Honor Flight

On the way home from California we had a layover in Phoenix which unfortunately included a delay due to "mechanical problems"

But that delay turned out to be quite fortunate! We were able to witness the return home of WWII veterans who were on an Honor Flight trip to DC to see the memorial constructed in their honor. The picture is too fuzzy here to read, so check out their website: www.Honorflightaz.org
You can probably find one in your state too!



I had heard about this group on Nashville radio and was under the impression that this was all done by volunteer pilots and planes and in small groups. Apparently I was mistaken. Southwest Airlines ia a big sponsor of this and offere major discounts to companions and family members travelling with each veteran.

When the plane lands and taxi's up to the gate... water cannons are shot over the plane by Southwest employees as their show of support for these great men and women who served our country well.




We witnessed a group of 30 returning home to AZ. They were the last to deplane and many of the other passengers came off smiling and cheering. They had quite a party going on in the back of the plane.



It was really nice to see so many people in the terminal stop to greet and cheer on these brave men and women! The veterans really seemed to enjoy it.

This guys face seems to say it all!

Cheddar on the Plane

For my trip to California, I made a little kit for Cheddar Bowties to take along for busy work on the plane. We had the "front seat" of the plane where there was plenty of leg room from Mom in her brace, but that meant that there were no tray tables to work on. :<(

I pulled off quite the juggling act, balancing everything on my lap while making bowties. It got really challenging when drinks and snacks were handed out!


I managed to make several bowties while Matthew and Mom did Word-Search puzzles


I had quite a bit of time to work on this during evenings, doctor appointments and hospital visits and completed 39 blocks! Here's my progress so far... all by hand!

Since these blocks only measure 3inches... I have a lot more blocks to make to turn this into a quilt!

California Bound

My uncle has been fighting bone cancer for years and is now asking family to come visit as he is unable to travel. I have been a busy whirlwind of activity unpacking, laundry and repacking so that within 24 hours after returning from my reunion in New York and a birthday party in Maryland I am packed and ready to fly to California with Matthew and Mom.


After packing, we went out for a Chinese dinner and here is my fortune.
I know, it's blurry... couldn't get the camera to focus in on it but it says "Measure your cloth ten times, you can cut it but once". How perfect!

So after dinner I spent a couple hours cutting fabric and preparing a kit for the cheddar challenge. I won't be doing it as a leader/ender project as it will be too challenging to lug the sewing machine to California for a week.



My squares are cut and have a spool of thread, thimble and ONE sewing needle... I even stopped at the dollar store for kindergarten blunt-ended scissor to take on the plane. I am going to attempt to sew these bow ties by hand. As I normally do most of my stitching by machine, this will be a challenge of a different kind.

Reunions

A short time ago Mom got a phone call from an "old" friend of hers who was passing through town on her way south for the winter. Her bridesmaid, Maureen (and her husband, Jim)wanted to meet for lunch if she was available. Mom agreed, but she wanted me to come along too. I had no idea who they were, so Mom started telling stories and we went digging through boxes looking for pictures. Picture taking and developing was expensive back then and the only picture we could find was at Mom's wedding. I took a picture of a picture and cropped it here so you could see these two beautiful women in 1952.

Fast forward to 2011 and here we are at Olive Garden enjoying a wonderful lunch of soup and salad! Oh, they have exchanged letters and pictures over the years and have gotten together once or twice. But there is nothing better than sitting down with your best friend talking and reminiscing.

They exchanged stories and tales, trials and tribulations and way to soon it was time to leave.

One last picture together as they walk out the door. Of course, they'll still keep in touch and maybe get to visit next year during next year's trek north to visit grandchildren. Or maybe, this winter, I'll take Mom and Matthew and drive south for a warm winter break!

Now I'm off to dig through boxes in my closet and find my high school yearbook! I recently received an invitation to my 35th reunion.... homecoming game and an Octoberfest Feast!

Good Times... Good Friends

They say you can't go home again, but I recently had an opportunity to do just that... for my 35th high school reunion. Through the miracle of facebook and the internet (things that were unheard of when we were in high school) some of the guys organized a get-together at The Mason Jar. Sixty of us traveled from all corners of the country from Alaska, Florida, California, Maine, Oklahoma, and Tennessee and some never left New York!


There are lawyers, money managers, and accountants.
Harrison is a screenwriter in L.A.!



Kathleen, as a teenager was always on the campaign road for her dad and has also campaigned for representatives and senators... now is campaigning for herself! Deborah is in busness and finance working for Xerox. Marie has retired to Burgundy, France!



Mark is an RN and Leah is a school superintendent.



Eileen's sister owns a quilt shop in Chester!
I wish there was time to go visit.



Former cheerleaders and twirlers...We even had a teacher attend... Linda Goosman who had to have a picture with her gang!

We missed the many that were unable to attend or whom we were unable to locate. There were some that are now gone who will be forever remembered.

The time flew by quickly and too soon it was time to head home... emails and phone numbers exchanged and promises keep in touch while tentative plans were made for another gathering in 2012!

Cheddar Challenge

Bonnie Hunter, scrappy quilt designer extraordinaire, issued a challenge to all quilters using her favorite color fabric... Cheddar! She wanted to see how many bowtie blocks could be made over the next year as leader/enders. Read her her July 13th post and learn all about it.

http://quiltville.blogspot.com/2011/07/sisters-sisters-2011-leaderender.html

My problem was I had no cheddar and was unable to find any at the local quilt shops. So both a good friend and I were heading out of town... in different directions... with the goal of finding some cheddar. I found this bright yellow cheddar and decided to pair it up with some civil war blues and red that I had.

I also found this cheddar... more of a butter color.



My friend Janice found this cheddar..I think it is more pumpkin though. Here I've matched it up with these two choices of civil war fat quarter fabrics in reds or neutrals.


I think the real challenge is deciding what "Cheddar" really looks like! As a friend recently said, I guess it depends on if you want mild, sharp or blended cheddar!

Chatelaine

Lately, I have been working on hand-stitching down the binding on some customer ordered chatelaines. I carry small handwork projects like this around with me to do while waiting on appointments and when I answer the question "What are you making?" with "Chatelaine", it's clear the questioner is not a stitcher from the blank look and "Oh" response I get. So I demonstrate by putting one around my neck and slipping my thimble and small scissor in the pocket. I still get some funny looks, but others think it's a clever idea!

Actually, chatelaines have been around for several centuries...
Here's a definition from Wikipedia:

Chatelaine, 1765-1775 Victoria and Albert Museum no. C.492:1 to 7-1914 Chatelaine is a decorative belt hook or clasp worn at the waist with a series of chains suspended from it. Each chain is mounted with a useful household appendage such as scissors, thimble, watch, key, vinaigrette, household seal, etc.

Chatelaines were worn by many housekeepers in the 19th century. They were also worn by Anglo Saxon women, as seen from the burial record.

The name chatelaine derives from the french term châtelaine used to mean the female owner, or wife of the owner, of a large house. Originally the chatelaine was designed to have all the tools necessary for the woman of the household to sort out any problem she may encounter in her day, like a fraying curtain, however with time the chatelaine and the objects it held evolved from being a purely utilitarian object into a decorative symbol that reflected the status of the wearer.

There are pictures of some ornate chatelaines, and if I figure out how to copy a picture here I will. If not, you can google chatelaine to see a wide variety of pictures.

I think the mondern-day equivalent could be thought of as a fancy, handy key chain!Mine are simple and utilitarian and made from fabric. Instead of keys, I keep small sewing supplies handy when I'm working at my quilter
(like snippers, pins and seam rippers). I even stick my cell phone in a pocket so it's easy to take calls.

BOMs, Challenges and Sew-Alongs

There are lots of quilting blogs out there and many offer Block Of the Month programs. Here are a few of my current favorites.

Bloggers BOM - each month a different designer will post a blog with their 12 inch block design and by October 2012 you will have enough blocks to make a quilt. I haven't started this one yet, but I plan to catch up by the first of the year.
http://cvquiltworks.blogspot.com/2011/09/bloggers-bom-quilt-along.html

Mystery Table Runner BOM by Springwater Designs. This is a short BOM... only three months... with only three blocks to make, I'm pretty sure I'll be able to get this done!
http://springwaterdesigns.blogspot.com/2011/09/how-about-something-just-for-fun.html

Christmas Red and White Blocks by Quilting Gallery - each Friday a different designer will post a blog with their design for an 8.5 inch block and if you keep up you will have a new red and white quilt for Christmas. I just wish I could find my red/white fabric to get started on this one... I may just have to go buy some more!
http://quiltinggallery.com/quilters-fun/celebrate-christmas/designers/

Crumb Along With Me by Jo's Country Junction... After posting a picture of a Crumb Quilt that she made she was innundated with questions for a pattern. Follow along as she tells us how to make our own crumb quilt.
http://www.joscountryjunction.com/?page_id=4906

My Tweets BOM by Erin Russek of One Piece At A Time is doing an applique BOM ...I could only hope to find enough time for this beautiful applique quilt. I'm just following along to see the progress and end result.
http://erinrussek.typepad.com/one-piece-at-a-time/my-tweets/

I love Civil War fabrics and Barbara Brackman does this weekly posting of blocks and some history surrounding the design that is very interesting. This one is definitely on my want to do list.
http://civilwarquilts.blogspot.com/

This Birdie Stitches BOM by Little Miss Shabby involves embroidering blocks before piecing them into a quilt.
http://www.littlemissshabby.com/


Here is a mini Christmas Sew-Along by Sew Happy Me.
http://www.sewhappy.me/


I am participating in the the Cheddar Challenge by Bonnie Hunter http://quiltville.blogspot.com/2011/07/sisters-sisters-2011-leaderender.html

and a Sew Along by Pat Sloan http://blog.patsloan.com/2011/09/pat-sloan-sept-into-oct-sew-a-long.html Hurry... the finish date has been extended to Oct 25, so there is still time to complete your project!

September Donations, Finishes, WIPs

DONATIONS:Victoria from Bumble Beans issued a challenge to meet the goal of 750 quilts for Basics Housing in Bronx, NY.... see Bumble Beans blog at http://www.bumblebeansbasics.com/
and click on the link there for more information on Basics.

Here are two quilts that are on their way to the Bronx to find a new home. Hopefully they will bring some comfort to their new owners.


I've also made two quilt blocks this month. A girl that works at our local library asked all local groups and donors/supporters of the library to donate a quilt block which she will then make into a quilt for a display at some future date. The second block is for a quilt for Meghan who had been badly injured in a car accident.


FINISHES:
I made this brightly colored table runner just because I loved the color combination in the side fabric. I found some coordinatng fat quarters to make the pieced blocks. I do have some remaining scraps and hope to get a coordinating place mat or two made to go with it.

I also quilted this "Only Christmas Spoken Here" wall hanging which has already moved on to it's new home.



WIPs:
I participated in a 9-patch swap some time ago and had these extra orphan blocks remaining. So I put them together into this 42 inch wall hanging/table topper and moved it over to my pile awaiting it's turn to be quilted.

I also finished the applique on this basket sampler wall hanging started in a class by Pat Sloan back in July. I hung it up, unquilted, just to have a more fall-like wall hanging (my husband was tired of looking at the christmas cardinals I had finished last winter) Now that I have seen it up, I think I may have to add another border so that it fits between my hang-ups better. But for now I'm officially calling it moved to my waiting to be quilted pile!




Back in the 70's when I was still in high school, my Uncle Tom and Aunt Polly discovered they were pregnant. She was busy/exhausted raising 2 year old Rachael and she asked me to fly to California and be a mother's helper during my summer break. I agreed and took on several odd-jobs babysitting, housecleaning, window washing and delivering newspapers saving every penny to pay the airfare. Michael T was born on June 11th and as soon as school let out at the end of June I took my first plane ride cross country! I ran after and entertained Rachael while my aunt took care of the new baby... I'm sure I had a turn or two at changing diapers and feeding him bottles too! While I was there I was honored to stand up at his Christening as his Godmother!

Being on opposite sides of the continent I didn't get a chance see him growing up into the man he has become. But, I recently connected with him on Facebook. In our online conversations he mentioned that he would like to have a quilt, so I started making Strip Twist pattern for him. So far I have the 40 "light" blocks made and am working on sewing the strips for the 40 "dark" blocks.



I know, the picture doesn't show much... but that's on purpose... I want the final results to be a surprise for him!

Oh... and just so you don't think I'm a slacker.... I've had booths at 3 different shows and quilted 13 customer quilts this month! Check out my facebook page to see them.www.facebook.com/HillsdaleQuilts

Sew Along with Pat Sloan

On September 18the Pat Sloan posted on her blog about a Sew-Along using a pattern from her new book "What a Novel Idea" to create a quilt by October 15th.

http://blog.patsloan.com/2011/09/pat-sloan-sept-into-oct-sew-a-long.html

I didn't have any layer cakes to use so I searched through my stash and found these coordinating fabrics and so far I have cut them into the 10in squares to begin putting this quilt together.



I have about two weeks left to get this top made! Need to schedule some "sewing for me" time and let some customer work slide for a day!

Upper Cumberland Quilt Show - Algood

I spent the weekend in Algood at the quilt show drooling over these awesome works of art.



I just love these older traditional quilt patterns.







I hope to some day complete my Dear Jane quilt... I have only three of the over 200 blocks in this quilt completed so far! I better live a very long life! LOL!


These two are versions of The Underground Railroad pattern by Elinor Burns. On the left is a brightly colored version by Judy Helnick and on the left is mine made with civil war reproduction fabrics. I can't decide which one I like better!

And here are a few more from the show






I found this one made by Lynn Dycus and quilted by me.


And this one was pieced and hand quilted by the ladies from the senior center to raffle off. Unfortunately I was not the lucky winner!