Quilt of Valor

This Quilt of Valor was pieced by Billie S. of Oregon.  This was her first quilt for Quilts of Valor.  I am honored to quilt it for her--and what a fun quilt it was!  Tomorrow, it will be shipped to the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C.

I just finished putting the binding on but did not have much sun to take really great contrast photos.

 

Here is a close up I took earlier in the week right after I took it off the quilting frame and it's a good thing I did because we have not had any sun for 4 days.

A simple star and loops filled the border and all the straight lines are done with a wavy line.  It went quickly as there was no stitch in the ditch.

I used an 8 inch circle ruler for all the curves in the center, working my way back and forth across the quilt.  It went fast.

Back

Close up of back.

Thank you Billie!

Cute Baby Quilts

Last night, I finished up these 2 baby quilts.  I have the best job in the world: I get to see all these creative quilts, quilt them, photo them, wrap them up and send them home to be loved!

I have a client that does not know if her new grandchild will be a boy or a girl.  She is covering all her bases with these 2 quilts:

Will it be a boy?

Minky on the back

Will it be a girl?

Plush Minky on the back

Only time will tell.

Cotton Candy & Cherry Chocolate

Here is a fun, funky little baby quilt I made for a gift.

At Christmas, a friend gave me this cute collection of 5 pink and brown fat quarters and some pink and brown stripe yardage.  I tossed in a few surprise squares of curly Minky I had on hand.  I really like how it turned out.

This is a true color photo. 

 

Although the curly Minky looks really high and thick, you don't feel the height difference when you rub your hand over the quilt.  It is so velvety soft! 

 

Cream colored Minky on the back.

Sweet!

Grandmother's Sewing Basket

My Grandmother Pierce taught me to sew.  I was lucky that she started early because she died when I was 7 years old.  I have had her sewing basket for many years, but have just come to really appreciate it and all the interesting items it contains.

I have opened it up to share the contents today.

It has a green silk lining--well worn in some areas.  At the top is an ivory thread winder.  This diamond or cross shape was very common.  Next are 2 sizes of button hooks. They were used to button all the tiny buttons on gloves, blouses, dresses and of course--shoes. 

Here is a close up of the thread winders with a bit of rose silk thread.  I am using a quarter for size comparison.

This is a Maple darning egg: used for darning sox.  You can't really tell from the photo, but it is well worn.  The seam guage feels heavy and is made of steel.

Size #12, #9, and #5 crochet hooks.  I use occassionally these for picking out errant threads.

Sheffield Steel Needles.   These "extra large smooth eyes" are almost too small to thread . . . and I have reading glasses and good light!

Notice how they were packaged with a bit of muslin fabric.

The two curved needles at the top were called sail-maker needles and were used to repair canvas, tarps, upholstry, etc.  The third needle down with the large flair was used to sew up burlap.  After the wheat was harvested and the grain was put in burlap sacks (gunny sacks) the top was sewn shut with heavy cord pulled through by this large needle.  At the bottom, the mother-of-pearl needle/punch with two center eyes is a mystery to me.

Oil Can.  It was used by pushing the bottom with your thumb, you would get a drop of oil with each "click."  

 . . . and now for my favorite part of the sewing basket.  Thimbles.

Close ups

 . . .  and my favorite of the favorites: The filigree is actually very fine, flat layers of metal that have been "curled" into shapes and inset in the larger peices of curved metal.  The top has been stamped with star shaped indentations and it has been attached with solder.

I hope you have enjoyed going through Grandma's sewing basket as much as I have.

Spring is not far off!

Spring comes late here in the high desert.  We live at 5,400 feet.  Today there are snowflakes in the air. 

The snow was 37 inches deep during February.  You can see that it's almost gone.  This morning, I found my friendly owl sitting on this post in my flower bed.

Um . . .  No, that's not a blue outhouse in the background.  There are a set of truck scales right there and that's a building you enter to weigh the trucks. A few years back, I e-mailed some similar photos to our daughter when she was in college.  One of her classmates asked her if that was our "toilet house."  We might live in the "Wild, Wild West," but we do have indoor amenities.

He or she (how do you tell?) reminds me of an old setting hen perched on a clutch of eggs.

See the snowflakes in the air?

I am going to have my grandkids come up with a name.  I can't just keep referring to it as "the owl."  He/she needs a name.  I will let you know.

Cuddly and Soft

Here are a couple of little customer quilts I finished up this weekend.

Geometrics

Cotton with Minky on the back

~~~~~~~~~~

Flannel and Minky

Horses

Al Lind: American Hero

This Quilt of Valor top was pieced by Al Lind of Quincy, Washington. I have had the priviledge of quilting 13 of Al’s quilt tops over the past 2 years.

Each of his finished quilts are sent, packaged with his 7 page story.  Here is a small excerpt from his story:

"Al Lind: Drafted in 1942, the work hardened farm boy from South Dakota had entered the army strong and fit at 160 pounds. June 18th, 1945 he returned to American soil, a survivor of 23 months and 11 days as a POW--he was 80 pounds of rawboned courage.

He married and returned to a life of farming. When he retired he was always looking for something to do. That’s how he began cutting cotton strips for his neighbor, a quilter. She told him about Quilts of Valor.  When Al found out more about the effort, he put hours in each day cutting fabric for others as well. Within a few weeks, he was taught to make foundation string pieced blocks with a borrowed sewing machine. He now has his own machine and makes 10-12 quilt tops a month.

For him, service to country is a lifelong commitment. His quilts now honor those who followed in his footsteps: the men and women of the United States Armed Forces who each day stand ready to risk lives to protect the freedoms all of us enjoy."

Al Lind celebrated his 92nd birthday January 1, 2010.

These string pieced quilts have hundreds of donated fabrics in them:  all kinds of prints, all kinds of colors, all sizes utilized.

Al takes all those fabrics, cuts them into strips and turns them into a work of art!

The quilting pattern I used is called "Allegiance" by Kristin Hoftyzer.

Thank you Al Lind.