Soft and easy

A very soft, lazy fall day. It took a bit to warm up and get in gear--both me and the weather. A few chores and errands, and actually 3 quilts quilted. This one from Paula of the Bremerton bunch, looks like it might be a Yellow Brick Road, with the framed panel squares scattered amongst--great idea.






The cats are done--next to put them together for the quilt.







Today's best....soft and easy day.

Wine Country Trip

We took a quick 2 day trip to Napa Valley, always a good thing. Wil went hiking on Fryerland yesterday with the usual three suspects, and Mom and I took a trip to Antioch to visit her sister. The evening was wine and dine with sister's family. The valley was exceptionally beautiful and green after the rain two weeks ago, and the vineyards just starting to turn colors. I was so completely busy gawking at the picture perfect scenery that I didn't stop to take a picture .

All I have here is the dog's dismay at having to share the back seat with the Ikea purchase on the way home.

In the spirit of the colors of wine country, I quilted a lovely green and grape Log Cabin for Jackie in Poulsbo. I also started a cat quilt--sold 2 in Houston and need to replace them to sell. I have plenty of pieces from the days we were in high gear producing cat quilts for the Carmel store.














Today's best....stunning scenery in Napa Valley.

Monday

Among other chores and delivering merchandise to Crafters Cottage in PV, I determined to finish the service quilts from Saturday. I quilted two Wounded Warrior quilts, and quilted and bound the other two small ones I pieced Saturday.

The first is another of the 20/30 quilts. That's 20 5 x 9 1/2 and 30 3 1/2 x 9 1/2, sewn into 10 each 2 rail and 3 rail. Alternate the blocks in a 4x5 layout, add a border and done in about an hour.











The second is Patty Cakes--dark jewel tones this time. Laid out 8 x 5 again, with a border. Another quickie, since all of the pieces were precut. All 4 quilt tops were done in an afternoon. This is why I cut all of my scraps into nice big, usable pieces.











Quilting aside, I hear from Husband and MIL that rattlesnakes travel in pairs. I am not willing to test the theory. Husband now enters the shed/reptile house with a big stick--looks innocent enough, doesn't it?Today's best....delivering quilts to sell at the new Crafter's Cottage.

Spoke too soon

My new friends yesterday at the guild sew day were talking to me about living in rattlesnake country, and all of the great ways to control their population. Well, we haven't seen any rattlesnakes on our property. That was yesterday.....

Today I came home from errands, and Husband tells me we just added a new critter to our list. Before he could even tell me what, I thought--rattlesnake. Sure enough, in his storage shed, he heard a hissing sound, and he was quite sure there were no leaking containers. He got to employ on of his favorite methods of pest control, so he was amused. I, myself, was much happier being in denial about the hazards of our hillside living.

So meanwhile, I just opened up the rollup doors to enjoy the perfect 77 degree day while I quilted. I finished 2 of yesterday's service quilts.

This first is a pattern I handed out in classes past--Underlines. The bare roots on this one--9 12 1/2" squares and 9 2 1/2" strips, plus a border. Randomly sew 3 strip sets of 3 each, cut into 3 12 1/2" sections for a total of nine. Sew 3 vertical rows--the 2 on the outside with the strip sets below the squares, the middle with the strip sets above. With a 6" border this finished up a generous 47" x 65". It took little more than an hour to sew, and it's nifty for showing off a theme print. It is also very flexible if you can't cut squares exactly 12 1/2"--these were in fact, just 12", so the strip sets were cut 12". The squares don't even have to be perfectly square--for instance, if you have only a yard, you may need to cut 12 1/2" wide x 11 1/2" tall or maybe less to squeak it out. Nothing has to match, so the exact size is not critical.The second quilt finished is our Patty Cakes. It's simply made from 40 5"x9" Pam Cake slices. Laid out 8 wide by 5 tall, adding a 3 1/2" border, it finishes up a sweet 42"x49". I have drawers of these pieces already cut out of scraps. This also makes up from the Little Bloom packs of 10 11"x 22" pieces.
Actually, I have decided to change the size of the Pam Cake slices to 5 x 9 1/2". This will make the Patty Cakes quilt a little longer. It is also a better size to do more layouts and to combine with 5" charm squares--two charm squares sewn together makes a 5 x 9 1/2" section. So now all of my scraps are cut into 5"x 9 1/2" and 5" squares. The only size smaller I might consider is 3 1/2"--but that's another program.

















Today's best....being gone when our latest critter was discovered.

Make a Difference Day

Houston Festival was fabulous, and the trip home was good, especially the visit with Daughter in Austin and Auntie in Laguna Niguel. A day to unpack and update the sold-out merchandise on the website, and now it is time to sew.

I had a great place to start--joining the Valley Quilt Guild's Make a Difference Day. What a wonderful day it was. The gang there put together a fabulous sewing set up in a vacant storefront downtown Yuba City. Quilts were hanging everywhere, plenty of sewing stations, and snack support from local eateries. Much was accomplished by all.











For me it was a perfect opportunity to get to know people in my new area and jump start my quilting again. I don't think I've sewn for more than 3 weeks. At least I haven't forgotten how. I did 4 tops in the afternoon sewing session. Two were from kits friend Susan had made for me, two were from the Pam Cakes slices I brought (5 drawers worth). And then I couldn't stop when I got home this evening, and did another one from a kit--grand total 5 tops. Whew, I feel better.
I've come home to perfectly warm Fall weather. Since I've been away from it, I can smell the pines on the property. While I was away, we had our first campers--Pam and Rick stopped by on the last day of a trip through Oregon and beyond.
Today's best....sewing!

I love Houston

Quilt Festival has been wonderful. I am busy selling all day long, which it totally fun. The people are fabulous and patient with my little booth. I think everyone realizes what a great deal all of my colorful bundles are. I tried to take a minute to photo the booth after one 6 hour rush--boxes tumbled and merchandise everywhere. Most of the merchandise is in open bankers boxes, and shoppers get to dig through like a treasure hunt. Remember all of those wonderful remnant dump tables that some of us grew up with?

Meeting all of the Kaffe Fassett fans is fun. We are a special breed. The Amy Butler and Anna Maria Horner fans know a great style when they see it also.

My neighbors at the show are terrific. I've especially enjoyed working with Maggie of Bolt Over next door to me. She is the original 5 1 yard pack vendor, and does a fabulous job with it. You've seen her at shows, and can see more goodies at her web site boltoverquiltfabrics.com.

My web site is going to need much work when I get done. I will have to work hard to get new things ready, because much is being sold out at the show.

Today's best....rush hours--I love being busy.

I stopped Kaffe Fassett in his tracks

So I am busy at the checkout counter, making tags, and someone is commenting on the the orange quilt draped on over the my counter. The man himself stopped to complement my choice of color and pattern, and we had a lovely conversation about color.

Needless to say, my evening got off to a great start. Sales were good. Everyone loves our color and so happy to see the fun designers.

So here is the booth, before and after, and there will be more rearranging to come.














Today's best....my rave review.