It's a Red Kinda Day!

Happy Valentine's Day! 

I love all the red decorations this holiday brings - especially in the gray days of winter. 

I made this heart garland yesterday - isn't it cute?  I wish I could say I thought of this, but I didn't :-).  I saw it somewhere on the web, sorry can't remember where.  The one online was made of felt hearts.  

When I went to Jo-Ann Fabrics the other day I forgot to look at the felt.  Darn!  So I decided to improvise.  Certainly I had Valentine themed fabrics.

I also knew I had some HeatnBond Ultra around somewhere.

After fusing the fabrics together and cutting them with my pinking shears, I had a nice stack of hearts. 

I selected a nice decorative stitch and began sewing them together.  One after another in a straight line.  I like that stitch... looks like x's to me - very appropriate!

I attached ribbon at each end and I was done!  So quick and easy!

In other heart related news, my girlfriend and fellow quilter, Marie, stopped by last week with her finished Sweet Hearts quilt.  Isn't it beautiful!  Now all three of us that participated in this year-long project have our quilts completed.  Great job, Marie!!

When I got up this morning I was greeted by this guy outside my kitchen window.  He must have been cold - it was -3F.  He was so pretty just sitting on that branch I  had to try to take his picture.

I also finished the 4th and last block for this Oak Leaf and Reel  wall quilt.  Today I will be working on the HST that I have made that will go in between and around the blocks. 

I have these cute vintage Valentines from when I was a kid.  I guess that makes me vintage too! LOL  I put them out every year and they make me smile.

I hope you enjoy your Valentine's Day and spend it with those you love.  I will be spending it with my hubby and doing some stitching!

Happy Stitching!

Deb

Happy New Year and a Wonderful Way to End 2014!

What a wonderful way to end 2014!  My post a year ago today was the final heart in my Sweet Hearts quilt.  Now a year has passed and I finally have it quilted.  A couple of weeks ago I got my Sweet Hearts quilt back from my machine quilter, Janice Jamison.  As usual, she did a great job on the quilting.  She meandered around each heart and then quilted a fabulous feathered border.  So I have been anxiously waiting to put the binding on this quilt by the end of the year.  Today is that final day! :-)

Ready to be trimmed - I used a black and white print called Shadow Flower by French Bull on the back.  I think it looks great with the black and white border.

 Meandering around the hearts

Feather border.

I had made my binding a few days ago, using the same fabric I used for the border.

Next was to start trimming the edges.  That first cut is always the hardiest isn't it??  <deep breath>

Soon I was at the machine sewing on the binding.  What a sense of accomplishment!

And folding that last corner as I came into the home stretch!

Not sure what most of you use to finish your ends of your binding, but I found a great tool this past year - Brilliant Bindings by Debbie Wendt.  It is easy to use and makes short work of making perfect end seams.  I met Debbie at the AQS Lancaster show this year and saw her demonstration. I had been looking for a binding tool and knew I had to try this!

Here is a link to her web site if you are interested in learning more about this tool (no commission here! LOL)  Just love to share when I find a great quilting tool!

I just love this and it makes perfectly flat end seams for your binding.  And I was done!  YAY!

So tonight when that beautiful Waterford crystal ball drops in Times Square (expected temperature to be in the mid-20'sF, -4C!), I will be nice an cozy on the couch stitching down my binding.  ... with a little help from my friend in the background in the photo above.  Abby can't wait to get under this quilt....and neither can I !

New Year's Eve numerals arrive in Times Square prior to installation atop One Times Square, at Times Square on Dec. 16, 2014 in New York City.

Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images

 

Happy New Year to everyone... some are already celebrating!  Thank you to all my blog friends and followers.  I appreciate each and everyone of you!

 

May 2015 be filled with some new projects, perfect stitches, and wonderful finishes!

 

Deb

 

What's a UFO??

Now this may sound like a strange question coming from a quilter...but what REALLY is a UFO?  It is something you are currently working on (WIP)?... or maybe something you worked on a while ago and haven't touched in weeks, months....  dare I say... years?  Or BOTH?  Yikes, I could be in a lot of trouble. LOL.

So I am a little late with this, but I have been toying with the idea of a 2014 UFO list.  You know...those quilts you plan on getting done, hope to get done, or regret not touching when the end of the year rolls around.  However, it's kind of like telling everyone  you're on a diet, or proclaiming to the world your New Years resolution.  I am sure you can understand my anxiety! It's frightening when you think of the potential of failure and public scutiny! LOL  But, I have decided to press forward!  With some support and encouragement from all of you, I might just get some of these UFOs off the list in 2014!

So here is the pile of UFOs.

 

Here is the list in the order they appear above:

1. Caribbean Angel Fish - needs quilting and binding
2. Sweet Hearts - needs borders, quilting and binding
3. Baskets - need to complete blocks, borders, quilting and binding
4. Sweet Sixteen - needs borders, quilting and binding
5. Libertated Log Cabin - need to complete blocks, sew blocks together, quilting, and binding
6. Candy Cane Bouquet - need to sew binding down
7. Bachelor Buttons - needs to quilting and binding
8. Chintz Bouquet - need to sew binding down.

And of course they all will need labels!!!!!

 

I will post the list permanently on my blog to 1. Remind myself, and 2. To keep me honest!

Thanks to Kathy's Quilts for this great motiviation!

Whew!  Okay - now that I have taken that first step - It's time to get to work!!!

Thanks for your support!

 

 

Deb

Sweet Hearts - The Last One!

This being December 31 it is the last day of the year, my last blog for 2013, and also the last heart block to be made for the Sweet Heart quilt.  First, I wanted to thank all my readers for a wonderful year.  I have enjoyed sharing my quilting journey with you and loved hearing all your comments.  I also have to thank all of my fellow bloggers that have inspired and encouraged me over the past year.

So here is my last Sweet Heart.

I think it looks beautiful sewn into the quilt.  The last block of 365.

I am so happy to have completed this quilt.  Thank you to Francoise for initiating this 365 day project of making one heart a day.  It has been incredibly fun!  You can check out some other Sweet Heart bloggers on the Sweet Heart blog.

As I look across the surface of this quilt I see birthdays, anniversaries, tragedies, and holidays - some mentioned in this blog, some not.  I took these heart blocks with me everywhere - in the car, on vacation, etc.  Some days it was the only stitching I did, but I enjoyed every one and that it kept me on track - marking the calendar with a heart a day.  

In later posts I will show you the Sweet Heart quilts also done by Dawn & Marie.  They were a little ahead of me and got their quilts done a little sooner.  But we have had a great time talking about our 'hearts'. Now onto the borders!  .. and of course the quilting.  Maybe I can quilt a heart a day in 2014!?

I want to wish you and your family the healthiest and happiest New Year!  I can't wait to see what you all do in 2014!

Happy New Year!

Deb

Holiday Catch Up!

Well Christmas is over and while we really enjoyed the holiday and the time away, it is always good to be back home.  I have quite a bit of blog reading to catch up on! 

It was good to have the stitching time that long rides in the car give me.  I was able to get caught up on my Sweet Hearts and finish the Candy Cane Bouquet.

Today I am getting the last few rows of Sweet Hearts sewn together and added to the quilt as we wind down to the last couple of days of the year and the last couple of Sweet Heart blocks!

The red berries are now all sewn onto the Candy Cane bouquet wall hanging and I even added a frond at the base of the urn.  I guess no one will know that the bottom of the urn was crooked.... opps.  But quilters always find a way to correct their 'challenges' in a creative way!  Now just to decide whether to hand or machine quilt this....

I think this lovely poinsettia fabric would be great on the back.

Now here is another Christmas project I made this year.. but couldn't share because it was a surprise!

This table runner is based on the quilt Pines & Presents from McCall's Quilting Nov/Dec issue.  It is machine pieced, machine quilted with some hand big-stitch quilting. 

Perfect Scissors were the perfect quilting gift from a quilting friend.  Can't wait to use these!  Hope Santa brought you some new toys!

Happy End-of-the-Year Stitching!

Deb

Family, Stitching, and a big Christmas Tree!

We made our annual trip to New York yesterday to have a holiday lunch with my family.  It is always great to get together with family you don't see often enough at this time of year.  It was a wonderful, balmy 63 degrees in the city yesterday, which made it very comfortable compared to some years when we froze!

This year's Rockefeller Center Christmas tree is spectacular!

So were the crowds!

My nephew, Chris (with the beard), didn't seem to enjoy the crowds.

Getting through Times Square was equally challenging at the end of the day!  Just a few thousand people on the streets.  Driving was slow!

I made two Sweet Hearts yesterday (because I am alittle behind!)  This one is in honor of the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree!

And this one in honor of the Winter Solstice - although it felt more like Spring!

Me and my DH

Wishing all my blog friends a wonderful Christmas!

Deb

Sweet Hearts Update and an Arrival!

An update on the Sweet Heart quilts is way overdue!  I tried to take the best picture possible but now that we are nearing the end (only 13 more blocks to go!) it is really hard to show the entire quilt.

So I have draped it over the couch in our family room.

Here is a photo from the other angle.  Now you know that there has to be a cat under there!!

Oh!  Guess who??

Lucy never misses an opportunity to pose for the camera or, more accurately, to get on my quilt!

I also asked Dawn to send me a photo of her Sweet Hearts quilt.  She just needs to finish the indigo hearts in that one section.  I think she is really close to being done!  Looks fantastic in rainbow colors!

The biggest news this week however was the arrival of a baby boy for my co-worker Jaime and her husband Tony and the grandson of fellow quilter Karin.  Remember the monkey baby quilt?  Dylan arrived just short of midnight on Sunday, weighing 8 lbs, 6 oz.  Here he is just 14 hours old. It's been a very long time since I held a baby that small!

Now that is a Sweet Heart!!!!!

Happy Stitching!

Deb

Clocks Turned Back

Happy Sunday!  

Today we gained an extra hour as we turned our clocks back and returned to Eastern Standard Time (EST).  Most people think of this as an extra hour of sleep... I always think of it as an extra hour of quilting!!!  LOL

My Sweet Heart block for today.

A look at my Sweet Heart quilt thus far.  It has gotten too big to fit on the largest table in my studio.

Enjoy your Sunday sewing.  I have two baby showers this weekend, so not a lot of time spent with a needle in my hand.  But I did enjoy the extra hour I had this morning!

Hope you all had a great Halloween!

Happy Stitching

Deb