Decisions

...are sometimes difficult. I started quilting this table runner using the pattern that came with the kit, but I disliked the look of the quilting. It just wasn't a representation of my style of work- totally not me. So, I took the quilting out that I had done and let the work sit while I thought of patterns that I liked. After couple of weeks of reflection, I came up with this simple pattern that I could do using my Davis NVF for the quilting.

Minus the white fabric and the back fabric, all of the fabrics came from my mother's stash that she had given to me. This Wedding Ring table runner will be given to my mother.

Better than Paper-Piecing

Do you hate to tear the paper out in the paper-piecing project?

Well, Deborah Gansberger was not only frustrated with tearing out the paper, but also frustrated with not being able to see where she was putting the fabric. (We have all been there when working with placing the fabric in paper-piecing.) So, Deborah realized that she had the technology to developed a product to use as a substitute for the paper since Deborah and her husband owned a textile printing company. Here is the link to her products:http://www.ezpiecing.com/

Deborah had been the speaker of a guild that I attended when selling raffle tickets for the gorgeous quilt that my quilt guild was raffling off this past winter. She had a table with items for sale that evening, and I purchased the Double Wedding Ring Runner even before I heard her talk. I'm not an impulse shopper, but I knew that this Wedding Ring table runner would be a manageable project for me.

Last weekend, I read directions, cut fabrics, and pieced. I LOVE the foundation fabric that she has developed. It is so EASY to use! Her pattern directions are very well written and supported with clear photos.

This really is better than dealing with paper.

MIRAI

That is the name of my son's company:http://mirai.storenvy.com/products

He designs tee shirts! He does it all: sales, marketing, web design, photography, digital design, and the art work.  He worked with Threadbird, http://www.threadbird.com/,  to print his designs on tees that are made in America. All his work is Made in America...and he is trying to keep it that way.

The pretty model in photo is a friend of his. He shot the photos for his advertisement.

He asked me to make a beach cover-up by altering an X-large tee from his short sleeve line. Here are two photos that I took of the cover-up.

Letting GO

There are some projects that never materialize. Those projects never get completed for whatever reasons. My tie project is just that project.

I cleaned and took the ties apart. I started to cut my blocks that I planned to use for that pretty table runner that I envisioned.

 

As I was cutting up the blocks from the ties, a feeling of great depression over came me. The fabrics got even uglier....and the question of why am I working with such depressing fabrics came to mind. Instead of picturing a pretty table runner made from vintage ties, all I visualized was some elderly man wearing these ugly ties. At least he wasn't drooling.

IF there is such a thing as Spirits of Ties or Tie Gods, then they have spoken to me. Some used items can have new life breathed into them, and some folks are more patient at such projects. Today, I have accepted the fact that I'm not one for resuscitating vintage ties. So, I'm letting GO. A long overdue burial for these ties, the trash can....and a peace of mind for me.

The Ugly Ties

I love to recycle! Over a year ago, I won a bag of ties in a raffle. It was an easy win, since nobody else put a ticket into the drawing. Nobody wanted a bag of old, funky ties, but I was so happy to win that bag even though I didn't have a clue as to what type of quilt I would make with the ties. So that bag of ties sat off in a corner while other projects took priority. Recently, I came across the bag while organizing that corner of clutter. 

Realizing that I need to do something with the bag, I researched quilted tie projects. There are some ugly tie projects to be seen, but there are also some quilted tie projects are very well done and elegant looking. Luckily, I came across this gal's scrappy, quilted, necktie scarves that could pass as a table runner: http://www.flickr.com/photos/quiltmanufaktur/sets/72157630834274980/ At, I first thought she had made table runners. Here is her blog: http://quiltmanufaktur.blogspot.com/2012/01/krawattenrecycling-iii.html. After seeing her photos of her pretty, quilted, tie scarves, I'm now inspired to create a table runner with my bag of ugly ties.

Birds on a Fence

Back in March, I participated in my quilt guild's block-of-the-month. The gals that organize the block-of-the-month said it was a paper-piecing project. I was excited to do this block since I had done paper-piecing. What I didn't know was that the block's pieces were already cut to size and only needed to be sewn together. I didn't know this since the instruction sheet was titled paper-piecing project. The diagram of the bird on the instruction sheet was there for one to use as a guide and not to be used to paper-piece. Well not realizing the mistake in terminology, I paper-pieced. When I turned in my block, it was then that I realized the error since my block was smaller than the other blocks. I looked at the gal in charge of the project and stated that it said paper-piecing. She then said "OH" and mumbled something about it really being foundation piecing (which it isn't that either). I looked at her blankly, then quickly recovered my thoughts, and stated that my square could always be used in the back of a quilt for whomever wins the squares.

The time came for the drawing, there were three winners and I was one. When I heard my name called, I just chuckled to myself since I knew my square would be handed back to me. My lone birdie on the back is sitting proudly.

This donation quilt is truly a community quilt since many hands went into the making of the quilt.

Leftovers

This table runner is a leftover row from the latest quilt that I made. I had misjudged the size needed for one side of the quilt by one row. So, I decided to make that scrapped row into something that I could use and enjoy.

A Mother's Day Gift

When I saw the Pick Violets free paper piece pattern by Amy Friend of During Quiet Time on her blog, I knew it would be my next project. I made a small change to the handle of the garden shovel since I didn't want to deal with the smaller pieces.

My mom loves wild flowers. She will sometimes stop on a side of a road to pick daisies, Queen Anne's Lacy, and other summertime flowers to make a beautiful bouquet. The daisies in this mini quilt remind me of some of those roadside fields that my mom frequents in the summer. This spring my mom has been replacing some old, leggy plants in her yard. That's a prodigious job for her since Mom is in her eighties. Instead of giving my mom flowers for Mother's Day, I'm going to give her this small table topper. It should last longer than a bouquet of flowers.

Petals, Bubbles, and Waves

I finally finished the quilt for my neighbor's daughter. I hope the decorative stitching holds up well on the petals and bubbles side of this quilt.

The pattern on the side with the multiple colors of the rainbow is called New Wave. The quilting was just a straight stitch in the narrower white sections.

Been Basting

While basting this week, one program that I watched was The Great British Sewing Bee on YouTube. I thoroughly enjoy this program.

I realized that I would start my basting row by tying a knot to the end of my thread and then making the stitches. The row would end without a knot, just a cross over of threads to hold the thread in place like shown below. I now start my row this way, instead of making a knot at end of thread. I should have thought of this before since it is so much faster.