CMQG....OMG ...we are so cool!

We're so cool, you can get our logo printed on T-shirts, mugs, apron and a whole lot of other fun stuff. Check out Cafe Press to see more. Plus, 25% of what is purchased goes to our guild. Like I said...COOL! Here's a few pics of what can be purchased.

I'm thinking I must have this canvas bag....

Binding.....my nemesis.

So I got a BIG problem with my art quilts. I hate to bind them. Why? 'Cause they always looks like crap when I'm finished, that's why.I know that if I hand-stitched them, they probably would look okay, but I DO NOT like to hand-stitch. I've tried lots of different binding methods, but none were even closely up to par.....

'TIL NOW!!!!!

I've put together a few things I learned at the quilt retreat, at the last PAQA meeting and from the internet. I mashed them all together and came up with the following. First, I'll show you the crappy bindings I did....then I'll show you the AWESOME bindings I did...then I'll tell you how I did it ;)

....and now for the big reveal...!!!!! NICE, FLAT binding!!!

So here's what I did.

At the retreat, folks were using steam irons. Oh my. Those are quite the invention. I've never used a steam iron and I really liked how it pressed most of the wrinkles out without starch....duh. Also, I learned that you could block a quilt by using a steam iron.

So, I just happened to have a new in box steam iron that has been kicking around the house for a few years.( it took me awhile to find it) I filled 'er up with water and BANG! I gently pressed/steamed some of the art quilts I've wanted to bind and when I was done, they were laying VERY flat. YIPPEE!

Okay, onto the binding. I cut the binding 2.25 inches, ironed it half and when I sewed it onto the quilt like usual...but, I sewed it very close to the edge...less then an eighth of an inch. After it was sewn on, I steam-pressed it over from the front to make it really flat. I then folded it to the backside and then instead of stitching it down (I HATE hand-stitching,remember), I glued it down with a glue stick.HA!

Now, of course I realize you can't do this with a regular quilt and I don't know if the glue will hold. Time will tell,I guess...but for now, I'm really happy with the results.

Update:The amazing Maria Elkins said...

Since you have your iron out, you could always use fusible webbing to fuse down the binding on the back instead of glue stick.


Great idea, Maria....and omg, thanks for visiting my blog! I love your work!!

 Which leads to thinking of stich witch...the stuff used to 'hem'pants. That stuff would work great...it comes in one inch rolls. I could just tuck it in the binding flap and press. Ting ;)

Good doggy :)

Toasty warm.

Spring Retreat 2011

Well, a grand time was had by all. Our first quilting retreat was a smashing success! Here are some pics.

There were 15 of us in this room. Some folks thought it was a bit cramped, so I think we'll try and arrange the tables a little differently next time. We made it work,tho and everyone seemed quite happy;)

We had A LOT of snacks. In between snacks, we were served full meals down in the cafeteria which were delightful. Plenty of salad and fruit among other things.

We blew a fuse....I don't know how ;) One of the sisters said,"...hhmmmm....That's never happened before. I wonder where the fuse box is."  Fortunatly, after a 10-15 minute search it was found and the power was restored.

Sorry,Sister....we'll try and behave next time;)

Everyone had a private little room. I really appreciated having my own tiny space. The bathrooms and showers were right down the hall. My window looked out onto the lake and I could here the waves crashing at night. It was really nice.

The Sienna Center.

Here's a charity quilt we all worked on. It was a really fun challenge and we plan to do this challenge next time as its really quick to throw these baby quilts together. This retreat we have 3 quilts that are almost finished.

And, here we all are. Don't we look happy? We were. So fun;) We already have the next 2 retreats tentatively planned .

Here's the projects I worked on. I made another panel for my ticker tape quilt, I thread painted on the flowers I had acrylic-painted at home and I started a funky flower piece. I also sewed together all the squares we made for one of the charity quilts as well as started peicing a back with the leftover scraps.Whew...that was a lot....so fun.

Happy Birthday,Kyle!!!

Happy Birthday, big boy!!! Love you!!!

Me and my boss ;)

My CPM (midwifery) application

I know ya'll have been wondering what I've been up to the last week or so seeing as I have no sewing machine......well, here it is.  I've been working on my CPM application almost non-stop for the last 5 days. This morning as I was shuffling thru the stack I realized I need a better method of organizing the papers so I could see what needed to be done. I am very easily distracted...as we all know ;) I would start looking for one paper and end up working on something else so it seemed each part of the application would only get partially done. I would then go back to it and have to spend a few minutes figuring out what was needed. You get the idea, right? So, in order to see everything, I lined in all up on the stairs....Brilliant! Each stack has its own category. After doing this, I felt like I could see the light at the end of the tunnel.....and as my mom likes to say, it isn't an oncoming train;) Tuesday I was ready to throw in the towel and say forget it...its too much work. But I didn't.... I'm carrying on. I know I'll be so glad when I have my CPM in my back pocket. Here's a pic to give you an idea of how much paper I have been filling out. Have a great day! I plan to.....meeting my friend Jennifer for lunch at the Patio....YAY!!!!

....it actually was perfect timing for my machine to go on the fritz otherwise I would have put this off even longer and it needs to be in the mail by March 1.

Jack is 7!!!

Happy Birthday!!!!

I Love You, Jackie!!!!

Amy's Awesome Banana Muffins

Delightfully Tasty ;)

Whole cloth painting and quilting

Well, I gotta say I'm not thrilled with the results.....but, I'm a work in progress;) I like it enough to show it on the blog, I guess....

I'm planning on cutting off the border...'cause it looks like crap.....and maybe stretching it onto canvas? I don't know. Maybe I'll put it in a frame?....or, most likely it will sit in the pile of WIPs I have all over my room.

 I'm going to try this process again. I want to paint purple coneflowers next.

oh,and btw....Gentle criticism accepted ;)

Beautiful

How awesome is this pic!? This is Michelle, one of our clients at Genesis Family Midwifery.

 Baby Isabelle in and then Baby Isabelle out!

Photos were taken by the amazing Maggie Cuprisin. Maggie, you rock! And Michelle and Isabelle.....georgeous!

POW! Right in the Kisser!

Ole' Jackie Boy got clocked real good on Sunday with a with a wayward hockey

 stick....knocked his front tooth right out of his mouth. Shoved the other front one back a bit, too. Poor guy.
Turns out it

wasn't so bad,tho.....the tooth fairy came thru with $10 bucks! Also, the kid across the street who caused the damage brought Jack a new game for his DS player. All in all, Jack thinks he got the better end of the stick (Hehehe...pun intended).

(Oh,and btw, the dentist said he's fine.)
Here's a close-up:
Don't his teeth look like little Chicklets?

Drawing with my sewing machine ;)

Fun Times!

Any suggestions as to what I should do to it now?

Bountiful

The last Project Quilting project was to follow these rules:

1. Choose the name of a place, any place with a name that tickles your imagination.

2. Make a quilt using that name as your inspiration.

3. No restrictions on colors, sizes, materials or shapes.

Here's what I came up with:

My project is based on the movie title, "A Trip to Bountiful". There is also a town called Bountiful, Utah.

I first painted this picture with acrylic paints onto cream colored fabric. I then did some thread-painting. This piece measures aprox 12 inches by 6 inches.

snOw MG!!

We shoveled for 1 hour and 15 minutes this morn.....that's a lot of calories burned! Our cars are still buried....especially mine...so we'll have to go back out for more exercise this afternoon.There was just an announcement on the TV that our county is under a state of emergency and civil emergency.....which means you have to stay off the roads 'til 5p tonight. Craziness. Hopefully none of my mommies will want to have their babes today.

Let me out!!!

Put A Bird On It