June Quilting Accomplishments

June came and went so quickly that I hardly feel like I got anything accomplished and yet I really did do quite a bit. My goals for June were:

Boxed Blessings - Binding hand sewn down = Done!
Califon Charm Purse - Cut out (For Bag Ladies next week!) - Done!
Jen's Pink/Brown Professional Tote - Cut Out - Done!
RWB Signature Quilt - Cut out, Part of the Blocks Made
Chez Moi Happy Hour Quilt - Cut Out

I didn't get to the last two, but they weren't pressing. June seemed to be a "what has to be done" month!
In addition to my goals, I made my rwb friendship blocks, made a special quilt as you go baby quilt which just needs binding hand sewn down, finished clown baby quilt 2, made my naked cowboy pants, and made two cosmetic bags.

My July Goals include:
Chez Moi Gromet purse
Chez Moi Happy Hour quilt
Thread Sewing Bag
RWB Siggy Quilt

My Cosmetic Bag

After I made the first one, i worked on a second. I made it 5 1/2"x13" with 1 1/2" corners. It turned out a bit long and skinny, but I wanted the whole cowboy on there. I'm going to make a different one tomorrow night that has sewing fabric on it. I think I'll try 6 1/2" x12" next time with 1 1/2" squares out of the bottom. The other one had 1" corners and the bottom was too narrow.

Leslie's Cosmetic Bag

Tonight I worked on samples for Bag Ladies in July. I made this one for my MIL and used her favorite fabric. I think I'm out of it now! This one was 7"x12" when I started. She thought it was great.

Gift from Jill!

Today I got the small package I was expecting in the mail. Jill had told me she had made me a wallet and was sending a card in it. I was thrilled to get the package and rip in to it. I’m thinking it’ll go perfectly with the bag I made last month. I need to make it my new purse. Thanks Jill!

Clown Baby Quilt finished!

Tonight I finished the clown baby quilt. I had been working on the binding for 2 weeks and finally got it done while waiting for supper tonight. It feels good to have another UFO done, that means I can make a new project right? I'm shooting for one UFO finish per week this summer or at least the equivalent and only 1 start to finish per UFO finish. So far so good!

Happy Anniversary Present

Last night when I got home there was a huge box in the doorway. I was expecting a small package, but since we weren't expecting any large packages it kind of surprised me. It was an anniversary present from my mom's cousin and husband in Washington. They hadn't been able to make it to the wedding, so this special gift was from them. A box of salmon, a salmon plate, calendar, and a fish oven mit. It was such a nice surprise.

Lickity Split Baby Quilt

Right before I left on vacation, we got in the Cozy Cotton flannel line. I absolutely fell in love with the baby colors and I knew I had to make a quilt for a friend who recently had a baby.


I decided to use the Fast & Furious Quilt as You Go book from GE Designs as the pattern. I appliquéd the babies name on the center of the quilt using the pattern for letters in Atkinson Designs new Fonts book. I cut it out in about 1/2 hour and it took about 4 hours total to appliqué and make the quilt. I went to put the binding on and had bought this great stripe. I cut it all on the bias last night and went to put it on tonight and realized I was short. Not only was I short, but I had cut it all straight when I was doing the tube method of bias binding. Apparently I turned my triangles wrong. So luckily I had the other part of my 1/2 yard cut and I cut it on the bias and got the stripes going around. It took me less than an hour to re-cut the binding and attach it. Now I only have to hand sew it down. When it’s done I’ll have to take a picture, but I want my friend to see it in person first. Here's the binding that I worked so hard on and made wrong, so it's unusable.

MN Vacation - Shop Hopping

Sat. morning Jen and I were up bright and early to meet up with my mom and Sue. We went shop hopping around the southern part of the twin cities. Our first stop was the Eagle Creek Quilt Shop which was in an old train depot. Such an interesting and fun way to go from room to room. We found oil cloth there which is something we hadn't seen anywhere else.


Then we went on to the shop Heavenly Patchwork in Waconia MN. It wasn't Heavenly at all! Jen got attached for using her camera and there really wasn't much I wanted after that. I'll always remember what a bad impression can be made on a customer. No pictures of the front of that shop.

Then we headed over to Chanhassen to The Sampler. It was such a fun store and I saw several things I liked. I picked up some giraffe fabric which will work awesome in a toy I'm making.

Sat. afternoon we met up with my bro & SIL and their daughter, dad, and little bro and we toured the Como Zoo. I took tons of pictures and videos, but they are on the video camera. We went back to Sue & Al's hot and tired and after getting my swimsuit, jumped in the pool. It was the perfect evening for swimming. Jen took some videos of my bro's throw the cousins out of inner tube. We had a huge grilled meal of catfish, steak, and shrimp and then the cousins went to the bar. We had a great time visiting and catching up. We can't wait for next year to attend Molly & Tyler's wedding.

Sunday morning Jen and I met up with mom and Sue again and went shop hopping. We started at Joann Fabrics which was a treat to mom and I since we don't have one. I picked up a box for my thread and some grommets for a new purse.

Then we went to Quilters Haven. I found several cute panel quilts, but never did find the fabrics to make the quilt or the panels. They had tons of minky and several different bags made up.

Our last quilt shop was Quilt Cove in Eagan MN. It was truly and amazing shop and had tons of new ideas and new patterns I had not seen. There was so much I couldn't decide what I wanted. Jen and I got Magic Genie washers to try and I found a pattern and some aurifil thread. I was all about picking up the thread wherever we stopped since we don't have it locally.

Jen and I had to part ways so she could head home, but it was such an awesome fun weekend of shop hopping and meeting my family, except for Paul. We'll definately have to meet up there again sometime. It's not quite halfway, but it's a good long weekend destination.

After Jen left, mom, Sue, andI went to cousing Bryan's house to see all the remodelling he's done. It's awesome to say the least. Reminds me of when we were remodelling. Then we stopped at the Mall of America and did a bit of shopping. I picked up a Twins hat for my dad for my dad for Father's Day.
We had a big party at Sue & Al's with the family Sun. night. Monday morning Mom, Dad, and I headed for home. We stopped at Medford at the outlet malls, Cabela's in Owatonna, and a quilt shop in Owatonna. I picked up a pillowcase kit and a bargello flag kit.

Here's the loot from my shop hoping trip. The pink ribbon box for thread, brown/pink oil cloth for a bag, giraffe fabric, grommets, r/w/b strip for binding, three colors of thread, and pins for all my co-workers.

Tools pillowcase kit for Paul

5 & Dime pattern, made of cool green/turquoise fabrics. I'm gonna have to make this one as it's super simple.

Bargello flag kit. Just looks cool, but won't be done for this 4th of July.

MN Vacation - Friday

This year we had planned to take a vacation to MN to visit my mom's cousin and family. Since Paul started his new job, he couldn't take time off. I rode with mom and dad as we headed East on Thurs. afternoon. We stopped at my college friend Nichole's and visited with her, her husband Jon, son Mason, and mom Cheri.

I took lots of pictures of Mason, but this one has him laying on the baby quilt I made and delivered to him. He's 4 months old.
We continued on, getting a motel room for the night and then visiting at the home of my other college friend Angie and son Carter. Her hubby was working. Angie made us an awesome lunch and we visited. Carter was all for taking pictures. His baby quilt is in the back right corner of the picture, but it's time I made him a big boy quilt.

Friday afternoon we arrived at cousin Sue & Al's house. Jen met up with us there. We visited with their family and had supper there before going to the Twins game.

The game was lots of fun and we really enjoyed riding the light rail to the game. After the game we visited at Sue & Al's before Jen and I went to Tyler & Molly's to spend the night. Jen and I talked until 3AM, catching up on all the happening of our lives.

I'm Home from seeing my peep Jen!

I'm home from an awesome trip to the Twin Cities area! I have lots of pictures to share, but it was late last night when I got home, so I'll have to upload them later when I get unpacked.
I visited my college friends Jon, Nichole, and Angie. Jen met up with my family in MN and we shop hopped with my mom and her cousin Sue. I spent the weekend with my family, except for Paul who had to work, and got to meet Tyler who will be a new member of the famiy in July 2010. We spent the weekend with my mom's cousin's family, went to a Twins game, went shop hopping for 2 days, went to the Como Zoo, and swam in the pool! I got home about 9:30 last night, but I had a blast.
There were lots of memorable parts, but Jen getting attacked in the one quilt shop on Sat. will forever live in our memories. It was great to spend time with Jen again!

Clownin Around Baby Quilt II

When I was at quilt retreat I made the Triple Treat Petite baby quilt top from the Happy Hour book. I had some extra blocks, so I cut them in half and put them together like the tablerunner in the book. I had originally thought it would work well as a changing mat since it was so small. Once I got home and put the borders on the first quilt, it was huge, but I had some strips of the borders left over. I decided to put them on this small quilt and see how it turned out. Last night I was just going to put the borders on... well somehow I had lots of motivation. I put the borders on, got the batting and backing out, changed the settings on my machine, and put it on the frame. I spent about 2 hours last night quilting loops on it. It's 39x46, so a bit smaller than I normally make baby quilts, but the perfect size for a baby quilt. I have to pick up a bit more binding fabric and it will get that tonight and I'll work on the binding in the car tomorrow.

I used a King Tut verigated with primary colors and lime green bottomline. It turned out so cute and so lightweight. I used a Hobbs Thermore batting which is very lightweight. This will be a great summer quilt for a new baby I know. Since it comes in a queen size, I'll have enough to use in the flannel baby quilt that I'm making with the quilt as you go method.

Crazy Family Vacation

This coming weekend was originally scheduled as our extended family (my great-grandpa's side) reunion. They had 9 kids and then my great-grandma had 8 kids... so it's big. With the economy and so many travelling so far (cousin Karin came from Norway 3 years ago), they decided to postpone it. My mom's cousin Sue and her family are very close to my family. They invited our family to the Twin Cities for the weekend instead, so we could go to a Twins game and have fun with the family. We've been planning this trip for the past year it seems. Ever since our wedding when they all came out to our place they've been trying to get us to MN.
Paul started a new job last week and didn't want to take time off so soon, so he won't be able to go this weekend. I was really disappointed, but I'll go with my parents and the rest of the family will join us. I'll get to stop along the way and visit my college friends Nichole and Angie and their little boys.
I didn't want the ticket to go to waste for the Twins game, so on a whim I emailed Jen to see if she would want to meet us in the cities. She was able to get time off from both jobs and is coming to meet us Fri night! I'm so excited to see her and last night I prepared a couple boxes for her to take back with her. I got her professional tote done, so I'll be able to hand deliver it instead of mailing it! We'll be shop hopping together on Saturday. Yeah! I can't believe how everything has fallen in to place to get to see her again, just 2 months after our first face to face meeting at retreat. I never would have guessed this would have happened in a million years. I'm so pumped for vacation in 2 days!

Naked Cowboys!

The semi-naked cowboy fabric has been out about 4 years now and the shops I've been to have all been out of it. It was popular before I really got in to quilting, so I didn't get any. I looked for it when I was in OH, but to no avail. After dropping me off at the airport Jen and Jill stopped at a quilt shop in KY. Jill texted me to say she had found it and how much did I want. I texted her back 2.5 yards. She got it for me and sent it in the packages I had packed up to send home. Last night I cut out and made this pair of pants in about an hour. I want to wear them this coming weekend, so I knew I had to sew fast. They turned out so fun and went together super fast.

Book Bag

I picked up a pattern for a purse at the quilt show and the sample was super cute. When I started making it, the directions were hard to follow and it was put together very poorly compared to other bags I have made. I cut it out Thurs. night and started sewing it together on Sun. night. Last night I was bound and determined it would be done before I go on vacation.

It's done, but I haven't decided if I like it or not. The handle is braided and it's rather flimsy compared to other bags I've made. It's a little big for a purse, so I probably won't be using it for that.

Jen's Professional Tote Done!

This past week I didn't get much done in the way of finishes. I didn't really get much quilting of any sort done. It was a busy week at my day job and I taught at the quilt shop on Tues. night. Yesterday I worked at the store and we moved it all around, so my body is feeling it! We had a bad storm last night, so I didn't want my machine plugged in. I took out all my scraps and packed them up in a couple boxes. I was all for cleaning out my stash too. Then I cut out a baby quilt. It's going to be super cute with the new flannel we got in. I also added the baby's name. Then I finished getting another baby quilt together. Jenn brought in her new baby Wyatt for me to meet him on Sat. He's 10 days old and so tiny! She put me in baby quilt making mood.
Tonight after work I finished up Jen's professional tote. It turned out so well and I can't wait for her to see it! I also worked on a purse that has the same fabrics. I'm hoping to get it done this weekend, but decided I didn't like the straps, so I'm going to do something different to finish it up.

Gifties from my Peeps!

Tonight I arrived home to a big package! I was so excited to open it and see what was inside. Sherry had sent me the awesome creative grids ruler with hearts on it and the iron cover. I had to try it out tonight and it works great! Jen had sent along the waterbottle cover and fat quarters and binding for my baby quilt that I got at retreat. Although I knew it was coming, it was still a surprise, so I really enjoyed it. Thanks Sherry and Jen!

I finally got around to taking pictures of my quilt show purchases as well. I got three new patterns, one uses grommets, so I got a package to try. I also liked the idea of the tukawy tote, so picked up the pattern. The book bag on the left was more like a purse in the booth, so I'm planning to make it really soon. I also got some new button head pins and a magnetic pin cushion, since they were on sale at Hancock's.

Paul's first day at his new job went really well. He thinks he's going to really enjoy working with other people and a bigger company. Today he was demoing dorm rooms at the local university. It was so nice to see a big smile on his face and he wanted to go shopping tonight! Score one for me, I got new plates for our anniversary and hampers. After a year, it's the simple things that make me the happiest!
My friend Jenn and hubby Jake had their little boy Wyatt last week, so sending best wishes out to them on their new little bundle of joy! Time to get busy on a little boy baby gift. This one might have to be a start to finish project.

BHQG Annual Show

This weekend was the annual Black Hills Quilters Guild show. There were some truly amazing pieces of art in the show. I had to work Sat. at the show, but we closed early and all went to the awards banquet together. They had a slide show of all the quilts, so I got to see them before I got to the show. Sunday morning I went to the show and walked around saw the quilts and enjoyed the vendors.
This was by far my favorite! I love Storm at Sea and have every intention of doing one this year, maybe notlike this, but it's my inspiration.

This one reminded me of all my scrappy blogging friends.


This is the inspiration for my One Block Wonder. It was the first one I had seen in person, back in Jan. at the quilt retreat and have wanted to try it ever since. Carol was in one of my classes and she was working on the machine quilting on it.

This is similar to the wolf one I'm doing, only my background is purple. I think I've found the initiative to pull it out and work on it again. At the show they had 5 packs of aurifil thread to quilt it with, but since I didn't know if mine was the same, I passed on it.

This one was taken just for Regina. The colors were so much brighter in person.

This one was just cool! Some said it was creepy, but I thought it was inspiring. All the stations of the cross, made and quilted by a man.

This one was thread painted. Very incredible!

A Lone Star version, with a Laurel Birch Secret Jungle in it. Truly an artists masterpiece with all the sparkles on it.

For more pictures from the show...


Quilt Show