Finally Getting A Little Back Bone!

I'm not sure why I have been so nervous about embroidering on fluffy towels, but I have totally avoided it. The problem is that it is almost impossible to hoop, if the towel is thick. I know that everyone says to just stick it to the top of the hoop and go, but I was afraid it would shift. So last night I got a little back bone and decided to get it a try!

Design from Urban Threads

I love these spines. One thing you should know, if you don't already, I work at a Chiropractic College. And these spine towels are going to one of the best (probably the very best) student intern I've ever had. She's graduating this weekend and moving to Tennessee to practice (Folks of Tennessee, you are getting one FINE chiropractor and I DON'T say that lightly!!!)

Anyway, here's how I embroidered them, easy as pie!

Hoop water soluble stabilizer and spray it with 505 adhesive spray

Carefully center your towel in the hoop and press it down into the adhesive

Top with another layer of water soluble stabilizer - this helps smooth the top to better embroider.

Insert the hoop into your machine, be careful that the towel does fold under the hoop and get stitched where you don't want it to get stitched.

Start embroidering!

Remove the hoop when your done. View from the back of the hoop

Cut away the excess stabilizer

Rinse to remove the rest of the stabilizer

 Voila! Two towels ready to gift! Happy Graduation Marlee, you ROCK!

I'm linking up with the fabulous Making Rebecca Lynne for TGIFF!


Color Me Quilty!

Pat

WIPping On Toward Christmas!

Do you realize it's almost December? That Christmas is less than a month away??? I am not ready. I thought that doing "less" quilty presents would make it easier, the problem is that those that I'm making are substantially bigger than the gifts I made last year. I need my head examined!

I did take some time last night to do something fun, my Leah Day "pod" homework. It's the perfect way for someone with a short attention span to quilt.

 This homework was so much fun, truly like doodling. I could definitely see doing a whole quilt like this. I'm not sure if you can tell that I used a slightly variegated green. It was King Tut thread with a 90/14 needle. It stitched really well and the heavier thread shows up nicely.  I think this may turn into a pillow - Pod Pillow.

On to other projects that I worked on this week. I did finish constructing and sandwiching all 20 of the blocks for Storybook #2 quilt. I've even started quilting them. This is a Christmas present so it will be petal to the metal to get it finished.

My stats for the week:
In-process: (3)
Purple heart wall hanging  (quilting and binding)
Elephant quilt
Storybook quilt # 2 - QAYG, quilting the blocks.

New projects: (1)
"Pod" pillow

Finished (0)
 
I'm linking up with  Freshly Pieced for WIP Wednesday and The Free Motion Quilting Project for QAL Wednesday

Color Me Quilty!

Pat

Spirals and Swirls

Wow, it's hard to believe that this is the second to last month for Sew Cal Gal's FMQ Challenge. I sure have been having fun participating. This month was a tutorial on spirals, my favorite! Sarah Vedeler had us FMQ spirals in a straight line. Sew that's exactly what I did up both sides of my Expanding Possibilities quilt.

That was lots of fun, so I decided on a bit more free form swirls and spirals on my Storybook #2 quilt.

Front

back

front

back

Front

This quilt is a quilt-as-you-go (QAYG), there are 20 blocks to be quilted. I have four completed, so I will have lots of practice with spirals and swirls.

I'm linking up with SewCalGal for November's FMQ challenge with Sarah Vedeler.

Here are my entries for the past year:
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October

Color Me Quilty!

Pat

Some Progress on Storybook # 2

Phew, I'm glad Thanksgiving is over, it's a lot of work! I cooked two turkeys this year. I actually take the legs off and debone them then brine the breast and legs. I cooked the legs and smaller of the two breasts the day before, makes things easier. I'm all about prepping, but I will tell you that the last two hours before we all sit down to eat are a killer. I'm still tired!

I have gotten some quilting done, albeit slowly. All of the blocks for my Storybook quilt # 2 are complete! Click here to see Storybook Quilt # 1  Quilt # 2 is almost the same as Quilt #1, just some slight variations to make them unique.

I figured out the layout of the blocks

Then I sandwiched all of the blocks, ready to quilt.

This quilt will be done with a Quilt-As-You-Go (QAYG) method, I like the control I have with smaller sections to FMQ.

Funny thing, I was so gung-ho to create this quilt at the beginning of the year, now I'm just ready for it to be completed!

I'm linking up with Leah Day at The Free Motion Quilting Project for UFO Sunday!

 

Color Me Quilty!

Pat

Whipping on My WIP!

I have been trying to finish up some quilts that REALLY need to be finished. I have so many more quilts in my head wanting some time and attention, but I will not work on them until my last three WIPs are completed.

Last night I started quilting my purple hearts quilt. I have been a bit nervous about quilting it because of all of the seams.

Front

Back

I actually finished my Expanding Possibilities quilt - Yippee, Skippee!

This quilt was started in July of 2011, completed November 2012!














I also worked on Storybook quilt #2

So I have been making progress - Whipping on my WIP!

My stats for the week:
In-process: (3)
Purple heart wall hanging  (quilting and binding)
Elephant quilt
Storybook quilt # 2 - All embroidery is done, plain blocks are cut and white border. Backs are cut.

New projects: (0)

Finished (1)
Expanding Possibilities quilt - done
 
I'm linking up with  Freshly Pieced for WIP Wednesday and The Free Motion Quilting Project for QAL Wednesday

Color Me Quilty!

Pat

Stay-cation Day 4: Storybook Quilt # 2 Underway

I've gotten a bit distracted on my stay-cation, I started cleaning out closets. I now have 8 garbage bags of clothes to give away and an equal number to throw out. Why oh why do I hang onto stuff for so long. The good news is that I now have more room for quilting stuff. ;)

I did get a start on constructing the embroidered blocks for Storybook quilt #2. This quilt is almost identical to Storybook quilt #1, with just some subtle changes.

I do hope that my acquired granddaughters like the quilts. That is if I can get them done before they are in their teens (currently 8 and 5 years old).

I'm hoping I can get a few more blocks done today, but I have to start getting ready for Thanksgiving.

I'm linking up with A Quilt Story for Fabric Tuesday and Free Motion by the River for Linky Tuesday.

 

 Color Me Quilty!

Pat

Stay-cation Day 2: A Finish!

Finished size 58" x 71"

I started this quilt sometime in July or August 2011. The top was completed in September 2011. I made the back and basted it in March 2012. I finished quilting and binding it today, November 18, 2012. So to say I'm glad it's done would be an understatement. But what I'm over the moon about is that this quilt is going to a teen in need of a safe place. I'm donating it to the Quilt Angel Project (Gene Black, An Alabama Artist and Quilter) for The Ogden House. I'm hoping that the teen that receives this quilt will feel all of the love that I stitched into it with almost two miles of thread and that they feel safe to snuggle underneath.

I stitched the words, Soar, Fly and Rise into the middle of the quilt

The back

Flange binding from the front

Binding from the back

The binding was supposed to be a faux piped binding, but I cut my binding strip the wrong size. So the piping looks more like a flange, but I think it still looks okay.





I named this quilt Expanding Possibilities well before I knew I was going to donate it. It was the first quilt that I made of my own design. I kept taking it apart and reorganizing it, the possible variations on the design seemed endless, which became the theme for the quilt. I hope that the teen who receives this quilt will understand, that although times are tough right now, their future is bright as long as they focus on their Expanding Possibilities.

I will need to make a label for it, before I send it off. Thanks Gene for giving me this opportunity to participate as a Quilt Angel.

Two more WIP/UFOs to go! But before I get going on my next project, someone is patiently waiting for his walk!

Humphrey Bogart!

I'm linking up today with Leah Day at the Free Motion Quilting Project for UFO Sunday!

Color Me Quilty!

Pat