Strip Search...

I started this quilt in June for my sister's 40th birthday...and then summer got in the way and it got shelved.  Well, this past weekend I decided to dig it out and get it done.  I've got a pile of ufo's that are in dire need of some attention...perhaps finishing this one will motivate me to get busy with the others.  I used a Jelly Roll of Autumn Journey by Kansas Troubles that I had hanging around, some border fabric from my stash and the pattern Strip Search.

I finished piecing the top on Saturday....  Quilted it on Sunday, using a copper colored thread and the panto Falling Leaves II. 

I purchased this panto a number of months ago and have been avoiding it as I knew I would need a bit of practice time on this one before I would put it on a customer quilt.  The panto is beautiful with all the different leaves but the back tracking on all the veins is such a pain...looks like I'll need another practice quilt before I'll offer it to clients.

And then I bound it on Monday.  With the help of the pups of course.  They sure love quilts...as soon as they get sight of one they follow me around and just have to lay on it to test it out.  Yay!!!  Project complete!!  Happy B-day Sis!!

Copper...

What a sad little boy.  Copper had a sore spot on his belly that he wouldn't stop licking so after a quick trip to the vet, she sent him home with a cone.  Oh, he was so dissapointed and at first wouldn't move an inch with it on.  Poor little guy. 

Timberline quilted...

After being a flimsy for over 8 months, I finally quilted my Timberline.  I ditched around the star sections and quilted a longarm feather in the cream sections with another feather on the outside border.  I really wanted to quilt heirloom feathers as they are my favorite but with the cream sections being so small and without quilting anything in the dark logs it would have been way over quilted.  I needed an airy feather so this worked well. 

It will be awhile before I can get it hung in my home as it is now on display at Freckles Quilt Shop where I will be teaching this advanced class in October. 

Here is Jasper...he just had to pose for one shot!

And here is Copper...

Giftie...

During one of my camping trips this summer, I came across this pattern booklet for making the cutest wee blocks and using them as quilt art.  There are quite a few patterns to choose from, all making up mini 1.5 inch blocks.  They are traditionally pieced...NOT paperpieced!!!

For a little giftie for my quiltie friend, I found an old frame and selected a few of my favorite blocks, dug through my itty bitty scraps of reproduction fabric and whipped this up for her.  As you can tell by the pic, she just loved it!!!  Afterall, it was she who gave me the stack of reproduction scraps to make my previous 9 patch mini quilt.  Thanks Heather!!

Mini's...

My love for mini quilts goes way back, when I was introduced to paperpiecing and found it so easy to make the perfect little quilts with perfect little points.  Somewhere along the way, I got tired of paperpiecing and stopped making the little guys.  That is until this past winter when I joined the Jo's Little Women club at the local quilt shop.  With my new found LOVE for reproduction fabrics and precision piecing this club was perfect for me.  These quilts are made using traditional piecing methods....not paperpiecing.  Here are a couple of projects that I managed to get done.

The above quilt measures 21x29 inches and would make such a cute little doll quilt.  I'm not normally a cheddar fan and had to do some convincing in order to purchase it but just love how it pops out the 4 patches.  Sorry my pic is so slanty... 

This little guy is my ALL TIME favorite mini quilt.  It actually came from last years club but I couldn't resist it's charm and HAD to make it as soon as I saw it.  Thanks to my dear friend Heather who came rushing over with her scrap bins to help me find the perfect fabrics.  This 9 patch on point mini quilt measures 12x12 inches and each finished nine patch block measures 1.5 inches!!!!  Remember I said NOT paperpieced.  I found it hard at first to manage the itty bitty pieces but soon got the hang of it.  I still have to quilt these guys but couldn't resist showing them off now.  When this one is completed it is going to live on my lazy suzan on the middle of my dining room table!!  I'll show ya later...

It's time...

So you know it's time to update your blog, when your quilty friend says...UPDATE YOUR BLOG!! Ha ha!!! Sorry fellow bloggers, I kinda let my summer run away on me. Tons of camping and quilting! However, it is now....'the most wonderful time of the year'....and the boys have gone back to school and I can actually hear myself think...Woohoo!! I have been keeping busy at the longarm and of course have started a bunch of new projects that I can't wait to share with you!

Today I had my two nieces, aged 4 & 6 over for the day. I was supposed to be at the longarm all day as I am on a tight deadline but I played hookie instead and sewed with the gals. The wee one, Hayley and I made a mini doll quilt. We sorted through my big basket of flannel scraps and came up with a little postage stamp center surrounded by a bunch of borders. She was so cute, everytime we added a border strip she would say..."ooo, it's getting bigger"... with a huge sweet smile.


Shelby and I decided to make this adorable little bag, perfect for a little girl. I rooted through my zillions of charm squares and found that the latest one added to my collection from a dear friend was absolutely perfect for the job! (I have one more pkg left and I think I know the perfect little girl for that one..hehe). Anywho, Shelby was busy sorting through all the charms and picking out her favorites and laying them out into two patterns...one for the outer side of the bag and one for the lining. This bag took exactly 40 squares and is reversible.

Aunty loves you girls!!!