Our local County Fair....

...is now over and at the last minute I decided to enter a couple of items.
This was last years entry.  I felt very blessed when I was awarded all the top honors.  Sooooo this year I wasn't sure I would even enter anything .... how could I top that huh?  ;-)
But then I was asked if I would be willing to help the judge again this year by writing down her comments.   Of course I said "Yes!"   That's a lot of fun and I learn a lot.
And ...... if I'm going to be there anyway..... might as well enter something.  
This is how my Bento Box did:  

 Yes I did win a clean sweep again this year.  WooHoo!!
Blue ribbon: Machine pieced/prof quilted
Best Pieced Quilt:  no ribbon
Best Quilt:  no ribbon

And for the second year in a row the award for the Best Quilt
was ..... a pair of Gingher scissors. (???)
Wow!  That makes TWO gingher's that I have now won.
And I'm not even a seamstress.  I'm a quilter!  hahaha
I definitely appreciate the Shopping Voucher.  That will be put to very good use.

And just for fun I grabbed this table topper to enter.
It did manage to place second even though it is not my best work.
The pinwheels in the corners were cut off by the binding and I missed the 'ditch' in a few places when quilting but.... I'm still very pleased with the ribbon.  

I will, however rethink about entering anything again next year.  I just feel that the object of entering something in a county fair is to hopefully come home with a ribbon or two or three that you can hang up and enjoy.  It definitely isn't for the prize money for sure.   Nor is it for a piece of paper.  It's about the ribbons.
I think our local fair board could do a better job for everyone who takes the time to place an entry....no matter the category.   :-(

I hope you're having a great day. Glad you stopped by.....Linda

It's Monday....

And I have a finish on my wall today.  Binding is on and hanging sleeves attached and ready to be taken to my friends house.

'Sunshine Ripples'

47"x 55"

quilted by Quilt Bugs

While I was making this top I knew exactly how I wanted it quilted.  I HAD to have ripples!!

  The gal that owns the shop didn't have the pattern I wanted so she very generously told me she would order it for me.  

I wish I could tell you the name of the quilting pattern .... but I have no clue!  I just knew it when I saw it.  ;-)

Here it is close up..... 

So now I'm heading over to link to Judy's Design Wall Monday.

I hope you're having a great day. Glad you stopped by.....Linda

Hexie Friday....

Just a quick post to show how I think I'll be setting the center of the Bordering Of Insanity quilt.
This is the quilt center that inspired me and I really planned to stick to this design.  At first I saw six pointed stars that merged into each other and I liked that.  But the more I looked at it the more I saw tumbling blocks.
Sooooo I decided (in order to make this mine) I'm going to highlight the tumbling blocks and do away with the white outline around every triangle.  I'll outline each block with assorted creams.

Here's a sample of the block I'll be working on.  These aren't sewn together because I won't be using these in one block.   I'm planning to not have any of the three triangles have the same colors.

So that's my plan.  At least for now.... subject to change.  ;-)

And .... I'm working on another triangle.

I hope you're having a great day. Glad you stopped by.....Linda

Binding today.....

Once I finally decided to enter one of my quilts in the County Fair this weekend I knew I would have a marathon sewing project going on.  The binding needs to be stitched down by hand and this quilt is a biggy.

So for the next couple of days I'll be stitching away.  

But first I'm going to link on Esther's blog (Work in Progress Wednesday) to check out what others have been working on. 

I hope you're having a great day. Glad you stopped by.....Linda

A-Terra Hexie Runner....

I have finally finished the hexie runner that I had set aside a while back.   It took the longest time for me to figure out how I wanted to finish it.   My original plan just wasn't going to work so I spent a considerable amount of time looking at google images and saw several that I liked.

I finally settled on adding a small border and doing a straight line quilting grid.   Simple and quick.  Just how I like it.  heehee

I'm very pleased with it now and it is residing on my coffee table in the living room where I can admire My First hexie project completed!!
Woo Hoo!!!

Here's a closer look at the quilting.   I'm calling it A-Terra Hexie.  This is the 6th quilt I've made with these fabrics from Connecting Threads (Aqua Terra.  Has now been discontinued)  And I still have a pretty good pile of scraps left.  I think I'll just separate them out and add them to my scrap drawers.

 And now ..... back to my "Bordering on Insanity".  
I hope you're having a great day. Glad you stopped by.....Linda

If It's Monday.....

....then that means it's time to show you what's on my design wall.
 
There was just something about that Halloween table runner that was bothering me all this time.  I posted about it here.
After I had added the triangles on to the end of the runner I left it on my wall just to be able to keep looking at it.  Maybe it would tell me what was wrong!
Something.  Just wasn't right.

Sure enough yesterday I finally realized what it was.
It's those pointy triangles!!  I just don't like them!  At least not on this set.
So off they came and rectangles are on in their place.
Now I'm happy!  heehee

What the heck is wrong with my photography skills lately????

That left placemat doesn't look like that in real life!  

Oh well..... Good thing I don't get paid to take pictures.

Let's head over to Judy's Design Wall Monday to see what others have been working on.  

I hope you're having a great day. Glad you stopped by.....Linda

My Slow Stitching Sunday....

I have #2 block finished and I've started on #3.
This is going to be one of those quiet cloudy days and just perfect for a nap later and a day spent stitching up some hexies.

Here's a pic of both of my finished blocks.   That left one seems to have fallen into the cushion.  haha   It's an optical illusion.... they really are both the same size.  

I'm heading over to Kathy's blog to link to her Slow Stitching Sunday.  

I hope you're having a great day. Glad you stopped by.....Linda

Hexie Friday.....

What a day!  Spent it driving to a Dr for some repeat tests (which turned out very well .... even tho it was a very long two hours).  Off we went to eat lunch and then headed home.  It's been a long day.

And now that it's Hexie Friday I thought I'd show you what I have accomplished this week.  Not much.... but I did get a good start on my second triangle and a few more hexies basted.

Let's head on over to A Quilting Reader's Garden and see what some of the other Hexie sewing gals have done.  

I hope you're having a great day. Glad you stopped by.....Linda

My Design Wall....

I'm slowly getting the blocks made for this quilt.  I've always said that I must be the slowest quilter ever.... and this is sure proof of that.  lol
I have one more block made but it's still laying by my machine.  But since I've another Dr appt soon I didn't take the time to put it on the wall.

I love this quilt!!!!  

I think I'm going to name it 'Sunshine Ripples'.

Now I'm heading over to link on Judy's Design Wall.   

I hope you're having a great day. Glad you stopped by.....Linda

Hexagon Friday...

After my little set back last week I have managed to redo a lot of the
de-constructed hexies and I have completed my very first triangle block.  WooHoo!

Looks mighty fine when all the hexies are the same size!!  

hahaha

(this measures 14" long x 8¾" wide)

I have made a final decision on the exact pattern I will be working on while I baste these gazillion hexies.  I have a Pinterest board for Hexies and I've been gathering inspiration pins for awhile now.  I fell in love with a quilt called 'Insanity'.  And I also really like this one (no name).  But I realized I don't have enough decades left to make them both sooooo I've decided I will merge them together to make my own design.  I really like the borders on the Insanity but I love the center of the other quilt.  

So that is my goal .... two....two .... two quilts in one!   

And as I go along I'm sure I'll think of a name.  Right now I'm a blank.  Any suggestions??

  I'll be linking over on A Quilting Reader's Garden.   And also links over to BillieBee's

If you love hexies .... come along and join us.   

I hope you're having a great day. Glad you stopped by.....Linda

50 Years Ago....

Many years ago 

in a land far away

lived a dashing young gentleman

and a fair young maiden...........

Oh wait!  That's another story.

This is our story.  Don & I have been married for 50 years now and a couple of weeks ago we celebrated with every member of our kids, grands and greats.

The most wonderful week ever started with our son & his family & both of us traveling together to Joplin to join the rest of the family.
From there we all drove to Still Water's Resort on Table Rock Lake near Branson, Mo for a three night, 4 day stay.  What an absolutely wonderful time we all had together.
This is where we stopped for lunch that first day.   It was quaint and happy and fun and we filled every table but one.    After we were finished eating the owner brought out New Orleans beads and gave us all a necklace!   She gave me a 'special' one since we were celebrating.  hahaha  Love it!

I'll share just a few more pics and I hope I don't bore you to death.  

This is all of us girls on our way to shop at Branson one afternoon.  I had just purchased the scooter right before we came on this trip because I knew I would be totally miserable if I tried to walk very far at all.  It was such a relief to be able to have fun and be with my girls for as long as they could keep going. 

Aren't my girls just gorgeous?   

Early morning coffee time

That's my boy.....working hard cooking our food.  

our bunch enjoying the kayaks and the lake.

having fun in one of the pools.

Jessi planned a craft night for the grands and greats each night. 

And our nights were spent at the horseshoe pit until we couldn't see any longer.

And finally....

One of the beautiful sunsets.

When our stay here was over we spent a day at Silver Dollar City and then headed back to Joplin for a few more days.

What a wonderful week we had.  

What a wonderful family we have!!

Hexie upset.....

I was being a busy little bee basting away just as happy as could be .... and accumulating quite a nice little pile of different colored hexies that I showed you a week ago.  
So I decided I'd sew just one of the triangles together that I want to make for my new project.  
So I started sewing and sewing and I had pretty much gotten all of the hexies sewn into a triangle and I was down to the last two.
Now ..... I had noticed along the way that some of the edges were not exactly lining up just right.  But I didn't worry about it and just kept sewing hexies together.
Until.... I tried to make that last hexie fit the space that was left.
It didn't!
Too small!!!!!
What the heck!!???

So I pulled off the fabric from that paper and compared it to some of the other papers and it was smaller!  By only less than an eighth of an inch.
But that was enough to make a difference in the fit.  (I print some of my own papers and that particular print run I guess I didn't do the greatest job of checking printer settings.  I bet I pay better attention from now on).

So I had no choice but to go through all of the papers and remove the smaller ones.  Then I realized I had used several already so I bit the bullet and started stripping off the fabric until I was left with this .....

BOOHOO!!!!  

Oh well......  I've now pressed all the squares and have put this behind me and I'm moving forward.  I'm glad I realized what was wrong before I got much further.  

  I hope you're having a better day than I've had.  lol  Glad you stopped by.....Linda

Joining bloglovin for now

I guess this is what I have to do.  I don't really know why.... but here it is.....

<a href="http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/1806422/?claim=utupwwfqw8s">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>

It would be nice to only have one reader to keep track of everything.  But bloglovin doesn't provide an app for my Kindle Fire.  So I use Feedly for that.  And actually I like different things in each reader so for awhile I'll keep both.

I hope you're having a great day. Glad you stopped by.....Linda

Almost half finished....

It's been one of those weeks where I've been rather scattered and time just keeps rolling along.

I have managed to get a little sewing done on the commission quilt.   The top three rows have all been sewn together and the blocks in the next two rows almost done.

This is turning out sooooo much prettier than I even imagined and I'm going to hate to give it up.   But she should really be happy with it and that's what this is all about anyway.   I just may have to make one for myself one day.

Since I messed up the first block I made I had to come up with a solution to be able to not make that same mistake again.  So I thought I'd share what I came up with.   Who knows.  Maybe this is common knowledge.   But it wasn't for me so I'm patting myself on the back that I thought of this.  hahaha

First I had to number the different fabrics (as I cut the pieces) since each block is made with different fabrics in different positions and there are eleven fabrics to keep track of.   I printed a copy of the quilt from EQ and used that as my roadmap.

Here are a couple of trays of the cut pieces and the way I numbered them.  Not all fabrics are showing.

When I'm ready to start sewing I lay the patterns (after I trim the excess paper) for one block in front of me face up.
And this is where the problem started on that first block.  I just looked at the roadmap and the pattern this way and started flipping and sewing along merrily.

Not the right way for these blocks!!!

Then I realized I needed to find a way to keep track of the correct fabrics (and their correct places) by looking at the back of the patterns.  Sooooo Now I turn the papers over (keeping them in the right order) and as I check the roadmap fabrics I write the correct fabric number on the corresponding section.  Like this.... 

Problem solved!

Now I'm ready to start sewing the fabric patches on each section.  The first piece can get a bit wobbly and move if not careful, so I use a tiny little spot of Elmers school glue (it's washable) to tack down that one piece.  

Just a tiny dot will do.  I lay the starting piece down (making sure it covers the complete area) and then I'll touch it with an iron to set the glue.  

See.... it's just what's needed.  

And the rest is simply folding, trimming and sewing the next patch.  And all blocks are correct and beautiful!  

Now I'm going to link to Judy's Design Wall.  Come along if you'd like.  

.....Linda

What's on my Design Wall?

So it's Monday.  A new week and a new month and I am determined to get this last commissioned quilt made.  It's going to be a wall hanging for the same lady that I made the embroidery wall hangings.  More about all that here and here.
Once she had settled on a quilt that she liked I spent hours searching for the pattern.   But to no avail..... so I sat down in EQ7 and designed it myself.

Here is the beginning layout.  That's the easy part.
Or not!
Actually I spent hours rearranging these blocks to get that 'just right' setting.  Whew!  Finally!

Don't you love the fabrics she picked out?
Yesterday late afternoon I started paper-piecing the first alternate block.  I had carefully measured each unit and cut the fabrics that would be needed.  These blocks need to be set together a specific way in order to complete the overall effect.  It's going to be tedious to say the least.  You'll see what I mean when I get farther along.

Soooo I get the first block sewn, trimmed and at this point I'm feeling very smug and satisfied.  I have a plan and I've thought this out and all my papers are printed  and I'm on a roll.
OOPS!!  .........  Well dang!
I forgot that I am paper-piecing and everything is backwards!!!!
First block.....fail!!!
OMGosh!  I hope I have enough fabric to recut!!!  ;o(

Stay tuned..... today is another day and I will not be defeated!  hahaha

Let's grab our coffee and head over to Judy's Design Wall Monday to see what other quilters have been up too.

I hope you're having a great day. Glad you stopped by.....Linda