Give Me a New Name for Hurricane Stars

 Hurricane Stars a.k.a. Insomnia Block

This top is done. I worked steadily on the sashing and connecting 9 patches Wednesday afternoon, and started back early Thursday a.m. Around 2 p.m. I had sewn on the last corner. Big quilts can take a long time to sew together. This was the first time my design wall had been empty since October, and I was reluctant to put it back up even for pictures. 

Reaching the Summit of Scrap Mountain

The Insomnia Block:

Four Patch Scrappy 

Friendship Star

May I introduce to you my friend, Insomnia. She has been visiting quite often this week, and I am ready for her to go home! I need to sleep. The only good thing about being awake at 3 a.m. is the email flying back and forth with my good friend and prolific quilter in Australia. Check out her great scrap ideas (and incredible paper piecing) on Instagram @sewsurprising

Bustin' the Scrap Piles with Easy HST: Day 6

HST the Easy Way

Even after yesterday's Scrappy Trips Around the World quilt, I still had a big pile of 5" squares left over. Sticking with my new theory of dealing with scraps as they happen, I took control. There is a terribly easy, no stress, low attention way to turn them into HST. (I say this because I plowed through the stacks all day while hanging with the dogs, and catching up on some t.v., and still didn't screw it up. I like that kind of sewing!)

January Goals: Charity Quilts

Happy New Year!

Isn't it heavenly to start with a clean slate? 

Are you ready to do a fabric purge in your studio, 

and put it all to good use?

A whole year of new starts, and fresh eyes toward our future is a gift. We stand on this exact spot, but recognize the opportunity less than we would like to admit. Many times it simply becomes routine with the New-Year's-Resolution-Thing. This time is different. I've taken the entire month of December to dream about what I was seeking in 2018. Nope, that's not a typo. How can you plan the year at hand by not looking further down the pike? Do you ever just get in your car and drive around and around? No. We plan destinations, and we determine the best routes. Energy is in limited supply.

Second Chance Quilts

 Quilters Are Passionate About Scraps!

There are dozens of ways to say this. You've all spoken from your hearts. 

When I last presented my dilemma with the awful term scrap vomit, and how much I disliked it, I asked for ideas to give these delicious quilts a better name. You all came through. What a list!

Pink Doxies' Scrappy Quilt

I officially have less of a scrap stash than before, but admittedly could make another of these if not 2. Then there's the bin with the more traditional colors, but that's another story. I needed a finish yesterday--not to post, but for inner satisfaction. I needed to hear the purr of my machine, and I needed some time alone. My husband calls my studio, "Your Happy Place." I spent most of the day there feeding strips through my vintage Pfaff, and was perfectly content.

Taming the Scrap Monster

Can you remember the first time you set aside scraps thinking you would never save enough to make an actual quilt? I used to look at those scrappy creations, and nearly swoon. Many quilters admittedly prefer the look of using one single fabric line, but others like me throw abandon to the wind, and think the more the better. 

Improv Quilt: Gold Rush

Gold Rush

Stripped together from a box of scraps donated by a friend, these outcasts have taken on a new life. Two people said immediately it reminded them of a Gustav Klimt work. I believe this is the piece to which they referred. Stocletfriez

Image: Gustav Klimt, Wikipedia

Improv Work On the Design Wall

Not So Serious Sewing

Sunday was peaceful, and I'd finished up several projects the week before. I was after something relaxing, low-key, and just fun. I pulled out this WIP that I started early last spring while attending an Amy Butler & Hilde Dunn retreat. It was an exercise in improvisational piecing, and on my list of 2015 Q3 Finishes on the Windy Side. The initial slab was built by a partner blindly picking out pieces of fabric from a pile, and handing them to me. I had little control over the color scheme to start.

The center was done yet needed a frame, and I pulled this muddy pink out of my solids stash. It's an odd color, but it played well with the mishmash in the middle. Then I pulled strips from my scrap bins to make into the next pieced border. I pieced my scraps without squaring up, and it got interesting and more exciting. 

TIPS & TRICKS-Mitered Corners

I mitred my corners by creating 4 strip-pieced squares for each corner. The borders were 5 1/2" so I made each square 6". I went 1/2" larger than needed, and cut two diagonally with my stripes vertical, and two with my strips horizontal to create 8 HST's. I sewed these into 4 squares, and THEN I sewed these with to my top and bottom borders. Now I was dealing with 4 typical borders that looked like I spent a ridiculous amount of time making them. Easy peasy!

The narrow dark blue border anchored the multicolored piecing, and I looked around for some serious bling fabric to set it all off.

It's shiny, stripey, and I have lots of yardage. It sets off the center like neon lights, and fits the improv them to a T. Although I don't know the content, it presses well, is a higher grade than acetate, and you'll never believe where I found it!

Would you believe this was an old dress in that wonderful vintage stash I showed you? I asked several people when they would estimate the pattern of the dress, and they guessed late 50's-60's. Tightly fitted bodice and 3/4 sleeves, and close to 5.5 yards of fabric in the fully gathered skirt. The integrity of the fabric is solid with no funky smell--things you need to check for using vintage material, so it's going in today. 

I can't help but feel connected to the quilter/sewist that saved this garment for decades knowing it might have another life. I challenge you to add something repurposed, upcycled, reused, or vintage to a project. Hunt your Goodwill, resale stores, and garage sales for treasures. You may be deeply rewarded by the feeling of creating a unique piece while preserving a saver's vision. 

Also, I must admit there is something deeply satisfying to really understanding how the first quilters used the resources they had, and weren't able to run off to their LQS for the 'perfect' fabric. I can't wait to see how this turns out today, but what are your thoughts of working like this?

Linking up with~
The Quilting Room with Mel at Fiber Tuesday 
and last week I was the most clicked 
link with this post: 

Zipper Bags Simplified Tutorial

Podunk Pickin's--A brand new linky!


Freemotion By the River
Quilt Story
Blossom Heart Quilts
Late Night Quilter

Perfecting the Pouch-Zipper Bags Revisited

"The essential conditions of everything we do must be choice, love, passion."

                                      ~Nadia Boulanger

Immediately after a quilt top finish, I like to stop for a breather and clean the studio. Organizing is the therapy I need before saying hello to the next new thing. I sorted the scrap pile I'd made creating the Moda Modern, and when I opened my bins to put them away, it was like the scene from Jumanji where Alan Parrish was sucked into the board game. 

'Chicago, 2007' QST Quilt--Entry for Blogger's Quilt Festival 2015

'Chicago, 2007' 

Quarter Square Triangle Quilt

Stats: Made from a 100% cotton mixture of 

whatever was in my scraps and stash when I 

started, plus a few special fabrics found just 

for this quilt. Contains more than 180 different 

fabrics. The final dimensions are 85"x95". 

The batting is Fairfield's 50/50 

bamboo/cotton blend. 

This marks the first time I've entered 

the Spring 2015 Blogger's Quilt Festival

at Amy's Creative Side.

Nomination for viewer's choice runs 

May 15-21, and voting May 22-29. 

Winners are announced May 30, 2015.

I encourage you to visit, and see the 

collective talent of quilting bloggers

from around the world. You can 

find me in the large quilt category.

The setting triangles and pink backing are

both from Tula Pink's Acacia line. The sari

fabrics are cottons from Amy Butler.

Several years ago my youngest daughter and I 

made a trip to Chicago to visit a dear friend, 

Betty. A seasoned tour guide, she told us 

there were a few things we must do while in the 

Windy City. One was visiting the Bahai Temple.

I've visited this sanctuary many times with her, 

and it's one of my favorite places. Popping up in 

the midst of a residential neighborhood, it stands 

like a beacon shining its light. It was my young

daughter first visit, and as she was quite taken in 

with it, we spent hours there.

Its gardens are amassed in flowers,

and the colors and lights are 

reflected in the pool.

Photo from the Baha'is of the United States

Another of her goals was to find a lehenga 

choli for my daughter so the 3 of us headed 

to Devon Avenue. Devon Avenue is a 

melting pot of mom and pop stores, groceries, 
and restaurants from many ethnic groups. We 

sipped mango lassis, and ate Hungarian 

pastries fresh from a beehive oven while the 

wind whipped by us on the sidewalk. We 

eyed up bolt after bolt of sari fabric, and my

young daughter tried on half a dozen little 

dresses before finally deciding on this one. 

That evening we sat in the garden of 

their brownstone enjoying Peruvian takeout 

and wine while reliving our perfect day. I
have frozen those memories in my mind.

 I believe that one day deeply imprinted

my mind and senses, and is expressed

in this very quilt these many years later. 

It wasn't until I was making the binding that 

it came together. My thoughts have been 

filled with memories of my friend these past 

months, and my longing to see her since
she's moved so far away.

Whether we realize it or not, something in 

our psyche guides our choices when we design. 
I believe it is important for me to focus on 

what is good, and beautiful, and true. Our
art and creations become an expression
of our consciousness at that moment. 

This quilt started as a simple experiment in 

making half square triangles, then continued to 

quarter square triangles. Visit these recent 

posts documenting the creative process, and 

 the many changes of direction.

Monday Musings

Friday Progress

I've Moved Out

When Do You Sleep?

Thankful Thursday

The Great Debate

QST Progress

What's Next? Dealing with It.

I spent the morning with my domestic Janome

 FMQ the setting and corner triangles using 

my favorite pink Aurifil thread, #2425.

I turned the machine so I could work from

the end feeding smoothly through, and not 

have to push the bulk up and under it. I used 

a small, portable table to help support the 

weight of the quilt as I stitched, moving

it as necessary from one side to the next.

This is a very heavy quilt.

The pink Aurifil shows up nicely on the teal blue.

I ran into one small problem. Although I allowed

3 extra inches on the sides of the backing, I had

only 2 on each end to spare before quilting. The

long arming took up quite a bit of that, and left

me 1/4" short on this end. I trimmed the other

end as it was a match with the pieced fabric,

and sewed it to my short end. It was a pretty

close fit, but I was lucky.

 I love to machine stitch binding on. Or should I

say, I hate binding quilts by hand? I do. Here's

a trick. Sew it to the back of the quilt first, then

bring it to the front, and stitch it down. I used a

pale blue in my top thread to match my binding,

and a fushia in my bobbin to match the backing.

If you're careful to pin, pin, pin the front,

it works beautifully.

I was a little bit off where I sewed my

tag on, but I made sure to have it sewn

into the binding to make it extra secure.

I was cautioned against sewing on my binding

by machine, but it seems to be lying flat. I 

always cut my binding fabric perpendicular to 

the selvage, and that seems to be key.

This is a memory quilt sewn with love. 

Come on, Doxie girls.

Let's have us a snuggle,

and ring a friend today.

Creative Space Tag continues with
Judy at Quilt Paradigm. She's put a 
lot of time in analyzing her space,
and how she uses it. Wait until 
you see her design wall!

This also is a finish for
my list made for Adrienne's
2015 Finish-Along On the
2015 Finish-Along On the Windy Side.

Linking up with~
Blossom Heart Quilts
Val's Quilting Archives
Sew Can She
Confessions of a Fabric Addict
Crazy Mom Quilts
Quilt Shop Gal
TGIFF
LAFF
Free Motion Mavericks

Thank you all for the linking

opportunities.

What's Next? Dealing with It.

An artsy friend sent me this card last week, and 

I'm stuck on it. It pushes me to think. She 
would never call herself a great motivator, but 
she has a way of dropping Thought Bombs 
that stops me in my tracks.

Neither of us are empty nesters, but it's on our
 horizons. (I'm laughing because we have 11 kids 
between us. Will either of us ever be?) But we are 
mentally preparing for the next season of our lives, 
and it comes up in our conversations a lot. I know 
many of you who visit Pink Doxies blog are 
thinking this, too.

So, we ask ourselves, What's Next?

Which Road are we Taking?

How will we Know when we've Arrived?


 I got back into quilting because it fit easily 
into my life, and made me happy. Now I get 
my color fix, make neat things, and meet the 
most wonderful people through blogging. 
Sounds so cozy, doesn't it? Then what? 
What if I want more than that?

When we reach uncharted territory, it
gives us pause to think. The unknown can
be scary. We're now at the End of 
our Comfort Zone. I've been coming up
against this for the past few months. 

Where I'm At--One Place

I want to be able to create entire 
quilts from start to finish no matter the size. 
I'm making bigger projects now, and like this 
one, they don't fit in my domestic machine 
anymore--even my Janome with an 11" throat.

I felt like one thing I needed to learn 
was long arm quilting. It scared me, yet I spent
a lot of time looking into it. I visited stores, 
talked to friends, and even priced machines. I 
tried it a few times, but the learning curve was 
steep! I could do so many things on my domestic 
Janome, but it didn't transfer to a long arm. It 
was like riding a bike and rowing a boat--a 
totally different skill set. Was it a road I wanted 
to even go down? Was it worth it for me?

I have a neighbor just houses away with a
Tin Lizzie. She quilts commercially for clients, 
and was kind and willing to show me her machine
the day after my phone call. She even let me 
have a try at it. The next day my QST quilt was 
on her machine, and I was going to quilt it 
myself. She had faith in my skills when I didn't.

We drove an hour away to buy thread as she
does mainly Traditional quilts, and had nothing
in my color palette. We came home, pinned it
on, and after a few minutes we both knew the
color wasn't working. I couldn't see it enough
to follow the pattern. She happily helped me
rip out stitches for half an hour. At that point
I went home to sleep on it, but I kept waking 
up wondering if she'd be upset if I just wanted
to take it out of the frame. I was panicking I
would screw it up beyond saving. I loved this
colorful quilt.

The next morning, Mother's Day, she called
to ask if I wanted to try again. I had looked
at more patterns, watched some videos,
and drawn page after page with 2 hands
on my pen moving it at the same time.
I found this pattern on a porch chair, and
thought it was easiest enough to begin.

We re-evaluated thread color, and chose a
darker color even though I would have liked
a paler one. I needed to see it! This is a
lavendar shade, and she had a matching
So Fine for the bobbin thread. 

Away I went, down my first run, and by the end 
I was in tears. Good tears! It was so terrifying,
and I had managed to do a passable job, 
and not ruined my quilt.

You might be laughing to yourself that I'm
being overly dramatic, but you have no idea
how afraid I was of botching this. I've done 
that before, and have the mess to prove it.

With the adrenaline rush going, I kept on.
Sandy helped to coach me by checking if
thing were in place after each pass, but she
stayed out of the way. I'm a good 7" taller
that she is, and I'm sure it was quite a 
sight with me scootching down to run the
machine at her height adjustment.

A quick break for lunch, a minute to smell 
my gorgeous Mother's Day bouquet, and I 
told my husband I'd be done by 3.

When I returned, Sandy took her sewing 
upstairs, and left me on my own. I managed
fine, and in my head kept saying,
"I can do this. I can do this."
It was an empowering moment for me.

My work was not perfect. Shoot, I
even ran over my design a few times
trying to see under the machine head, 
but the whole quilt was done
in one day. I'm so, so pleased with a
passing job this time.

The lavendar thread was a solid choice 
for the backing.

Effy had to have a quick try at it right off.

I still have the edges to quilt on my Janome.
I've chosen to use my sit down domestic
for the control it allows me, and then the
binding. All can happen this week.

I don't know if I'd ever have done this had
circumstances not been what they were.
It all fell into place when it did, and I 
didn't have as much time to over-think it.
Thank you, Sandy.
Fear nearly stopped me from this uber-
thrilling adventure. I'm totally wiped out,
and have come down with a cold or
something already, and I wonder if it's 
from stressing over it all.

As for my card above, I think I would 
rephrase it to say, 

"Growth begins at the end 
of your comfort zone."

Gardeners who start seedlings know it helps 
to brush your hand across them once a day. 
You're simulating nature brushing by them. It 
makes the whole stem structure healthier, 
I understand, when the seedling pushes 
back against the stimulus. In turn, it 
causes it to grow stronger. 

As for the biggest questions I have
above, I still don't know. Perhaps
I never will. My answer for today
is simple.

Let me grow.

Come on, Doxie girls.
Let's all go sew.

Linking up today with~
Freemotion by the River
Quilt Story
Blossom Heart Quilts
Late Night Quilter
She Can Quilt
Cooking Up Quilts
Monday Makers
Show and Tell with Bambi
Hug-a-Bit Quilts