Treasures from Paducah...

I brought home so many treasures! Most of them gifts from Lucy and Laura! How could a girl not be in heaven! First off I got an antique klopf-klopf (actually I can't remember exactly how to say it - Lucy has to email me the info yet on it) from Lucy. This is an antique collar the Dutch women would wear. It is as stiff as cardboard, but it is only fabric starched so much it is like a board! I made Lucy put it on for a picture, she is a much more lovely model than me!

The front you can see where the woman who made it pieced the fabric. The piecing was done in front where a big fancy bow covers it up. If you look closely you can see where it was pieced. This fabric is over 100 years old Lucy said! Now is that a treasure or what!

She also brought me these delicious cookies that are really think waffles and in the center a carmely syrup. And a dutch tea towel, and fabric. The small bundle of fabric is an example of fabric used for a man's shirt (the blue stripe) and sheet fabric that would go on a bed that folds up in a wall. Lucy is going to have to help me remember all these details.

Laura got me this wonderful cake plate! I just love the polka dots! And what a good memory for me since she loves dishes, so it is the perfect gift from her. And look at the cute foot - even that is painted and decorated!

She also had to get me a funny alien glow in the dark sucker! Sorry Tonya, it's not for you!

Then last but not least is my find at a craft and junk store on the drive down. We stopped for a stretch at a mall along the way down and I found this antique sewing basket! I forgot to ask Linda what time period these were made and used, but she did think it was old and I got it for a fair price. And since Chloe keeps chewing up my threads I now have a place to put them!

I"m home!

Got home about 8:30 tonight, so I"m just posting a quick hello. I have so much I could show you I would never have enough time! 2 highlights - Dinner with Bonnie and Lucy! I had such a wonderful time with them! My only regret is that I couldn't have spent an entire week with them! Both of them are more than sweet! And they look and act like sisters! Made me totally jealous! In one picture (I'd have to find it yet) I was in between them and they are TALL and thin, and I"m short and not thin at all! It was so funny! In the picture above is Bonnie, Lucy and Laura in the front and Linda and me in the back.

My other hightlight - and totally unplanned - was meeting Rupert from survivor! On the way down we had dinner and stopped at a Borders bookstore and he just happened to be there giving a talk! So I got to sit in and listen and have a chat with him! He is so down to earth and fun to listen too. And yes, I love watching Survivor.

Time for bed for me! Night!

Found It!

Just so I don't leave you all hanging.... I found the notebook last night. Under a huge stack of string blocks I have been working on!!!!

I"m walking out the door now..... bye!

Last minute tidy up...

I've been rushing around trying to tidy up life before I leave for Paducah! I sure can't wait. Above is the center of my BOM class at the LQS. I also had to get borders on for tonight, but I didn't have time to get a picture last night. So that will have to wait. Below is the original version I made. I like trying to make the demo one look very different than the first one I do for the shop sample! I suceeded don't you think! (wait till you see the different borders I put on it!)

I worked a lot this weekend for regular work. But I did tidy up some of my quilt books and sewing table. And my inspiration corner by my bed where all my books of the moment and stuff lay. And now I have a problem! I can't find my notebook with all my lists of things to look for in Paducah! I searched high and low for it last night! Can't figure out where I laid it down! How can a notebook that I just used a week ago at the Chicago show disapper! Oh well, I'm starting a new list today and I've got tonight and tomorrow morning to look again. Figures doesn't it!

My first quilt ever.....

Some of you who have known me saw this quilt and heard the story back around the fall of 2005. But I forced Karen to show her first quilt ever so I thought it was time for me to share mine again! (Besides, work has me working from 7am - midnight for the last 2 weeks and I"m tired and don't know which end is up. I may hand the keys of my car over to Laura and sleep the whole way down to Paducah!)


Note no binding!

Here is my first quilt ever - a log cabin. Of course made with dress fabrics from JoAnne Fabrics, except for the center white squares which were my Grandma’s old sheets (Aunt Mary's sister).


Ever since I was a young girl and had the beloved Aunt Mary's quilt I wanted to make quilts. But no one close to me quilted - by the time I was old enough Aunt Mary had died. (Aunt Mary's quilt is below - my mom gave it to me for Christmas last year - and I still love it, holes and all!)

Anyway, in 1978 while I was in High School I took a Home Ec class that did all different kinds of needlework. So we finally got to the quilt unit! Our assignment was to make a log cabin pillow! Well me wanting to make a real quilt couldn't stop at the pillow! So I made the whole quilt while the rest of the class struggled with just getting a pillow done! :) We weren't allowed to work on the project at home - for fear our mom's would do it for us I guess (that is a laugh, no way my mom was going to!). So I spent hours after school in the home ec rooms. Finally when it got close to the due date the teacher finally broke down and let me take it home a few nights once I was hand sewing the back flaps down (this was kind like a quilt as you go type log cabin). I was 2 days late with the assignment.

The funny thing is I got a 98% on the project. 2 points off, one for each day I was late! While there were girls who hadn't even finished their pillows! Course I was very type A at that point so was so upset at 98%! Now I laugh about it!

But that got me going, and the rest is history!

Goodies, Goodies and even more Goodies!

The time has come for the goodie post! I've been so busy at work trying to get everything done before I go to Paducah that I hadn't had time to take pics of my goodies from the Chicago quilt show. So today I was working from home and decided to take some time out to just DO IT! Above you see my beautiful collection of new patterns I got! Dresden Star and Day Break are from Laundry Basket Quilts (I wrote about them in the previous post). Colonial Crown is from a lady who lives in the Rockford area. I"ve taken many classes from her she makes wonderful patterns. I've made so many of her quilts. Her pattern company name is Open Gate Quilts. Oh the 2 applique block patterns are from Laundry Basket Quilts also.

Then I got some fun patterns for me to make quick gifts. I like to have things like this on hand. The first one is Gifts for Quilters. This is a quilt pattern by Annie - who also made the pattern for those thread organizers I made and showed in back posts. The pattern I got this year has an ID badge/pencil holder/purse for around your neck, a small pouch wallet, a pinchusion and a little needle case. The middle pattern is mostly for the pincushion. I really liked the little pomegranite/pineapple shaped thing on a wool pincushion and decided I would never remember how it looked (even if I drew it) later, so I just paid the $7 and got the pattern. It is called Pinapple Plantation from Little Stitches. I've never seen their patterns but loved their booth! I could have bought way more pattens for things like wool matts, ornaments, pins and pincushions! Seasons of Time is also from Little Stitches and is just another 3 pincushion patterns. But I loved all 3!

I also had to get this little tiny wall hanging that hangs on this old bobbin for summer. I never have anything real summery and I just loved the big flower, crow and watermelon! And hanging on the bobbin was just too cute! This one came from Country Lore Designs. They had a TON of really primitive type wall hangings and patterns. And a ton of seasonal little patterns that hang on these bobbins.

I also couldn't resist a little wool kit for a gingerbread man table mat! I just love gingerbread men! It was from Primitive Gatherings by Lisa Bongean. Their booth is always wonderful, and I've been to her store 3 times now! Look at all the lucious brown wools!



And then comes my most unusual quilt show purchase! Curtains for my bedroom and bathroom windows! Can you believe it - curtains! Indo-US was there, they are the ones who make all those woven tea towels you buy in quilt stores to applique on. Well they had rag rugs and curtains. And I"ve been looking for some valences for my bedroom and bathroom for about a year. My old ones had just had it. Well I saw these, loved them and they were cheap! Got them home, all washed up and ironed and hung! Oh and notice my bathroom has a quilt framed over the toilet so I can make my husband look at quilts while he pee's! The kids get a big chuckle out of that!

Some more eye Candy...

Here is some more eye candy. I"m sharing today some of the "Celebrate Spring" quilts. My favorite had to be the one above of the little boy doing the summersault. Isn't it adorable!

And what is spring without sheep!

Or frogs.....


And this family of owls was wonderful.


I thought I would share some vendor candy also. I did get permission of the owners to take these pictures in their booths, so don't anyone panic. Above is Lori Smith in her booth. I remember last year, her booth was so small and packed. She lauged that she got a bigger one this year! Her quilts in real life are wonderful. They all have this wonderful muted mud like color. I asked her if she tea died or treated her fabrics to get that wonderful muddy color, but she said no, she just acheived it by using the right fabrics. Amazing! And she also told me she LOVES her job! (But that she is really busy and is working every waking minute)!


And the star-like quilt with applique and the quilt in the corner over the mans head are 2 quilts I saw in Paducah last year and loved, but chickened out of buying. They are from Laundry Basket Quilts. So I broke down this year and bought the patterns! Aren't the pretty! The one in the corner is made with templates and she developed a way to piece it so there are no inset seams! I was hooked after she showed me the demo. That was why I chickened out last year from buying the pattern! Oh and she had nice templates to use so I can rotary cut with them! Had to get those too!

The above quilt is really more blocks, this is just a smaller version. I bought a kit and pattern for this one last year in Paducah but am afraid to cute into the fabrics! I thought maybe if I took a picture of it this year it would inspire me! (Or make me more afraid!) This booth, and kit were from Quilt Plus in Indianapolis, and the pattern is a Quakertown quilts pattern called Sleeping Beauty.

So many things to share

I have so much I could share with you from the Chicago Show! I have no idea where to start! Today I'll share a few of the Patriotic-like quilts I saw. I tried to capture all the sheets too so everyone would know who made them and about the quilts themselves. Aren't they just wonderful?




Then there was this quilt. I turned the corner and there it was. It hit me so the moment I saw it. And then when I read the sheet it touched me so I cried.

Last but not least are these compass quilts - not really patriotic, but the compass/star theme kind of fits in.




I hope to share more, but I have to go in and adjust the colors on my photos and I just don't have time right now. I have to figure out how to adjust the camera yet.