The Arkansas Man Quilter

Blooming Nine Patch

2012-02-04T13:52:00.000-08:00

I finished quilting my blooming nine patch quilt and got the binding on it (click on pic for larger view). I just did a meandering quilting across the top, I didn't want the quilting to detract from the top. I've been waiting the last few days for he rain to stop so I could get it outside to take some pictures. I'm not really happy with how the camera perceives the colors, they look a little off, especially in the center and the final border.

Currently on the longarm....

2012-01-29T13:59:00.000-08:00

Here's a pic of a quilt that I'm currently quilting on the longarm (click on pic for larger view). It's one that I started in June 2011 but shelved it after a while, but I recently decided to get it finished. The pattern is called a "blooming nine patch" because of the way the fabrics are arranged to appear that one color is "blooming" into an adjacent fabric. I saw someone at a quilt retreat a couple of years ago making this pattern, so have wanted to try it ever since then (thanks, Lynn!). The top and backing are made with all batik fabric, so it has a lot of rich color and vibrancy to it. I'm glad to be in the home stretch with this one now. :)

Flea market finds from the day...

2012-01-28T14:21:00.000-08:00

We went to Hot Springs today and stopped through the Rural Dale flea market to see what we could find that would interest us. I found a couple more of some old wood handled pastry dough blenders to add to my collection. Try to imagine all the pie crusts that were made from those. :) And I also found an old wood handled tater masher. I like finding old kitchen utensils like these, we're starting to get quite a collection of them now.

The second pic shows some old silver spoons which have a beautiful patina on them. Sometimes you just kind of wish that all this stuff could talk so you could hear the stories of who owned them.

The "Trash Quilt" is done.

2012-01-21T09:38:00.000-08:00

Here's a photo of the quilt that I finished quilting the other day for my mother-in-law. This is the one that she found the quilt top in the trash at a school that she worked out a few years ago and fished it out and saved it. She showed the quilt top to me a couple of years ago and I told her I'd quilt it for her. So, I finally did. As they say "One man's trash is another man's treasure." I think it's beautiful. :)

Currently on the longarm....

2012-01-15T20:26:00.000-08:00

A while back (ok, it was a LONG while back), my mother-in-law showed me a quilt top that she had found since she knew of my love of quilting. I offered to take it and quilt it for her, so she happily agreed. Well, I forgot about it and this evening my wife told me that her mother had asked about it. Panic! So I searched around the quilt studio and found the top (thank goodness) and started quilting it this evening. The fabrics in it are classic 1930s, so this top is about 70-80 years old. I'm just doing a meandering quilting on it with white thread and white backing. Need to get it done soon so that I remain her favorite son-in-law (well, ok, I'm her only son-in-law). :)

The Devil's Claw is done!

2012-01-01T13:03:00.000-08:00

Here's a quilt that I finished today that had been languishing in my unfinished pile for quite some time. I started it last summer and shelved it after having all of 1 block done. :( So, I pulled it back out over the Christmas/New Years holiday break and finished it up today, New Years Day. A good way to start the new year! It's big, measures 100" x 100", so will fit on our king size bed. The block pattern name is called "Devil's Claw". I used reds in the sashings between the blocks and one of the borders, and blacks in the cornerstones and border areas. I really like using blacks in a quilt, it's a dramatic color that gives quilts a nice kick. I did a scalloped border on it as well, it's a nice difference from doing a straight edge.

Our 2011 year is drawing to a close....

2011-12-31T08:50:00.000-08:00

Here we are, on December 31 already. Can you believe it? Another calendar year has passed us by, and I hope you've had more joys than sorrows in it. I'm sitting in my quilt studio as I write this, and looking around at the fruits of my labors for the year. Obviously, I bought WAY too much fabric this year. One of my new years resolutions is to not buy any fabric next year ("HA! Fat Chance!" Yes, I hear you), but rather use more of what I have. I may need to seek a waiver of that resolution during late April, though, when I travel to Paducah, KY. :)

For myself, I'm pleased with what I got done this year, I will call it productive. There are so many things I learned from watching and observing others, things that have planted seeds of ideas in my mind for things I want to try in the future, and new directions that I want to go with my quilting art. I'm excited about those, and I hope you, too, have been observing and thinking in similar ways. It's how we grow as quilt artisans, forever looking for new avenues to explore.

I'm wishing you all the best for 2012, and thanks for following my adventures through this year. I'm looking forward to discovering new things and hope you are, too.

Currently on the longarm....

2011-12-27T15:46:00.000-08:00

What I'm working on at the moment is finishing a UFO (unfinished object) that I started many months ago. At the time I shelved it I had completed all of 1 blocks. :( So, after finishing up all of the quilting that I needed to get done for others before Christmas, I decided to pull this project back out and get after it over my Christmas break. The block pattern is called "Devil's Claw" and there are 16 of them laid out in a 4 x 4 layout. I added the sashing and cornerstones, along with a triple border to make it a 100" x 100" king size quilt. I'm quilting it now with an all over pantograph pattern called "Damask Feathers" that I really like. I also really like the black fabric in the border - black is a dramatic color that really kicks it up a notch in a quilt. When done quilting, I plan to also add a scalloped border on the edges and bind it in red. Will be glad to have this UFO done! We plan to use it on our bed to have another king quilt to be able to swap out.

A Christmas gift for myself

2011-12-20T14:58:00.000-08:00

A couple of weeks ago I received a $100 American Express gift card. I've been trying to decide what to splurge on and last week I came to a decision. Connecting Threads had collections of their thread spools on sale for 40% off. I love CT thread, it's 100% cotton and my Brother QC-1000 sewing machine and my Gammill longarm both respond well to it as well. A couple of years ago I bought one of every color that CT makes in thread, so I decided to get these sets to replenish my supply and fill in any colors that I'm getting low in. Merry Christmas to me! :)

Thread bag

2011-12-19T13:43:00.000-08:00

The president of our statewide quilt guild (Arkansas Quilters Guild) presented all the board members of the guild with kits to make a thread bag. Below is the one that I made today from my kit. She knows how much I really like Blackbird Designs, so she included some fabric from them in my kit. Ain't she nice? :) She included everything in the kit needed to make it, even the interfacing and crushed walnut shells for the pin cushion filling. It was a lot of fun making and I was needing another one for the studio to put on my longarm table.

Paper ornament from an old hymnal

2011-12-17T13:28:00.001-08:00

Here's a pic of a paper ornament that I made from pages from an old hymnal using instructions that I found on Pinterest. I altered the directions slightly, using hot glue to hold it all together and an ivory button in the center where the pieces all come together. I love Christmas!

A quilt for our guild's president

2011-12-16T17:44:00.000-08:00

Below are a couple of pics of a quilt that I made for the president of our statewide guild, Leah Sample, as her end-of-year thank you gift from members of the guild. The light colored thin border is actually a bunch of signature blocks that were signed by member of the guild that I then assembled into a border. My wife, Melissa, appliqued the leaves on the blocks, and did the hand-stitching of the binding as well. Leah is a very good friend and I was very happy to make this quilt for her. She was quite surprised, too, and loved it!

(the above pic taken by Tiffanee Noack, our guild photographer.)

(the above pic taken by me.)

Girly Quilt

2011-12-04T10:10:00.000-08:00

I'm working on quilting a couple of baby quilts for a member of one of the guilds that I belong to. Below is a pic of one (they're both identical). Isn't that just pretty??? Really like the fabrics in this and with the quilting, it definitely has that "girly" look to it! I think they'll like it!

Vintage quilt tops quilted

2011-11-26T11:26:00.000-08:00

Below are pics of two more vintage quilt tops that I just finished making into quilts. The tops were made (all hand-pieced) by Mary Susan (Weathers) Senter, and she was born in 1843 and died in 1937 at age 93. She married Robert Winthrop Senter in 1861 when she was 18. The style of the fabrics look to be early 1900s to 1930s, but it is amazing how vibrant the colors are still in them now, about a hundred years later.

These are the final ones of twelve tops that belonged to a couple that I'm good friends with (he's the grandson of Mary Susan Senter). I quilted all 12 tops for them, so this will complete the project now that I started back in 2009. I'm glad to have these all done now, but it was really an honor working on these quilts that were started so long ago. As a quilter, I like to think that Mary Susan would be glad to finally see her work completed.

Charity quilt quilted

2011-11-25T09:21:00.000-08:00

I'm a member of the Arkansas Quilters Guild and one of the charitable projects we've taken on is to provide quilts to the local Safe Places organization. They provide services for children who are victims of sexual assault, family violence, child abuse, and other forms of violence. Here's a pic of one of the quilts that was pieced by the members and I quilted it on my longarm. Way to go Team AQG!

Happy Holidays with new potholders

2011-11-19T10:01:00.000-08:00

Last year (yes, last year) at Christmas I told my mother that I would make her some new potholders since her's were rather sad looking. So last night I sat down and made some. While I was making some, I made some extras to give to my mother-in-law as well. They're simple pinwheel blocks with a layer of Insulbright inside as insulation. I made 8 total using Kansas Troubles fabrics and then tied them up in bundles of 4 each using some Moda canvas ties I had from some fabric layercakes. Hope they like them!

My tote challenge entry

2011-11-11T14:46:00.000-08:00

I was invited to participate in an online tote challenge, so I decided to give it a try. The challenge was to make a tote out of solids only fabrics, i.e., no prints. The other rule was that the tote had to incorporate either patchwork, applique, or reverse-applique. So below is my result. The pattern is one that I adapted from a quilt design by Blackbird Designs from their "When The Cold Wind Blows" book. Theirs was a bird pattern but I wanted mine to be a red-winged blackbird so added the red accent to his wing. I quilted in on my longarm using a leaf motif. My first tote bag!

And some flea market finds...

2011-11-05T15:26:00.000-07:00

In addition to the fabrics I bought at Rabbit's Lair, we hit some flea markets today on the way back home. And looky at what I found. I don't know if this thing will even work or not, but the case was in pristine condition and there was a bag of accessories with it, as well as the original manual. So I decided to get it. It may become just a piece of decor, but I liked it a lot.

And I've started collected pastry blenders for some reason, don't know why, I just think they're cool. So I added to my collection today. Imagine all the pies these things have brought into someone's life. :)

And I also like marbles, so I added to my collection of those today.

Road trip finds....

2011-11-05T15:20:00.000-07:00

Since I didn't get to go to the big quilt show shindig in Houston this year (which is this week), I did the next best thing....went on a road trip here in the state collecting fabrics and other whatnots. I have to say, it was pretty darn consoling, LOL. I went to Rabbit's Lair up in Rogers, Arkansas, yesterday which is about a 3.5 hour drive. Got to see the shop owner, Mary Schopp, and see her shop for the first time. I've met her several times as a vendor at local events here, but had never made the trek to her ship. I found her back in her office area and surprised her, it was a really fun visit to her place. I bought yards and yards of fabric (see below), as well as some books, etc. And Mary, being the wonderful person she is, showed us around the shop, talking with us about things, etc. A wonderful trip!

OK, enough of my blabbering, here's the fabrics that I bought:

Fall Rag Pillows

2011-10-23T14:03:00.000-07:00

I saw some Fall rag pillows on a quilting forum and decided to make a couple of my own this afternoon. These are very fast and easy to make, it only took a couple of hours to make these. I had a couple of 14" pillow forms on hand, so made them to fit those. Happy Fall, everyone! :)

Finishing up a customer's "manly" quilt this morning

2011-10-22T07:16:00.000-07:00

I'm working on finishing up the quilting of a customer's "manly" quilt top this morning. I really like the fabrics that she used in this quilt and the pattern as well. I'm doing a variety of quilting on this one, a panto in the outer border area, outline stitching in the piano key border, small meandering in the black borders, and a different, curvy panto in the inner top area across all the blocks. This one is big, 95" x 113", and I had to turn it 90 degrees after doing the initial quilting and re-pin it to do the other border areas. I like how it's turning out, a "manly" quilt that this man likes! :)

Quilt finished for Bella

2011-10-16T07:42:00.000-07:00

I recently finished quilting this quilt for a fellow member of the Arkansas Quilters Guild. She made it for her little niece, Bella, and the colors are bright, bright, bright! She wanted Bella's name somehow in the quilt, so I suggested that I could write her name with fabric strips as shown after it was quilted. I really like the personalized look of a quilt when doing this, it adds a nice touch.

A fun, fun day!

2011-10-15T21:31:00.000-07:00

Today was a very fun day. I'm a member of the Arkansas Quilters Guild and each December we have a member auction where a few members of the guild will offer themselves for auction so that the highest bidder gets to spend the day with them in their studio, have lunch, etc. One of those members who was auctioned was Jim Gatling and he had a twist to his offer - whoever won him could bring 11 of their friends as well! Geannine won that bid and she asked if I'd like to come along as one of the lucky dozen. Wow, didn't take me long to reply back with an enormous YES!!! So today was spent at Jim's house, touring his fascinating home, enjoying a delicious lunch, and then spending the afternoon sitting and sewing with him and good friends. It was a perfect day. Thanks Geannine for asking me to join y'all, and thank you Jim for opening your home to us today. It was wonderful!!!! :)

(Jim Gatling, one of the most creative and interesting persons that I have ever met!)

And after spending the day at Jim's, our carload of folks decided to make a stop through a local quilting store, The Stitchin' Post, on the way home. We arrived a little after 4:00, which was after their 4:00 closing time (we thought it was 5:00!), but they let us come in anyway. Nice folks! I bought 8+ yards of Blackbird Designs' "Garden Party" line (the grays) that were on sale for 50% off. Love a good sale!! Melissa bought an applique book, Leah bought a pattern, and Donna bought some Sulky threads for the hibiscus flower quilting on a top she's working on. Great way to end a day! :)

Another "Winter Garden" block done - "Coxcomb"

2011-10-01T18:58:00.000-07:00

Here's a pic of the second Winter Garden block that I've done (color is kind of washed out, not a good pic). This one is called "Coxcomb". It is only fused down at this point, I need to machine stitch the edges next. This is the last one that will have the deep purples for the flower heads and buds. The rest will have a deep red in them (see fabrics in second pic). I'm pretty much following the color choices from the pattern, but making a few alterations here and there.

I've been refining the color palette for this quilt a little. I've added in the purples and reds you see at the bottom of the pic, and removed the blues. I had intended to use those blues for the birds that I have planned for the borders, but I'm going to do them in blacks now instead, i.e., Blackbird Designs. :) Quilting is an art form and art is all about change and adapting as we develop the piece, so we make adjustments as we go along. Sometimes minor, sometimes major. But if something isn't working for you, shake it up and make a change.

Stitching away on Winter Garden...

2011-09-28T17:11:00.000-07:00

I'm having a lot of fun stitching away on these Winter Garden blocks. Below is a detail pic from the first block showing the blanket stitch that I'm doing on the edges of the appliqued pieces. When doing these, I set my machine down to the smallest width and length for the stitch so that it is very small. I really love the colors in this, nice and subtle. My mind runs in a lot of different directions while working on this, thinking ahead to how I'm going to do different things with it - the borders, the quilting, the backing, etc. It's all tumbling around in my head. :)

first "Winter Garden" block done - "Winter Rose"

2011-09-26T16:48:00.000-07:00

I finished fusing all of the parts to my first block of my "Winter Garden" quilt. This block is called "Winter Rose". The dark flower bloom parts are actually a deep purple color, but look brown in the photo. I really like how this is turning out! 8 more blocks to go!

Starting a new project is always so much fun....

2011-09-25T14:03:00.000-07:00

And today, I start a new one (o.k., I know I already have too many in progress, but I really want to get started on THIS one!) It's is called "Winter Garden" and is from the "When The Cold Wind Blows" book by Blackbird Designs (Barb Adams and Alma Allen). It is a beautiful pattern, and is done in golds, browns, and rusts to give the feel of how our gardens look in the Winter. Mine will be using a similar color palette as shown below. I'll also be adding a border using something from another quilt of theirs in the same book.

Here's the background fabrics that I'll be using. I loved that top one so much that I went online and bought 10 more yards of it! It's called "Mayfair" by Benartex. I can see that neutral background fabric showing up in a lot of my future Blackbird Designs projects.

Here are the fabrics that I will be using in my version. Lots of browns, golds, and rusts for the main body of the quilt. The blues will be used for some birds I have planned for the borders.

I spent the day today making 3/8" and 1/2" bias strips for the stems of the flowers and branches that will be in the quilt top. They're all made now, so I'm ready to get started cutting shapes for the blocks.

I won two ribbons in the Saline County Quilt Guild Show.

2011-09-22T17:07:00.000-07:00

The Saline County Quilt Guild is holding their bi-annual quilt show this week and two of my quilts won ribbons. My "Evening Bloom" king size quilt won a 2nd place ribbon in its category. It's based on the pattern of the same name by Blackbird Designs from their book called "Country Inn". The other one is a wall hanging I did called "Civil War Stars" that won 1st place in that category. It's based on a pattern called "Ringo Star" by Deb Karasik. Overall, there are 120+ entries in the show. I was pleased. :)

Christmas Dresden table runner

2011-09-20T15:59:00.000-07:00

Here are some pics of a table runner that I just finished in Christmas fabrics using a Dresden pattern. The pattern is called "Abendessen Table Runner" by Anelie Belden from her book called "Thoroughly Modern Dresden". It measures 60" x 21", so is pretty big. Most of the fabrics are from a line called "Cranberry Wishes" by Kansas Troubles. I fussy cut the cardinals in the setting triangles from a cardinal fabric that I had. Anelie came to our guild a couple of weeks ago during our bi-annual Quilt Arkansas retreat to teach and she was a delight to be around, I highly recommend her as a teacher!

Grandmother's Flower Garden quilt

2011-09-18T15:50:00.000-07:00

A while back a coworker asked me if I could quilt a top that her mother (now deceased) had made many years ago. This is a pic of the finished quilt. It is the Grandmother's Flower Garden block pattern that was very popular in the 1930s. The fabrics are indicative of that period as well, so it's safe to assume that's when it was done. It measures 78" x 92". This was quite a challenge to do on my longarm quilter as these are normally hand quilted due to all the seams. But we got it done!

On the road in India....

2011-07-17T18:50:00.000-07:00

As I write this I am in India on another business trip here. The hotel we're staying at in Bangalore is beautiful and below are a few pics I took of some of the flowers around the hotel. Certainly different from what we have back in Arkansas!

My little "Bountiful Baskets" mini quilt

2011-06-08T18:03:00.000-07:00

When I went to the quilt show at Paducah back in April, I came across a booth of Lori Smith's miniature quilt patterns. This is made from her pattern called "Bountiful Baskets" and measures 16" x 20". I bought several of her patterns, she really does great work. She framed many of the quilts in her booth as "art", and I really liked the look of that so decided to do it as well.

Finally finished with my "Evening Bloom" quilt

2011-05-28T12:52:00.000-07:00

Below are pics of my "Evening Bloom" quilt that I finished today. It's based on a pattern of that name from the book called "Country Inn" by Barb Adams and Alma Allen of Blackbird Designs. Their version was a queen size, but I wanted a king size so I added the 3 borders to make it 100" x 100". All of the applique is machine done with a blanket stitch and I quilted it on my longarm. The bulk of the fabrics are from the "Rouenneries" line by French General, and I supplemented them with others that fit with them.

I started this quilt back in September 2010 on a business trip to India. In the evenings and weekends I sat in my hotel room, busily cutting and fusing shapes for the blocks. Glad to finally have this one completed!

"Evening Bloom" - quilting has started

2011-05-16T16:07:00.000-07:00

I have started quilting on my "Evening Bloom" quilt. It's large, 102" x 102". The pattern for this quilt is from the "Country Inn" book by Blackbird Designs. Below is a pic of what I'm currently doing, which is filling in the background area.

And below is a pic of the what the entire quilt top looks like. All of the applique was done by fusing it with SoftFuse and then machine stitching the edges with a blanket stitch.

Vintage quilt top #10 made into a quilt

2011-05-14T10:49:00.001-07:00

Below are pics of another vintage quilt top that I recently made into a quilt. The top was made (all hand-pieced) by Mary Susan (Weathers) Senter, and she was born in 1843 and died in 1937 at age 93. She married Robert Winthrop Senter in 1861 when she was 18. The style of the fabrics look to be early 1900s.

This is one of twelve tops that belonged to a couple that I'm good friends with (he's the grandson of Mary Susan Senter). It measures 68" x 76".

Savannah Garden quilt

2011-04-25T14:18:00.000-07:00

Below are pics of a quilt and shams that I recently completed for friends of mine. It's queen size, 98" x 98", and is done in all batiks. The quilt pattern is based on the "Savannah Garden" pattern by Debbie Maddy from her "Southern Stars" publication. I scaled the pattern down to make the matching shams to go with it.

Man Quilter of the Month at Stitchin' Heaven

2011-03-16T16:35:00.001-07:00

I was recently interviewed for Man Quilter of the Month at Stitchin' Heaven's blog. Take a look at:

http://blogs.stitchinheaven.com/blog/?p=3585

I was very honored to be asked!

Quilt made from vintage signature blocks

2011-03-13T14:50:00.000-07:00

Below are pics of a quilt that I made from someone's vintage quilt blocks. The blocks were made in 1935 for her mother who retired as a school teacher upon her marriage. The blocks were made by families of her students with each block having an embroidered name of one of her students. Each block measures 14" square, and the entire quilt measures 88" x 88".

"Shining Star" wall hanging.

2011-03-05T07:05:00.000-08:00

Here are some pics of a wall hanging that I just finished last night. It's based on the "Shining Star" pattern by Debbie Maddy of Calico Carriage Quilt Designs. It measures 40" x 40", and is all done in batik fabrics.

Completed vintage quilt for a bride....

2011-02-27T10:44:00.000-08:00

This is the completed quilt that I was making for someone. The blocks were made back in the 1930s for her mother at the time of her marriage by friends and family members (see embroidered block in center of quilt). She gave me the blocks and I created a design of setting them on point with sashing between them and then assembled the top and quilted it. It measures 89" x 96". As you can see in each of the following photos, the embroidery handwork by each person who made a block for the new bride is exceptional.

Finished quilting a King size quilt!

2011-02-05T08:40:00.001-08:00

Here's some pics of a quilt that I just finished quilting. It is king size and I really like the fabrics that she used in it, they all work together perfectly. I did a medium meandering all over it.

Little boy's signature quilt

2011-01-29T14:43:00.000-08:00

Here are some pics of a quilt that I just finished quilting for someone who made it for a little boy who's going into the hospital. She made signature squares and had his classmates and teachers sign them. Isn't that nice? I did a meandering quilting in the borders and the colored squares on it with a variegated yellow/orange/red thread.

Vintage cross-stitched blocks quilt - finished

2011-01-23T13:54:00.000-08:00

Here's a pic showing the quilt finished. The size is 78" x 100". I think it turned out really nice. I'm going to deliver it to her son (my boss) tomorrow.

Current project - vintage cross-stitched blocks

2011-01-17T16:29:00.000-08:00

Here's some pics of what I'm working on right now for someone. She had twelve 17" blocks that her mother had cross-stitched decades ago and she wanted them made into a quilt top and quilted. So here's how things are looking right now with it.

Vintage quilt top #9 that I made into a quilt for a customer

2011-01-03T09:02:00.000-08:00

Below are pics of another vintage quilt top that I recently made into a quilt. The top was made (all hand-pieced) by Mary Susan (Weathers) Senter, and she was born in 1843 and died in 1937 at age 93. She married Robert Winthrop Senter in 1861 when she was 18. So the top predates at least 1937.

This is one of about a dozen tops that belonged to a couple that I'm good friends with (he's the grandson of Mary Susan Senter). It measures 70" x 82". It's amazing to me how vivid the colors in the fabrics still are after 70-80 years.

I quilted this on my longarm just doing a meandering quilting.

Currently on the longarm...

2010-12-28T08:36:00.000-08:00

....is my mystery quilt that I made in 2010 with the Arkansas Quilters Guild. It was made with fabrics from the Old Primrose Inn collection by Blackbird Designs. I'm doing a pantograph pattern on it which is basically a lot of swirls and ornate looking.

Vintage quilt top #8 done

2010-12-27T11:47:00.000-08:00

Below are pics of another vintage quilt top that I recently made into a quilt. The top was made (all hand-pieced) by Mary Susan (Weathers) Senter, and she was born in 1843 and died in 1937 at age 93. She married Robert Winthrop Senter in 1861 when she was 18. So the top predates at least 1937.

This is one of about a dozen tops that belonged to a couple that I'm good friends with (he's the grandson of Mary Susan Senter). It measures 68" x 80".

I quilted this on my longarm just doing a meandering quilting.

More quilts done....Polyester!

2010-12-17T13:36:00.000-08:00

Here are some pics of the last 3 of 7 quilts that I just finished for someone. The first two shown below were made from all polyester fabrics and were HEAVY. And STETCHY! It was like trying to quilt Jell-o. But I made it through it. They were all 3 pieced long ago by her grandmother and she wanted them quilted to give as Christmas presents.

Cleaned up the studio!

2010-12-12T07:25:00.000-08:00

I spent the last couple of days doing some dedicated cleaning up of the studio, so I thought I would post pics of it while it's still clean. Hopefully, it'll stay this way a while. In the second pic, you can see the edge of a loveseat in the room for sitting, and behind it (out of camera range) are bookshelves with all the quilting books I've collected. At the far end of the room is the "pit" where I piece tops, and my wife and daughter have their machines down there as well. The whole studio area is about 11' x 25'. Wish I had more, but this works!

A "manly" quilt....

2010-12-08T15:10:00.000-08:00

This quilt is one that I made for a customer's father for Christmas. It was made using homespun woven fabrics, and measures 56" x 66". The one posted below it is the one that I made for his mother.

quilt using Kansas Trouble's "Garden Inspirations"

2010-12-05T13:42:00.000-08:00

Here's a quilt that I made for my boss's mother for Christmas. It was made using fabrics from the "Garden Inspiration" collection by the Kansas Troubles designer, and measures 56" x 66". I have another one in progress for his father using the same pattern but using homespun wovens fabrics instead for a more "manly" looking quilt.

Rag quilt that I made for a friend's daughter

2010-12-05T13:40:00.000-08:00

Here's a couple of pics of a rag quilt that I made for a friend's daughter for Christmas. It's made from all flannels and is full size, measuring 80" x 88". A very warm, cozy quilt!

Another vintage quilt top quilted....Circles!

2010-11-24T08:34:00.000-08:00

Here's a pic of a quilt top that I finished quilting and binding for someone. The top was hand pieced by her grandmother years ago and measures 62" x 74". The circles are all pieced (not appliqued). A very unusual looking quilt, I really like it!

Another vintage quilt top quilted....

2010-11-20T13:44:00.000-08:00

Here's the third of seven quilt tops that I'm currently quilting for someone. The top was pieced decades ago by her grandmother and it measures 62" x 72". Beautiful colors.

Nine-patch in yellow and pink...

2010-11-19T08:16:00.001-08:00

Here's the second of seven quilt tops that I'm currently quilting for someone. It is of course the simple nine-patch, but I think the piecer did an excellent job in color selection for this one. The top was pieced decades ago by the customer's grandmother and it measures 58" x 72". Sometimes simple patterns make the most striking quilts.

New life for another quilt top...

2010-11-17T14:30:00.000-08:00

I finished quilting and binding this quilt for someone the other day. It is one of 7 tops that she brought me to have quilted, all old vintage tops pieced years ago by her grandmother and mother.

I won ribbons in the AQG's quilt show. :)

2010-11-12T14:49:00.000-08:00

I entered two quilts in the Arkansas Quilters Guild's bi-annual quilt show which is being held today and tomorrow. My wife and I went to view the show today and I found that I won two ribbons. I won First place for one and Third place for the other one. I was very pleased and honored! Especially since I really wasn't expecting to win anything since I knew there were a lot of entries. The show was held at the Laman Library in North Little Rock. This was a big boost for my confidence, since I started not to enter anything at all.

New vintage quilt just finished....

2010-11-10T14:16:00.000-08:00

Here's some pics of a quilt that I have just finished quilting and binding for someone. It measures 73" x 82". The top was pieced years ago by her relative and was done in a "Robbing Peter To Pay Paul" block pattern. The scalloped binding was a challenge, but not too bad.

"Fall Leaves" is done!

2010-10-30T14:20:00.000-07:00

Here are some pics of my "Fall Leaves" quilt that I finished today. It is done in all batik fabrics and measures 56" x 70". The leaves are machine appliqued in place after I fused them to the top. I then quilted it on my longarm using a swirling pattern for the background to give it some movement. I've been working on this one for several months, glad to finally get it through!

Fall Leaves is on the longarm....

2010-10-29T16:00:00.000-07:00

I've got my Fall Leaves quilt on the longarm now and am starting to quilt it. Going good so far, I think it's going to turn out really nice.

Whirlygig quilt that I just finished quilting...

2010-10-12T15:20:00.000-07:00

Here are some pics of a whirlygig quilt that I just finished quilting and binding for someone. I don't know who the maker of the top was, other than that it was someone in her family. It measures 62" x 84". I choose to do a simple medium sized meandering pattern on it since I thought a repeating pantograph pattern would detract from the splendid piecing that the maker did. I like how it turned out, and love giving new life to old tops like this.

On the road to India....Land of Silks and Batiks

2010-09-23T12:29:00.000-07:00

As I write this, I'm sitting in the airport in Atlanta, GA, waiting to board a flight to Paris which will then continue on to Bangalore, India. I'm going there on business for a couple of weeks, but I have plans to hit some fabric stores while I'm there to see what I can bring back with me. Should be quite an adventure!

The Steroids quilt is done...

2010-09-17T15:43:00.000-07:00

I finished the log cabin on steroids quilt. I did a curvy ivy leaves and vines pattern on it to soften up the strong lines of it some. It measures 60" x 80". Very easy pattern to do!

New quilt on the longarm - "Log Cabin On Steroids"

2010-09-15T16:02:00.000-07:00

I've got a new quilt on the longarm and ready to start quilting on it. I made this top in one day at the quilting retreat that my wife and I went to this past weekend. It's made from two honeybuns (1.5" strips) of a fabric collection called "Kansas Winter" by the Kansas Troubles designers. It's a very easy pattern - basically you just sew the strips together end to end and then start sewing them in an ever increasingly larger rectangle. I'm going to quilt it using a pantograph design that is some vines and ivy leaves.

"Eternal" is done!

2010-09-07T16:18:00.000-07:00

I finished up the wallhanging that I was working on. It measures 40" x 48". I decided to name it "Eternal" since that's what the universe makes me think of.

My new longarm side leaders...

2010-09-04T11:50:00.000-07:00

I had been using some side canvas leaders based on the ones Sharon Schamber has on her quilting site. The only thing that I didn't like about those is that they have to be pinned, unpinned, repinned, etc. when advancing the quilt and rolling it back. So I had a thought (see pic). I just took a couple of paint stir sticks and put one on bottom, one on top, and then clamped it using the two side clamps as well as an additional quick release clamp in the middle. It works great and keeps the side of the quilt from distorting and is very quick to undo and redo. Love it!

Borders on and it's on the longarm...

2010-08-30T19:05:00.001-07:00

But now, how to quilt it? Hmmm....going to have to think on this awhile...

The Cosmos....

2010-08-29T10:25:00.000-07:00

Here's a couple of pics of the wall hanging that I'm working on. If you've seen some of my previous projects, you know that this is really quite a departure for me from the traditional things I've done. It's done in the batiks and is based on a quilt in the book "Strips 'n Curves" by Louisa L. Smith. When finished, it will measure about 50" x 42". This has been a LOT of fun working on and I'm enjoying the "artsy" aspect of it. I used to paint years ago, so this is a lot like using fabrics to paint. I still need to add the borders and will then start quilting it. I've decided that I really like piecing curves.

Started on the batik Strips_N_Curves

2010-08-24T15:49:00.000-07:00

I started sewing some strips sets together of the batiks for the strips-n-curves quilt that I'm going to make. I'm very pleased with these batiks from Connecting Threads. They sew together easily and have very little fraying to them. The colors are rich, and patterns are nice. Really enjoying working with these.

Some of my other art from the past...

2010-08-23T20:21:00.000-07:00

Someone asked me the other day if I had done other art besides quilting, so I thought I'd post a few pics of that. I used to paint (oils and watercolor) years ago. I haven't done any in probably close to 15-20 years now. But here's a few of what I did.

Hoping that Fall will be here soon

2010-08-21T06:38:00.000-07:00

I'm hoping that Fall will be here soon, and I'm working on this quilt in anticipation of that. It's all done in batiks and I'm using raw edge applique on it, fusing the leaves on with Steam-a-Seam and then using a buttonhole stitch around the edges. I've got lots more leaves to do, and then will quilt some veins into the leaves when I get to the quilting part.

Last of the batiks...

2010-08-19T14:12:00.000-07:00

That sounds kind of like a movie title, doesn't it? ("The Last of the Batiks") I ordered some batik fabrics from Connecting Threads this past week and they arrived today. They have just recently started carrying batiks, so I was a bit wary, but am very pleasantly surprised. These are beautiful fabrics. They have a nice feel to them and the colors and patterns are just spectacular (the pic doesn't do them justice). I was concentrating on the blues, greens, reds, and purples, but I can tell now that I've seen them that I'm going to HAVE to go back for more. Love them!!!

More batiks arrived today...

2010-08-18T14:51:00.000-07:00

I needed some yellow, browns, and reds to fill in the batik stash I have going. I got these from Old Country Store Fabrics. I have some more still coming from Connecting Threads and should be here in the next couple of days. I should be doing good on batiks for a while.

The batiks have arrived....

2010-08-11T15:57:00.000-07:00

I got a package in the mail today. The batiks have arrived. Can you tell that I really like batiks? :) I'm looking at doing a project from the book called "Strips 'n Curves" by Louisa L. Smith. I bought the book in Fort Walton, FL this summer when we were down there on vacation.

Fabric shopping

2010-08-08T16:41:00.000-07:00

I just went on a blitzkrieg of fabric shopping for some batiks for a project I have in mind. Besides the local quilt shops, I have a couple of online places that I really like a lot for fabric shopping. One is called Thousands of Bolts - it's amazing how much stuff they have (like thousands of bolts! LOL!) and the prices are incredible - about $4 a yard for what you'd pay in a quilt shop. So I've bought tons of stuff from them. For the batiks that I just bought, I went to Old Country Store Fabrics. They're very good prices, too (about $7-$8 per yard) and have a bajillion batiks to choose from. I'm trying to build up my stash of batiks at the moment, since it is somewhat lacking. I have quite a bit of 1800s/Civil War repros, and 1930s repros, but seems like my tastes and interests wanders at times. I've got enough fabric at the moment to literally make about 100 quilts probably, so when does it ever become "enough"? Probably never at the rate I'm going. :)

"Dandelion Girl" strip quilt for Olivia finished

2010-08-08T13:19:00.000-07:00

I finished up the strip quilt that I was making for my youngest daughter, Olivia, today. It was made from a jelly roll of the "Dandelion Girl" fabric line by the Fig Tree Quilts designer. It measures 65" x 76" and I did a pantograph quilting pattern on it called "Chantilly Lace". The blue border fabric is some that I found at Marshall's and is called "Mary Rose" by Quilt Gate. The backing fabric is by David Textiles.

Blog site updated

2010-08-07T08:42:00.000-07:00

I've spent the morning updating my blog to make it look a little different. I added a page selection bar across the top of the blog to get to different pages, and added pages for Contact and Links. I'm going to try to get a Gallery page up soon as well. Hope you enjoy it!

Dandelion Girl strip quilt

2010-08-06T19:44:00.000-07:00

I'm working on a quilt for my youngest daughter, Olivia. She's wanting to decorate her room in a shabby chic kind of thing, so I decided to make this quick strip quilt for her from a jelly roll of "Dandelion Girl" fabric. The border fabric is some that I found at Marshall's Dry Goods up in Batesville. As you can see, I've got it on the longarm now and working on quilting it. I'm doing a pantograph quilting pattern on it called Chantilly Lace. I think it compliments the fabric well.

Some notion bags for traveling...

2010-08-04T16:38:00.001-07:00

I'm going to be going to India in late September on business for a couple of weeks. I've decided to make a top and take it with me and do some hand-applique on it while there, so will need some bags to take my stuff in.

I used some 1800s reproduction fabrics to make them out of, with a zipper on the side of each one. I made the larger one to take my hoop in, and the smaller one will be used to carry scissors, thread, etc., and will slide inside the larger one. I used batting between the layers to make them cushioned as well, and then quilted a simple cross-hatch across them. Now I (hopefully) won't go stir crazy while I'm over there. :)

Sometimes we have to think in smaller terms...

2010-08-02T15:08:00.000-07:00

Last year (yeah, last year!) I decided to start a "Glorified Nine Patch" quilt (aka "Robbing Peter To Pay Paul" ). Well, I didn't get too far before I decided that curved piecing was just not my thing. So the blocks got shoved in a box and placed on a high shelf so I wouldn't have to think about them anymore.

I saw that box yesterday and had an epiphany - why not take the blocks that I had made so far and turn them into a table topper and call it done? So I did. My grandiose ideas of a large quilt in this pattern have shrank down to the table topper you see before you now. Better a tiny done UFO than an unfinished UFO, right?

It measures 30" x 30". Now I just got to find a table to top it with.

"We've Got The Blues" is done.

2010-07-31T09:50:00.001-07:00

I finished my "We've Got The Blues" quilt last night. It was based on a pattern called "Confetti" by Jan Bahr from the June 2002 issue of American Patchwork & Quilting. It measures 84" x 92" and is the largest quilt that I've made so far. Our guild does a fat quarter drawing each month and last month's color was Blue - and I won. So I used some of those blues, mixed in some of my own, and this is the result.

Done with The Blues...

2010-07-28T19:13:00.001-07:00

I finished quilting The Blues quilt today. It turned out well, I think. I just need to put a binding on it now, which I'll do tomorrow night. Still trying to decide whether to use a solid color binding or a scrappy binding. I'm leaning towards a solid color since the quilt has a somewhat formal look to it. I'd like to use some fabric of one of the ones I used in the top, but can't remember where I bought it! I think it was at Hancock's, will have to go by there tomorrow and see. Pics will follow on Friday or Saturday!

The Blues....

2010-07-25T19:09:00.000-07:00

This is the quilt that I'm currently working on quilting. I'm calling it "I got the blues". :)

I got it about 1/3 of the way quilted today, so hopefully will have it finished and done by the end of the week.

Workin' in the cave...

2010-07-25T12:41:00.001-07:00

Working on quilting a top that I finished the other day. It's the largest one I've made so far, about 82" x 94". I had trouble deciding how to quilt it but then tried to do something creative with it that didn't quite turn out as expected. But I'll trudge on with it and make do. I think I can salvage it. It's a continuous learning process, so if I don't try new things then I'll be stuck doing old things, right? There, my philosophical thought for the day. :)

One of the quilt guilds that I'm a member of is having our bi-annual show in November. I REALLY need to get busy on the quilt that I intend to enter. It's looking doubtful now as to whether I'll have it done, so may just have to substitute another for it. But I plan on entering several, so it won't be the end of the world if this one doesn't get done in time. Back to the cave.

Rag Quilts

2010-07-25T12:36:00.000-07:00

I really like rag guilts, they're a lot of fun to make and they're nice and soft when finished with the raggedy edge around the blocks. Here's pics of two of them that I've made, the first one was made from homespun plaid cloths and the second one was made from flannels. That second one is way warm, I shouldn't have used any batting inside it. A little while under that thing and you're cookin'! Our cat, Stella, really likes the one on the chaise, she spends a lot of time on it taking her cat naps.

"Olivia's Checkerboard"

2010-07-25T12:11:00.000-07:00

I made this quilt for my daughter, Olivia, so I named it "Olivia's Checkerboard". The fabric collection used for the 9-patch blocks is called "Fig & Plum" by Fig Tree Quilts, and the green/off-white hourglass blocks were made from some yardage that coordinated well. This is the first quilt that I tried doing a scalloped border on, and I was pleased with how it turned out.

2010-07-25T12:07:00.000-07:00

This quilt is another simple design that I acme up with of using half-square triangles with lights and darks, and then orienting them so that the darks make diamonds in the top. The fabric line in this one is called "Fig & Plum" by Fig Tree Quilts. I really like their fabrics, they're one of my favorite fabric designers. I made this quilt for my sister-in-law, Sharla, for Christmas 2009.

Christmas quilt and tree skirt

2010-07-25T12:02:00.000-07:00

Here's a couple of pics of some Christmas things I've made. First is a quilt made from the "Cranberry Wishes" line of fabrics and using a pattern called "Pandora's Box" by Pan and Nicky Lintott. The second pic is a tree skirt that I amde using a simple pinwheel pattern. The overall design is my own on that one.

"Civil War Cheddar"

2010-07-25T11:58:00.000-07:00

I made this quilt for a good friend of mine using Civil War reproduction fabrics. The pattern is a simple one of half-square triangles that uses cheddar colors for one half of the squares and various other blues, greys, rust, browns, and greens for the other half of the squares. I really like Civil War and 1800s reproduction fabrics and am finding that the bulk of my fabric supply is now being populated with it. So look for a lot more quilts of this style in the future. :)

Bargello Quilts

2010-07-25T11:53:00.000-07:00

Here's a couple of pics of bargello quilts that I've made. The one in the pinks and greens on top was done in a simple stair-stepping pattern using a "Willowberry Winter" line of fabrics. The blue and green one on the bottom is from a pattern that's supposed to simulate ocean waves and was made from various fabrics that just seemed to work.

My first paper pieced project

2010-07-24T21:13:00.000-07:00

Here's a pic of my first paper piecing project. It's a wall hanging and it was made with 1800s reproduction fabrics. The pattern is called "Ringo Star" and was designed by Deb Karasik. She came and did a class for our guild in June 2010 and it was great. I started this project in that class, did 3 blocks there, and then finished it on my own. Deb is a great teacher, and just a wonderful person to be around. I really enjoyed doing this project and also was glad to learn another skill in doing it (paper piecing), which is something that I had been intimidated to try in the past. Another great reason for joining a guild - you get to try new things!

Quilt Guilds

2010-07-24T21:06:00.000-07:00

I'm a member of the Arkansas Quilt Guild (joined in August 2009), as well as the Hot Springs Area Quilt Guild (joined July 2010). Both are great guilds and we have lots of fun going to the monthly meetings of each one. At the AQG, I'm also the Newletter Ad/Publicity Chairman, and in 2011 I will be the chairman of the Spring AWOL getaway in April 2011. AWOL (Arkansas Women On the Loose + guys, too) is where we go to the Ferndale camp with our sewing machines and stuff and spend 3 days just sewing and being creative. What a fun time! Melissa and I went to the one in February 2010, and will be going to the one in September 2010 as well. Looking forward to it!

But back to the subject of guilds. Guilds are great for getting to share your love of quilting with others, so if you're not a member of your local one then I'd really encourage you to seek one out. Unfortunately, my local county guild does not allow men to join (Boo!), but I'm glad I didn't get discouraged by that and instead sought out one that would allow me to join (thank you, Arkansas Quilt Guild!). We Melissa and I joined the HSAQG, the president announced it to the group and said that she was really glad they were a "mixed league" now. :)

Hello, and welcome to my blog!

2010-07-24T19:13:00.001-07:00

Welcome to my blog! As you can tell, I'm into quilting, and I already know how "unusual" that is for a man. And one from the South as well. It's a creative outlet that I latched onto about a year ago, and have been on it like a dog on a piece of meat. :)

So, why quilting? I have an art background and have painted a lot, but always found that to be work because I struggled with it and got frustrated a lot. I won some awards, and I think I was fairly good at it. But like I said, it was work. With quilting, it's just enormous fun for me and it's just amazing the different ways you can let the creativity out with fabric and thread. Fun, functional, AND satisfying!