A Pair Of Wedding Quilts, Veronica/Jesus

In this pair of wedding quilts, the same quilt is made in different colors, red for love, blue for sky.  The man's quilt is a little larger, due to the block being about an inch larger.  A tiny bit of blue is on the red quilt, and some red (on the back of) the blue quilt, to make sure each quilt is only a part of the whole, the marriage.

Wedding Quilt #2 of 2 Sarah & Ben

For the wife in this pair of dding quilts, I used the same 2 blocks:  Wedding Ring and Steps To The Altar.  Her quilt is primarily red, the color of love, with bits of blue (symbolizing the husband) and a block with a red and blue fabric, symbolizing the new creation, the marriage itself.  Again, th gold wedding rings place the spouse at the center, a must for a successful marriage.

Wedding Quilt #1 of 2 Ben & Sarah

For my oldest nephew when he married I made a pair of quilts, one for him and one for his wife.  I picked complementary colors and made his primarily blue, hers red.  I made one block with a fabric that had both red and blue in it, symbolizing that 2 distinct people meld together in the making of a marriage. The blocks are an old Wedding Ring block and a Steps To The Altar block.  In his, the steps don't always go neatly and straight, but the deviations to the altar add beauty to one's life.  There are unexpected surprises along the blocks, just as in life.  The golden wedding "rings" place the spouses color in the center, as a reminder that the marriage depends on this gesture. 

Summer Quilt

This small quilt I made for myself for summer afternoon naps.  It has a light poly bat inside that is so drapeable, I love the way it feels on summer afternoons.  The colors were from a clearance 8ths collection I bought online at connectingthreads.com. 

Passing the love along.....

As much as I love quilting, I also adore teaching new quilters to quilt!  So when my friend's daughters are around 5 or 6, it's time to have some of them over for a quilt lesson!  At this age they like to stamp, paint and spray stencil,  color with pens, and pound flowers with a hammer.....

Sabrina's favorite task was sewing buttons onto her stamped quilt!

Can't wait for the next batch of little girls to teach!

Spooky

I love Halloween fabrics!  And charms........ and table runners satisfy my craving to make a quilt "RIGHT NOW!" and finish it the same day I start.  So I cut some scraps into 5" squares, picked a favorite, easy charm patterns, and put myself together a table top decoration for October!

It uses the same pattern as "Charms Baby Quilt" from March 18, 2013. A fast, easy way to split a charm into a 4-patch with sashing!

Proud New American Citizens

Many natural born citizens, especially if our family history includes many generations born in this coutry, take our citizenship for granted.  My friend Racquela is a naturalized citizen, a goal she worked towards for many years.  Her husband took his Citizenship vows with her and they now are building a life with their daughters in their adopted country.  I made this quilt for them to commemorate their new national colors!

Another Waterfall design

High School Graduation

My niece Sammy graduated top of her class.  As a youngster, Sammy was always interested in the sewing machine, the quilt studio, in unique design and creation.  She has herself made some lovely quilts!  I am so proud of her.  Sammy is now studying psychology in Santa Barbara.

American Spanish Twins

A friend of ours from Spain had his twins born in the United States, so they are American Spanish Boys!  To commemorate their dual heritage, I made them red/white and blue quilts!

I made them 2 very similar quilts, but here they are still so tiny they are sharing! 

A Beautiful Baby Girl

Congratulations Gabi, on your beautiful baby daughter.  This quilt was a closeout quilt kit purchased online from ConnectingThreads.com several years ago.  It was fun to put together.  I often decide on my design and colors as I go along, so making something following directions is a challenge to me!

My Mother's Scarves

After my mother passed, I collected her many silky scarves that she used to wear with such fashion sense.  Eventually I decided to make a few into quilts and these two postcard sized quilts were made for my niece (so my Mom's Grandaughter) and my Sister-In-Law. 

I also placed a button from my Mom's sewing room on the one little quilt.

Remembering Jesse

Jesse left us way too young, just 20 years old.  he is so missed by his parents, his brothers and sister, his grandparents and friends.
On the first anniversary I put together this memorial quilt.  It has photos, butterflies in the border (the butterfly is  transformative symbol, symbolizing transition from life to spirit.) It has a tiny pocket with a cross in it.  There are scraps that have special meaning to his family in the quilt, and words of hope for his mother.

4 Little Quilts

This was a Facebook challenge; I post an invitation that I will make "something" for the first 4 people who respond, and in turn THEY must post the same invite.  meanwhile the person I reposted from made me a gift.

For these tiny treats I flower pounded the white muslin then dripped watered down acrylic paints on them. I used stamps to stamp flower designs, then water-color ink pencils to color them in.  Scraps from other projects; buttons, and some hand quilting completed each design.  They are about the size of a place mat.

Kristina's Grandma

When Kristina's grandma was in her 90's she moved to a smaller place and had to retire much of her fabric collection.  Kristina invited me over and I spent many happy hours sorting through delightful scraps from the 40's, 50's and beyond.  I put together this quilt for Kristina from pieces of the blue scraps.  I have used the fabrics in other projects, but re-connecting Kristina to her Grandma's scraps remains my favorite.

Rock And Roll

I admire my young friend Jackie.  She was a healthy, hardworking, marathoner who was struck down hard with an autoimmune disorder that attacked her muscles (including her heart) but she fought hard to improver her health again.  She researched her disease, stayed on top of her treatment, and after a year began jogging again, and within months was back to running marathons.  Her first post-illness marathon was the San Diego Rock And Roll marathon.  I had these fabrics which included Beatles fabric and crazy 60's colors.  Jackie is too young to have lived the 60's, but she is such a classy young woman!

A Girlie Quilt

I made this quilt for my friend CMT... the back story has to do with a particular task at work I did NOT want to do, and I negotiated a trade as in "I will make you a QUILT if you will do this task for me!"  Being the mother of 4 boys, she asked that it be girlie enough to make the boys leave it alone, and that it have pink cheetah fabric..... (I didn't find pink CHEETAH, so she is a pink girlie tiger instead!)  CMT reports that her youngest loves to snuggle in this quilt despite it being pink!

Hawaiian Baby Fish

My best friend Sprout bought me a package of 4" Hawaiian cotton squares she found in the back of  a small drug store in Hawaii.  They were obviously cut from someone's scraps, tied with a ribbon.  Years later a friend of ours had her first baby.  She had married her husband in Hawaii, o it seemed a perfect pairing!  I dyed white muslin light blue with acrylic paint, then used rubber fish stamps in acrylic paints to stamp sea creatures on the plain blocks.  They alternate with 4-patches for this sweet baby quilt!

A Fall Quilt

A simple utility quilt, I bring this out to the couch for afternoon naps or reading the paper by the fire in the autumn.

An exceptional doctor

Another group commemorative quilt, made from fabric purchased from a "persian" collection to honor Dr. Movahhedian our NICU director and wonderful, compassionate leader.  We signed it and presented it to him at a party celebrating his many years of service.

Dad & Ruth's Wedding

For my father's wedding I made a pair of generous lap quilts, using the easy to make flying geese set in traditional rows.  I made HIS quilt in dark, masculine colors, and hers in lighter feminine colors.  I substituted a few of HIS blocks into HER quilt, and vice versa.  We took the quilts to the reception and parties before the wedding, and they were fully signed by the many friends and family that joined in that day. 

A Cross

A quilt made in a rush from 5" squares I cut from scraps around the quilting studio.  I stamped some dates and remarks on with acrylic paint, and took it to church to be signed by everyone as our priest Carolyn left to work full time on her psychotherapy internship.

Raffle Quilt (Waterfall)

I don't know the name of this design, I have always called it "Waterfall."   Each block is identical in design, 3 4-patches and a solid square.  The overall design emerges as I lay out the blocks and turn some this way and some that.  I have made this quilt many times; from a healing quilt, to a baby girls quilt, to an antique reproduction and this one that went to a raffle for a fundraiser for a youth at risk prevention program.  Most of the quilts I made I forgot to photograph! 

Baby Boats

I designed this baby quilt for a special little boy!Congratulations, Amy, on your first son!

Autumn Charms

A small table top quilt made from an autumn charm pack.  I like to bring it out when the weather starts to cool down!

A Wedding Quilt 2012

Small quilt filled with rings (wedding rings, circles, eternity) was passed around the reception and signed by all the guests.

Blue Table Runner

While visiting Dad and Ruth, Ruth asked for a blue table runner.

A Baby Girl Quilt

Very feminine, for a Big Sister and the new baby! Congratulations Stephanie on Baby Leila.

A small quilt made from the scraps for Big Sisiter's Dolly. 

A White and Coral Wedding Quilt: Rob & Andrea

A small lap/wall quilt made to be taken to the wedding and signed and written on by all the guests.

Saint Anne's Cross

I found this block pattern years ago named "Saint Anne's Cross."  It's a nice block.  Since my church is named Saint Anne's it makes for a nice block to give as a gift.  These are about 6" squares, good as coasters.  They were made for a husband and wife for attending a Cursillo Retreat weekend.

Red, White and Blue Baby

Simple rail fence, in ocean themed red, white and blue fat quarters, for a new baby born to an American missionary living in Africa. Stacie, Hollie's daughter gave birth to a son,

Happy Eli on his quilt.

A Quilt for Noah

Quick, modern, random!

Memorial Quilt

Made in memory of Robert Martin, 1954 - 2012

Baby Animals

When a friend asked me to help her make a quilt for an adoptee baby boy she had cared for, but confessed her sewing skills were suspect, I asked "can you color?"  Surprised, she said sure.  So, we searched google images for Baby Animal Cartoons, traced them onto lightly blue dyed muslin.  Colored with the inktense colored pencils (go on like colored pencils; add water with a brush and the inks become vibrant and color fast.) and made a simple setting with a collection of fat eights.  She was delighted!

A Cross of Charms

Quickly put together with 5" squares set on point.

Batik Rail Fences

Super simple rail fence blocks, placed on point for a husband and wife.  With the feminine one, I decided to group similar colored blocks, and for the masculine one I randomized the blocks.  A few of "his" strips made it into her quilt and vice versa. The masculine blocks were a bit larger, so the quilt turned out larger. 

Wonky Geese

Each flying goose is made free form and then set in rows.  Took a little time, but each block is an individual creation!  The mother asked for pink and grey.
Congratulations Betty on your miracle daughter Luna . 

Coffee Quilt

I love my coffee!  An afternoon relax, with my favorite book or magazine for 30 minutes and a cup of home made skinny latte.  Mmmmm!  Collected the fabrics primarily on the Quilt Hop in 2012, they include coffee beans, rich browns, coffee themed panels, an iron-on inked in, a great old scrap that had a coffee border.  The circles were from a charm quilt pattern book.  This coffee quilt often  hangs on the wall in the dining room.

Baby Animals

I wanted o experiment with Inktense Pencils on this baby quilt.  I used an Aunt martha iron-on embroidery pattern which I traced with permanent Sharpie markers.  Then I colored them in with inktense pencils.  These colored pencils when wet with the paintbrush convert to a water-fast ink.  Heat set by ironing, I then set them simply into a scraps from he sewing room floor quilt and stpiile-quilted then washed to shrink.  The colors remained.  I distressed it lightly with some coffe stains, to make it appear to be from the 60's.

Surfing Penguins

This simple large block quilt exists simply to help me switch Christmas decorations "off" before Valentines comes along.  Made for reading/relaxing in the living room, it features 4 fabrics, the main theme being surfing arctic penguins.

A Spring Table Runner for Ruth

A great find some years back of this basket fabric, and the floral scraps Ruth won at a raffle and gave me when she first met my Dad, make an appearance in a spring table runner to commemorate their second wedding anniversary.  Spring, 2013

Charms Baby Quilt

Made this little baby quilt from a pastel charm pack and some solid coral.  The border was a scrap leftover from last summer's quilt.  March 2013