My Fabric Love/Addiction History

I love this cartoon from The Big Book of Bobbins by Julie Icenogle!
My love of fabric began in junior high school, when Mom let me choose patterns and cloth for my clothes at Ellard's, the local "dry goods" store in our tiny town. Mom was an excellent seamstress and made most of my dresses. I think I learned the rhythm of sewing by watching her, first at her pedal sewing machine, and then at her fancy new cabinet Singer.

When I was a freshman in high school, our home economics teacher introduced us to sewing. Our big project was to make a dress. After we assembled our dresses during class, we took them home to measure for the hem, then had to hem them by hand. I still remember neatly spacing the slip stitch we were required to use. My stitching was so good that my teacher did not believe I had hemmed the dress myself and thought my Mom had done it. Mom got very upset when I told her about this and made a trip to the school to set that teacher straight!

Before I learned to sew, Mom made two particularly memorable Palm Sunday and Easter dresses for me from the same pattern. One was a full skirt and jacket in lilac, and the other was a slim skirt and jacket in turquoise. Both had bolero jackets over a sleeveless dress. Mom and I felt very chic saying the word "bolero". She helped me choose the fabric for each dress. At age 13, I felt very grownup wearing these to church, with my first high heels. The pattern pictured above (which can be found here) is very similar to the pattern Mom used, except the dress was sleeveless.

After I got married, I began to buy fabric to sew for our home and family. I loved sewing clothing (I even made my husband a plaid suit!) and house decor, Halloween costumes, etc. A lot of my fabric was purchased at Hancock's, but there were a few nice local stores I loved to frequent. If a particular fabric caught my eye, I splurged and bought a few yards, even if I only had vague plans for it. Some of the fabric got put to good use, some of it just got admired.

During my husband's career, we followed his jobs in Oklahoma and Texas, and the moving process helped keep my yardage in check. When I packed, if I hadn't used it in 5 years, I gave it to Goodwill. Now I wish I still had some of those beautiful fabrics I gave away (I can still remember many of them!)

My first quilt stash and sewing room in 2012

My current fabric stash on hubby-built shelves

After I started quilting in 2010, my fabric purchases became quilting cottons instead of clothing and decor fabrics. I had no clue how to build up a good stash with neutrals, small prints, solids, and blenders. Instead I bought what appealed to me, purchasing many charm packs and bundles. Now that I have a few quilts under my belt, I buy yardage; but I'm still a sucker for a pretty bundle (see the two new Christmas bundles on the top shelf!)

So there you have a little history of my fabric love, but I did not include my love affair with yarn. That I will save for another post!

A Galloping Horse (and a Giveaway!)

Today Bernie of Needle and Foot is hosting a giveaway, celebrating (yes!) our mistakes and epic fails. There are prizes to be had: a fat quarter bundle from Art Gallery, PDF patterns from Kirsty at Bonjour Quilts and Leanne at Devoted Quilter, a $30 gift certificate to Bernie's Etsy Shop, and a book from C&T Publishing! I wanted part of the fun, so I contributed two packs of Grunge mini charms. For a chance to win one of these fun prizes, click HERE to go to Bernie's post and leave a comment about your funniest goof. The event closes on Friday, April 5th and winners drawn and announced on Saturday, April 6th.

The galloping horse? My favorite credo in quilting is something my Mom used to say, "It will never be noticed from a galloping horse." It is so true, and I laugh every time I think about her saying this! However much I try to remember this, glaring errors do perturb me, so I correct as much as I can and forget the rest. Have a look at two recent ones in the photos below:

Corrected!

Log Cabin block is too big

How serendipitous that the same day after hearing about this event, I made two goofs! If you look at the two photos above you will see that in the first one I mis-positioned half square triangle corner pieces - a result of not paying attention. Second photo shows corrected block. In the third photo, I failed to follow instructions and created a log cabin block 3 inches larger than the other 12.5" inch blocks. My biggest downfall in quilting with a pattern is deciphering and following the instructions. The directions for the log cabin block were to trim to a certain measurement after every round was added. Did I even see that part? Um, no, because I didn't read the instructions all the way through before I started. That mistake is destined to become a pillow!

Click on the photo for a chance to win these Grunge Hits the Spot and
Grunge Seeing Stars mini charms and other prizes!

Bits and Pieces, Soup, Stranger Things, and Life

I am finally cutting into the Hello, Bear by Bonnie Christine for Art Gallery Fabrics that I purchased for a baby quilt for my great-great nephew (I think that's right). The fact that he is 3 should tell you what a procrastinator I am. I am hoping that he is still young enough to enjoy the forest-y nature of the quilt!

Last month I bought myself a new acrylic ruler. I started my quilting life in 2010 with a Big Daddy (24-inch) and Big Mama (12-inch) both by Trudie Hughes. I loved them but had noticed lately there was a bit of a warp to the larger one, and I wanted one that wouldn't slip on the fabric, so I purchased an Olfa frosted ruler. I love it! It stays put beautifully when I cut fabric, and I like the frosted feature - it seems to help me see what I'm cutting a little better. I've already ordered the 12-inch size as well, to replace my old one.

In a strange turn of events, my husband, who has never wanted to eat broccoli or cauliflower, tried them both raw in a salad at a cafeteria and now wants us to make those salads at home. Finally I get to make my sister-in-law's recipe that I have had so many years! While my husband is out of town I made Closet Cooking's Roasted Cauliflower Mushroom Soup. It was delicious and I will definitely try this on my husband to see if he likes cooked cauliflower!

While we have had many blessings the last two years - love, family, a new granddaughter, good health, stray kitties, a move to a beautiful 5 acres in a national forest - an ongoing distressing situation will finally get some resolution, and it looks like 2017 is going to be a much better year for us. Joy is on its way back into our lives!

2015 Plans and Dreams

My husband and I used to talk about retirement and dream about how we could slow things down and just enjoy life. Well we are definitely enjoying life, but regretfully time has not slowed down. Time flies when you're having a good time!

My goals for 2015 are simple:
1) Have plans and dreams instead of "goals"
1) Enjoy what I'm doing with no pressure on myself
2) Refrain from buying new fabric, yarn, or patterns and utilize my storehouse of goodies

Quilts In Progress (WIPs)

My niece's grandmother's quilt top (you can read about it in this post) is now sandwiched and ready to quilt. I've "only" had it 3 years, so this is the year to get it done!

The Jingle Bell Rock quilt is sandwiched and quilting is about 1/3 done.

The very first quilt I planned to finish, started in 2011 and still in the designing stages, will be for my daughter (you can read about it here.)

This Math Class quilt will also be for my daughter. I have six blocks completed.

This Winterlude table runner is cut and will be ready to sew after I sort out all the pieces I dropped on the floor.


New Quilt Projects

My Christmas gift to myself was fabric for this gorgeous quilt. I have the pattern, which is found in Fat Quarter Style.

I love the fabrics, which are Moda's Atelier by 3 Sisters and Autumn Lily by Blackbird Designs.

Scrappy Quilt Challenges

In the spirit of not buying new patterns or fabric, I am learning how to recreate patterns I like and would like to eventually design my own patterns. I love these ideas for scrappy projects:

I am planning to join Sarah at Confessions of a Fabric Addict in her Sweet Sixteen Quiltalong 2015, a scrappy 16-patch challenge. I'd like to try something like the Reverse Rainbow shown above in a 16-patch instead of the 25-patch shown. I found the above picture online. I'm not a big fan of the wonky stars so I'll determine how to make them as standard stars.

I am a little late to the Swoon Quilt party, but I love Camille Roskelley's remake of the Carpenter's Wheel. Yesterday I used graph paper to recreate her pattern and will start cutting from scraps today.


Needlework

I've recently become interested in Sashiko, a traditional Japanese embroidery technique and am excited about the ways it can be incorporated into quilting. The photo is from the blog of Jess of Elven Garden Quilts, and she has a nice tutorial here.

Purses

I want to make more coin purses like the one I made for my granddaughter and get started on the pattern I bought for these little see-through bags.

Crochet

I have plenty of yarn in my stash!

I learned to crochet in 1972 and was a crocheting fool for many years. I have not picked up a crochet needle for too long and have a deep desire to get back to it this year. I want to make these cute boot cuffs, and these beautiful Nordic Wrist Warmers, a pattern I purchased from Annette of My Rose Valley.

I have my eye on a couple of crochet patterns - Tunisian Crochet Entrelac throw and Log Cabin Arrow throw.

And while I love crochet, knitted items have a more polished look to me and knitting seems to be more a more versatile stitching method, so I am determined to learn to knit this year. I would love to learn to make the gorgeous drop stitch scarf pictured above with this pattern.

Home and Garden

Outside of quilty/crafty things, I also have a few homey projects in mind:

Last spring and summer we planted a modest vegetable/herb garden, and our moderate success led me to add a bit more space for this coming spring.

In a rush of excited anticipation I purchased a bunch of seeds from Pinetree Seeds.

We also have plans to re-stain our master bathroom cabinets and rearrange the dishes, glasses, and trinkets in my china cabinet. What doesn't fit gets sold!

Around the World Blog Hop

Today is my opportunity to participate in the Around the World Blog Hop. I am so honored to have been nominated by Christine of Patchwork Allsorts, whose blog I discovered several weeks ago. Christine makes beautiful patchwork and embroidered pieces and has inspired me to take up handiwork again! Read her post from last Monday HERE and get to know her a little better.

The Around the World Blog Hop is a great way to meet new bloggers by sharing about yourself, your projects, and your creative process, and then inviting three other bloggers to participate the following week. I was thrilled when the three bloggers I asked said “Yes!”, and I am eager to read their posts next Monday. Amy of Indigo Cottage Quilts is a quilter who lives in Ohio and also happens to be a pediatric nurse! She has a beautiful 12 year old daughter who not only helps her choose fabric but has even made a quilt of her own. Dawn of Sew Much to Quilt blogs from Australia and is a fairly recent new grandmother. She does beautiful embroidery, by hand and with her sewing machine, and is in our Gale Pan Patchwork Loves Embroidery Sew-Along. Gayle of Pedal Sew Lightly lives in Georgia and is an avid quilter who also loves bicycling. Her posts are full of beautiful quilting, really good tips, and humor. I love all their blogs and learn so much from these lovely ladies.

A Little Background
My husband and I have been married 45 years in October. We grew up in northeastern Oklahoma, married in college, had a son and daughter, and have moved back and forth between Oklahoma and Texas with my husband's jobs. Our children are married; our son lives six miles from us with our wonderful daughter-in-law and three awesome grandchildren. Our beautiful daughter married our sweet son-in-law in January, and they live near Dallas about 4 hours away. My husband is Business Director for a church, and we live in Magnolia TX with our dog and cat. We are looking forward to my husband's retirement in the next year or two (although that may not happen if I don't stop buying fabric.) My careers have been math teacher, administrative assistant, and most recently, caterer for my own company, For Goodness Sake. I am retired but still cook for occasional dinners at our church as a volunteer. During the fall and spring, I am in charge of Wednesday night dinners for 6 weeks, and that time commitment limits my sewing time.

College dance 1968

Our brood 2014 (our son on the left, our daughter at the far end)

I currently have several projects working. Four years ago when I started quilting, I let my daughter pick out fabric for a quilt, and the blocks I made are still sitting and waiting in a basket. I couldn't decide on a pattern and I was clueless about designing a quilt; consequently I am not satisfied with what I’ve made so far. The fabrics are lovely, but her taste in colors has changed since then; however, I am determined to finish it! I'm excited about the quilt label - I purchased an orphaned cross stitched "Home Is Where the Heart Is" piece at a thrift shop, pulled the fabric out of the frame, and changed the word "Home" to "Quilt" so it now reads "Home Is Where the Quilt Is".

My daughter chose shades of mauve, purple, aqua, olive green, and a deep burgundy-brown

Another project began two years ago when my niece sent me the quilt top her maternal grandmother pieced. I have added a backing and a border, but I need to sandwich, quilt, and bind it. I didn't think to warn her not to wash it before she sent it, and many of the blocks frayed badly on the outer edges, so I repaired some blocks and added a coordinating border. It is the biggest quilt I have worked on, and I have been putting off sandwiching it! However after I got it out of the closet, photographed it, looked at the pictures, I am anxious to get moving on it again.

Front of my niece's quilt - I think her grandmother did a beautiful job piecing it

Quilt back - I found some fabrics that coordinated pretty well

It is amazing how well the old fabric in the lower triangle matches the new fabric of the border block

I purchased the kit for this math class quilt by Sweetwater for my daughter’s Christmas gift, have most of the cutting done and four blocks made. I blogged about it last week for Choose Your Own Block-Along.

I love this pattern by Atkinson Designs and recently purchased vinyl and zippers to make a few for my church's fall market.

Seeing some of Christine's gorgeous embroidered blocks inspired me to buy three patterns from Mountain Patchwork, and I have completed Garden Gate. It was a real test of my rusty hand-stitching!

Garden Gate Pattern

I recently joined a group Sew-Along for Gale Pan’s Patchwork Loves Embroidery (see the badge in my sidebar) and have been re-learning embroidery skills! We post every two weeks, and so far I have made a little bag and a sewing folder.

You can see other projects I've completed by clicking on one of the girls in my sidebar, or here.

I love all kinds of needlework including crochet, embroidery, and cross stitch as well as quilt making, patchwork, and sewing. I also love to tinker with crafts such as re-purposing second-hand items. If I can ever figure out a way to combine all those things into one big project, I’ll never leave my craft/sewing space again. Right now all my supplies occupy the same room but in different spots, so as the mood strikes me I will work on one thing today and another tomorrow. With nearly everything I make, I like to try to do something just a little bit different or unexpected to make it original. I sew and quilt on a Janome DC3050 that I purchased with catering profits. It has been the best investment ever - sews like a dream and never any problems.

An older photo of my beloved Janome, along with my favorite wine

My grandmothers both quilted by hand, and my Mom sewed my clothes until I took charge of the sewing machine when I was 13. Taking a class and completing a single hand pieced and hand quilted block in 1982 created a spark of interest in quilting, but I really got interested after my sweet Mom passed away in 2010. She had lived with us for 8 years and died at age 98, and I believe her sweet spirit inspired me to take a quilting class. I was immediately hooked and have been learning and enjoying the entire process since then.

My mother at age 20 on the left. She sewed her own clothes and was quite stylish! On the right at age 98 - still beautiful!

Doll quilt made by my paternal grandmother, Hattie Eulelah "Lela" Thomas Lawhorn

Quilts made by my maternal grandmother, Minnie Elzada Turner Mitchell

My mother and grandmothers instilled a deep desire to create with my hands, but I also have a love of putting things together or fitting them together. I have a degree in mathematics and always loved solving a problem but was not keen on the theory behind it. Similarly I loved diagramming sentences in English, but interpreting stories was torture. Quilting and sewing fulfill my need to find a solution!

I share space with the guest bedroom, so the bed provides a very handy space to organize or sort, plus I can catch a quick nap if I like. I have furnished my room mostly with furniture purchased at consignment shops and thrift stores. My recent organizing was documented in this post. Today I photographed my space without cleaning it first, so pardon the mess.

Looking from just inside the door

View from the closet - my sewing table overlooks our pool with pine and oak trees in the distance. Above my window is a shelf displaying floral plates my mother collected for me

Shelf units with supplies, trinkets, and mementos from my Granny and my Mom, and the closet containing fabric, yarn, embroidery, and craft supplies

Space to the left of my sewing table - books about sewing, needlework, and quilting

An old spice shelf for my threads and a little collection of embroidery scissors atop my Mom's vintage embroidered dresser scarf. The Lord's Prayer (upper left) was stitched for my Mom by one of her friends, and the "Mother by Chance, Friend by Choice" to its right was stitched for me by my daughter

My favorite picture of Mom and Daddy and some of her trinkets on a shelf I refurbished

The Twenty-Third Psalm hand-stitched by my mother in the 1970s for a departing pastor. Last year the son of that pastor contacted me to ask me if I'd like to have it back, as his dad was moving to a retirement home. I am so grateful to have it!

Cutting table, Panasonic cord-free iron, overhead light with magnifier donated to me by my hubby, and a painting by my granddaughter on top of the shelf unit

My workbench with a pegboard of various tools; shelves hold fabric glue and media paints

Thank you for spending the time to plow through all this information and numerous photos! It was a good process for me, because now I am eager to finish projects that I have avoided.

Don't forget to check these blogs next Monday: Indigo Cottage Quilts, Sew Much to Quilt, and Pedal Sew Lightly.