Some early quilts from the vaults....

Quilting is a bit of a cyclical thing for me- Sometimes I manage to get a fair amount of quilting done and other times I seem to get nothing done short of adding some beautiful fabric to my ever growing stash or drooling over magazine/ book quilts and new gadgets like the "Go"... I am not sure why I quilt like that- part of it is certainly because my work life takes over and there doesn't seem to be enough time or energy to go around. Yet,I know if I begin working on a quilt project, I feel better. Before I know it, I will have worked for a couple of hours and feel re- energized too. Sometimes, I stop to look at some photos of the quilts I have created over the last 15 years. Mars the cat can often be found testing out my quilts- She appears to think that I make them for her pleasure. She even has some favorite quilts- The leaf one on the left, is one that she is keen on- it matches her coat beautifully..


My quilt journey began quite a long time ago now - I have always loved quilts and my first experiences with quilting came when I met a friend whose grandmother showed her how to make the dresden plate pattern. We used cardboard templates and scissors ( yes I was one of those people that quilted in a time where there was no rotary cutter.. I completed one block and later turned it into a quillow quilt ( a quilt that folds up and forms a pillow.)

After that, my journey hit a few pot holes and I got side tracked by life- I married my husband and a few years later we had our son. He was born in the winter of 1987. The summer I was pregnant with him I quilted a " Quilt in a Day" Log cabin. It was a bit of challenge as I knew nothing about machine quilting. I thought that all quilts needed to be like downy duvets- I put a double layer of polyester batt in it, so it would be poofy.. It was a bit like wrestling a bear... I don't think I would want you to see the back of it either... The front doesn't look very good these days as it has suffered a few adventures with the pets that are an important part of our home and hearth. Life took over again - and it would be another 10 years before I would quilt again..
However, that is when my quilting journey changes- In the summer of 1996, I met a teacher, Linda and a small group of quilters with whom I connected, and we became quilting friends. I have quilted steadily ( sometimes slightly unsteadily) since that time. I have made over 50 large bed sized quilts for friends and family and numerous baby wraps in the intervening years.

This lone star was made in the fall of 1997-it still lives in our house- I made it larger to cover up my 6 foot husband and son. The colors are now dated but it remains in pretty good shape and still keeps us warm too...

What size quilts do you make? I like to make quilts that will be ones that fit a bed- I have made a few baby quilts and lots of baby wraps but, mostly I make big quilts that fit queen sized and occasionally king sized beds. I also like to make couch sized quilts.

My blog friend Rosa from New Brunswick ( a province in Eastern Canada) posted about the Magic Tiles pattern not long ago. It really is a pretty pattern. Here was my version of this beautiful design. I think I made it about 2002. It is made all out of batiks and I know that our friends loved it.


Sometimes I think it might be fun to make a few smaller projects just to get my juices going- but then I think of all the bed quilts I still want to make for one reason or another... I see the beautiful bags people create - I even have a couple of quilt books with bag patterns - still I make bed quilts ---- I guess I hope to make a dent in my stash and bed quilts is the way to do that LOL

Earlier I was mentioning about the Go -- Well Micki of The Irish Muse blog is hosting a Go giveaway... Now I have been admiring those fine machines- just think how much easier it is to cut things out.. What about all the different die- so many choices.. Maybe you will be the lucky winner or may be it will be my turn- do check it out...

There is a new Talk about Fabric button on the right side of my blog- for those of you who like giveaways or are interested in talking about fabric and fabric lines. You can add the button to your blog too if you wish..

This week is the big Houston Quilt Market- I am mind boggled thinking about all the choices one would find there- It is too large for me but it is fun to see what others have to say about the Houston Quilt festival...

The fall is flying by- this weekend is Halloween and my kindergarten students love to dress up in their costumes and go trick or treating. The first assessment part of my job is done so now the report writing begins... The first snowfall came on Monday and so did the snow pants and the snowmen.... Each day brings new things...

Wishing everyone some time to reflect and create...
Warmest regards,
Anna

Time Marches On and an Old Quilt

Yesterday was my birthday.. It was not a particularly special number although my mathematical husband said "that oh yes it was" - It is the same number as there are weeks in a year and there are that many cards in a deck- To me it is just a number-It was a particularly lovely birthday- you can see the lovely collection of gifts from family and friends- People seem to find me the things that I love- glass baubles to wear(there is a pendant that looks like a spiral galaxy from my dear husband) and fresh lavendar scent bags and earrings and a new teacher's Boyd's bear for my collection at school. There is a truly lovely Aboriginal angel that I will take to school to decorate my room and then put on our mantel during the Christmas season. She is wearing beautiful regalia and has a dream catcher to chase away bad dreams. There are gorgeous panda puppets to do stories with my school kids and a new sewing machine light that bends so my work area can be well lit. I felt truly treasured by one and all. The best gift of all was the time spent with good friends and family- those are the moments that are truly priceless.


In celebration my birthday I thought I would share one of my earliest quilts made in the Fall of 1997).I finally managed to take a picture of it. Here is my original lone star-(that I referred to in an earlier posting). As you can see it is quite long, as both my son and my husband are tall men. I remember making this first quilt with many of the same group of women with whom I still quilt. We have foraged great friendships and spent time creating many many quilts over the last dozen years.

One of the biggest challenges with the lone star is to find the right background - this quilt had two or three different fabrics auditioned for the cornerstone blocks. One needs quite a bit of fabric for the corners (about 4 yards)and I began my stash then and there. As an inexperienced quilter, I struggled with color and value. My quilts have gradually become more colorful with stronger contrasts and more vibrant focal fabrics. I enjoy creating the combinations that make the quilt my own creation. I am not much of a kit person preferring to use the pattern of my jumping off point.

Having said that, my friend L, and I went west of the city yesterday to visit a couple of quilt shops. In the second shop I found a kit for a Lonestar that was half price- I so loved the fabrics that I bought the kit. I still will alter it in some way -I will probably change the last border as I find the one in the kit too busy. We went west because I thought I would be less tempted to add to the stash-LOL well let's just say that wasn't the most successful strategy... There are some beautiful new fabrics in my ever bulging stash...
My most successful stash busting is when I go upstairs in my sewing room and pat the stash - That is easier on my pocket book.... but not as much fun...

The lone star has two borders of mini lonestars on each end. It was my first venture into adding borders but certainly wasn't my last. I have continued to play with borders when I get the opportunity. I like frames on my quilt - to me its like framing a picture. The borders can be a design challenge but how long I play with the borders is determined by when I need to have the quilt finished. A quilt will often tell you when its finished- there is a certain feeling one gets when it is complete. Sometimes you have to leave a quilt for awhile to so you can figure out how to finish it. I find that is especially true when I am adding borders.

How do you make the quilt so it reflects you? Do you enjoy the creative challenge of design? Do you like playing with borders? When does an addition to the quilt end up being a distraction from the body of the quilt?

This quilt may be one of my older ones but it is well loved- Its the way I feel after yesterday's birthday celebrations. Thank you dear friends and loved ones for making this middle aged lady feel treasured.

Keep on playing and have a great week!
Regards,
Anna

Lone Star Baby

I love Lone Star quilts and this one belongs to my parents. The baby is a lovely little girl who happens to be my folks second great granddaughter. J. is now 14 months old and has begun to walk around. She is too cute for words but here she was a wee one- only a few weeks old.

I made this quilt for my parents to honor their 50th wedding anniversary, which was three years ago last July. My mother is of Swedish descent so the blue and yellow combination was in tribute to her Swedish heritage. It is a soft looking quilt that has a small diamond border with the main star floating on a sea of flowers. My parents have other quilts that I have made but this was the first large one I created just for them. My Folk's quilt was my second Lonestar.

The original Lonestar quilt is a pink and green one- that we happen to own.It has small stars at each end of the quilt as I wanted it to be extra long. I will try and take a picture of it some day soon- the only pictures I have of the original lonestar(made in 1997) are on film and I have no idea how to transfer them to digital format.(My guess is that it involves a scanner and we don't own one). There are so many beautiful Lonestar variations now but I think I am a traditionist- I like the simplicity of the big star and I love them with graduated shading of colors.



Here is another view of it with its mate- a photo quilt that has pictures of all my family at the time of my parent's 50th anniversary. The photo quilt is truly a snapshot in time -since its creation, my parents have added two new grandson inlaws and a baby to their brood. Making photo quilts often pose some interesting dilemmas about who is included and the arrangement of the pictures. That is a topic for another day...

Isn't the quilt rack that the photo quilt hangs on beautiful? My parents are good friends of a couple who are talented artists. S. is a fabulous painter who paints wonderful pictures on almost any surface you can imagine. Her husband B. is a fantastic carpenter who designed and built the quilt rack to display the photo quilts. I love how the two quilts look together..

I have been busy trying to keep up with my schoolwork -lots of paperwork related to November report card writing. I can not believe that we are already at the beginning of November. Where has the fall flown?

Yesterday, my school students were dressed so cute for Halloween- there was a crocodile, giraffe,fairies, princesses and Hulks,Spiderman, knights and Batman. Halloween is always so exciting for my little ones. They were so ready to get to go out trick or treating.

This week I will introduce some new concepts about Peace to prepare for our Remembrance Day Assembly ( November 10). We will honor our veterans and service men who help us live in a more peaceful world. Peace is such a difficult concept to make meaningful for them- maybe that is true for us all...

I plan to get a little quilting done this week too. I had my sewing machine into the shop last week - it had stopped working but fortunately it only needed a tune up. I am getting behind on my Winding Ways Quilt and need to get moving on it. It is hard for me to find the balance between work and play.. Everyone needs to play to relax and rest so that you can be productive and efficient at work ...yet it is a struggle for me- Perhaps for you too?

Hope you are having a nice weekend and get a chance to enjoy time with your family.
Happy quilting!

Regards,
Anna