Isn’t this quilt gorgeous?! I love those blues and the compass units really remind me of sunflowers.I have been curious for a while to try the digitized Quiltworx designs for some of her patterns. So far I have done a Prisma…
Photo overload on this but I do have some step by step processes on this one. This was my most bold thread attempt I think I have ever done. I wasn’t even sure if it would work but I was willing to try out one set of rays and rip it out if I did not like it.
Lou Ellen is a good friend of mine, fellow WWIT bee member and a master at piecing anything. She had a vision for this quilt. Diane Phillips “supernova quilt” had caught her attention. She wanted to do something a little on the wild side and play with crystals. She requested long extended points behind the compass rays. I thought, those all look like crystals added to that quilt. What if I quilt in thread colors to match each rainbow section? I had not done this before, wasn’t sure I could pull it off but I was intrigued. I pulled my threads.
But first I ditched and was able to do some fills before working on each color. I do love The Quilted Pineapple curved rulers! #8 was a perfect fit for these units.
Unquilted on the wall – Lou Ellen and I were trying to decide which way was going to be the top. It can really look different as you turn this quilt hanging the top at each of those 4 locations. This was our favorite version that seemed balanced.
Crawling underneath the frame looking at the backing
#8 Curved Ruler and Superiors Micro Quilter 100 wt thread. I loved that thread for ditching this quilt.
Trying it out. First I had to draw in a design that I liked that gave the appearance of overlapping rays. Next was the problem that I had so many starts and stops. Using Glide threads, those end must be buried. I find if I were to just snip those, they often fray at the edge and there is no getting rid of that bit of fuzzy end. Because of the design I chose, I could not backtrack to get to the next section because it was high contrast thread. I did give up on the small compass detail and backtracked in that curve. If I had not, I would have had 20…. Yes TWENTY starts and stops on that tiny section. As the old saying goes… Time is money…. so I backtracked. Just no other option.
I even changed thread color for each of those rays.
Starting to look nice! I also allowed space for Lou Ellen to be creative with her crystals.
Looking down from my sewing room (Previously my longarm room)
Oh those colors made me happy to see them each morning
Backing side
Blue Ribbon at Greater Houston Quilt Show
At quilt retreat this past week, several had black and rainbow quilts for show and tell. Lou Ellen made #1 and #3. #2 is Denise Green (Holly Dee Quilts – Judy Niemeyer CI) and #4 is a Ann Moore (local DSM quilting instructor). and on the table unquilted is another by Denise Green.
I know, way too many pictures. I love this quilt and I am so happy that Lou Ellen challenged my skills to create something very “out of the box” for me. Lou Ellen picked up it up on Friday, bound it over the weekend and then had to deliver on Monday for that show. Next local show will be in the fall so she has time to work out the next phase of her transformation. I cannot wait to see what she does with this!
I went to the Quilt Guild of Greater Houston’s quilt show… Joy of Quilts today. It was a lovely show and I had a few quilts hanging with my name attached as my own or quilted by me. A couple of these have not been blogged about yet so this is the first you will have seen them.
Let’s just start with the best. 1st place! Pieced Wallhanging – Large. Lou Ellen Hassold’s “Star Bright quilted by me! Lou Ellen had a vision for this quilt and thankfully I was able to step up to the challenge.
2nd Place – Group Quilt – Pam Heine Double 4 Patch. This one makes me really happy as this is an e2e design. I think our shows need to include a category for e2e quilts because they may be impecabbly pieced and have great color composition but if they are not quilted to death they lose points to those more elaborately quilted pieces.
3rd Place – Modern – 5th Grade Primer – by ME! I really did not expect to ribbon on this… it was a small practice piece – a challenge for our longarm group. I decided at the last minute to enter this one because it is rather interesting. Much to my surprise it ribboned! There were 6 in the category too so it was not by default. I’m happy about that.
Now I was rather hoping to maybe come in 3rd on this one… This is my quilt “Gravity” which is considered a Block of the Month. I don’t understand why these have to be in a separate category…. and unfortunately this style quilt cannot compare to the detailed applique quilt BOMS… and it appears that any applique trumps just pieced. More points I suppose. 5 in that grouping and the 3 that ribboned all had applique, the 2 that did not ribbon… were only pieced. I don’t even understand why something labeled a BOM has to be separate. I bought the pattern as a booklet… and the designer had 2 blocks a month for 9 months and a 10 month to assemble. I pieced and quilted in 3 months.
Lastly, Alice Sadeghpour entered her Thankful Thanksgiving quilt in Mixed Technique – Large. It did not ribbon either but it looked pretty hanging there. I’m not sure what this show defined Mixed Technique as… but I call that category as having applique, piecing, maybe embroidery or painting… something with 3 or more distinct techniques that make it unique. She has hand piecing, machine piecing and some panels used. That’s not really mixed JMHO. Now on my end … it WAS mixed LOL! I used a combination of computer custom designs and some hand guided quilting too but that should not have dictated entry into this category. Another odd thing, this show only splits Large Pieced quilts into 1 or 2 person quilts… everything else is judged together regardless if pieced or quilted by someone considered a professional or master or someone less skilled. Probably because this guild has so much talent that it is pointless to try to separate! Anyway… here is Alice’s quilt which also has not been blogged about by me. She asked that I wait until after the show.
Fun show, many thanks to the guild and their volunteers for putting on yet another fantastic show. You do not have to be a member to enter a quilt at this show which is held on the other side of Houston from me.
This is the 3rd annual event St Mary’s Catholic church has held and next year’s dates are already scheduled as a 3 day event instead of 2. Visit their site to learn more about the show and see photos of the beautiful grounds, the vendors, the café, the outdoor pavilion. The painted church and the quilts makes for a lovely day trip. Check their website HERE.
It has been so exciting to see that a client’s quilt graced the altar again this year at the show! Kathy Yeldezian’s Sedona Star. Not only front and center, but another client’s quilt hung off the banisters center stage as you were leaving the church. Lou Ellen Hassold’s Paradise in Blooms. Both of those quilts were awarded Sponsor ribbons (businesses donate a certain amount of money to help fund expenses with the show then they get the privilege to pin a ribbon on any quilt of their choosing as their favorite for whatever reason in the show).
My Amish with a Twist 3 debuted at this show. Lou Ellen’s Ring Cycles that I quilted was also displayed at this show.
The weather was beautiful, my husband and I went together and of course ran into many quilting friends to wander the grounds with. It’s only 45 minutes away from the city from my house. I just finished 3 “show” quilts in a row, barely getting the last one off the frame in time to headed out to the show with quilt in hand to present to it’s owner that I was meeting there. That afternoon was the perfect fix for all the hours I have put in on those past 3 quilts!
That is Lou Ellen’s Paradise in Bloom, The colors were perfect to match with the church!
My Amish with a Twist 3
Such a surprise to find an online longarm friend’s name from Canada in a small quilt show outside Houston, TX!
The outdoor exhibit this year featured Red White and Blue quilts. That is my husband Bob pointing to the quilt I made for him when he deployed to Afghanistan.
I did not take as many photos as last year! Do check out St Mary’s facebook page or their website. They will be highlighting quilts through out the next few months. They create beautiful books for purchase and this year there were cards for sale of last year’s show (I had 2 quilts on the pews and then Lou Ann’s amazing Paradise in Blooms on the altar). I had to purchase those cards too! I already own the book, of which a 2nd printing has already been done. This has become a very popular venue.
Many thanks to St Mary’s for supporting our quilting needs and providing us with this lovely show. Proceeds from the show stay right there locally helping those in need in that community through one of their programs.
I have been running behind with posting photos! Here’s just a few recent finishes.This one is Sally’s. A wonderful Burgundy/black combo. I loved these colors. E2e quilted with Surf by Anne Bright. A f…
My schedule has been so hectic with so little personal time for even household stuff, much less my own projects. I just added them up, I’ve quilted 12 charity quilts so far this year, with 2 more on hand to be quilted in April. One was a queen size lovely quilt that I also donated the batting for that is going to a new local women’s shelter. Another is this quilt that I made entirely to donate for my son to use for fund raising for myeloma. I needed a quick project, I asked Denise Green to pull fabrics for me. She sent me a box of fabrics, a color coded worksheet with the fabrics glued in. I was ready to get to work on this one! We love Judy quilt patterns!
This is Prismatic Star. I also quilted it with a digitized custom set designed just for this pattern. Both Judy Niemeyer – Quiltworx patterns. I was torn, it’s such a fun layout for custom quilting – hand guided. But it also offered the perfect opportunity to experiment with the digitized sets on my own quilt and not yours! I played it safe, I really wanted to use a light lavender thread… but opted in the end to use a matching blue. I played it safe all the way through and set most units with about a 1/4″ space from the edges of each unit too. I needed this done and no ripping! I’m so happy it turned out pretty nice. Now, I’m confident to start on a few client quits waiting on digitized custom quilting.
auditioning pieced binding
center detail
Gosh I love those feathers! Digitized design. Hand guided ditching
Show and Tell @ Houston Modern Quilt Guild (yes… I know this is NOT modern but they tolerate me LOL)
I even finished in time for a little local exhibit in The Woodlands and WAQG. Those bold colors really presented well. That afternoon, the sun was shining just right and from the ground floor I could see every feather! Those matching threads need that side light to present well.
A little video, that digital quilting is mesmerizing. The stitch pattern on this is so different from how we would quilt this freehand. I love seeing that long sweeping line meet up with that hook time after time.
I am really excited for next year, one of my good friends, Lou Ellen, has offered to team with me for next year’s quilt. She is an award winning amazing quilter with a passion for “judy” quilts and I am so excited she offered to help. She has lost 2 family members to myeloma so this project is near and dear to her heart. We requested our good friend Denise of Holly Dee Quilts to help us with thinking about colors/fabrics and to kit up something gorgeous for us to work on this fall. At present we are thinking about Feathered Star (another Judy Niemeyer Quiltworx pattern). The color to represent myeloma is burgundy and the color for leukemia is orange so I’m hoping we get some of those colors in there. I’m pretty partial to burgundy as a favorite color and my hubby and this son both are graduates of TAMU.
I also want to share this is my first born son (we have 4) and I an so proud of the person he has always been and continues to be. Read a little about him and his work here Larry Anderson The quilt has shipped, I’m not sure how it will be presented this year but funds raised will be going to the myeloma foundation. Here are a few of the local projects right now:
My schedule has been so hectic with so little personal time for even household stuff, much less my own projects. I just added them up, I’ve quilted 12 charity quilts so far this year, with 2 more on hand to be quilted in April. One was a queen size lovely quilt that I also donated the batting for that is going to a new local women’s shelter. Another is this quilt that I made entirely to donate for my son to use for fund raising for myeloma. I needed a quick project, I asked Denise Green to pull fabrics for me. She sent me a box of fabrics, a color coded worksheet with the fabrics glued in. I was ready to get to work on this one! We love Judy quilt patterns!
This is Prismatic Star. I also quilted it with a digitized custom set designed just for this pattern. Both Judy Niemeyer – Quiltworx patterns. I was torn, it’s such a fun layout for custom quilting – hand guided. But it also offered the perfect opportunity to experiment with the digitized sets on my own quilt and not yours! I played it safe, I really wanted to use a light lavender thread… but opted in the end to use a matching blue. I played it safe all the way through and set most units with about a 1/4″ space from the edges of each unit too. I needed this done and no ripping! I’m so happy it turned out pretty nice. Now, I’m confident to start on a few client quits waiting on digitized custom quilting.
auditioning pieced binding
center detail
Gosh I love those feathers! Digitized design. Hand guided ditching
Show and Tell @ Houston Modern Quilt Guild (yes… I know this is NOT modern but they tolerate me LOL)
I even finished in time for a little local exhibit in The Woodlands and WAQG. Those bold colors really presented well. That afternoon, the sun was shining just right and from the ground floor I could see every feather! Those matching threads need that side light to present well.
A little video, that digital quilting is mesmerizing. The stitch pattern on this is so different from how we would quilt this freehand. I love seeing that long sweeping line meet up with that hook time after time.
I am really excited for next year, one of my good friends, Lou Ellen, has offered to team with me for next year’s quilt. She is an award winning amazing quilter with a passion for “judy” quilts and I am so excited she offered to help. She has lost 2 family members to myeloma so this project is near and dear to her heart. We requested our good friend Denise of Holly Dee Quilts to help us with thinking about colors/fabrics and to kit up something gorgeous for us to work on this fall. At present we are thinking about Feathered Star (another Judy Niemeyer Quiltworx pattern). The color to represent myeloma is burgundy and the color for leukemia is orange so I’m hoping we get some of those colors in there. I’m pretty partial to burgundy as a favorite color and my hubby and this son both are graduates of TAMU.
I also want to share this is my first born son (we have 4) and I an so proud of the person he has always been and continues to be. Read a little about him and his work here Larry Anderson The quilt has shipped, I’m not sure how it will be presented this year but funds raised will be going to the myeloma foundation. Here are a few of the local projects right now:
Yes, I have been trying to teach myself how to use the custom quilting features of my Innova Mach 3 Auto Pilot computer system! I’m jumping out of order and showing this one that uses some set in blocks and borders. This is an adorable guild quilt for donation somewhere. The fabrics used were so cute and PINK! I love pink.
These were a actually X and O block with hearts, except on these busy fabrics they really did not read that way. I used a flaming heart border and a modified block for the cornerstones. This was my first real quilt using set in blocks and a border. No ditching, only computer guided designs. I think it turned out really cute.
As usual, so many times we deal with situations that make the task harder on these charity quilts! Barely squeezed it in there on that backing. Normally I like at least 4″ extra on all sides for a total of 8″ longer and wider at minimum, 10″ is better”.
You can see the X and O pattern on the screen, it just doesn’t show on those busy fabric but you do see the hearts and scrolls.
While I have lots more to learn… I am on my way to custom quilting with the digitized designs! I have since done 1 with a Judy Niemeyer digitzed design for one of her quilt patterns on my own personal quilt and it worked out great. I am starting with client quilts in April! I am so excited to be able to offer this service. While still very labor intensive, I can offer much more quilting detail inside spaces without intricate marking and I am also able to complete these designs much faster than my hand guided work. I find so far that I must set up the custom and work it continuously, unlike setting up edge to edge where I can go back to my hand guided custom while the computer stitches out a row on the other machine. Time will tell, but with designs not being continuous andplaced in individual sections, I pretty much have to stand there for starts and stops. But I still should be able to complete more than 2 Judy quilts a month for those clients that want digitized designs. They are beautiful. You can find them on the Quiltworx website. Meanwhile, I’ve had a few waiting since they heard I was getting a computer! I can’t wait to get started.
I had the pleasure of quilting another of Sally Coble’s applique masterpieces. This one is a Sue Daley pattern called “Lancaster”. The clamshells are needle turn but they are long strips, not individual little clams which you might th…
It was an exciting weekend for us in Memphis! My husband reached a personal goal of attaining the rank of Colonel that he has been striving for over 18 years. Given that only 1% of the Officers in the military ever achieve this rank, the odds were not in our favor! With only a few more years before mandatory retirement age and the fact that very few Public Health Officers ever make it to Colonel, we were almost ready to concede that it wasn’t going to happen. BUT, the Stars were aligned for Bob to be in the right place, at the right time, with the right prerequisites, and gain a Commander assignment that was a Full Bird Colonel position.
Last March we went through a Change of Command ceremony where my husband became the Commander of the 164th Medical Group, 164th Airlift Wing, Memphis Air National Guard Base, TN. Associated with this command is the rank of Colonel. In 2015 Bob had been through a grueling last requirement (Air War College) to be considered for promotion from Lt Colonel to full Bird Colonel, but he was not in a position that supported that rank. We were about to give up that dream when the Memphis Medical Group Command opened up and he was accepted for the slot amid much debate. Historically this position was always held by a Flight Doctor! Last March he took over as the first non-physician to receive this Command at this base! Now it was time for the nearly 1 year process of going through the military review board process to be approved for his promotion to Colonel. The Colonel promotion process weaves through multiple layers of the Air Force before it goes to the President for nomination, and then finally to Congress for confirmation. After the nearly 10 months in process, Bob’s promotion was approved on 12/7/16! Even though officially December was his date of having the rank, he could not wear the rank until an official pinning and swearing in ceremony occurred, which was held this past weekend.
Congratulations Colonel Robert W. Wagner!
Last day wearing the oak leaves
Ret Colonel Wally Werner – Meritorious Service Medal related to the 134th
Colonel Raymond Robinson and Valerie Wagner – Blues Pinning
Mickey Wagner and Ret Lt Col Anthony Durham – Epaulet Placement
Aunt Doris Friedell – Pinning of Cover
Colonel Roddy Lochala – Oath-of-Office
Retired Colonel Thomas Gilster and Meg
Wally and Bill, Bob’s long-time military friends
Colonel Robert W Wagner in his office
There was a staff photographer and friends who took photos. Gina and Chris – long term friends from Knoxville – supplied a couple of these photos, most are taken by me. We have lots of group photos at the end… but I was in them so I don’t have any copies yet. I had a few moments this morning and wanted to write this up before the next events push this away. I haven’t even blogged about Quilt Con the week before!
Dinner one night, Aunt Doris, Cousins Jean and Tracy came up from Dallas for the event.
It is so difficult to plan, 3 of our sons could not even be there for this event that only 1% of military officers ever achieve. Our nieces had to cancel out, Mom and Dad are not physically able, Dad will be 90 this month and caring for mom with dementia, one close friend had a car accident a few days before and was too bruised and banged up that he could not travel. I have the worst time myself planning events! Life happens. I am so grateful for those that could attend, they helped make this a cherished lifetime achievement and fantastic celebration. Our sincere appreciation for all that took time from their schedules to celebrate this event with us which include the people presenting and pinning, Chris and Gina Seibold and Aunt Doris, Tracy and Jean.
