Quilt As You Go, Simply Done

Simply Done

Quilts in the works

Going shopping for fabric – yay!

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I’ll be in Anchorage for a short period over the weekend and I get to go to my quilt shop! I *love* it there! I always bump into someone I know and I get to look at all the great new fabrics and get inspired by the projects on the walls. Since it is a 5 hour round trip (driving) it’s a big deal to make this trip and a rare treat to have enough time to visit the quilt shop 🙂

I finished my Funky, Fuzzy squares and I need some sashing for them and I need sashing for another project (photos and video coming soon!). If I fall in love with a stiletto, I may even treat myself to one! Right now I use my seam ripper or a long, strong hat pin but I’ve always admired Eleanor Burn’s stiletto and it sure would have helped when I was couching down that fuzzy yarn. Since I really liked that project and want to do more like it, I just think I *need* a stilletto, don’t you? Do you have one? How do you use yours?

Fabric Withdrawal

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How long can you go without sewing or quilting? I have not sewn or quilted since mid October! I was starting to think that I was cured. Then it hit. Two days of not sleeping well, feeling out of sorts and then *fabric attack*! It’s worse than an allergy attack 🙂

I want to touch it, wash it, iron it, spray it with starch and cut it and then mix it all up and sew it! So, tell me, how long can you go? The Stashbusters Group on Yahoo! has a saying, “find 15 minutes to sew each day”. Do I listen? No, I let it build up like swollen river at a dam! Okay, gotta go, projects and UFO’s are calling!

Videooooooooooooo

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I have been having both fun and absolute total frustration – what a combo! And what can cause that? Either quilting a perfect seam and then finding a pucker on the back (oh, yes that has happened to me many times) or a computer. Heh. So, I bought a video camera that I needed to learn to use, didn’t understand how to use the editing software; had a major computer crash while simultaneously uploading and downloading videos…well, you get the idea.

I have created an account at You Tube (my pal Trish has some vids there!) and so does Pat Sloan – -whom I greatly admire. http://www.youtube.com/user/CrazyShortcutQuilts and I’ve started uploading some things that I like to teach. I’ll be adding more in the next few weeks and any comments or advice is very welcome! This is all very new to me so I am learning as I go, but overall I am having fun! Oh, and the “Bobbin” video has some squares that I am going to start quilting – in the hopes of making a quilted vest or jacket. I saw some sweet patterns at Market that motivated me even more to “get the lead out” and get to work on this project!

Here’s a very short clip of my little pumpkin, Audrey (my granddaughter).

Getting ready for Quilt Market

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This is what happens when I am working on quilts…..hehehehe….and I’m not even apologetic about it! Every load of washing (at least I’m washing the dirty clothes!) gets brought up to the living room and then left there. That’s why I have about 7 laundry baskets…this is a lifelong habit and it makes me laugh. When I am done with my current quilt project (or I run out of baskets) then I’ll start putting clothes away. Until then…..need clean socks? Go to living room and search baskets…….. LOL

Here’s some of my squares from this project….

Funky Fuzzy Shortcut Quilt

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This baby is my favorite – by far! I wanted to couch down some yarn instead of quilting my squares, and I dug through my stash and found this chunky funky fuzzy yarn – -isn’t it delicious?
I’ve been using a narrow zigzag stitch to couch it down and it’s going slower than I thought it would but that’s just because of the little fuzzy bubbles in the yarn and the fact that I get to sew for only a few hours a week. We are still doing maintenance and work on the boat and putting up fish for winter. If you are following along and want to make the quilt – – I’ll post the whole story on our website when I get the quilt finished. I am using the sizing from the book for “Easy to Go Crazy” and the cutting design from “Think Pink”. I am making a few adjustments as I go so be sure to check back for the final post about this quilt. 🙂

Funky Fabric

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It’s time to make a quilt. I need a fabric “fix” 🙂 I found these in my stash, from a project I never even started (how perfect is that! Now they are ready for this project!) That’s my philosophy and I’m sticking to it. Doesn’t that black and white check make you dizzy? I love it!

Fabrics from Spring Quilt Market

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I let Sarah do my fabric shopping for me and here’s what she chose:
a beautiful collection of soft earthy colors called “Victoria” by Benartex
and a nice set of complementary fabrics by Andover (the lighter fabrics) and Quilt Gate (the darker maroon colored fabrics). It is absolute heaven to have a “fabric advisor” that I can trust! Now I just need to decide which quilts to make and who gets them….fun!