I'm leaving first thing in the morning...

...You'll know where to find me...=-)

Have a great summer everyone!

Airing of the Quilts

Today is Dorothy's 6th Annual Airing of the Quilts and I finally sent some photos this year. Usually I am in NY w/o my computer by this time so I am not ever able to participate...Today is a gorgeous, puffy cloud, breezy day here in SoCA, perfect for airing the quilts! I grabbed a few off the shelf in the hall closet and snapped away. These are all older quilts, made back when I was more productive...=-/ Man, I do like them... and I especially like seeing them there in the sunshiny day out in the yard =-)

So, come on, join me on my mini-tour:

This is a Tennessee Waltz made for DH back in the late 90s. I started it in one house and finished it in the "new" house after we moved. It was a bittersweet finish as we had lost our sweet big dog in the middle of the hand quilting. She used to sit at my feet as I quilted, leaned up against me with all her loving might(more often than not tangled in the quilt that was hanging down as I worked sitting in my chair each day.) It took me a long time to be able to sit under it and quilt again, but I eventually did. There is a tribute block with her name and silouette quilted into one of the open plain blocks...makes my throat catch to this day when I see it...

Next, is a Round Robin quilt, "Watching Birdies in my Summer Garden," made along with members of my quilt guild at the time...again, made in the 90s...I made the center portion out to and including the purple plaid. This was in my "Red Wagon" primitive-style phase... The center I designed using some elements from Red Wagon and some of my own, all in an arrangement design of my own. I was ecstatic when I got it back ; everyone did such amazing and appropriate-to-this-quilt borders...I was very lucky!

Here we have my log cabin, "Family & Friends," finished in 2002. The red center squares are all signed by family members and friends, people who have been in my life. This one is special, some of the signers now watch us from above. The quilting on this took FOREVER...since I only hand quilt, those lines that split every single one of those logs were never-ending...I mean it...

In 2002, my DD graduated from high school. The next quilt was her graduation quilt, "Island Girl." She had a love of palm trees, the beach, and all things tropical, so I got to make an island-theme quilt. It was made using the Square Dance method of piecing the background, in a gradated, sort of watercolor, blendy effect, to show the scene from under the water all the way to the sky. I then appliqued the huts (commercial pattern for those, as well as the tiny palm trees), the trees (large one framing the right side was my own design), the little batik squares that depict sea creatures, shells, the sun, moon, and stars (you aren't able to see the ones near the top here), a few broderie perse fish in the water and some shells on the sand, and in the center of the water a mermaid with blonde, flowing hair that looked very much like DD at the time. Everything was then hand quilted. This quilt was a LOT of fun! The back was also fun, containing many, many things that were meaningful to DD, some remnants of her childhood clothes, photo transfers of pictures of her first car (shiny, red '66 Mustang!), and various other things. I was sorry to see the process end...but, oh so glad to be done...if you know what I mean...

This next one made of a pink print and muslin is one of my favorites of all the quilts I've made. I wanted to make a quilt myself that looked and felt just as warm and cozy and soft as the antique quilts that I love so much. It was an extremely simple quilt to piece, and it afforded lots of hand quilting area. I did not wash the fabrics beforehand (I almost never do) and I used a cotton batt, all to insure that when I was finished quilting and finally did wash the quilt it would pucker up and be all those things that I wanted...and it did! I love this quilt, and I'm happy I got it out for this "Airing" cuz now I'm going to keep it out and cuddle up in it this evening =-)

The last quilt I wasn't even going to show, and did not send it to Dorothy even though I had it outside...but it makes me smile. It is actually the 2nd quilt I ever finished. It was for my darling baby girl (yes the same one). I was so proud of it =-) I made it with this new fangled idea that was going around, back in the late 70s or very early 80s, of not using templates but tearing strips (ohmygosh) and putting them on top of each other, sewing various lines, and then cutting them apart into triangles, etc., pressing open, and ending up with square units made up of two different colored triangles! Can you imagine?!? What a concept... Anyway, it sat around for a few years as a top and when I got preggers with her I decided it would make a great baby quilt so I sandwiched it and started quilting. She used it as a baby and then, when she was little, for her dolls, and I'm keeping it for any grandbabies that may eventually show up...it's in fine condition, and it has seen some history, and will be perfect for making grandbabies cozy...just like me...

Well, thanks for joining me on my little quilt tour. You got some oldies but some goodies this time. I'm sure, if you've been around the innernets for awhile, here and on the About.com site, you have probably seen a few of these before...but that's what was on the shelf when I reached in today...and they were actually finished quilts as opposed to tops...of which there is also an abundance... If you get a chance, go over to the About.com site and/or check out Dorothy's Webshots of this year's (not sure when they are going up) and previous years' Airings...it's great fun!

Have a good week, everyone!

PS: I'm so sorry I cannot get the photos to expand...I just canNOT...and I've tried...it would make everything so much easier to see...sigh...