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Monday, September 29, 2014

Rush Hour - Going the Distance

Welcome to Rush Hour in the sticks.


This is my stop in the 
RUSH HOUR
blog hop.

Studio E Fabrics has a new line of fabric called "Rush Hour"
and have kindly sponsored this blog hop.

The projects in this hop are all

RED BLACK GREY or  WHITE 
and 
have something to do with the theme 

RUSH HOUR

Let me tell you about my Rush Hour in 4 words:


"On the road, again..."

One hour from home to work.
No way to make it faster.
(Trust me)
But always feeling rushed.
Nothing but highway for 2 hours per day.
That's me "Going the Distance"
I set the cruise and go.

Now what did I create to make this rush hour better?



Have you ever listened to books on CD in your car?
I DO!!
It sure makes the trip go faster, but when it's time to change to the next CD, 
those little papers the disks come in are about impossible to fumble with.

The answer:  A CD holder for my visor.


You can find the basic pattern for your own CD holder HERE.
I added the coffee cup paper pieced block.
If coffee is wrong, I don't want to be right.


Elastic on the back holds it right in place.




Now, when the book is at the climax and I have to change the CD
I won't have to fumble though the box and paper holders for the next one.

I'm sure the other drivers on the highway will appreciate that...


I'm always carrying multiple bags to work to carry my lap top, lunch, hand sewing (for breaks), and any thing else I might need.  I made one BIG bag to carry everything in ONE.

Do you see the windmills in the background?  

No one will be able to claim this bag but me.  :)

My car with me inside and appliqued on a BIG pocket for the front of the quilted bag.

Do you recognize me?
(blog header me)


Coffee and my bag and I'm off...
"Life is a Highway"
here in my car.
Going
 the distance,
going for speed
I can't drive 55!!


That's right, I drive one of those little boxy cars.  

I'm no "Mustang Sally".
You surely didn't think of me in a
 "Mercedes Benz" 
or a
 "Little Red Corvette"
or a
 "Little Deuce Coupe" 
or a
"Pink Cadillac"
did you?
(Wow, do you know how many songs are about cars?)

The following blogs are sharing Rush Hour today.

Please shower them like a "Car Wash" with comment love!

Monday, September 29
Coeur d'Alene (moved from the 26th)

(A lot of songs were butchered in this post)

Thank you, Madame Samm for this great sew and tell you have created, your encouragement, your gentle push to be better,
and
for my artwork inspiration.

Thank you, Carol for all the cheer leading and continually inspiring me to be a better quilter and blogger.


Away I go to share the highway with cattle trucks and cars in a RUSH to somewhere.
When I pull up beside them, they don't know what I'm listening to...wink.




Friday, September 26, 2014

Friday Finish - Blocks and Bows


There hasn't been a lot of sewing time this week, but I do have a little to share.





I finished the blocks for the September queen of my modern quilting bee.
I love it when the fabric comes already cut and all I have to do is sew it together.
Thanks, Max.

The  pattern for the blocks is from this tutorial at SewHappyGeek.

Call me a worker bee.

If you've been following along, you know that we have a wedding coming up.
Family will be arriving 3 weeks from today for my daughter's wedding.

Busy bee 
 is an understatement at this point, but we are still having fun.

I finished a million 20 bows for candelabras and pews.

Burlap ribbon is quite a bit heavier than any ribbon I've worked with, but with a million a few tries, they are finished.


I used a couple of You tube videos as inspiration:


but 


Stay tuned, there is a lot going on here in the sticks...

My day in the 

is Monday and I will reveal my 
rush hour.

Carol is the cheerleader for the hop and she has the full schedule
at her blog, Just Let Me Quilt.

Want to know more about this wonderful world of blog hops?

Studio e is having a giveaway...HERE.

Have a productive and beautiful weekend,





Thursday, September 25, 2014

Rush Hour - You Don't Want to Miss It


I'm a bit late, but what's new?


Today is the 3rd day of the 

RUSH HOUR 
blog hop.

Are you in a rush?

Well, maybe you can find a creative project to help you get through your rush hour.

Carol is leading the way, so let's go hopping.

Here is the schedule:

Tuesday, September 23

Wednesday, September 24

Thursday, September 25

Friday, September 26

Monday, September 29

Tuesday, September 30

Come back and join me Monday, September 29th.
That's when I will be showcasing my Rush Hour to the world.

(If only we  had 1 rush hour, I have days of many rush hours..lol)


Monday, September 8, 2014

September, So Happy to See You


and
welcome to my stop in the hop.




Shari over at Living With Purpose has kept this blog hop organized and has been a great cheerleader.
Thank you Shari!

Thank you Madame Samm
at
for dreaming of this wonderful place 
where quilters can sew and show!



For this hop, participants are to show 3 projects from the summer with one of those projects using 
Riley Blake Designs gingham.


September is a special month here in the sticks.
DH and I were married in September and we both celebrate birthdays.
In fact, today is my duck whisperer's (hubby) birthday.



We haven't been able to get away all summer, so to celebrate September,
 we loaded my three projects for the hop
into the car and spent the weekend in Teller County, Colorado 
taking pictures, shopping, relaxing, sightseeing, and eating great food.
The apron, above, was a vintage find during our trip.

This is where most of the photos were shot for this hop.   A beautiful fishing lake surrounded with mountains and lots of hiking trails.

I warn you, this post is very picture heavy!
Sorry.  I just have been waiting all summer to hop.

But this hop is all about what I did over the summer.


I tackled an attic window quilt to start the summer.  I've always wanted to make one and there is a spot in our cabin that is perfect to hang this.



The pattern is my own, put together by looking at other attic window quilts on the Internet.
I had the duck panel (South Seas First Light Panel by Austin Jackson)
 and figured out how to cut out 2 inch strips without loosing too much of the duck scene.


I had this quilt finished in time to enter it in our local fair.
The judge liked it enough for a blue ribbon  and particularly liked the wood grain free motion quilting
I did on the outside border.  I smiled for a week.
If you click on the non polaroid pictures above, I think you will see the quilting better.


Some of the first craft projects I conquered in middle school and high school were counted cross stitch.  My mom still has a few of them.  
I started this project and enjoyed a little summer stitching out on the porch.


Once this little jar was stitched
it became part of a nested churn dash block.


And then the block became a sweet 16" pillow with RBD gingham.
I had just enough of a pre cut strip of RBD small yellow gingham to make the first churn dash block.


The second churn dash, backing, and binding are RBD medium gingham in aqua.
I cut the binding on the bias for a different look at gingham.

But, my super sweet cross stitch pillow isn't my RBD gingham project.
(well it is, but it isn't the main one..lol)


Molly is always there to assist me.  
She was right there to work on a bridal shower gift for "Mini Me."

Stop reading right here, Trista!!
(I want it to be a surprise)
*wink*


My daughter, Trista, is going to be married in October and there is a shower for her in 2 weeks.
This throw (60" x 72") will be part of a gift for her and I am finished ahead of time (for a change).


(That's Pikes Peak in the background)

I used 4 charm packs of RBD large gingham to make the blocks. 
Each charm was bordered with Kona white to form the blocks.
Setting the blocks on point was a first for me and I can't wait to try it again.
It makes the quilt look more complicated than it is. :)




It was about to rain in this picture.  The purple looks so much darker and the wind was whipping it around.
Trista loves purple, so I used Kona solid for the back.  The inside border is also Kona solid and I chose a green because her wedding colors are purple with a touch of green.


I made a swirly flower pattern in free motion for the quilting and a scalloped edge seemed right for this quilt.
Trista will love this.


The lake was so reflective of the mountains in this photo, I had to show it.

And there you have it, my summer in a nutshell AKA blog post.

But, wait, you should sign up for my giveaway before you leave.

This summer there was a huge shop hop.
The Row by Row Experience was a chance to get free patterns from local participating quilt shops.  Many of the shops carried the Fabric Plates from Zebra Patterns 
and 
as a thank you 
I have one to give away.


UPDATE:  giveaway is over.  
Linda is the winner
Blogger Linda said...
Carla, you outdid yourself! Everything you made is gorgeous! I love the idea of putting a panel behind the attic windows! Wow!
 Thank you, Linda.  You always have the best things to say and you blow me away with your talent.

To win this fabric license plate, just leave a comment.
ANYONE can win, although it does say QUILTING USA.

And

If you follow this blog,
as a thank you,
leave a second comment telling me you do.

Now, don't be a "no-reply" commenter.  ok?
You can't win if I can't e-mail you.
I will choose a random winner at the end of the blog hop.
That's September 16th.

Be sure to visit my hop mates today!
Leave them comments and make their day!

Monday, September 8



Thanks for visiting.
Happy Birthday, to my wonderful hubby.


















Sunday, September 7, 2014

Vintage Find - Gingham Inspiration

For all my gingham loving friends
I wanted to share my extraordinary find.


I am away
enjoying time with my hubby
shopping, site seeing, relaxing, and rejuvenating.

But, more on that tomorrow.


This vintage apron is hand stitched with little cross stitches
and
has ric rack trim.
For only $10 from a sweet little shop in Divide, Colorado.
Now, how perfect is that?

See you tomorrow for






Monday, September 1, 2014

Around the World Blog Tour

Welcome to my stop on the Around the World Blog Hop.
(I almost missed my deadline)

Kris over at Sew Sunshine invited me to participate and I am excited to join all of these incredibly talented bloggers in this tour around the world.  Kris and I share a love of challenge quilt projects and she has inspired me so many times.

As part of this tour, I am supposed to answer 4 questions, so here it goes....

Number 1 - What am I working on?



I'm crazy for blog hops and challenges.


The See You in September blog hop starts Wednesday, September 3rd
 and
 I have been so busy getting ready for my day on September 8th.  
The full schedule for the hop is here.

So, I would love to show you the rest of this, but it has to wait until the hop.


I've been enjoying a little summer stitching on the porch, but I can't show you this one either...
sorry.

Most of my time crafting and sewing lately has been wedding related.


My daughter is soon to be married and here she is working on the little sign the ring bearer will be carrying for the wedding.  (I guess they don't carry a pillow with rings anymore..lol)

We have been having a lot of crafting sessions together to add little personal touches to the wedding.
She is my only daughter and I want to enjoy every moment of this time in our lives.


Number 2- How does my work differ from others of it's genre.

Does it?  I do like to think out of the box, but mostly I just want to do something new or different.


This is my can-can dancers quilt.  It's a little out of the box.



I mostly like to make my own patterns and share the things I learn along the way.

I'm into modern, traditional, whimsical quilting.
How's that?

Number 3- Why do I write/create what I do?

Because I love to do things with my hands.  
I love to experiment.
Quilting and sewing are my outlets.
I'm a hair stylist by trade and it is a very creative career, but I am limited in creativity to give my clients what they want.  
Quilting lets me be creative in my own way
.Like most quilters I know, I'm always ready to start on that next quilty idea that pops into my head.
(It just won't quit)


This is the quilt, Down the Dyeing Path, made after I learned about dyeing fabric.

I write about my experiences and to share what I've learned. 
Isn't that why we are here?  
To inspire each other and help each other grow?

Number 4- How does my writing/creating process work?

Sometimes it doesn't.  I just keep trying. 
 Sometimes an idea hits me in the middle of the craziest things - work, driving, running, sleeping, eating, watching tv... 
You get the idea.  lol
 Usually my ideas are inspired by things around me. 
 I thinks that's pretty normal, right?


My best comes out when I create from my heart. 
I use a lot of scrap paper to jot down ideas.
Sometimes a quilt comes from paper and pencil like 
or
Sometimes I use EQ7 to design a quilt
like


There you have it.  You know a little bit more about me.  

My friend Jen over at Glinda Quilts is posting today on this blog tour.  
She will blow you away with her mad quilting skills and she always has me in stitches with her loving humor.  She is taking over the world with her sweet pants bags.
Jen loves the Wizard of Oz and Wicked and we instantly became friends when she found out I was from Kansas.  She puts up with my ignorance of the UK and has taught me so much about the giving spirit.

Next week you won't want to miss Vickie over at More Stars in Comanche
and 
Cherry over at Cherry Quilts.

Vickie has been a huge inspiration for me and you will want to check out her beautiful quilting and life at the ranch.
Cherry and I met through a blog hop and she always has great quilting and fun experiences on her blog.

They will be on the World Tour September 8th.

I'm sad to see summer come to the "unofficial end." 
 I'll see you soon for See You in September,