Techno

Happy Monday! It's a chilly, windy sunny day here. I love fall days like this! This is a new quilt design again inspired by my sons. My oldest asked me if I couldn't make something with all right angles...no off kilter stuff. He's kinda of a symmetrical kind of guy. It's not symmetrical, but definitely lots of right angles. My other son wanted me to lose the prints...that's not too hard cause I'm really in to solids right now. So, "Techno" came about.
I had some assistance from the wind during the photo session!I'm pretty excited to quilt this one and there's a companion on the way too. I'm working on patterns for both.

I have some giveaway winners too. I'm glad you all liked War of Art...truly an inspiring read.

I drew two winners from the commenters and two more from my list of Quilter Butt participants. The winners from the comments are:

Brenda who said, Amen, sister! I find I can rationalize lots of stuff, but when I go out and just do it, the results are amazing. Like yesterday, I spent several hours making Christmas gifts and finished a whole bunch. It didn't take a lot of time, just a can-do attitude. thanks for a chance at your giveaway.

Rachel's Quilts who said, I think I need to read that book. Thanks for the push to get up and do something this morning.

and the other winners are Krista of Spotted Stone and Sara of A Pirates Bounty. Drop me an email and we can talk about a custom fabric bundle just for you!

In other news, Kajsa's blog tour for her new book, Scandinavian Stitches starts today. Be sure to check out all the stops and come back here on Wednesday for a chance to win her fabulous book. It's a must buy!

Guess Who Is Coming To Our House?

When I say house, I mean the Kansas City Modern Quilt Guild house. It's Cherri House, the fabulous quilt designer and author of the amazing 'City Quilts.'
We are so thrilled to have her. She'll be speaking to our guild at 7 p.m. tomorrow night (Thursday) at the Roeland Park Community Center. It's going to be standing room only I'm sure. If you're not a member of the guild it'll be $5.00 admission, but worth every penny.

I'm so excited to meet and learn from her. If you're in the neighborhood, you should come too. She's also doing a workshop on Friday at Harper's Fabrics in Overland Park. I think it's close to full, but you can check and see by giving them a call.

We have a winner of the Daisy Janie fabrics too. Thanks for all your great advice for Tammy. I'm sure she learned a bunch from you. I know I did! The winner is Lynn of the Little Red Hen! Congrats Lynn! Drop me an email with your address and I'll have Tammy send you your fabrics.

'You've Got Your Health'

Those words mean much to folks whose loved ones are ill and fighting to get and stay healthy. My friend Katie, of See Katie Sew knows all about those words. Her hubby John has been battling lymphoma and Katie has been fighting right along side him. I've admired her work for a long time, but more importantly, I've admired her courage and how she has openly shared both the ups and downs of John's illness.
Katie has made this quilt to help raise money for the "Light the Night' walk for the Lymphoma and Leukemia Society. She's having a giveaway on her blog to support her team raising money for this event. Crosses for a Cause would be a great name for this quilt...and don't you love that orange back!
So, for Fitness Friday this week, if you've got your health, help someone who doesn't and check out Katie's giveaway. Let's be part of her team!

Awesomeness

I wish it all looked like this...

(fabric is Ellen Crimi Trent from her line Woodland Friends)

...but honestly, it looks like this.

My friend Lauren wrote the other day about creative types either being in the state of awesomeness or in hackdom. Well, last week I was in full hack mode, and I have the full trash can to prove it.
I can only dream of awesomeness...

There is, however awesomeness in my world.
You all are AWESOME. Alissa smashed her goal and we are helping some really needy women and children in the Congo. A heartfelt thank you to everyone who donated.

I'm off to work on being a little less of a hack. That's a small step toward awesomeness.

There's A Lot of Giving Going On!

To those of you who headed over to Alissa's to give to Action Kivu, I can't thank you enough.
It's not too late to get some action on this bundle of Flea Market Fancy. The fundraiser on Alissa's blog is going well, but we're not there yet. Can you give up a yard of fabric this month and donate $10? Or would you like to get your hands on this wonderful bundle of joy? A $75 donation will get you in the draw. The money we raise beyond our $7,500 goal starts putting kids to school in the Congo. Alissa has raised the goal to $10,000. We can SO do this! If you thought about making a donation, go ahead and do it now.

What else is up around here?

I've been making quilt backs...so far I've got backs for these three finished. Quilt backs are one of my achilles heels (yes, I have more than one!). Sometimes when I've spent so much energy on the front, it's hard to tackle the back. But now there will be some quilting going on.
I received a bit of good news this week. My little home on the net was featured in Quilter's World magazine. Pretty cool. I like that she called me no-nonsense. I sure try to be. Inspirational...geez....a pretty nice shot in the arm during a tough week.

Taking Action

When Alissa asked me to post about the Action Kivu fundraiser I knew I wanted to do more. A little bundle of Flea Market Fancy seems so insignificant in comparison to the good it might do for these women and their families.

Alissa is hosting a fundraiser for Action Kivu, an organization in eastern Congo that runs a sewing workshop for victims of the conflict there. The conflict in Congo has taken the lives of over 5.4 million people since 1998. Rape is used as a weapon of war, with estimates putting the number of rapes in the hundreds of thousands.

The faces of these women speak to me.

PHOTOGRAPHS BY MICHAEL GRAHAM

Our quilting/sewing community is an amazing one and we understand the therapy and joy that a sewing machine and needle and thread can bring. Head to Alissa's blog and read more about Action kivu and most importantly donate. Whatever you can give will help. If you'd like a chance for the Flea Market Fancy you'll need to donate 75 dollars. I'd love to see Alissa smash the goal she's set. We can do this!

Are You Focused?

Sometimes all it takes is a fun focus fabric to bring things together. A group of us in guild are making a quilt for a special little girl. We all got a piece of this fabric and we decided to bring out the colors in the fabric in the block and to make a sort of square in a square block. I made two from my chunk of fabric and then I couldn't stop, and since I had more of the owls I had to make more. I can't wait to see everyone's blocks and how the quilt will come together.






Speaking of focus, I need to be totally focused this weekend. The 'church lady' quilt (that I'm donating to my mom's church) is due Saturday evening. Nothing like waiting until the VERY last minute. Fabric will be flying and the machine whirring. I do hate to miss a deadline.

Remember, the Spring to Finish check-in is on Monday. Gosh, has the time flown, but I know you can get at least one finish by then. Have a happy Mom's Day with your mom or with your kiddos!!

**For those of you who have asked...the focus fabric is 'spotted owl' by Alexander Henry. It is pretty available and comes in several colors and also in a home dec weight with BIG owls.

Spring to Finish Challenge 2010

The "Spring to Finish Challenge" starts today and ends six weeks from today on May 31st. We'll have a 'Halfway There' check in on May 10.

Let's keep it simple. You decide what you want to work on, and do your best to achieve your goal. It doesn't matter to me if you are finishing quilts or finishing that half painted room in your house. It's all up to you. Count your projects however you see fit.

Simply writing the words 'spring to finish' the other day gave me the kick in the pants I needed to motivate myself.

After you've decided what you want to do, decide how you're going to reward yourself for completing your goal. If chocolate is your thing, indulge. If you love movies, take a friend or your honey and get a big popcorn to go with the show. Have a relaxing bubble bath with candles and all the trimmings. Treat yourself!

I've made a button for all of us. Feel free to take it from the sidebar and link back to this post. Here is the code for the button. I hope this works!
<a href="http://tallgrassprairiestudio.blogspot.com/2010/04/spring-to-finish-challenge-2010_19.html" title="spring to finish big by Jacquie G, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4022/4533831188_69e0fce7d2_m.jpg" width="202" height="240" alt="spring to finish big" /></a>

May 10 is the halfway point in the challenge. I'll do a post that day and everyone can come back and leave a link to their finishes so far and I'll do a little giveaway that day for all of you who have at least one finish by that date.

May 31 is the end of the challenge. There may be a prize or two that day, but folks, any finish is a prize and remember, we're all going to reward ourselves!

So, leave a comment to tell me you're in. Tell everyone your goal and most importantly how you plan to reward yourself for your finishes. Feel free to invite others to join.

Can you feel the collective energy building?

I have my list of projects made and prioritized. First on the list is my niece's graduation gift. This is not a quilt (though I'd sure like it to be.) They will be four stacked book placemats. She's getting dishtowels and potholders too.

As for how I'm going to reward myself. If I finish my list, I'm taking my hubby away....it may not be very far away, but we are getting away together and NO ONE is going to work.

I hope you'll join me. (not on the getaway...on the challenge!) Now, I'm off to sew. Could I get that first finish by the end of the day?

spread a smile

Did you know that fabric can smile?
Obviously it can, and it can spread smiles too. Kathy and Amber have cooked up a little project you might want to participate in. Kathy's son had a rough beginning and she would like to donate some quilty goodness to say thank you to the hospital staff for all their good work. When Kathy contacted me I knew I wanted to help. My son had a similar experience and I feel very much the same about Children's Mercy Hospital here in Kansas City. You can find out the details of their project on Kathy's blog. Both Amber and Kathy are having giveaways as an incentive to help. Check it out, and help a mom say thanks to some really deserving folks.
I spent the weekend in St. Paul, Minnesota celebrating my youngest son's 19th birthday, but when I got home I had a few minutes to play with these. I have all the interior curved piecing done. I have 6 arcs completed. Now to figure out what to do with them. I'm really loving them as arcs...More to come!

P.S.

Don't forget that Quilting Month begins April 1 on Sew Mama Sew. There is so much great stuff happening...you won't want to miss it. Thanks to all of you who commented on my interview. I was doing a happy dance all weekend!

Inspector #5

Do you make things for other people? Do you worry about them being perfect? I do. Though I love working freely without the encumbrances of other people's rules, I'm pretty strict with myself. If I didn't work on it every day I'd be paralyzed by perfection.

As I was packaging my neighborhood quilts to send to their new owners I noticed a flaw in one of the quilts. It was a roofing problem, shoddy construction, and definitely a lax general contractor. I would have been mortified if that quilt had arrived at its destination with a leaky roof. The future owner was gracious as could be, but I was still beside myself. My brain jumped to dark places about other quilts.

I think I've said this before that there is a fine line between wonky and wacked out. I want my quilts, if they are wonky to be that way purposefully. Does that make any sense at all? Cutting with scissors or without a ruler creates wavier seams, but they shouldn't fall apart.

I also know that part of the beauty of the handmade is its imperfection, the touch of the hand.

Where am I going with this?

I don't want to subject myself to the quilt police, maybe a kindly, inspector #5 is what i need?


On a happier note. The first meeting of the Kansas City Modern Quilt Guild took place on Saturday morning. These are my MQG peeps. 34 of us and growing. It's a good thing! If you'd like to see if there is a group in your city, go here. If not, why not start one.

One more thing for your Monday. Beth, my friend at Modern Jax is auctioning some gorgeous quilts and tree skirts to benefit Haiti. The need in Haiti will be long term. My hope is that this disaster may be the catalyst to development and stability for the people of Haiti. With the help of my blog friends, I donated $1,100 to the American Red Cross today. I know it's just a drop in the bucket, but a bunch of drops adds up to a flood of help.

I forgot to say, thanks for all the kind words about 'feeling blue' and my sew connected quilt. I appreciate each and every comment.

With a Little Help from My Friends and Family

I had a little extra help this weekend and so I was able to hunker down in the studio and get some sewing done.

The 'Feeling Blue' blocks are now a queen sized quilt top. You can see I ran out of space on my design wall. I'd love to know your thoughts on this one. My hand is itching to grab my snarky seam ripper and start again. That block in the center is bothering me.

I made a simple pieced back for the back of this pinwheel quilt. It's on the floor ready to baste.

'Red Hearts' is basted and ready to quilt. I'm having a little trouble deciding how to quilt it, but then I always struggle with the 'how to quilt' decision. Again, the snarky seam ripper is at hand in case I make the wrong decision.
The Neighborhood to Help a Neighborhood auction for Haiti is going great. Thanks to each of you who have put in a bid or helped publicize the auction! You're the best! At post time the bids were:

Pink - $200

Blue - $200

Green - $150

That's $1100 for the American Red Cross and the auction doesn't end until Friday. You can check it out here.

The Craft Hope etsy shop is exceeding all expectations. So many of my crafty friends have donated or bought items. My 'Hot Spots' quilt found a new home too. Doesn't it warm your heart to see how folks rally in a time of need?

A Neighborhood to Help a Neighborhood

It's difficult to watch television these days. The devastation and suffering in Haiti is hard to imagine and the amount of help and support that is needed to make a difference is staggering.

I read on the Craft Hope site about their etsy store to help earthquake victims in Haiti by raising money for Doctors Without Borders. I planned to donate items for the store. My husband suggested instead that I could raise more money by auctioning the quilts on my blog. However you choose to help, please help in your own small way.

Here's what I would like to do. I'm auctioning my neighborhood quilts and the proceeds will be donated to the American Red Cross. I WILL MATCH WHATEVER IS EARNED FROM THE AUCTION. The auction will begin with this post and end on Friday at 8 a.m. central time.

So here's how it works. Leave a comment with
1. the color of the quilt your bidding on (blue, pink, green)
2. the amount of your bid
3. your email address


If you have the top bid, I will send you a paypal invoice for your quilt. When all the payments are received I will send out the quilts, and make a donation to the American Red Cross for double the amount raised.

blue neighborhood 27.5" x 40.5"

pink neighborhood 29" x 29"

green neighborhood 27.5" x 40.5"
Thanks for helping. If you'd like to post about it on your blog to spread the word, that would be great. Let's see what kind of a difference we can make together.

I decided to donate a quilt to the Craft Hope Etsy store as well. Remember the Hot Spots quilt I didn't know what to do with? Now it has a purpose...hopefully it will find a home. (Sold 15 minutes after the listing went up. Yippee!!)

A Winner and Not Much Else

It hasn't been the week I'd planned. I'm on my 4th day of a migraine and the end is not is sight. I've made it through the days, but I definitely haven't done all the basting I'd planned. Leaning over on hands and knees simply wasn't possible this week. I did manage to finish these pillows. I think they have a nice fall feeling. They're on my living room sofa. Pretty amazing scraps, don't you think? They are the first finished project from my scrap to treasure group. I'm still working on a quilt from the scraps I received. Maybe this weekend I can tackle that again.

So, to the business of the day. I did the random number thingy with the comments from Ben's blog (thanks again) with those that were left on Monday's post and the winner was Nanette! Nanette said, "Oh Gosh Jacquie. I love them all so much. You truly do inspire me. Sometimes I dream an idea and I come here and you've already got it on fabric!"
Nanette blogs at Freda's Hive, and is in the flurry of a wedding. I was so thrilled to count down and see her comment! I wish I could send one to all of you. Nanette, I'll be in touch and get this on the way to you.

Have a great weekend everyone.

Pocket Change

The 'Pocket Change' coin quilt is just a few stitches from being completed, but I couldn't wait to show it to you. I love it. The tutorial should be up on the sidebar of my blog later this afternoon. (Yes, I ripped out all the quilting from the no batting fiasco. A summer quilt wasn't what was in my head and once I have an idea in my head, it's hard to get it out. Stubborn, I know. I've been told that once or twice.)
Again, the back is a bit of fun...a few extra rows of coins.
A close up of the quilting...a compact straight line argyle-like pattern.

TUTORIAL IS UP...look in the sidebar. I've also created a flickr group for items made from patterns and tutorials that I've shared on this blog. Come join the group and show what you've made. It's always nice to see when the effort I put into tutorial making actually gets used. So join the group and post your pics!! I can't wait to see what you've made.
I attended a baby shower for a lovely young lady who has grown up before my eyes. Now she's going to be a mom. She and her future little one received this quilt.
I made a little bag for it. Actually, it's not really for the quilt...it's to hang over the head rest of the car to toss in all those baby/kid things that need to be in the car. You know, books, toys, extra pacifiers and of course snacks.
The shower was great fun. I can't wait to see the little one with his/her quilt.

For those who asked...I used the Kidlet tutorial at JC Handmade for the car organizer. I used part of a quilted zig zag pillow sham for the front of the bag. I adapted her design a bit by making it larger 15x15 and I changed the size of the pocket to accomodate the book, but other than that it's pretty much the same. I also sewed two lengths of the polka dot ribbon together on the edges for the handle. I wanted polka dots to be on both sides, plus it gave it a bit more weight and strength. Oh, and I added a tall pocket on the inside to hold a bottle. Hope this helps.

Iraqi Bundles of Love

So, do you have some extra fabric and notions hanging around your house? If so...read on.

I've been reading Kristen's blog for awhile now and she's an amazing artist, but besides that she's got this cool husband who is serving in Iraq and doing this project to leave behind supplies for the people he has served. Iraqi Bundles of Love. I'm packing up a box to send tonight.

Head here to read more about it and find out how you can help. A simple gesture with enormous impact.

Edited to add: The IBOL guy has made a button (well, maybe Kristen made it) to add to your blog. Thanks to all who have headed over and are sending a box. I know I shouldn't be surprised by the goodness and generosity of people. But, somehow I always am.

A Christmas Gift

I participated in Stephanie and Linda's Christmas in July swap. Even though I haven't received my package yet, I got a gift, a special gift of a new friend. Jenny, of Elefantz, was my partner and I had the pleasure of making a few little things for her. The greatest thing about doing swaps is meeting new people and sometimes there's even a connection. Jenny is one of those people.

We share the love of vintage things, fun fabric, and I'm sure we have more in common that we have yet to discover. If you don't know Jenny or her blog you should definitely check it out. She is a master stitcher and designs stitchery patterns. Who knows, she may even convince me to give hand stitching a go.

Here's what I made for Jenny. One of the requirements of the swap was to make a bag or a stocking....I chose a bag. I was a bit nervous about that because I've never made any kind of bag before. This one was an adaptation of a tutorial on JC Handmade. (she calls it a kidlet wall pocket...I made it into a bag.) I used linen and this wonderful Michael Miller fabric with retro Christmas ladies. It's the cutest fabric ever. It's lined with multi color pez which I think looks like Christmas lights.
Can you see the hearts? They're made from a vintage quilt, have pinked edges, are sewn together and have a simple grosgrain ribbon loop hanger. I made her a set of those. There are a couple of ornaments and some cute Japanese fabric.
I forgot to take a picture of the pillow. It has some cute Christmasy embroidery...done by machine, not by hand. Can you see it?
I used more of that fun fabric and made a couple of potholders with grommets of course.
Do you recognize this mod tree? Jenny was the guinea pig for my Christmas tree skirt tutorial on Sew Mama Sew. I added some free pieced letters and made her this mini quilt.
I also experimented with some decorative stitching. I do like to try new things for my swap partners!
Lastly, a tiny little raw edge applique quilt.

It was so much fun spying on Jenny and making things for her. Thanks so much to Stephanie and Linda for all their work organizing this swap. They are great swap mamas!

Some sad news in my week. I had another heartbreak with this quilt. You can read about it here.

Please Don't Tell My Husband

I think I'm in love. Well, it's really just a crush, but I've fallen head over heals for this quilt. Should be quilted by the end of the day if I get my sewing machine back...it's in emergency repair...what a time for that to happen!

I love the polka dot fabric in this one...it's Michael Miller's mirror ball dots. They're shiny...they almost glitter and twinkle. Simply FABULOUS! I only have a little bit and this was perfect for it. It just might have to be named 'orange crush'. Oh, dear. I crack myself up!

Did you know it's Christmas in July? This little lady may be part of the fun! I've finished my goodies for my partner in Stephanie and Linda's Christmas in July swap. They're all packed up and ready to go. Can't show any more yet....package goes in Santa's sleigh July 11!

I had so much fun with the virtual gallery show. Thanks to everyone for coming. I think just about everyone I've met in blogland came by and signed the guestbook too. It was great to have you. I'm still trying to get all the comments that aren't 'no reply' responded to. A special thanks to Laurie who attended virtually and bought one of the quilts. Thanks for supporting the clinic with your purchase.

I learned something about the Southwest Blvd Family Health Care Clinic when I was at the show. There are two pay scales at the clinic, volunteer and $12.00 an hour. Everyone, including doctors, dentists, custodians, office help, either makes $12.00 an hour or nothing at all. These folks serve those who need it most in our community. I'm so proud to be a part of their network of support.