Tree of Life

The 2015 International Quilt Festival closed a week ago today and I am late in sharing photos and stories from this annual gathering.  I am starting this year's review with a post about the one class that I took this year, the Tree of Life taught by my good friend Sara Hochhauser.  This is a new pattern of a traditional pattern using Thangles. 

This is a new pattern of a traditional block that Sara is developing using Thangles.  Below are the pieces that will be growing into a full tree.

I enjoyed seeing the variety of colors and fabrics that others brought to make this quilt block. Here are a few (the last ones to pack up and leave the classroom -- I didn't think of getting photos until after others had left) of the trees that were started during our three-hour class.

This first one, a Yellow tree, is in the early stages of piecing the sections of leaves and branches for the block.

 

This Blue tree is ready to have the sides stitched together (they are only pinned at the moment this photograph was taken).

This is my Red tree.  It will be going into my growing stack of red-n-white blocks.  I am planning a red-n-white sampler quilt, inspired by last year's huge Red-n-White quilt exhibit to honor the International Quilt Festival's Fortieth Anniversary.

Most students in the class were able to piece the main components of this lovely block, and many actually finished their entire block in our three hour class.

This is another sample that Sara shared with us.  I love the quilting -- the vining leaves on the dark background.  I am also dreaming of making one quilt of four trees, each representing a different season.  Sara also shared her version of a Four Seasons quilt that she had made.  I can also picture my many quilt-pins being attached to the leaves and in the background of this quilt ... I have many plans for more of these tree blocks....


I must end with the tale of a lovely wedding that I attending in New Orleans this week-end.

The bride and groom exchanged their vows under the spreading branches of the spectacular "Tree of Life" located in Audubon Park.

Legend states that "the tree was first planted as a wedding gift for the bride of a New Orleans plantation owner many years ago. And the gift of love still stands today", over one hundred years later.

While many brides and grooms in New Orleans are married standing in front of this massive and impressive Tree of Life, not many of them exchange their vows in a rain storm!  This wedding happened in spite of the weather, and the party that followed was loud and festive.  Great food, drink, dancing and the live music was awesome!  If you're ever invited to a wedding in New Orleans, go!  You will be glad you did -- and check the weather before heading there so you arrive prepared with a rain coat (if needed).  Mazel Tov to Lizzy & Danny!  May your years together be filled with love, sweetness and good times, regardless of the weather outside.

Maple Leaf left-overs

Left over blocks -- and such cute ones too ....

What shall I do with these ... I Must Make Something, of course!

but what ... a table runner?  a totebag?  a quilt?  several coasters/mug rugs?  what do you suggest?

Doll quilts finished

I reached my August goal - hurray!

I have finished Dots for Dolly, my circle dots doll quilt.  It was fun to quilt - probably because I did both hand-quilting and machine quilting on this small quilt.

Here is a view of the front side-by-side with the back.  These photos were taken during the hand quilting stage.  I so enjoyed making this little quilt.


I also made two monster-lizard pencil pouches.  This is a free pattern available from my friend Liz.  Click here to see the directions and pattern on her blog Fat Chick Quilts, http://www.fatchickquilts.com/.

I made the striped one first in a workshop Liz gave to our Houston Modern Quilt Guild and immediately knew that I had to make one for my friend Chela and her little man grandson Isaac.

 These are the three doll quilts that I made especially for Chela... well, specifically for her son's daughters and their American Girl dolls.  I hope they love these doll quilts as much as I do.

These two monster pencil pouches reminds me of chatty lizards and you can see the quilting of the circle dot quilt underneath them.


This completes my August goal in A Lovely Year of Finishes too.  Click here to find out more about this monthly "can you finish it?" challenge being run by Melissa at Sew BitterSweet Designs (http://blog.sewbittersweetdesigns.com/) or Shanna at Fiber of All Sorts  (http://fiberofallsorts.blogspot.com/).

I am Linky #66  in the Goal posting for August (click here to see all that posted goals) and I am Linky #57 in the Finishes posting for August (click here for all who posted finishes) 

August goal for finishing.....

 

Time to declare my goal for the month of August in the A Lovely Year of Finishes ongoing motivational challenge.  This month my goal is to finish doll quilts that I've promised to a friend for

her granddaughters.  They are started but I've stalled out and need to get going again to get them completed and delivered.

The one that is the farthest from completion is nicknamed "Dots for Dolly".

I had fun appliqueing the dots onto the background but how in the world shall I quilt this?

Maybe I will try some big-stitch hand quilting .... in straight lines or in spiraling circles or both?

I also hope to finish this bargello quilt-let which I blogged about here.  Originally meant to be the third doll quilt, it ended up being too small for the requested size, which is probably why I've been stalled on finishing these three quilt tops.  Since this one is too small for the doll quilt, I think it will become a quilted pocket-sleeve for my cellphone (which is a larger size than I've had before).

Join me in the Lovely Year of Finishes fun and set a goal to finish some project you have.  Click here to see who else has set a goal in this month's challenge.  You can find me at linky #66.


<a href="http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/5323349/?claim=2pwmgrxy32v">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>

Summer fun

Have you heard of the Row by Row Experience yet?  It is the fun reason that quilters are taking to the road this summer.  It is the easiest Shop Hop yet.  It is addictive and I confess, I am hooked!

Quilt shops across the United States of America and Canada too (and possibly other countries too?) have designed their own unique 9" x 36" pattern for a row in a quilt with a theme of "water" -- this is Row by Row in a nutshell.  Shoppers are invited to step foot into the participating quilt shops (over 2,000 this summer) to pick up their free pattern directions.  Many of the quilt shops are also selling fabric kits as well as pins and fabric labels featuring a unique license plate. 

When I first heard of this, I thought oh how cute but was not really interested in joining this craze.  Although I did pick up my first pattern and kit when I popped into CJ's Quilt Shop on my first visit to this shop.  On the family road trip, I convinced my crew to stop at two shops in Greensboro, North Carolina and I picked up two more rows (and one more kit).

Here is my progress on these first three rows.  Top down they are from "Calla Lily Quilts" in Greensboro, NC, CJ's Quilt Shop in Richmond, TX and my favorite (and the only one totally complete as I post this) is from Studio Stitch also in Greensboro, NC and also a Bernina store.
The frog row was their kit with the pieces all precision cut with iron-on adhesive already on each piece.  The  three little ducks are fussy cut and framed by a blue check then appliqued on the waterdrops background (two umbrellas are being stitched on).  I did alter this a bit.  Then the bottom rows of batik fish was made from all my fabrics and was the most fun to stitch.

It's official.  I am hooked!  Since returning home from our road trip, I have since collected more patterns by visiting a few of the local shops .... and I'm recruiting family and friends to visit quilt shops near them to collect the patterns for me.  And I browse the Facebook pages for the various states (here's the Texas FB page) and the Row by Row Experience website, http://www.rowbyrowexperience.com/,  and images shared on InstaGram.  I am having fun!

Here are a few more favorite rows and finished quilts ... just to share the fun!

 

These bottles are an original design by Johanna Masko for a quilt shop, "The Workroom" in Toronto, Canada (on InstaGram as "_theworkroom").  Follow Johanna on her blog: johannamaskoquilts.blogspot.ca or in IG as "jmaskoquilts."

 

The above quilt is made with the rows by the five Pacific Fabric stores, each store has one of the rows available to their shoppers who visit each location in person.  I love it - don't you?  The stores from the top-down are: SODO, Bellevue, Everett, Bremerton and Northgate.

This photo from Instagram shows the two choices for rows that the Quilt Company in Aalison Park, PA designed for the 2015 Row by Row Experience.  I think the watercolors are my favorite, though the watermelon slices are also appealing. 

These four Sunbonnet Sues make up the row offered by A Great Notion Sewing Supply Ltd. in Canada.  Their kit includes 44 different fabrics - oh my!

This is one of my favorite completed quilts. It is by Loide Wasmund (IG: lwasmund),  a Texas quilter.  My favorite row is the four quilty-friends -- something different is reflected back from their sunglasses!  I also am tickled by the five bowl of fish!  I'm busy figuring out where each of these rows originated and whether I can get there during the Row-by-Row times .... or if I should just try drafting my own version of the rows I like.  Once I started thinking about drafting my own patterns, I then started thinking "why keep the stores in a long-skinny format, 9"x39"?  why not alter that size too?"  Stay tuned as I try to figure out what I am going to do and watch as I do it!

I love that the theme of "Water" has inspired so many in such different ways.  I want to collect and make more of these rows (or draft my version of the row).  Clearly this is my newest addiction!  What's yours?

Torah portion completed

I am thrilled to announce that I have completed my cross-stitch Torah portion for the Torah Stitch By Stitch project and have sent it off to Canada .... hopefully I will receive word soon that it has been received.

My four verses tell the story of Joseph's return to Egypt after he had traveled to bury his father in the land of Canaan and about his brothers reaction to their father's death. The English and Hebrew are on my first post (here) about this project.

 Genesis 50: 14-17

I added the borders on the three sides - an option.  I look forward to seeing the entire piece assembled and on display.

For the curious - here is a view of the back of my piece.  Is it almost has interesting as the front?  Sylvia, my mother-in-law, was always more interested in admiring the backs of my projects than the actual project.  So I share this one in her memory -- may her memory be a blessing.

For more information on how to participate in the international project (recreating the entire Torah in cross-stitch, four verses at a time), or just for updates as to how it is going, follow the website: 

http://torahstitchbystitch.temmagentles.com/

This completes my July goal in A Lovely Year of Finishes too.  Click here to find out more about this monthly "can you finish it?" challenge being run by Melissa at Sew BitterSweet Designs (http://blog.sewbittersweetdesigns.com/) or Shanna at Fiber of All Sorts  (http://fiberofallsorts.blogspot.com/).

I am Linky #20 in the Goal posting for July (click here to see all that posted goals) and I am Linky #28 in the Finishes posting for July (click here for all who posted finishes)

Love a challenge

The most recent challenge that I've signed up for is the 2015 Michael Miller Glitz Challenge offered to members of the Modern Quilt Guild.

This is the packet that I received,

2 fat eighths of the four prints shown.  

Now I must dream up a quilt to make using these fabrics or others from the Michael Miller Glitz line.  I can use any Michael Miller Cotton Couture solids on the front of the quilt and any Michael Miller fabrics for the binding and back. 

I learned ages ago that I tend to finish challenges -- especially when there are external deadlines set.  This quilt must be finished and entered in the QuiltCon by November 30, 2015.

Oh how I do love a challenge.