Monday, August 10, 2009

Quilt envy

We got back from vacation on Saturday. A week at the beach, with a private pool and hot tub - it doesn't get much better than that. I am relaxed and refreshed and TAN! More on that later.

Look what I picked up today!

My mom saw this quilt at our quilt show this year and wanted it. I told her to name her price and ask the quilter if she would sell it. Turns out, she would! Isn't it adorable? It measures about 17.5" x 22.5". She's going to hang it in her guest room which she is preparing to paint a very pale lavender. Look at the detail on this - I really need to learn to embroider.
Anyway, I met the quilter today to pick it up, and I was going to mail it, but I didn't want to let go of it just yet - I'll mail it tomorrow!

I didn't get much quilting done on vacation. I worked a bit on my Grandmother's Flower Garden. I also worked on a puzzle with a quilt in it - does that count?


Other than that, it was walking to and playing on the beach,


Reading on the deck in the ocean breeze, playing with the kids in the pool

and losing to my mother at Cribbage.

I love vacation! Only 1 more mini vacation left this summer - this weekend we are headed to Maine for my 20th high school reunion. Fun, fun, fun!

At home yesterday, I tackled the weeds that tried to reclaim my property while I was gone, then caught up on a couple of blogs, including Green Fairy Quilts. They are looking for some quilts to take to an orphanage in Romania, and I thought, hey, what about all those flannel tops I have to quilt. So, yesterday I sandwiched this one and started quilting it.
(hmmm, where's the photo, you ask? I can't find it! I'll take another and post it later. That way you can let me know if the quilting is working or not.)
I have a really high loft batting in there (because that is what I had in the house and I refused to get back into the car yesterday). It is challenging to hand quilt something so high, but I like the look. I am doing a bigger, more primitive stitch around the center squares for now, not sure what else I will do. I'm not even sure I'll have it done to send to them before they go to the orphanage, but reading about her trip was enough to motivate me to get started quilting something.

This is another flannel top that I pieced using a crumb piecing technique.
I sent the top to a woman in my guild to practice FMQ on and the plan is to donate it to the Guild as a comfort quilt. It was waiting for me when I arrived home from vacation, so yesterday I also stitched the binding on and just have to sew the back down. However, I mangled the corners somehow. It is no longer anywhere close to square. If I were conscientious like Lane, I would take the binding off and re-do it, but I just can't bring myself to do that. I hate sewing on binding so much that I would probably just not put it back on. Oh well, it is to provide comfort, not win a prize.

By the way, it came back with blood on it. Is it my blood? I can't remember. If so, I would have blogged about it way back when, but my other blog crashed so I can't check. How do I get blood out? Any tips?

And how could I forget, Jason and I are now Orange Belts in American Freestyle Karate. Ki-ya!

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

peroxide gets blood out and does not damage the cloth!!! thats a trick that I learned from some nurses. Love your stories by the way!

DeAnna said...

Vacations are wonderful. Sounds like you all had a great time. Love the small quilt and all the other pics and story. Thanks for sharing.

marlene@ByTheSeam said...

I read that if you use some thread with your silava on it you can get the blood out but only if it is your blood. Sometimes peroxide will bleach the fabric or so I have found out.

Victoria Findlay Wolfe said...

Looks like you had a nice trip came home and got inspired! good for you! I like your scrappy hearts! they will be lovely if you donate it.
Hey! congrats on your orange belts! my daughter just got her black belt, and I am a high red belt in tae kwon do. It's great workout right? well done!

Nancy said...

Enjoyed reading your blog, as usual. So glad you all had a good time at the beach. OBX is our favorite place to go. Interesting about the blood - good to know that peroxide might work; I thought it was only your own saliva. Not sure why that would work anyway, but I'd always heard it. Nice puzzle - we always do one but only OBX lighthouses or something related to beach. Looking for your new silhouette!

Piece by Piece said...

Welcome back. Sounds as if you had a great vacation. The quilt your Mother purchased is lovely. Congrats to you both on your Orange belts. Patricia

Lane said...

There are never enough vacations in life, are there? Glad you had fun and glad you're back. Love the pics. And, I also hate to bind, so taking one off would be a hard choice to make. If I get one on, I'll pinch and pull to get it to look okay. Hand stitching can make it submit. Take care! lane

Shirley said...

Your vacation sounds wonderful, especially the deck part watching the kids in the pool. The quilt your mother bought is stunning.. maybe you should just hang it on your wall and keep it captive til she comes to visit you and pick it up herself LOL Congrats on the Orange belts.

Becky said...

The quilt your mother bought is just gorgeous. It will look really nice in a lavender room. Congrats on your orange belt!

Kim said...

Where are you?
Everything okay in your world?

Happy Sewing