Happy Memorial Day! I'm back! It's been busy here at home and in my studio. Customers have been merrily piecing for special occasions and charities. Lucky me, I get to see all of their beautiful work up close and to enhance it's beauty. 


When you create a quilt you need to consider it's final destination or use! Is is for a child or just a throw to go on your porch for the summer? A wedding gift the will be lovingly used or carefully hung on a wall to be admired....all of this must be discussed with your quilter, she should have definite ideas as to what will be the best quilting for your beautiful creation and for how it will be used.


I've said it before and I'll say it again, LABEL your quilts! Even if it's just your name and a date, the history/story of why you made it should be preserved for the future. I've used Pigma pens to make labels and have found on quilts that are laundered that the ink fades, this isn't good.
Now I am embroidering my labels on my embroidery machine and when forethought prevails I add the embroidered label to the back of the quilt prior to quilting it. This way the label is part of the quilt and won't come off easily.


Many of my friends use inkjet printers and print their labels on fabric, this is a great, easy way to label your quilt. You can purchase ready made printable fabric sheets from several sources, the EQ company being one. I haven't tried washing these labels so I can't say how they hold up after many launderings.


Be sure to supply your quilter with as much information as possible regarding each quilt and then enjoy the finished product!


Have a wonderful start to the summer and find time to make a summer quilt project when it's too hot to be outside!

SUPPORT YOU LOCAL QUILT SHOP!
Hello All!  Today marks a special day for Susan Sasser and her family! Who is Susan Sasser? She is a friend who used to work at the same quilt shop that I did, the one that is no longer. It was a more than a quilt shop, it was a haven for fabric loving quilters, doll & purse makers, it was a learning place and an place to share ideas and accomplishments. We've all missed having that ambience in our lives, that locale of inspiration.
Today was the 'soft' opening of a new quilt shop, a new era for the fiber artists who have longed to go an pet fabric and talk quilts and families. Today The Round Bobbin quilt shop opened! I went and the shop is so spacious, beautiful wood flooring and shelves. There is a calm beauty about a new shop, everything is perfect, no hands have mis-sorted the bolts of wonderful cottons-yet, but soon I think there will be customers pulling bolts, consulting the very knowledgeable staff and purchasing patterns, books & notions to create QUILTS. The Round Bobbin is so new the signs don't arrive until tomorrow!
Please visit their website at -http://www.roundbobbinquilts.com/  Like the shop the website is still growing, classes will be added soon and there is also on-line shopping to be had!
Many of the staff from the no longer quilt shop will be found at The Round Bobbin.
I honestly can say it's a beautiful shop in Horsham, just off Horsham Rd., south of Limekiln Pike, next to Silvestri's.
Please support your local quilt shop and visit The Round Bobbin soon, the Grand Opening is in April!
Thanks Susan!

Happy March! It's been a very strange winter here in Pennsylvania, not much snow and very warm weather!
In fact out biggest snow fell in October, before Halloween and did unimaginable damage to our trees.
I have sew many projects that I want to work on and my customer quilts keep coming so I am still in business!
Spring is almost here, officially but I've still got much to do inside.
How do you organize your time so that you get the most accomplished? Do you make lists or set aside certain times during your day to work on different projects?
My friend, Sally does her cross stitch every morning when the light is the best, she knits all the time and still makes wonderful quilts.
I tend to be a list maker, the satisfaction of crossing items off is very motivating to me.
Whatever your projects are, get organized and get them done!
Happy sewing!

HAPPY NEW YEAR! Farewell to 2011, it's time for to fade away. 2011 was a busy year many good things happened, the two best being the birth of my granddaughter, Laela and the engagement of my son Kyle to his Ashley.  We are blessed, our grandson Trevor turned 1 year old in November.

I've been super busy with family, dogs, knitting, finishing some holiday UFO's and quilting some quilts for customers.  Then of course there was Thanksgiving & Christmas!

While we were in Hawaii in October I contacted a quilt instructor named Kathy Tsark, owner of Kwilts 'N Koa in Honolulu. Kathy teaches traditional Hawaiian quilting, which is basically 2 fabric applique. Hawaiian quilts are made in two colors and are all handmade, no machine sewing or rotary cutting.
Kathy was super friendly and knowledgeable, she wants to preserve the Hawaiian quilting style and is happy to teach it to anyone interested.

                                                               The Breadfruit

                                                         Kathy Tsark, Kwilts 'N Koa

                                            All basted and ready to needle turn applique

                                                       Beginning the hand quilting


Kathy came to my hotel for two lessons, the first on the history of Hawaiian quilting, tracing and cutting the Breadfruit design, basting it onto the background and beginning the appliqueing. Over the phone we discussed color options as well as what notions I would need. I had brought along a sewing kit so I was semi-ready for this.

The designs used in these quilts all have a meaning, Breadfruit being the first, the food to start the quilter on her journey. Pineapples are well know around the world to mean 'Welcome', so there is a progression to the designs, all steeped in tradition.

I really enjoyed my lessons and working with Kathy, she's a sweetheart and so knowledgeable. If you ever get to Honolulu and want to learn from Kathy please contact here at KWilts 'N Koa,  you can check out her web site at www.kwiltsnkoa.com 

I now own a quilt hoop as well as a Roxanne thimble, I haven't completed my breadfruit yet but I will!
I had Kathy prepare a crib quilt with pink & white fabric so that I can make a Hawaiian quilt for my granddaughter, Laela, who is Hawaii born to have.

I had done some hand applique but nothing of this scope, Kathy helped me to understand the applique as well as the hand quilting. I won't be expecting to win any ribbons with my new found skills but I will definitely enjoy the process as well as the completed projects!

Thank you again Kathy! Aloha!

Aloha #2 from Waikiki

Aloha again, it's early morning here and I think the jet lag is all gone, we actually slept until a normal time this morning. Now to go to my daughter's and help her out so that she can nap.

Here is our little Miss, Laela, fresh from her first bath. Isn't she just gorgeous?

Out hotel has Hawaiian quilts on every floor by the elevators. These are a cultural wonder and so beautiful. If you've never seen one they are made from just 2 fabrics, usually a light solid for the background and a darker solid for the applique. The applique is one piece for the entire quilt, no matter how large the quilt it's one solid piece of applique. They are hand basted, then appliqued and then hand quilted with either an echo of the design or with stitching that compliments the design. Pineapple and breadfruit are often included in Hawaiian quilt design.

Above are 3 of the quilts from the Hale Koa. I plan to go to the Bishop Museum to see more and get a pattern or two!

Don't you think that these quilts are stunning in their simplicity of color and intricacy of design? Can you imagine appliqueing one of these, all of those points and corners to master and make perfect! I hope that I get to make one, just a small one to start and see where it takes me.

I went into a shop at the Hilton Village here and it was all "Hawaiian" quilt items. Uhm, well not to be picky but the stitching was not good and upon further examination they are labeled 'authentic Hawaiian quilting" made in polynesia. Definitely for the unknowing tourist. I left without making a purchase. If I know that I can stitch it better I won't ever buy it!

Aloha, have a great Sunday!

October in Hawaii

Aloha from Oahu! My husband & I are here with our daughter, her husband and their daughter, Laela who was born 2 weeks ago! Yes grandchild #2 is here and we now have a boy and a girl.

This is the farthest I've ever flown and my first trip to the Pacific Ocean, it is beautiful and the flight wasn't as bad as anticipated.

While we are here we will spend a lot of time with the kids and some time sightseeing and shopping. I've already looked up quilt shops and yarn shops and really what else do I need to shop for? I brought a quilt for Laela with me on the plane, it's made with Winnie the Pooh fabrics along with bright read-as-solids prints. I hand sewed the binding on while flying west and handed it over shortly after arriving. My daughter has washed it and it has crinkled up just right to look warm and snuggly. For the most part Laela won't need a warm quilt while living here in Hawaii but it will be a play mat or stroller cover or a fort, who knows? I needed to make this quilt for my granddaughter like the several that I've made for my grandson, Trevor, who will be getting another quilt for his first birthday. This is Laela's second quilt, the first was pink Peter Rabbit fabrics with hints of turquoise.

Often grandchildren amass quite a quilt collection early in life and I can't stress the importance of labeling these lovingly made bits of history. Stitch a label, write one with permanent fabric ink or embroider onto the quilt but do label your work!

I promise to share a picture or 2 of Laela as well as Hawaii when I have a better internet connection!

Mahalo for reading along!

Intersting summer continued

Hello again, can you believe that I am back so soon? I realized that I had barely touched on the many things that made up my interesting summer! Below is a picture of my guild's raffle quilt for this year. This quilt was designed by Gina Gempesaw for County Line Quilters, pieced by guild members and machine quilted by me, Sally Malley finished it with her perfect binding. Our quilt guild hosts a non-juried show every 2 years in the spring, it will be in late March this year at Archbishop Wood High School. Isn't it beautiful? I love the bright, happy colors in this design and the large blocks really stand out! Oh I'd love to win this quilt! On a very sad note our Beautiful Morgan has gone to the Rainbow Bridge, I'd always asked her to make it to 13 years and she did, she turned 13 in May a left us in late June. I miss her so much!
This is Morgan on Trevor's bed, wasn't she just gorgeous? I used to send Morgan and Daisy in to wake Trevor up, they'd jump on the bed and play around. Trevor was not easy to wake up!
God Bless you Morgan, you made our lives so much richer in so many ways and you are missed my beautiful girl!

As I write this I am watching my Ninja Hummingbird guard the feeders, she is fierce in her desire not to share the nectar! The chases are comical and I could watch them and their beautiful shiny green feathers all morning. Mr. Rusty is at my feet, he never goes far any more it's like he's decided I'm his since Morgan left us.

In looking at my red golden retrievers and the green hummingbirds and can see a beautiful copper and green quilt, the colors are rich and would really shine together. Isn't it amazing how nature inspires us? Look around you and be inspired, after this hellish summer with it's prolonged heat waves and then the devastation of Hurricane Irene we have much to be thankful for. For me autumn is a wonderful season, the colors, the scents and the crackling leaves on the ground. I love the shorter days and cooler nights. I am inspired to create quilts and food. Autumn is a time to gather and prepare for the possibility of winter, I relish this time.

Our guild will start meeting again in September as will many guilds, we are starting off with a Tea Party this year! I can't wait to see everyone and what they have created over the summer!

I will get to have lunch with my good friend, Donna Lynn Thomas this week, she will be coming back east to promote her newest book and visit family. Spending time with her is amazing, she is so creative and inspiring!

Enjoy the last official weekend of summer, your family and friends and maybe you are inspired to create something for yourself to remember your summer of 2011 by.