I created a huge pressing surface for myself, something I’ve wanted for many years! I used 1/2″ OSB (Oriented Strandboard), two layers of Warm & Natural Batting, some muslin and my favorite staple gun. To keep it from moving, I set a large piece of gripper pad (sold as shelf liner in department stores) underneath! Here’s the vid:
Marguerita’s Blog
More Crazy Shortcut Quilts!
Whoooo Hooo! I just added several photos to the Quilt Gallery and they are awesome looking quilts! Thanks to Amy, Pat, Irma and especially Joanna, who has been helping me with a project I am working on…..stay tuned!! 🙂
Smiles
Two New CSCQ Quilts in the Gallery!
Thank you Pam and Joan!! 🙂
Be sure to peek at Sarah’s Blog for her new quilt too!
Safe and happy holiday wishes from me to you,
Marguerita
The Story of Penny’s Quilt
Back in the mid 1990’s I started quilting and it didn’t take long before I fell in love with machine quilting. I machine quilted for Trish Stuart, who had just made the transition from making patterns to making self-published books. We made a great team! I went to Quilt Market a few times with Trish and meanwhile my friend Penny had started quilting – and Penny does everything GUNG HO!
Penny and I decided to go to spring Quilt Market to help Trish launch her new book “Color Art” in 2002. The first day was a blast but that night in the hotel room Penny was sick. So sick that we had to take her to the hospital – and there she stayed for 3 weeks. It was incredible trauma for us all and for Penny, who is NEVER sick!
Trish made this quilt for Penny and I promised to quilt it for her but I’ve run into difficulty (as have Trish and Penny) over the past years – and with moving, giving the quilt back to her, moving again, getting it back and re-promising to quilt it, I am thrilled to say that Penny’s Quilt is quilted!
I made two videos to go along with it – the first one tells the story of Penny’s Quilt. It’s an important story to three people – me, Penny and Trish. Probably not too interesting to anyone else, but I wanted to make the video. The lighting isn’t good – I’m still learning how to judge lighting.
The second video is me doing the quilting. I use three different stipple techniques on Penny’s Quilt and I show each of them on the video. I just can’t tell you how wonderful it was to give Penny her quilt yesterday. We sat and talked for hours. She lives about 200 miles from me now and we don’t get to see each other much – but distance doesn’t alter friendship and Penny is a lifelong friend, one of my very best friends. She’s into beading now, as well as quilting, and she’s poking through her bead stash looking for a few sparklies to embellish her quilt with.
Here’s Penny’s Quilt Story:
Here’s how I quilted it:
Sashing Your Squares
Hi Quilters! I get a few emails every now and then about the sashing on our quilt as you go style of quiltmaking, and I re-read the book (thanks to my friend Phyllis at Patchwork Plus in Virginia!) and I want to clarify something for all of you experienced quilters!
We use a “true” 1/4″ seam or even a FAT quarter inch seam when sewing on our sashing strips! Here’s a short video I made about it, with a little teaser at the end 🙂
Now, the reason I said “experienced quilters” is because of the precise piecing requirement of a scant 1/4″ seam that much of traditional quilt piecing uses. Beginners don’t know about this and they never have a problem, but experienced quilters will often use a scant 1/4″ seam out of habit, and then they are disappointed with how the sashing finishes up.
Of course, being experienced quilters, they quickly realize that a fast pass, with a wider seam, fixes everything and they keep quilting right along! Many, many thanks to Phyllis at Patchwork Plus for helping me see that this could be explained better! 🙂
Chain Piecing for Quilting
This one is a basic chain piecing demo with some pressing information (which I learned the hard way!)
Quilt Confession …
I have to confess ….. I buy quilt blocks and quilt tops on ebay. There. It’s out.
Sarah recently gave me back of pile of blocks that I had dumped on her, after deciding I’d never do anything with them. Does that make them double UFO’s? RUFO’s – Returned Un-Finished Object? WIHIMMBGTSE – Works I Had In My Mind But Gave To Someone Else? 🙂 I could go on forever…
So, back to the drawing board – and glad I am!! Guess what – I needed them back! I want to make a video of using regular quilt blocks, done with our quilt as you go technique, and I was actually looking for more blocks to buy on ebay!! She just saved me money! (Don’t tell her, she’ll want a cut of it!)
Check back soon for how to finish your UFO quilt blocks using quilt as you go, with videos and all, so go find those blocks, and we’ll get them quilted together!
(Okay, DON’T tell Sarah, but I just bid on some more blocks on ebay! Ssshhhhhhhhhhh!)
Bunny Update
My friend Ferne reminded me that I haven’t posted about the bunnies lately – thanks for the reminder Ferne!
We have more bunnies. Our neighbors called a few weeks ago and said that they were rescuing some baby bunnies that had been separated from their mother by someone who traps the rabbits and takes them far away and releases them. This jerk (I wrote dumbshit but took it out) took a female rabbit 10 miles away and a few days later found out that there was a litter. She just figured on letting them die.
My neighbor Jean decided otherwise.
Jena called Tom and I to ask what the baby bunnies needed to survive. We gave her some supplies, lots of advice and offered to help. Jean kept them for about 5 weeks and then ran out of room and time (travel away from home) so we took them in. Tom build a pen in the back yard, away from the roof construction, gave them an old truck canopy to hide under, and they have been in bunny heaven ever since! Bunnies LOVE dandilions and rasberry leaves and they have been pigging out on that plus pellet food, frolicking and playing, hiding and sleeping.
Jean still visits them and brings them treats 🙂 There are three white ones and one tan one.
And, such a happy ending, I recently bumped into my two favorite tan bunnies on 4th Avenue as I walked to work – it was such a treat to see them again because I had not seen them for 3 weeks and I was afraid that they’d been trapped or killed AND last night my favorite black bunny (he’s very old and not healthy) stopped by for some carrots and pellets! What a great day.
Oh, and the roof is DONE!
Mystery Donor
You angel! Thank you for your donation to Charity:water!
I am working on 3 projects that I want to use to both provide new products to quilters AND to generate revenue to causes that I believe in: water and micro-loans.
I have been investigating Kiva.org and I love what they are doing, however I would also like to participate in either a women-only micro-loan program or a United States based micro-loan program. I intend to tie my future quilting endeavors to those programs, but I want to chose several projects to invest in.
Do you have suggestions on which ones you prefer or recommend? I would love to learn more and value anything anyone has to say!
