Thursday, February 25, 2010

A “Duh” Moment

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We have been having very spring-like warm weather this past week. It’s been such a treat. I actually opened the windows in my studio on Monday as I started applying the next quilt to the frame. Maybe it was the fresh air that made me wake up & finally figure out what the reason for being able to lift the top bar was. I’m sure Megan probably told me when we set up the machine almost 2 years ago, but it was one of those things that apparently never sank in. I even found there was a little lock to hold it in place so I could layer the batting without having to struggle.

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I am using 2 layers of batting on this quilt, per Carla Barrett’s suggestion for helping to square up a slightly wonky quilt. Below the photo shows how it’s just a little un-square. I am hoping to be able to make it a little better with the extra fluff inside.

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Last, this photo is just a hint of some threadplay that I’ve done for my next Fiberactions Challenge, “Communication”. The quilt is almost complete, & though it didn’t go exactly where I thought it was going to go, I am pretty happy with how it turned out. For the whole story you’ll have to come back on March 15th.

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Monday, February 15, 2010

Finishing Small Projects

 

 

I got 3 small projects finished up today. The fireweed clock for the Irish Dance Silent Auction is all done. I bent wires for the numbers & stitched them on by hand. I’m happy with how it turned out.  (click on any of the photos to get a closer look).

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Thursday is the Teddy Bear & Friends Tea at the ALCQ guild. I got a second little quilt made for the tea, for this friendly snake. I used some of the fabric that I won from the Aussie Challenge that I won viewer’s Choice for several years ago.

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This last piece may not look finished, but it is. I made it for part of a sign, that explains the parts that make up a quilt. It will hang at the Loussac Library here in Anchorage March 16th-April 1st, as part of the National Quilting Day celebration.

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Saturday, February 13, 2010

A Day in The Valley

 

 

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Today I got up at 5 a.m. & drove 80 minutes north to Palmer , to teach an Embellishment class. I started them out painting on fabrics, Tyvek, lace, silk hankies, silk cocoons (after they cut out the worms) & batting.

Then we did foiling, embossing, burning fabrics, made  fabric beads, & played with Angelina,& Friendly Plastic (among other things). Then the last couple of hours we did small collage pieces.

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The ladies were all very good sports, & we had a lot of fun. The next few pictures are things they did. They were a creative group.

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On the next one, I liked what she did with the Friendly plastic. She took apart an old earring, & pressed it into the surface of the plastic. We just heated the plastic with a heat gun, & had some fun with it.

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The reason this snow scene is tilted, is I was driving & not looking through the camera. I just sat it on my left shoulder & pushed the button. I’m surprised it turned out this well. It was a beautiful afternoon, driving back to Anchorage.

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These last 2 shots, are a clock that I am making for the Irish Dance School auction coming up in another week. I’m not finished with it yet, & will try to get better pictures when I’m done.

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Wednesday, February 10, 2010

The Space Between Us

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This is my entry for “The Space Between Us”.  It’s an Art House Project that will be happening in NY, some time in March. I painted silk & cotton. The cotton was given more texture by adding Shiva Stick rubbings on top of the textile paints. I also layered circles cut from Angelina film, & one layer of Tulle to tone everything down a bit, before adding the top layer of silk. Next I quilted it all with Sulky Holoshimmer threads, then beaded over the top. I included 2 little mirrors to help represent “Us”.

Monday, February 08, 2010

Catching up on Quilting

 

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Saturday I taught Advanced Threadplay. Pam Harris, is the president of ALCQ, my local quilt guild. She made this great flower in class.

Our next meeting is the Annual Teddy Bear & Friends Tea. I made this little 9 patch quilt for this Turtle in about an hour.

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I backed it with this polar fleece, & sewed the top to the back like a pillow, then turned it, stitched around the edges & quilted it in no time at all. It will make a nice Woobie for some little kid.

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The rest of my week has been quilting another large quilt for a friend. I can’t reveal the front until Friday, but you can see my quilting best from the back anyway, so here are a few shots. Click on any of them to see a bigger picture.

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Oh, here is one little preview of the front.

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Monday, February 01, 2010

UFO or WiP

 

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Today I went to my friend Kate’s  house. We decided to work on repairing an old quilt for her MIL. When I got there, I set my basket with a crochet project down on the floor, & Camille, the dog decided to check out my funky yarn.

Ginger the cat held the quilt in place for use while we worked on it.

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It had one particular square, that was in the worst shape & in need of repair. The green triangles were splitting.  Kate had found a good match, & we cut triangles to lay over the broken ones,

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Then appliquéd & hand quilted them down.

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Our friend Jeannie Smith came over too, & helped. It was good to get together with old friends. We think we should make it a monthly happening, & work on those projects that we have started but never take time to finish. Kate has another quilt that needs repair, we’ll fix next.

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On my way home, I stopped to say hi to my friend the Raven too!