Lost but found... How we spent our Thanksgiving vacation.....

I thought I had lost my digital camera...but lo and behold....this AM as I tried to do a quick clean between quilts...there it was under some trimmed batting. Maybe that is where my other lost things can be found???? May need to do a deep clean as soon as I finish up my Christmas rush. Almost caught up with that .Thanksgiving was a quick trip up to Tennessee for time with DD and the Wee One. He kept Grandbob and Honey busy, and of course we had to peruse every sale ad to see if we had to venture out in the wee hours of the morning. DD and I didn't get up until 6...then we went to a few places but not any place that was terribly crazy. I splurged on some new rubber mats for beneath my machine. They are so great on the feet. The very vintage quilt and the wonderful young vet student holding it...is such a wonderful story...I felt I had to share. Her very dearest friend' mother passed away when she was quite young...and she is having difficulty adjusting to her father's new person in his life. So this darling girl bought a vintage quilt, and had me quilt it for her, then she has added photos of her friend with her mother in theplain blocks. Hoping that this will assist her friend with her grief. I acutally cried when she told me the story. What a thoughtful friend Jenny is. I wish I had a photo of the "After" the photos had been added. But I am certain it will be cherished. I have been busy, since just before Thanksgiving, finished a Christmas table topper for my sister, and a Bargello for my friend. Then I put on this UFO.... for the third time.... to finally finish up the white sections. It seemed that every time I put in on my machine, I would get several quilts that needed to be done right away. So it would come back off.I wanted to try something new.

But the nice thing is that I can see some improvement on my quilting. The white sections...are just a practice of a non marked ...meandering kind of formal feathering. I really enjoyed doing it.... very freeing. I also did a few more customer quilts...love this Block of the month that I had the pleasure of doing. I also did two sweet little ones... that I feel like i had to share.

the last little one is a donation quilt for the Sheriff's dept. We provide them to ride along in the Sheriff's cars, so that if a child needs something for comfort, they can wrap up in something. I loved the Moda fabric my friend used. I wish you could see the quilting.... it is a swirl vine.... then feather bumps in the border.

A happy little helper.... and using his power tools.... and the Houston Quilt show!!!

Ok, its been a busy time... getting the Professor ready for school again! He is keeping very busy, and so am I, I had to share a photo of the wee one.... I took. He was helping with the vacuuming. His parents have to spell the word out...if they say vacuum, he demands that they use it...and hold him to "help" push. He is a funny little boy. Then these funny little kids were trying to get people to go to their garage sale.

I had to snap their picture .
The little "box head" was too funny. And the Professor and I are hosting a little get together for the graduate students in his program this coming weekend...so of course he decided that the deck needed to be power washed and resealed before winter...so might as well do it now. Had to snap a photo of him "playing" with his power tools.... He is so focused when he has a project that he has to get done. Of course I have been quite busy with quilts..... just finished a really fun one. A quilt totally made from Crown Royal bags. I just did interlocking circles in all of the squares and it turned out cute I thought. But I also did a couple of more involved quilts. One just glowed and was such fun to do.... I enjoyed looking at it the whole time I quilted the design. Then there was a darling little Moda quilt my friend Angela left for me to work on. I adored those colors!!! I trust you all will have a great day.... I am loading another quilt in the morning.... always something to do .... and I even have almost finished my little orphan 9 patch. Will share photos soon. OH, I almost forgot...thanks to my daughter in law... I am being given the opportunity to go to Houston Quilt Market ..... I am sOOOOOOO excited!!! Now I really have to save some of my quilt money to pick up a few little somethings while I am there.

Another visit with the Wee one, water fun, The princess in her Pillowcase dress and more quilts.....

We had the wee one here with his folks,this past weekend, and he enjoyed the pool we had for him. The Princess wore her little pillowcase dress and don't you love those red shoes????!

I had the opportunity to take a Bargello quilt from Dorinda Evans a couple of weeks ago, and although my quilt is still in strips.... a real shame, these ladies did finish theirs and several had the same Kaffe Fassett fabrics, yet they are so unique! I loved seeing them.

Another two finishers from the class.

Then at quilt guild I loved this quilt. It was a simple but effective quilt.

I also am happy to post a couple of photos of finished customer quilts from the past week or two. I have another on the longarm, and a stack to finish in the next couple of weeks. Where has the time gone??? I can't beleive it is June almost, and I am just not ready for summer yet. My garden has baby tomatoes and peppers, but forgot to grab a photo of them. DD and I did take a stack and whack class this past weekend while she was here on her visit...and it was so much fun.

Her blocks are gorgeous..but I didn't get any photos.

I will snap a few of mine very soon. I only had 4 blocks done, but she finished about 12. I guess she just used her time more wisely than I did.

Don't you love this vintage quilt. It was sewn by hand, by a customers great gran, and I loved seeing the vintage fabrics up close. Really a fun quilt to do.

A quilted table runner (UFO) ...and more Nashville Quilt Show pics.

It has rained and poured here off and on all day. I made a throw quilt since my last post...but totally forgot to take a ph0to of it..before the college boy who asked me to do it...picked it up. He wanted it for a certain special someone. I just helped out...with much drama, all bias pieces which really should have been paper pieced.... but I just couldn't spare the time. Then ran out of brown bias.... which I had made from the remainder of the fabric..... and after a trip to the fabric store...they had sold out.... so had to be taken off, then another color...the only other one in quilt...had to be rebiased and attached. What a chore. Don't care to make another brown and gold houndstooth quilt again! But its done, picked up and he loved it. I decided to go to the store and post office today...and on the way the torrential rains began, as I walked into the post office, slipped on the floor, almost fell.... but shoe broke, while trying to catch myself...so carried it through while I shipped off a parcel to a friend in Houston. Shoe was trashed.... and just before that..... as I walked into the grocery store, I fell getting out of the car...my pant leg was wet up to mid thigh.... as there was about 3" of water running/standing in parking lot! Just not my day to be out and about! I did work on this little runner.... but after I took it off, decided it didnt' need the meander in the border...so sat and unsewed all afternoon. I liked the banana looking things.... but hated the other. Now it is unpicked, think I will just add binding. Someone gave me this runner....unquilted when we were leaving for South Africa.... so technically another UFO, almost completed.... minus binding. I have a finished South African quilt...that I can't find the fabric for the binding...had it when I was in Tennessee....just before the move...but can not find it anywhere. Who knows when I can put that on. Shame!!!! Had to post a photo of this colorful South African SUN batik print. It is dyed...then they lay the leaves out on the fabric to sun dye. I saw this at the Nashville Quilt show...it was so pretty. I must admit, I never saw these in SA as I definitely would have purchased one. I also share another quilt or two from the Nashville Show that caught my eye. I do love the red and green quilts. But there were many that just lit up the hall, and the patriotic ones were very nice also.

There are so many quilts that I like for so many different reasons. I feel like I am not a quilter who likes pretty much one kind of quilt. I haven't found a type of quilt I don't like...many I would never attempt...but none I don't like. DD and the Wee ONe came to visit a few weekends ago...and had to share this photo of him... he is certainly not an infant anymore. Time has flow since he was born. I am so blessed..... love my family and the lovely friends I have made along the way. Lucky me. Have a great weekend. Must start thinking about next weeks plans.... as the Professor is taking me away for an evening.... what a pleasure!

Happy Tax Day!!!! If its something to be happy about that is?

Well, the day has come.It is Tax Day! Hope you all have a good one. I have another

good reason to enjoy today. We had this sleeper embroidered for the wee one...Daddy's
Tax Deduction. The picture says it all....he already seems to know that this day is not necessarily a good one!Been working on a diaper bag/purse for DD and wee one...made from Dad's old Army BDU's. Still have to add the straps. But going al0ng nicely...and of course more hand quilting on the other quilt.Have a great day.