Making a Decision

I have recently finished several tops and I’m feeling the need to get some of them moved to the quilted pile. I’ve taken pictures and trying to decide. I think I have suitable backings for almost all of them. Any favorites you think I should start with?

Well they are ALL sideways!!!  Just tilt your head :). Some of these are old and some I finished the other day. Thanks for your help.
Karen

Road Trip to Mrytle Beach

I know we all do it.  When we're getting ready to go on a trip, we have to make sure we have and hand project ready in case we need it :).  Well, we went to visit our children over Easter/Spring Break a few weeks ago.  In case you're wondering, Mrytle Beach, SC is 711 miles from Pensacola, FL.  It's a long way!  But I took this sweet project along for the ride.

I've been working on it for a few months.  I had all the applique pieces prepped, so it was fun.  And so, after 1400 miles, it's all done!

Remember when I was working on these paper pieced Civil War flying geese?  These are all parts of a wallhanging that I won as a giveaway from Kathie. 

Well.... drumroll please, the top is done!! Yay.  I'm ready for the quilting.

It is such a pretty piece.  I didn't substitute any of the fabrics, this is one time I followed all the directions LOL!  So glad I did - it looks wonderful. 

Then is was on to MB and time to be with these sweet people :).

After church we tried to take some Easter pictures on the beach - as you can tell, we pretty much got blown away!

But something is better than nothing.

This is my son's current assignment with CFA (remember he was in Cedar Rapids, Iowa).  They've been in this condo since Jan. 1st, but while we were there we helped them move into a 2 BR apartment.  So glad we had a chance to enjoy this view.

There was plenty of time to play on the beach.  The water was about 55 degrees, so no swimming for us.

Here's my little super hero......

and here are my precious girls :). 

I am blessed.  Have a great weekend,

Karen

Not Much Progress...

We are still in NC enjoying our family, but will head back to Florida tomorrow.  I haven't done much on this trip except for eat, play cards, watch football, eat and play with my grandchildren.  All in all, it's been pretty perfect.

I am slowly making progress on my little project.

I'm done with the machine piecing and have been trying to work on the applique.

I know when this gets done I will love it!! But I've had trouble getting into a groove.

This picture of my mom and me was taken as we were leaving my parents' house in High Point, NC.  We played about 100 games of Skipbo - and I'm not exaggerating :)!!!!  Such fun.

Happy New Year to you all, this year has been such a fun one for me as I've gotten to know some of you so much better.  I've got news that I'll post about in a few days.....

Karen

Perseverance

I am happy to say that my flying geese are done!!!

I kept tweaking my technique and got faster and faster. 

It is nice seeing all those perfect points.  Aren't these great fabrics??  Now it's on to the applique :).

Here's the start of a new project - only need about 900 hst's.  This is a great start. It's a gift, so I can't share more now but it's a step in a new direction for me.

And my DD sent this, we look a little more revived than the last one, maybe I should always take pictures sitting down LOL!!  I love these little people.

Hope you have a great day,

Karen

One Little Step

All the little pieces are cut and I've started working on the Civil War wallhanging.  These fabrics are so beautiful and fun to work with.

As you can see, I have a long way to go.  And these long papers are a little tricky to work with.  I'm slowly getting the hang of it.  Once I finish all the piecing I'll start working on the applique.

Hope you all are having a nice Sunday, I'll be spending some quality time in my studio "playing" while it's 94 degrees out!!

-Karen

Some Sweet Surprises

I did not have time to post about this before we left for the holiday weekend.  I recently received 2 sweet surprises.  The first was this wonderful stack of pure perfection!!

It's the Seasonal Little Gatherings from Primitive Gatherings.  I was helping a friend finish a project and she surprised me with this.  She knows I did not expect anything, but as we all know, fabric IS the perfect gift :)!  I imagine these fabrics will show up in my quilts for years to come.  Thank you sweet friend - your friendship is a treasure in my life.

My next surprise came when I found out I had won the giveaway from Kathie at Inspired by Antique Quilts.  Kathie and I (and a million other quilters) share a love of Civil War quilts and I heart just about everything she makes :).  This is the cutest little wallhanging.

All the fabric to complete the top is included.  Since I'm kind of at a stuck place on my Jubilee quilt, this little project is the perfect thing to distract me while I wait for more inspiration.

After checking out the fabric in the kit, I realized I did not have a single duplicate of anything in my stash. That's always exciting!!  I actually started cutting this morning so maybe I'll have something to show soon.  I haven't made a little quilt like this before, so I'm excited.  Thanks for sharing Kathie.  I can't wait to see this finished.  And since I've been doing so much applique, I'm in the groove :).

Have a great day,

Karen

I might be crazy....

Do you ever wonder if you have ADD? The more quilters I meet, it seems to be a common condition. As if I don't have enough projects in the works, I've started on another one. And this is not just any project... this one has at least 4,000 pieces!!! At least it seems like this at this point. I'm really afraid to count, I might be totally overwhelmed. All I know is that I've been cutting up perfectly good fabric for hours, and I'm no where near done.
I have finally decided on the project for my collection of Civil War reproduction fabrics (it's only taken me 6 years LOL). It's called Trail Mix and was published in the April 2004 American Patchwork & Quilting. This is what I've accomplished so far. I'm doing each number of blocks at one time (there are 5 different blocks). Then when all the different blocks are done, it should go together pretty easily. At least that's my plan at the moment.... :)

I was inspired by this incredible quilt made by Diane (no blog). This was her project at the Quilt Retreat I went to last summer and she graciously allowed me to show pictures. I can't tell you how beautiful this quilt is. If any of you have ever seen this quilt in person, I think you'll agree - it's spectacular!

Just looking at all her fabrics inspires me to keep going. This will be a long term project (remember that I haven't finished the pineapple blocks yet). And then there's My Little Red. And too many others to even count. But for now, I am very happily cutting and sewing tiny little squares.

Until next time,

-Karen