Gone Native with NYC MetroMod Bee

Kim H. Is Queen Bee for this leap month of February. She chose these darling little kids from around the world and asked us to make log cabin-esque blocks. She provided one fabric and allowed us to use whatever else we chose. I have been in a true log cabin, courthouse block mode, so this was indeed a treat.

Kim I hope you like it.

15 minutes of Play BOM quilt

Good Sunday morning,

This week I also completed the BOM quilt I made. I change my mind numerous times when it came to the quilting design. Funny how you can have so many grand ideas and finally it comes down to what do you feel like doing at that particular time.

So this is it. Machine quilted, made-non-biased binding and done.

Twelve Years and Done

A little more than twelve years ago I was introduced to a quilting bee created by a colleagues girlfriend. She had a dream of revolutionizing the world with the start of a woman's quilting bee. She saw it as a way to get women together and exchange ideas.


She asked a variety of women around her if they would be interested, and Miranda included me because of my love of knitting etc. And so it began, a group of us bought "quilting for dummies", made a trip to City Quilters and we taught ourselves how to quilt.


We all came up with a project to do, I chose a queen sized quilt. (I often wonder what I was smoking as this was to be done by hand.) I created a design, colored it, chose fabrics for it, and proceeded to stitch it together.


The top was completed by the time we sort of fell of from attending the group. I continued and made my sandwich and put it away. I brought it out over the next year or two and attempted to hand quilt it. I didnt like how it looked so I stopped and packed it away.


Every so often I would look at it and think about finishing it. As the years passed I tried more hand quilting per block, with little success or satisfaction. I even toyed with the idea of machine quilting it, just to finish. But I never could bring myself to do that. I started by hand and wanted to finish by hand.


As I began quilting even more, it always gnawed at me as the UFO (Un Finished Object) that was. Then late last year, I made a promise that I would complete it. I was torn, a bit overwhelmed, but I moved forward.


During the last week of 2011, I was at a sew day with Jess and friends and discovered perle cotton. That was the way to go.  It is a heavier weight thread, that would allow me to finish hand quilting quicker than regular quilting thread.  So, Helen helped pull out the old quilting stitches and Jess began the first few stitches to demonstrate the use of perle cotton.


So with that start and a small challenge by Jess, I have completed it. All done by hand. (except for the attachment of the binding, although the back binding was finished by hand).


I must say, it is a happy night for me knowing that it is done. I shall take some pics in the day to show the vibrancy. But for now, here is my first ever quilt, hand quilted and completed after I began over twelve years ago.


And a Quote that I found that sums this process up completely.

" Each and every incomplete thing in your life or work exerts a draining force on you, sucking the energy of accomplishment and success out of you as surely as a vampire stealing your blood.

Every incomplete promise, commitment and agreement saps your strength, because it blocks your momentum, inhibits your ability to move forward, to progress and improve. Incomplete things keep calling you back to the past to take care of them.  Jeff Olson"



Thank God I completed it.  I am now free to press onward and improve...smiles.  I can't wait to wash it. Yippee.

Y it is not so bad, it Seams

Okay, as I delve into the quilting world even more, there are so many things that I have never heard of and others that everyone believes to be so daunting.

Well, about two weeks ago I learned what a Y seam was. Never thought much of it. Always thought things through. So I googled it.

There were so many posts on how to do it and how to do it easy. Then I thought about it some more. I realized I had to just do it, for fear that I would hit a stumbling block or something

So this it what I did. And Y seams so easily. Smiles. I guess I stitched to a quarter of an inch point then added the third piece from corner to center, pivot and then to the end.

And It Feels Soooo Good - Fabric Love

Okay.  I said I was on a fabric diet.  I should have known that I would be in trouble.  I went on a spending spree around the holidays.  I actually did use much of what I purchased.  I have faithfully, began cutting into my stash and creating things without going out to purchase for each new idea.  For instance, I did not purchase one item for my aunt's gift that I made.  Not even a bead.  So that was difficult, but I survived.  I did not purchase fabric for most of January, until last week when my Rochester buddy was here.  That was only $22 dollars.  She also gifted me fabric, as you see in the previous post.

So its February 1, the day begins...and off goes the roller coaster ride.  I reigned in much of my emotions and feelings, but at 63 degrees in February and raging emotions...off I went to my favorite City quilt store.  As I walked in the door, I felt the tension slipping away.  I immediatly touched the fabric and felt a cool breeze come up from behind me.  I lifted a few bolts of brightly colored prints and I could hear the ocean soothing my soul.

Yes, I know it sounds a bit odd.  But it is a euphoric feeling when you have "Fabric Love".  You are instantly transported into a better, kinder, gentler state.  For example.  Last week was an extremely taxing week, both physically and mentally and after all was said and done with 16 hour days, I found myself with my quilting buddies chatting and hand stitching for a few hours.  As soon as I walked in the door and saw the equisite hand pieced quilt I was instantly rebooted.  The energy started surging through me.  I felt elated.

So, why does that happen?  What is Fabric Love?  Are you born with it?  Does it grow on you?  Do you catch it?  What makes fabric different from food, shoes, clothes, drinks, drugs, cigarettes, working out?  Is it because we then take that love and transform it into something else?  Why yes, many of us look at it and pet it, but we also use it to create.  Does that make it different?  What do you think?  I would love to know your thoughts.