I love it when it is cool enough to have windows open. Yesterday was in the high 80's or higher. Didn't hear final temps. However it was about 85 indoors which is way to hot for me. Definitely put on the air as soon as we returned to the lake in the evening. I can't sleep at night unless it is in the low 70's. Prefer the 60's.

Won't have a lot a time for quilting today. Saw a new pattern yesterday that I will be drawing up in my EQ7 program. It is a Cozy Quilt Designs pattern called Butterfly Blooms.

New pics of long term project

Finally got pictures of the landscape quilt. Even at the house I can't get it all in one shot. You can see that I now have the sky and am starting clouds. There is also some snow on the mountain peaks. Sometime soon I will have to get an actual measurement of the size of the quilt. It has reached it's full size vertically and horizontally. Just have to work the upper right corner.

Bride Doll

I've made many bride dolls as gifts for people in the family that have gotten married. It is my wedding gift for them. This one is the first and only one I have kept for myself. It got second place at our state fair. They are fun to do, though I have slowed down on them considerably since I started quilting.

Cathedral Window

This was my first big project, I had done one small one before this. I do tend to jump right in. Something like fools rush in etc. LOL

I am very pleased with the way it turned out. I used a blue batik for the background and about 10 fabrics for the windows. The 'X' isn't really visible when looking at it unless you know what you are looking for, but it sure shows up in photos.

March Update

Another month another 600 pieces or so. It is coming together. Sometime this summer I will reach the top of this piece and the rows will get shorter. Right now there are 145 pieces per row.

Hopefully in a couple weeks I'll be adding another piece to my daily routine.

So glad we are into Spring weather. This and Fall are my favorite times. Looking forward to heading back to the lake for the summer.

Next Project

This is a picture of my next major project. I had to tape together parts of 9 pages to get it all together. It will be done by paper piecing 1/2" pieces. Yup, I'm crazy.

I'm better than half way done with my current project.

March update

Another month, another 600 or so pieces added. I'm getting there.

Starting to plan my next big project even though this one won't be done until much later this year. With any luck I might be done in October. We will see. Finally started on the sky. It is in the upper left hand corner. You have to look hard to see it. LOL

Haven't gotten much done on my Monet's Wedding Ring quilt this past month. Hope to finish piecing it in the next week or so.

Weather in the high 30's and low 40's, spring is coming.

Hex Quilt - January

Another month, another few hundred pieces. A little over 600 this month. It won't be long before I'll reach the top left corner of it, reducing the # of pieces in each diagonal row.

If you look closely, you can see some snow on the mountains.

Monet's Wedding Ring

I've finished the 9-patch blocks for the quilt. A lot of pieces to this one. The next block will take 506 of 2 colorways each and another 200-300 of background. I forget exactly how many. The quilt consists of 3 blocks to give a double wedding ring effect without doing curves.

This is a picture of some of the 79 blocks done so far. Lots of cutting to do this week for the next block. The background fabric is a dark blue Fusion, and as you can see, the rest is scrappy.

New Year's Resolution?

I've added a list of some projects I plan to get done this year. In reality, you can add 6 more to it since I have been piecing my backings. Each project is one that I have fabric for in my stash or a kit that I already have.

The first one is Monet's Wedding Ring. I am doing that one with an on-line group. We have a schedule set for it, so hopefully it will keep me on track and off to a good start. You can see a picture of this pattern at the following site. http://www.judymartin.com/Scraps-Poll-Results.cfm It is on the page after Week 3.

We are in a January thaw which feels really good after the deep cold we have had here recently. It almost feels like spring even if it is only in the 30's.

December update

December has been a busy month, and, as you can see, I didn't get much done on my main project. Only about 4 rows. As happens in December, a lot of time is spent finishing Christmas projects, shopping and wrapping and sending Christmas cards. Then there are the wonderful days with family that don't leave time for any sewing.

We had just a touch of snow this year. Just enough to give the feel of Christmas. We have been very lucky so far and haven't had much more than an inch at a time and many times just a dusting.

With the new year, I have plans on assembling some of the kits that I have had for some time and never gotten around to. That alone should keep me busy and out of trouble. LOL

Christmas Eve

Well it is Christmas Eve and the last gift is finished. Hooray the bride doll is ready to go.

Sometime after the first I can start on some new projects. Have a couple I want to do for QOV, plus all kinds of projects in my stash of fabrics and kits. As always, there aren't enough hours in the day for all the quilting I want to do. LOL

Transformer Quilt

Finally finished grandson's quilt. It is done in a quilt as you go, so that was one step that was eliminated and it is reversible. Of course, since he loves Transformers, I don't expect the backside to see the light of day. There are some aspects of it I am not happy with, but I don't imagine he will notice any mistakes. LOL

Transformer Quilt

The first of 3 sections of grandson's Transformer quilt. It is a reversible quilt, and the quilting is done as it is pieced. 1 1/2 weeks to get the rest of it done and finish doll for DGD's wedding gift. I always seem to get into a last minute rush with these things. It is working out OK, especially since it is being designed as I go. LOL

November progress

I'm running out of space to get a good picture of the quilt. Don't know what I will do as it is getting bigger.

It was a busy month, but I still got a fair amount done. A little over 600 pieces. December should be slower what with all the holiday stuff and occasions.

Lego Castle

We have a wonderful museum here called The Henry Ford and it has Greenfield Village attached. The village has a lot of buildings that Henry Ford had brought here from the slave era, edison's workshop and many other things. In the museum are many things from years gone by as well as old trains. They also have temporary displays. Right now they have the Lego Castle which is wonderful to see and has many activities for kids of all ages. These are some pictures I took. During the holidays we will go back with a son and his wife and our youngest grandson. You can find pictures at http://entertainment.webshots.com/album/575636163TJPnDZ

October update

We had close to 200 kids for Halloween. Ours is a very active area for it, and I am another year older. The color has been beautiful here, but it is pretty much gone with the rain and wind we have had.

Our lake property is closed up now, just need to clean the gutters and blow the leaves this weekend. It is always depressing to leave the lake, but we have next spring to look forward to.

Made more progress on my hex quilt. Progress will be slower now that I am in town with more housekeeping to do and Christmas gifts to make and plan.

Picture quilt

Some friends and I have talked a little about picture quilts made for children whose parents are deployed.

A few years back when oldest granddaughter, Amber, went into the Army and was being sent to Germany; I made one for her brother who was only about 2 at the time. I used pictures of her with him and the rest of their family that were taken at her boot camp graduation. He loved it, and I am very pleased with the way it turned out. At the time he was really into trains.

Vacation

Saw some wonderful color yesterday. Unfortunately the best color was in an area where we couldn't pull over. This was a very pretty spot in New York that will be glorious in another week or so. Wish we had more time to spend driving around. The picture with the wonderful color was taken from a covered bridge in New Hampshire.

Tuesday's travels

We traveled around with my cousin on Tuesday and saw a couple covered bridges and lots of fall color. We saw this building and decided to check it out. It is currently condos, but until the mid 70's it was a Catholic women's college. Obviously for the well to do from what we were able to see through the doors. The lobby was amazing.

We followed a lot of roads that led us in different directions. It was a long day on the road, but a lot of fun. Was sorry to have to say goodbye this morning.