October Review

I have 5 1/2 hours to midnight,, and I could grab an extra hour due to DST ending during tonight. I'm taking my chances that I won't have any addition finishes,,, so here goes the reviewing. 

As I look back over the month, I realize that my energy has a real ebb and flow to it. At the beginning of the month I had 7 finishes before I left for vacation on the 8th. That was exhausting and exhilarating at the same time. Here are those finishes:

Sunrise/Sunset Wallhanging

Poppy Fields Quilt, perfect size to be called a fireplace screen. 

My first Mondo Bag, definitely not my last!

Princess 

Canberra Tree, and some art work from my grandkids. 

A client's quilt. 

Primitive Woolies Wallhanging. 

And I made progress on my BOM by getting directions printed and one block made,

I also got about half of the pieces cut for the next 15 blocks,

Then while on vacation I did some free form stitching on my hand dyed jacket,

Upon returning I had a bit of a bug so I slowed down and rested. While I rested I quilted up pieces for another mondo bag,

And 8 mug rugs/hot pads stitched and trimmed,

A few days ago I long arm quilted up three different patterns, each with a different thread color on some pretty floral fabric. I used a Farmers Market banana print for the reverse side. These are cut and ready to become totes. It's hard to see the design, but the texture is awesome.

Four more client quilts have been quilted up and returned:

I enjoy seeing what others have made. People can be so creative. And it's such fun when I get a scrappy quilt to see how many of the fabrics look familiar. 

I have 4 more client quilts to do in the next few weeks. Three will get a gentle meander, but one is a lovely Christmas piece and I hope that we can decide on something special for it. 

Then it was off to Five Loaves, Staples, Home Depot, and Publix before deciding to relax and enjoy the events of the day 

This is a real person, the costume would be good for a showing kids where the muscles actually are.

And the most "Not" scary man I know. 

And a few of the treats that were in the bowl. 

Have a safe evening,

Luann

I'm Back From Vacation,,,

I had a great time! Loved seeing my friends and family members. The Grandkids are growing and give  me a lot of joy filled times. We saw a lot of beautiful sites, ate great food, played some silly games, and really kicked back and relaxed. 

A gorgeous view coming through the Appalachians. 

Roses are still blooming in North Carolina. 

A barn inspiration from the UP of Michigan. 

And this one from a backroad that we use. 

That's all for now. 

I need to go check the intention list, make some plans, and find my swimsuit! I'm going to the beach tomorrow, just because!

May God bless you with refreshing adventures,

Luann

Vacation Days 1&2

Did the rows of stitching (above) on the first travel day. 

And these are little areas across the back of the jacket.

I purchased it from Coldwater Creek a few years ago for under $25.00. I dyed it with Procion MX dyes from Dharma Trading Co. using an ice dyeing technique I'd read about. It is of rayon and spandex so the way it accepts dye is very different than cotton. I like how it's  color is a very ethereal. I'm using any colors of pearl cotton that I pull from my stash. I don't know if I will ever wear it, but I do want to cover the entire jacket with stitches, appliqués, embellishments of any kind. 

It's one of those 'bucket' list things that I've decided to do, just because I want to. That's kinda hard for me, as I always think I should be doing something that has an end purpose. I will trust God on this one. He will show me the purpose when it's done, if not before. Much like the afghan I made recently. 

May you follow The Holy Spirit, as He leads you down your God planned path. 

Luann

Please, before you leave?

I had a call on Wednesday morning from Betty. A new friend I've made through the hand stitching group I attend. 'With These Hands' is a splinter group of The Cobblestone Quilters Guild. We meet up on the third Friday of each month at Panera Bread. They've all been very friendly and Betty and Edie have brought me quilt tops to be done on my long arm. So, when she asked if I could get a quilt done for her, before she was leaving for vacation (in a few weeks), I had to chuckle and told her I was leaving within a few days myself. I could hear her disappointment, but she was very understanding. I asked about the quilt. Size, who was it for, could it get a simple edge to edge design, etc etc. she said I could do whatever I thought best. Now how can you say no to that? 

20 minutes later she was dropping it off. I got to work right away, and by mid afternoon I was able to send her the text message, 'she's done and ready to be picked up'. Betty popped on over and took home this bundle of comfort that's going to a grandchild. 

So, I have a 'finish' for the day before leaving on vacation. 

I have decided to take along some hand work for the road trip portions of our vacation. 

I'll post pictures as I progress, as I don't expect it to be a 'finish' for quite some time!!

May God grant you the energy to accomplish all your heart desires to get done,

Luann

Another Finish and Another Start

Here's my Canberra Tree art quilt. This was made from pieces of fabric received thru the surface design group I belong to. It's an international group that enjoys sharing techniques and monthly we swap some fabric. It's been a lot of fun and there is a wide range of techniques used. The Princess that I finished yesterday had several swap fabrics in it also. 

I used the technique of sewing twill tape along the edges of Canberra Tree to help it hang straight and stay square. I really like how it affected this one, as it was a bit wonky due to the varying volume of quilting and thread sketching I did on it. 

I decided to get the Craftsy 2015 Summer BOM quilt underway. I chose the fabrics awhile back, but kept second guessing myself. Would I like it once it was done? I like the fabrics. I know I'll enjoy making the blocks, and putting the top together. And another project to experiment with on my long arm, certainly gives me enjoyment. So, what's not to like? Sometimes I just need to get started. 

I am very pleased with my points on the first block. I sewed the flying geese units together on top of pages from a phone book. Bonnie Hunter uses phone books for her string-piecing and I thought it might help with those bias edges. It really helped a lot!! 

So tomorrow, between laundry and packing,  I'll be in the sewing room trying to get more blocks done. I only have 15 more to do by the end of the month to be caught up,,,,,that's doable!

May God bless the work of your hands,

Luann

Hanging On The Wall

The Princess is quilted and binding done. I used pushpins to put it on the wall, until I decide her perfect spot!

Here's a few more, I tried to capture the quilting, each area got its own design. 

I even was able to stitch around her head, and her dress as a 'space'.  I couldn't figure out how to get the longarm to fill in the wall area, but I could always do it on my domestic. 

I must say a big THANK YOU to Lola Jenkins. It was in her workshop that The Princess, herself, became the beginnings of a quilt. Also big THANKS to all my friends on the Stitchinfingers site for fabrics we've traded that became part of this wall hanging. 

We are safe and sound. The flooding is in our area but we're smart enough to stay away from any excess water!! 

May God bless you with safe travels,

Luann

This Is Valuable Information

Today I rec'd an email update from Myra. You can find her at www.busyhandsquilts.blogspot.com  She has a link on today's post that gets you to Craftsy where you can purchase an all-class access pass for the remainder of October for,,, I can't believe it, but it's true,,,, $19.99. Her link says 9.99 but it's just a typo, I'm guessing. This is phenomenal! You could watch one class each day for the remainder of the month for less than a buck a day! The details are there, and if you've ever wanted to check them out, NOW is most definitely the time to do so! 

Maybe you remember when I put up images of some of the classes available. Just to be clear about this, I take classes thru Craftsy and I enjoy them a lot. I didn't get the email from them, I got it from Myra. I probably deleted the one sent to me. But, I am not in any way getting anything from Craftsy, or anyone else for passing on this info. I'm just excited about it. Hope it fits in your schedule to watch a few. 

Earlier today I finished my Primitive Woolies. It is quilted, bound, and on the wall in my sewing room. 

And I've started pressing some scraps left over from Sunrise/Sunset. 

I love the feel and colors of these pieces. That cotton/silk fabric is so soft and smooth. 

Well, I'm off to watch some Craftsy classes. 

May God bless you with a restfilled night and a 'Sonshiny' day tomorrow,

Luann

Friday Finishes

First up is Poppy Fields. It is hanging in our living room now!

Second is my Sunrise/Sunset that is now on the wall in my sewing room. 

And last up is a Mondo Bag. This was not on my intentions for October, but, sometimes things just work out like that! This is the first time I've installed grommets. I will do them again. I just need to find the drawstring/rope/cording that I want for the drawstring. 

I lined it with some of the practice pieces I have from longarming. I like this leaf design, it's an edge to edge and quite easy to adjust in size. 

The weather may prohibit my being able to use my sewing or longarm machines tomorrow. If that happens, I'll organize my studio clutter. I'd rather sew or use my longarm machine. 

May God bless you with safe travels this weekend,

Luann

October 2015 Intentions

I will continue taking pictures on my daily walks, like this one of a neighbor's Angel Trumpet in PURPLES with a double fringe! Isn't it lovely? And the stem is black. I wonder how rare it might be, as I've never seen this color before. 

Now for the list of October Intentions. 

To finish the following and post a picture of each, as it is completed. 

Poppy Fields-binding. 

Sunrise/Sunset-the binding to be attached to the back and a method of hanging. 

The Princess-to be quilted and binding put on. Also will need a method of hanging. 

Canberra Tree-stitch work to be completed, binding, and hanging method. 

Dragonfly Book Pages-to be made into a book. 

The Primitive Woolies-quilting, binding and hanging method. 

Embarrassingly, I admit to not having my 'ROOTS' piece done that was due today. I intend to get it finished soon, but not quickly. I want it to be something I'm happy with, not just something I've finished!

Secondary intentions,these are the ones that happen if time works out,,

Start a series titled 'nests/beginnings'

Elements class work

Spoonflower Workbook, next chapter

Finish the thread sketched poppy piece I started a few years ago. I'm thinking a pillow?

TAST work to be added to my hand dyed flower garden piece that's on my grey design wall at the moment

And of course the most important intention of all for October is my trip to see my family and friends. 

I'm so looking forward to just being with each one of them. 

So, no picture album today, but if things work out I'll post a quick note and image each finish this month. So, some days you might get a couple of posts, other days nothing. I'll be back in November with a bit more structure to the frequency of blogging, so till then,

May Jesus bless you with loving family and friends,

Luann

September, A Highly Productive Month

Finished my Medallion center for the 'mystery quilt-a-long' the other day. This completes the October clue. I'm really enjoying the colors I chose. I've been very drawn to reds and aqua so lately. 

And this is my Poppy Fields quilt. It is NOT a panel. Those are all individual fabrics, trimmed from side to side, along the image-edge you want to capture. The fabrics are: the stems, large poppies, small red flowers, birds in the branches, and a strip of white with blue clouds, then the strip of blue with white clouds. Clouds and all edges were raw edge appliqué. I quilted this one with a swirl pattern and my 'glide' foot!  Not a single edge flipped up. This foot is wonderful. I can see how much it will help. 

This quilt top came home with me yesterday from an informal group of stitching enthusiasts. I love the fabrics she chose and her improvisational approach to making blocks. I enjoyed quilting this one up on my long arm. I was able to send her a message last night that it was done. I put my client's quilts onto the longarm at the first opportunity. I like getting them back to their owners quickly. 

I've spent quite a bit of this past week getting a group together to do a Round Robin. Only ours will be a 'row' robin. We're going to make a row 6 1/2" by 36 1/2" each month for a specific person. When we get our rows in the mail, it'll be up to each of us how we put them together. I think we're all anxiously waiting for January 1, 2016 when it officially starts. If you would be interested in joining in the fun, send me a message at my email address Luann.fischer at yahoo dot com and I'll let you know how to join in. 

So, how/what were my accomplishments this past month?

** 3 clients quilts quilted using various patterns that were adjusted to the size of their quilt tops

** I walked more but this old body could use a regular routine, not so sporadic about it

** I spent a lot of time attending meetings, networking with others in my trade, & perfecting my skills

** How to create a continuous design with Spoonflower Handbook

** Caterpillar Crawl completed and hanging on a wall

** Fractured Flower was made into an oversized mug rug, so it would hold plenty of cookies,  LOL

** Sunrise/Sunset piece is quilted, and binding is attached to the front, just needs a little handwork

** Poppy Fields quilt is ready for binding

** DSP quilt completed

** 3 table runners pieced with my hand dyed fabrics are finished and waiting for gift giving time

** 4 Improv pieces have been completed, 1 given away, 3 being enjoyed at our house

** 7 previously quilted pieces were bound and given to a local charity

** Blog posts were kept on schedule

** Mystery quilt has September and October steps done

** Primitive Woolies is ready for quilting 

And what got put into "cogitation time" ?

"Roots" it was due today, and I'm not ready to show anything,, soon!!

The series on 'nests/beginnings'

The Princess, I did decide on the backing and binding fabric, but the quilting design is baffling me

Canberra Tree. The quilting and thread sketching was started on my sewing machine, I'd like to change over to the long arm, but I'm just not 'feeling' it yet!

And last and possibly going to be dropped off the list, is the 2015 Summer BOM on Craftsy. I like the pattern and free is great. I'm happy with my fabric choices. The whole project just hasn't held its appeal, so I'll get the info, watch the lessons, and maybe even save the group of fabrics in one place. 

There are only so many hours in my day and I want them to be invested well. So, sometimes, that means changing my mind, postponing an activity or project, or using discernment as to 'what' I will be busy with. 

My month has been filled with many other wonderful times with people I care about. This month, October, I will be visiting family and friends in the Midwest and I am looking forward to it with great anticipation. I may be a bit quieter, but I'll be creating one way or another. Creating and maintaining loving relationships is the most important activity in my life. 

May Holy Spirit comfort you and keep you, 

Until we meet again,

Luann