A very proud but emotional morning...

 A very proud but emotional morning...Hunter's first day of his Freshman year.  Where has time gone? 

 This is a very short blog post but I will have a longer post tomorrow.  I'm just in a hurry this morning.  That being said, I did finish ALL 120 of my Garlic Knot blocks last night because I couldn't sleep.  :)

See ya tomorrow....

103 blocks....only 17 more to go!

 Here's a block update.  I have a total of 103 of the Garlic Knot blocks finished.  Now only 17 more blocks to go.  I'm hoping that I will get those done today.

 Here is my little setup while sewing.  A little messy but it works.  These are pieces for my Garlic Knots and my Scrappy Stars. 

 I loaded one of my OLD quilt tops on the frame last night and started quilting only to realize after getting almost a whole pass across the quilt finished that I had bad stitches underneath.  I always check it but for some reason I didn't.  I forgot that I had the tension set for the last quilt that I quilted and it had a flannel backing.  So now I have to pick it all out and start over.  I am not happy about this but it is what it is.  :(

Yesterday I absolutely got NOTHING accomplished.  That's okay because I had a wonderful day.  Richard and both boys were home and that doesn't happen very often.  Richard and my boys are my world.  First off, nothing got cleaned...do you know how hard it is to clean with 3 men in the house?  LOL!  I did a lot of cooking but no cleaning.  

Richard and I went up to the garden to dig potatoes yesterday and we dug 3 potato plants and we got a downpour!  :(  Of course we ware up on top of this ridge so we don't flood but the lower areas had major flooding.  

Hunter starts high school tomorrow.  I am just depressed....very proud of him but depressed that my baby is in high school.  :(  He hates school but makes good grades, he would just rather be home.  He stresses out and always has over losing time to get outside and do things that he enjoys.  

19 more blocks...only 40 more to go!

 Just to let you know my posts are a few days behind.  This post will go up on Sunday but it's really Friday.  This is just a little easier for me to get some posts done.

So today I pieced 19 more Garlic Knot blocks.  This makes a total of 80 so far.  Now I need 40 more and then I will sew them together.  Planning on 10 blocks across and 12 blocks long, then I will add a border.  I'm thinking that this will give me the size that I want.  I will put it on the bed and if it's not big enough then I will just add another row of blocks. 

 I'm loving how fast these sew up.  A good use of 2" squares and strips. 

 While sewing these blocks today I also pieced one more Scrappy Star block.  I'm just sort of using it as a leader/ender for now. 

 I sewed most of the day and cleaned the house a little.  LOL!  Richard worked and Hunter cut the grass.  Tomorrow probably will not be a "sew day" as I have a bunch of cucumbers that I need to make pickles with.  Then on Monday we will be digging up the potatoes! 

New quilt and more blocks!

 I know you are shaking your head but I started a new quilt.  LOL!  Actually, I think this one will go rather quickly.  No pattern really but just a traditional block that can be made any size.  This one is made from 2.5" squares, 2.5" HST, and the sashings are 2.5"x8.5"  I have a bolt of the blue so I figured that I would use if for the sashings.   Totally different from what I usually would use for sashings.

 I also made 10 more Garlic Knot blocks.  This take my total up to 61.  I think I will need 120 of them. 

 I had a really good sewing day.  

I took Hunter to get his Freshman schedule.  :(  Breaks my heart that my baby will be starting high school next week.  We start early here because we miss so many snow days during the winter.  School starts August 3rd.  We had to pick up his schedule, pay book and locker fees, and also walk around and try to find his classes.  Shew....

Sarah's Thimble Virginia Beach

 A couple days late but here is the Quilt Shop that I mentioned in my last post.  Sarah's Thimble in Virginia Beach. 

 When I found out that we were going to Virginia Beach the first thing that I did was Google quilt shops in that area.  :)  I mentioned it to Richard and the boys and they happily sat in the car and ate donuts while I was in the shop.  LOL! 

 I great quilt shop with a nice variety of fabrics. 

 Also lots of patterns and notions as well. 

 If you are ever in the area stop by. 

Family Vacation to Virginia Beach

 We spent a few days at Virginia Beach!  It was very nice and we all had a blast.  It's amazing what a few days away can do for a person. 

 It was so nice to have the boys with us.  We left in the middle of the night on Thursday and got back home late Sunday evening. 

 King Neptune...

 They boys enjoying some pizza!  BTW...I have no clue what that reflection is on Andrew's head.  LOL!

 Cape Henry Lighthouse....

 Swannanoa Palace...

 We toured this on the way back home.

Just a short overview of our trip.  It had been 20 years since I had been to the ocean and Hunter had never been at all.  We had a wonderful time but I am still a little tired.  Funny thing...I forgot and took one of my lasix before we started home.  LOL!  Let's just say we had to stop a lot.  Never take a fluid pill when you are on a long trip.  :)

I'll post more tomorrow.  I also found a quilt shop at Virginia Beach and I stopped by and snapped a few pics.  I'll post all about that tomorrow.  

11 yards of Binding!

 Yesterday I posted full pics of this hand pieced customer quilt. 

 Now this big baby completely finished and it's ready to deliver!!! Yesterday I cut, pieced, and hand sewed the binding! This quilt measures something like 104x104 so that's 416 inches which also equals over 11 yards of hand sewn binding!!! Usually I divide a big binding job like this over 2 days but this time I did it ALL in ONE DAY!!! Yep...my hand is feeling it but I so enjoy it.  The binding is the same purple flannel as the back. 

 Today I will try to catch up on the housework.  :)

Machine Quilting and Birthdays...

 Yesterday I quilted this huge customer quilt!  I didn't even get it all in the photo but it measures something like 104x104.  This was her first quilt and she completely hand pieced it.  It is backed with a very soft purple flannel. 

 I quilted it with a loose design called Happy Times, because it had some fullness.  In the end, it quilted up really nicely without any puckers or pleats.  

I'm not sure of the fabric line but she used charm packs and they are such pretty fabrics....greens and purples. 

 Today I will cut and start sewing the binding on this big baby.  :)  Hope to have the binding done so that I can deliver this quilt on Thursday.  

Today is Richard's 46th birthday!!!!  I thank the Lord everyday for Blessing me with such a wonderful husband and father to our children.  He is working today.  :( 

Hexies and Stitcheries

 I worked on a couple hexagon blocks yesterday.  I only finished 2 of them but that is still progress. 

 I added them to the pile.  I need to prep more hexagons because I will soon run out of the sets that I have prepped now. 

 I dug out my Halloween stitchery and worked on it a little bit.  Hopefully I will have it done by this Halloween.  LOL! 

 Most importantly, I got so babysit this angel for a few hours yesterday.  :)  She is so precious and very rotten...love her so much.

 Hunter has a friend spending the night tonight so I need to do a little bit of cleaning before I start sewing today.

A new project....

First off...LEO came home!  If you read my last post you know that our boxer, Leo ran off and was missing.  He did eventually come home.  He had followed that female stray off.  :(  He is home and we are all very happy.  

Played around with a few Garlic Knots.  Very easy blocks since I already had a bunch of 2" squares already cut from scraps.  So basically all that I had to do was cut the background.  I think right now I have 35 or so blocks.  

I have a customer quilt on the frame that I am working on.  I actually just loaded it yesterday.  It is a big quilt, 104x104 and all hand pieced.  This is her first quilt.  I will post pics as I work on the quilting.  

We will be taking a little vacation soon and I am so excited about that.  It's been a long time.  :)  I'm trying to decide what to take with me to work on.  Only going to be gone for a few days but I still need something to work on.  I was thinking of taking my hexagons but I glue baste them and I love the glue basting vs thread basting BUT we are going to the beach so I'm thinking that if I would on them while on the beach that the heat may melt the glue and they would come loose.  I don't know yet, but I think I read that somewhere.  I could also take some applique but not sure that I would have time to do the prepping before we go.  Or...I could take my Halloween embroidery piece.  Hmmm...I will have to dig that out because that might be a good option to work on. 

Anyway, our little vacation is a secret as we are just going to surprise Hunter.  He doesn't read my blog so I think it's safe to post on here.  Speaking of Hunter, his school starts back August 3rd.  :(  He will be a freshman this year.  :(

After vacation, I have a few projects that I have to get done.  I have put them off long enough.  One is a baby quilt for our new great nephew.  Sadly he is a month old and I still don't have his quilt done.  Another project is a memory quilt that will be made from plaid shirts that belonged to our assistant pastor that passed away a few months ago.  I loved this man dearly and while growing up they were our next door neighbors so we were always very close to this family and kids.  His kids are my and Richard's age.  I just dread working on this in a way because I know I will end up getting very emotional.  

Quilts, Tornadoes, and Missing Dog...

 Another customer quilt off the frame. This is a special quilt because when I picked it up and we unfolded it, you could see how special it was in the owners eyes. They gleamed with pride as she told me the story behind it. Her precious mom hand pieced it and she said that she recognized many of the fabrics as they came from the dusters that her mom wore. I love quilts like this. Today I will sew the binding on and then deliver it tomorrow....hopefully.  :)

 This is the back...

 The weather has been crazy!  We had a tornado touch down in town.  It did a lot of damage to our Walmart and several homes and other businesses.  From what I gather there were only minor injuries...thank the Lord.  This pic is the Walmart parking lot.

 We are so sad right now...our beloved boxer, Leo is missing!  We got him several years ago from a kill shelter and he is just an amazing dog.  He was so poor when we got him, I just felt sorry for him. 

 Yesterday evening we let him out to use the bathroom and he ran off...I guess.  He's never been gone this long.  Hunter is pretty upset and worried.  A few hours before he went missing we had an old stray coonhound that showed up and killed one of my chickens so I'm wondering if he might have ran off with that dog or something.  I posted on FB that he was missing along with his photo.  As soon as they open this morning I am going to call the local Humane Society so they can also be on the lookout for him.  So I ended up losing a dog and a chicken yesterday.  :( 

Binding and Wild Animals

It's been several days since I posted but I've just been busy.  Hunter turned 14 on June 30th but we had his party last Saturday, June 25th since Richard was off work.  Hunter had a great time and it just breaks my heart that my baby is growing up.  

I finished up a few bindings.  Finished my Tumbler binding. 

 This is the backside of that Tumbler quilt.  I absolutely love this panto that I used.

 Here are 2 different customer quilts that I ONLY did the binding on.  When the lady contacted me she said that someone else quilted them for her several years ago and was also supposed to do the binding on them.  Her husband picked them up but didn't look in the bag and the binding had not been done.  So someone else did the quilting but I did the binding on both twin quilts for her. 

 Last night I finished the binding on my Sweet Annie quilt. 

 I think I still have 2 quilts that need the binding done that I quilted a few years ago.  Not sure how I missed the binding on those.  I also have one of the frame that I almost have the quilting done on it and then it will go in the pile for binding.  

We have a pretty good size wild raspberry and blackberry patches here on the farm.  Richard picked some a few days ago and I made a cobbler.  It was absolutely delicious!!!!  Topped with vanilla ice cream.  YUM!

 Last Sunday we had our homecoming service at Church and that is always followed with a big dinner.  Look at this precious pic that was taken of Addison my precious niece. 

 Now I will leave you with the creepy visitor that I had a few nights ago.  He chased me around the house and back in the front door.  In the pic you can see he is coming up on my front porch.  He was even trying to attack my bloodhound, Mammy.

Shew...the things that you see when living out in the woods.  LOL!  Mom and my sister saw a bobcat crossing just a couple hundred feet from my house.  Gotta keep a close eye on my chickens.  Several years ago we had a baby bobcat get in the coop and kill some chickens and then it couldn't get back out so it just curled up in one of the nests and went to sleep.  We found it that next morning sleeping in the nest. 

Beautiful Red and White Quilt

Finally....I got this beautiful quilt off of the frame!  This is a customer quilt, actually it belongs to my aunt.  I think it is beautiful!

It took me a while to get it finished as I had a couple of issues.  The outer blocks had some fullness from the bias triangles in them.  I tried my best to work the fullness in but it was still hard.  LOL!  

Anyway it's finished and beautiful!  I will be loading another quilt on the frame this morning.  :)  It is one of mine.  Nothing fancy just one out of the pile that needs quilted.  :)  Don't remember the name...Indian Summer or Indian Stars...something.  I will have to look.  :)

Happy Quilting and many Blessings...
Kristie

Sweet Annie

 One of my favorite quilt tops has been quilted!  I call this quilt, Sweet Annie because the fabric was sent to me by a dear friend and her name is Annie.  I can't put into words how much I cherish our friendship and I believe with all of my heart that the Lord put her in my life.  

So with that being said, this quilt is one that I will keep and cherish for myself.  I was excited to get it quilted. 

 Sometimes a simple design is so striking especially with two color quilts. 

Now I need to get the binding sewn on but first I need to finish the binding on the tumbler quilt since I already have it started.  

I have a customer quilt on the frame now, actually it belongs to my aunt and I've had it forever.  Actually it was next in line to be quilted when my old longarm broke down.  It is a really pretty quilt.  I can't wait to post it.  

I also need to take a few days to finish up a baby quilt for our niece, Katie.  Katie had her baby boy a few days ago and named him Keagan.  He was born 5 weeks early and is in the NICU but doing well.  The quilt that she wanted for him was a simple design.  The pic that she sent me was a chevron fabric with an applique elephant and his name both down in the lower corner.  I have the applique pieces cut out but I need to square up the backing and sew the applique pieces down then quilt it.  It really shouldn't take too long.  I also have some soft minky to back it with.  I'll post pics on that as I am working on it.  

Garden news....  :(  It's sad.  LOL!  No pics right now but the lower garden looks horrible and is not doing well at all.  I'm thinking that the only thing that will do much of anything in that one is the cucumbers and some cabbage.  The upper garden (the bigger one) is doing pretty good.  The corn is about knee high.  The potatoes are looking good but needs more dirt pulled up around them.  The Jade bush beans are doing well and I have beans on but they are not ready yet.  The Greasy Beans have vines going everywhere and they will produce a little later than the Jades.  I'm anxious for the greasy beans as in my opinion those are the best green beans in the world!  The sweet potatoes are not looking real great but they are hanging on.   

After Church I plan on finishing up Deb's quilt and loading another one on.

Happy Quilting and many Blessings...
Kristie

Tumbler quilt is now quilted

 Let me catch you up on what I have been doing.  I've been playing around with my longarm.  I found out that a fellow blogger, Dora also has a Nolting longarm so she has given me lots of hints and tips with this machine.  

After quilting the Minnie Mouse panel I loaded on a lap size Tumbler quilt.  This one measures 54x70.  

 This is an up close pic of it. 

 This is the back.  I used a panto called, Lush Leaves.

 Yesterday we had to take Hunter for his monthly trip to the orthodontist which is a 3 hour and 20 minute round trip.  :(  So while Richard was driving I worked on the binding on the Minnie Mouse panel that I quilted for my niece a few days ago.  

Now I am working on the binding on the Tumbler quilt.  I will probably load a quilt top that belongs to my aunt on the frame sometime today.  It is a very pretty quilt.  I'll post pics of it while I am working on it.

Practicing on the longarm...

 Another pic of my big girl!  :)  We are taking some time to get to know each other.  She sure is different than my other one.  All is going well.  I've had a few thread breaks but that is probably user error...maybe going too fast for the speed that I have her set on or whatever....we will get it figured out.  Nothing major at all and all machines are different.

 I loaded an old printed sheet on the frame and decided to practice some of my panto designs.  This is one of my new designs that I have.  It is called Mint Julep and is 13" wide.  I love it!  I used dark thread so that I could see my stitches better while practicing. 

 Practicing another design.  This is an old one that I have.  It is called Ground Cover. 

 Then I loaded a Minnie Mouse panel on the frame and quilted it up.  I think I will give it to my niece, Addison.  She loves Minnie Mouse.  I need to add some binding on it and call it done.  I used the Mint Julep design on it.

 I think I will load a small quilt on the frame today and try something that actually has seams.  LOL!

I had a wonderful weekend with my dear quilting friend, Kris.  I really hated to see her go.  Sadly on the way home they had an accident.  They are all okay but shew....I sure felt bad.  Praise God for watching over them as it could have been so much worse.