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TWENTY YEARS, TWENTY CARS, 200 SEWING MACHINES LATER

May 22, 2013 by Lucie the Happy Quilter

I spent this morning celebrating. Celebrating what you might be asking???? Well it’s twenty years to the day since I got married. It’s hard to believe that I’ve been married for twenty years. Hubby and I haven’t spent anything near twenty years together owing to the fact that he works away from home. Perhaps that’s the secret of staying together this long ….. When I reminded hubby on Monday that our twentieth wedding anniversary was today he emailed back: Wow! 20 years, 20 cars and 200 sewing machines …..

Twenty years ago

I disappeared into the loft yesterday morning in search of my wedding dress. It’s clear to me now that I will never wear that dress again. And my Sarah isn’t likely to want to wear it either. So I have decided that I will do something crafty with it. It’s going to be hard cutting it up; the first cut will be the hardest. I have decided to do some Mixed Media Quilting using the fabric. I’m going to beg my creative friend Sandra to point me in the right direction when it comes to painting and stuff. There are metres and metres of fabrics in this dress. It was a very simple dress but it made me feel like a little doll while I wore it. We’ve moved the dress from house to house  and now that it’s twenty years old it’s time to do something with it. So I’ll let you know when I cut the dress up and just how emotional it was.

Twenty years old

A couple of weeks ago I went internet shopping for some new longarm quilting designs. I previously posted three of the five designs I purchased. Here are the remaining two designs. I’m really looking forward to using these. I have a few quilts of my own that need longarm quilting so perhaps I will get the chance to use a few of these designs on some of my own creations.

PRPANTO27

LQPANTO252 Zephyr

I kicked off the celebration this morning by mowing the front lawn. I decided to do this tedious job first thing because it was dry out. Then I dragged Sarah out to Starbucks for a coffee and then Ikea for some cushion fillers. We had a pretty good morning. This afternoon was spent messing around with magazines and cooking supper. And this evening, I plan on doing some Freemotion Quilting on one of my “A” is for Applique lesson samples which is a cushion cover. It’s going to be a quick simple job. Now that I have purchased some cushion fillers I feel the need to get the job done. This will reduce my UFO count by one. Yippeeeeeee

A is for applique session sample

So you already know what I will be doing this evening. What are you doing this evening? Will you be working on a UFO? Until you read me again,

Happy stitching. ♥ ♥

Posted in "A" is for Applique, Current Projects, Freemotion Quilting, Mixed Media Quilting, Quilting | Tagged , , , , , , , | 24 Comments »

DRESDEN NEWS

May 21, 2013 by Lucie the Happy Quilter

It’s been a Tuesday like any other. I did some longarm quilting this morning. I worked on Jay’s lovely bed scarf. Jay chose the Raindrops quilting design by Lisa Calle and aubergine colour thread. Making a bed scarf is a great idea. In fact it’s probably a great first project.

Jays Bedscarf 2

For years I have been folding a quilt in half for the foot of my bed but because it’s doubled up it makes it quite heavy. So I shall add a bed scarf to my To-Do List for the near future. I will piece my bed scarf using one of my favourite blocks and perhaps scraps in my stash.

My Sarah was sitting another exam this afternoon. So after dropping her off at college I took myself off to purchase a new outdoor jacket. The one I wear for walking the dogs and everyday outings is far too big now and it makes me feel like a hobo. Unfortunately I could not find anything suitable this afternoon. I guess it’s the wrong time of year. I’m hoping that the weather will break and the warm breezes will arrive and I can put my jacket away until the autumn. In the meantime I will have to persevere with the same jacket.

I put the finishing touches to my Scrappy Dresden Plate quilt today. I added the label and took a few photos outside. However the skies were a little overcast so I don’t think my photos represent the true colours but it does give you a pretty good idea of the quilting.

Scrappy Dresden Plate Quilt finished

Scrappy Dresden close up 3

Scrappy Dresden close up

Scrappy Dresden close up 2

I thoroughly enjoyed making this quilt. And although I was working with black it wasn’t as hard on my eyes as I thought it would be. I have enough black in my stash now to make another few small projects. So watch for that.

Last evening while I was playing with a bit of green fabric and some freezer paper and not having a very good time of it I discovered that my iron had given up the ghost. I couldn’t figure out why the freezer paper was not adhering to the fabric. Well it soon became very clear that my iron was warm enough. In fact it was cooling off. Luckily I purchased a back-up a couple of months ago to take to workshops. So I did eventually get the job done but not without a hassle.

My current project is t0 do the fine hand applique work on my “A” is for Applique, Happiness is block. I got it started last night and it’s shaping up nicely. I have to admit that I’m really enjoying this challenge. The first block, Home is Where the Heart is was a block from a book but this second block was drawn/designed by me. I find this block more satisfying than the first. I hope to design next month’s block myself as well. I’m still waiting for all the participants to send me their suggestions for next month’s theme. Once all the suggestions are in I can draw one from the hat and announce it. I’ve received some really interesting suggestions so far but I would like to include as many participants as possible. This challenge is even better than I thought it would be. How much fun can one longarm quilter be allowed to have?

So for this evening, this very happy longarm quilter will be working on Happiness is. Whatever you may be doing this evening, I wish you a really good evening. Until you read me again,

Happy stitching. ♥ ♥

Posted in "A" is for Applique, Freemotion Quilting, Longarm Quilting, Quilting, Use up Your Scraps | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments »

UFO INVENTORY SURPRISE

May 20, 2013 by Lucie the Happy Quilter

Well it’s Monday and that means it’s back to the old grind. My Sarah escorted me to the super market this morning. And this afternoon she was sitting an exam. I loaded the next quilt into my longarm quilting system which I hope to start quilting tomorrow morning. The quilting design and thread colour had been chosen by Kay. The quilt is a Bargello bed scarf. It makes a change from quilting full size bed quilts.

At the moment it’s taking all my willpower not to start a new project. Instead of putting my energy into something new I should really finish one or two UFOs. I went into the sewing room and decided to pick another UFO but while going thru my UFOs I realised that I don’t have as many as I thought I had. My UFO count stands at less than a dozen and most of those are in need of layering and quilting. So in my mind, that’s all pretty positive. Now that I have established that my outstanding UFOs are much less than I thought, I have given myself permission to start thinking about my next project. I have three projects in mind; the first of three is a New York Beauty which I have wanted to make for a long time. I have been collecting fabrics for a good long while for this New York Beauty……

New York Beauty Book

The second choice is Metro Rings for which I will use my newest ruler. Metro Rings uses a Jelly Roll and some yardage for the background. I have plenty of Jelly Rolls in my stash but I do not have the yardage for the background. I guess that means another trip to a quilt shop. What a hardship it will be to visit one of my favourite shops. However if I was really clever I could possibly piece this whole quilt using scraps. Goodness knows I have plenty of scraps that would do the job rather well. I wonder if I could stretch myself a little more to meeting the challenge of piecing Metro Rings using only scraps and fabrics from my stash.

Metro Rings

new-ruler[1]

And then the last choice is making something using these lovely fresh fabrics. Now for this project, I have not decided what the quilt pattern will be yet. I would like to use one of my fabric cutting systems to make the job easy. And as I have many dies to choose from it’s going to be a difficult job.

Lively Fabrics

So those are my three choices for my next project. While I contemplate which to start with I will continue working on my UFOs. And of course I might even change my mind about working on any of the three choices above. I might have another stab at using up more scraps instead. Who knows?

I consider myself brave for having counted up my UFOs today. In the end it wasn’t as scary as I thought it would be. Have you taken inventory of your UFOs lately? Was it better or worse than my experience? Have you taken a vow to be good and finish all your UFOs before you start another project? Or perhaps you’re the type of person who only works on one project until it’s finished before starting another….. I wish I could be that disciplined!

Well it’s been a good day in happy quilter land. I loaded a quilt into the longarm quilting system and planned my work for the rest of the week. I counted up my UFOs and now have a clearer plan for my next projects. And we worked out that my Sarah has four more exams to sit; two more this week and two more at the beginning of June. I think we will both be relieved when the exams are finished. My Sarah will be home again next week because it’s mid-term break. I think it will be another quiet week as there will probably be a lot of revision work going on.

So for this evening, this very happy longarm quilter will be doing some fine hand applique on the Happiness is block. Whatever you may be working on this evening, I hope it reduces your UFOs. Until you read me again,

Happy stitching.

Posted in Books, Current Projects, Quilting | Tagged , , , , , , | 10 Comments »

HAPPY DANCE ON A FOGGY SUNDAY

May 19, 2013 by Lucie the Happy Quilter

It’s been a quiet but rather busy weekend in happy longarm quilter land. On Friday I loaded my Scrappy Dresden Plate quilt into my longarm quilting system to start quilting on Saturday morning. I quilted mostly all day Saturday and almost as long today until the job was done. I don’t usually do much longarm quilting over the weekend but I really wanted to get my Scrappy Dresden Plate quilt finished.  

 Scrappy Dresden Loaded ready for longarm quilting

I started piecing this Scrappy Dresden a couple of months ago, so I considered it to be a UFO. Well this afternoon I was doing a happy dance when I finished longarm quilting said quilt. I used a combination of digitised and Freemotion Quilting on this particular quilt. I have added the binding using the sewing machine to the front of quilt and the hand finishing on the back will be done soon. I made a start on sewing in all the loose thread ends this afternoon. I have wanted to make a quilt using a black background for quite some time now. I purchased the black background fabric about two years ago. So this project is something I can tick off one of my many To-Do Lists. And not only that, but the Dresden Plates were pieced using up scraps. Yahoo… I feel like doing a happy dancing all over again.

Scrappy Dresden Finally Quilted

Yesterday after shutting down my longarm quilting system for the day and then doing a few chores, I worked on my “A” is for Applique challenge, Happiness is block.

Happiness is on paper

You might remember that I sketched it out a couple of weeks ago after stumbling across some inspiration. Then I traced and cut out all the freezer paper templates ready for applying to the chosen fabric. Last evening, I made a decision as to which fabrics to use and then pressed the freezer paper shapes onto fabrics and worked thru the appropriate steps until I ended up with this……

Happiness is 3

I will add bits of stitchery work and embellishments to this but this gives you the barebones of my interpretation of Happiness is….. making time to smell the flowers. It took long enough for me to get to this point. I was beginning to wonder if I would ever have time to get going on this block but now that I can see it shaping up and quite pleased with it.

The weather has been absolutely dreadful here in the northeast of England over the weekend. We had rain all day yesterday, thick fog last evening and it was still with us when I woke up this morning. It rained so hard yesterday morning that one of my windows was leaking like Niagara Falls! We’re having some work done at the happy longarm quilter headquarters and that leaky window is at the top of the list. The work starts in July which isn’t soon enough for me.

So this is the part where I usually tell you what I’ll be working on this evening. Obviously I will either be working on binding/sewing thread in on my Scrappy Dresden Plate quilt or doing some fine hand applique on my Happiness is block. Whatever you may be doing this evening, I hope it’s something that reduces your UFOs. What a great feeling it is when you can tick another UFO from the list. Until you read again,

Happy stitching.

Posted in "A" is for Applique, Current Projects, Finish it Up, Freemotion Quilting, Longarm Quilting, Quilting, Use up Your Scraps | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments »

UFO DAY IN HAPPY LONGARM QUILTER LAND

May 17, 2013 by Lucie the Happy Quilter

Friday has finally arrived for this happy longarm quilter. Yesterday I went around all day think that is was already Friday. So I kind of feel like I’ve had two Fridays this week.

Yesterday I decided that due to all the stuff going on at home, I would leave the longarm quilting until Monday. So today I used as a work on UFOs Day. I picked three projects from the pile but only actually managed two. I started by adding the last borders to my Scrappy Dresden quilt which I managed quite nicely. And once that was done I decided to load it onto my longarm quilting system to be stitched over the weekend. I’ve already planned just how I’m going to quilt this one.

Scrappy Dresden Loaded ready for longarm quilting

I auditioned the thread and here’s a peek at the backing fabric which I purchased at the Quilters Cupboard. I was really tempted to get started this afternoon but I knew there would be plenty of interruptions.

Back and thread audition

So I did some Freemotion Quilting using my Bernina 750 on this little quilt top which has been sitting in the UFO pile for at least two years.

Die Cut Dog

I plan on turning this into a cushion cover as soon as I can get a cushion form to fit. I feel this little quilt is a bit quiet so I plan on adding something to it. So watch this space for an update on this project sometime soon.

I bought a kindle book a few weeks ago that I want to bring to your attention. The book is called 15 Minutes of Play by Victoria Findlay Wolfe.

Image[1]

This book shows you how to make fabric from your scraps. Victoria talks about where/how she learned to make fabric from scraps. If you’re like me, you just can’t throw any scraps away but need inspiration on how to use said scraps up, this a good book. I’m now convinced that it’s okay to play with my fabric scraps for at least 15 minutes at a time. Click on the book to go to Victoria Findlay Wolfe’s website.

Well it’s been a good day. I got a few things done. And since the day isn’t over yet I’m hoping to get a few more done. I need to transfer some stitchery designs to fabric using the light box and I would really like to get some hand quilting done this evening. We’ve had plenty of sunshine today. Everything always works better in the sunshine.

So you already know what this happy longarm quilter will be doing this evening. Have you had a good productive day? Will you be working on UFOs this weekend? Or have you already accomplished what’s on your To-Do List? Either way, I hope you have a fab weekend. Until you read me again,

Happy stitching. ♥ ♥

 

 

Posted in Books, Current Projects, Longarm Quilting, Quilting, Use up Your Scraps | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments »

ONE MORE DAY LEFT?

May 16, 2013 by Lucie the Happy Quilter

After yesterday’s decidedly horrendous wet weather today was a positive improvement. We had plenty of sunshine making life a lot more interesting. Everything works much better in the sunshine. I spent a couple of hours with Jackie doing some blanket stitch applique at The Crafts House. We played with Bondaweb, fabric, templates and embroidery thread. We worked on a basic applique design and had a lovely time. In my opinion hand applique is very relaxing. There are no noisy sewing machines running and once your project is set-up it’s brilliant to work on from your armchair. So why not have a go. All you need is a few scraps and a basic design and you’re off.

Now I wasn’t going to post photos of this months “A” is for Applique, Happiness is challenge until the weekend but I have received four photos so far and they’re all good. So to help any participants who may be having a hard time finding inspiration for their own block, feast your eyes on these….

Anne D. Happiness is

Anne of Frayed at the Edge

Kathy Happiness is

Kathy’s Block

Jan Happiness is

Jan’s Block

Sandra Happiness is

Sandra of The Crafts House

So far the blocks are all quite different. Sandra and Jan plan on making a fabric journal with their blocks. Is anyone else doing something other than making a quilt? I would really like to know because I think it’s a great and brave idea to take part in this challenge and do your own thing at the same time. It’s new ideas that inspire the rest of us. So if you are doing something different please share with us.

Do you like whimsical chickens? Well I love chickens. My fellow blogger NikkiM of Buzy Day has recently posted a free pattern/tutorial for a chicken tea cosy. I can’t wait to make one for myself. Well done NikkiM and thanks for sharing with us. We are so lucky to have so many generous and talented bloggers.

As I sit here composing this post the sun is still shining brightly. I have no idea what the weekend will bring. I’ve been going around all day thinking that today is Friday but surprise surprise it’s only Thursday. So there’s one more day left before the weekend. I was originally thinking about longarm quilting tomorrow but due to all the stuff going on around me I have re-organised my schedule differently. So tomorrow is UFO Day in happy longarm quilter land which will withstand the many interruptions that will occur. I will pick one UFO  from the pile and work on it. Perhaps I will spend the weekend doing the same.

This evening I have something to show you that will make you smile. My Sarah ordered a new handbag last weekend and she’s been waiting patiently for it to arrive. Well it finally arrived this morning. Although Sarah expected it to be a little bigger than it is she’s is delighted with this new bag. Oh to be young and confident again. Have a little look at this. Do you remember sporting a funky bag like this one when you were a teenager?

Sarah's new handbag

So for this evening, this very happy longarm quilting will be doing some fine hand applique and perhaps some hand quilting. Whatever you may be doing this evening, I hope your planning how to reduce your UFOs. Until you read me again,

Happy stitching.

 

Posted in "A" is for Applique, Quilting | Tagged , , , , , , , | 10 Comments »

YO-YO YOU ASK?

May 15, 2013 by Lucie the Happy Quilter

What a rotten day it’s been weather wise. I thought we were going to have to build an Ark but the clouds have broken up and the sun came out to play. It’s not warm and the wind is still blustery but at least for the time being it’s dry.

I stepped out this morning to having a little me sewing time at Stitchin’ Heaven. I worked on making some Yo-Yos to embellish my latest bag. I quite often add Yo-Yos to projects because they are easy to make and add a little oomph. And besides they’re fun to make especially if you use the Clover Yo-Yo makers. Anyway I have finished the job now and this is how the bag looks.

Bag embellished

I didn’t escape without adding a few funky fabrics to my existing little stash of funky fabrics. It will be a while before I can make anything serious because I feel I need a few more.

A few more funky fabrics

I think I have already reviewed the book Feathering the Nest but I had it out again today and once again I have been inspired. There are plenty of good simple quilt patterns in this book. I would like to choose a project and be able to stick to it until it is finished but I have so many other things on the go. Are you looking for inspiration today?

Feathering the Nest Book

I have received another photo of an “A” is for Applique block challenge; Home is where the Heart is from Kathy today. And here is her block……

Kathy Home is where the heart is

I have also received a couple of photos for the May challenge, Happiness is which I will post next week. So if you are participating and would like to send me either a progress photo or photo of your finished block please do. And remember my friends it’s not too late to join in. Click here for more info about the challenge.

A few days ago I went internet shopping for some new longarm quilting designs. I have shown you two so far and here’s the third of five new designs.

LQPANTO231 Exquisite

I had a little peek at the Design Seeds website and found this little bit of colour inspiration……

FloraTones_10[1]

Click on the photo to take you to Design Seeds

It’s been a good day. I did a bit of hand sewing and plenty of chatting. I’ve fondled fabric, which is probably my favourite pastime. I got wet four times in the rain. I hope for dryer weather for tomorrow as I will be out and about again.

So for this evening, this happy longarm quilter will be doing some blanket stitching which is something I quite enjoy doing. Any quiet hand stitching is welcome after spending so much time in a noisy sewing room. Whatever you may be doing this evening, I hope it’s something you really enjoy. Until you read me again,

Happy stitching. ♥ ♥

Posted in "A" is for Applique, Books, Current Projects, Quilting | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments »

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