Life is good!

I managed to make my way through my pile of quilts needing binding, largely with the help of the hubby, who kept them all laid out and basically enabled me to sew the bindings on without pausing every eight inches to reposition the quilt.  Amazing how quickly it went! Control panel was a very quick finish that snuck in - a really fun pattern out of Frond fabrics, and I'm looking forward to quilting it.   Speaking of which, I ordered a new machine at QuiltCon.  Probably shouldn't have, but I'm anxious to have it arrive and give it a whirl!!   Recent Completions!! Vertical Drop Park Bench The Lorax WIPS Blossoms (ender and leader set-up) Aviatrix (I've at least made the templates, so I'm counting that as a start!) Stars KerBloom Farmer's Wife  Kelley's Quilt  Needs Binding   At the quilter:     Top Completed, waiting for quilting: Mosaic Breezeway Landscape Secret Garden Contro...

I had an absolutely fabulous time last week at QuiltCon.  I flew out with my mom, sister and her mother-in-law (who is the one who started me quilting), and met up two of my second cousins and their Mom.  Jen, one of the cousins, lives in Austin, so last year I stayed with her during QuiltCon, and we had such a fabulous time we decided we simply had to go back. We did a lot more than the convention.  We spent an entire day wandering downtown Pasadena, then spent time at the Gamble House, as well as Huntington Gardens.  Jen and I did one workshop while the rest of the party went to the Getty. A few of my favorites, in no particular order...

Coming soon - matching pillows for this quilt! My latest Moda Bakeshop design is finished!  I did the FMQ on this project myself, and it's far and away the largest quilt I've ever quilted.  My Brother 1500 made it relatively easy; I still need a lot of practice keeping my stitches even, but I think I'm making progress! I used several different designs to quilt it; so far a looping stipple is one of my favorites to do.  It generally turns out better than my regular stipple, and I like the result. I've done quite a lot of practice on this design as well, and need to work on keeping it even, but it's another favorite for confined spots or borders. This is queen sized, and I'm not sure where it's going yet.  It will probably be donated for an auction somewhere; I hope someone will give it a good home! 

I'm really hoping the sun comes out for a while this weekend, as I need to take pictures of several different quilts, including a deadline one.  I also need to get cracking on the baby quilt for my nanny.  I'm thinking I can put it together in a weekend, especially if I get Isadora to help with the sewing.  The pattern I have in mind doesn't require precise seam allowances, so she should be able to help. Recent Completions!! All 8 of my Christmas runners! (Need pictures) Swoon Stardust Secret Project WIPS Blossoms (ender and leader set-up) Aviatrix (I've at least made the templates, so I'm counting that as a start!) Stars KerBloom Farmer's Wife  The Lorax Kelley's Quilt  Needs Binding   Vertical Drop Park Bench At the quilter:     Top Completed, waiting for quilting: Mosaic Breezeway Landscape Secret Garden Planning: Snowbird BOM Gravity Abacus Hidden Stars (baby quilt) Sticks and S...

I'm doing the happy dance, since I have finished TWO quilts this week!  I'm finally tackling my pile of quilts that need binding, and both Swoon and Stardust are now in the finished pile.  Hopefully this weekend Park Bench and my secret project will join the list,  Also up this weekend, a big photo session.  Hopefully the weather will cooperate.  I might wait until next week, as it's supposed to snow, and if I can get a sunny day with snow covered ground I think I could get some great shots.

Got some time in the sewing room this week!  Having hubby home has been fantastic, although it's definitely an adjustment to get used to living with another adult in the house again.  But having the kitchen immaculate when I'm done putting the kids to bed?  That rocks.  Having someone make coffee for me before I leave house?  Wonderful.  Having the ability to go to a meeting in the evening without having to pay a babysitter?  All over that!  And he's been pretty good at encouraging me to actually do the sewing that I need to do.  For example, I've mentioned that I have four quilts that need binding (five as of yesterday...) so he sends me downstairs with instructions to bind.  Definitely a keeper, is my hubby.  So last night I got binding sewn on one side of two quilts, as I need some light grey thread to sew it to the other side on both of them. I also finished the quilting on my secret project.  That was an adventure, as I'...

So, as I'm sure is the case with many, I had a wonderful long list of things I wanted to accomplish over Christmas break.  My husband came home (for good!!), and we had a wonderful family Christmas, and I got almost nothing on my list checked off.  Oh well, back to the grindstone!   My quilt guild is having a UFO contest for 2016.  Since I'm including all of my tops completed, and needs binding, my list is a little ridiculous...  But hey, at least I have some motivation to get them finished!!  I'm going to try to do a lot more FMQ on my own this year, which should be an adventure. Recent Completions!! All 8 of my Christmas runners! WIPS Blossoms (ender and leader set-up) Aviatrix (I've at least made the templates, so I'm counting that as a start!) Stars KerBloom Farmer's Wife  The Lorax Kelley's Quilt  Secret Project Needs Binding   Swoon Stardust Vertical Drop Park Bench Christmas Runners 1-5...