Friday, September 30, 2016

Boise Basin Quilt Show

I haven't attended a Boise Basin Quilt Show in years, due to the fact that it's usually the same weekend as Quilting In The Garden in Livermore, CA and that equals a visit with my daughter and a chance to catch up with Lynn Wilder!  This year our California pilgrimage is delayed until October so I went and enjoyed the quilt show AND as a bonus did a little unplanned "Junkin" at the event in the next section of the Expo Building, coming home with a teapot, an old mixing bowl and a pearl handled button hook for a shadow box I've wanted to make for years!

I thought I'd just quickly show some of my favorite quilts from the show!  I'm especially fond of Plaid Exchange because it was beautifully constructed by my first quilt instructor who I learned hand piecing & how to draft my own blocks and templates from over 30 years ago. 

Music Is The Voice is an original design by our SIL's talented sister!




 






 
 
 
 
 
~Nancie Anne

Sunday, September 4, 2016

Synchronized Swimming!

A Lovely Labor Day Weekend, Sunday Morning, to all my Quilty Friends!

I received a comment from my sweet bloggy friend, Huggy Helen, requesting a close up of the quilting in my Christmas Country Charmer Quilt, so I've gone back to the vault and am sharing this link to one of my posts about my trip to HandiQuilter HQ last year.

If you would like to see close ups of the darling digital design in progress which was selected from the overstuffed notebook kept by the HQ Educators, they're all there!  There's also a very accurate close up of the thread on the spool, which I'm glad of because the photos don't do the actual stitched on thread colors justice.  The second I saw that spool, there was no going back.  Oh yes, the group insisted on auditioning others, but they finally agreed that I had already found The One!  Unfortunately, in my photos, it just looks all silver, and in person it's not!

Anyhoo...last time I posted I said the Mermaid quilt top would likely be finished the following day, which it was...except for one tweak of one flying goose whose pointy bits were not pointy enough and making it fly a with a bit of a right sided list. 
Yeah, my husband stood over it with me and said, "Nobody's gonna notice it but you...but it's gonna drive you crazy, so fix it if you must!"
I spent two-ish days cutting leftover scraps into nice straight rectangles and assembling a very cute back for my happy little mermaids!
So it was the day after, the day after, when I ripped that little bugger out and ripped it apart and put it back together and #!*#?! ripped it back out and put it back in from the opposite end that time and could breathe again, knowing that now, all was finally flying straight in my little world.  Deep Sigh!

I know that my little Granddaughter, about to celebrate her 2nd Birthday, won't have a clue about the time and love I've crammed into this little quilt for her at this point, I just hope to see her wrap her little self up in it like she did when she tried to snitch Auntie's Flutterby quilt with that grin last year!

Here are some pics of HER little mermaids swimming in synchronicity in my Italian Prune tree!

Did you miss me?  I just went out and reshot pictures after opening up the ones I took with the wrong camera the other day and kicking myself for doing such a silly thing!  Every time I use that camera to photograph anything with red, pink or peach in it the photos coming out flaming!  They're painful to look at and that's not the impression I want anyone to have of this cute little quilt...especially when people other than me put my photos up on Pinterest occasionally!  A week ago it was nearly 100 degrees outside and this morning it's slightly chilly and overcast!  Autumn is upon us!

So here are some pictures from nearly worn out old reliable...

Synchronized Swimmers
I added an inch to the white side sashing pieces so that I could stick another flying goose unit in to maintain a continuous line of "waves" rather than having each one broken up.  I likewise, added an inch to the horizontal sashing pieces too so that spacing would be the same. 
Then I did some math, (and then the teeny tiniest seam allowance adjustment) to adjust the outer border squares.
These are my husbands two favorite Mermaids...next to his Granddaughter, of course!
 
I am super partial to this sweet little polka dot and the aqua print made me imagine plant life floating in water, so I decided it could be wonderful mermaid hair! 
Here's the back made from leftovers from the numerous fat quarters & 1/2 yards used in the top.
I found these 2 bluer, unrelated prints when contemplating ideas for the back and brought home FQ's to audition.  I was glad I had them, otherwise I'd have been back at the quilt shop buying more of the Coral, Queen of the Sea prints!
Here's a picture taken with the bad camera the other day, when it was brighter outside...I couldn't resist taking this photo and sharing the back with the light shining through it and the stained glass effect.
See how harsh the camera makes the foliage background look though? 
Stupid Camera...it's going to have to go bye-bye, so I'll stop wasting my time using it then trying to manually adjust on the computer after I download!
 
Splish~Splash!
 
~Nancie Anne

Friday, September 2, 2016

Seeing Stars & Ribbons Of Blue!!!


Earlier this week I brought Christmas Country Charmer, Housewarming & The Great I Am home from the Western Idaho Fair.  All three had been awarded blue ribbons, 100/100 scores and some very kind comments from the judge(s).   I know these quilts better than anyone...I know what we've been through together to get into the finished category, and knowing what I know, I never expected blue ribbons!  I got up the morning after returning from the Baby Shower in California, threw the required sleeves on the back of these quilts and dropped them off at the fairgrounds in the early evening!  I waved goodbye and didn't return til the fair was over.  I never saw them displayed. I never saw the other entries.  Shame on me!  The day we thought we might go to the fairgrounds was the day we decided Maecee needed to go have a once over at the Vet's instead.
My Husband's Housewarming Quilt
 
 I used up leftover scraps from special quilts previously finished to back this quilt with memories that I knew my husband would enjoy.  Not sure my poor dear quilter still loves me! But it was worth it!
The judge commented that she loved the fun back!
 
I had enough time to throw a sleeve on the back of The Great I Am.  Since I was making the trip across the valley to enter the other 2 quilts, I decided this fun little Christmas Novelty Quilt might entertain some younger fairgoers.
 
and...TA DAAAAA!!!!!!
 
 
 
Christmas Country Charmer was also the recipient of beautiful rosette for Best Of Division. Included with this award was an extra bit of premium money and a large Mountain Mist quilt batt!
On the bottom of the scorecard was written, "Perfect! Great quilt. Thanks for sharing! (You made my job easy)"
Considering that I'm still scratching my head over one fair judges comment a year or two ago, I'm pretty tickled with that note!
Thank you again & again & again, to Lynn Wilder, who sits by calmly when I go messing around with her designs!
To think that this quilt started out as a naughty secret surprise for the end of the Country Charmer QuiltAlong between Sue Abrey and I, and the places it's gotten me to!  My dear, HRH Sue is always in the back of my mind challenging me, with a bob of her head & her Yorkshire accent, to perfect my "Pointy Bits".  I've told her that, when I'm having a really challenging time achieving perfection & about to give up, she appears on my right shoulder, wearing her wings, lopsided halo and starts poking at me with her pitchfork!
 The center tree portion of this quilt, is called A Tree For All Seasons, by Julia Ziegler at Room To Learn.
I've also let the HandiQuilter Educators know that the quilt we decided to quilt with metallic thread & sweated bullets over in the classroom a year ago this month has sparkled its way to these sweet little awards!


I'm winding down from my Happy Dance now...

~Nancie Anne