyond excited when my local shop had a Layer Cake and Charm Packs of Woodland Bloom. I love the fabric so much that I'm just gonna do squares and let the patterns and the colors of the fabrics speak for themselves.

I really love the way the fabrics look together, such an amazing line. Can't wait to get it started!