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.

World Quilt Show-New England - Mancuso

This morning six of us headed off at 7:00am to attend the Mancuso Quilt show in Manchester, New Hampshire. Pictured are, L-R Koleen, Helen, Sherry, Barbara, our able driver, Lois and me. Our first stop was Dunkin Donuts of course and on our way down the highway. We arrived around 10:30am excited and did the vendors first.....looked at stunning quilts (posted in above blog) It was a fun trip for all of us.












When I went to Lancaster, Pa. earlier this year some of the gals got these beautiful hand done pieces at the show. I looked at them but just could not make up my mind as to what I wanted. They were vending here in NH and I was determined to come home with at least one. I ended up with two. They are hand done by this lady and it is done from the back. It is called Hmong Pandau needle design by Nhia Lo. I plan to frame them.




I love black and white and this was stunning to me. Simple and yet striking. They both are small and I will mat and frame them.




















Of course you cannot got to a quilt show without purchasing things you just think you need. Some of which included Christmas and pumpkin designs from Pickering Farm Quilt Shop to add to my stash and Kona Snow background material. and a great piece with jungle animals for a baby quilt. (his room will be decorated with them per his daddy). I also found this wonderful tape measure for my quilter called a centering tool from Quilters Rule. It is said of quilters, produce a new tool and they will purchase whatever the price. Sometimes that is true but I do try to be frugal. (smile).

To end our day after eating dinner in Portland we saw this beautiful moon as it showed itself on the horizon as we travelled the Maine turnpike. We tried to get pictures but there were so many cars. When I got home lo and behold it was still in the sky and this is what it looked like. As we were riding we could see a indentations that actually looked like a face in the moon. Guess that is why it is called 'the man in the moon' What a spectacular sight.

Hydrangea - Spectaular View

Yesterday as my husband and I came from having lunch we drove through Hallowell and the most beautiful site of flowering Hydrangea were in full bloom. They stand in front of the cemetary bordering the road. Every year we enjoy them so thought you might like to see a spectacular sight. This morning the sun was shining after yesterday's rain so I decided to take a jaunt in early this morning as the sun was coming up and before I started my usual Monday cleaning and laundry.This is a picture of the row and of course I could no way get all of them. I took time to count and was surprised that their were 80 bushes. A company out of Massachusetts cuts them each year. You are fined if you are caught taking any. Below is a close up view. They are shrubs of the saxifrage family, with opposite usually serrate leaves and large showy clusters of white, blue or pink flowers. The color depends on the soil. These bushes do very well here in Maine and display a colorful array each year for us to behold.

Star BOM #4

Block of the Month #4 done!! We lost our power today because of the wind from Ike. What to do was the question....with no electricity or water I decided to cut this block out that I had downloaded this morning. This was an easy one to get twisted up but I used my design board to lay it out and sew piece by piece being careful as to direction....making sure to get all my lines going the same way. I am really liking these blocks...thanks Judy for the time you put into them...greatly appreciated.

Star BOM #3

#3 Block of the Month with Judy Laquidara finished!! With vacations and this 'n that I am lagging behind. But I conquered it and I am pleased with it. It has been really fun doing this. It has been great seeing all the different color combinations. I have checked them all out even though I do not comment. Great job to all!

Tacoma Lake Group

Our first meeting was held this past Wednesday. This is the finished Sampler our group worked on this past year. L-R Beth, (our great out-going Pres. who challenged us with this project), Bev and Pauline. Mine is still sitting on my quilter to be finished and there are several others still in different stages. It is amazing how different they look and yet are the same blocks. Job well done galsS

Also on the agenda was a new president, elected was Barbara Duffy, who comes with much experience and many ideas that will help us to learn new things this year. Check out her blog.

Above is her quilt 'Split Personality' and below the 'Gingerbread Jingle', these were beta tested by Barb and designed by Koleen Painchaud. You can check out her website and see the many wonderful designs that she offers plus other services.

Brother-Super Quilter

I have been asked what my super quilter looks like...I am in the process of loading a quilt today so decided to take some photo's. This is a Super Quilter Original and a Brother 1500 sewing machine. I had handi handles and used them for a while but then decided to get a Quilters Cruise Control. You cannot use both but I kept the frames and handles and it took care of the wires.






















This is where I hide myself away with my Janome 6500 and my new desk purchased from Tony's in Sanford. Very comfortable studio for me. I had a cabinet and installed 2 thread holderes and a whiteboard with one side cork so I can write or pin instuctions at eye level. I also put a shelf underneath my new cabinet. So comfy I am.....

'Flowering Green' UFO top finished

This is another UFO top finished. It was started in 2006 as a block of the month at a local shop named 'Whipper Snappers'. I started with 3 basic colors . The 13 finished blocks sat in a bin waiting for me to finish for a while. The original design did not have a border but the print I chose was too much and so decided on the navy that I used to frame the blocks with to pull it together. I really like the addition.Below - A Close up of one of the borders. This quilt was designed by Mary Ann Florek and measures about 89"x 89". It will go on my bed for now after I have it machine quilted. I have named it the 'Flowering Green'

Star BOM #2

My 1st block was posted about midnight Eastern Standard time and here is the 2nd block of Judy Laquidara Block of the Month and it will be midnight by the time I get it posted. I am real pleased with it. I have never mitered corners before. Amazingly everything matched and I have 12 1/2" unfinished. Judy said the first two were the hardest. Whew!! I am looking forward to the 3rd one. I have also enjoyed looking at all the other blocks as they have been posted. The color combinations are outstanding...Glad to to be part Judy..thank you for your hard work. I really appreciate it.

DownEast Trip - Milbridge

This was a trip we made this weekend DownEast as Mainer's call it. We went to the Milbridge area and these pictures are taken off a little place that you find when you follow some of the side roads to the ocean. It is utterly breath taking. This rock sits precariously just waiting to be 'shoved' in!! My husband went down to it but I chose to stay on the 'high ground'... several people have been known to get down where there are slippery rocks and fall and drown. Once you are in the waves it is hard to get out. This is my hubby and I...taken by a lady who was from Pa. She, her hubby and young son had been in the area for a week and had taken over 300 pictures. So I do not feel so bad with I am 'clicking away' and someone makes fun of me. This is another one of desires - photography..will not live long enough to fulfil everything I would like to do.
This is a picture of the fog that rolls in in seconds and then a few minutes later would clear....we watched it several times....in the winter they call it 'sea smoke' at least that is what a resident told us in our travels.
This picture below was taken and you could see the boats and a little later they were invisible because of the fog. You can see some of the lobster traps in the water. In one bay alone there are over 1,000 traps. There are dedicated men who work hard, long hours just so we can enjoy the delicious lobster. I had 2 lobster rolls and 1 crab meat roll this weekend. They were soooo good! My husband would have bought me a whole lobster but I said I wanted 'lazy' lobster. Which means you do not have to pick it from the shell.
All above pictures were taken Friday afternoon. And in the tradition of this summer we hit hard driving rain on Saturday as we were headed to Machias Blueberry Festival. Many drivers stopped along the road because of it. I am sure it was particularly hard on the many bicycler's along the way. We walked among the booths like everyone else and got wet. Have you ever tried putting two people under one small umbrella successfully!! I always travel with a larger one but he is always making 'fun' of me and 'chiding' me so I just tucked my little one in my luggage. Needless to say he wished I had brought another. Can I say 'I told you so', or 'Lesson learned', Well I am going on and on and need to wind this up. The Maine coast is so beautiful and we do not visit enough and enjoy it. Today, Sunday, we headed home and the day is sunny and beautiful. A promise of a good week. We are all crossing our fingers....maybe we will get to finish our haying.

Poinsettia Pot Wall Quilt

Christmas in July, a project that I started with my group 'Casey Quilters' is finally finished ! Poinsettia Pot Wall Quilt from the book 'A cozy Quilted Christmas' by Kim Schaefer. It is 29 1/2" x 36 1/2" Wall hanging.
I used many techniques, iron on, machine and hand work. I will finish it off with binding that is finished by hand. I really enjoy decorating my house at Christmas time with different quilted pieces.

Rain in Maine

Rain , rain go away ..

Come back some other day!

This is what the kids use to sing...it has rained for at least 2 weeks....and yesterday and today the sun did shine but there was a shower each day...it makes for dreary days....

Friday was cleaning day...my granddaughter Allison helps me but it is so hard when it is dark and dreary so I put all the lights on in the house to brighten it up and give the feel of sunshine.

Saturday my husband spoke at a men's meeting in the morning and then we were off to the Skowhegan Fair....we watched the truck and tractor pulls and ate dough bread and sausage sandwiches...you know the junk food you have once in a while that tastes good when going down but makes you feel yucky afterwards. The deal for me was that if I could go to quilt store first I would go. He wanted to go to the farm store so it was a swap off. I bought 5 yards of light grey with a swirl pattern in it, a quilters rule with markings for 16th inches and a product I have not tried before 'Mary Ellen's Best Press' it is a clear starch alternative. I had seen it at the quilt show and the lady assured me it worked wonders on bias. So of course, I said I had to have it..at least I will try it.

After church today we rode to Camden...it is a pretty little village and the clouds in the sky were pretty amazing as they are bringing in another storm and of course, I did not have my camera so needless to say there are no pictures.

You can see I have been busy and have not done any quilting but tomorrow I will try to conquer some things.

If you want to see what the flooding looks like...Sue, my friend has a link on her website and it will show you what a road being washed away...pretty amazing.


http://www.wmtw.com/video/17144859/index.html

Strippy Quilt

I copied this pattern 'My favorite quick donation quilt' by Mary Johnson online and not sure where. It is one of those things you see and know you would like to do and place in a stack 'until'. I visited Marden's recently...'all Maine girls know where that is'...you can get great fabric...great prices....if you hit it right and know your material...so bought 1 yard each of focus fabric...tone on tone and an accent piece. A lady ahead of me was purchasing these and I simply said 1 yd each...easy purchase...no struggle....don't you love it.. Below is a close up...it was fun to do....I bought some tiger prints at our local quilt show and will do some for my twin grandsons (10 years old) and make matching pillow cases...they are something they do not have to be careful with.
I have 6 tops ready to be quilted..just purchased a Quilters Cruise Control for a short-arm and practicing some different designs...practice makes perfect...Right!!

Pattern is:
1 yard of a focus fabric - cut 5 strips 6.5 inches by WOF
3/4 yard of tone on tone - cut 6 strips 3 inches by WOF
(1 yard if you use this fabric for binding)
1/2 yard of accent fabric - cut 10 strips 1.5 inches by WOF
(1 yard if you use this fabric for binding)

• Assemble as shown in the picture above - please note that the top and bottom strips do not have accent strips sewn on the outside edges of the quilt
• If focus fabric is directional, pay attention as you sew sections together.
• Quilt size is approximately 41 x 56.

This is the basic instructions but you can add to them ...change width etc...lots of options.

If you choose to make one have fun and it is so quick. My friend Sue has made some also and you can check her blog out...

http://northwindsquilting.blogspot.com/2008/07/bug-strippy-2.html

Star BOM #1

Well it is midnight here in Maine and I have conquered the #1 Block of the Month that Judy Laquidara is posting. Realized after I took picture I did not take it straight on but my points are there. I had never worked with 1/16 of an inch before...I think this is going to stretch me a little....most everything is on 'bias' .....but I will conquer...Also was not sure about the colors I chose but I think it will give it punch when done... thanks Judy for the challenge.

It is Monday August 11 and I decided that I did not like the background I had chosen as it was too directional ....so I purchased the same light gray but with a different dynamic to it...I also used 'Mary Ellen's Best Press' The clear starch alternative on the bias pieces and had a much easier time doing this second one...I used the same center and the green I had used previously.. I think I am finally pleased with it...