Matisse Inspired Improv Piece

Last week Victoria@Bumblbeans proposed an improvisational challenge using a Matisse painting as the inspiration. She did hers very quickly (about 3 minutes?) making yes or no decisions instinctively. I work like this a lot, so of course I was absolutely interested. I decided that I would use only batik scraps I had left over from a previous project. So with that in mind, I studied the painting for a minute or two, put it away and then started putting together this top. It took about 2 hrs from the time I dumped my scraps out on my work table to the time I squared up this 25" x 20" top. And it is CUTE! And while I was doing my thing, my 7 year old daughter got the paints out and painted this picture. She does everything rainbow and has since she was 2 years old. How that came to be, I can't imagine. And as my mother would say, "She is quite obviously a double genius just like her Gran." Absolutely! Now my fingers are itching to machine quilt this little cutie! Happy quilting!

Pins

How many pins does it take to pin baste a king size quilt? This is how many and I still have probably a hundred in the center. But the good news is the stitch in the ditch is done! Yipee and Yeehaw!!! Now I'm ready to do the fun stuff, which is the free-motion. Halla-freakin-lleuia!!! And as the icing on the cake, I see slivers of blue sky out my window. (It has been rainy and overcast here for the last 3 days. But I'm not complaining, cause we need the rain.) So I'm going to go put on my sports bra and my running shoes and run 3 miles while I can. Yeah!

Mountains of laundry Monday

It's Monday. It's raining. It's laundry day. Augh! The good news? I won't have to think about laundry til next Monday. I hate laundry.
Okay, I have whined enough. I have gone a little crazy with these Spring Chickens. They don't take that long to make. I only used scraps I had laying around. (I've got lots of those.) They make me smile cause they are just so cute! Gotta go fold, the dryer just finished. Ick!

Bloggers quilt show

Amy @ Park City Girl has organized a quilt show for bloggers. Can I resist this? ABSOLUTELY NOT! I have a lot of quilts to choose from (hey, I've been quilting for 9 yrs.) So, how do I choose? Which one of your children do you love more? Can't choose between them. However, there are days when you like one better than the others. I chose this quilt because it not only makes my skirt fly up (yes, most of my quilts do that to me) but because it was complex and I really started making these stars without a plan as to how I was going to put this quilt together. I really stayed "in the moment" with it as I made it. If you have not tried this, I highly recommend it. It will take you to a destination you had never dreamed about and the process is highly satisfying. (It is like good sex or a really long run. When you are done, you exhaustedly think, "Wow, I should really do this more often.")
So, here is my "Starry Night" quilt. The picture was taken 3 yrs ago so my children are no longer that little and definitely not that sweet. (Well my daughter is, but my son, not so much. He is, however, bright, funny and creative, just not so sweet as he used to be.) Enjoy, I'm going to go look at more quilts. Show and tell makes my skirt fly up!

Issues, issues and more issues

In the words of Loretta Lynn, "I'm not running my life. My life is running me." I am having issue after issue. First computer issues, then email issues, printer issues, husband issues, children fighting issues, pms issues, I can't find time to sew issues (which is really "the main issue.") The good news? I did manage to make a spring chick (pattern found on the Sew mama sew blog.) And I have to say it sure is cute. Just looking at it makes me smile. I do want to add that my spring chicken is not exactly the same as the pattern. My printer isn't working and I just freehand drew the patterns and low and behold he sure is a cute little thing! More good news? I found a chunk of time yesterday and am still quilting my big quilt (the stitch in the ditch is about half done). Even more good news? Report cards came home yesterday and my son made the A Honor Roll. Yeah! Now if I could just get him to be nice to his sister. I'm gonna go squeeze in a little quilting before it is time to start dinner (and so I will be much more pleasant to be around.)

Finished Demo

I can't believe I have waited this long to post about my machine quilting demo on Saturday. (I wanted to have the binding on my sample and then I went ahead and washed it so it would have that drawn up look that really highlights the quilting.) It went FABULOUSLY. I had over 30 people signed up before Saturday and about 50 on the actual day. And then, the fantastic folks at Sew Much More took my initial sample I made (the pink one) and a list of tips I had emailed them and made up this beautiful page for note taking during the demo. And then, I proceeded to machine quilt my blue sample while I talked to this group of women. I gotta tell ya, I had a GREAT time and my quilting looks great too. What can I say, I'm a multi-tasker. I have to say there is nothing like the feeling that you are doing exactly what you're supposed to be doing at the moment in time you are supposed to be doing it. (I'm talking Zen.) I gotta tell you, it is just about the most fun you can have with your clothes on.
Now my daughter and I are going to go make spring chickens for Easter. (Sew Mama Sew has a free pattern and these chickens are very cute.) Happy Easter if it's a holiday you celebrate and Happy Sewing if it's not.