• 19Jul

    I’m so far behind on my posting, but I just have to share these wonderful quilt with you.

    I love historical villages, and we were lucky enough to hear about Kolona Historical Village while we were in Iowa.

    And even luckier that in one of their TWO quilt galleries, they were having a display of Depression Era quilts!

    Like this beautifully embroidered and hand quilted basket quilt.

    I thought the border was stunning!

    These blocks really reminded me of the Kate Greenaway children that the original Sunbonnet Sue is based on.

    I loved that she was doing all kinds of chores, including harvest!

    How’s this for a Dresden Plate.  And who says they didn’t use orange in the Thirties!?!

    This sweet little doll quilt was made special with a scalloped border.

    Postage Stamp quilt like this one fascinate me.  Even the white background is pieced 1″ squares.

    This Trip Around the World quilt was probably a kit.

    This is the same star pattern as the first quilt I ever hand quilted!

    I thought the applique and quilting were superb on this quilt.  I don’t think I’ve seen this pattern before.

    The salmon pink in this Grandmother’s Flower Garden is a bit unusual.

    Another Flower Garden.

    This quilt is from a Nancy Page Quilt Club serial design.  Each week instructions for a new flower was printed in the newspaper.

    I love how this maker coordinated her prints in the birds and flowers of each block.

    You can see another Garden Bouquet quilt on the foot of this bed.

    This beautiful design is from Marie Webster, who contributed quilts to Better Homes and Gardens Magazine for years.  She also ran her own mail order company selling patterns and kits.

    I thought this bluework quilt was charming, but loved the bed skirt even more!

    The traditional Sun Bonnet Sue.

    What a pretty orange and blue print.  😉

    Dogwoods.  I’m not sure, but I think this might also be a Marie Webster design.

    A beautiful Ohio Rose.  This quilt is on my list of “to make” quilts.

    I’m not sure of the name of this quilt pattern.  Anyone?

    There were even some feed sack dresses and aprons on display.

    Quite stylish, don’t you think?

    I have a crocheted apron like this!

    You might be poor, but you could still look good!

    The staff here was wonderful.  If you’re anywhere close, I suggest you visit!

  • 28May
    Categories: Everything!, musings Comments Off on Nasturtium Quilt

    I try not to look at quilts on Ebay.  Really, I try not to!

    But sometimes, they pop up on my screen anyway.

    And sometimes there’s orange in them.  And nasturtiums (along with California poppies) are my favorite flowers.

    What’s a girl to do but look.

    It was sooooo beautiful.

    I didn’t intend to buy it, but I did send the photos to my friends and family.

    They encouraged me to “go for it!”  So I did!  The quilting on it is amazing.

    And it looks great on my Aunt Gloria’s old bed.

    And in case you wonder if I’ve always liked orange, this is the dress Melissa wore when she was flower girl in my wedding in 1974!  The bridesmaids wore the same.  Yep, I’ve always loved orange–and nasturtiums and California poppies!

  • 23Aug
    Categories: Everything!, fabric design Comments Off on Research

    As a dedicated fabric designer, I take my research seriously.  Since my designs are based on prints from the 1920′s, 30′s and 40′s, it’s important that I surround myself with materials from that era.  Recently, even though I was on vacation, I took time out from my schedule of spa pampering and relaxing and devoted an afternoon to research.

    In other words–I went to the antique mall!

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    I’m always on the lookout for quilts, quilt blocks and tops that let me see a good representation of fabrics, like this Apple Core.  Why look–this quilt maker used red AND orange.  Way to go!

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    She was also very frugal.  Over half the pieces in this top are pieced.  In other words, she didn’t have a big enough scrap to cut out an apple core shape, so she pieced her scraps together first.

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    I have an image of Sunbonnet Sue in my mind–the Sunbonnet Sue that my Grandma Kennedy made.  All other Sue’s are compared to her.  This Sue comes pretty close–and she has some pretty fabric in her dresses!

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    Many of you have heard me say this before, but LOOK!  Quilters in the 1930′s used orange–real orange!  Not peach, not buff–ORANGE!

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    Besides quilt tops I find other things that are great fabric resources–like this little lingerie bag.

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    And, of course, clothes pin holders.  I have seen (and collected) lots of these over the years, but never one with feet!  Isn’t it absolutely charming!?!

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    Ah, the sacrifices I make for my craft……..

  • 18Jun
    Categories: Everything! Comments Off on Redwork Today

    Today was our Redwork Club meeting, and we started by going to tea at All The Tea and China.  

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    Then we came back here to Studio Anna Lena for our “meeting,” which is really just show-and-tell!  It’s always fun to see what others are working on!  Linda has taken my Through My Window panel and embroidered it.  Don’t you love how she’s doing one extra little thing on each block?

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    Loretta brought a completed quilt top that she started in 2006.  She wanted our opinion about the dark blue border.  Everyone thought it was too dark, so she bought some of my Cornflower solid to replace it.  It’s a much better match.

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    Here are some of my favorite blocks from her quilt.

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    Loretta says this is her stitching.  I hope those are pins in her mouth and not chin whiskers!

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    We share more than just stitchery.  Robin just finished hand quilting this vintage 1930′s top.  She’s a wonderful hand quilter, and this quilt was a challenge because it didn’t lay flat.  But look at it now!  Amazing.

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    And here’s something very special.  Linda bought this hand crocheted apron at a garage sale and brought it for show-and-tell.  Then she gave it to me!  Thank you, Linda.  You know it will have a special home here.  And it’s nice to know that someone years ago liked orange, too!

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  • 17Jun
    Categories: brilliant ideas, Everything!, quilting Comments Off on Block Exchange ala Robin

    Aka Guild Fun

     

    Recently my friend Robin gave a presentation at our Guild about block exchanges.  

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    You see, she belongs to a group called The Ruthless Quilters (Ruth moved to Idaho!) and every year they do a block exchange.  Robin picks a block and everybody makes a specific number of blocks.  Then they trade blocks so that everyone has blocks made by everyone else.  Now each person has exactly the same blocks, but how they put them together is up to them.  

    This was my favorite of the exchange quilts that Robin brought for show and tell.  No, I don’t think the color orange influenced me one bit!  Isn’t it amazing what different people did with their blocks?!?

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  • 21Jan
    Categories: Everything! Comments Off on Orange You Glad?

    Orange you glad you stopped by?  I am!  

    I’ve been in an orange mood lately.  Well, it isn’t all that unusual that I’m in an orange mood–it is my favorite color, after all.  

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    But, I must confess, for years I tried to hide my love of orange.  It stems from a bad experience in the mid 1970’s.  For those of you who remember, “earth tones” were the buzz word of the day.  That usually meant avocado green and harvest gold.  Insert gagging sound here.  But, along with those two colors came burnt orange and rust.  Yes, rust.  As in, “See that old old hulk of a car out there in that field?  The one that hasn’t run in years.  Yes, I’d like that color for my home decor.”  I got married and got my first house in 1974.  (Okay, really weird thing happening right now.  The Moody Blues Nights in White Satin is playing on my radio!  Flashback to the Seventies!)  But, I must proceed.  In my new-to-me ranch house, I redid the kitchen/family room.  The carpet–indoor/outdoor patterned carpet in brown and orange.  The wall paper–also orange.  But not the pretty orange that I truly love.  It was BURNT orange.  That sounds almost as appealing as rust.  We lived in that house for three years.  When we moved out, I turned my back on orange.  

    But, hard as I tried, I still really loved orange.  For years I denied it.  If I’d see something cute that was orange, I’d say things like, “Oh, that’s so cute–even though it’s orange.”  But, slowly, with the help of a twelve step program in my mind, a few years ago I finally started admitting that I liked things BECAUSE they were orange.  A whole new world opened up to me when I let orange back into my life.  

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    Now I’m surrounded by orange–happy orange–bright orange–gay orange!  I have astudio full of orange.

    And have I mentioned that I have a great family and great friends?  They help feed my orange obsession.  Here are the things I got for Christmas this year that are orange.

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    And yesterday, when my friend Robin came by to spend the day sewing, she even wore orange!

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    Life is good when you love orange.