Turning Twenty

This is the sky today overlooking our fields....oh those storm clouds are brewing....wonder what's ahead.I had told a fellow blogger that I had done two turning twenty quilts only to discover I had just one on this blog. So I got to digging in my quilt studio and found the second one (design is by Tricia Cribb's). I did this one first, and a second one for my daughter-in-law in Tn. Hers is posted and was done in pinks/purples. Easy and fun quilt. It is quite big so I put it on the line and chose to show if off with the woodsy background. It was a beautiful day outside sunny with a little wind, leaves almost gone but still green grass.

Casey's Quilters Retreat Finale

Here are my quilting buddies for 2 day retreat. L - R - Kay of Casey Quilters where we meet twice a month, Helen, Chris, Janice, and Sue.

Below is Sherry our instructor - this is her finished top that inspired us. Her's was scrappy and done in Christmas prints.

Margo's - 3 rows finished - 2 more to go. I wanted it masculine looking.

Helen was the only one to finish her top. She wanted it with an elegant look.

Chris finished this top that will be given to charity and also started a second one for charity. That is her mission in life and she is a blessing to many who would never have a quilt. She also does chemo hats. Her hands are a gift to others.

Janice stars really popped with her black and red.

Kay's cardinals all going in the right direction thanks to Helen (smile).

Last but not least we have Sue who did her's scrappy but very nice.

This was what we accomplished in 2 days and we agreed it was a wonderful time. Will be fun to see them all finished. Sherry was a wonderful hostess fixing all our meals and so all we had to do was show up and quilt. Thanks Sherry and Kay

Casey Retreat-Saturday

We arrived this morning for Casey's Retreat at Sherry's studio with sewing machines in tow and our material all cut and ready to go. Most of us had made a sample block and after putting them on the design wall some changes were made.

It was a fun day as we interacted with one another...eating lunch and dinner and all the goodies provided. Most of us conquered approx. 10 blocks. Also pictured is the quilt Sherry, our instructor, made from the corners that were cut off. We left tired but will arrive again tomorrow refreshed and ready to conquer the remaining blocks. (schroll down and you will see the finished picture of the "Theresa Star" and more information. I will post more later.

Theresa's Star

Casey Quilters Retreat will be this next week at Sherry's Studio. The project is 'Theresa's Stars' designed by Theresa Eisinger in Quiltmaker, Nov/Dec 2005. It is Queen size. Many of the gals will be using Christmas fabrics. Some have chosen other palette's.
It is a 2-day retreat. We have lunch and supper together plus coffee breaks. A wonderful time for all of us.

This square was a trial run of the fabrics I chose. I bought them last weekend when we went on a bus mystery trip with Backroad Quilters. They are:

'Splendid Holiday' by The Benartex Studio. (Gold)

'Vintage Stitches" by Thimbleberries RJR fabrics. (green)

'Let it Snow' by Kris Lammers and Maywood Studio. (Plaid)

I will pick up the orange/red for the first border 1-1 1/2" and use the Green for a 3" border.

I have a beige backing with a slight swish of green in it. It will be 61x74 approx.

At the end of next weekend I should have a completed top if everything goes right! Famous last words...It is always fun to get together with other gals on similar projects.

Star BOM #6

It is a sunny day here in Maine....temperature is 49 degrees so it is crisp. I have been under the weather for a few days physically so decided it was a good time to attempt Block #6. Judy Laquidara offers a Block of the Month designed by her in EQ6 and she posts the pattern on the 1st and 15th of each month. This has been a learning experience using the 16 inch for some of the measurements. I am finally comfortable with it after 6 blocks. My color palette has 8 colors with a new one introduced this time. It has been fun to watch the other gals each month and see their color combinations. I really appreciate this opportunity to challenge myself and Judy's time that she has put into it.

My JOY - Grandchildren - quilting & Kiting

This is a view of our Statehouse dome in the distance from across the Kennebec River. Could not resist the beauty of the season.

I had so much fun this weekend. I had my twin grandsons -10 years old on Saturday and they watched for the wind so we could fly kites. Sure enough in the afternoon there was enough to get them up and the boys were tireless, but Gram who was their helpmate was dragging before they were...it was a great time to make a memory in our wide open fields. Hard to see the kite, but the sky is beautiful with the trees with the beautiful Fall colors and white fence that holds horses. Sunday was a special day with my granddaughter.Old Fort Western, built in 1754 and a National Historic Landmark, is America's oldest surviving wooden fort - a reminder of the great contest between cultures that dominated New England life 250 years ago. Today was open house.

My granddaughter (pictured below hand quilting) served there this summer dressing in the period costume and was involved with different activities. Today I had the joy of sitting down with her and hand quilting. She is a confident young lady having made 2 quilts herself. Of course, she is following in her Gram's footsteps and her mom's, who is also an excellent seamstress. This was special for me.

Today they were baking, making beds, a man running a forge, melting pewter and making a spoon. Also young people were making apple cider and serving it. Men and women are stationed throughout the building sharing the history of James Howard and his family. If you want to know more of its history you can check out their website above.

A Day with Alex Anderson in Maine

What a wonderful day spent at the Alex Anderson Event sponsored by Cote’s Sewing & Fabric Center in Auburn at the Hilton Garden Inn. She is a representative of Bernina and they presented the new 830 Bernina sewing machine.

Over 250 ladies (10 of my quilting buddies) gathered to hear her quilting journey as a young girl to hosting “Simply Quilts” on HGTV, to the Internet “The Quilt Show” with Alex and Ricky Tims co-hosting.

She was such a joy as she shared her experiences and challenges of her years of getting to where she is today. In the morning meeting she talked about the traditional and artsy quilts and everything that is in between and where she fits. She made you feel so comfortable no matter if you were a new quilter or an experienced quilter like our friend, Koleen who has a quilt that will be entered in the Houston Quilt Market and out of 657 entries, they only pick 380 and she got picked to display. It will be judged also. The Quilt Market is actually 2 shows and will be displayed for around 6 weeks. It is for sale for $25,000. She received a blue ribbon last year at Maine Quilts. It is called "Rose Sampler Supreme'. People from all over the world attend and will pay big bucks. This is just an added note about a local gal we are proud of. Check out her website. She also has her own quilt patterns for sale plus other things.

There was a book signing of her recent book during lunch. The afternoon session was a question and answer period from different types of batting to fabrics that run to what machine does she use and the kinds that she owns. She is a Bernina gal. I appreciated the fact that if she did not know the answer she simply said so, and deals with problem areas as she goes in her quilting saying that she has no hard and fast answer on some things.

A cute little story she told and not sure if I can get it right but the gist of it is – when she was a young girl she had a wooden door and behind that door were alligators and she knew she had to always remember to close it tight because if she did not the alligators would get out and dance around her bed. Some years later she remembered this and wondered what would have happened if she had let the alligators out to dance. She asked the question is your alligator machine quilting, paper piecing, appliqué, traditional, artsy quilting. She said. ‘identify your alligator and dance with it’. Her mission in life is to bring people into their own path of discovery and what they find passion in doing in the world of quilting.

And of course, Cote’s had set up a small store with Bernina machines, cabinets and the new Bernina quilting frame and many of Alex’s books. I had $25 gift certificate I had won from their Pa. Quilt trip last winter. I purchased 3 charm packs ‘Wildflower Serenade’, 'Peace on Earth' and ‘Tiny Tidings’ by Moda.

And then it was off to Marden's where they had ‘Thimbleberries’ for $2.99 a yard. Everyone had the same idea so I decided ‘not today’ for me. Purchased some Christmas paper and on to home. Great Day!

Design Walls

I finally finished my new design walls last week. I had only a piece of flannel pinned to the wall and when I needed a large quilt hung it was difficult to hold and the pins were ruining the paper underneath. I use my design wall to arrange and work off from when sewing pieces together. So I decided to purchase insulation board. After cutting to the correct size I taped the edges and then sprayed the writing so it would not show through. I used 2 layers of batting. The First layer I glued well and the second one was less as I figured it would not move. Then I covered with flannel (108") and hot glued it to the back. The first one is approx 7'x4' and the larger 7'x7' with a corner cut out as I live in an old house with dormer windows. I would lay in bed at night wondering 'how' I was going to handle a 7x7' and do it all in one piece. I removed my sewing machine and superquilter off from the long tables and arranged my cutting table which are almost the same height and placed the 2 sheets side by side. The final thing was putting the flannel on so I just bent the 3' piece over onto the 4' piece after putting the batting on and pinned and glued....Sound easy!!! it was cumbersome, but doable. The next question, how were we (hubby and I) going to tack it to the wall. I wanted it so it was easy to remove if I decided to. We took large metal washers and screwed them at the corners. Perfect!!! What you see on the wall are things in progress... Judy Laquidara BOM and this and that. I know there are several ways to do this but I would do this again as it worked very well and I am pleased with the result.

I seem to be living such a fast paced life that today I went outside this afternoon and took some pictures after cleaning my kitchen and bath. Saturday, it was cleaning the living room and bedroom and shampooing the rugs. I look at my schedule and it is so full that I am stressing, I feel overwhelmed at times. My office/study and quilt room are upstairs and provide a place of refuge for me. Our bedroom is down stairs (hubby never wanted to have to climb stairs). These two rooms are my sanctuary where I can de-stress...read, study, check my email....quilt a little. I work 2 days a week and with all the quilt groups and events going on it fills your calendar quick. Wednesday of this week Alex Anderson will be in the area for an all day meeting which is sponsored by Cote's of Lewiston. A group of us girls will be going and I am sure it will be a wonderful time to glean.
Need to quilt a little and then make supper for hubby and I.

Star BOM #5

This is the 5th in a series of Block of the Month designed by Judy Laquidara. There are 13 in the series and we receive 2 a month. This was the easiest as I have learned the 16" and maticulously measure exactly. I am very pleased with how they are coming out and the color combination I chose. You can check out the progress of several gals on Judy's site. It has been fun to see the different variations of material and colors.