Pot of Flowers Collage Pillow

It's finally finished, and only 2 1/2 months after I got home! You are not having deja vu, you have seen it before. I started this pillow in a class in Sisters. It was taught by Bari J. Ackerman and uses collage with fabric and embellishments. I even included a couple of selvages, including one from Bari's fabric line with her name on it. The final phase was "bling application", which you all know is mandatory for me! Check out Bari's blog, http://barij.typepad.com.

Is Longarming Contagious?

It sure seems so! Who can resist the endless creativity and business opportunities that longarming offers? Not me! And, apparently not three of my quilting friends. You have met Kelleigh, http://www.kellsquilting.com/. Now meet Richla, http://gotkwilts.blogspot.com/. Richla is getting her Statler very soon! In addition, my friend Londa recently found a steal on a gently used Gammill. She intends to use hers for the numerous charity quilts she makes. So, the moral of this story? Never say you will never invest in a longarm! You, my friend, could be next!

Welcome, Freckles!

Congrats to my friend, Kelleigh. Her new Gammill arrived yesterday! The pic on the bottom is her sweet husband and the delivery guy bringing in the components through a hole in the garage wall. Yes, her husband cut a hole in the wall between the garage and the stairwell to get the 12- foot long parts upstairs. How's that for supportive?! Way to go, Richard!! In the tradition of most longarm quilters, Kelleigh has named her machine. Meet "Freckles" the Gammill Vision Longarm!

Quilt Show Debut

Here we are, me and my lovely quilt show assistants! We had a great day, seeing old friends and making new ones. Many thanks to Kelleigh and Theresa for making the day so much fun and to the ladies of the Johnson City Quilt Guild for all their hard work.

Miles of Piles

This is just one of the many piles that currently occupy my sewing room. Who am I kidding? They are not confined to the sewing room! I mentioned in an earlier post that I have been working on some new things for my business. Well, the first one relates to the miles of piles. I am going to be a vendor at a local quilt show this weekend. The piles contain all the fabulous wares for my booth. Look for pictures early next week!

The second thing I am working on is a bus trip to the Houston Quilt Festival. I have chartered a bus! If you had asked me to do this 2 months ago, I would have said heck no (I did, in fact, say this to a couple of people!). As it turns out, I am getting really excited about it and the response has been very enthusiastic.

Theresa and I have been quilting for 10 years now. We took the Sisters trip to celebrate our "anniversary". I also vowed to take some classes and try some new things in 2010. I am continuing the theme of "getting out of my quilting box" in the business as well!

Stay tuned for pics of all the adventures!

God bless America, today and always.

Adventures in Longarm Quilting

Yes, dear followers, today has turned out to be "one of those days"! As we continue to be deluged by Hermine, our power has begun to surge. That makes it rather difficult to operate an industrial machine that is powered by, you got it, electricity! I have finally conceded to Horrible Hermine and stopped out of concern for not only my sanity, but the welfare of dear Jacky. For those who don't know, Jacky is the name of my Gammill. She is named after my longarm mentor, Jacky Peterson, who died of breast cancer 2 months after I got my machine. I better run now and ready the ark, just in case Valentine, Jacky and I have to evacuate!

Did You Know?

Most of your favorite fabric manufacturers have free patterns on their websites? It's true! I mean, who doesn't love free?! Here are some of my faves,
http://freespiritfabric.com
http://hoffmanfabrics.com
http://unitednotions.com (under "Fun Stuff" in the header)
http://ttfabrics.net (under "Quilts" in the header)

Operation "Bundles of Love"

Check out the Selvage Blog, http://selvageblog.blogspot.com/ today to find out how our soldiers are going above and beyond yet again to help the Iraqi people. We have more in common than we often think!

Calling All iPhone Users!

This is really neat, a practical app for quilters! Although I don't personally have an iPhone, I know a lot of quilters that do. This app could really come in handy, as it is a lot easier to keep your phone close to your machine than your laptop. http://freemotionquilting.blogspot.com/