Good news, bad news, amazing news!

Posted on July 27, 2013 by katyquilts

First the good news, I finished piecing the top for the king size batik behemoth. Yay! I washed the backing and loaded it on the frame…..bad news time…..it shrunk so much it it now too narrow for the top!

Uggggggg!!!!

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If I remove the narrow border from one side, it will JUST fit. This can go across the top of the quilt. Or I can buy a bigger backing, but it has to be one piece because she wants to use  the back for a top for a change of pace. Also, any idea how hard it is to find a purple back that is more than 108″ wide? And how pricy? I have a headache today and can’t think too much about this now. However, that leaves me with a big purple cloud hanging over my head, a weighty one.

Now for the amazing news! My son sent us a package and said we couldn’t open it until we skyped with him and his lovely wife. This is what was inside:

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How amazing is that? I am still in shock! This will be our first grandchild and frankly, I think I am much too young …..how did my son get to be old enough to be a dad himself? So my hubby and I have been saying that “grandma and grandpa” sound old…and we don’t want to be confused with the other grandparents so we need to figure out what this beautiful child will call us. What do your grandchildren call you?

Here is the lovely couple:

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Aren’t they adorable?

And here is my first gratuitous grandbaby picture:

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You can see already that this child is beautiful, smart, incredible!

Psalm 139:13-16

New International Version (NIV)

13 For you created my inmost being;     you knit me together in my mother’s womb. 14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;     your works are wonderful,     I know that full well. 15 My frame was not hidden from you     when I was made in the secret place,     when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. 16 Your eyes saw my unformed body;     all the days ordained for me were written in your book     before one of them came to be.

ETA: Did you know that today is the Feast of St Anne, the patron saint of seamstresses? Pretty cool! In honor of that, Angie at Quilting on the Crescent is having a Celebrate Sewing Linky party. You can find other links here.

Posted in Bed Quilts, Thankfulness | 13 Comments

Friday Finish!

Posted on July 26, 2013 by katyquilts

Here are pictures of the unplanned batik quilt after washing. I was in a hurry to get this off in the mail so they aren’t the best.

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The last picture shows the truest color of the back. It is definitely purple, not blue!

I am linking up with Sarah over at Confessions of a Fabric Addict for:

Posted in Uncategorized | 10 Comments

Yay for insomnia!

Posted on July 25, 2013 by katyquilts

Not really…but if you can’t sleep at 3 AM, you might as well quilt and pray! I finished this unplanned batik nap quilt early this morning. It is in the wash now but these are a few pics taken before I threw it in the washer.

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I quilted each “block” differently. I did a little bit of template and ruler work but not much. After work, I hope to get some better pics……or nap.

Posted in Machine quilting, Modern Quilts | 2 Comments

Work in Progress Wednesday

Posted on July 24, 2013 by katyquilts

This is what I am working on today.

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Hmmmm….quilting is not showing up! I am doing random freehand designs. They show up better in the back.

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Random, right? I also ran out of thread two rows in. I switched to another variegated thread that is similar but doesn’t have all the colors of the first one. I should finish quilting this tonight but I have a headache. So I think I may put my feet up and relax instead.

I am linking up with Lee at Freshly Pieced for Work in Progress Wednesday.

Posted in Machine quilting | 1 Comment

Hobby Quilter For Sale

Posted on July 23, 2013 by katyquilts

I have hesitated to post this on my blog since it is not something I care to ship. But perhaps there is a somewhat local reader that might be interested.

I am selling my 2005 Nolting Hobby Quilter with SuperQuilter frame. If you will recall, I went to the Lansing quilt show with dear hubby intending to purchase a new frame for it. I walked away with a whole new, bigger set up. So this needs a good home.

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I have learned so much on this machine. It is a great deal for someone who wants to try out this long arm thing without going into debt to do so. It has a manual speed control and this set up includes a DVD that shows basic long arm info (I should have bought this as soon as I brought this home!) including maintenance and timing. I also have an extra bobbin case and the extended ruler base that is needed for rulers and templates. I have manuals for both the machine and frame.

I am asking $2750 for the set up and I am located in Saginaw, MI. I would consider shipping the machine only since I do have the shipping box for that. Buyer would need to pay shipping. Price for machine only (no frame) is $2500.

Shoot me an e-mail if interested. Thanks!

Posted in For Sale | 3 Comments

Busy Tuesday ahead!

Posted on July 23, 2013 by katyquilts

Lots to do before work today. I am hoping to get a bit of quilting done on this:

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I also received the rest of the fabric for th big batik quilt last night. Here is the backing, though the color doesn’t look right in this picture:

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I downloaded a new app for my phone called Tadaa! Here are a few photos that I edited with it:

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The following quilt I saw at an antique shop while up north. I love hexagon quilts!

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This last picture does actually have a point, I think this is how I will quilt the current batik lap quilt that is in the frame.

Have a wonderful day!

Posted in Free Motion Quilting, Uncategorized | 1 Comment

Design Wall Monday

Posted on July 22, 2013 by katyquilts

Maybe design floor Monday would be more accurate!

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If there is one thing I could change about my sewing room, it would be to have a floor to ceiling design wall that is about 12 feet long! I do have a 4′ x 8′ DW, but it is behind two tables and I am too short to reach to really use it. It has become storage space for projects.

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I also have this 4′ x 4′ wall that I lean against the closet doors or my cabinets and move all the time to get to what is behind it. Not at all handy but at least I can reach it.

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This one is covered with a plaid dollar store table cloth with the flannel side out. The plaid is handy for lining things up.

Anyway, the first pic I posted, before I went off on the DW rabbit trail, is the final layout of the unplanned batik scrap quilt. I will finish sewing the rows together today and get it trimmed. I’d like to get it quilted before the fabric comes to finish the big batik quilt.
Head over to Patchwork Times to see what others have on their design walls.

Posted in Design Wall Monday | 3 Comments

Unplanned progress

Posted on July 21, 2013 by katyquilts

I worked a bit more on this before work yesterday. When I started this quilt, everything was neat and orderly. But it wasn’t big enough so I started piecing random scraps together and it became more and more chaotic…..and less and less boring.

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So often I crave order and things that make sense; but, it is the unexpected things God places in my path that make life extraordinary.

Speaking of extraordinary, our plumeria plant is blooming for the first time in 6 years.

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Dear hubby and I brought this plant back from a trip to Hawaii in 2006. It was just a stick at the time. It bloomed once and then just grew and grew to over 4 feet tall! I loved the plumeria trees in Hawaii and the flowers have an exquisite smell. So I was thrilled to see this!
It also reminds me of a favorite promise:
Yes, grass withers and flowers fade, but the word of our God endures for ever.” (Isaiah 40:8 GNB)

Posted in Creativity, Fabric | 3 Comments

Friday Finish!

Posted on July 19, 2013 by katyquilts

I finished quilting and binding the vintage spool top tonight. Here are picks before washing:??????????????????????????????? ??????????????????????????????? ???????????????????????????????

Honestly, there are a few tucks and puckers on the top. I ended up quilting with one hand on the machine and one on the quilt top trying to work out the extra fabric.

I chose not to prewash the backing fabric and I used a cotton batting that would shrink. When the quilt is washed, the backing will shrink up more than the top. The backing ends up pretty flat and there will be more texture on the front of the quilt. I figured this was a good way to hide the puckers and tucks. Here are pics after washing and drying:

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Until next time…

 

 

Posted in Machine quilting, Vintage Fabrics, Vintage Quilts | 8 Comments

Frame Friday

Posted on July 19, 2013 by katyquilts

I finally started quilting the vintage top I purchased and loaded. After consulting with the Home Machine Quilting Systems Yahoo Group, it seemed that a meander would be the best choice to eat up the extra fabric in the blocks.  Here are some pics so you can get an idea if the fullness I am dealing with. ff5 ff6

I think you can see the extra fullness in the blocks.

 

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I am not in love with this but I am hoping I will like it better after washing and shrinkage. Things in process are often messy and not very pretty. I need to remember this. It is true of many things in life, myself included!

Posted in Free Motion Quilting, Vintage Fabrics, Vintage Quilts | 2 Comments