Back to Quilting!

 

 

 

After a detour through the land of the American Girl doll, I am back to quilting a lot more.  I mostly work on Project Linus quilts at home and have joined a big group called Quilts of Valor of Eastern Missouri where we quilt around frames. I hope this little cutie will appeal to a young horse lover.

 

 

How about these cute dogs from the Fat Cat Patterns site?  Sindy Rodenmayer, my favorite applique designer, has a free block of the month series going with new patterns twice a month.

 

 

These last two quilts round out the group that I'll be delivering to Mercy Children's Hospital, with prayers for them to go to the right kids.

 

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American Girl Doll Clothes

I've made a change of direction since my granddaughters got their American Girl dolls for Christmas.  Considering the price of the AG brand clothes, there is a big incentive for me to make clothes, and I have so many scraps from quilting.  Here are some of the things I've made, modeled by Ruthie and Kit.

Look what was left over from making jungle-themed quilts!  The girls said these prints are right in style.

I think that piece of trim on the Disney princess dress is about 25 years old!  The dress on the right is made from scraps from one granddaughter's quilt back.

The red skirt is tight on Ruthie!  If you see that pattern online, make it a little bigger. 

These are all made from quilting scraps.

Ruthie's summer pajamas were made from a clearance Hello Kitty underwear set from Wal-Mart.  I cut the pants with the waistband intact and cut the top with the cami's hemline intact.  Kit is wearing flare jeans--didn't we call them bell bottoms?

More quilting scraps--why are the scrap boxes still full?

This jean jacket is my favorite piece!  I bought a piece of very lightweight denim.

Look what was left from the "Under the Sea" quilt.

I love these cargo pants but had to buy the twill fabric.  I knitted the sweaters from leftover sock yarn.

Most of these clothes were made from patterns I found by searching for "free patterns for American Girl doll clothes".  The jean jacket, jeans, cargo pants, and flannel pajamas were made from patterns from this book.

For a Special Woman

Sometimes I make a quilt because I can't think of any other way to express what a person means to me.  That is why I made this quilt, "Native Flair".  (Pattern by Sindy Rodenmayer at www.fatcatpatterns.com)

The recipient will be my daughter's doctor, a psychiatrist.  I also made a quilt for her counselor several years ago.  We found these two women after trying ten or twelve others who were not a good fit for us.  They go above and beyond for their patients, giving of themselves until they must be physically and emotionally exhausted.  They deserve comforting quilts!

The recipient of Native Flair takes a great interest in Native American cultures, evidenced by the decor of her office.  We can't wait to give her this quilt--just in time for winter snuggling!

The Journey of a Quilt of Valor

This is my most recent finished project, a Quilt of Valor, "Log Cabin Star".  It hasn't had an easy journey.

First, it was pieced by me, a confirmed handwork lover.  Machine piecing is not my favorite thing, and many times I have to force myself to do it because I need it for a particular project.  I love the log cabin pattern, had plenty of scraps, and really liked this layout.  I had to make this quilt.

If you aren't familiar with Quilts of Valor (www.qovf.org), you might want to look into their mission and their results.  They have collectively provided almost 70,000 quilts to wounded soldiers and veterans, and there is much more need for them. 

So...I finally got the top finished and requested a longarm quilter from QOV.  They assigned a woman who lives about 50 miles from me but bowls in a league in my community!  Amazing!  I met her in person, and she said she'd try to quilt the top within a week.  Amazing!

Soon I learned that my longarmer had taken a bad fall and had badly injured her elbow.  She couldn't quilt for months.  The quilt was half finished, so it stayed in her frame.  I waited.

She finally finished the quilt but had lost my email address.  I was trying not to nag so I didn't contact her every time I thought about it!  When I finally emailed to inquire about her health and the quilt, I found that it was finished and we soon met up again.  The quilt looked great!  She did a terrific job.

We both wanted the quilt to go to Afghanistan to a recently-wounded soldier.  I requested that destination and mailed it to a nurse in a surgical unit at a forward operating base, sending it off with hope and prayer that it would actually get there.

Well, the USPS can't track the package, and I just found out that the nurse has been transferred.  Log Cabin Star hasn't been able to complete its journey, to my knowledge.  Please say a prayer that it will reach its destination and comfort a warrior.

Delivery Day

No, I'm not having a baby!  (That would be a miracle at this point.)  Actually, I just delivered a group of quilts to Mercy Children's Hospital.  All of the doll quilts have left the house now, and I miss the little cuties.  The final one was "Patriotic Patty" who might go to a child who is stuck in the hospital on Independence Day and is missing all of the fun.

I also delivered this handbag quilt which I just finished yesterday.  Patterns are by Sindy Rodenmayer at Fat Cat Patterns.  In the black border I quilted the names of things you'd find in a purse, like wallet, keys, tissues, mints, debit card, etc.

It's now time to think of some boy quilts!

Beth Doll Quilt

Yep, there's another one--this is Beth, named after my daughter and featuring her beloved ladybugs.  Even her little flipflops have ladybugs on them. This quilt was a good stashbuster as I dug into the bug bin.  I made a ladybug quilt for Beth some years ago, and there were plenty of leftovers.

There's just one little doll quilt left to quilt, and then I'll make a Project Linus delivery to the hospital.

Addison Doll Quilt

Here's the latest in the doll quilts.  I'm having so much fun with this!

This little gal is supposed to look like my younger granddaughter, Addison, age 3 1/2 going on 30--she of the big head of curly hair, the obsession with pink, and the love of sunglasses. 

I recently mailed this quilt and the "Avery" quilt to the young daughters of a hospitalized mom.  I showed my granddaughters the pictures of the quilts, and they said that the quilts did look like them.  (Maybe they were humoring me but probably not because they're both in the brutally honest stage!)

There are two more doll quilts in the works!  I can't stop myself.

I'm Working in Series Now

Does that make me an "artiste"?  I've always felt that quilting is an art form with fabric as the palette.

Kay Mackenzie wrote a darling book called Dolls and Dresses to Applique, and I made all 12 doll blocks for an (unfinished) auction quilt for a hospital fundraiser.  Lately, however, I decided to try to use a doll pattern in a large size for Project Linus quilts.  I enlarged a couple of the book's patterns to a 28-inch size and have made three little quilts so far.  I haven't donated them yet but hope they can be given to girls who resemble them a bit--like the American Girl dolls that can be purchased as look-alikes for little girls.  (Or they can be given to girls who just like them!)

Meet Doris (named after a red-headed friend), Avery (named after my older granddaughter), and Kono (named after that cute actress on "Hawaii Five-O".  "Addison" is in progress.

Back on Track for Project Linus

Well, I guess the quilting burnout is officially over, because I've finally made a Project Linus delivery to Mercy Children's Hospital-St. Louis on behalf of Project Linus.  (I've been delivering there for years and know the Child Life staff now.)

The first quilt was given to a teenage boy right away, and his mom sent me an email.  One thing I have noticed in the few times I have gotten feedback from a family is that they are amazed that PL volunteers would make something for "someone you don't even know".  That is the beauty of Project Linus and all comfort quilting, isn't it?

This batch of quilts is different from my usual quilting because all of the quilts are pieced and half are machine quilted.  I need to use my stash, and piecing with scraps is a good way to do this.  (I have to say, though, that I don't see any extra space in the closet yet, though!)



A Little Quilt for a Patriot

Here's the next doll quilt I've made in the series of swaps on the Quilting Bee Forum.  This month the theme was hearts.  I worked a few hearts into this quilt because I wanted to be able to make it for Lynn W., a true patriot.  (I had been waiting to be assigned her name for months!)

Lynn is very commited to making quilts for Quilts of Valor and has made some beauties.  She participates in a QOV group in California.  She also makes small quilts for newborn babies in a California naval hospital.  Add to that--her husband is a veteran and her grandson is in active service.  Lynn deserved a patriotic quilt!

(If you look at the message below, you'll see what inspired the center block of this little quilt--Sandy Gervais' panel design.)

News in the New Year

I am thrilled that my second Quilt of Valor is going on tour!  The Original Sewing and Quilt Expo organization is adding an exhibit of 35 quilts of valor to their expos this year.  The purpose is to recruit new quilters to the Quilts of Valor project.  After the shows, the quilts will all be donated to wounded warriors as originally intended.

Check out the link for locations around the country.  They have classes, exhibits, and free stage shows.

(This quilt was longarm quilted by Judi Thelander of Omaha, Nebraska.)

Happy New Year!

I haven't been a very good blogger this year but still want to wish those who may see this a very happy new year full of good health, peace of mind, and plenty of purpose for your lives.  Quilters always seem to find ways to do good things with their time, and I'm sure my readers are no exception.  Keep up the good work!

Here's another doll quilt I made to swap.  The theme this month was Patchwork.  I decided to do a one-patch, "I Spy" type of quilt.  Thank goodness I'm not looking at all these treats on a daily basis!  Kim in West Virginia has to resist those suggestions because I mailed it to her.

My Quilting "Mojo" is Coming Back...

...finally!  I hadn't quilted much at all for about four months.  I did get heavily into knitting and made 8 pairs of socks.  (laughing at myself)  I had started knitting towards the end of the baseball season and knitted while our St. Louis Cardinals played their way into winning the wild card on the last day of the season and continued to win until they had the World Series trophy.  By that time we all had these socks and my hands were very sore.  They still haven't recovered completely, and I have to operate the computer with my left hand some of the time.

Participating in the doll quilt swaps on the Quilting Bee Forum has kept me involved in quilting, and my interest is returning, especially for Project Linus.  I have a stash to use!  These are the last two little quilts I've made for the swaps, and I need to start a new one soon in a patchwork design.

Kittens Doll Quilt

Today Peggy in North Carolina received this doll quilt from me in our swap on The Quilting Bee forum, so I can show it to you.  It's 16 inches square.  The frames around the kittens' faces are done in reverse applique.  It didn't take long to hand quilt around the hearts and on the seam lines, and soon it was ready to mail.  I received a darling quilt from Freida which has foundation-pieced jungle animals.

Some More Doll Quilts

In between all of the Project Linus quilts, I joined some more doll quilt swaps at The Quilting Bee Forum.  (It's on Delphi--see link at the upper right corner of the page.)  Our hostess-with-the-mostest, Debbie, thinks up new themes every month.  Here are my quilts for the patriotic and polka-dot themes.

Of course, I receive darling quilts in these swaps, and DH and I have found a way to display them in my sewing room.  They are pinned to a tack strip that has a cork insert.  I'm really enjoying them in my room. 

I must give credit and thanks for the eagle and purse patterns to Sindy Rodenmayer, a generous and creative woman whose website is Fat Cat Patterns.

Speech is Over and I'm Burned Out!

Well, the long-anticipated (and feared) speaking engagement has come and gone, and the relief is huge!  It actually went pretty well.  I managed to fill 45 minutes and could have talked more, but my quilt holders were moving too quickly.  They had each quilt folded and put away before I could talk as much as I wanted!  Some of the ladies in the audience asked good questions.  In fact, one lady seemed determined to challenge my knowledge of quilting, but I think my credibility survived.

After the speaking engagement I delivered 16 quilts to the pediatrics department at the hospital and began a break from quilting.  I worked so long getting those 16 ready that I am kind of sick of it.

The hands can't stay idle, though.  I'm knitting again!  I have just completed my first sock.  When I got the heel turn to work, I was so thrilled.

More Show and Tell

for my long dreaded--I mean anticipated--talk on charity quilting.  (That's coming up on August 1.)  I've been busy quilting tops that had been hanging in the closet and also trying to make new tops.  Here are the latest:

The ballerina bear was taken from a dress-up bear pattern from Sindy Rodenmayer at www.fatcatpatterns.com

These little monsters were taken from a much more complex pattern by an Australian designer. 

The animals on this quilt were also designed by Sindy Rodenmayer.  They were part of her African quilt pattern.

Every turtle on this quilt has a twin, so it's not just a quilt--it's a game!

I was inspired by quilts made by my friends, Debi and Jan, to make my own version of the Ritzy Crackers quilt.  Rather than using charm squares, I cut the pieces from scraps of animal prints.

And So, You Ask, What Have I Been Doing...

'cause I sure haven't been blogging.  That's so true...but remember I still have that speech to the ladies' group hanging over me, and they moved the date up a month.  Therefore, I stitch away on more Project Linus quilts so I'll have plenty of Show & Tell for my talk on charity quilting.  Readers of this blog will get a preview...enjoy and let me know which ones you like.

Credit for the Cowboy Bear pattern goes to (who else?) Sindy Rodenmayer at www.fatcatpatterns.com

It's included in her Halloween Row by Row quilt pattern.

Colorful Finishes

The pile of quilts is growing as I prepare to give a speech to a local women's group about quilting for charity.  I need lots of show and tell to make the speech more interesting and to make me more comfortable!

This first one is a rarity for me--made on the sewing machine! I got a charm pack and roll of strips from Connecting Threads in their Quilter's Candy prints. I removed a few because I didn't like brown and black with this collection and then made this quilt with the remainders. It took almost every square inch of the fabric.

 

This is one of my favorites of all time!  The fish patterns are from Sindy Rodenmayer at Fat Cat Patterns.  The other animal shapes are taken from the border fabric, which is exceptionally cute and of course, completely unavailable now!

I call this one "Mitten Match".  It has 20 matching pairs.  One pair is actually two left mittens.  I plan to put a label on the back to tell the recipient that it is a matching game.

Bear Family Doll Quilt

Here's the doll quilt I made for this month's swap.  It is now in the home of a quilter in Tennessee.  The cute bear patterns are from Sindy Rodenmayer at www.fatcatpatterns.com  (Her patterns are for 12-inch blocks, but I scaled them down to 6 inches.)  The little family is modeled after my son's family with their two little girls. 

I've really been enjoying these swaps.  This size quilt is just the right size to try out a theme or idea and get it done quickly.  My quilt this month came from Oregon and is so darn cute!  I will have to post a picture soon of all the quilts I've received to date.

This isn't all of the sewing I'm doing.  I'm still making quilts for Project Linus, with a little extra push on getting a bunch done before I have to make a speech to a women's group in September.  I'm a little nervous about the speech, so I want to have lots of show and tell to get me through it!  So far I have 9 quilts made for that day and hope to have 20 by that date.