Speaking of colorful, right before Kathy's surgery I finished a double-layer fleece winter coat for our granddog Rue, after learning that Chihuahua breeds don't handle going out in cold weather well. Her mommy, my daughter-in-law Shannon, thinks Rue looks like a '70s model in this photo. I agree.
Other people teased that Rue needs a sombrero with this coat. Well, I can't make one of those :), but I did knit a sweater and a cape for less frigid days. Rue hasn't made it over here to try those on yet. When she does, there will be more photos. :)
A few days later, Shannon and my son Alex came to our house bearing a gift....the best gift my husband and I have EVER, EVER received....
EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This will be our first grandchild (due March 15). Six weeks after receiving the news, I'm still pinching myself in disbelief and grinning to myself like an idiot. Today I was dancing in the grocery. In 2 or 3 weeks, we'll know the gender of our grandbaby. Which is a good thing, because I've come this close to making something in lavender and ruffles. Not because I'm hoping for a girl, but because I couldn't make those kinds of clothes for my two sons!
On to quilting projects/progress/news. Click on any of these photos to enlarge....
1. Finished my 2nd quilt-as-you-go project for The Center for Women and Families here in our town. This quilt was pieced from remnants, scraps, and fat quarters, and was oh-so-fun to make on the 1958 Singer 403, the amazing machine my husband bought for 8 dollars at the thrift store.
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| front |
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| back |
2. Began an underwater scene quilt.
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| first design |
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| second design |
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| in progress |
3. Rock of Ages was awarded 2nd place at the 2014 Kentucky State Fair in the 'pictorial quilts' category. (You might recognize this quilt as the background on my blog.)
4. SOLD Rock of Ages.
(I kid you not. The quilt sold just 10 days after it received the ribbon...and the buyer had no idea. She had been keeping her eye on it in my Etsy shop for 2 months. The timing was purely coincidental.) Just for fun, here's a photo of the quilt in the designing/piecing stage.
5. Sold New England Dawn (to the same buyer, 2 days after she bought Rock of Ages...needless to say, I felt both thrilled and very grateful). This, by the way, was the first quilt for which I made those machine-embroidered shrubs.
6. Performed eye surgery on Lida Luna yesterday. She went from this (photo on left)....
to this:
The two eyes just didn't look right, as my sister Karen and my friend Kathy observed. I hadn't been entirely comfortable with two eyes, either, knowing that one should be almost out of view. Not to mention, Lida looked a tad cross-eyed with two. But I was also afraid that a single eye would look a little odd. As it turns out, I like the single eye a lot better. Also, the eye is now a silver bead instead of a black one. The black bead was a bit too in-your-face.
The AQS show in Chattanooga is just 2 weeks away! The Visit arrived safely for the competition. I can't wait to see all the wonderful quilts, and sure hope to run into some of you there.
Hooking up with Confessions of a Fabric Addict for Whoop Whoop Friday. Check it out, Sarah is raffling off another beautiful quilt!
Have a wonderful weekend. We're due for lots of rain, but I'm ready for it after all this heat.
Linda
Linda, what a great post. Rue will be toasty warm this winter. Oh what wonderful news - you're going to love being a grandparent. The QAYG quilt is going to be loved. I like your underwater quilt - will that be QAYG? Lida Luna got better with one eye. She now looks like she's tilted her head toward the moon. And congrats on your two sales - I"m not surprised someone wants a piece of your art. May I suggest you place an Etsy button to your store on the blog. I had to search to find it to see what you had on sale.
ReplyDeleteThank you! :) Oh, I can't wait to be a grandma, and I've barely gotten used to being a dog-grandma (Rue is soooo cute). The underwater quilt is a pieced top as opposed to a QAYG, and today I spent some time putting some new elements on it. I think I'll play around a bit with my machine's capabilities on this one, along with some stitch-in-the-ditch and satin stitch. Thank you for weighing in on Lida, it's a relief to hear that she doesn't look weird with just the one eye. I'll be checking into the Etsy button feature this week--had no idea that could be done!
DeleteHello Linda,
ReplyDeleteI'm really pleased to hear Kathy has come through the operation well, and I hope that she will continue to make good progress.
Congratulations on the future arrival! Have you made the cot quilt yet? Little knitted matinee jackets...?
As for quilt news, congratulations on the sales, and the QAYG quilt is just plain fab. You have got the reversible technique down to a fine art. And the eye surgery was exactly the right thing to do.
Love, Muv
Thank you, Muv. I sure hope you are feeling better, as well. This has been a growing and learning summer in many ways here, and one of big changes, both joyful and sobering. I am very much looking forward to making another QAYG, this time from all those pieces I spent weeks cutting out of sample books! Baby hats have been made, and as soon as we find out whether it's a boy or a girl (another week or so), it's full speed ahead on garments. The underwater scene shown above, which has already changed quite a lot, will be the 'baby' (twin bed size) quilt, and there will probably be booties and a couple of crocheted baby afghans, too. Fun fun fun!!
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