Sharon and I have known each other for at least 15 years and have spent time doing quilty things from time to time as our paths cross.
When I travel, it is so wonderful to get to spend time with people in their homes. I love seeing how they display their quilts, what their sewing space is like, and seeing what life is like where they live. Let's face it...the inside of one Days Inn is much like another, and even though it is fun to sit in the center of a hotel bed, eating Chinese food from a box with chopsticks and watching Girly TV to my hearts content, it is really much MORE fun when you hit it off with other quilters and can talk a blue streak, see their quilts, share stories, laugh, and have someone even cook you a home cooked meal!
So this is what has been going on since I arrived yesterday! We even had a lovely dinner, family style, as Sharon's son and his two teen aged daughters, and her daughter's also teenage daughter, and one of their cousins-from-the-other-side-of-the-family joined us. Family dynamics are fun to watch...and I loved the sense of tradition of "Sunday dinner at Oma's house" followed by a wild game of Mexican Train Dominoes on the dining room table after dinner....
I was blissfully relaxing, finishing up the binding on "Love, Thy Name Is Mud" (Do I need to change the name of this quilt? LOL) while Sharon worked on some red work embroidery and Kevin clipped coupons from the Sunday paper.
Here it is, laying out on the kitchen nook floor..the sun was coming in the window just right to show the quilting detail!
You know, even though I love machine quilting...there is just something so satisfying about the texture of hand quilting that even machine quilting can not duplicate. I think this is why I am such a schizophrenic quilter...I want it both ways...Sometimes this way, sometimes that way...love it all, want it all, can't get enough of either! So traveling with something I can hand quilt takes care of one side of my brain, while zooming through something with a big machine at home for something that will fit the bed satisfies the other!
Later in the evening, after everyone left, I celebrated the finishing of the binding by pulling out Creamsicles (The orange quilt from yesterday has a name!) and commencing on the hand quilting on it. This is as far as it went as we watched the finale for Survivor....
I just LOVE quilting with this Hobbs wool. It needles so easily, and I can really tell the difference between the Love quilt and this one, because I was quilting on them both in the same day. I LOVE THIS WOOL! Even though it is more lofty, my stitches are so much smaller and so much more even even with the same needle/thread....I'm a wool batting lover!
What a great day!
Today my chaos starts. I'm meeting with my editor from Kansas City Star for lunch. I have a lecture/trunkshow tonight....so we are going to head to Lawrence early enough that I can set up for that before meeting the other ladies-in-charge for dinner at 5:30.
I'm really excited to be here, to meet people I've been working with for the past 2 years from a distance....putting faces to voices and names and strengthening friendships new and old!
14 comments:
Hi Bonnie,
A friend on our (American Quilter's Society) Facebook Fan Page listed your blog as her favorite quilting blog so we had to come for a visit. You have great projects and a lovely blog, keep up the good work- we hope to see more from you in the future!
www.aqsquiltnews.blogspot.com
Your muddy love quilt is wonderful, but I think I like the creamsicle quilt even better! You are really tempting me to try a hand quilted fan pattern next.
Bonnie, I discovered wool batting recently and love it. I will never go back to cotton again. It is so worth the extra bit of cost. Wool is a dream to machine quilt and the quilts stay so soft and drapable while still being washable. Kathie in Lacey, Wa
I've heard from more than just you that wool is great for hand quilting. You're working the baptist fans again, must be your favorite pattern to hand quilt. My son is in Platte City, he's a guard at Ft Leavenworth. So I'm waving, I know where you are this week, been there before. Hope there are no hurricanes while you are there.
Just last night I purchased the last of one of Laurie Simpson's kits and she was saying how I should try the Hobbs wool Tuscany blend batting. I NEED TO give wool a chance! I need to order some, can't buy it here. Well, I can't buy ANYTHING HERE! lol, but not in stores down south here...
SO, I WILL! Your quilting looks GREAT! Love what you do! :)
That is amazing to think you haven't met your book folks yet! I really like KC Quilt books so I hope you get on well with them!
Shout out from Cambria to Sharon. You sound like you are both having fun with all that stitching :-) and family time.
Love the new name..Creamsicles
It looks just like them.
Sounds like you have had a lovely weekend...in spite of all the rain we are having here in Kansas City, MO! Love your quilts! I am in Lee's Summit, MO...where are you in Missouri?
Oh the kitchen sink approach to the Love quilt border is just fantastic....and the orange blocks....yummy. Do you mark the fans or just freehand them?
You certainly have busy hands and make quick work of these projects.
Happy sewing, safe travels :0), good thing you love what you do!
the quilting on both if fab! I've had people tell me that even if you're allergic to wool (which I am) the wool batting isn't a problem. I'm skeptical, but you're making me want to give it a try!
I am definitely going to have to give the wool a try! If you have time, could you share more about how you mark the Baptist fan pattern onto your top for handquilting?
I'm lovin' the quilts!
I enlarged the photo of Creamsicles to see how you m/c baste for hand quilting... now I know Clever~
Please tell Quiltgranny I said "hello"!
Your quilts are great, as always. It's green here again too after all the rain yesterday.
Thanks for the reminder on how nice wool is to hand quilt. I'm getting ready to baste a throw and was debating on 80/20 or wool. I pulled out the wool last night. Do you mark your baptist fans or just eyeball or use a guide? I'm doing my first BF design,
I love wool batting, too. But it is different that cotton, and sometimes sneaks out a little from the quilting. I only make quilts for my family, and it is damp where we live, so the wool is great. But since your quilts get photographed and examined by a lot of people, you might want to consider that wool is just a little different. I've never used the brand you mentioned though, so it is possible that its just a problem with the brand i have used. I really admire the Love quilt,
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