Rolling Stone Block and Anna Bella

What am I working on?   I just received an order of a fabric collection called Anna Bella in two color ways brown/peach and blue-grey/ pink.  Of course I want to use them all together!  Since I am a big fan of scrappy quilts, I picked a block--in this case Rolling Stone--and started sewing.  To unify them, I used the same large scale floral in the middle of each block. 

These are just a few of the fabric combinations I used.  Oh, and by the way, I used about five different tone-on-tone light fabrics for the background. So, thirty blocks later, here they are.  Now I am pondering layout.  Plain sashing? Contrasting sashing? No sashing? Pieced sashing? This is the stage in designing and putting together a quilt where I can really make myself crazy.  And this is the dangerous stage because if I tell myself to set the blocks aside and come back to it next week, next week can turn into next year or never.  Trust me I have too many "next week" blocks packed in my closet!

Hmmm..... sometimes simple is best . . .  You can see I am trying a subtle print sashing.  Didn't look that yellow until I got it up on the wall.  Not sure.  I don't think the border stripe likes it.

Let's see what I can come up with in EQ7.  Thoughts??

Road to California 2013

Ringing in the new year means Road To California is right around the corner.  This incredible quilt show and competition is at the Ontario Convention Center in Ontario, California and runs from January 24-27.  There are still some classes open (I think), so if you've been thinking about one, check out the link at the bottom of the page.

I am doing a lecture on my book Away From Home: Quilts Inspired By the Lowell Factory Girls on Friday January 25, from 2-3 P.M. I will show several quilts from the book--including the feature quilt that is on the cover, share a bit of the history of the Lowell Mills, and talk about the fabric design process for The Mill Girls fabric collection.  I will be giving away some goodies like fabric packets and a copy of the book, AND everyone in attendance will receive a coupon for a free pattern so you can shop in my booth!  Admission is $10.

Downloadable Program:   http://road2ca.com/2013Brochure.pdf

Road to California Website: http://road2ca.com/

Come See Us!

Come see us at the Glendale Quilt Guild's Annual Quilt Show.  They put on a top-notch show with lots of great classes, displays, and of course, VENDORS!

Here is the info:

THEME: Quilting Green
WHEN: March 16, 17, 18, 2012
HOURS: Friday & Saturday 10-5, Sunday 10-4
ADMISSION $9.00
Husbands: FREE on Sunday
Children under 12: FREE
3-day pass: $15.00
Parking: $11.00
WHERE: Burbank Airport Marriott Hotel & Convention Center
2500 Hollywood Way, Burbank, California

SHOW CHAIR SPECIAL FOR 2012
Stay one night at the hotel and earn a FREE voucher for the Mystery Class offered at the 2013 GQG Quilt Show, or take the Mystery Class this year for $65.00.

For more information, visit their website at  http://www.glendalequiltguild.org/2012quilt-show.html.

Road to CA 2012

 

Here is our booth at Road to CA.  I think I took this photo on Sunday.  We were pretty cleaned out by then!  Thank you shoppers.  I love that they carpet the entire show floor.  Thank you Carolyn!

And here I am with my dear husband and partner in crime . . Oliver.  He wrote all the historical narrative for Away From Home.  Teaching Early American History at California State University Bakersfield for the past 30+ years has been good practice for writing a quilt book with me.

I took LOADS of photos of the spectacular quilts. I will try to post those soon.

Two of my hometown girls, Cindy Krug and Molly Hamilton won best of show.  Here they are with their stunning quilt. Cindy taught me how to machine quilt!

MIA

Okay, it's been QUITE a while since I have blogged.  Finishing up the Mill Girls' first draft, editing it, cutting shop kits for Amish With A Twist, my first BOM with Marcus Fabrics,  finishing The Mill Girls BOM (again with Marcus), and now trying to complete the Mill Girls BOM patterns has kept me busy, busy, busy.  Oh, and in there was a trip to Ontario, Ca to vend at Road to California, and a weekend vending at the Cotton Patch Quilter's Guild biennial show here in Bakersfield,

I feel like I've been working from dawn to dusk seven days a week!  But what a whirlwind of experiences I have had.

So let me show you a few things from the list above!

Here's the feature quilt for Away From Home: Quilts Inspired by the Lowell Factory Girls.  The book is scheduled for an April 2012 release and is being published by Kansas City Star.

And here is The Mill Girls: 1830-1850 block of the month quilt.  It is a 10 month program that will run in shops starting September, 2012. Encourage your local shop to participate!

A swatch chart of The Mill Girls' fabric collection.  Judie worked with the archivist from Old Sturbridge Village to create a collection authentic of the time period.

Now switching gears . . .

Here's a close-up of Amish With A Twist so you can see some of the quilting.  This is a "flexible" BOM program that is starting now in some shops.  The pattern is for exclusive use with Marcus Centennial Solids.

 

One of the 5 parts/patterns and fabric that is part of the Shop Kit offered to quilt shop owners.

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Once all the five parts are assembled, they are all put together along with a Shop Guide into the finished shop kit. So far I have put together 186 of them.  Yes, I am keeping count!

A Straggler

A big cheer went up here on the day I shipped off the quilts for Away From Home: Quilts Inspired by the Story of the Lowell Factory Girls.  I worked doggedly to get nine quilts/projects done for the deadline.  But I only finished eight.  The ninth was not done.  My sense of triumph was tinged with a bit of disappointment.  But Donna, my editor assured me that eight was quite enough for a book.  But you haven't seen this ninth quilt, I thought.  It really fits with the story we are telling in the book.
But luck was on my side.  The photographer wasn't available until December 9th.  Is this an odd coincidence?  Quilt number nine, Dec. 9??  Donna told me get it done and to her before Dec 9 and it's in the book.
Although #9 was not done, I eked out some here any there over the Thanksgiving holiday.  When the family was in watching football, I was in my sewing room.  When everyone was sleeping in the day after Thanksgiving, I was up early making the binding.  Here's a picture that shows where I was.

So today after my daughter headed home to San Diego with her cute little dog Jack riding shotgun, I sewed the binding to the quilt.  Tonight I'll sit in front of the TV with Oliver and watch our favorite shows that all seem to be on Sunday night and sew down the binding, add a label and a hanging sleeve

Mill Girls Update

It's been quite a while since I blogged about the quilt I'm making for my upcoming book, Away From Home: Quilts Inspired by Lowell Mill Girls, (Kansas City Star Books pub).  Getting ready for my first Quilt Market put things on hold for a while, but I am back at work, trying to make my November 17 deadline.

Here is the center panel all appliqued.  The spool blocks are being arranged and a row of them are added to the top and bottom of the center panel.  

Now it's time to arrange the border blocks I've been piecing and appliqueing. Still have a few blocks to finish. 

All the blocks are done and sewn to the top.  Just two more borders to go.  Moved to the design floor "aka. the living room".

Loaded on my Millie.  Time to quilt . . . .

 . . . and quilt . . .

 . . .and quilt. . . and still quilting!  In this last photo you can see a little bit of the last two borders.