E's Hexie Finish, CST, and Pet Project Show #37

If I said I was writing this quickly so I could go to bed, would you understand? It was a hard day in the studio, and I have so much to share over the next few days with you. But this is the big one. E's Hexie is completely finished. The binding is a Timeless Treasures print in a peachy-orange, and I couldn't be happier with it. It's girly yet modern, and sets off the quilt with a soft framing.

Kaffe Fassett Finish and Creative Space Tag

  

"Anything I've ever done

that ultimately was worthwhile...

initiallly scared me to death."

--Betty Bender

I have to come clean with you. Longarming is hysterically fun, sometimes makes me cry happy tears, but still scares the life out of me everytime I start.

Bertie's Quilt & Creative Space Tag

This little quilt is 47"x47", and has hung on my 

design wall for a few weeks. A friend of mine

pieced it last winter at a class while on vacation

somewhere sunny. She asked me to quilt it 

for her, and gave me free rein as to how.

The colors may be a little truer here.

The sashing and borders are the palest

pink, and it's really a pretty quilt top.

It was a bit of a dilemma for me to decide the 

quilting, as this is a quilt she is looking forward 

to leaving for a great-grandchild someday. 

I wanted it to be nicely done for her.

I decided it needed a little motif inside the 

blocks, and came up with this feathered 

wreath. A heart in the middle seemed to 

fit the style of the baby quilt, too.

I spray basted this one. I am finding that there 

are different situations where the spray basting 

works better for me than pinning. If I have any 

doubt about straightness of top or backing, I 

can see where to anticipate a wrinkle before 

I actually start to quilt.

Wreaths and hearts all out of the way,

I started the sashing. Simple leaves and 

vines with curling. I did use a water 

soluble marker to sketch an idea out,

and followed it loosley.  The mottling

you see in the pink is because I've

misted the top to get rid of the marking.

I do like her choice of backing. Very sweet

and appropriate. The quilting shows nicely.

I used a basic cream Aurifil in 50#.

Afterward my husband and I nabbed the Kubota

and went back on the hills for some peace and

quiet. There's nothing like being deep in the 

woods. We popped out on our way to a meadow,

and the hill was covered in blackberry blooms.

It's going to be a good year for the pie maker.

This little beauty caught my eye. I snapped

a picture so I could look it up later.

Any ideas?

Creative Space Tag is at Sew Preeti Quilts.

Preeti's post on "How Many Shades of Gray?" 

is up, and even her writing is full of energy!

I'm so happy to have her adding to our

bloggers sharing their creative spaces, and

she's already tagged Jasmine of Quilt Kisses.

For those of you who are curious, Maryse

at Maryse Makes Things came up with the 

idea after I posted about my new space,

and told me to run with the idea. We both

thought it would be fun to see where 

quilters create, and inspire each other 

with ideas about space usage. I've seen so

many great ideas, and made mental notes

for changes I should make. If you would 

like to share your space, let me know in

an email, and I'll add your name.

Until we meet again...

Come on, Doxie girls.

Let's go sew.

Linking up with~
Freemotion by the River
Quilt Story
Patchwork Times

                                                    

I've Moved Out & Creative Space Tag

Before I explain my exodus from the 

house, let me show you my QST progress.

This was taken in my new space with only a flash.

No other photo enhancements were made, 

but I finally have natural daylight. 

I feel like I can see the full spectrum.
 What a difference that makes!

This quilt is going to be large. The new design wall 

is 7' 7" x 8'--the dimension of 2 pieces of foam

core insulation. Each was covered with quilt

batting I found on a roll for $1.79 a yard. I 

attached it with hot glue, and then actually

hot glued it to the wall. It will all peel off 

if I need or want to move it. I think I

could use one more beside it, too.

Let's Dream Big!

I have one large window with light 

in front of my machines.

And another here! 

Both are north facing, and so I have no blinding 

glare, just great afternoon light for photos.

I have a great mess, but my husband promised

to help me move my storage cubes soon. The

room was used as a gaming room when all the

kids were young. I was the mom that wouldn't

allow video games in the house. Period. This

was a way to control it. It later became a 

guest room, and now my learning center/studio.

There are always a few drawbacks. 

No Wifi, and there are stairs. 

Imagine all the trips I made to move,

but I think it was worth it.

Why did I move? 

I moved for natural light, most of all. Also, to 

separate my home life from my work life. It's 

becoming more real when I have to close the 

door to the house, and walk 'to work'. There is 

complete quiet, or I can crank up Rock music

without bothering anyone. I won't apologize for 

being in the way. My house will stay much cleaner 

without me dragging things up and down the stairs 

to photograph. Fewer chances of pins winding up 

in my husband's socks. And thankfully, it feels right.

The Doxie Girls and I are totally convinced.

It's time to Dream in Color.

I've shown you my new space roughly

done, but promise to update you

as it comes together. In the mean

time, I'm tagging my friend, Maryse,

 to show us her space. We both thought

it would be fun to see the places

regular people like us create. Would 

you like to be included in our game of 

Creative Space Tag? 

Leave me a reply below, or drop me 

an email, and be sure to include your own.

Stay tuned to future posts, and I'll link

you over to Maryse Makes Things 

when she's ready.

Come on, Doxie Girls.

Let's go sew.

Linking up with~
Val's Quilting Archives
WIP at Freshly Pieced
Sew Fresh Quilts
Quilty Thankful Thursday
My Quilt Infatuation