My Grand Illusion, Hot Off The Long Arm!

My long forgotten Grand Illusion is quilted, still need to bind this week.

 E toE feathers in the body of the quilt and separate borders. No design will show much on these busy scrappy quilts so an all over works best, but I like to make separate borders.

 As I quilted I pulled out all those annoying little threads that seem to appear in the seams they often do not release in the wash.

 Some years ago my friend Loretta gave me one of these………..perhaps I am a bit of a "nit picker" when to comes to quilting?

As a joke? But it works and it lives on my tool tray because I use it!

My backing was a little short so I had to insert a few inches in either direction.

I like it!

I forgot to attach the label before I quilted so I had to stick it in when I remembered right at the end of the quilting and unfortunately it is not straight!

 But it's almost done and in a few days I can cross it off the list!

The little Aspen wall quilt is in it's new home and the new owners sent me this picture. They said they had been looking for art to hang in this spot and had rejected everything they tried until now!

I love it!

Progress!

This quilt has languished since my April visit to Texas, and I think I will quilt it as is, I tried adding a piano key border of the fabrics in the quilt and I hated it!
Adding the white border satisfies me, sort of floating the blocks, but I haven't yet decided on a quilting design.

I made a little cover for one of my new chairs, just didn't like the feel of the chair seat without any fabric over it. There's one layer of a very thick poly batting in the middle enough for a smidgeon of padding.

These "I Can Quilt It" panels have been aging and it was a good use for them. The chair is more comfy and it took them out of stash and into something useful! I have more of this fabric that needs to be used so I will probably make another seat cover for the second chair.

Above the additional Aussie Aboriginal fabrics I found at One World Fabrics, the purple/pink second from the left is called "Grandmother's Journey". I am a grandmother and I am called Grandmother by all but the youngest grandson whose name for me is "Grandnanna" and I have had many journey's beginning with the first big one ll the way from Australia, so I had to have it! The gold one on the far right is called "Women's Business" so  you know I had to have that one too, LOL!
Next up on the long arm, my own "Grand Illusion" quilt.

The next Bonnie Hunter mystery will begin Thanksgiving weekend and I plan to substitute different colors from Bonnie's for a change.

Grand Illusion

This is Angela's Grand Illusion

I love this quilt, the colors are actually prettier than the photo,  it doesn't do them justice.

 Typical scrappy Bonnie Hunter quilt, it's so much fun to quilt I recognize many of the prints, might have some of them in my own Grand Illusion.

 Quilted with Edge to Edge feathers in the body of the quilt and separate borders.

Which reminds me, I thought before I quilted it I would check my GI to see if I wanted to do the same quilting- imagine my horror to find it still folded up in the cupboard - unquilted, completely forgotten out of sight out of mind!!

Before I know it we will be planning Bonnie's next mystery so I had better get this quilted and bound!

Another Fast One!

Well, it's only a top but it was very fast, it's an idea from Angela Walter's for a little top to try out new quilting designs. Hers was all solids but my stash has minimal solids so I used what I had and I love the result, it's another example of my current interest in modern quilt designs and the photo does not do justice to the fabric colors.

I think it will make a darling baby quilt but I love it myself if I had a use for a table topper in these colors!  The stripe is one of the new Aussie Aboriginal fabrics I purchased at Capital Quilts in MD. recently and I like it so much I wanted to get another yard but they have not responded to my email so I went shopping in my PJ's!
 I only found a couple of US outlets for these, the best is at One World fabrics.

This one is Desert Flowers by Maria Elena Ellis. There are some other beauties at One World Fabrics, these guys have a terrific selection of really stunning designs. Having grown up with Aussie Aboriginal designs on many objects they are dear and familiar and the recent trend by M&S Textiles in eye popping colors is irresistibly gorgeous to a quilter!
So I added another half dozen to my Aussie stash, and I am most anxious to get to work on a quilt with them.

A Fast Finish!

The little hexie quilt is all done ready to go off to it's new home!

The gold leaves really do appear to float over the quilt because the stitching of the veins caused them to curl up a little on the sides and they are only tacked onto the quilt down the center, in the photo below you can see that.

The thread is a tan that blends so a lot of the quilting is hard to see especially in the tree fabric where  I quilted falling leaves. 

 I wish I were a better photographer so I knew how to bring out the best of my photos but I am no expert and I am using my iPhone 5s because it is so convenient! 

Smithsonian Air And Space Museum

This post is just plane crazy! It's all about aviation but for an amateur historian still fascinating.

DH is an aviator and oldest DS would have loved to join the military but only if he could fly! Sadly for him, he is color blind an automatic eliminator. However he has become an airplane encyclopedia, there is very little he does not know about almost every airplane made! And he can still fly as a private pilot just not for the military or probably the airlines either.

 It is too hard to choose photos of these aircraft to show, so many fascinating pieces of aviation history.

 Here is one, the Blackbird.

 Models of some of the "flying machines" that litter the history of human flight.

So here is a quick trip around the museum, it is gigantic, massive overwhelming!

Not sure what this is but it looks dangerous!

Just one section of the building from the middle level.

Teeth to this one!

Engines, engines, engines DS#1 would be in heaven!

 

All wood, a glider.

Hmmmmm! Ungainly to say the least.

The uniform of a much decorated First World War aviator.

 The uniform of the famous Eddie Rickenbacker.

 And even some simulators.  Many years, decades ago our family visited Ft. Rucker Alabama when DH processed through fixed wing training. There we were able to take a ride in a helicopter simulator and I actually got to fly it!

Not sure which simulator this was but we ran out of time and the museum was closing so I had to make tracks to the gift shop to buy a couple of gifts! The four hours we had there were not nearly long enough to cover everything, a whole day would be better!

Mt.Vernon

Our time in DC was short just four full days, and lots happening connected with the Vietnam Helicopter Pilot's annual reunion. We managed to fit in a few important places, Gettysburg and Mt.Vernon top the list. Both places have such historic significance that it is hard to choose just a few photos when every few yards there is another piece of our history.

 Restoration and preservation are ongoing on the property here you see evidence of it on the exterior of the house.

This tableau of President Washington and his family stands at the entrance to the information center, he is another of my super heroes!

 

 He died at his home from "quinsy", a nasty infection of the tonsils and an illness  that is completely treatable with antibiotics but of course there were none in 1799

This is the gravesite of the President and Martha his wife. 

 Below the slave gravesite and memorial, the President favored abolition of slavery and the fate of these people was his highest priority after the welfare of his wife, so upon his death he ordered that his own and his wife's slaves were to be freed upon her death, since his ability to do otherwise was hampered by the restrictions of the "dower" slaves from Martha's ex husband. Any person without trade training and the elderly or very young were to be provided for until they were self supporting, his vision for America was of a prosperous republic free from slavery.

The President was a farmer at heart and constantly sought improvements in farming methods.

 His farms reflect many of the innovative ideas he brought to life to improve production including a threshing barn where horses did the work formerly done by humans. He said that two horses could replace the labor of 30 humans. 

 We saw this process in action.

I learned so much more about this great man, the Father of our Nation and I was very impressed by his forward thinking and experiments with agricultural innovations all learned from visiting Mt.Vernon, so if you have the chance to visit I am sure you will enjoy it.

A New Design……..From "Aged" Fabrics!

The black and white tree trunk fabric in this quilt came from Timeless Treasures years ago and I tea/coffee dyed it to neutralize the stark white background. Two quilts like this used most of the fabrics and I set the remainder aside.

 This week I went looking for ideas for a quilt for friends whose home is all browns, beiges and neutrals. The wife is from Korea so I thought to make something that might appeal to her and hope that the organic nature of these fabrics and the colors will please our friends and fit in with their decor.

It was quite challenging to come up with enough fabric for a design that would work so I used the design wall to play with different arrangements and ended up with this 32"x38" wall hanging. The  fabric between the "rows" is a black on black gingko leaf design that adds an Asian flair. I will bind it with the same.

I also made some autumn toned leaves to tack on after quilting so they will look as if they are floating.

These are made with two layers of a fabric I hand dyed years ago [in my one attempt at that particular process] fused with Steam a Seam then the veins were stitched in with gold Superior Masterpiece thread.The quilt is now on the longarm awaiting inspiration for quilting design, I am thinking something in the modern style but I need to figure out just what!

Any ideas?

Mostly Batik!

Linking up with Heather for Needlework Tuesday [on Thursday!]
Occasionally I have issues quilting batiks but this one gave me no trouble. BJ needed it ready for her friends' wedding the end of the month so she has lots of time to bind and attach the label which I made separately since I did not have the details in time to embroider the backing.

 BJ said that this quilt went together very fast so it might be one I will try when I need a quilt in a hurry. It turned out very pretty in batiks.

 Freehand peacock feathers in the body of the quilt with separate borders.

 The backing, makes a reversible quilt for a change!

I used King Tut 100% cotton variegated #990 from Superior in the top and Bottom Line in the Bobbin.
The batting BJ brought is Warm and Natural 100% cotton.