Quilt For Fun Blog –

July 20, 2015 by Candy Fullaway · Leave a Comment (Edit)

It’s a beautiful summer morning with sunshine, a light breeze, singing birds and some crows.  I spent the week before last at the Quilter’s Affair in Sisters, taking a four-day class from Katie Pasquini Masopust.  We each brought a finished quilt as a jumping off point for a series of quilts.  I seriously surprised myself by doing four small quilt tops.  Each of us in the class was on her own little journey from very abstract to realistic, from patchwork to acrylic paint on silk and a whole lot in between.  I tried some things I hadn’t done before.  For me it was about experimenting with techniques and if it worked, great.  If not, then at least I learned something.  When I got home I finished the last one in the series, quilted it and hung it up.  It’s called The Last Leaf on the Tree.  It’s simple, effective and I like it.

Going to Sisters always prompts all kinds of new ideas for me.  The big problem is that I can’t do them all, have them all, or buy them all.  I’ve been told by someone who knows me well, (thank you, Sweet Husband) to reprioritize and cut myself a break.  It’s time to pick a few favorites from the favorites.  And maybe indulge in a bit of meditation to calm my overwhelmed senses.

The week after I got back was mainly one of recovery.  Six days of quilts is kind of a lot.  When overwhelm sets in, learning and appreciation levels really go down.  Of course, we’ve already made reservations for next year.

While I was gone, my vegetable garden went crazy.  It looks like a jungle out there and it seems that one of my “zucchini” plants is actually a cucumber.  I’m not quite sure what to do as I have two other cucumber plants that are producing an embarrassment of riches.  Better lock up your cars or I may leave you some unsolicited cukes!

I just realized that I offered a special on “Halloween Housing” a couple of weeks ago and didn’t put it up on the site.  I’ll be fixing that this afternoon.  It’s really a fun little quilt and goes together fast.  Check it out.  We're at www.mobquilts.com   

Quilt For Fun

Candy

Quilt For Fun – The Blog

June 17, 2015 by Candy Fullaway · Leave a Comment (Edit)

Why do you quilt?  Nobody actually asked me this but the actual question:  “What are you doing with your time now that you aren’t working?”  made me consider it.  My first wise guy answer would be, because I can.  My clothing & textiles background made it a natural and it pretty quickly displaced making clothes.  Also, I love color.  I like projects that have a beginning, middle and end (unlike housework which has a beginning and a middle that goes on forever).  I also like having something fairly permanent to show for my time and the endless opportunities to create something new.  Good to know.

There are also reasons like:  they make special gifts, they’re memories of different occasions in life, I can honor the sacrifices of others with Quilts of Valor and something I’ve done will outlive me.  Also, nobody in my family will likely freeze.

The final answer and the most real one is that it’s fun.  The fabrics, the colors, the designs, the classes, the friends,  all of it is fun.  There’ll always be a challenge out there and I like that feeling, too.

So why do YOU quilt?  I think it’s worth taking a few minutes to think about.  Write yourself a note to remind why you’e doing this when it’s time to rip something out.  Then get back in there and Quilt For Fun.

Here’s a picture of a new little quilt that I’ll talk more about next week.  For a better picture, go to Mother on a Broomstick Designs on Facebook.

It’s going to be part of double pattern in a few weeks, but will be available soon as an individual download soon.  In the meantime, browse our patterns and let us know what you think.  We always welcome your input.

And Then There's This

If you look up teasing in the dictionary, you'll find a description of spring weather in the Northwest.  Warm, cool, sunny, rainy, breezy, calm - from day to day you never know.  And the weatherman isn't really sure either.  Now that the tulips are finished, the one bright spot in the garden is this poppy.

It'll soon have lots of company.

This glorious shade of coral makes me want to quilt it, paint it and photograph it.  I'll put that on the list.  Along with all the other ideas and a whole bunch of UFO's

I finished this little hanging which I did as a test piece from the new book "Patchwork City" by Elizabeth Hartman.  It's not my usual MO, but it was fun to do.  I'd like it better hanging on a darker wall, but I don't currently have any.

I liked that the blocks and quilts had familiar names.  They should be familiar; Elizabeth Hartman is from Portland and many of the names are Portland-based.  These small blocks require accurate cutting and seaming and I'm relearning to measure as I go along.  It's more exacting work than I've been doing lately and I enjoyed it more than I thought I would.  I went back to my Sally Collins books to review my skills.  If you're not familiar with her work, Sally makes small-scale quilts and by that I mean really tiny pieces and perfect intersections.  While it is very unlikely I'll ever do such small work, the lessons are valid for any size.  The bottom line is that the more accurate the cutting  and piecing, the less weeping and gnashing of teeth.

I gave up making clothes years ago.  I loved it for many years but quilting stole my heart.  I jumping back in - okay, more like dipping my toe in by making a sun dress for my 9-month-old great niece.  I hadn't intended to do this, but the green seersucker with embroidered pink flamingoes called to me and I just couldn't walk away.  So I bought a pattern, brought it home and decided to read through it just to be sure.  It calls for a zipper which I thought was odd.  I made Barb about a million sun dresses when she was a baby and toddler and while I no longer have evidence, I'm pretty sure none of them called for a zipper.  Seems to me that it wouldn't be very comfortable when sitting in a car seat or a stroller.  So I'm changing it.  (Hey, I took Children's Clothing Construction in college.  No zippers there either. )  Kids grow out of stuff so quickly that the simpler, the better.  Here's a sneak peek at the fabric.  I dare you not to love it.

I'll keep you posted on how it turns out.

Quilt for Fun

Candy

This 'n' That

Ah, beautiful spring!  We just had our first 80 degree day and it was wonderful.  There's a lot to do in the yard and I'm kind of enjoying it.  If I do a little bit every day, it'll look pretty good in no time.

I went to a quilt retreat over the weekend that my guild put on.  They do a couple a year and it's always fun.  While I enjoy our regular meetings, they don't offer the opportunity to really get to know people.  The retreat really is great for this and I love it.  We are lucky enough to have a place in a beautiful setting with plenty of room for sewing and lots of natural light.  The food is good and the company is great.  It doesn't get much better than that.  I took some pictures on my walk to use as reference photos.  Isn't this lovely?

A few years ago when "modern quilting" became a thing, I decided that it was something I wasn't going to get into.  Saying a thing like this generally means that at some point I will do the exact opposite.  I dipped my toe in the modern quilt pool last year when I made "Mother Goes Mod."  

I'm not even sure if it qualifies as a modern quilt, but I wound up liking it more than I thought I would.  So a couple of weeks ago I bought a book called "Patchwork City."  What I didn't realize at the time was that the "city" in question is Portland, OR.  Elizabeth Hartman has charmed me and now I'm hooked!  I made part of one of the quilts featured in the book to use as a hanging and I really like it.  

This quilt is making me revisit more perfect quarter inch seams and measuring often.  This is a good thing as it keeps me from getting sloppy.  Now I just need to figure out how to get a few of my beloved batiks in the mix.  Or maybe something from the Halloween collection.

The thought above makes me want to start a new quilt.  I have finished a lot over the years but there are a number of UFO's hiding in my closet.  Two of us from our small quilt group are taking up the challenge to finish something every month.  This will take some actual focus on my part and I think I'm up to it.  

It looks like it's going to rain this afternoon.  Time to make good use of it and sew!

I've recently been posting my blogs on the www.mobquilts.com website and have decided to post them here, too.  The website also contains our patterns and a sign-up for our newsletter.  

Quilt for fun,

Candy

Winter or Spring?

February 16, 2015 by Candy Fullaway · Leave a Comment (Edit)

I’m having one of THOSE days.  You know the kind.  It’s a day where everything takes about twice as long as it should.  Everything I start to do reminds me of something else I need to do.  I sit at the computer, glance out the window and realize I need to bring in the garbage cans.  While doing that, I see that the tulips have grown significantly in the last week and it’s time to take a picture.  The phone rings and then I see dishes in the sink.  I ignore that and go back up to the computer.  I spill my drink, clean that up, plug my camera into the computer and it locks up the photo application.  The pork roast didn’t thaw as fast as I thought it would and now I have to think up something else for dinner.  And all this is after I’ve spent the morning at the sewing machine.  THAT day.

I’m actually playing hooky from the sewing machine for a bit to write this.  I have two quilts that need to be quilted in time for my Guild Quilt Show which is the first weekend of March.  I kept thinking I had lots of time.  Why on earth would I ever think that?  One project is thankfully small, but the other sort of got out of hand and it’s quite large.  I have big plans for the quilting so it’ll take some time.

 

I also have furry help.  Heaven forbid I take a picture that doesn’t include Ella.

The only good news here is that she doesn’t shed.  Also, she knows the phrase, “Get OFF.”

One of my distractions is that it’s lovely outside here, currently about 61 and sunny.  I want to start planting things.  It’s way too early for most stuff (although some Sweet Pea seeds would probably work).

The tulips are really going to town.  Didn’t realize until I saw the  picture that they’re being chewed upon.  Add some debugging procedures to tomorrow’s list.

If it’s snowing and miserable where you are, may I say that we skiers in the West would take some snow off your hands (and driveways) if we only had a clue how.

Our newsletter will come out later this week.  We only send it to people who sign up and we will email you a pattern for two postcards just for trying us out.  Just go to www.mobquilts.com 

I found this little volunteer in one of my planters at the front of the house.

Apparently it came up to remind me that winter is more than halfway over.

Keep quilting,

 Candy

PS  If you celebrate Lunar New Year, have a great one!

It's a Website!

Our website, mob quilts.com, is now up and running.  Thank you to Laura at Mosaikweb.com for all her work designing and setting up the site.  We love the new look.

Some of us are into instant gratification.  As in, "That looks cool; I want to have it now."  There's also the idea of trying to be kinder to our little blue planet.  As in, "Do I really want more paper to store or file or recycle?"   With this in mind each of our patterns is (or soon will be) available as a PDF.  Many are already good to go.  A few of the older ones are fighting back, but I'll get them done as soon as I can.

 

For some reason, Citrus Salad is being particularly feisty.  I dream of a day when all my electronic minions learn to work together.

Barb and I also want this site to be responsive to what you, as quilters, are looking for.  All your input is welcome.  Even though there are lots of guilds and quilt groups and friendly quilt shops, quilting can still be a solitary undertaking.  We'd like to offer friendship and support to all quilters who come to our site both because it sounds fun and because the quilting community has been good to us.

I love that we're launching in October.  It's pretty much my favorite month.  Tomorrow is the day I've appointed to put out my Halloween decorations.  It's a time when it's socially acceptable to be a little "out there" and I really love that.  In honor of that, our first pattern, Colors of Fall, is on special this month.  It's pretty quick and easy to make and we hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

One of the things I like about this one is that it's appropriate from September through November.  As much as I love my Halloween quilts, hanging them up in the house before or after October kind of creeps people out.

Now that the days and nights are cooler and the garden is mostly finished until next spring, I'm loving the idea of doing more quilting.  If only I didn't have to cook and shop and pick up the house and  . . .  well, I'm guessing you get it.  Sometimes life gets in the way of my fun.  Still, I don't think I'd want to have it any other way.

Please sign up for our newsletters.  We promise not to flood your inbox.  We'll talk a bit more about quilting techniques and welcome your input and ideas.  We'll also email you the patterns for two postcards just for signing up.

Keep having fun,

Candy

PS

This blog is also available on our website - www.mobquilts.com   It will continue here for the foreseeable future.

And Now, A Change in Seasons

It's beginning to feel like fall.  I love fall.  I love the colors and the weather and a reasonable amount of football.  Fall is the  start of my year even if it's been a long time since my kids were in school.  I miss the sound of the neighborhood kids playing outside in the mornings and early afternoons.  But once school is out, the weather is still nice enough for playing outside.

When I was in high school and college there was a certain excitement in the air with getting back into a routine and new classes and old friends.  I felt that anything was possible when there was a little chill in the evenings and pumpkins on the porch.

September still gives me that "new beginnings" feeling.  It's also my time to think that I can do about 20 things at a time and age has only slightly wised me up on that score.  Right this moment there are pickling cucumbers soaking in brine in the kitchen, the laundry room smells like the big bunch of dill waiting for me there, my tomatoes are ripening up so that most will be ready at the same time and I have more quilting projects in my head than I can possibly finish.  And just last week I was afraid I might run out of quilting ideas!

Apparently last spring I was afraid I would run out of tomatoes.  Fabulous tomato weather this summer has given me more than I would ever have thought.  

The new website is almost ready to launch.  

We're about to be off and flying and we're really excited.  This blog will be available there (as well as here) and we'll be adding a monthly newsletter.  When you sign up on our emailing list, we'll email you the pattern for these two postcards.  

Some days just require a small project that can be started and finished in a hurry.  

We're also featuring this pattern on sale for a limited time.

In the relax and laugh segment, check out Ella's cheesy smile.  

                                     

This is the face that says, "The pill you just gave me is sitting on the back of my tongue.  Whoever said it was chewable has no tastebuds.  I will keep smiling like this until you turn your back and then I will spit this baby out. Am I not adorable?"

Quilt for Fun,
Candy