Saturday, November 29, 2008

Thanksgiving and Quilting

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. It is a wonderful time to celebrate and give thanks for all of the blessings that fill our lives: loving families, good health, deep friendships, freedom and happiness... the list is endless. And somewhere on my list is quilting! Quilting offers all of us something. For some of us, it offers us creativity and art. For others, it offers friendship with fellow quilters. For others, it offers an opportunity to share one's talent with friends and strangers alike. No matter what your reason is for quilting, I hope that it gives you great satisfaction.

Over the past couple of weeks I have had the chance to work on finishing up several projects. Here is a sampling - enjoy!

Lily Rosenberry, 83 x 83 inches

This quilt was originally done in red and green on a warm off-white background. This version was done in bubble gum pink and soft green on a rich chocolate background. Denise Green and I collaborated on this quilt and made it together.

The Walkaway Star Quilt, 60 x 74 inches

I am going to teach participants how to make this quilt at the annual February 2009 Quakertown Quilts retreat on Galveston Island (and yes, the island recovery is going great -- lots of work ahead, but the retreat site is in great condition!). The block is one that I designed, based on an antique block. I call the quilt the "walk away" star quilt because the quilt really CAN be done in a day, if one stays focused. That pleases me; I do not think that I am alone in saying that I don't like coming home from classes and retreats with more UFOs!

The Walkaway Star Quilt (#2), 60 x 74 inches

Okay... I liked the first Walkaway Star Quilt so much that I made another one. This time, the blocks are made from a dozen different blue prints and a dozen different shirting fabrics. I like "scrappy" quilts.

The Walkaway Star Quilt (#3), 60-1/2 by 75-1/2 inches

In fact, I liked this block so much that I made a pint-size version of it (7" blocks) with 1/2-inch sashing between each block. I used a variety of civil war reproduction fabrics; the scrappiness of this quilt makes one's eyes dance across its surface. I also like making quilts that don not contain any "background" fabrics -- no white, off-white, taupe, or neutral fabrics, only colored print fabrics. As long as the fabrics contain a good balance of light, medium, and dark prints, the scrappiness adds a wonderful richness to the finished quilt.

So what else am I working on? There are a lot of ideas floating around in my head, following the great Houston quilt show -- I saw a lot of antique quilts that inspired me, and so I'm sure you'll be seeing some of those ideas reformulated into new quilt patterns. I met with the wonderful folks from P&B Textiles and I'm working on a new fabric line for them. Once again, it will have a juvenile flavor to it -- think nursery songs!

Until next time... happy sewing!
Sue
(c)2008 Susan H. Garman
Posted by at 9 comments:
Labels: , , ,

Monday, November 3, 2008

What's New for Me?

The International Quilting Association's grand show in Houston closed Sunday night -- and my feet were so thankful! Quilt shows are always so much fun for me. I love seeing the quilts on display, meeting the makers, visiting with friends old and new, and hunting down antique quilts and blocks that can serve as inspirations for new quilts. The Houston quilt show definitely fulfilled my hopes: my brain is just buzzing with ideas for new quilts! I saw so many wonderful 19th century quilts; I just need a few more hours a day to get them made... don't we all? And the daylight savings time change only gave me ONE hour. What's with that?! So until I get those new quilts designed and made, below are some quilts that I recently finished.

Stars for a New Day
83 x 83"

At the Houston quilt show, Alex Anderson and Ricky Tims hosted a booth for The Quilt Show, their online community for quilters. Alex and Ricky are warm and genuine people. They had invited me to design and make the 2009 Quilt Show block-of-the-month. And so my quilt, "Stars for a New Day," made its debut (pictured above). The quilt patterns for this block-of-the-month are free of cost to anyone who signs up for a year's membership with The Quilt Show at http://www.thequiltshow.com/. Each month in 2009, a new pattern becomes available online and members print it out. The quilt pattern is a bargain if you join, but there is so much more. Go to The Quilt Show website, take the "tour," and see one of the online video shows. Membership is a lot of fun!

By the way -- I also started making a second version of "Stars for a New Day" using Alex Anderson's "Never Enough Romance" line of fabric -- I love how it is turning out.


And so what else have I been working on? I finished Ruffled Feathers -- I love the blocks in it because they each have a "halo" around the star. The blocks are easily made and the pattern, as are all of mine , is available from Quakertown Quilts (http://www.quakertownquilts.com/).



Ruffled Feathers
69-1/2 x 85-1/2 inches

I also finished my chocolate and bubble gum colored "Lily Rosenberry" quilt. As soon as it comes home from its visit to a local quilt shop, I'll post a photo of it. I love brown and pink fabrics together.

And so what am I working on now? I am leading two workshops and giving a lecture down on Galveston Island in February. One workshop will be aimed at teaching applique techniques and skills, using an antique rose pattern (pictured below). The other quilt will be a delightfully simple pieced quilt with no critical seamline intersections -- I'm looking forward to a fun day with that class, because there is nothing frustrating about the piecing. Pictures of that quilt will be forthcoming! If anyone is interested in the Galveston Retreat, it is being organized through Quakertown Quilts -- we always have a lot of fun at this gathering, and winter is Galveston's best-kept secret!

The Antique Rose Quilt
69 x 86 inches

That's all for now -- I hope you are enjoying the Fall weather.
Until we meet again, happy quilting!

Sue
(c)2008 Susan H. Garman

Posted by at 5 comments:
Labels: , , , , ,

Monday, September 22, 2008

Have You Hugged an Energy Worker Lately?

When you don't have electricity for a week or more, you really appreciate what it provides: lighting, air conditioning, refrigeration, medical care, stop lights... the list goes on and on. For those of us who "weathered" Hurricane Ike and the damage it wrought, getting power turned back on was a big deal. The power company workers continue to exercise heroic efforts to get power back to folks in Texas. In addition to those workers, the first responders across the Gulf coast have been incredible in bringing supplies, services, and support to those in need. My heart goes out to those who suffered losses from the storm. Whether it was the loss of a loved one, a home, irreplaceable personal items, or a sense of safety and security, the storm placed enormous physical and emotional burdens on people. Nobody along the Gulf coast is a stranger to hurricanes or hard times, though - those in the Lone Star state know that even a storm like Ike cannot break our spirits. Things are tough right now, but I am so thankful that things were not even worse.

Following Hurricane Ike, the big job was removing storm debris from the yard (and the oak tree from our roof). I found that when I needed to rest and rehydrate, quilting was my respite. It felt like the only "normal" thing in my life for a while. I haven't blogged for a while, so here are a few pictures of what I've been working on. I don't work on a single project; I seem to thrive on working on several projects at a time... including some that aren't even in the photos. The items pictured will eventually show up as patterns, so be on the lookout: when I finish each of them, I'll post new pictures. Quiltmaking makes me so happy!

First, here is the second Bouquets for a New Day that I am quilting for Ricky Tims' and Alex Anderson's online quilting community, The Quilt Show. I needed a second quilt that could hang at the Houston quilt show, because the first Bouquet quilt resides at my local quilt shop. Cross-hatching across all of those stems and berries may not have been my brightest idea - it is incredibly slow work.






You've seen this quilt before - it's Lily Rosenberry. I'm making it in pink and green on a chocolate background -- I am a glutton for punishment with all those berries! The only thing I have left to do is to sew the berries on two borders and then assemble the blocks and borders. It will be a thrill to have this one finished!





Here's a brand new quilt that I've started -- I saw an antique quilt block that had a ring of triangles around it; it was very eye-catching. Naturally, I sat down and designed the block so I could reproduce it in today's fabrics. This will be a paper-pieced quilt and it will be fast and fun to make!







And finally, another quilt that I've started is an Antique Rose quilt. I designed a variation of an antique whig rose block and will put a dozen of these blocks, already basted and ready to applique, on point. I designed the pattern earlier this year and one of my guild's bees made the quilt for the guild auction (see photo on the right); the only problem was that I liked the quilt so much that I decided I needed to make one for myself! I had no sooner cut out all the pieces for the blocks, than the purchaser of the auctioned quilt made me an offer I couldn't refuse: she would give me the quilt if I would quilt a couple quilts for her. I was thrilled - so now I'll have a pair of Antique Rose quilts!


Take care, hug your loved ones, and thank your energy company for power.
Sue
(c)2008 Susan H. Garman
Posted by at 9 comments:

Wednesday, September 3, 2008

The Washington Medallion Quilt

As promised, here is a photo of the finished Washington Medallion Quilt. It feels great to finish a quilt, doesn't it?! After I finished the quilt, it took two long days to machine quilt and another 3 hours to bind. A sleeve remains to be attached, along with a label. Quilters, please don't forget to label your quilts; when I look at vintage antique quilts, I always wish I knew their story... don't let the next generation of quilters wonder the same thing about your quilts!

Happy stitching -

Sue Garman
(c)Susan H. Garman 2008
Posted by at 5 comments:
Labels: ,

Monday, August 18, 2008

Medallions Galore!

I love medallion quilts -- the quilts that have multiple borders surrounding a central block. Today, The Quilt Show (Ricky Tims' and Alex Anderson's online quilt community - http://www.thequiltshow.com/) aired and a long-secret announcement was made: Alex and Ricky have asked me to design the next block-of-the-month for The Quilt Show. Their 2008 online block-of-the-month, "Bouquets for a New Day" was designed by me and is being shared in monthly installments, with the final one to be posted online in December. The "Bouquets" quilt has a dozen appliqued blocks in it. For 2009, I was asked to design a pieced block-of-the-month; I just finished making it this week (except for the binding!). It is a medallion quilt, with a feathered star in the middle, surrounded by borders and blocks; the monthly patterns have a ton of tips in them, along with many photos to show how to make the quilt. While everyone who is reading this now knows the secret about who is doing next year's block-of-the-month design, I will still wait for Ricky and Alex to debut a picture of the quilt. So... what the quilt looks like still remains a secret!

In the meantime, I have been working on another medallion quilt called "The Washington Medallion Quilt" that my distributor, Quakertown Quilts (http://www.quakertownquilts.com/), will begin offering as a block-of-the-month in September. This quilt is unique in that I made this quilt as a "learn to quilt" block-of-the-month. Each month, there are lessons on precision piecing, accurate measuring and cutting, different techniques for making units, etc. An adventurous beginner should be able to make this quilt.

So where is the photo of this quilt? Well... I confess that I haven't taken a picture of it yet! I have a couple of "teaser" photos for you to see -- a close-up of the center star, and a photo of the first four months of stitching. You'll see the remaining 8 months of additions when I post again, soon!


Until then,
happy quilting!

Sue
(c)2008 Susan H. Garman
Posted by at 3 comments:
Labels: , ,

The Quilt Show Debut!

Today, the taping I did with The Quilt Show aired. The Quilt Show is Ricky Tims' and Alex Anderson's online web community; if you haven't explored it and have some time, you'll find that joining gives you a pretty good "bang for the buck." Their web community has "shows" with a wide, diverse range of quilters, as well as "classes" with Ricky and Alex, free mini-projects, a quilt gallery with thousands of quilts posted by members, a free block-of-the-month pattern, blogs galore, and lots of online friends who offer their experiences, ideas, and support. If you check out their "take the tour" pages and go to page 4, you can watch a part of one show and learn a cool way to make flying geese with one seam line, how to do great photo transfers, and how Jean Wells designs and makes her lovely quilts. Check it out at www.thequiltshow.com.

Being an introvert, taping the show made me a nervous wreck, but Ricky and Alex put me at ease in a nanosecond. They are wonderful people, as are John Anderson, Justin Shults, and the entire TQS film crew. In my taping, I demonstrated how I do as much pre-work as possible when making a quilt -- it makes quilt-making go so much faster! In the show you'll also see some close-up photos of some of my quilts.

Enjoy!
Sue
(c)2008 Susan H. Garman
Posted by at 2 comments:
Labels: , , ,

Wednesday, August 6, 2008

Feathers Galore!

I love quilting feathers - they are elegant and rich in a quilt, and add a touch of gracefulness. I was asked how I "make feathers" on a recent morning in a quilt shop, and so I gave a quick demonstration... followed by a request to repeat the information. The easiest way to do that is to put it here on my blog. Note that the drawings here are "quick and dirty" -- they have not been cleaned up and smoothed out, because I wanted to get them done. Take a look, and the next time you need to figure out what to put on a quilt.... think about feathers!

These are "formal feathers" which are a bit more elegant than "folk art feathers." You'll see the difference between formal and folk art feathers at the bottom of this entry. Formal feathers require you to back-track on a stitch line.

Step 1: Define the center line for the feathers (the "spine") and the edges that will contain the feathers.

Step 2: Start by making a gentle swoop out and back -- think "half of a heart" (sort of)... You want the feathers to be gracefully curved. This comes with practice. Don't use straight lines on your feathers!

Step 3: Make the second feather. Swoop back with a second "half of a heart" and meet at the top of the first feather.


Step 4: Your needle (hand or machine) is now blocked in and you can't draw another feather... until you back-track across the feather you just made. If you are making feathers by machine, stitch back across the top of the feather you just made, being ever so careful to keep your stitches on top of the first set. This takes some practice, but you will improve with every feather you make. If you are quilting feathers by hand, just slip your needle between the layers of fabric and make it pop out where feather 3 will start.






Step 5: Back-track across the top of 2 and swoop around to make feather 3. Again, think "half of a heart." Some people like to draw all the feather tops and then come back and draw the swooping lines -- they use a penny or a quarter or a quilt spool to draw half-circles, like a row of little hats, along the outer edge of the border line. If that works for you, great. I find it harder to do it that way because my "swoops" don't always want to fit under those little hats!

Step 6: Now that you've done feather 3, go back and draw feather 4 -- half a heart, swooping up to meet the top of feather 3... and then you'll backtrack across the top of the feather you just drew, and finally, draw feather 5.

Step 7: Keep on drawing those feathers... and when you get to the end of the spine, make a little teardrop.

Step 8: Start over at the bottom of the feather spine and draw the feathers on the other side of the spine. You should always draw or stitch your feathers in the direction they move -- don't try and draw them going backwards; they will end up misshapen (unless you can think in reverse better than I can!).

When I am finished, I like to add an "outline" about an eighth of an inch away from the edges of all of the feathers -- it helps define the plume, and it also helps hide any unevenness.

Part of the beauty of feathers is that they can be drawn in an inexhaustible set of shapes and sizes. You can have a straight spine, no spine, a wavy spine, or spines that look like trees, with branches on them. Your feathers can be big and chunky or thin and delicate. You can add little decorative twirls between the feathers. You can make the tops of the feathers rounded... or the shape of a heart... or square. You can do whatever you want!





Here is an example of how to put feathers into a triangle shape. Start by drawing a spine -- you don't have to quilt the spine, but you have to know where it is. In this case, I added a "branch" on the spine. Start at the bottom and begin to add feathers. When you get to the end of the spine, make a teardrop and then start again at the bottom of the spine, on the other side of it. Continue to add feathers and more feathers until the area is full of feathers. Voile!

Okay - but what about the "non-formal" feathers - the folk art feathers? Those are easy to make, and certain quilts will call for them instead of formal feathers. They are more "thready" on a quilt because both sides of every feather are drawn and quilted.

















To the right is a quick drawing with the folk art feathers on both sides of a non-existent spine -- the feathers on the left side are fun and silly and imaginative -- perfect for some quilts!

Have fun trying out different feathers. Keep a pencil and paper handy for practicing feathers - you'll be an expert in no time at all!
Happy sewing -
Sue Garman
(c)2008 Susan H. Garman
Posted by at 4 comments:
Labels: ,

Friday, July 18, 2008

It's Auction Time




So why haven't I finished more projects lately? Aahhhh... because I've been busy getting quilts ready for my guild's annual auction! Above is a photo of one of several quilts I've donated to the auction; it's a king-size quilt (you can see more items at www.lakeviewquiltersguild.org). I believe in supporting quilt guilds; they offer quiltmakers so many opportunities to learn, be inspired, and make friends. If you don't belong to a guild, consider joining one. If you don't have one near you, start one!

As I said in my previous post, quilting is therapeutic for me -- it's so relaxing! And so now that I'm all relaxed, I'd better get back to work. Projects are calling my name and each one wants to be first in line to be finished!

Happy stitching -
Sue
(c)2008 Susan H. Garman
Posted by at 3 comments:
Labels:

It's Finished!

While spending a couple of weeks working on other projects, I contemplated how to quilt Night Before Christmas. My quandary was how to quilt the border, knowing that I planned to have a wandering feathered vine in all of the 4-inch wide sashings. I worried that more feathered vines in the border would overwhelm the face of the quilt.

As designers, we all have to consider combinations of options, our personal capabilities, and the tools at hand. I finally used a plastic overlay and "practiced" several different quilt designs on the quilt border -- from a wavy ribbons to straight lines, to evergreen trees. Despite my concerns, I decided that the best way to quilt the border was to stitch more feathered vines, and when a package arrived in the mail with the perfect color of olive-green thread, I loaded the quilt on my machine and started quilting away. Quilting -- whether by hand or machine -- is such wonderful therapy for me. It combines creativity, design, and productivity in one package, while allowing me to mull over schedules, issues, future plans, and whatever else is on my mind. Days spent quilting are totally relaxing for me!

So it's time for the "reveal." I don't have a full-size photo of Night Before Christmas to show you yet - but here are two semi-closeups so you can see how I quilted the sashings and borders. I had planned to hand-quilt the interior of the blocks because of the embellishments in them, but as it turns out, I was able to machine quilt the entire quilt. Woo hoo! It's finished! And here it is:

I'm elated that the quilt is done - except for that all-important label. That will be added in the morning....

Happy stitching, everyone!
Sue

(c)2008 Susan H. Garman
Posted by at 4 comments:
Labels: ,

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Christmas is Coming!


When I made my "Night Before Christmas" quilt, I used 4-inch blocks for the cornerstones. At the same time that I made the 4-inch blocks, I also made identical (but larger) 6-inch blocks and 12-inch blocks.

I finally set my 6-inch pieced blocks into a quilt. I used a dozen of the pieced blocks with thirteen 6-inch applique blocks. Each of the applique blocks has a little motif that is found in the larger "Night Before Christmas" quilt. The patterns for the applique are all in one of my new Night Before Christmas patterns, "Patterns for Twenty 6-Inch Applique Blocks." What I love most about those little applique blocks is that they are small and simple -- each one took less than 30 minutes to applique. How cool is that?! So here is my new quilt, "Christmas is Coming." It has big, wide sashings: three inches by six inches. That helps grow a quilt quickly, right?!

"Christmas is Coming!"
56 x 56"

Now I want to figure out how to set the 12-inch blocks in a quilt top. There are lots of options. Most sampler quilts end up being humdrum: add sashings and cornerstones, and then frame the quilt with one or more borders. Sometimes, that is actually the best way to set a dozen blocks, but this week I intend to spend time thinking about how to set sampler blocks into a unique quilt top. Hopefully, you'll see my 12-inch blocks here, soon.

Until then...
Happy stitching!

Sue

(c)2008 Susan H. Garman
Posted by at 1 comment:
Labels: ,

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

Sizing Your Sashing and Borders


The question was asked of me, "How do you decide on the size of your sashings and borders?" It's a very good question. You can find all kinds of guidelines in books - from using "fibonacci" rules for sashings and borders (where each border grows, equivalent to the sum of the previous two, so a 1" border followed by a 3" border would be followed by a 4" border and then a 7" border...) to using multiples of the size of units within the blocks (e.g., 2" squares within a block would dictate using 2" borders or sashings). I don't consciously pay attention to rules, though.

I am morely likely to look at the set of blocks I intend to assemble into a quilt, and ask them what they need. Sometimes a set of blocks says, "don't crowd me!" and other times the blocks may whisper that they want to stay close together. I nearly always "audition" various widths of sashings -- I lay out the blocks and try out different sashing widths and fabrics until I think I have the right combination of both width and color. Often, there is more than one "right" answer, so I may also think about how I am going to quilt the quilt after it is put together.

With borders, I go through the same process: I lay out the same blocks, now assembled into a quilt top, and audition various widths and colors of fabrics. After a good amount of playing, one of the choices becomes the "winner" and the rotary cutter runs to do its job before I change my mind.

In The Night Before Christmas, I knew that the appliqued blocks were all very "busy." There is a lot to look at in each block, and so the blocks really needed to be separated, lest they become a jumble of competing images. The old adage of "No fighting!" works in quilts, too. I chose a 4" sashing because that was the smallest size of cornerstone I wanted to make, knowing that I wanted to use a pieced block in each cornerstone unit. I chose pale off-white as the color because it looked like a bed of fresh-fallen snow, which was appropriate to the story -- and it didn't fight with the images. It gave them some breathing room. I also know that I want to quilt the sashings with a feathered vine -- and that the vine will look better with that same "breathing room" around it.

When it was time to decide on the final borders of The Night Before Christmas, I had the blocks all sewn together with the sashings, and I started laying out fabrics in varying colors and widths. Reds were too domineering for the quilt. Multi-colored prints (e.g., a Christmas print) were distracting. A single border did not frame the quilt well. Inset pieced borders seemed to fight the cornerstones. The outer borders of any quilt are, for me, much like mats and a picture frame: you want them to showcase what they surround and add to it, not subtract from it.

So, in a rather large nutshell... that's how I decide the size of sashings and borders. I often lecture before guilds on "the design process" and describe the set of mental exercises that have gone into many of my quilts. Each time I give that lecture, I focus once again on how I actually make design decisions. Much of it is simply what appeals to me visually; wish as I might, I have yet to discover a magic formula!

By the way - if any of you are interested in making this quilt, I have started a Yahoo! Group called "Night Before Christmas." I hope will be a forum to support those of you who choose to make this quilt. You can find it by going to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NightBeforeChristmas/.

Happy sewing -
Sue
Posted by at 1 comment:
Labels: , , ,

Sunday, June 8, 2008

The Night Before Christmas...

Finally, finally, finally! I have finished the quilt top for Night Before Christmas. Below you will see all twelve blocks (and now you don't have to go and hunt the first six down from a previous blog post), as well as the setting option I have chosen. This quilt was truly a labor of love -- lots of hours went into it, but the results were worth the effort. Now, I'm chomping at the bit to start quilting the quilt. Quakertown Quilts (http://www.quakertownquilts.com/) is offering quilt patterns for this quilt, as well as fabric kits for those who want someone else to choose their fabrics. Below, I'll also describe some other options I've added to this block of the month.



"Twas the night before Christmas..."


"Not a creature was stirring..."



"The stockings were hung by the chimney with care..."



"The children were nestled all snug in their beds..."



"When out on the lawn, there arose such a clatter..."



"When, what to my wondering eyes should appear..."


"Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound..."


"His eyes how they twinkled! His dimples, how merry!'


"He spoke not a word but went straight to his work..."



"And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose..."



"But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight..."


"Happy Christmas to all and to all a good night!"

And here is the final quilt -- with large sashings that help each block define its own portion of the story. The applique blocks are each set with small cornerstone blocks -- there is a separate pattern available for all of the cornerstone blocks.

The Night Before Christmas
(c)2008 Susan H. Garman

There is also another separate pattern available with twenty different 6-inch applique motifs which are also appropriate for setting cornerstone blocks - or as small applique blocks for an entirely different quilt. Most of the applique motifs can be found in the larger Night Before Christmas quilt: stars, holly leaves and berries, assorted toys, Christmas trees, etc. They are simple and easy-to-applique blocks. I hope to post a quilt with these in the next few weeks!

Until then... I hope that life treats you well. Happy stitching!

Sue

All contents: (c)2008 Susan H. Garman


Posted by at 9 comments:
Labels: ,

Thursday, April 17, 2008

Life is Good!

If you're not careful, every once in a while life can get you down! In my life, there is always such a struggle to balance competing priorities and address unplanned tasks. I find that sitting down and sorting out what MUST get done, SHOULD get done, CAN get done... and what I would LIKE to get done... helps me find a good balance in my personal and work worlds. And then, suddenly, it is so obvious: life is good!

In the meantime, here is something to think about when you are making your own quilts. Too often, when we are figuring out what to use for a "background" fabric, we rely on a trusted white-on-white or neutral pallet. Take a look at the quilt below - it's an older one, but I like to use it to demonstrate a principle of color and fabric choices. Notice the flying geese border.

"Shine on Harvest Moon"

Okay, now that you've looked at the quilt, take a closer look at the border. What do you see?

My "background" fabrics aren't just from the neutral pallet -- they include tans and off-whites, but they also include yellow, black, gold, green, rust. Are you surprised? The next time that you are making a quilt, think about using a scrappy set of background fabrics; dip into something besides a neutral set of colors -- and you may find that life (with lots of colors) is good!

Sue
(c) 1997-2008 Susan H. Garman

Posted by at 2 comments:
Labels: ,

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Twas the Night Before Christmas....

...and all through the house, I was stitching and trying to get these blocks all finished! As I mentioned in a previous post, I am making a "Night Before Christmas" block of the month. Alas, I have finished six of the twelve blocks. Here's the sneak peak preview of them, with more to follow. The remaining six are all designed, the fabric selected, and now I'm trying to find holes in my schedule so I can applique them and finish the quilt. The blocks have all been a real delight to work on.

Month One: 'Twas the night before Christmas...

Month Two: Not a creature was stirring....
(can you see the little mouse sleeping in his hole?)


Month Three: The stockings were hung by the chimney with care...
(and my grandkids' names are on those stockings!)


Month Four: The children were nestled all snug in their beds...

Month Five: When out on the lawn, there arose such a clatter....



Month Six: When, what to my wondering eyes should appear...


Yes, these blocks took a lot of time to make; each block has a lot of pieces in it. My mind doesn't count pieces, though; it only looks at the finished product and decides if it was worth it - and in this case, I was pleased with the results. The Night Before Christmas is such an endearing poem; I think that many of us can recite most of the lines from memory.

Keep on checking and eventually, you'll see the rest of the blocks. I'm anxious to finish all of them because I already know how I want the quilt to be quilted, and that's exciting to me!

Happy sewing!
Sue
(c)2008 Susan H. Garman. All Rights Reserved
Posted by at 9 comments:
Labels:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)