My Quilt Updates

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The quilt for my new little niece is finished and in the mail. I changed some of my plans on the border. I was inspired by Camille’s quilts with ric rac. I called my friend Gina Halladay and frantically ordered enough ric rac to sew around the border. Love it! I was going to sew it down but someone suggested that a baby would love touching the loose edges. Good idea, stiffy! I chickened out of appliqueing Savannah Lynne Tardy along the border so I had her name quilted along the border.(thanks, Maggi Honeyman) Also there are 2 Aunt Lisa’s in this family, so I am Aunt Izzy. Maggie also quilted “made by Aunt Izzy” in the corner. I can’t let the other aunt Lisa get credit for the quilt. Can I? Emily quilt is in the mail, give Savannah a big hug for me. Bear with me while I talk about myself a little more!

Yes, I was a cover girl on the April issue of McCalls Quilting. (no honey, not the cover of the sports illustrated swimsuit issue!) I just found out that this quilt will also be hanging in Paducah, KY. Wowser! Well, it will be hanging in Hancock’s of Paducah’s store, not in the actual show. I think I could still be able to say I had a quilt at Paducah, right?!

One thing you will not see in the magazine is the back of any of my quilts. Each year I choose a theme for my quilt backs. 2 years ago everything I made had plaids or wovens on the back. Last year was the year of the dots, the bigger the better for my quilt backs. This year is pieced backs. This is my attempt to use my stash, you know make room for new stash while helping the environment and the pocketbook. (or at least that what I tell my husband)

I took a quick picture of the back before I had to SHIP MY QUILT TO PADUCAH.

How time flies? My first post as modalissa was right before I headed of to Quilt Market. At the time, I gave you a preview on my Honeybun TM log cabin quilt. At least twice a year I make a quilt using as many different moda fabric collections as I can. I know this is psycho, but it makes me happy sewing and thinking about each of the designers.

This week I received my copy of McCalls Quilting- June 2009. There on page 40 (same as my age 🙂 is my log cabin quilt. I forgot how much I love this quilt. It is so easy but the way the blocks are sewn makes it look as if there are staggered seams. Basically half the blocks start with a dark center and half start with a light center. Maggi quilted it and really made the quilt sing! This quilt is scrappy and so to get your started on your very own, I am going to give away my extra strips from this project. There I go again, helping the environment and your pocketbook. All you have to do is guess how many pieces are in the quilt.

A couple of clues:

Not how many different fabrics, how many pieces. Simple multiplication- pieces in a block X how many blocks plus corner strips.

Tricky part- I have pieced the back, so this is where you just have to blindly guess. Sorry had to make it interesting.

Okay I admit it, they use a picture of me from when I was 40. Thank you, Beth!

I will draw a winner on April 19th. That way if you go to the show you can see the quilt in person. The AQS show in Paducah is April 21- 26.

I thought I would add a picture of the Prize. I will even throw in the blocks in all stages and the wonderful storage box holding the strips.

Support your favorite quilt magazines, quilt shows and independent quilt stores!

What Happens at Retreat Stays at Retreat-NOT

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The retreat was not in Vegas but in Bennigton, KS at Lynne Hagmeier’s. No pictures can do the place justice. It should be on the National Museum register. It should also be featured in all decorating and collecting magazines. INCREDIBLE! (we all said, “How does she dust?”)

Some information does stay at the retreat…………..

How much food we ate….Any of our new boyfriends…………………………Any discussions of politics or religion…………..
So some of the stuff I can talk about.
Why does it take 14 hours for an 8 hour road trip?
Well, first stop and first credit card swipe was Oklahoma City Quiltworks. Love this shop! I can always find something different here. (thank goodness the many antique shops did not open until 10:30 or else we would have turned it into an 18 hour road trip.)Another “A-word” Antiquing. In Wichita, KS at Paramount Antique Antique Mall, there were only 3 of us, but it is still a race to get inside to the treasures. We pushed on to arrive in Bennington in the dark. I live in Dallas so driving dark country roads with no signs was an adventure also. The retreat officially began. Lots of laughing and visiting by all.
Day 1: Imagine shopping with Sandy Gervais of Pieces from my Heart, Alma Allen of Blackbird Designs, Amy Bradley of Amy Bradley Designs, Sandy Klop of American Jane, Barb and Mary of Me & My Sister, Terry Thompson of Peace Creek, Laurie Simpson of Minick & Simpson, Jan Patek of Jan Patek Quilts, Barbara Brackman (check out her new blog-post a comment and tell her I sent you) and of course our hostess, Lynne Hagmeier. Yes it was heaven. Sandy Klop was shopping for props for her booth at market with scads of suggestions by all of us. (secret!?) By the last day we were all shopping for each other. Through the power of technology, we actually did some shopping for some of the designers that were not there. Take a picture, send it to them…you want it or not? This group is just that kind of crew, always looking out for each other and willing to help spend each others $$.DAY 2: More shopping. Oh, did you think retreat meant we would be sewing?

We also hit any quilt shop in our tracks. The Quilting Bee in Salina, KS had a display of Lynne’s fabrics so I couldn’t resist making Lynne strike a pose. (you know they all hate me taking pictures-Thank you, Lynne) We played games. Read all about it on Laurie’s blog. We ate lunch in Abilene, KS at Mr. K’s Farmhouse Restaurant. Ed and June Kuntz
welcomed us. (June is a quilter and Ed could talk quilt.) Ed took our picture and asked us to say “muslin” instead of cheese. He won us over! Alma is holding a jar of their homemade salad dressing. All the pie boxes are hidden. Go to their site to read the history, salivate over the menu and learn more about President Dwight D. Eisenhower in Abilene. Material Girls Quilt Shop was closed by the time we got there, boo hiss. Maybe next time. I even found an outfit to wear to Market. What do you think? Flats or heels?
I am so energized by all the talent, creativity and knowledge that was shared. I could go on and on about my 3 days in Kansas but that is it for now. Oh ya, road trip home, 9 hours, only 1 detour and 1 speeding ticket scare. Whew! He got someone else. We were already trying to figure if we could talk him out of a ticket with moda fabrics.

DALLAS QUILT SHOW

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The Dallas quilt show started out Friday with a day of downpours and floods in the area. I am sure this brought back nightmares to the previous year when rain poured into the building on the last day. The vendors were knee deep in the muck and slush. This was not the case this year. The rain went away and the quilters came out in droves. I apologize for the lack of pictures but I ran into so many old friends and of course I am easily distracted. Nostalgia by Linda Wiley of Mathis, Texas was one of my favorites in the 2 person category.

This wonderful Dear Jane quilt reminded me that this quilt is on my “to do in this lifetime” list. (I apologize I didn’t get the maker’s name-was distracted)I do not do the “A- word” but I always seem to take pictures of applique quilts. I guess that is Susan Stiff’s influence on me. I love using a ticking as a background. (remember this for an after market posting)This quilt is incredible. Carol Morrissey made it. She has a pattern company, O Carol Designs. I would like to think that I taught her how to quilt many years ago when I worked at the Olde Craft Store, but that is not the case. I am amazed at how people can get this kind of art out of their head and onto cloth.Another incredible artist that I am mesmerized by is Karen K. Stone. Her use of color is incredible. I can only imagine her fabric stash. There are a couple of her patterns that are also on my “to do in this lifetime” list.One of the things that Karen does is the tiniest piping that is added along with the binding. I tried to get a close-up of the small gold piping. I admire that she takes the time to do the piping. By the time I get to the binding I am ready to be done. I believe Piece O’ Cake also does this small piping. So with local teachers like Becky & Lynda from Piece O’ Cake and Karen Stone, I began to notice the small piping on several quilts.

Then I came to this quilt. Yes …..applique. It was vibrant and cheery and brightened the entire area. Just the perfect quilt to brighten up the day. The most incredible part of the quilt is the binding. It is covered cording (several colors and sizes) made into little semi circles sections. WOWSER!

Running in to some of my old friends.. Jackie you looked fabulous! Olde Green Cupboard was here from Florida. I love watching Katie’s locker hook rug demo. (yes on my to do list)
Quilt Country had some fabric I “needed” for my I SPY baby quilt. Another old friend had a cute booth full of retro items, Ruby Jane. I guess the only bad thing is I did not win the beautiful Amish raffle quilt.
One side note: I need all of you to remind me to enter some of my quilts next year. (Got to get over the intimidation factor)

Happy Quilting,

The Winners are…

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What is one persons trash is anothers’ treasure as the saying goes.
This certainly is true by the overwhelming responses to the selvage giveaway.

The winner of the selvage ball is SandyQuilts.
The winner of a bag of selvages is AnitaInFlorida
the winner of a bag of selvages is DSpack.

Please send me your shipping address.

Selvages – Tell a Story

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The saying…. every quilt tells a story has been true since the beginning of the needle & thread. The selvage also tells a story. (some say selvage some say selveldge – potatoe or potato or papa if you are in Spain, right Joanna?)

wikipedia defines selvage as: In a woven fabric, the selvage (or selvedge) is the uncut edge of the fabric which is on the right- and left-hand edges as it comes out of the loom. As such it is ‘finished’ and will not fray because the weft threads double back on themselves. The term also refers to the unfinished but structurally sound edges of flat knitted textiles.
Very often fabric near the selvage is not usable as it may have a different weave pattern, or may lack pile or prints that are present on the rest of the fabric requiring that the selvage fabric be cut off or hidden in a hem. Not usable…. if they could only see how selvages are being used.

The selvage is so full of information. It shows how many screens it takes to print that fabric. It tells the order of placement for each screen.
(have you checked out the selvages on some of the chain fabrics?…not very many dots there)

I like to sew a piece of the selvage on the back as I am adding the binding. I then whip stitch it down to the back of the quilt. What does this do? Mainly it just helps me remember what collection was used in the particular quilt. I don’t use this as the label but it does document the quilt for historians down the road.
So imagine how intrigued I was when I discovered Karen Griska’s book, Quilts from the Selvage Edge. Her blog is a must read. I invited her to make a project for the moda bake shop using the scrapbags. Have you heard of the Moda Bake Shop?

A couple of years ago, the theme of the Moda booth for Quilt Market was Selvages! Small world! So I started saving some of the moda selvages. After visiting with Karen, we thought we would both do a giveaway. I have come to grips with the fact that I am never going to make anything from the selvages I have saved. So I am going to give them away here. Just post a comment and talk about it on your blog. I will draw 3 winners Saturday the 14th. Karen is giving away the pillow she made for the bake shop. Go to her blog for details to win the pillow.

Karen said it was okay to include selvages of any width or length, so I did. It seems as if I have been wrapping that ball for days. I think the winner will be pleased. Images may appear larger, so I photographed the “Selvage Ball” alongside some of balls that were laying around my house. (the basketball is a kids size) 2 of the winners will receive their selvages in a gift bag. I don’t think I can get any more balls made. Can’t wait to see all the selvage projects out there.

A few of my favorite things

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Here is the pincushion that goes with the bookazine giveaway listed below!!

Okay, who is hungry? for projects to use the moda precuts that is. A beautiful book by Edie McGinnis from Kansas City Star is hitting the shelves. KCS has been so kind to let me share with you an excerpt of the book making it one of my favorites.YUMMY YUMMY YUMMY! Another of my favorite things is the new Bags, Pillows and Pincushions issue from American Patchwork & Quilting. It is a BOOKAZINE. What is that? A book and a magazine morphed into one. Who doesn’t want that? Leave me a comment here about your favorite project on the
Moda Bake Shop and you will be entered in a drawing for this bookazine and a Big & Bold pincushion made by yours truly- me. Designed by Jill Abeloe Mead. I am also making the Wool & Whimsy pincushion by Roseann Meehan Kermes but I am keeping it for myself. (I will post a picture of the pincushion as soon as I get my camera fixed. Drawing this weekend.)

Another one of my favorite things is the new book I received in the mail. Wonderful eye candy for any quilter.
A Beautiful book by Gwen Marston. Photographed by my friend Gregory Case. Each of the quilts are beautifully photographed full size as well as a close up to show detail.

I am thinking the bella solids would be wonderful for any of these.

We have been honored to have Gregory take pictures of the moda booth during quilt market. Can you imagine trying to gather all these people to get in 1 picture? Well Gregory did with a little help from Elena and myself. (I am hiding in the very back)
A small part of the special people that bring moda to you!!

They are my very Favorite things (except my family)
Oops gotta go.. Bachelor is on.

Emily’s baby quilt

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It must be that time in my life. Everyone around me is having babies or grand babies. (Don’t get any idea, kids) My niece and nephew, Daniel & Emily Tardy are due to have her first child (we know it is a girl) next week. Their nursery has a light fabric with a wonderful big paisley full of greens and blues. I didn’t have any of the fabric to be able to match a quilt to, yet I trudged on. I love the Denyse Schmidt style of quilts, so I thought I would sew some wacky log cabin or something nice and graphic. Changed my mind mid stream. At market, Quiltsmart had a pattern to make an orange peel and I thought this design would be perfect. Viola!

Easy, easy. easy and fun! With quiltsmart the templates are printed on lightweight fusible interfacing. First cut the interfacing, sew them to the fabric pieces and turn like a pillow. The exposed side of the interfacing is fusible so no or little pinning is required. Iron it in place and sew it down with whatever method you prefer. You can leave the interfacing in or cut it out from the back side of the quilt. Viola! Viola! You may notice the petal shapes above have printed lines across the middle. For my baby quilt I wanted smaller petals than the quiltsmart interfacing featured. I reduced the shape 50% and traced it on to the interfacing. I only used a little bit of the interfacing for this project, so I will have plenty left to also make this quilt full size using scrappy prints.

Normally, you would sew these petals on to squares and then assemble the blocks. I didn’t want all the petals to line up (intentionally or not! ?) so I am appliqueing the petals on the background as a whole piece.
I am going to add the name and date running across the borders as soon as I know. So far,
I have (name goes here) Tardy, Feb (date) 2009 ready to applique as soon as I hear the news. Quilt it and ship it!!
NEWS JUST IN!
Savannah Lynn Tardy has been born. I’ve got to get to work on the borders.

Miss Rosie’s Fan Club

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In all fairness to the recent post on the Jolly Jabber by Carrie Nelson of Miss Rosie’s fame, I felt I needed to explain myself. Yes I will admit that I did “nag” Carrie a bit to do 5″ charm patterns. Why? Well I thought it would be wonderful to line the halls of moda with small quilts documenting the fabric designers and their collections. My previous idea was just to make miniatures of the project sheets. Can you imagine the Portobello Market Project sheet in miniature? Well I couldn’t either. So selfishly I hounded Carrie for patterns.
I am the President of the Miss Rosie’s fan club. Not really, but should be. I am making every single one of her Schnibbles. I am bummed if I do not get a charm pack to make with the collection and have to substitute. However,it is cool to see the other colorways. I have started hoarding the patterns and charm packs. I slide the pattern in the wrapper of the charm pack until I am ready for it. What you don’t see in the picture is the stack of Schnibbles that are all cut and organized waiting to be sewn. I cut several out at a time when I am in the cutting mood. Then when I am in the sewing mood and don’t want to start something new, I pull one of these out. ( Boy, I sound like a moody person)
Much to my surprise I received a package during the Holidays. It was full of the original pincushions from Tuffets pincushion pattern. What a treasure! How did she know I had started a pin cushion collection?!
I know this is a life long goal to have made all of these quilts. I hate to admit that I am also making all of Pam Buda’s, Heartspun Quilts charm patterns. What an addiction, geez!
There are no Schnibbles lining the walls of moda yet. Someday!
I know all my buddies have already blogged about the new Moda Bake Shop blog , but I am also mentioning it. Kudos to Angela Yosten for working so hard on developing it. Thank you to Joanna, Camille, Monica, Laurie and Leigh Ann for getting us started with some fun projects. We have lots more coming. Feel free to leave me a comment on things you would like to see featured on the Moda Bake Shop.

Collection for a Cause and soap

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I wanted to post about these soaps before the Holidays in case you needed them as gifts, but…. I guess there is always mother’s day, birthdays or just because. First about the fabric, Collection for a Cause is an ongoing program begun by owner, Howard Marcus Dunn. It features antique quilts from his collection and support charities and causes that touch the hearts and lives of all of us.
Proceeds from this collection, Heritage, will be donated to Gilda’ s Club, which seeks to provide an emotional and social support community for people living with cancer. The proceeds were given in memory of our colleague, Pam Wieland.

Then I saw this. Joyce Noerr from Sororia Organics Soaps makes and packages some of her products in Heritage fabrics. Good for your skin and good for the soul…..Plus they are also giving a portion of the proceed’s to Gilda’s Club. Moda fabric, organic soap and giving back all in one thing, what could be better. Way to go, Joyce.