It's been forever

I'm a bad blogger!!! Too much time has gone by.
My daughter & grand dog are on their way home for the holidays, from San Francisco. Can't wait, haven't seen her in a year - too long.
My Carolina Crossroads and Trip Around the World, where big hits. So glad I got them sent out and the girls love them. My Orange Crush ( Bonnie Hunter mystery quilt) is finished and at the long armer. I'm still working on the Honeymoon quilt and the Triple Irish Chain. Ashleys college quilt turned out so cute
The camper is in storage and the weather has turned cold, so looks like quilting weather to me. At least once the holidays are over.
I have two friends fighting for their lives. Please keep Shirlee and Patty close to your hearts. Patty is a life long smoker and was diagnosed with lung cancer and given 6 months. Shirlee has Leukemia and is a born fighter. Polio victim, post polio victim, breast cancer, she fights them all. A brave lady.
I am working strange hours and with Jen here I am going to be occupied, but I will get back to my blog and catch you all up.

It's been months.

I have a lot to catch you all up on.
First off, we have a new camper. Boy, am I surprised. We loved my camper, but.....We were camping July 4th at Lexington Horse Park - my favorite place. They have a camper dealer there, so when you're bored you've got something to do. My son is hot on the track of a toy hauler - as soon as he wins the lottery! I walked in this camper and my jaw dropped. I could have designed this baby. I am also a shopping fool, as well as a quilting fool, so 1 week later we had a new camper. I'll get a pic up.
Both my quilts have been finished by the long armer and look great. Love them - another great job Theresa. My orange crush got caught up in finishing Ashleys college quilt. I am doing trapunto in the signature blocks since we didn't do the siggys. So the OC sits on my design wall and I couldn't even start Bonnies Old Tobacco Road. I didn't think I'd like that quilt - too linear, but the geese make it, I think.
I suggested a swap on Quiltville and Bonnie set DeeDee and I up with our own site, Quiltville Swap, and as DeeDee says, swap divas. I just mailed my first swap and some got them today and seem happy. We had beautiful fabrics and I got some lovely hostess fabric. Thank you gals - love them!
Ashley started college, and she and boyfriend Donavan are missing each other, but surviving.
Did you hear about our wind storm last week? Ike came roaring up from Texas - no rain, just the fiercest wind I've ever seen. 78 mph, I hear. Lots of cosmetic damage - lots of trees down and no electricity for over 6 days. Four trees went down around the camper and didn't touch it. House was fine also. We ended up showering in the camper with the generator running it. I even got the swap completed with the help of my friend Margie. The things you can do!! I wanted to sew, but it didn't stay light long enough. We did have a lot of clean up and by then it was dark. Our land is full of cut up & split wood & branches. Next thing is to get a chipper out here. We are weeks away from being what we where.
I am going to get some pics up and I'll write more later.

This is not a well made piece of furniture, but I fell in love with it. Bob had to remake the draws and he crackle crazed it and it is really pretty now. All my do dads and odds & ends go here.

This sat out in my fil garage until he died - who wanted a smallis entertainment center, even though it was nice. We did. Not much we had to do except revamp the inside with shelving. Looks good in the room too.

More storage

This we found in a second hand furniture store. He just added shelves and voila!

storage and such in the sewing room

This is an old type cabinet - deep, but shallow drawers - perfect for fq. My husband spray painted it and it looks nice

My first featherweight

I have collected sewing machines for years. I love them. But I resisted the featherweights. They were always too expensive and I thought of them as toys. I have the big sister - a black 301 that is gorgeous and sews like a dream. But I got a chance at this machine and now have 2 more coming and maybe more. I am dying to paint a beat up one. My husband is so excited to try it. This little dream is in very very nice shape. I am very happy I got her. She runs quiet and strong. I love Ebay!

I am in the middle of 4 quilts. I started the Double Irish Chain, have a honeymoon quilt for my friend from South Africa, and a college quilt for Ashley and the OC mystery quilt from Quiltville. I turned over my red/yellow Trip and the Carolina Crossroads to the LA. Can't wait to see them. They are going to two nieces in California.

I've had a stiff neck for 3 days and I'm sick of it!!! It does not stop me from sewing.

Hugs to all.

May 27, 2008 - granddaughter graduated high school

This was a huge weekend for us. Ashley graduated from high school with a 4.00 and athlete of the year award. Also, she has a full scholarship to Pikeville college. I call her the best signing bonus anyone ever got. She was 3 when I first met her. Such a cutie pie. I think her mom was thinking I wouldn't be happy with a daughter in law with a child, but boy was she wrong!!! Ashley has 2 little sisters and they love her very much. Ashley, actually, introduced us to her boy friend. And we like him - imagine that! We're so proud of her. Beautiful and smart!

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Here she is - fresh out of storage.

lazy sunday morning mussings

We store our camper inside in the winter, so come April when she shows up, it is always a welcome sight. So here she is.
I was at Quiltville group and updated my quilts and checked out my blog mention and someone - Phyl? put - and she thought she didn't want a camper, beside my blog name. I had to laugh because two things I love the most, I thought I would NOT like. I bought a Pfaff 7570 - have I mentioned I've owned every machine you can think of - well almost - I am addicted to sewing machines - love 'em. And a new friend invited me over and we played with the Pfaff and she told me I would love quilting. I told her I would NOT like quilting - too exacting - lol. But I've always liked fabrics. Fabric to me is like paint is to a painter - I could never have enough. And I have quite a collection. I like scrappy so I buy lots of 1 yd cuts. Yesterday, before the camper came, I started cutting - I am enthused with Bonnies Irish Chain, and I have a ton of batiks that I have been saving, and I thought nows the time. So I am cutting a 2" strip from each batik - well, while I'm cutting my 2", I should cut my 1 1/2" & 2 1/2" strips, right? It was like visiting with a friend. And I kept asking, when did you buy this? I think I saw a batik group online and bought it and never really looked at them. Some are ugly! But some are sure gorgeous. And I realized I have a ton of the fossil ferns also. Also must have been part of a fq group. Since Bonnie is going to have a 2 week timeline for the OC mystery, I am going to start the Irish Chain, for in between. So I'm off to my cutting duties - I could not believe how many strips I got cut yesterday - my bins are straining.
Happy Sunday all.
Judi

back of my trips around the world

This has become my nightmare because I don't usually not like what I am doing. This layout is ok.

What do you all think? Keep going or ditch it?

Trips around the world

It certainly is gloomy out and I have to go out in a bit and workout, since I've been sitting for 2 days. But when I get back Bonnie has put her mystery directions up one day early - yahoo.

Here is the pic of the quilt for Martie's oldest daughter. The mishmash you see is the original disappearing nine patch - which I wish had disappeared. I think I will use it as the back. It will look good there. I put in more than the three fabrics and it just mushed. I've seen some d9p I liked, just not mine.

Change of season always makes me sleepy - should be the opposite - you should be energized for spring. Maybe later.

Light in the Log Cabin window

This was my first, really quilt. It was from Marcia McClosky and the blue and yellow just called to me. I love this quilt. I machine embroidered the blocks and had the rest quilted. Learned to get a price before you have your quilt quilted on this one. Theresa Morales of UNI Quilts does mine now and I think she does a really good job at a fair price.

My first quilt

I saw this pattern called Hidden Wells and thought I'd try it. My dogs like it - lol

My first Bonnie mystery quilt Carolina Crossroads

I think this is a gorgeous pattern and I thank Bonnie for the time & effort she put in to making this so special. I used scrappy golds & blue, but used one light fabric. I really like how that pulled it together.

Album Star baby quilt

This is one of my favorite baby quilts. I was tired of blocks and no interest in between. I went to Marcia Holmes site Quilters Cache and found this pattern called Album Star. I love this and will use it again for sure. This was a commissioned quilt. The fabric was luscious - elephants & lions, just like the appliques.

This is the first quilt I made from Bonnies site - a scrappy trip around the world. I finished it a little different by adding light points. The white was blinding when I was finished so I tea dyed them and am sooo happy I did. Theresa Morales did a great job on the quilting. It's hard to see, but she has a unique pattern in the points.

My Baby Samplers

My husband makes these frames and I combine some of my favorite designs. I've made many of these over the years.

two baby quilts

These are two of my baby quilts I made last year. These machine applique designs are from Hatched in Africa and are my absolute favorite things. I have all their designs and I consider them to be the best of the best. Love, love, love them. When Santi started Hatched and designed her first set - it was violets, I wrote her a fan letter - I never write fan letters. We became fast friends and I am so proud of her, her family, and their success. They are the nicest people in the world. And they help me make darling quilts for my family.

Mystery quilt

I bought this paper pieced quilt pattern and have no idea what it's name is or whose design. I'd love to make it again, but don't know how to find out. It had a cat on the cover. I've searched my house over. My daughter snagged it so I don't see it often, but when I do I drool.
Any help would be so appreciated.

I am still finding my way around blogging. I wanted to add some of my latest baby quilts. I started machine embroidery about 13 - 15 years ago. I started with samplers for the baby's birth and graduated into quilts. I told someone once that I wouldn't like quilting - too precise were my words!!! I have lived to eat those words. I love quilting and I adore fabric.
So here are two of this years quilts and I'll see what I can find that I have photographed.
I've just had cataract surgery on one eye and you'd think that would slow me down, but no, I'm in the middle of a Trips around the world, done in three fabrics. I just got it together so will add a pic in a bit. My next eye is April 24 so think of me.
I am also getting together the fabric for Bonnie's new mystery quilt Orange Crush. This has been fun looking at the other groupings the ladies have put together.

First time blog

I am 63, a hairdresser for 45+ years. A life long sewer and 15 yr machine embroiderer and quilter. My husband and I have been married for 41 years, have 2 children and 3 grand kids, all girls. We are new to camping, this is starting our 3 rd year. We have a 24' Wilderness Scout, that we tow with our Tundra. I am famous in our family, for the words - I don't want no damn camper!!!!!! I didn't until my dil Beth, God love her, made reservations for us in one of those log torture chambers, they call rental cabins. 1/2" mattresses, wood floors that the dogs clicked on all night - and I'm supposed to sleep - it was awful, plus our dogs were not really supposed to be there. How do we camp with our dogs? I woke up the next morning with the answer and began looking for a camper. The first one I saw in person was the one we bought. I really love her and my ever suffering husband Bob does too. I have a small sewing machine I am going to start taking with me. When we retire - or I should say, if, we retire I think it would be cool to get a big camper and just cruise. Of course gas prices have interrupted my dream, but I can still day dream.
I am also famous in my family for my baby quilts and baby samplers. My husbands middle brother lives in California (we are in Ohio - oh right, you know that). His wife was my dearest, most beloved sil, friend, mentor, and we lost her 4 years ago. When Marties youngest daughter had a baby I made her a quilt and she loved it. It was also the first year that this family was not going to get quilts commissioned by Marties mother. She had died the previous year. So, the torch was passed to me. This family has babies every year, plus my friends babies, and some commision baby quilts. I hardly had time to do quilts for me, but....I managed. I will post some pics at another time.
I will write a little bit more each day - now I have to go sew. I am putting together a Trips around the world for Marties eldest daughter. It is going to be so cool.