To every adventure there is a beginning. My adventure with quilting began shortly after high school graduation. My mom took me to a beginning quilt class taught by Charlotte War Anderson. I started to hand piece a twin sized quilt. I think I made 2-3 blocks. To my dismay my blocks weren’t the same size. I was in over my head. I abandoned the pieced quilt idea. Instead, I made a denim quilt with a [...]

My friend Megan and I are making a baby quilt for a mutual friend. It is the Pineapple Tidbits quilt from Buggy Barn. Our version is done with bright greens and oranges/yellows. We each made 12 blocks. Megan is in the process of putting those blocks together. I get to machine quilt it. While I enjoy machine quilting, selecting a quilt motif sends me into a frenzy. I like to think that I just need [...]

I love the feeling from finishing a project. I spent the week watching Alias — Season One while I hand sewed the binding down. I’m done. I tossed it into the washer. Most of the paper flakes disappeared. The quilt is drying. I placed it a sheet so the cats won’t lie on the wet quilt. While the quilt dried, I made a label. This afternoon, I finally attached the label. I hung the quilt [...]

Finally it is time to start quilting. I’m excited and apprehensive all at the same time. I’m excited to do something new. Yet I want to do a good job. I started with the middle row. I pinned the paper to the fabric, then went for it. The paper cinched up a little. By the time I reached the end the design didn’t end at its designated place. When I started with the second row, [...]

I’m quite proud of my sewing/quilting area. Not because it is a thing of beauty. I like it because I’ve made the best use of what I had. I live in smallish condo. There is a second bedroom. However, it is setup as an office. For various reasons the office and sewing area can’t co-exist. The dining area in the kitchen has been transformed into the sewing area. I purchased a table for about $80 [...]

Transferring the quilt design to the quilt top is my least favorite quilting activity. I’ve tried several types of fabric markers. If I missed one, my mom has tried it. There is no such thing as the ideal fabric pen. White markers work well with dark fabrics. Dark markers work well with light fabrics. However, nothing works well with medium fabrics. So I decided to try another method. Once again I’m following in my mom’s [...]