Audible and Quilting for the win!

Because I am lucky enough to work from home, I need the sound of a voice other than mine to fill the house. Audible is perfect for that!

I've had a subscription to Audible for about two years and only recently discovered the wonders of the genre called cozy mysteries. I don't know why it took me so long to find these gems. As described by Goodreads,

Cozies very rarely focus on sex, profanity or violence. The murders take place off stage, and are often relatively bloodless (e.g. poisoning), while sexual activity (if any) between characters is only ever gently implied and never directly addressed.

The cozy mystery usually takes place in a small town or village. The small size of the setting makes it believable that all the suspects know each other. The amateur sleuth is usually a very likeable person who is able to get the community members to talk freely about each other. There is usually at least one very knowledgeable, nosy, yet reliable character in the book who is able to fill in all of the blanks, thus enabling the amateur sleuth to solve the case.

I started listening to cozy mysteries without realizing it when I downloaded books from the Murder She Wrote series. I enjoyed the TV show and figured the books would make good companions. They are easy listening and don't require my full attention. I can quilt and listen without losing my place on either endeavor.

After listening to several Murder She Wrote books, Audible automatically began to recommend other books related to the type. That led me to the Southern Sisters series by Anne George. These books are absolutely wonderful. They feature Patricia Anne, the narrator, and her sister Mary Alice who live in Birmingham, Alabama. The things they get themselves mixed up in are hilarious, heartwarming, and highly entertaining. If you like mysteries that don't include a lot of gore or violence, these books are the perfect fit. The first in the series is entitled Murder on a Girl's Night Out. I give it four enthusiastic quills!

Southern Sisters Mysteries Book 1

Fear of Finishing

I'm sure I'm not alone in this.... I love making quilt tops. It's turning those into quilts that scares the daylights out of me. Even though I don't consider myself a perfectionist, in reality I fear that I am. This stops me from taking those final steps to finish a quilt. If I don't finish it, I have the chance to make it even better or maybe even perfect. Which of course is nonsense. Unfinished quilts beg to be completed, to be used and loved and appreciated.

I know I don't stand alone before this mental hurdle. There is a reason there are quilt retreats devoted to tackling UFOs. Why do we put so much pressure on ourselves that we can't take the necessary steps to complete our fabric artwork?

I have the top of the pennant quilt complete. I love the colors, the pattern, the way they came together. But I can't take those last final steps to make the quilt sandwich and quilt it. Why? What is the hold up?

I wish I had a definitive answer but the only one I can come up with is that so many quilt patterns and instructional videos and traditional wisdom stress the importance of exactness - exact 1/4 inch seams, quilting that is dense and fluid... the list goes on. I am not capable of achieving those levels of exactness. I'm not sure many people are. And the fact remains - if my seams aren't exactly perfect, and my quilting is not as dense as recommended, it ultimately doesn't matter. I'm making a quilt that I think is beautiful and will keep me warm no matter how imperfect it may be. I need to let go of unrealistic expectations and allow myself to love the process.

I think this quote sums up my feelings about my hesitation to actually finish my latest quilt:

Striving for excellence motivates you; striving for perfection is demoralizing. ~Harriet Braiker

And with that in mind, I am going to go finish my quilt sandwich so I can finish my quilt. Quilting without fear is my goal! And I'll post pictures of my finished quilt as soon as it's done. It won't be perfect but it will still be pretty!

Adventures in Landscape Quilting Pt 1

The other day, I decided to make a landscape / art quilt. I had seen several landscape quilts which were breathtaking and thought I'd try my hand at it. 

Being impulsive, as I can sometimes be, I launched right into it without any idea of the way one should make a landscape quilt. I found several beautiful landscape photos of the Great Smokey Mountains and created a template:

My first step was to print this design onto muslin. Since I didn't know the usual process for landscape quilts, I figured that would give me a good guide in building the landscape.

The next step was to reverse the template, print it on paper, and number each each piece. I then traced it onto fusible web, numbering each piece on the fusible web. I knew I'd need to overlap the pieces and thought I'd left a large enough margin at the bottom of each piece. In this I miscalculated. Oops. But that's jumping ahead.

I pawed through my stash (some of which is courtesy of my sister) and came up with fabrics I thought would work out. Here is the "rough draft" of the fabrics.

I was pretty pleased with the variety of colors until I got to the greens. I'm still not sure I chose the best colors to represent the foreground mountains. The trees in the bottom third seem to disappear into the hills. As it's my first attempt, I decided to go ahead and try it with these colors.

As mentioned earlier, some of the pieces didn't turn out large enough to cover the entire muslin template. I can't figure out how the pieces ended up too small since they should have been plenty big. Maybe not researching the technique in advance was a mistake? I managed to get the muslin covered and fused the pieces in place.

After starting this project, I checked YouTube for landscape videos. It was there I discovered I need to make the entire quilt sandwich before I sew down the landscape pieces. That makes perfect sense but I hadn't actually thought that far ahead. So the next step is make the two borders I'm planning to add, and cut the batting and backing. Then I can start sewing it. I'll post pictures when that process is started.

Bicycle Wall Hanging

A little red bicycle with a basket of flowers and books - few things say summer to me more than this image! To celebrate the coming of summer, I designed and created this bicycle wall hanging. It incorporates my love of appliqué, bicycles, books, flowers, and polka dots. I wanted this to be as happy a wall hanging as I could manage, and I think I succeeded.

What do you think?

More pictures are available here.

Although not clear in this photo, the tires and seat are black polka dots, like the border. I am a lover of all things polka dot. Few designs are as cheerful to me as dots of all colors.

This completed wall hanging is available at my Etsy shop.

This is a completely original design. I used Adobe Illustrator to trace several different kinds of bicycles until I got it looking like an old-timey two wheeler. For the flowers and books in the basket, I fussy cut from appropriate fabrics that spoke to me. (You can't really see the books in the basket but they are there.)

 If you would like to make your own wall hanging, here is a copy of the bicycle. Please don't claim this design as yours - a link back would be nice but not required. Anything you choose to do with this design is up to you, as long as you don't say you designed it yourself. Thanks!

Bicycle for applique (c) Crafts of Note

Quilting pattern for wall hanging border (c) Crafts of Note 2016

Jenny from the Missouri Star Quilt Company!

The other day, I was looking for quilt videos. Although I've been sewing for a really long time, I am a sporadic quilter. Mostly I'm a quilt starter, not a quilt finisher.

Be that as it may, I wanted to brush up on my quilting skills so did what any quilter of the modern era would do - went to YouTube. There I discovered the wonders of Jenny from the Missouri Star Quilt Company.

I am now a disciple of Jenny and her videos! One of the reasons I have been a lifelong sporadic quilter is that the demand for precision has scared me into inaction. Jenny likes precision but as she puts it, if it doesn't come out quite right, nobody dies and you can make do.

Jenny is upbeat, funny, sensible, and inspires me to make ALL the quilts. I watch her videos for quilts I never intend to make.

One of the things I most appreciate is that she can make even the most complicated patterns simple. And she makes me believe I can make those same patterns. When I watch her videos, I have the same feelings of security and tranquility I used to find with Bob Ross's painting videos and his happy little trees. Jenny makes adorable quilts and loves sharing them with her audience.

After watching this video, I decided to make my own pennant quilt. As soon as I have it finished, I'll post the end results. (It is a really fun quilt to make!)

Go enjoy Jenny and her videos which will inspire you to want to make ALL the quilts.

Ballerinas Dancing Across a Wall Hanging

I have always loved the art of Ballet. If I'd been shorter, thinner, and more athletic, I would have dreamt of being a ballerina. Alas, that was not to be. I am a sewer which means I can create ballerinas from fabric and thread. This is the result!

Even more photos are available here: Ballerina Wall Hanging - Four Swans Dancing

Ballerina Wall Hanging is available from my Etsy shop.

I created this wall hanging using Adobe Illustrator to trace various ballerinas in several poses. If you would like to make your own wall hanging, here is a copy of the swans. Please don't claim this design as yours - a link back would be nice but not required. Anything you choose to do with this design is up to you, as long as you don't say you designed it yourself. Thanks!

Four Swans Dancing (c) Crafts of Note 

Joyful Elephant Wall Hanging

Isn't there something so adorable about elephants? I've always thought of elephants as true gentle giants. I feel certain that in real life they are loud, smelly, and ill tempered - much like us, now that I think about it.

That doesn't mean that I don't harbor a love of elephants. When I saw this design at Windham Fabrics, I knew I had to make my own.

I was a little surprised that the elephant on the appliqué pattern wasn't reversed. And since I'd already printed it out, I decided not to reverse it when I made it. That makes mine a mirror image of the original but I'm okay with it. I still think it's incredibly adorable.

What do you think?

More photos are available here: Joyful Elephant Wall Hanging.

Joyful Elephant Wall Hanging is available in my Etsy shop.

Open Book Wall Hanging

I've been quilting for many, many years - off and on. Recently I decided to return to making quilts by starting small. My first project of what I plan to be many quilts is an open book wall hanging. It is pieced which is a change from the appliqué I have been doing more recently.

Open Book Wall Hanging

Open book close-up

Bookshelf close-up

Open book close-up

Back of wall hanging

Back close-up

The Open Book Wall Hanging is available from my Etsy shop.

The wall hanging has two shelves of closed books and two shelves displaying open books with quotes: "Not all who wander are lost." and "A ship in harbor is safe but that is not what ships are built for." The "pages" of the books are machine quilted with appropriate designs, including a sailboat, a lighthouse, and a mariner's compass. The shelved books are outline quilted.

The wall hanging is machine pieced and quilted, from 100% pre-washed quilting cotton. The back is Timeless Treasure book fabric, always a favorite. There are three tabs at the top for hanging. It measures 23.5 inches high and 31 inches wide.

I was very happy with the overall look although it didn't come out precisely the way it should have. Those 1/4 inch seams can have their own minds which I can't get under control. 

This wall hanging was made from the Open Book pattern designed by Nancy Harcourt of Prairie Queen Pattern Company, which can be purchased at her Etsy shop (prairiequeenpatterns.etsy.com).