Tree Bird Hop

 Apologies...this was scheduled to post and didn't....anyone having troubles with Blogger?

 

Just in time for spring comes this great blog hop..... Tree Bird Hop!  I can tell you that the birds are actually returning to Indiana in full swing with temps in the 40's and 50's.  The snow is melting and will be soon be gone ... my shovel will be retired to the garage and the mower will come out to take its place.

This is another hop from dear Madame Samm.  She continues to keep us "hoppin!"  And I also have Lana to thank for being our hostess.  There are lots of participants in this hop and it has to take a lot of checking and rechecking to keep us all under control.  A HUGE thanks to Madame Samm and Lana!!

This hop was all about the birds.  We were asked to make something bird related.  It was suggested.. only suggested.... that we might want to use some fabric from Elizabeth's Studio called Beautiful Birds.  It was designed by Tracy Lizotte.  Well, I loved the fabric so much that I really wanted to use it in my wall hanging.  I started with this panel of several birds nested in their colorful houses. If you are interested in this fabric line, there are many different bird fabrics, all colorful and delightful. 

 

And then, Pat, my sweet blogging friend, sent me this panel.... an empty tree, just waiting for some colorful birds.  Thank you so much Pat for sending this to me and making the vision that I had in my mind come true.

And lastly, a picture of Oliver that was printed on fabric.  I had intended to thread paint this, but it just didn't work out.  I'll have to give it a try on a future project.

 

Here's the finished hanging.  Although Oliver is no longer with me, I have tons of memories of him sitting by the window and "chatting/cackling" at the birds in the backyard.  I took a few of the birds from the bird panel and combined them with some "blank" tree sections from the tree panel.  I had intended the tree to kind of extend as one into the window sections.  Somehow, when I added the borders and the seam allowances, they were far from lining up.  Oh well... the eye really doesn't pay much attention to the fact that the tree doesn't exactly flow from pane to pane.

A closer look at Oliver.  I added a layer of fusible fleece under him to make him look like he was in the room and give him a bit of a 3D dimension.

These shots are trying to show that I actually did quilt this wall hanging.  Even in person, the quilting lines kind of disappear.  I didn't do heavy quilting, but quilted all of the trees and the window sections.  I think it would have turned out better if I had used a thicker batting.

 

This is a little template that I made to do the window sections.  It was the first time that I had done a version of Attic Windows and was concerned about messing up the Y seams.  With this little template, I just marked the intersections and stopped sewing at the marks.  I machine stitched the whole thing and they went together perfectly, without a glitch.  I was a happy camper!

 

Thanks for stopping by today and checking out my Tree Bird project.  There are other talented bloggers joining me today and here are the links to visit their blogs.  Please fly over to each one and let them know how much you enjoyed your visit!

Tuesday, March 17

Tomorrow's Treasures Today

Childlike Facination

Pig Tales and Quilts

Quiltsmiles

Ella and Nesta's Little Room

Thimblemouse and Spouse

Gracie Oliver Arts-You are here!

 

 

 

 

Oliver's Quilt

As many of you know, my cat, Oliver, passed a few months ago.  I had been planning to make a little memorial quilt for him and I just finished it.  Several months ago, Oliver "won" some George Washington fabric in a giveaway.  Go Here for that post.  Long story short, he won the fabric because his birthday was on Washington's birthday and his middle name was Washington.  I used that fabric for the focal point of this little wall hanging.

 

 

 

 

 I wasn't sure how to quilt the center panel because I didn't want to dissect George's face.  I ended up doing a 4 1/2" grid which worked pretty well. 

 

 

The corner squares, which you would assume would have patriotic quotes in them, actually have cat quotes in them. 

 

 

And my label.  The last names have been blurred to protect the innocent.  ;) (This can be enlarged with a click.)

 

 

 

Overall, I'm pleased with this little wall hanging.  I'll be displaying it on all of the patriotic holidays but, of course, I'll be remembering Oliver every day.

 

RIP

Warning......sad post.....

 

 

 

 

 

My precious Oliver took his final walk on July 7th, 2014.  I have spoken of his health issues in previous posts and they finally got to be too much for him.  The quality of his life took a dramatic turn on July 6th and I knew that it was my final duty of love to put him out of his misery and let him cross the Rainbow Bridge with dignity.  At 18 1/2 years old,  he was not going to recover and this was the best thing for him. 

 

My heart is broken and bleeding right now, but I know that it will continue to mend and grow stronger.  Time..... you know how that goes.... things will get better with time.  My entire life is upside down..... Oliver was my best friend and constant companion.  I'm divorced....no children.....no immediate family.... with only a few extended family members that live elsewhere.  When you don't have people family, your pets become your family and the loss is almost unbearable.   

 

 

 

The vet sent this little plaque with Oliver's paw print.

 

 

 

When my little Gracie passed, the vet also sent a plaque with her paw prints in it.  The same vet tech did both of these plaques, but there is quite a difference in the way they are making them now.  Sweet mementos and I treasure them.

 

 

 

 

I won't drag this out.   It's too painful.  I just wanted to pass this sad news along.  If you have been following me for awhile, you know that my cats played a major role in my life.  My blog, obviously, was named after them.   I just wanted to give Oliver a little public farewell.  I will always treasure my time with him and my joyful memories of him will live on in my heart forever.  Sweet dreams, my Angel, you were such a blessing in my life! 

Thought I should try and post something since I've been AWOL since Easter.  I've been working on some projects, but none are ready for pictures.

 

Here's a somewhat better picture of the jelly roll quilt I recently pieced. I have no place to take pictures that has a large enough space to spread out, so this was taken hanging from my living room armoire.  I really need to find an outdoor spot so that the natural colors will show well.

It still has only one border and I'm thinking it will remain this way as it makes a nice lap quilt at this size. 

 

 

Same shot with an Oliver photo bomb.  In order to get any pictures without Oliver, I had to tuck him away in the bedroom for a few minutes.  He means well.... but you know, he's a cat and cats have different ways of "helping".

 

Once I get this quilted, I promise to take a better

picture of the finished quilt.

Rain, rain....go away!

It's raining at least one cat at my house today!  I've never seen this much rain since I've lived here..... 16 years.  The streets are flooded, which is expected, but so is my yard.  The flower beds are flowing over their borders and the low lying areas could be stocked with fish!  The problem isn't the amount of rain, it's that the ground is saturated (and still frozen except for the top few inches) and can't accept any more moisture. 

 

 

As soon as I got home, Oliver claimed the umbrella and is now napping in it as I write this.  Rain is expected most of the day tomorrow too, so it will be interesting to see if there is much area flooding.  Even with this much water at my house, I should be fine.  I'm on a slab and the most water is pooling on the side of the house without a door.  And, hey..... imagine if this were snow.... Noooooooooo!

**Update**..... a few hours later, the water has absorbed into the ground.... at least on my property, the streets may tell another story.  I couldn't believe the difference a few hours made.  I suspect tomorrow's rain will bring the same effect..... flooding, followed by absorption.  April showers have certainly arrived!

Here's a peek of the quilt top that I just finished.  I need to find a place to take a full shot but thought I'd put a little tease up first.

 

This was a free pattern called "Trade Winds" that came from the Hoffman Fabrics web site.  I went back to give you a link and it is no longer available on their site for free.  I did Google it and it can be purchased in several places.  This must have been one of those patterns that was only free for a limited time.

 

Anyway, it was made from a batik jelly roll that my friend, Kathy, gave me a couple of years ago.  If you do track down the pattern, you will see that I changed many things, like adding sashing and corner blocks.  I did this because I had some distortion with all of the bias edges and wanted it to be true, flat, and square when finished.  It is. 

 

I'll blog more about it when I can get a decent picture.  It only has one border right now, but that may change to make it larger.  And, of course, now comes the hard part..... quilting it. 

 

 

My assistant is enjoying a rare moment of a clean, cleared off cutting mat.  Don't get too comfortable, Oliver!

I was happy to find that I had enough fabric left to make a matching cover for my extension table.  I wasn't in the mood to get too complicated, so I made a simple, fold over envelope pouch.  Its purpose is to keep the table from getting scratched and this will do the job well.  I only have small scraps left, but there could be a coupon keeper (or something like that) in the future.

 

Oliver managed to slip in a partial photo bomb. :)

 

Oliver Wins His First Giveaway!

It's true!...... Well, kind of......

 

Debby had a generous fabric giveaway on February 22nd, Washington's birthday, featuring some great George Washington fabric.  We were just asked to leave a comment telling her what we would make with the fabric, etc.  Well, Oliver's birthday is also February 22nd and because of this, his middle name is Washington.  I told Debby this, and we were picked to get a piece of this GW fabric.  I'm planning to make a small wall hanging with GW in the center and add some kind of border.  We'll see.

 

 

 

I have to give Oliver the credit for this giveaway since it was his birthday that made him a winner!  Thanks Ollie, and of course, thanks to Debby!

Happy 18th Birthday Oliver!!

 

 

I can't believe that I've had 17 precious years (he was 1 when I adopted him) with my little Oliver.  Time certainly slips away.  Oliver has been such a joy with the most gentle, loving personality you could ever ask for.  Even taking this picture.... I was about 2" away from his face and he just snuggled in while I took shot after shot around his face.  He's very patient with me!

Last year on his birthday, I wrote that I didn't know if he'd see his next birthday or not.... I guess I have to say it again, with the hope that he will have a great year ahead of him.  His health issues are serious, but as long as he seems to have a happy, fulfilling life, I'll celebrate each delightful day spent with him! 

Thanks for being my cat, Ollie!      

 

My Christmas wrapping is done! 

Even with Oliver's help, the work is under control. 

 

 

 

 

If you can't find a cardboard box to hide in,

a gift bag is almost as good. 

 

 

 Have a cozy evening!

Christmas Decorating

 

It's that time of the year..... time to drag bring the Christmas decorations down from the attic and make the house a little more festive.  Oliver was ready to help, wearing his new silver bell neckwear.  (Look at those tree needles on the floor... I'll be picking them up until next Christmas!)

 

 

 

 

 

Again this year, I didn't do much decorating.  My house is very tiny and a little bit goes a long way.  It only took me about 2 hours to decorate and it will only take 2 hours to take it down.....that's plenty, as far as I'm concerned.   My new Christmas quilt (on the rocker) is ready for snuggling! 

 

 

 

 

And Sewphie is also dressed in her Christmas wear.  She knows that I have a whole bunch of Christmas projects to get finished and she's ready to get at it!  Time's a tickin'!

 

Wicked Blog Hop

 

 

 

Welcome to my haunted house! 

Please enter if you dare!

 

Don't you just love Halloween and all of the wacky characters that surface on October 31st?!  I'm such a fan of rats, bats, cats, spiders and other creatures that go bump in the night.

 

I wasn't sure what I was going to make until I saw a magazine that had pictured a cake decorated with a Ouija board design on the top.  Perfect theme for the Wicked blog hop!  I searched for some free Ouija board clip art and printed it on fabric.  I knew that it was going to be a runner and started with the Ouija board fabric and built my runner around the three boards, designing as I went along.

 

Here's the finished runner.  It's pretty big.... 55" x 17" and covers the full length of my table with a little hangover on each end.  I had to stand on a lawn chair to get the full width in the shot.

 

 

 

My table is ready for visitors.  The candles are lit and the goblins are welcome!

 

 

 

 

And with the lights off, it's even kind of cozy.....

 

 

 

Here's a close up of the Ouija board fabric.  This is the same Ouija board that you can still buy in the game departments today and it's the one I had growing up.... I loved using them at sleep overs, even though we didn't believe that the cursor was moving by any other method than our own giggly guidance.

 

 

 

 

 

I used the  Magic binding technique again on this runner.  I cannot tell you how much I love this technique and how quickly I can finish binding a quilt or project. I love the look of the flanged edge and the fact that there is NO hand sewing.  Here's the top side of the finished runner.....

 

 

 

 

Here's the backside of the runner showing the extra line of stitching that this binding technique makes.  I have no objection to having that extra line next to the binding. 

 

 

 

I also like to decorate Sewphie for different holidays.  I use cling on's that are removable and don't leave a mark or residue. 

 

You know I had to put a picture of Oliver in this post somewhere.  ;)  Here he is modeling his new costume..... a hamburger.  He's not thrilled because it isn't a scary costume.... I mean, who's afraid of a hamburger!? 

 

 

I put him on the table to explore the new runner and the little cemetery.  Not being used to having an extra 4" of girth, he quickly annihilated the cemetery, knocking most of it over as he made his way through the skulls and goodies, sniffing and checking things out.  I think he liked this because he was now kind of scary as a GODZILLA Hamburger, destroying order and causing mayhem!

 

 

Still with me?...... Here's another giveaway for you.  I picked up  a few Halloween items at Target ...two can cozy's and some coasters..... and also have three pieces of fabric.... the fabric that I used in my table runner.  The pieces are a little bigger than FQ's.  Just leave a comment and you will be entered for a random draw on November 1st.

I hope you have enjoyed your visit and will return soon.  Now it's time for you to visit the other wicked blogs and see what they have conjured  up for you! Here's the gruesome lineup for today;

Grandmama's Stories

Gracie Oliver Arts (you are here...BOO!)

Quilts by Christa

Michelle's Romantic Tangle

Ravelly’s

Pink's Sweet Treats

How Art You?

Georgia-Girl Quilter

I Piece 2-Mary

Words & Stitches

            The Distracted Domestic

 

And where would my manners be if I didn't extend my thank you to Madame Samm, head blogger organizer extraordinaire, and Wendy, our wicked hostess for this hop!   Thank you both for the time and effort that goes into making a successful blog hop!! May your lives be overflowing with treats!

 

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

 

This weekend (Thursday - Monday) was my annual roomie reunion (high school friends, then roommates in college) and I was not feeling well enough to make the trip.  We were to gather at Cathy's cottage in Michigan for some girl time and R & R on the lake.  Well.... all was not lost..... they decided to take one of the days and drive down to my house and spend some time with me!  I felt really guilty that they would loose a day of relaxing on the boat and spend many hours on the road, but they came anyway so that I could be a part of this vacation.  True friends, right?!   

 

 

 

 

 

It was just what I needed.... some girl time with lots of laughs.  I love these dear ladies and it really lifted my spirits!

 

 

After they left, Oliver and I started to work on my Twist to the 60's blog hop idea.  He picked out several batiks for me to use in my project.  (Oliver seems to think that pre-heating the fabric will make it easier to work with...) I'm hoping to make a good dent in it this afternoon.  We'll see.....

 

It's finished!  I finished my Sew Lux Fabrics Holiday Hustle Quilt Along today.  I started this the beginning of August with the hopes of finishing it by the 31st, in time to be included in a random drawing for a great gift certificate from Sew Lux Fabrics.  Dangle a carrot in front of my nose if you want to get me moving!  And I managed to get it all finished, even with Oliver's sweet help.  I was trimming and squaring the quilt today when he pulled the scraps off to play with under the table. 

 

 

 

 

Here's the finished quilt.  It measures 51" x 59", a little smaller than the pattern says, but I must have taken up some fabric with my quilting.  And another use for Wonder Clips is to hold quilts up for pictures.  The photo doesn't show it, but the quilt is being held by wonder clips hooked to two hangers gripping the top of my entertainment center.  It worked well since I have no open space to place a quilt for photos.

 

 

 

 

This is my quilting pattern..... just simple, wavy lines running from top to bottom.

 

 

I tried the new (new to me, anyway) binding technique where you machine sew the binding on the back, fold it over to the front and machine sew it .... yes, machine sewn on the back and the front!  Here's how it looks on the front.  I used my stitch-in-the-ditch foot to sew between the two fabrics used in the binding.... kind of gives it a piping look.  It was very easy to do and I know that I'll be attaching most of my bindings this way in the future.  This technique is great for quilts that get a lot of use and washing.  The binding will really hold up!  Here's a link to the binding technique..... Susie's Magic Binding.  This tutorial has complete instructions so this won't be as confusing as my description.  Give it a try... you'll love it!

 

 

 

This is the back side of the quilt folded over onto the front.  By sewing the binding from the front side, you will have a narrow line of stitching below the binding on the backside.  I don't find this unattractive, but on an heirloom quilt, I would still hand sew my binding.

 

 

 

Here's the backside again, showing one of the corners.  It looks the same as any binding except for that narrow line of stitching below the binding. 

 

It only took me an hour and a half to sew the binding on this quilt!  That's the back and the top, both sides... completely finished.  It was really nice to finish a quilt binding so quickly.

 

Christmas in August!  One project done.... many more on my to do list!