Comment Up For Thought...

I received the following comment, and I'm wondering how to answer it. Maybe you have some insight. Maybe you feel the same way as this commenter, or maybe you feel the way I do. In any case, I believe there is room for both sides of the spectrum and every degree in between.

She writes:

Do you ever use good quality $9.00 yard fabrics or just the old stuff. Seems you put so much work into the quilts but we never see any of the latest fabrics. Would you like me to send you some. Are you going for the utilitarian look. Rag muffin?

So what do you think? Do you ever feel a reason to justify why you like to sew with scraps you've collected over the years?

I just LOVE this picture, and the saying is so true. "The happiest people don't have the BEST of everything, They just make the MOST of everything!

In one of my lectures I talk about the difference between quilting with a pre-cut jelly roll or fat quarter pack from a designated fabric line or collection, versus sewing with remnants from other quilts I've created over the years. My quilts hold my memories, and that includes the scrap quilts I make, revisiting each fabric and remembering where I was in my life at the time that fabric came into my collection. Good memories, hard memories, fun times, sad times. They are all woven into the threads of these fabrics, and the pieces of my quilts.

I think there is a definite difference between a true "scrap" quilt, and a multi fabric quilt. Scraps are those pieces saved from the creating of a "first quilt" or project. Until it is a "left over" it isn't a scrap. To me anyway.

Did you ever realize how quickly we can pin-point the approximate year in which we acquired a particular fabric? If I showed you a dusty blue paw print or heart print, would you be able to remember where you were in your life journey when that fabric was the rage? I can tell you! It was the mid 80's to the early 90's and I was having my babies, buying our first house, exploring my creativity as a doll designer and getting my patterns published through Butterick at the time. The scraps from making those dolls and stuffed animals ended up in my scrap quilts then, and as I come across them now, they make me smile. I love revisiting!

Those hearts and paw prints were in my pre-longarming days definitely, but was I still fabric addicted? Oh yes! I am that same person as I always was, but now as I look back.....I marvel at where the journey has taken me.

Can I go out and buy $9.00 a yard fabric and make quilts with it? Surely I can. I have manufacturers sending me bolts to use in the quilts I am designing. But these fabrics are no better/no worse than the ones I have in my collection. In fact, they sometimes appeal to me less. Maybe like faux-pearls they are pretty from a distance, but they don't hold real value for me.

I often combine new fabrics with my old fabrics to give new life and feeling to the quilts I make with them. And then something miraculous happens.......I now have SCRAPS of those new fabrics to cut up and combine with my strips and squares and bricks of my old fabrics. They each compliment each other, and once used and purposed, those new fabrics have memories too.

My scrap palette is going to be different than yours. My quilts will have different memories than yours. No one is either better or worse. At my bee retreat day, I was given a WHOLE HUGE BAG of trimmed off bonus triangles. I am excited to include THESE scraps in with my own and combine my memories with the quilter who gave me her scraps. This is the essence of quilt making to me.

I am a Quiltmaker because I make quilts. Not because I buy the latest fabric at whatever price it retails at.

I am a Quiltmaker, driven to create by what I have on hand, not by the kit I can buy so my quilts will look just like everyone else's, so we can list the designers and collections by name in mixed quilt-company.

I am a Quiltmaker, not blown in any direction by the winds of change prevalent in the fashion and home dec industry. I make what I want to make, no matter which colors or fabrics are "in" or "out".

I am a Quiltmaker inspired by designs of Quiltmakers Past, who used the scraps they had from making the family's clothing, bedding,and more to make the quilts that covered the ones they loved at the most vulnerable times of their lives...while they slept, keeping those they loved safe and warm. This is also what drives me, this connection to those who came before.

Utilitarian? Absolutely! Rag Muffin? Well, the jury is still out on that one,but maybe I'll consider that a compliment. Thanks!

And with those thoughts at the fore front of my mind, I think I'll go play with those gifted bonus triangles!

Still kinda wooey....

I've been feeling kind of flu-ish since I got home. Not flu, really, but just a bit dizzy around the edges, queasy to my tummy, and hot flashes to beat the band. This also means I don't sleep so well, and the tiredness creeps in even more.

Yesterday (Saturday) I did NOTHING but putter around slowly in my quilting room. It's been a MESS....being gone 6 weeks out of the last 8 made it a dumping ground for all my stuff. I decided to sort out while laying low yesterday. I didn't go ANYWHERE. I'm feeling kind of the same today.

The weather here in NC (and in VA as well) has been blissful this week. Low humidity, cooler temps. I'm even keeping windows open here at home and sleeping with a gentle breeze. This helps with those midnight hot flashes!

I am going to make an appointment for a complete physical and blood work up. I'm not due for one until January (Usually do all that stuff as well as mammogram in my birthday month.)





So what can I share with you today since I am up do doing a lot of nothing? :cD Friday my quilting bee, The Ms Bee Havens had an "In Town Retreat" where we just worked on our own projects! I was definitely needing some machine time, and girl friend time, so I went, knowing if I got too tired or felt too yuck that I could get up and leave and go home at any time. I managed to get a whole bunch of bonus units trimmed and sewn for a pieced border on a quilt that has a cover possibility for Quiltmaker Magazine in the Jan 2009 issue. Its a "POSSIBILITY" but I would really like it to be a REALITY. At the same time, I don't want to jinx it so I can't show it to you yet. The bonus units worked so cool in this border! All that is left to do is to figure out the size of the spacer border I need to make the pieced border now fit the center of the quilt.

I kind of work backwards when it comes to borders. I figure out what I need to do with the repeats to get the corners to turn right, piece the border, then do some math to figure out how to build up the quilt center to fit the border I just pieced. This just works for me. It means I don't have to shrink a border unit or stretch it to some really weird cutting size so that it will fit a specific center. Hard to describe here, but that is what I do.



Look at this quilt Lisa was basting!! The girl was a BASTING-WOMAN! I'm not sure how many quilts she got pin basted, but every time I looked over there she had a different one! We all agreed that we love applique flowers that look strangely remotely like fried eggs or amoebas....sea anemonies? They are darling, and quilt after quilt, the girl does INCREDIBLE work!

Mrs Goodneedle was working on the cutest red work quilt. (And she will quickly tell you that it is a 10 year UFO and she is glad to get it to flimsy stage!) Of course it had strawberries in it!

Karen was working on an art quilt with a scene along a river bank. It was neat to watch her do it, and see things take shape.

Holly was working on her Star Struck,but it should be called STAR STUCK because it sat as a UFO for so long! *LOL* She also gifted me with a huge baggie of all her trimmed off bonus triangles...WEEE! Thanks Holly!

Leanne was working on getting a pair of rail fence quilts tied. They were hand pieced by her great grandmother with 1930's fabrics..maybe into the 40's from what I could tell,but what a fun fabric combination! I think she got one tied, the other will wait for another day.

The funniest thing....Leanne's sister ran to KFC for our lunch for us. All Lisa and I wanted was a grilled chicken sandwhich and an Extra Large Diet Coke. I about died laughing when her sister walked in with these "BUCKET O' COKE" 1/2 gallon containers, one for each of us! *LOL* No, I didn't drink it all. The thing was even too big for the straw which kept wanting to migrate down into the bucket. We looked like we were drinking from giant sippy cups! Too funny!

Long Overdue Computer Time!

I've been working on getting the shopping cart added to my site. It's pretty cool! But so many variables my head is spinning. Good thing I only have ONE product so far! If I had more, I might really be pulling my hair out. As soon as I have books in my hot little hands, I'll activate the shopping cart page. I know many of you want to pre-order, but I don't want to be overwhelmed until I've had a few more days at home to sort out my life!

But here you go! What do you think of the COVER?! I'm so tickled. We chose this one out of about 4 or 5 others, and it really is the best. The text on the back wasn't inserted yet with this file, so it reads as if it was written in faux-latin. *LOL* (Click the pic to really check it out. Kansas City Star has really done a GREAT job!)

As for the cat on the back cover and in the book, he isn't mine! But knowing that everyone would ASSUME he was mine, I found out a bit about him. According to Brian:

He belongs to one of my best friends, Cecilia: we were shooting at her house. The cat's name is Theo, and he just LOOKS sweet - he's an aggressive one! Even as a baby when I'd visit Cecilia, he'd take off in a mad dash clear across the room to swipe at my ankles!

He's now 14 and MUCH more mellow - but can love you one minute and swipe at you the next!

Thanks for being my poster-cat, Theo!

Little Movies....

Before heading to Virginia, I repacked the quilts.....Guess who I found on top of them???

After returning from Virginia last night, I unpacked the car....and this morning, guess who I found on top of them?!?

And this is the little video of the two quilts I brought back with me :c)

Yes...I'm spending all this time on the computer catching up, so this is why you get 3 posts in one day!

Isn't she CAAAA---UUUUUTTEEE?!

This is my niece Kelli. Kelli has lost two more teeth! Pictures like this just make my heart swell. Priceless! Especially since she looks so much like her mother, my sister Joy, when she was little. Except for the blue eyes, of course...she got those from her AUNTIE BONNIE! (No really, I think she got them from her Dad, but I can dream!)

Kelli, I wonder if you will still be singing "All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth" come Christmas time, or if you will have big grown up teeth in place by then. I wish you could stay young and sweet just a while longer!

Love,
Auntie Bonnie

From Williamsburg to Deltaville to Hampton and Back!

Oh my, it is SO GOOD to be home. I have come to appreciate how hard it is to live out of a suitcase for an extended period of time....but I had a BLAST!

I have to stop and check to see where I left off writing. I believe it was when I left Deltaville :c) I have a ton of pics to upload, both of the classes, and some of the FUNGLY challenge I worked on thanks to donations of hideous fabric from new found friends :c) Oh, boy...we dug DEEP, let me tell you. Why is it that 1960's fabric was SO hideous?*giggle* Here is a quick peek. The detail shots of individual blocks will be on my webshots slide show, so you won't have to have them ALL staring you in the face the whole time you are reading this post. We don't want anyone sea sick, do we? *hehe*



Fungly Challenge!
I haven't laid these out with the other fungly blocks I've done....I've got major house cleaning to do first after being gone 2 weeks.

See the little link above that says FUNGLY CHALLENGE? If you want, click on that and go read the captions under each block. I hope it makes you giggle as much as it made me!

Oh...and since DH is out of town, I have to show you my new quilt display place for a photo shoot when it is raining outside...I found use for the STUPID 65" HI DEF TV!!!



I think the living room looks MUCH better with a quilt draped over that thing. Don't you? :cD This is a log cabin top I found on my antique jaunt home yesterday. Yes, it should only take me 6 hours to get home from Hampton, but it took me about...oh...NINE? But I did need to stop and stretch my legs, right? And what better place than walking through antique malls? :cD

This 1930's top probably qualifies as a FUNGLY too...The logs are all different widths, it is all hand pieced, and I found it buried in a booth that said 30% off EVERYTHING". By the time the 30% was taken off, it was only 20 bucks. So what the heck. It smells funny. But some airing out will do it some good. I'm toying with hand quilting it, but maybe a quick machine job so I can wash it would be a better idea. I also found a feedsack apron in perfect condition.....adorable....for $4.00. Weee! I'm doing the wall in front of my laundry room with old wash boards and a peg rack with aprons and other utilitarian type goodies. This is perfect. I'll have to get Jeff to get a pic of me wearing it..it doesn't photo so well flat, you can't tell how cute it is.


How about THIS one?!! I just love how vibrant it is! I think this would have been ME in the 30s. I just can't do the cutesy pastel stuff..but pink and orange and purple?? OH MY!! The black must have been hand dyed or something, it's bled through the quilt, but I don't care. I love the triangle border on this. It's all hand pieced and hand quilted, the backing is brought to the front as binding all by hand as well. What a find!

I also found a little 1800's double pink on white 9 patch crib quilt. MACHINE QUILTED!! And wonkily so.....which makes me love it more. I don't know about you, but I don't know how good *I* would be machine quilting on a treadle. At least I think it is treadle work, not absolutely sure, I'm just guessing by the age of the double pink. She even tried a cable border on the outside edge...and She must have been cursing and swearing because it baubles just like MY machine quilted cables do! *LOL* Still, this quilt has seen a lot of use and I'm tickled to have it. I've hung it on this little ladder I've found....perfect for displaying little quilts!

Book update....it went to print a couple days ago! it's really happening! I love the cover we chose, I love EVERYTHING about this book. I just hope we caught all the typos, because I went over it and over it until I was bleary between everything else, and then went over it again. I'll post the cover shot as soon as I get the okay to do so!

Another Wonder Cake!

I've told you before of my Sisters and their extreme ability to create the cutest birthday cakes ever?! My niece Mykenzie just turned 3, and Mary outdid herself with a BARBIE CAKE! Look at this beauty! I just wish there were pics of the blue hands, faces and smiles after her dress was eaten :c)

When I see my little sisters being such wonderful moms, it just fills my heart. I remember when my boys were small, when 3rd birthdays were such a big deal. I can't believe how fast they pass! I wish I lived close enough to my sisters to spend more time with them and watch THEIR kids grow up. I'm at the other end of the country. But thank heavens for emails and blogs and little uploaded videos.

So here I am in Hampton! I'm being hosted for the next several days by Susan. What a wonderful place! She is a longarmer, and has her studio built over the detached garage. Oh goodie! Lots of room for me to spend some time doing machine piecing on my off hours! So far I've been binding, sewing sleeves, and doing some hand quilting...it's all been hand work. But I'm itching to do some piecing.

When I was in Williamsburg I got together with Carrie and her hubby, and she gifted me with 100 (Yes, that is ONE HUNDRED) 3.5" crumb blocks. I started setting them together in a zig zag setting on Monday morning when we got together to sew at their rented studio apartment. I've got 4 rows together! The zig zags are alternating turqouise and black. Woooeeee....it's going to be a fun one! Thanks so much for the blocks, Carrie!

Susan is out for a bit, so I'm going to grab my purse and go check out some antique shops this morning. Who knows what goodies I might find? I'll have to be careful though because the car is already jam packed!

Moon-ing Over Virginia!

I've spent the last two nights in Moon, Virginia, staying with Sandy! Her house is on an ISLAND of all things.....you have to cross this little wooden one lane bridge to get onto her property. Crossing that bridge at night when you are not sure of what is below you or on the other side was a bit daunting, but I am up for an adventure.

Her house is wonderful, and guarded by her guardian cat angel "Annabelle". I've got pics of her and the house on my camera, but since I am traveling with my laptop, some pics are going to have to wait until I get home to post them all!

Yesterday was my "day of rest"!! I didn't do anything but meet up with a couple gals for lunch. I was able to do laundry, catch up on email, book stuff, and even get a bunch of hand quilting in! It was really relaxing last night, Sandy and I had taken charge of the two recliners and caught up on a DVR'd recording of "Saving Grace" while we both hand quilted our fingers sore. WONDERFUL!

Today I'm en route to Hampton where I am staying with Susan. I haven't met her before, but I've been told she is a fabulous longarmer and we are going to have a bunch of fun.

I've checked in on the home front daily. So far things in Winston Salem are holding their own. People and Pets getting fed, watered, and taken care of. Sometimes I feel guilty that I'm running around like this, but it doesn't make sense to go home in between gigs with the way gas prices are. I could have gone home yesterday, only to have to return back up here tomorrow...and it's somewhere around a 6 hour drive (X2) and I think I would be MORE TIRED for my programs this weekend than if I just stay put. But still....I know there is a bunch of stuff at home that needs doing.

The weather has been extremely hot and humid. I've been going out walking every morning. I've walked past fields and farms and old tumble down farm houses, and some that are being restored...it's like stepping back in time. I've learned to stay towards the center of the deserted roads, away from trees and bushes where the bugs are thick. I've pulled a tick or two out of my hair...ewww....

I'm trying to be as healthy as I can with all the "feeding of the visiting quilter" that goes on when I travel somewhere. Lots of salads and fresh fruits and veggies, staying away from too much bread and deep fried things, and no deserts. We'll see how that does.

I'll report back in again when I can!

Tonya & Bonnie's Fungly Challenge!

Laugh yourself out of the box with us!

Do you have fabrics in your stash you SWEAR you never bought? Too ugly to look at, but you can't bear to part with them? Then this is the challenge for you!

This silly quilt came about when Tonya sent me some pics of some blocks she was working on with the most unlikely combinations she could come up with. She wanted them LARGE (9-1/2") and fast, and didn't care if units wer turned wrong, or if points were cut off in haphazard jubilation. WEEE! It sounded so fun I thought I could cast my uglies into the wind and see what I could come up with too! Just look at her sample her.....Cow Print Cornerstones? Lovely! *hehehehehe* FUN + UGLY = FUNGLY!



Just look at tlese lovelies!! I bet they'd make you stop and look twice if you passed them in a shop window! Tonya's block pattern is Jacks on Six, but any block pattern will do. Most blocks have 2 fabrics, some have 3. Go through your books of basic blocks and pick one you've always wanted to play with. The quilt pattern is up to your inspiration, you are just going to do it with the most WEIRDLY PAIRED FABRICS YOU HAVE!

Here's my challenge! My colors don't look as bold, and that's okay. These are *MY* ugly fabrics, and I'm not trying to make it look just like Tonya's. Your Fungly quilt will be a reflection of your silly fabrics in YOUR stash. It's okay if the pallette is different. What you want is to come up with the ODDEST combinations possible! Look at these for more examples:


Many of these fabrics were given to me in the ugly housewarming Tonya organized (Yeah, right, a likely story that keeps me from admitting they were MINE to begin with !) I laughed so hard as I was putting these oddities together. I think I want to name mine "Strange Bedfellows" *hehee*. I changed the block unit layout from Tonya's just a bit so it was a block I hadn't done before. Really, ANY block would work, even if you wanted to do plain ugly 9 patches. These two blocks each have a strong diagonal so you can twist and turn them with or without sashing or put them on point for a different look.




Do you want to play? I hope you will! I hope you will share your photos on your blog or via email! This is NOT a mystery, there will be no other steps, there will not be a deadline or a finish date. This is simply our way of standing up and saying NO to overly matched Jelly Rolls and Layer Cakes and doing something out of the box (or bin or basket) that we can sometimes find ourselves in.

Have a giggle, and sew something FUNGLY today!

Some quickies about my block:

It's called "split 9 patch" and I found it in block base. There are a bunch of great easy patterns on the web and in books and everywhere. Pick one you've always wanted to try.

I don't know how I'm setting them yet, or how many I'll make. I never plan it out from start to finish, I just go with the flow and I'll know when it's done after I play with it for a while.

Sashings, alternate blocks, borders, setting triangles put on point? Up to you!

I cut my block pieces out of 3.5" strips using the easy angle ruler to cut the triangle pairs. The block finishes at 9" square, so each unit finishes at 3". The method you use to construct the triangles units is up to you :c) Most of all, have FUN! Find a girlfriend who wants to play, and each of you make pairs of blocks and trade with each other....Oh man, I can't wait for the quilt police to SEE THESE BEAUTIES!!!

Colonial Piecemakers, Williamsburg, VA

What a PERFECT day we had! Don't get me wrong, it was hot hot hot and humid as heck by 9am....but we were inside and the fans and the a/c were whirring....

It's so funny to travel from guild to guild. So many things are always the same....the welcome committee, the people willing to help, the quilters carrying in their show and tell, projects, challenges, lots of committees, people mulling together discussing the latest thing, or giving hugs over cares and concerns.

Quilting is community! I don't know how anyone could quilt in a vacuum by themselves. Quilting is a lifestyle! And wherever I go, I feel such a connection to these women and all the common threads that we share through our lives, young and old and in between. Short, Tall, Thin, Fluffy....we are sisters bound by stitches.

I arrived at Our Saviours Lutheran Church where the meeting was held. Talk about picturesque! It was built in 1898 and is exactly what you think of when you think of an old white country church, just like going back in time! The community hall or whatever they call it is off to the side of the church, just out of the picture. We had a packed house...over 100 of us gathered! I was tickled too, to see some quilting men there! (If I had to share my stash with MY hubby.....hmmmmm.......!!! He might know exactly what I have then! Maybe not a good idea.....)

It was a whirlwind day. After the meeting and trunk show, we had a quick lunch (turkey and swiss on a whole wheat wrap...yummm!) and we set up for class!

These ladies were so fun......has anyone heard of the Janome Hello Kitty Machine? It's adorable and GREEN!!! (Not only that, it seems to be a great class machine) I had the most fun doing demos on this green Hello Kitty!

What I would really love is a RED BETTY BOOP machine....and if they come up with one, I'll be first in line. I want a red machine (like I need another machine, not! But still....fun, right?)

The picture of me demo-ing is courtesy of Shirley! You can check her report on the day HERE! She took several pictures throughout the day and reading her comments will give you an idea how fun this guild is!

So from NOW until Monday evening I've been LET LOOSE! Carrie should be calling me sometime today and we'll arrange a meet-up. I get to play tourist today and tomorrow....whoooooeeee! And so far...no sewing going on, other than I nearly finished the basket quilt binding during yesterday's business meeting. It is really looking good!

I also want to give you a HEADS UP on a challenge that Tonya and I are working on. We wanted to do something FUN with the UGLIEST fabrics we can find. It's a hilarious bit of fun, and I'm sure you will want to join in! I'll see about posting that tonight. We have nicknamed this the FUNGLY (Fun + Ugly) Challenge! What a hoot!

I also lucked out....because they had a scrap giveaway-for-a-small-donation table at the guild meeting! Ohhh....Tonya, wait til you see these lovelies! (evil laugh) I scored BIG TIME! *LOL* Don't these two fabrics just LOOK like they belong together? NO??? Well, just wait and see!

That's it for now! It's just past 9am and colonial Williamsburg is WAITING!!

Colonial Williamsburg!

I am here in Williamsburg! I've never been here before, and I tell you, from what little I've seen so far, I love it!

I really love historical places and can't see enough of the sites. I taught a pineapple blossom class today, and then was treated to a visit to a quilt shop, and then out to dinner.

When I got back to the hotel, the evening was still so nice that I threw on my shorts and tennis shoes and went for a 4 mile power walk. That's my whole day! And it was a long one. No stitching for me so far, even though I brought a hand quilting project, the baskets quilt to finish binding, and my featherweight with another project.

I'm too pooped to sew tonight...but I guess at least I have everything just IN CASE!

I had Kansas City Star send my quilts for the book back to me here, so I can show them as part of my trunk show now. The only dumb thing is that all the sleeves are "flapping"....they have you leave the bottom edge of the sleeve free for hanging for photography. I guess they edit the sleeve "out" of the pic, and it hangs flatter if the quilt hangs below the rod or something. So I now have 12 quilts that need the sleeves sewn back down on. Bleeech. Talk about unmotivating!

Tomorrow is the first lecture/trunkshow and then a half day (4 hour) star struck class. It's going to be another busy day.

I feel like this is just a travelogue lately. But this is what my life has fallen into! I am just afraid it won't be very interesting reading. Oh! That pic I showed in the slide shows below....of the ladder hung over the cutting table with baskets and little quilts? I found a LADDER today at Ps & Qs Primitives! $8.99 what a bargain! Not sure where it is going to go yet, but it is going to be so cute.

I also found a glass wash board at a shop on the way from Winston Salem to here...The wall by my laundry room I want to decorate cute with a collection of wash boards and a peg rack with old vintage aprons. My boys think it is too girly, but hey...I think it will be cute! So I've picked up some cute vintage aprons here and there.

And the big tada I wish I could show you, but I can't do a self portrait right now....I went in last evening and had 5" whacked off the bottom of my hair. It's just a bit past my shoulders now...all the dead ends are gone and it looks so much BETTER! Still long enough to tie back, but short enough that it won't get caught in the car seatbelt roller-upper :c)

The plan for the rest of the week? Sunday I'm off and I'm planning on spending most of the day in Colonial Williamsburg, starting with services at the historic Bruton Parish Episcopal church. I'm planning on meeting up with Carrie-the-mischief-maker at some point, she and her hubby are going to be spending the week down here. We've talked on the phone and exchanged emails, but have never met in person. That should be fun.

Monday I am planning on doing more touristy stuff, and then heading to Deltaville for a lecture/trunkshow monday evening. The rest of my time will be spent in Grafton/Hampton.

Think I'll get some SEWING TIME in there somewhere?? I hope so, but even if I don't, I'm having a wonderful time.

What's Up With Yahoo Mail?!? (*@&#$(*&!

What's up with YAHOO MAIL!?? Every time I click to reply to an email, write my reply and click send, I am sent back to the sign in page asking for my password to be supplied. When I fill it in, check to see if the mail has sent...it's disappeared! I'm switching to GMAIL for a while to see if it works better. You can reach me at Quiltville@Gmail.com! I'm still keeping the yahoo email open, and will check there daily....but sheesh.

Of course, all this happens AFTER I just picked up my new business cards that have quiltville@yahoo.com written all over them :c|