Quilt Show with Husband

My husband and I took a long weekend away from home and work. We went to Colonial Williamsburg to rest and see some friends. We slept late and had dinner out each night. We enjoyed a walk thru Colonial Williamsburg although it was very cold. An agreement was made that I would get one day for the Mid-Atlantic Quilt Show in Hampton (30 minutes south of Williamsburg). On Friday of the show we bought admittance tickets. My DH is no stranger around my quilting world; in fact he has made a few quilted items himself. Lately he has been making placemats as retirement gifts for coworkers (they must be retired military like him). We looked at the quilt exhibits but he began to get excited at the vendors area. I had a couple of small items I wanted to purchase at the vendors area and did so but my DH came out the winner of the buying game. Every time we came across patriotic fabric he had to look. He compared the bolts with his mental inventory of his own sash. At the first booth purchased he was taken back a little by the prices. But by the third booth purchase he just whipped out the credit card and picked up his yards of fabric. He returned home with more than a dozen yards of patriotic fabric to add to his sash and enjoyed the show very much.

New Year Resolutions

Every January I take an inventory of unfinished projects. I categorize them on the degrees of completion. Some only need the binding sewn on, some are waiting to be quilted, and some are packaged with fabric and pattern but not yet started. This inventory tells me 2 things, how many I have waiting and have accomplished in the previous year and what area of work I tend to neglect. Every year my goal is to complete more than I start or at least as many. Of course each year I fail – because there is always more beautiful fabric appearing calling to me to make a quilt from it. However not to sound like I don’t finish anything, I do. I do complete several quilts a year usually for business. This year I finished a several personal UFO’s that I donated to various organizations but I want to do more. Giving back to the community is my other resolution this year. The 3 years or so I have been busy and pursuing my own interests and that’s fine. I have though pushed my community work aside in doing so. This year I resolve to contribute again in that area. For me that means quilts for others. My quilt guild has a strong commitment of making quilts for others and I plan on attending the gatherings to help.

A new year with new goals. I am delighted to start this year with the annoucement of Quiltmaker Magazine re-releasing the very first issue of their popular '100 Blocks' magazine series. What a way to start the year for me! My block is # 61 named Ahoy on page 42. I love this block and have made several quilts using it. Each time I made a this quilt block I have rearranged the layout of the blocks giving the quilt a whole new look. If you have not bought yourself a copy yet hurry and do so. They are now collectibles. 100 possiable quilts to make in one magazine.

Christmas Wishes

It is the Saturday before Christmas and we had one last visit to the shopping mall today. Now it is late afternoon and the wind continues to blow fiercely as it has for the last 24 hours. The fireplace is roaring, the gifts are wrapped under the tree, my husband is napping, my daughter is on her computer, and now is a quiet time to write a note of good wishes to you. I wish you all a Merry Christmas. I hope for all your loved ones to make it safely thru the weather created difficulties. I hope there is a large turkey and cookies a plenty on your table. Lastly I wish you one last quilt completed by the new years end.

Bonding Over Quilts

Last Sunday my daughter and her husband held their annual open house. They are wonderful hosts and everyone had a great time and was reluctant to leave. One of the guests was a past coworker of my son in laws. They had been assigned to the same squadron on the west coast some 20 years ago. As most of us realize it is a small world. The coworker and family now live on the east coast about an hour away from our area. As my son in law gave them a tour of the house she noticed a quilt. She asked if my daughter had made it. My son in law replied that his wife’s mother had made it. Upon returning to the main room, our conservation became centered on quilting. She is currently making a disappearing 9 Patch and loves batiks. Who could disagree with that, not me? We had an enjoyable time bonding about quilts. I look forward to next year to hear what she has made during the time interval. I love the coincidence that leads us to fellow quilters. The quilt world gets smaller all the time.

Giving is better than receiving

Yesterday I had an appointment in the morning that finished early. I thought about going home and doing all the things waiting for me. Yesterday was also my quilt guild’s charity quilt day. I hadn’t attended in several months and was feeling guilty about it. So I drove over to lend a hand. I am glad I did. The saying goes that you will get more out of giving than receiving. These quilts are donated to a local hospital’s Chemo Center. So far the guild has made and delivered 138 quilts. The guild group has a goal of 150 by the year’s end. When a bundle of quilts are delivered they are spread out on a table for all the staff and patients to admire. No one can resist hoooos and awes, and touching them. We all know that quilts do more than keep you warm, they warm the soul too. The center has told us that the quilts are highly prized by those who receive them. In fact one the ladies attending yesterday’s bee commented that her mother had received a chemo quilt (from another place and time) and loved it greatly, it had given her a great deal of emotional comfort during her ordeal. The comment cemented the fact that this project was giving to us as much as we were giving to the project.

Autumn has past

October has flown by. It seems I say that every month. Every month I feel like have accomplished only half of what I intended to. October I taught a workshop, vendored at a quilt show, finished a quilt, and went to Quit Market in Houston. It sounds impressive. Yet I did not write a single blog entry. It only takes a few minutes. Actually it takes me longer than that as I really do not like writing. One event I did notice this month was the beautiful autumn we had. I love September and October, warm sunny days and cold nights gave us lots of color. I did take a picture or two of trees in their prime. I knew if I waited another day that color would be gone. A couple of days after the picture taking I left for the Quilt Market in Houston. Houston was having a cold spell. I usually take capris and tops but this I packed long pants and sweaters and I wore the sweaters every day. Super storm ‘Sandy’ was the topic of conversation, and some attendees left early in order to return home. ‘Sandy’ swept our home area more gently than most areas. When I returned however all the leaves were gone – not gone exactly – on the ground. Winter has firmly arrived; the sky is gray and cold. I have a new list to accomplish this month. We have the fireplace burning and I am writing again.