Schedule

Thursday, March 31, 2016

Janie's Crazy Quilt

Crazy Quilt made by my friend Janie 

Janie has her quilt after I basically just stitched it down for her 
using invisible thread so that her beautiful machine stitching would shine! 


This quilt started after I gave Janie oriental fabrics from my stash. The Floral print in the center of each block is one of them which became her focus fabric, pulling fabrics from the fabric gifted to her as well as from her own stash. In fact, I see three fabrics from Amaretto Cottage that we worked on together last year. Foundation pieced onto muslin, then Janie added her decorative stitches, sewed the blocks together and added the green stitching. Beautiful! She added the borders and then started adding embellishments. I had to stop her at that point! "No more metal objects until the longarm quilting is done" was my request! 

  
I used a smoke invisible thread from Superior to stitch down the blocks. First time that I've used it on my longarm and my Innova handled it beautifully! This machine just keeps amazing me! I switched to a black SoFine50 to add a design in the borders and some white to SID along the inner border. Last was to add Janie's binding, the same gorgeous fabric as the backing...

Batting is Quilter's Dream Wool 
Gorgeous quilt Janie! Thank you
So happy you joined us for lunch yesterday!


I have one more quilt to finish today to complete the month with every quilt promised in March quilted. It was a crazy busy month and April looks to be about the same, overbooked trying to squeeze in quilts along with those set aside last year after Mom's care and passing. Crazy business is longarming. Crazy as a quilt!!!

Tot ziens, Jo 

Tuesday, March 29, 2016

Wedding quilt made by Betty

Love the fabric colors Betty pulled together for this Pineapple quilt. 
It's the second Pineapple I've quilted for her, the first was years ago on my 
previous longarm. We settled on a different quilting pattern
 for this one, Wild Swirls by Anne Bright.
It's a set including a border and corner design. 
I added a string of pearls in the inner border.
Quilted with Omni thread in a soft color called Buff,
it blended with the fabrics really well. 
Batting is Quilter's Dream Wool ~ love the loft!


Beautiful! and beautifully pieced!
This quilt made it's way to the happy couple in Betty's family.
Safe travels Betty, thank you :0)
It's a pleasure to quilt for you 


Definitely wedding quilt season, this is the second for Betty this year
 plus the French Braid Beckie made. She has a second one in the works! 
Made good progress this month. Quilts are getting quilted faster 
than getting posted on the blog! 
Tot ziens, Jo

Saturday, March 19, 2016

Saturday Morning Post ~ Sandy

Sandy's Diamond Girl
Quilting for Sandy on her diamond log cabin... this is the center of the quilt 
with this wonderful embroidered image made by Kathy Thomas

The entire quilt on my big worktable 
Rain was back the week I finished Sandy's quilt so it was back to indoor pix 

This pic with the quilt draped over my frame shows the fabric colors better.
Many lovely vintage Robin Pandolph fabrics!

Some close ups of the quilting, front and back...



Quilting design in the center field is from One Song Needle Arts
Sierra Peaks ~ a collection of diamond, half diamonds both vertically
and horizontally and a quarter motif. They worked well for these blocks
Pearls were added to the stop border & the outer border is a p2p triangle.


Quilted with a soft pink/peach Omni thread
on Quilter's Dream Machine batting

Our preference would have been wool batting, however, with light fabrics
wool can leave a shadow effect, especially with a dark backing fabric.
Even tho this quilt has a light backing, the seam allowances were still obvious.
I am having the same issue with another quilt on my frame right now.


Thank you Sandy!

Sandy has her quilt finished earlier this month. This week has been a challenge with a customer showing up with five large quilts when last I heard, she was not able to come to Chico this month. Busy, busy busy!

Enjoy your National/International Quilting Day/Weekend/Week
(there are so many variations of it now ;0)
and sales too, The Quilt Show/Bernina is sponsoring a big one
The Sisters Collective QS and Sew Expo in Sacramento is this weekend
Big sale at the Colusa quilt shop, Friends Around the Block, too
right on the way to Yuba City!
Lots to do this weekend! Enjoy
 Tot ziens, Jo

Wednesday, March 2, 2016

French Braid Finish

Beckie's French Braid

Finished at 95 x 105, this beauty completely covered my worktable and down the sides! My friend Beckie is making this quilt for her brother and fiance for their upcoming wedding. Wow! A labor of love! Beckie also finished pillow shams and a table runner for them in the same Shimmer fabrics. I saw them at lunch on Monday, gorgeous! 

 Quilting around the last corner and down the bottom border.



Quilted with Quilter's Dream Wool for that wonderful loft. Also a good choice for batting because it doesn't add allot of weight which is really nice for large quilts. Threads are both from Superior Threads, a Fantastico in a variegated gold for the top and SoFine#50 for the back. Just realized I forgot to take a pic of the backing! It's one of the medium gold fabrics used in the braid, really pretty. Beckie picked up her quilt last night. Kind of sad, letting it go! My frame looks so empty right now! 

 The variegated Fantastico worked great on the lights
as well as the dark fabrics and blended with the mediums... 

adding nice highlights to the gold in the Shimmer fabrics! 

Quilting design is a set by Nancy Haacke at Wasatch Quilting.
Well designed and it stitched out perfectly!

 Gorgeous quilt Beckie, I would not accomplish this detailed of quilting
without your perfect piecing! Thank you xoxoxoxox


Tot ziens, Jo