Christmas and Mystery Update!

My Jim Shore Collection

Our Christmas was very quiet and relaxing.  Our tradition is to go next door to see what Santa brought three of our granddaughters, Leah, Rachel and Marlee.  (Now 24, 20, and 11!)  And we get a delicious breakfast, too!  Thanks to our daughter, Laurie.

This year we went to church.  One service, and the sanctuary was packed with families worshiping together on the morning of our Savior's birth.  

Then our second Christmas morning tradition, to visit our daughter-in-law and three more grandchildren. (Mary Claire - 15, Grey - 11 and Cooper - 7)  Then it was back home.

January 1, 2009

This was the last time all of the grandchildren were here at one time.  We now have two college graduates, five in college, a senior...and the youngest wasn't even born yet!  (and yes, I know what grade they all are in plus their birthdays, and their names!)

En Provence Clue #5

I have stayed caught up with Bonnie Hunter's Mystery this year!  Guess being retired does have it's perks!  Today is the Mystery Link-up where you can go visit the others who are participating and see what progress they are making.  The next clue will be on Friday!  Wonder if we'll finally get to the green and gold fabrics?

Until next time....

Quiltcam and Soaring to New Heights!!

I was checking Facebook and saw where Bonnie was doing an impromptu Quiltcam this afternoon.  I was in the process of pressing and trimming my 80 step four triangle in a square blocks. I am now caught up until Friday!!  Check out all the progress Link-ups to the En Provence Mystery here.

I received some very good news on Friday.  My friend, Colleen Eskridge and I collaborated on an entry for the New Quilts from an Old Favorite Flying Geese Contest for 2017.  I pieced the top and Colleen quilted it.  We call it "Soaring to New Heights".

Photographed by Amy Graber

We won the Third Place ribbon.  The 18 quilts that were accepted for the contest will be on display at the National Quilt Museum in Paducah, Kentucky from March 31 thru June 20, 2017.  Then they will be in a traveling exhibit for several months.

Each year for the past 24 years, I have made Christmas ornaments for my children and grandchildren.  Since they are getting older, (we can't blame ME for getting older!!) I only made ornaments for the grands this year.

Fabric Star Ornament

betzwhite.com

Wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas!  Hope to have more to post next week.  Until then...

En Provence and Quilting

I didn't think I had much to post today until I started looking at the most recent photos on my iPhone.  First, my progress on Bonnie Hunter's latest Mystery, En Provence...

I'm using all Bonnie's color suggestions except I'm using a coral in place of the magenta.

One of my grandson's asked me the first of the year that if he bought the material, would I make him an Alabama quilt.  I agreed as long as he didn't have a definite date he wanted it by.  He agreed and I have finished the top and back.  I'm getting it long-arm quilted so I'll show it when it's completed.  His birthday is in January so I should have it done in time.  I had some fabrics left over so I asked him if he would like me to make his dad an Alabama throw size quilt that could be from him for Christmas.  His mom (my daughter) and sister got in on the deal so I completed this quilt...

They couldn't wait until Christmas so they gifted it to him yesterday...

I think he likes it!

Emily had a school project where she had to interview me, then also make a quilt block.  When she received the due date for the quilt block, there was no time for me to help her with it so her mom, my daughter, Jennifer, stepped in.  She had to purchase a mat, rotary cutter, ruler and fat quarters.  She cut and Emily sewed.  I think it turned out pretty good...

Emily with her quilt block.

I think the quilt bug may have nibbled a little because the next thing I knew, Jennifer had decided she wanted to make a baby quilt as a gift for a friend who is expecting in February.  She texted me fabric choices on Saturday to get my opinion/approval, bought the needed fabrics and other supplies and sent this picture yesterday of the completed top!  

Way to go Jennifer!!

I've been sick with a terrible cold the past several days so I am way behind on stuff I need to do...like finish the Christmas Ornaments for the Grands!!  I'll post all about them next time...

Mystery Link-up

Bonnie Hunter's 2016 Mystery has begun!  The first clue was posted on Friday.  You can find it here.  We are using neutrals this week.  To see everyone's progress so far, check out the Monday Link-up.
In the past, I have used shirtings (Celtic Solstice), black on white (Orca Bay and Easy Street), mostly whites and creams (Grand Illusion) and a conglomeration (Allietare) last year.

Allietare, just back from the quilter, Betty Lewis, Louisville, MS

I'm in the process of hand stitching the binding.

For En Provence, I'm using these...

 And so far I've completed 93 Four-patches...

Last week two of my granddaughters spent a few days with me to work on their quilts.  Megan, 15 (soon to be 16) started a new top.  She used an Eleanor Burns pattern from her book Quilts Thru the Seasons.

Country Lanes

Megan finished the top and it's sandwiched, ready to quilt when she's on Christmas break in about 3 weeks.  Emily, 14, sewed her top last summer.  We sandwiched her top last week and she quilted it on my Juki.

Rail Fence

  She has the binding sewn on and took it home with her to hand stitch.  Both girls are planning to enter their quilts in Mountain Quiltfest in Pigeon Forge in March.  Good Luck!

I recently finished The Mystery Row Quilt published in American Patchwork and Quilting this year starting in January.  It was designed by Pat Sloan.  I used all Batiks and it was quilted by Betty Barrentine, Ackerman, MS.

I've got more to share.  Stay tuned until next time!

How Time Flies!!

WOW!  I can't believe it's been nearly two years since I've blogged.  Since the last post, Grand Illusion has been completely finished and even entered into Mountain Quiltfest in 2015.  I have now completed Bonnie Hunter's 2015 mystery, Allietare!  I'm getting it from the quilter this week, will add the binding and photographed for the next post.

I have made a baby quilt for a friend who has a new grandson.  I machine quilted it myself and wanted to share the technique I used to mark the quilting lines.  I'm sure this is not new but it was new-to-me and just in case it might help someone else, I'm going to share.  (The pattern I used is Gimme 5 and Supersize by Tricia Cribbs, the Turning 20 Author.)

First, I only do straight line with walking foot quilting.  I've tried free motion and hopefully one day I will be able to master that, but for now it just isn't going to happen.  Here is a photo of the finished quilt.

I straight line quilted "in the ditch" on all the seams, going vertical and horizontal.  That left some of the spaces between seams too large to leave unquilted.  I drew what I wanted to quilt on freezer paper and cut out the shapes I needed to stitch around.  I have photos of what I used on the 8" square piece.  I hope you can see in the photo above the other two places I also had to use my "stencils".

I know I could have drawn a line diagonally but I didn't want to mark on the quilt this time.  I was looking for another way.

The other diagonal

Next, I wanted to stitch a square in the square design.

(I could have ironed the freezer paper to the quilt top, but didn't want to move the quilt back and forth between the ironing board and sewing machine.  Therefore I pinned.)

Finished Quilting Motif for this block.

I plan to only use this technique when quilting baby quilts or smaller.  I can't imagine wrestling with a larger quilt.  That is just not for me.

Until next time.....