Thursday, September 25, 2014

Around the World Blog Hop

 Deb nominated me to participate in this Blog Hop.  So here I go and yet now sure if I’ll be doing it right….

1.  What am I working on?

     Right now – nothing!  Actually, having just got back from a week at Quilters for Comfort Sew Fest, I had some general house work that needed to be caught up.  Hubby does okay with maintaining but……

I will be receiving a box with quilt tops from Sew Fest that will need quilting and they will be forwarded to one of three different VA facilities that will be recipients of this year’s Sew Fest quilts.  I also have a wedding coming up in November and the bride loves anything John Deere so yep, doing a John Deere quilt for her and the groom.  My dearest friend has also asked me for a quilt to cover her queen size bed.  I have these:

IMG_0032 and they will be going into her quilt.  I let her choose the fabric she wanted for sashing and borders.

2.  How does my work differ from others in its genre?

   I don’t think my work really differs that much.  I rarely follow a pattern from a magazine or book.  I prefer instead to try and design something in Electric Quilt.  Of course, I think all quilts are made from certain ‘units’ and it’s how those units are combined that create the final project.  As for the actual quilting – I don’t use pantographs or stencils.  I had my hubby cut some circles and squares from plexiglass that I use to help steady my hand.  I have some other shapes that I’d like for him to cut. 

3.  Why do I write/create what I do?

  I pretty well write the same way I talk.  I try to add a bit of humor as that’s the type of person I am.  I try not to take life too seriously – I simply don’t have time for the stress or the ‘games’…  Creating – it’s just part of me.  I enjoy knitting, a bit of crocheting but my passion is creating with the use of a sewing machine.  I rarely do hand work.  I do an okay job of it but my patience level is not where it needs to be to do the hand work…. That said – before my neighbor passed away she gave me a quilting frame for hand quilting.  I really want to make a small (note the word SMALL) quilt using my grandmother’s treadle machine and use the frame and hand quilt it.  Please do not hold your breath waiting!!!!

4.  How does my writing/creating process work?

When I get ready to write in my blog, I really want to write something that I think will interest someone else.  I know people want to see pictures and that’s something I’m not good at doing.  Unless I’m writing a tutorial, I don’t take pictures of a work in progress.  When I get ready to create something, I design/ alter / (or whatever) a pattern, choose the fabric and fly by the seat of my pants.  Sometimes it actually turns out the way I thought it would.  Sometimes it’s a complete surprise what I end up with.

Now here’s some pictures of some of the quilts from Sew Fest:

I believe when all was counted, we ended up with 56 completed tops.  Some materials were taken home from a few of the ladies to create a few more quilts.  All in all, another successful Sew Fest.

Katie