State Fair Results

Remember my "Patriotic Me" quilt that I entered in our state fair?????  Well, it won Second Place in its division of Applique, pieced, machine quilting.  I was so surprised and happy to place.
Words of encouragement......."Get out there, enter contest, participate and by doing so you will stretch your imagination, step out of your box or comfort zone, meet new and wonderful people and you just might place.  But even if you don't,  the experience will boost your confidence!
If you live in the Dallas area and get to the fair, make sure to visit all the wonderful displays.

Last of the Closeups of Wildlife of Texas

That's it for the Wildlife blocks.....hope you enjoyed seeing a bit of Texas from the view of quilters.

Closeup of Wildlife Blocks

Note the quilting in each block.

I'll post the last of the blocks soon.

Texas Wildlife Quilt

The Texas Department of Agriculture unveiled the "Texas Wildlife: Adventure Awaits" quilt.  My big-mouth bass block was one of the ones chosen.

Maria Davis  (from Lewisville, TX) did the longarm quilting and let me just say that she did an outstanding job.  As we know, the quilting is the icing on the cake for a quilt or it could destroy the piece.  Maria's work gets an A+!
Make sure you check out her bio and look at some of her work by clicking on the link. 
My next couple of posts will show a few closeups of some of the blocks so stay tuned.

Baling Season

It's always great after sewing seeds, spring to summer rain showers, to harvest or bale the hay.  These bales will feed cows throughout the winter.  However the baling process is a killer on my allergies.......aaaahhhhchew!

But, I'll survive......I think ;-}

Catch of the Day

No, not this little guy......he was tracking across my yard the other day....far from our pond.  I think he was migrating.

This is the catch of the day.  Four bass, two were 1 pounders......can't wait to fillet them.

These 2 designs were stitched out within 30 minutes just to see what they look like. I found them as "free" downloads......this sometimes means that a designer was experimenting with digitizing.....so it's good to stitch them out to see what's going on.

Don't Ask

I titled this post 'Don't Ask' because I have know idea how this design is going to turn out or if I even like the fabrics I've chosen.  Well, I do love the fabrics which are Evening Mist by Sentimental Studios for Moda, but I'm thinking this particular design needs more bold colors. What do you think?

I finally put the top together for my little Halloween quilt measuring 16" by 16" square.  I stitches the designs out the other week then lost track of where I put the blocks.....you know how that is....right?  I love this fabric but can't remember where I bought it or which line it comes from.  Next week I'll get around to machine quilting it.

Border Fabric

This is a re-visit on a quilt I made a couple of years ago.  I used border fabric as the center strip of my sew, flip & press quilt.
I was initially, afraid of border fabrics because I couldn't figure out how to use that type of fabric other than in a border but this challenge project that my "wacky" group thought up made me rethink my concerns.  Who says you can't cut up, divide or only use portions of border fabrics.  Well, you certainly can.
In this project you start off with a muslin base (size....your choice but I like the 10 1/2 to 12 1/2 inch size).  Place your focus fabric strip in the center diagonally right side up on each muslin square.  Some like to secure the strips with a dap of glue stick but I've found that if you iron the strip in place the heat from the iron temperately bonds the two.  Next, I had pre-cut dark & light strips of varied sizes.......I tried to use colors that matched the focus fabric for the darker side and tone-on-tones for the lighter side. 
Choose one dark strip, I placed it over the top of the focus strip and stitched it down. Flip it open and press. I continued with dark strips until one side of each muslin block was finished.  Do not trim at this time.  Stitch the light strips on next using the sew, flip and press method until all muslin squares are completed. Then square up.  I really love the way this turned out. And now, when shopping for fabric, I always look for at least one border fabric.

I thought about turning the blocks on point and using the Square in a Square method to complete my project but didn't like how it looked.

Mixing Threads

I love mixing the different brands of thread to get a unique look when stitching out machine embroidery.

In this first design, I used FuFu Rayon, Gutermann 100% cotton and Madeira Rayon.

Note that it's the rayon that lends to the shiny effect.

With this design, I used Mettler Metrosene which is a semi-gloss type thread and Superior - King Tut ELS cotton which is a thicker thread.....note the tennis ball for that effect.

Finally, I used all of the above threads and was very pleased with the outcome. With all designed, I used an 80/11 Steep Quilting needle.  This needle has a slight groove down the front whirch allows the threads to rest in as they travel from spoon to bobbin.

I, also use this type of needle when doing regular piecing quilt.

Pillowcase for a Cause

Mary's method of making pillowcases is fast, easy and fun.  I recently read about the one million pillowcases...for a cause.....check out her method and join in in your area.

T & T

Many thanks to everyone who voted for my Grocery Diva tote at Bertina studio.  I really appreciate your support.  There's still time to vote for "ME" if you haven't already.  Just click on the link, scan down to my Diva photo area and vote.

The FuFu is still working wonders on the designs so far.  Isn't this Bumblebee the cutest little critter.......it's okay because.....he isn't real so I don't have to dodge or find my can of but killer......LOL

Look at the newest threads I just added to my collection.  These are from Red Rock Threads in Nevada.  I ordered Gutermann Natural Cotton threads and Superior Living Color threads. Also King Tut Quilting threads and a few Robison Anton sewing threads.......oh dear...until I started listing them just now, I didn't realize just how many I got.  Well, a girl's got to keep abreast of the thread market.....right.....;-}

Help Me Out!

Greetings everyone!
I have a big favor to ask of you........I entered a "tote" challenge over at Bertina Studio where you had a make a tote to take with you when shopping for groceries......I'd like your vote, please.  Click on the Bertina link, scan down to the beautiful totes , take a look at all that talent but please vote for me.....it only take a couple of minutes and you can only vote once........!

Agog Over FuFu

In the previous post, I was showing off my new thread collection.....FuFu......strange name but boy, does it sew like a charm.  I was able to stitch out 2 designs before it skies opened up and poured down on my little section of the world.  So what am I saying......."Love the Fu!"

My New Threads

Today I received an "awaited" box in the mail......I tore into it and TaDa..My new threads......are here. 
FuFu threads!
I know, I know....weird name but, I'm hoping it's a great thread.
My "wacky" girlfriends and I are all searching for various threads to use when stitching all those wonderful machine embroidery designs.  I'll be testing some of these goodies in the coming days, so stay tuned.

Look Into the Light

I was moving things around in my sewing room.......again.......yesterday.....you know re-organizing......anyway, I started pulling like thing together and noticed all the different light sources I've collected over the years.  Some I didn't even bother to photograph and threw in the trash....but these five are special because I've used them in some form or the other when sewing a project.......with varied success.
My favorite is the flexible one second from the left.  It affixes to my machine and gives off light where I need it most.
I've found that the lights that are built into our machines just don't cut it, so I'm always on the lookout for better lighting.  I do prefer lights that can be attached to my machine or on the wall or floor near my machine ....that way it doesn't take up any space around my sewing area.
What about you?  What's your lighting preference?

Labor Day Weekend Hiatus

Grover Cleveland Video — History.com#presidential-fun-facts
My family and I are about to observe Labor Day, which pays tribute to the contributions and achievement of all American workers. Labor Day was created by the labor movement in the 19th century by President Grover Cleveland and became a federal holiday in 1894. So, I'll be out of pocket, as will most of you, eating, visiting with family, laughing, eating, watching football, looking through the old photo album, eating....oh, I already mentioned eating.....LOL
If you are into traditions of old.....here's one that everyone over 40 will remember......After Labor Day, it is not in good taste to wear white until spring.
The above link is a very short video of presidential facts.....Enjoy the video and have a great long weekend!

I Can Explain.......

Does this picture remind you of you......LOL......I can explain all of these.......really I can.

These 3 pair are great for regular sewing. I can't stand the loose thread ends on the backs of my quilts so I use these all the time. I keep a pair on my ironing board, one at my sewing area and one near my cutting mate.  Why, you might ask?  Well usually when I need to use pair, they're way across the room (centimeters...LOL) and I don't want to use time locating them.

These curved scissors are great when embroidering in my hoop.  These babies can get very close to the needle and other hard to reach places.

I used these 2 when cutting paper, stabilizer, tape and even fabric  The blue handle scissors very rarely need sharpening.

More thread snippers. I keep these in my sewing drawer that I take on retreats.

Aren't these cute?  And they really work, too!

Enough said......

How many scissors do you own and operate?

OESD Designs

Last month, you may remember, my "wacky" girlfriends and I went on an embroidery retreat in Tyler, Texas. We learned plenty, laughed alot and of course purchased several designs. This is one of them. It's "Visions of Summer by OESD. Obviously, I haven't completed it but I couldn't wait to show off my efforts from the Deer Camp retreat.  There are 12 panel to the main body of the design, which you see here, and 18 side portions that I will get done one of these days.  I was so proud of myself for sticking with it over the course of 4 days. I did learn that when a design says that the sew time is 30 minutes, it really means about 45 minutes to an hour....with changing threads, walking away to do something else and forgetting that the embroidery machine, while great, does not change those threads by itself.....unfortunately.  When all the parts are stitched out, I will need to sew them together by using a 1 inch strip between the blocks, creating a window pane effect.
There are 3 other designs in this series....Fall, Winter and Spring.  I'll get around to those, as well, one day.

D.C. as in Deer Camp

Here I am taking a break from embroidering. You would not believe how much we got done in the 3 1/2 days at D.C.

At one point we were laughing out loud because with all the machines going and us bent over our machines, it looked and sounded like a "sweat shop."

Below are just a few of the things I was working on.