Embroidered Quilt

Posted on March 31, 2010 by katyquilts

This quilt was made by my mother in law when she was very young and her mother. She said these blocks were purchsed as kits and that you can tell who made which blocks by the quality of the work :). My dear mother in law takes full responsibility for the unfortunate repair work across the top :P. This quilt was used a LOT and shows a lot of wear but I still love it. I wish you could see the lovely feather quilting.

Here are some details of some of the blocks:

The applique work is done with the finest buttonhole stitching I have seen. I now have this folded at the end of my bed.

Until next time….

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A couple mini landscapes…

Posted on March 30, 2010 by katyquilts

I made these as gifts. The matts  measure approx 5″ x 7″‘, the area of the pieces that show is about 3″ x 4 1/2″.

The fabrics are my own hand dyes. I really love the “clouds!” They remind me of Psalm 23, “He makes me lie down in green pastures and leads me beside quiet waters. He restores my soul.” 

Until next time….

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Home again….

Posted on March 29, 2010 by katyquilts

After more than a year, my quilts for the challenge, My World in Black and White are home. Along with my quilts was this lovely ribbon, handmade by Annie Copeland. Isn’t it delightful?

Here are the quilts. The first one is called Grace:

The gray is not part of the quilt but I used it as a background for taking the picture. The second one is called Out of Darkness:

They traveled to the following shows during the year:

Mid-Atlantic Quilt Festival XX
February 26 – March 1, 2009
Hampton Roads Convention Center, Hampton, Virginia
Greater Chesapeake Bay/Williamsburg Area

The Quilt Fest of New Jersey V
Somerset, New Jersey
March 5-8, 2009

Loft Gallery
401 S. Mesa at 4th. 2nd Floor
San Pedro, Ca
April/May, 2009

Cannery Row Studios
Redondo Beach, CA
July 11 through the 26th, 2009

Soft Expressions Gallery
Anaheim, CA
Nov. 14, 2009 through the end of December.

It is nce to have them home again but it was a wonderful opportunity!

Until next time…

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Some newly finished pieces

Posted on March 29, 2010 by katyquilts

Here are a couple pieces I made last summer but only now got around to facing and finishing. The first one I call Corn and Beans:

Here is a detail shot of the quilting:

The next one is untitled. Got any ideas?

And a detail of the quilting:

I’d love to hear any comments on these two!

Until next time….

Posted in Uncategorized | 5 Comments

A picture taking kind of day…

Posted on March 27, 2010 by katyquilts

My daughter is getting to be a wonderful photographer and she inpires me to do more picture taking myself! My husband patiently drove the two of us around this afternoon to take some pictures in our home town, Saginaw. Here are a few of my shots:

Doesn’t this look like Yoda? Ha!

The river…

The Z bridge….

A patchwork of fences….

If these walls could speak….

Iron train bridge, no longer in use….

I have more I will save for another day. Saginaw has been in existence since the 1860s. It has seen its share of good and bad times. It is not all in decay as one might surmise by looking at these photos! However, there is something that attracts me to these places….the history, the beauty in the crumbling bricks and rust, the hope that Saginaw would one day be a city united, once again prosperous and thriving…

I am also hoping that photography will help me to “see” things in a new way, to become more observant, to create better art.

Until next time….

UPDATE 4-13-2010 I recently found some of these pictures manipulated and posted on another blog! PLEASE do not steal my photos! Anything and everything on my blog belongs to ME! It is against copyright law to take anything from my site. Please do the right thing.

Posted in Photography | 10 Comments

Another grandma piece….

Posted on March 26, 2010 by katyquilts

This is a dresser scarf made my my husbands Grandma. I think this is called huck weaving.

Here is a detail of one of the lilies:

I love the shading she was able to achieve with this technique. I am not sure but thsi may have been a stamped design. The edges are beautifully crocheted lace. The back is nearly as beautiful as the front! My sister in law told me that when she was young, Grandma made her fix the back of her embroidery because it had to look nice :).

Until next time…

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Vintage String Quilt

Posted on March 26, 2010 by katyquilts

This quilt was made by my husbands other Grandma. I never met her. She seems to have quilted completely out of necessity. This is one of only two quilts that I have seen that she made. I also have one string quilt top made by her. This is a utility quilt for sure! 9-Patches and string blocks made good use of the smallest scraps. It is quilted in a baptist fan pattern. It has been mended, mended, and mended again!

Here is a closeup:

This is very worn and faded. It is also quite dingy. I would love to see if I can brighten it up a bit but am not sure how. Any suggestions?

Until next time…..

Posted in Vintage Quilts | 1 Comment

Frustration!

Posted on March 26, 2010 by katyquilts

Grrrrr…….I spent a few hours tonight machine quilting a small quilt. I thought I was done and turn it over to find that eleven rows of stitching had terrible tension issues. I ripped the stitches out and redid that part. Turned it over and  AGGGHHHHH!!!!!!! Same thing! What the heck? I ended up ripping and stitching this same section FIVE times! I used a different color but the same type of thread that I used in the rest and it was fine everywhere else.

So instead of showing you that, I will show you some old stuff. These are some small quilts made with  vintage fabrics. First up is a hand quilted newly made piece with vintage blocks that I purchased. This is about 35″ square:

This one was made with vintage 40s fabrics for the stars. It is about 30″ square. This quilt appeared in QUILT Magazine a number of years ago:

Here is a detail of one star:

I love these funky prints! The next one is a small doll quilt and I do not know who made it. It is made from feedsacks and measures about13″ square.

I think I will try to soak this and see if I can get that stain out. I love the way the maker was careful to center the horseshoe in the middle for good luck :).

Maybe tomorrow I will feel like showing you some of my rip and rip some more project!

Until next time…..

Posted in Baby Quilts, Doll Quilts, Traditional, Vintage Fabrics, Vintage Quilts | Leave a comment

Bittersweet….

Posted on March 25, 2010 by katyquilts

I am the new owner of several wonderful family heirlooms. We are helping my mother and father in law to clean out their house in preparation for sale. It is a bittersweet time. So many memories, such amazingly wonderful people. I am truly blessed and I know it.

As part of the process, my mother in law has given me some family quilts that I will share with you in this and some future posts. The first was made by her mother, Grandma Swartzendruber. I met her when I married into the family and she was in a wheel chair by then. I loved her immediately. She was quirky, no doubt, but a better quilter I have never met. She did the most beautiful embroidery and crochet as well. Grandma was a Mennonite and her parents before her were Amish! I have lots of Grandma stories…..maybe I should tell one here now and then.

For now, I will share this quilt, a lovely Carolina Lily pattern made in the 1930s or so:

It is very thin now but the quilting is nothing short of incredible! I wish you could see the feathers and the tiny stitches! She was an industrious woman and knew well the art of making do. I am thankful to have this and now it is hanging above my bed. here is a close up of one block:

I love the way she substituted a yellow when she ran short of green and used a green that faded differently for some of the leaves :).  Hope you enjoy this peak into my family history!

Until next time….

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What to do with……

Posted on March 23, 2010 by katyquilts

….these:

Why, you make more of these:

The smaller ones are a great size for coin purses and the slightly larger ones are the right size for a digital camera. These little bags are like potato chips, you can’t stop at one! I am doing a “pay it forward” challenge with some friends in which you have to send a handmade item to several people. I am going to send some of these. I got the zippers at the thrift shop for 19 cents each! Again, I used machine quilting sample pieces as in the ones I posted earlier.

If anyone is interested, I will post a tutorial on how to make these though you may be able to figure it out from the pictures.

Until next time….

Posted in Free Motion Quilting | 1 Comment