Bethany Quilts

HEY YOU! STOP!

2011-01-17T19:18:00.000-08:00

I have noticed that there are now 111 of you wonderful people following my OLD blog. Yes...this is my O.L.D. blog. I am thrilled that you want to keep up with what I am posting about, but I haven't posted on this blog since LAST SUMMER. So this is my request, please STOP following this blog and start following my new one. I've been updating it weekly and have ALL OF MY BEST WORK on it. I want very much to share it with you all, but you'll never see it on this blog. Please visit my new website/blog.

Please follow my NEW BLOG: http://www.bethanyquilts.com/

***This blog is officially retired.***

***To see more photos of these quilts starting following:
http://www.bethanyquilts.com/

Photo from: http://autoclipart.com/auto_clipart_images/cartoon_policeman_directing_traffic_while_holding_a_baton_and_stop_sign_0521-1009-1319-0701.html

NEW WEBSITE!!!

2010-06-23T19:44:00.000-07:00

So I've left you all hanging about the mermaids and sailboats...Wanna' know what's been going on? A NEW WEBSITE!!! My good friend Bob has done an incredible job of getting my website set up and ready to role. Check it out at: http://www.bethanyquilts.com/ Don't forget to subscribe to it! And check out all the cool tabs and links...(some of which are complete and others in the process of updating).

Of Mermaids and Sailboats ~Part 1~

2010-06-15T19:10:00.000-07:00

I have been stitching away! Here's a sneak peek of what's next...stay tuned!

ALL NEW DESIGNS ~Part 2~

2010-06-13T19:11:00.000-07:00

Here are the rest of the pictures from the 2 day quiltathon. Weee! It was a challenge but so worth the effort. I was delighted to be able to use several of the new stitch motifs I learned at MQS. I did not think that I would be able to master them less than a month after my business trip. I consistently practiced making the feathers & before I knew it - I was stitching them on this quilt. As for the ribbon candy quilting...I had actually decided before MQS that I couldn't do it. I was happy to discover during a class at MQS that I was WRONG! Guess what my instructor Linda Taylor made me practice for 20 minutes straight? Yes...you got it...ribbon candy and more ribbon candy. Now I'm a ribbon candy pro.

Sandy King did a beautiful job with her choice of fabrics and pattern. I loved quilting her quilt for her. Thanks Sandy for letting me have fun with it.

Feathers in the corners & borders...

As I was quilting the quilt I had no idea that I was simultaneously creating a whole cloth quilt on the backside. I was delightfully surprised at what I discovered when I unloaded the quilt out of the machine.

Here's a good view of the feathered medallions, ribbon candy, swirls and border feathers...

The skinny feathers in the sashing added movement to the middle of the quilt and tied in the border feathers...

Upclose photo of the border feathers...

I'm so proud of how well the ribbon candy quilting turned out!

The swirls were the perfect motif to fit into the small center squares...

Stitching around with ALL NEW DESIGNS!!!

2010-06-09T21:04:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pics of the quilt that took me two days to quilt. I was so excited to be able to use several of the new techniques and designs I learned at MQS. As you can see in the photos (and several more on the way) I used 4 different feathers to fill in borders, sashing, corners and the center diamonds - and TONS of ribbon candy quilting in the braid sections. I thoroughly enjoyed this challenge and I learned a lot along the way. I surpassed many of my goals with this quilt and can't wait to feather the next one! *The part that surprised me the most when I took the quilt off the machine was that the back looked like a wholecloth design! I certainly didn't plan that! So don't miss the photo of the back of the quilt at the end of this post*

Sneak Peak!!!

2010-06-06T07:04:00.000-07:00

Well, as you all have seen, I've been talking for the last 4 blog posts about MQS. Now you will start to see the fruit of that business trip. I arrived home so inspired to try out the new ideas I'd seen. I've been slaving away for the last 2 days over a little masterpiece. The quilt has 4 different feather motifs, swirls and tons of ribbon candy quilting. Stay tuned because there's LOTS of exciting new pictures coming soon! I can't wait to show you all!

MQS Rocked!!!

2010-06-02T20:37:00.000-07:00

The week I spend at MQS was so worthwhile and inspiring because of what I learned from these talented quilt artists and because of the many new friendships I started. It was an absolute BLAST getting to be a Teacher's Angel (teacher's aid) for Karen McTavish and Sue Patten. I also enjoyed all the classes I took with Myrna Ficken, Mary Nordeng, Sally Terry, Linda Taylor, Claudia Pfeil, and Gina Perkes! You ladies were fantastic! Ultimately I came away from MQS with several new long arm quilting patterns to offer my customers and my brain is still buzzing with new ideas everyday. Going to MQS was like diving into the deepest end of the pool...I am excited about challenging myself with a seemingly endless array of stitched designs. I am also thinking very strongly that I might try to design a show quilt next year...hmmm. This was probably one of the best business trips I have ever taken. I LOVED it and can't wait to go back next year. Be sure to check out each teacher's website - they are all linked to their names. **See the two posts previous to this one for more information on Claudia Pfeil and Gina Perkes.

Karen McTavish

Myrna Ficken

Linda Taylor

Mary Nordeng

Sue Patten

Sally Terry

The Crazy German Artist!

2010-05-26T16:58:00.000-07:00

The quilting in the above photo was done by German Quilt Artist Claudia Pfeil.

Meeting German quilt artist Claudia Pfeil was one of the biggest highlights of my week at MQS. She has such an outgoing, lively and sometimes crazy, personality. She's not afraid to say and do just about anything! It was a delight getting to know her. Ornamental Pfeathers, the class/demo I took with her was nothing short of inspiring. Her creativity drives her to keep stitching at an intense pace. During the whole demo, she rarely stopped sewing. From one feather to the next, her creativity kept building. It was fascinating to see her in action.

She also made sure to have the essentials handy....she had CHOCOLATE. Not just any chocolate...yummy German chocolates. She passed around a basket of them halfway through class. The Giotto truffles were my favorite. Later in the week, she kindly gave me a whole package of them...so now she is my friend forever :-)

In the photo above we are holding up a feather that I got to help design. After demonstrating several of her gorgeous feathers, like the one seen above, Claudia asked for 3 volunteers to design new, preferably challenging feathers for her. I raised my hand along with 2 other women. We didn't actually sew or draw the entire feather for her, just the spine - simple line drawings for her to follow with her machine. Mine, as you can see from the photo was quite curvy. When she started to stitch mine she asked: "Who's is the drunk one?" I guess you could say it looks that way. The funniest reaction we got from Claudia was when one of the other 2 volunteers handed in a feather design with a right angle in it. *It was certainly challenging! Claudia pretended to be flustered and jokingly glared at her students saying: "Alright WHO gave me this one?!" The student gingerly raised her hand. Pointing her finger at her, Claudia said, "Well, I'm going to remember you!" The whole class laughed. Claudia stitched all 3 of our feather designs beautfully. Then I asked her if we could "pretty please" have them since we designed them...she said yes.

A little bit about the Artist: Claudia has won several major awards at both American and European Quilt shows. She has won several ribbons over the years at MQS, including viewer's choice in 2009. At this year's European Quilt championships, her quilt Cordoba *seen below* won Public Choice and first prize in long-arm quilting. She is the mother of two sons and owns a quilt shop in Germany. She is an APQS representative. She also travels across Europe and America offering classes and workshops.

Favorite Claudia Quote: "Don't breathe! Just quilt!"

The following photos are posted with the permission of Claudia Pfeil. These photos of her award-winning quilt, Cordoba, were taken at MQS.

All photos stitched by Claudia Pfeil

My First Day at MQS - Gina Perkes

2010-05-23T17:51:00.000-07:00

My first class: Fantabulous Feathers and Fills started bright and early at 8:00 Monday morning. I was so excited to finally be starting my long-anticipated week of classes at MQS. Award-winning quilt artist Gina Perkes, was ready to roll when we got to class. I learned SO much from her. She had a variety of her own unique designs to share with us. She not only demonstrated her designs, but also carefully explained the best techniques for how to do them. I highly recommend taking a class with her! The photo above is one her motifs she shared with us.

A little bit about the Artist: Gina has won several awards, such as IQA's "future of quilting" top award in 2008. She has been a guest on both "Linda's Long Arm Quilting" and Ricky Tims' & Alex Andersons' "The Quilt Show." In 2007, Gammill asked her to be their National spokesperson. She does gorgeous quilting and has made several award winning show quilts such as the one seen below. She lives in Payson, Arizona with her husband and three kids.

The best part of Gina's class was Gina. She was so laid back and fun to be with. I enjoyed interacting with her and thought that the way she handled the class was excellent. We learned so many skills, some of which were fairly advanced, without stressing!

Gina brought her award-winning quilt, Silken Defiance, for us to get an up close look at. When I asked her permission to post pictures of it she jokingly said: "Absolutely as long as you mention that I'm a super cool teacher with super cool techniques...LOL!" So let me just say...here's a super cool quilt by a super awesome teacher! To view a full shot of this quilt, go to Gina's website here.

On My Way to Kansas!

2010-05-21T19:26:00.000-07:00

Just last Sunday I was in the air headed to the Overland Park Convention Center in Kansas. I have been planning a trip to the Machine Quilter's Showcase for months now. I was so excited when the date for my departure FINALLY arrived. MQS, for those of you who don't know about it, is a fabulous way to spend the week taking classes from international, award winning quilt artists like Karen McTavish, Sue Patten, Claudia Pfeil, Linda Taylor...and the list goes on! There was also an extensive quilt show, vendor mall, and lots of fun evening activities including a banquet with guest speaker Kaye England - she was a hoot and a half! Long story short...I had a blast and did not want to go home. I do not have much time to blog right now and will be posting lots of photos soon! In the photo below my good friend and fellow longarmer Angela and I are our way to MQS. Stay tuned! More exciting stuff coming soon!

It's Hanging at Wish Upon a Quilt!!!

2010-04-30T17:28:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I stopped by Wish Upon a Quilt. I enjoyed chatting with Cathy, owner of Wish *seen above.* She has a lovely store brimming with tempting goodies. Check out Wish's website here. Recently, I finished a shop quilt sample seen behind us. It has a very happy, lively feel to it...the fabric group Cathy used is appropriately named "Frolic." Sandy Gervais has once again created a mouth-watered collection. I considered a variety of different quilting patterns and decided that simple was best for this busy quilt. Whimsey with Swirls, daisies & leaves not only enhanced the whimsical feel of the quilt but matched several of the floral, vine and leaf motifs of the fabric. Next time you stop by Wish check out the Frolic quilt hanging in the classroom area. It turned out smashing! Thanks Cathy! It was great seeing you and your beautiful store!

A Lot More of That Springtime Feel...

2010-04-29T12:56:00.000-07:00

Here are the rest of the photos of Terry Ames' quilt. Thanks for letting me do this Terry. I enjoyed it! For more details about this quilt see the last 2 posts.

That Springtime Feel...

2010-04-19T20:04:00.000-07:00

My customer Terry did an amazing job putting this quilt top together. The fabrics and pattern combine to make a quilt that has an elegant, springtime feel. The quilting had to reflect and compliment these same qualities. At first I suggested that straight feathers be sewn in the sashing, but Terry really wanted undulating feathers. I am so glad she chose them because they really make the quilt! The mermaid hair sewn right up against the star blocks, as I have said in many posts, gives them a 3D affect and puts them in motion. Terry really wanted "poofy" stars, so I did minimal quilting in them. And poofy they were! She was very pleased with the way her quilt turned out. I was excited to take on the challenge of doing the job. It's not everyday a longarmer gets to stitch undulating feathers in somewhat narrow sashing with lots of intersections where the feathers have to overlap and under lap each other. After this beauty was finished, I found that I had acquired several new skills. Thanks Terry for the pleasure of quilting your quilt!

Something Amazing Is on the Way!!!!!

2010-04-18T19:53:00.000-07:00

Stay tuned folks...there's more of this comin' your way!

Thanks for the Cookie...

2010-04-15T17:27:00.000-07:00

Kerri, my Australian customer who lives in Switzerland, sent me this Swiss cookie as a thank you for doing her rush order quilt. I did not expect to get it. It was quite tasty and BIG. Thanks Kerri! *See the previous post for the full scoop on Kerri's quilt.

Mmmmmm.....

Currently Cramming...

2010-04-07T19:02:00.000-07:00

This photo pretty much sums up my life right now. I am supposed to be studying for my math exam tomorrow morning at 8 sharp...*gulp*. But after hours and hours of cramming blasted financial formulas into my already jammed full brain, I needed a break! Hence I decided to post. I have so many blog entry's I can't wait to share with you all! I also have a ton of quilts to do! My customers are keeping me hopping! I LOVE my job. Stay tuned...after math is done...I shall be posting more fun stuff.

*Photo found here.

All the Way from Switzerland!

2010-03-31T13:56:00.000-07:00

This past winter I was so excited to find out that I would be recieving a rush order quilt over Christmas that would be traveling all the way from Switzerland! My FIRST international quilt...yeehah! Kerri who lives in Switzerland did a marvelous job piecing her quilt top. The primary colors she picked really pop on their dark black background. Kerri knows Nicole who is the daughter of Sonja who works at the local Bernina store. Sonja has been a customer of mine for a while now. So long story short, the quilt went from Kerri, to Nicole, to Sonja & then me and back again! But what is ironically funny is that I cannot say I quilted a quilt for a Swiss woman because Kerri is from Australia! She signed her email to me: "Warmest Wishes, from Kerri, an Australian in Switzerland." Kerri, as you can see was very kind and took some lovely photos for me. She said she loved the quilting I did and uses the quilt as an accent piece on the end of her bed. Thank you Kerri! I look forward to the possiblity of quilting more quilts for you in the future! I hope you enjoy this post! Until next time...that's all folks!

Kris's Star Part 2

2010-03-25T19:39:00.000-07:00

Here are some more photos from the ever lovely star quilt...it turned out absolutely stunning. This year I came up with these new fern-like feathers and felt that they were very appropriate for the setting squares and triangles. They really add a whole new dimension to the quilt. They also filled the blank white background background spaces, enhancing the elegant feel of Kris's quilt.

Kris's Star...

2010-03-23T16:32:00.000-07:00

Friend and long time customer Kris, always does a great job in selecting colors and patterns. Her quilts always "sing"...they are cheery and beautiful. See the "Spooktacular" blog entry here that I recently posted about her fabulous halloween quilt. This star quilt was done a while ago (like many other quilts waiting to be blogged about) *cough *cough...ahem...but anyways here it finally is! I was so tickled with how well the quilting turned out. These pictures only show part of the quilt...so you'll have to check back again soon for the rest! Wait until you see the feather design I stitched in the set-in corner squares...they turned out beyond awesome! Stay tuned!

The mermaid hair added a lot of texture and movement to the center...I went to town on this baby...

Hurry Up Spring!!! Part 2

2010-03-10T17:09:00.000-08:00

Here's the rest of the pictures for that zesty taste of spring I was telling you all about. I hope you enjoy them! I love adding the swirls to the whimsey. It is a more recent addition to my quilting repitoire. The swirls just bring so much more movement and liveliness. This quilting design with the playful daisies was a perfect fit for this quilt.

By the way...Spring listened when I told it to hurry up. Just yesterday I saw a large patch of daffodils in full bloom. Later on in the afternoon, it was so warm outside that I just had to take my shoes off on the way home from my walk and go barefoot. Of course, being a North Carolina native, I know the real truth is that N.C. weather is just plain moody. Two weeks ago it was snowing, this week it's almost gotten hot. Next week brings who knows what! For now, I will keep watching all the lovely new blooms.

Hello Swanville, Minnesota!

2010-03-08T15:53:00.000-08:00

Dear visitor from Swanville, I have been curious to know who you are for a few months now. It's pretty cool to have somebody reading my blog all the way up in Minnesota. Last time I did a blog call it was to Sweden. After seeing my blog circulated through a Swedish Yahoo group, I had to know who in Sweden was following my blog! That's how I met my friend Gudrun. I would love to meet YOU! Please email me and tell me about your quilting/craft addictions: www.BethanyQuilts.blogspot.com

When I did a little research on Minnesota, I discovered:

You guys are very creative with snow...
That you have so many beautiful places to visit...

That you get really excited about the Minnesota Vikings...

Hurry Up Spring!!!

2010-03-04T10:08:00.000-08:00

I just recently finished a quilt that is very "springy." It was so bright and cheery, the perfect quilt for a dreary, grey winter day. It made me wish spring was here. Hurry UP SPRING!!!! More pics coming soon.

Reflections...

2010-02-17T17:01:00.000-08:00

I needed a little break the other day, so I decided to get my camara out. Taking random pictures of whatever I want to is a great way for me to unwind. I find looking through a camara is almost like looking into another world. It's like I'm going exploring. As I was the only one at home, I did not have any "victums" I could ask to pose for me. I wanted to experiment with reflections...here are a couple of the bizillion pics I snapped. (The second one is my reflection in the birdbath in front of my house.) Enjoy!

B is for Butterfly - Butterfly Garden Quilt #3

2010-02-13T17:18:00.000-08:00

It was a bit tricky coming up with "the one" perfect butterfly for Ilene's quilt. I had never sewn butterflies before and knew that these had to be more elegant than whimsical. It would have been a different story if I was simply adding a few butterflies here and there to a basic whimsy (loops) motif. That was not the case as Ilene had requested freeform feather with butterflies. Several sketches later, I came up with a butterfly that could be sewn in one pass and that fit with the feel of my free form feather quilting design. I was excited to have been given this challenge. Now I have another spin on my free form feather design. One thing I have learned this past year as I have taken on various quilting challenges is that creativity and inspiration never run out. Every time I think I might have run out of ideas...a new one springs into my mind. I am constantly inspired by many different things and love my job!!!! Enjoy the butterflies!

More of the Glorious Butterfly Garden Quilt...

2010-02-06T18:46:00.000-08:00

Do you see the star spinning into orbit?

Quilting the radiating swirls from the middle of the star was well worth the effort. I knew that whatever design I ended up stitching on the star of this quilt had to be elegant and lively. In order to maintain the clean lines that the seams made, I stitched along each row of diamonds. After debating between doing swirls that stayed in the channels or randomly "climbed" all over the star, I decided channel quilting would best compliment the clean, modern, bold look of this quilt. This of course took A LOT of stopping and starting. Like....A WHOLE LOT. Halfway through I was tempted to think: "What on earth have I gotten myself into??!" Those thoughts were soon replaced by my growing excitement. The more channels I filled with swirls, the more the star began to come to life. I was motivated by the thought of how stunning the quilt was beginning to look. When the last swirl had been sewn it looked as though the star was spinning into orbit.

Ilene did a very nice piecing job on this quilt. Often it is difficult, as you quilters know, to keep ALL the diamonds flat and not stretched out of shape. Ilene's quilt was nice and smooth. I enjoyed working on it. One tip I realized (I'm sure some of you have already figured this out) is that batiks are a great option when making a quilt with lots of bias. Yes, batik or not, the fabric will always tend to be stretchy when cut on the bias, but because batik is stiff and more densely woven, it probably has less stretching potential. Ilene's quilt was all batiks; and as I said, behaved beautifully.

I worked long and hard on sketching z butterfly. I finally came up with this one. She turned out pretty whimsical and fun.

Snow? Really? I Can't Believe It!

2010-01-30T18:18:00.000-08:00

Three days ago I was roller-blading through the nearby park in a t-shirt. Today I woke up to five inches of snow. How do you explain that? All's I can say is, it's typical for North Carolina. We don't normally get snow every year...at least not this much of it. Usually it snows one night and then melts completely the following day. This time we got tons of sleet and the temperature remained freezing cold! My sisters and I took a break to go out and "play" in the snow. Yeah, I know, we're just about through with college and should be too old for that stuff....but we just couldn't resist launching snowballs at each other. We didn't last long against the fierce wind which was plastering our faces with sharp sleet. Ouch! The landscape was beautiful at least; so it was worth the trek to snap a few pictures. I did manage to start and complete a customer's quilt today. I plan to load a king size one tomorrow. I still have tons of photos of the Butterfly Garden Quilt; so stay tuned for more photos! I plan to take advantage of not being able to go anywhere. Sometimes it's really nice to be snug and comfy at home.

My sister was making me crack up when she took this photo.

Here's the clown herself...

The twins are not only my sisters, but my best friends. Candace is in the red hat and Caitlyn's the cool chick sporting the shades.

Goofiness at it's best...(Do you like my hat? I knit it. It's my favorite snow hat.)

More of Thing 1 & Thing 2 ~ i.e. Candace and Caitlyn.

Butterfly Garden Quilt #1

2010-01-27T16:53:00.000-08:00

Ilene loved her quilt. The fusia star sitting on the cream background with hints of periwinkle was a striking color combination. The free-form feather design I stitched in the background and the swirls I sewed inside the star enhanced the the bold, fresh look of the quilt. She requested that I stitch butterflies. I had never done butterflies before. After several bizillion sketches I had finally designed the perfect butterfly. They turned out so whimsical and fun. I did a huge photo shoot of this quilt today...so more photos coming!!!

It's SpOoKtacular!!! #3

2010-01-22T17:44:00.000-08:00

Here are the rest of the Halloween quilt photos I promised. I hope you enjoy looking at them. I had a BLAST doing this quilt. Kris always tells me to just go for it! You don't have to tell me twice! I tried to vary the backgrounds as much as possible to give the quilt more interest and to match the feel/attitude of the appliqued character in the block.

I also stitched spider webs into the blocks at random. They fit in perfectly. I realized I could just continue the background filler right up to the edges of each web. Spider webs weren't as hard as I initially thought they would be. Rather fun actually.

It was fun to sew spiders dangling from the words....

Some of the spiders turned out pretty short and stout. Their cartoony feel was appropriate for this whimsical, funky quilt.

I had a big light bulb moment when I decided to put a web inside the "O" in Halloween. It turned out better than I imagined.
After all that crazy, lively, busy quilting - a calmly quilted border and sashing was needed. The meandering blended well into the sashing and really set off the busier appliques. The big curly q's in the border added texture and complimented the polka dot border fabric.

A slightly "zoomed in" view...

I broke my own rule with the quilting on this one. I would normally never use dark thread on light fabric, esp. not black on white. The spiked curly q was the design I had already decided on in my mind. The more I thought about it, the more I convinced myself that black would actually look really cool on this white fabric stitched in this particular motif. By golly it worked!!!! After stitching the first one I knew I had made the right decision. They looked soooo awesome!

This smiling pumpkin had to be my favorite block. He just looks so comical. I laughed at him, when I saw him for the first time. If Dick Van Dyke was reincarnated into a pumpkin, this is what he'd look like. (I know, crazy thought, but it's the end of a long week, and 10 pm...don't expect me to be totally sane right now).

It's SpOoKtacular!!! #2

2010-01-17T19:29:00.000-08:00

I don't know why photos occasionally post sideways!!!!! But it's ANNOYING!!!! I tried 3 times to get these to load the correct way, but alas, technology has once again left me baffled. Anyways, you still have a nice view of the stitching design at least. Just turn your head sideways to look at it. This quilt, as I said earlier, is the first one that I have ever stitched spider webs onto. I had a ball throwing in the webs here and there, and especially in the words. I still have more photos coming so stay tuned!

Click on photo to see upclose view:

It's SpOoKtacular!!! #1

2010-01-14T17:55:00.000-08:00

My friend Kris has been at it again. She always pics really great quilt patterns to make with really fabulous fabric combinations. I love the colors and craziness of her latest Halloween quilt. Her only request for the quilting was that I make it "spooky" and just to have fun - and maybe throw in some spider webs etc....Well I didn't have fun, I HAD A BLAST quilting this baby!!! I was very proud of how my first-ever spider webs turned out. I kept thinking: "Oh, there's another perfect spot to stitch a spider web in!" And of course I had to throw in spiders; they turned out so whimsical and cute. I still have several more photos of this quilt that I will be posting in the near future. As soon as I can get my first math test (yuck!) out of the way for school I will have some more time to blog. Actually, I might be blogging more frequently. I can't wait to un-wind after a long day at school and blogging is definitely one of my favorite ways to de-stress and enjoy myself. After several hours of homework/quilting I can give myself permission to create a blog post for just half an hour, right?! Then again....it's just the beginning of the semester so....we'll see just how intense all my classes really get...hehehe...gulp.

Something Spooky Coming Soooooon.....

2010-01-11T15:06:00.000-08:00

More coming when I get done with my latest Biology, Math and Geography assignments...

2010-01-09T18:44:00.000-08:00

Deanna is one of my newer customers. She is also new to the world of quilting. However, her progess as a beginner quilter is outstanding. She's fast becoming an advanced quilt addict. Check out her lovely applique' border. I enjoyed working with the soft pastel colors. The large swirl stitching in the center of the quilt and the mermaid hair in the borders complimented the fresh, romantic, springtime feel of the quilt pattern. Mermaid Hair also adds a lot of movement and life-like qualities to a quilt. The vines, for example, look like they could be swaying in a breeze. Thanks Deanna! It was a pleasure.

A Hint of Spring...

2010-01-07T10:23:00.000-08:00

Pam loved her quilts! The leaves & vines and free-form feather designs turned out perfectly. She did a great job with the piecing and color schemes for these two quilts. The addition of the paisley motif always adds a new dimension to my free form feather design. The paisley motif was also appropriate due to the many paisley printed fabrics in the quilt. The elegant, flowing feel of the ff feather complimented the pattern Pam used. And of course, ribbons always glam up the quilt! I love "tossing" them on.

Pam's little green quilt seen below, was the first time I ever tried doing the all-over leaf and vine design. Whenever I try a new design I practice drawing it. If it can be drawn, it can be sewn. So I drew & drew & drew....and drew some more. As a matter of fact, I pulled a wad of paper out of the printer and doodled away. The practice paid off! It was a success...the design really made the quilt. And it was fairly easy to work around the appliqued border. I didn't have to constantly stop and start.

It Started...Aaaaah!

2010-01-06T14:44:00.000-08:00

Well....this cartoon pretty much sums it up. School started today.

Photo Resource: www.clipartguide.com

Last Bit of Christmas...

2010-01-03T15:45:00.000-08:00

Cathy loved her quilt. The fabric combination she picked was so bright and cheerful. I enjoyed working upclose with these colors. This is the last Christmas 2009 quilt I had left to blog about. There were several other rush-order Christmas quilts that I was unable to photograph due to time crunch. I am always behind on my blogging. I have so many photos for 2010 already!!!! So stay tuned for more of where this came from.

The additional swirl really takes whimsey with stars to the next level. I love the slightly elegant, lively feeling it gives.

Carol's Quilts Part 2

2009-12-31T20:44:00.000-08:00

As you can see in the previous post, the colors in these daisy quilts match the colors in the pinwheel quilts. Carol made the pinwheel quilts bed size with the matching daisy quilts as accents. They turned out beautiful for her granddaughters. I'm sure they will be very special quilts to those little girls. My favorite quilt is still the one my mom made me. I sleep under it every night.

Carol's Quilts

2009-12-27T16:25:00.000-08:00

I always look forward to quilting Carol's quilts. She does a beautiful job assembling them, making my job easy, and always uses rich color combinations. I recently finished these two for her. The whimsey with leaves & swirls seemed like the appropriate design to quilt the pastel, flower garden strip quilt. I had never used that design on any of Carol's quilts and she liked it very much. The pinwheel quilt took a little more time to come up with a design for. I had various ideas that would work, but knew I still hadn't found the perfect one. Carol also requested that I make sure the quilting was not too dense to ensure that the quilts would have good drape. They will be used on her granddaughter's beds. I finally decided on ribbons and used the ditches of the rows as my guide. The ribbons worked out well! Carol loved how they looked on the quilt. They added a lot of movement to the quilt, setting the pinwheels in motion. And they had wonderful drape!

Goodies from Sweden!

2009-12-25T18:58:00.001-08:00

I was so excited when I saw a package in the mail earlier this month from Sweden. I couldn't wait until Christmas to open it. Gudrun sent me the cutest little tea cup shaped pouch. She did an amazing job stitching it together and adding wonderful beading and embellishments. AND she picked bright colors....my favorite. The best part was when I un-zipped the pouch. The pungent aroma of strawberry tea immediately filled the air. Gudrun is a very smart lady because she also included an additional hand-crafted pouch full of chocolate Santas. Mmm, mmm...they quickly vanished.

For a long time I didn't open the gift because of how beautifully wrapped it was.

These last 2 photos of the goodies she sent me for my birthday this past fall. I love the necklace she gave me, and I have the post card taped up on the bookshelf next to my bed. The postcard is a snapshot of her beautiful Island of Hono.

Ho...Ho...Ho!!!

2009-12-10T17:47:00.000-08:00

Lana did a great job with the color choices for this fabulous "Figgy Pudding" pattern. She told me to quilt it at my discretion. I LOVE hearing those words! It took a long time to plan and rehearse the many stitch designs that I sewed in the trees and blocks. At first my creative juices were not kicking in. But after I had quilted the first pass I was ready to ROCK N' ROLL!!! AND...this quilt was the perfect way to "decorate" my blog for Christmas.

Enjoy the photos...I had fun doing this one. ***Click on photos for better view***

Don't know why this one posted sideways! Oh well...

For some of the trees, I used the motiff in the pattern of the fabric. This tree had a fabulous 3D texture after I quilted around the peppermints.

By the Shore...More of Kris's Quilt

2009-12-01T18:28:00.000-08:00

Here are the promised photos. I just happened to be taking pictures of this one as the sun was setting. Perfect! Enjoy! *See previous post for more info. about this quilt*

The Crab is Crawling off the Quilt!!!!

2009-11-27T19:08:00.000-08:00

See what I mean??? (read the last post if you haven't already...) My friend and long time customer Kris did a fabulous job with her hand-stitched redwork and overall quilt design. I wanted so badly to go skipping down by the seashore after quilting this beauty. Once again my Mermaid Hair background filler added pizazz and movement without stealing the show. This stitch motif has become one of my favorites. It brings things to life. The crab, for example, was an elegant, yet "flat" redwork pattern. After breaking up all that white background with some Mermaid Hair action...Mr. Crab there looks likes he's gonna' crawl right off the quilt. I can't wait to share more snapshots of this one, like the light house and star fish blocks. MORE PHOTOS COMING soon....so stay tuned people as I take you down by the seashore....

Wait til You See What's Next!!!

2009-11-26T18:16:00.000-08:00

I'm thinking beach right now.... Yes in the middle of winter! The thought of strolling along the edge of the sea with soft, warm sand cushioning every step, sunshine on my cheeks and that soothing sound of waves rolling in & out is very appealing to me right now. And speaking of the seashore, two of the quilts I have recently done have a thing or 2 to do with the ocean. Wait and see....photos coming very soon. Wait til you see how they turned out...

Photo resource:

http://media.photobucket.com/image/beach%20cartoon%20images/sebastiantantan/bugs_bunny_1.jpg

It's a Doozy!!!

2009-11-20T17:45:00.000-08:00

Sharon put together a stunning combination of fabrics. For the quilting she requested feathers in the corners. I decided to try a new kind of feather that curled in on itself. I worked and practiced for a long, looooong time. Several sketches later, I felt ready to tackle the quilt. I couldn't have been more excited about how well the feathers turned out. I always feel like I'm free-falling off a cliff when I begin taking the first stitches of a new design. Even though I've been sewing feathers for a while now, these were tricky because of how tightly they curled in on themselves and because of the fact that they had to fit into the corner squares and set-in triangles.

I also added swirls to the flames this time. This gave them a slightly more elegant look that better complimented the feel of the quilt.

Taking on the challenge of this new feather design was worth it! The quilt turned out even better than I imagined, and Sharon loved it.

Click on photos for larger view.

Smaller curly-q borders...

Set-in triangle feathers and swirling flames...

This photo really shows off Sharon's excellent composition of colors.

Swooshing Feathers

2009-11-13T17:09:00.000-08:00

Here's another of Robin's quilts. The artsy, funky feel of her quilt lent itself to a variety of stitch design possibilities. I had lots of fun quilting swooshing feathers in the wide purple sashing and in the borders. Robin not only hand dyed many of her fabrics as in her other quilt here but she also used a variety of corduroys, cottons, linens, satin, and more. The purple feathers shimmered because of their wavy design and the shiny, silky purple fabric. The pumpkin, gold thread was complimentary as well.

Doodlings...

2009-11-07T17:56:00.000-08:00

This is a special card that I made for my Aunt Kim. She sent me a big box full of goodies on my birthday in September. A few weeks ago I designed this thank you card and sent it to her. She LOVES, I mean reeeeally loves, cats. I had fun creating this rather round kitty. His personality really shows. He ended up being roughly 7-8 inches long and about 4-5 inches tall. The materials I used were colored pencils and a fine black pen for outlining. You will recognize some of the quilting motifs I used - like the Mermaid Hair on his belly...I am really stuck on Mermaid Hair right now...I love sewing that design. My aunt said she loved it and might even frame it. I think I might have to do some more of these sometime...I had fun creating this kitty!

Upclose: his back feet...I don't know WHY this posted sideways! Oh well...

His happy face and chubby cheeks....

I made sure to stick to ROY - G - BIV for his tail...all the colors of the rainbow side by side really pack a punch! His tail was fun to color in but even more fun to cut out.

A Splash of Color!

2009-11-04T19:08:00.000-08:00

Betsy did an amazing job putting these colors together. I loved the bright combinations and the swirling designs in the fabrics. Due to the business of the fabrics, I decided that simple curly q's would be best. They also echoed the motif already in the fabric. The curling quilting added a lot of movement and texture. I have to be honest...I wanted to keep this one! It was my colors!

Underwater Adventure #3

2009-10-30T19:47:00.000-07:00

Sewing in the Seaweed...

I thought this motif turned out pretty cool...looks somewhat like a sea creature ready to float across the quilt.

I loved sewing these pebbles and stones...the unusally oblong shape added a lot of interest and 3D texture.

Robin did a great job hand-dying her fabrics.

I know I've already posted pics of these scales, but they were my favorite part, so here they are again!

More "sea creatures" and seaweed...

And of course....Mermaid Hair in the borders...which also looks like swirling ocean waves.

Underwater Adventure #2

2009-10-25T13:40:00.000-07:00

Robin's quilt had several large plain blocks that lent themselves to fancy quilting. I had fun designing and fitting this funky feather in one of the larger squares. This feather always ends up looking fabulous, but it takes FOREVER to stitch all those itsy-bitsy, teeny-weeny circles around the edges. It was worth it though. Robin was very happy with the results. Her selection of hand-dyed cottons (which she died herself), lace, velvet, seersucker and a variety of other fabrics, in combination with the wacky overall design of the quilt squares gave this quilt an unusual funky feel. The design of the quilt also allowed for a wide range of funky stitching designs. I had fun playing around on this one. There's a lot more of where this came from...so stay tuned everybody!!!!

Underwater Adventure #1

2009-10-18T13:02:00.000-07:00

The quilt I recieved from Robin had an artsy funky feel to it. She had creatively stitched together several different fabrics, including velvet, cottons, lace and a variety of others. She said to do whatever we wanted on it! I love hearing those words! The quilt was framed in a green batik border with fish printed on it. This is what originally inspired me to take this quilt in an "ocean themed" direction. The rest of the fabrics were somewhat neutral and did not have a specifically nautical theme...but when I saw the border I knew the decision making process was over. I immediately dove in on this underwater adventure and had a blast stitching seaweed, pebbles, waves and scales all over the quilt! More to come soon so stay tuned!!!

Something Fishy Coming Soon!!!!

2009-10-15T07:20:00.000-07:00

I've had so much fun sewing fish scales, waves & seaweed all over this quilt...wait til' you see it!

The Background...Last of the Bernina Stash Dash Quilt...

2009-10-11T20:14:00.000-07:00

Don't really have a whole lot to say about the background. I'm glad I decided to go ahead with doing Mermaid Hair. It ended up being just the right thing for the background filler around the center star and the various blocks. It also meshed well with the other curly swirls background filler (seen in last photo).

Here you can see the 2 background fillers meeting and meshing well.

Stash Dash Quilt Up Close, Part 5

2009-10-11T19:38:00.000-07:00

Borders....there were A LOT of little vines, leaves and flowers to quilt around. Getting started on this special Heart of Carolina Stash Dash quilt was little intimidating. The purple, red and orange stars were the first things I quilted. I was ready to rock n' roll after doing 28 of these. The feathers really enhanced the elegant look of the stars. Below you can see how teeny weeny the quilted feathers are - that's my baby finger.

Stash Dash Quilt Up Close, Part 4

2009-10-08T17:21:00.000-07:00

This block turned out simply dynamite! For once I did not practice drawing the design before sewing it....I just went for it! I love free-wheeling it with the quilting. During the entire quilting process for the Bernina Stash Dash quilt I carefully rehearsed and drew and re-drew everything before stitching anything. So when I came to this block, it was thoroughly refreshing to just dive in!

No quilting in the purple added to the 3 dimensional look of this block. The quilting overall set this block spinning in motion. It almost looks like a pinwheel swirling in the breeze.

These last 2 photos show the quilting I did in the 4 cornerstone blocks at the edges of the quilt. Minimum quilting seemed the most appropriate option due to the fact that these stars are the last thing seen by the viewer. Because of this and the fact that the viewer's attention needed to be directed to the central, grand star I simply wiggle stitched in the ditch. The beauty of the block itself is in its traditional design and rich colors. The quilting therefore needed to quietly blend in and enhance the block without calling attention to itself.

Stash Dash Quilt Up Close Part 3

2009-10-07T17:53:00.000-07:00

In the four different blocks framing the quilt I did different, custom quilting for each. Here are 2 more of them.

Love how it turned out looking 3D...it really popped.

At Bernina...

2009-10-03T18:26:00.001-07:00

Today I had the pleasure of going to Bernina. http://www.berninaworldofsewing.com/ I was delighted to see the Stash Dash quilt I slaved over hanging so beautifully in the classroom. To those of you who live near or in the Raleigh area, I highly recommend an outing to Bernina. They have quite a few classes they are offering and lots of fabrics and all sorts of things for the everyday quilter. I enjoyed chatting with Marilyn (shop owner seen below.) I was so flattered today when, during the Bernina club meeting, she pointed out "what a great job" I had done quilting the Heart of Carolina Stash Dash quilt. I really appreciated that. Then all the ladies in the club applauded me...thank you ladies!

I visited Bernina Club today to see quilt Artist, Roxane Lessa. Her brilliant work was inspiring. She had several great ideas for machine quilting designs and shared several magnificent and intricately crafted quilts with us. WOW...she is a gifted artist.

470... that is the final head count of quilters who attended Stash Dash. That's a lot more than I estimated in a previous post!

Stash Dash Quilt Up Close, Part 2

2009-10-02T17:48:00.000-07:00

This block did not call for much quilting...in fact I even considered not quilting it. The beauty of the block is in the fabulous design..."over-quilting" it would greatly detract from it's 3D look. I wanted the block to still be "in motion" after I quilted it. Just a few wavy lines here and there did the trick. It ended up looking even more 3D than before I quilted it. Mission accomplished - the quilting enhanced the block. This sizzling star was probably my favorite block in the whole quilt.

Stash Dash Quilt Up Close, Part I

2009-09-30T18:04:00.000-07:00

Quilting the center of the Bernina Stash Dash quilt was one of the biggest challenges I offered to take on this past August....hmmmmm, I thought after recieving it and spreading it out to look at it for the first time: "what on earth do I stitch around that star?" The task was somewhat daunting due to the fact that: 1.)this impressive star is the first thing everyone sees when they look at the quilt 2.)it has an elegant and somewhat complex design 3.)there were too many quilting ideas to pick from - it was hard to narrow it down and find "the one" 4.)it was more than likely that a couple hundred quilters would see it during it's Stash Dash debut. (perhaps even more than 200 quilters, it just depends on how many participated in the Stash Dash).

I sketched, re-sketched and asked the opinion of my best friend and quilting coach - Mom, until I came up with the perfect feather. This design really seemed to ad to the elegance of the star without distracting from it's impressive design. When I recieved the quilt, the star appeared to be floating on a large beige background. When the quilting process was complete, the star was anchored, yet simultaneously had been given "wings." As a longarm quilter who likes to get fancy...I LOVE large plain backgrounds to fill with swishing feathers, swirling mermaid hair, pebbles, leaves, stars, paisley's, teardrops...etc. It is an invitation and a challenge to create! And create I did!!!!

Bernina Stash Dash Quilt!!!!!

2009-09-27T11:58:00.000-07:00

It was quite the challenge to come up with ideas for this quilt. When I recieved it, I knew that it would be seen by dozens, if not hundreds of people. The pressure was on to "get it right!" The local Bernina store (http://www.berninaworldofsewing.com/) along with 8 other shops, participates each fall in the Heart of Carolina Stash Dash. Quilters who have signed up for Stash Dash & recieved their passports, must try to visit each store within the 3 day time period of the event. There are all kinds of goodies, door prizes, and extra specials at each quilt store just for Stash Dash. The goal is to make it to all the stores within the 3 day time table, because then the quilter qualifies for grand prizes which include sewing machines, cutting center kits, large fabric packets...things that make quilters drool. Anyhow...I knew that my work would be seen by all these quilters and knew that I needed to come up with quilting designs that were unique and eye-catching and appropriate for the overall design of the quilt. I was overwhelmed when I first saw all the applique, fancy center star which was floating in a large background space, and set in blocks on all the corners. I sketched...and sketched...and sketched some more....until I had some firm plans for the borders. At that point I still had no idea what on earth I would do in the center star...but that's another blog entry. Slowly but surely, the creative juices starting flowing, and I was able to come up with the perfect designs as I took this quilting adventure one step at a time. Stay tuned! There's a lot more of where this came from!

I love how this feather pattern ended up "peeking out" of the blocks. This little sunburst was the perfect design for putting in the 4 small stars at the corners of the main center star. They radiate, and stretch outwards like the center star does. They were also easy to make small enough to fit nicely in the small 2"x 2" space. These were the last part I did on the quilt. I couldn't think of the right design for quilting within the small centers of these 4 stars...so I just left them and went ahead and quilted the entire rest of the quilt. When I realized I was completely done with the job, except for those stars, I still didn't know what I should do. I was almost done....and it was getting later, and later at night...all's I had left were these little stars! I didn't want to leave them to do in the morning...SUDDENLY...I had a breakthrough...the lightbulb finally went off and I was able to go to bed with a challenging quilt job behind me...aaaaaah.

The One You've Been Waiting For!!!

2009-09-24T16:21:00.000-07:00

If you click on the photos you can enlarge them and get a better view!

Here's the first glimpse of the Sept. 24th quilt I promised to share with you! I don't have time to do a long post right now...but I will be doing several entry's on this quilt in the near future. I am so excited to share this with you all!!!! STAY TUNED! More coming soon!

Sneek Peek...

2009-09-23T15:51:00.000-07:00

Remember that quilt that I can't post about until Sept. 24? Well, I figured I'd go ahead and give ya'll a sneek peek! It has some vines and leaves...some vine motiffs and lots of green leaves....there some nature designs in the quilt....did I mention there are lots of vines too???? Hihihihi!!!! Yes, that's all I'm going to tell you! You'll just have to wait and see....stay tuned people!!!

Sea Breeze or Mermaid Hair???

2009-09-21T10:13:00.000-07:00

Kathy, owner of Wish Upon a Quilt (see http://www.wishuponaquilt.com/), recently asked me to quilt a top for her. When she dropped of her quilt she said that I could do whatver type of quilting I wanted on it. Hah! My favorite words to hear. The quilt top was a busy, crazy cut combination of bright fabrics arranged in an unusual color combination. This quilt is what I call "funky monkey." I liked the playful "attitude" of this quilt. Tipically, I would have done very simple quilting on this top, such as whimsey or meandering. However, it occured to me that my sea breeze/mermaid hair design would probably compliment the quilt, rather than take over. It is very important to me to be sure that whatever quilt design I stitch on the quilt compliment and finish the quilt. The feel of the quilting needs to match the feel of the quilt...not stand out stealing the show. If there are large blank areas in the quilt, then busy, super fancy quilting is appropriate. The sea breeze/mermaid hair was the perfect design for this quilt because it echoed the lively feel of the crazy patchwork design. The quilting added positive liveliness, not taking away or distracting from the overall design. Kathy was extremely pleased with how her quilt turned out. The quilting on this one really did add a whole new dimension. Mermaid Hair/Sea Breeze has fantastic texture and adds a nice flow to the quilt.

You all need to vote and leave a comment or email me to say which name you think best suits this quilting design. Mermaid hair? or Sea Breeze?

The pattern was most visible in the brown borders.

The Sea Breeze/Mermaid Hair echoed the design in the border...it was not intended - one of those welcome coincidences.

Happy Birthday Mom...and nice job!

2009-09-18T19:47:00.000-07:00

This post is all about my best friend in the whole wide world...MOM. Today, is her birthday! Happy Birthday! I love you...thanks for being such an amazing person...you're the best! I am thankful for all that you have taught me throughout my life - like how to longarm quilt for instance ((~: I have learned and am still learning so many valuable lessons from your example. More than anything, I am thankful that you have shown me what it means to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and to pursue Him with my whole heart. Thanks also, by the way, for putting up with my pig-headed moments. I thank God that He picked you to be MY mom. You truly are one of the most precious gifts in my life...thank you for your faithful friendship. I love you.

Marge did a great job piecing the quilt seen in this post. Not only were her color choices and pattern lovely, but her quilting technique was excellent. It is a pleasure to quilt a quilt that lays so flat and is so perfectly pressed. It turned out beautiful after the quilting was done, and Marge was very happy with the results. Mom was rockin' and rollin' on this beauty.

Before...

After...

Love the lighting in the one. Our workroom is very "sunshiny." It is pleasant to work in.

Look at that level of concentration!!! You go girl! Show em' how it's done!

Anchoring the thread before "take-off"...

Upclose shot of her lovely stitching.

Overall, the quilting added a much needed finishing touch. The pattern of the quilt was interesting and held one's eye, however the solid-like prints stood out in stark contrast against the white background. It was as if the top lacked a final uniting step. The rich, yet "quiet," fabrics were the perfect background for adding busy, lively freeform feather to.

Ya' did good Ma....

COMING SOON!!!!

2009-09-16T18:50:00.000-07:00

I am so excited about a quilt which I can't wait to share with you all. Pictures of it would have been posted last week, but I am not allowed to put them up until the end of the month. The quilt was made for a special event at a local quilt shop and won't be seen by anyone until September 24. Sooooo, be on the lookout...this doosey of a quilt is definitely hitting the records as some of my best work.

Sweden Wrote Back!!!

2009-09-12T19:11:00.000-07:00

Recently, I noticed a place called Göteborg, Vastra Gotaland was beginning to visit my blog on a regular basis. Curious, I googled this place and learned that it was located in southern Sweden, near the west coastline of Sweden just north of Denmark. One day noticed that I had had about a dozen hits within one afternoon from Sweden. I realized that my blog had been circulated through a Swedish yahoo group! That was pretty exciting!!!! Intrigued, I did a blog post asking Sweden to write me. I thought it would not be likely that I would recieve a response. But ever hopeful, I decided it was worth a try. I waited 3 to 4 days. One day as I checked my inbox, I found an email entitled "Hej from Sweden." Gudrun, a fellow quilter, who lives on the small Swedish Island of Hono, wrote me back! Eagerly I opened her email. She said she had circulated my blog through the yahoo group and that she really enjoys reading it. Hah! A Swedish quilter halfway around the world just told me she enjoys following my blog!? I was thrilled. Here's part of her first email to me:

"Hello Bethany! Nice to read your blog today:-)). I read your blog as often as I can. It is not so many blogs that is about quilting and I think I discovered your wonderful blog quite early among the swedish quilters and yes, I tipped some about it. I live on the westcoast on an island that is called Hönö. This rural district includes 10 islands and we have to go with the ferry, when we want to reach the mainland. Have you heard about the swedish town Gothenburg, Göteborg in swedish? I can see that town from our island.
I hope you can understand my "swinglish":-)))
Hälsningar från Gudrun"

For a few weeks now she and I have been emailing and getting to know eachother. She is a retired teacher of Swedish literature and German. Not only does she speak German and Swedish, but also what she calls, "Swinglish"...I call it very good English ( : She enjoys spending time with her family and grandkids. Some of her hobbies include gardening and quilting (of course). She has shown me many lovely photos of the various quilting projects she has made. Above is one of her quilts called: "Sol, Vind och Vatten." It is the result of a challenge she participated in with one of her online quilting groups. She said she will give it to her daughter and her family to put in their sailboat.

With every email she sends I learn something new about her and what life is like on the Island of Hono. Today I got to see a picture of a place near her home where she likes to swim in the summertime. One of the funny things about our emails is that I thought her name was: Hälsningar från Gudrun. I wrote her an email saying: "Hello Hälsningar!" After I wrote that I thought that it truly did sound like an odd sort of name. I googled it, and my suspicions were confirmed. "Hälsningar från Gudrun" means: Greetings from Gudrun! Hahaha...oh how I laughed at myself. It was too late at that point to catch my error, I had already sent the email. I did write her a second email, laughingly explained my silly mistake. The incident proved to be highly amusing to Gudrun. The first line of her reply email said: "Are you still laughing? hihi"

It has been a delight to meet and get to know Gudrun. I look forward to emailing with you more in the future! (I know she's reading this!) And until the next email: Lycka till (Good luck) with your quilts and Kram (hug) from Bethany! (Kram and Lycka till are some of the new Swedish lingo I've picked up from Gudrun).

Gudrun out for a stroll...

Hono Harbour, love that blue sky...

I think, though I could be mistaken, that this is the area where she likes to swim in the summer.

Dainty Lilies and Flourishing Feathers...

2009-09-01T17:02:00.000-07:00

These feathers and swirls are requested often and take the look of the quilt to a whole new level. Freeform feather (originally designed by my mom Nancy) always adds such elegance to the quilt. This design tends to be especially appropriate for quilts with large areas of white or light background fabrics. Too much plain background can leave a quilt looking too "quiet" or even lifeless in some cases. As a longarm quilter, I love the opportunity to use some of my best design techniques and ideas. The lilies in this quilt were so delicate and pretty, but spaced far apart. The large feathers not only echoed the elegance of the lilies, but united them by making the spaces look appropriately sized. The flourishing feathers and scrolls aided in the overall look of the quilt, giving it a soft flowing feeling.

Hello Sweden!

2009-08-26T19:17:00.000-07:00

Göteborg, Vastra Gotaland or more simply...Sweden has been stopping by my blog on a regular basis. This post is just for you Swedes out there who have been following my blog. Thank you! I would love to hear from you - who you are, what you do - quilter or not, what it's like where you live in Sweden. Are you on Gotland Island? I googled Sweden, but that's not half as exciting as getting to meet you! So please, shout a hello my way! Send some pictures! You know about what I do...what do you do? I know there's more than one of you because I saw that someone shared my blog with an entire Swedish yahoo group...that was pretty cool! Please email me or leave me a comment! And definitely keep visiting!!! Email: BethanyQuilts@gmail.com

Below are some interesting facts I found about Sweden...

>Sweden's largest and most populated islands are Oland and Gotland, located off the eastern coast in the Baltic Sea.

>Sweden comprises about 174,000 miles of dense forest and 100,000 lakes. The fourth largest country in Europe, it can be compared in size to California.

>Sweden is generally divided into three main regions: Norrland is the mountainous northern zone, Svealand is the hilly, lake-filled region located in central Sweden, and Gotaland is the country's broad southern plateau.

*Sources of Information & Photos:

http://www.map-of-sweden.com/

http://earth.esa.int/ew/oil_slicks/gotland-sweden_may05/

http://antimonite.blogsome.com/2008/04/27/the-island-of-gotland/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/imphy/2835656389/

http://www.unitetheunio.com/

Bursting Blooms

2009-08-25T15:21:00.000-07:00

My mom Nancy has completed another beauty. The soft victorian florals pieced in a modern design allowed for quilting that was soft and yet playful. The whimsical flowers stitched in the circles of each block compliment the quilt design and bring a lively new element. The piecing for this quilt is "busy" but the colors are muted. This is the main reason why more than simple quilting worked. Way to go MOM! Below are a few of the sketches she drew in order to come up with a design most appropriate for the top.

The meandering in the background area added movement but also blended in, allowing the floral design to "burst forth."

More of the Stunning Mariner's Compass...

2009-08-14T16:54:00.000-07:00

I was so pleased with how well this turned out. I had a blast setting it "on fire"!!! See the post below for more info. about the quilt.

Stunning Mariner's Compass

2009-08-12T13:58:00.000-07:00

I just recently quilted a top for Kim, owner of Carolina Sew n' Vac in Raleigh, NC. See more information on her store here. http://www.carolinasewnvac.com/ Stop by her shop and check out the quilt and all of Kim's fabrics and quilting goodies. Kim was delighted with how well the quilt turned out. It will be hanging as a sample in her store soon.

Before & After... Being around such intense colors made this quilt a lot of fun to work on. As always, I took great care that the quilting complimented and did not dominate the top. I had more freedom than usual to "go wild" with the quilting on this top due to the large plain areas of bold color. But I was also careful to be sure that all the differently quilted sections worked together as a whole. The goal was to have the quilting come radiating from the center. The flames in the pink, green, and blue areas intensified the explosive elements of this top & added a whole new dimension to the quilt. This quilt is literally bursting with personality, color, & texture. It makes quite a statement...

Before....

After....

3,000!!!!

2009-08-10T15:59:00.000-07:00

Since December 22, 2008 I have had over 3,000 people visit my blog!!!!!! WHOOPEEE!!!! 3,000 people in 9 months is exciting! America stops by my blog the most frequently and Sweden is a close second as of late. Australia, Canada, United Kingdom, South Korea, Ecuador, Argentina, India, Mexico, Brazil, Egypt, Croatia, Peru, Japan & New Zealand are some of the many countries who have visited. Thanks for coming everybody!!! I've got loads of pictures and many more ideas to share with you! Daffy knows how I feel - ecstatic!!!

Swirling Whimsey

2009-08-06T17:33:00.000-07:00

My adopted grandmother Nancy gave me another one of her beauties to quilt! It is rich array of colorful batiks set off by a dark purple background. She is making it for one of her grandchildren who will soon be going to study abroad. The country where she will be staying is quite cold, so Nancy put flannel on the back of the quilt and requested 100% wool batting. The lofty batting in combination with the soft flannel and a colorful block arrangement, made for a quilt that is both stunning and snuggly. I was sure to make the quilting open and big. This prevented the batting from being flattened. Part of the appeal of the wool batting is it's incredible poofiness. (if that's a word) The most open type of quilting I do is whimsey. But this seemed too whimsical for such an exquisite quilt. So I added some swirls. The quilting turned out better than I anticipated.

The quilt looked like a jewel collection - such lovely colors.

Me and my adopted grandmother... In the post below this one, you will see a quilt that is identical in pattern to this one. It was also done by Nancy for a grandson of hers who is also off to college. It was fun doing a guy and girl version of the same quilt. They both took on entirely different personalities. (every quilt has a personality) See you again soon! I have so much to post!!!

A Touch of Pizazz

2009-07-29T16:41:00.000-07:00

This picture was taken just a few months ago. My mom, Nancy, started our longarm business over a decade ago and has taught me all the in's & out's of quilting. She's a fabulous coach and skill instructor! Occasionally, I post some of her work on my blog as well as mine. Below is a lovely chocolate brown and blue quilt she just finished for a customer & long time friend who's name also happens to be Nancy. The overall water-ripple meandering complimented the quilt without dominating it. The quilting added some needed pizazz without taking away from the snuggly feel of the colors and pattern. You go MOM!

This quilt was a large twin. Here it looks bigger than that, but it is because Mom loaded it lengthwise. This made doing the directional quilting much easier. (Another tip I was reminded of, I'm always learning from her!)

Quilting Around...last pics of the Epic Quiltathon

2009-07-28T16:43:00.000-07:00

Something different in all 5 borders...

When I had taken the quilt off the machine and laid it out, I could see how the quilting had made the quilt...all the textures of all the different designs showed up beautifully.

The house was the center piece. I had a lot of fun with it.

This block turned out so elegant....

it was the perfect candidate for fancy, fussy quilting.

Here's the door on the front of the house. I decided it needed a doorknob, so I added one. It's slighly wrinkled in the middle because of being folded up after quilting. Brenda did a such a good job piecing the top; quilting it was a breeze. Thanks Brenda for giving me this opportunity to play!!!

Dynamite Highlights from 3 Day Quiltathon

2009-07-26T15:38:00.000-07:00

I am so proud of myself! It took hours of practice and planning to learn how to make the feathers fit in any shape. Here they are in the squares and triangles in the border. Now it's a breeze, and so fun to do.

Lots of tiny stippling...that's my baby finger by the way...

The chimney on the house.

This overall paisely design gives such an elegant touch.

A funky monkey new design...just winged it! So fun!

Ribbons & Swirls...

Freeform Flower...more from the 3 day Quiltathon

2009-07-26T14:18:00.000-07:00

I briefly fiddled around with sketches for the perfect flower to fill this block with. I soon decided to "just go for it." Usually I make myself draw, re-draw, practice, practice, & practice a new design until I feel confident in my ability to sew it smoothly. Occasionally, as in this case, I've felt more confident just taking the plunge and designing on the go. Of course, I always have a basic idea in mind of what I'm going for, but sometimes I even surprise myself with how it turns out. This flower just kept "blossoming." All creative juices were gushing out with this one.

While I did tight, heavy quilting in the gold sections, I purposefully did not quilt in the blue areas. This resulted in highly textured gold areas that made the blue areas stand out in relief. The camara did a pretty good job of capturing this...but it was really fabulous in person. I loved doing this block.

A Highlight from the 3 Day Quiltathon

2009-07-18T19:51:00.000-07:00

Loved how this turned out. Didn't have to rehearse this one because I had done it on a quilt before. I enjoyed the ease of doing it for the second time. The tight stippling made the green star stand out. It really did look 3D. You can't see that as well in the photos. The block fit in nicely in the overall quilting scheme. As you can see in the picture below, the quilting in the green star block matched/blended with the other quilting.

Easy as 1, 2, 3

2009-07-18T19:31:00.000-07:00

It's easy as 1,2,3....hah! not really! By the time I actually sew it's that easy! The most time - consuming part about custom quilting (getting fancy wid' the freeform) is rehearsal. It takes forever to come up with a solid plan on how to git' er' done! However, once the plan is in place everything usually runs fairly smooth. Above I'm marking the vein (discussed in the prev. entry) with my handy dandy chalk wheel and makeshift template. Blue tape makes a great marking line.

Here's the final result of much planning...lovely mini feathers. They looked great in the big cream triangles in the border. It definitely needed something exciting. They really made the border.

Tools & Tricks for the 3 day Quiltathon....

2009-07-18T18:50:00.000-07:00

As you can see from the picture above, this quilt was a biggon'!!! It was a large king...something in the neighborhood of 120"x120"....yeah like I said....humongous!!! My sisters strained to hold it up for the 3 minutes it took to snap a couple of pictures. They are actually standing on our 12 foot deck holding the quilt over the railing - it still almost touched the ground!!!

Planning, rehearsing, birthing ideas, ditching ideas, sketching, refining sketches, practicing new designs a bizillion times, figuring out how to execute my ideas in the most productive way, strategizing.....these are just of few of the things I did for the 3 days. I always keep a sketchbook and I have certain quilting books I love to reference when doing a challenging quilt.

I made several paper templates that were identical in size to the triangles in the border that I was working on. Upon completing the 20th/25th sketch, I decided I was ready to tackle the real thing.

This acrylic template was the perfect size for marking the vein of the feather! When I sew my feathers, I usually only mark the vein and do the feather entirely freehand. I only need a middle line of reference...More pics to come!!!

3 Day Kingsize Quiltathon

2009-06-29T07:42:00.001-07:00

This quilt required 3 solid days of quilting to complete it. Whew!!! In order to get the entire quilt in one picture, I had my sisters hold it over the railing of our back deck. It is about 12 feet tall, and the quilt was so long it almost touched the grass below! It was also heavy! The twins managed to hold it for about 1 minute - just long enough for me to snap a photo! Brenda did a perfect job piecing this beauty together. She told me to "go to town" on it. I had a marvelous time quilting in feathers, curly q's, leaves, ribbons, loops, meandering, and many custom designs for some of the individual blocks. There will be more photos coming soon!

Beautimous...

2009-06-02T18:48:00.000-07:00

This is Nancy, my adopted grandmother. Not to be confused with my mom, Nancy (she was in a recent post.) Over the years Nancy has become a dear family friend. More recently she has become like a grandmother to my sisters and I. A few weeks ago, she even told someone we were her grandkids when she was asked how she knew us. We love to go to her house and just chit chat. She always takes such an interest in our lives. I really love that about her. She often has good advice to offer too. My favorite thing to do with Nancy is quilt. We have what you might call quilt-a-thons every summer. This usually involves me arriving at her house around 7 or 8 am and sewing with her until 4ish or occasionally for a whole 12 hours til 7 pm! Wahoo! We have ourselves a good old time working hard on our quilt projects...well at least I'm supposed to. (It's more like Nancy keeping me on track or bossing me. You should hear us, it's hilarious!) She and I then often break for a nice big lunch at a nearby resturant. She spoils me. I love being spoiled! Then in exactly an hour's time it's back to work! I always accomplish so much when I go to her house, and we have such fun. She likes all the bright colored fabrics and modern patterns I do. Below is one of her latest creations which I quilted for her. I love doing her quilts b/c she's so flexible with allowing me to just do whatever I feel best fits the quilt.

Her one request with this one was to make the blue diamonds stand out. She wanted to emphasize the pinwheel pattern instead of the yellow stars. This was effectively accomplished by lightly quilting in the blue areas and densely quilting in the yellow. While the yellow areas are busy, hence attracting attention, the blue areas are the first thing the eye sees because they really did turn out 3D...slightly poofy.

It was difficult to capture a good shot of the 3D action. It is more apparent in person.

Lovely, sweeping corner feather. I had a ball designing this newby feather. It has traces of the tradtional rounded edge feathers I usually do, but it also combines curly Q's, and fern leaves.

Center side feather. "Splitting" the feather, making it go in 2 directions, was easier than I thought.

Middle center feather.

Action shot! Yeah baby, look at those feathers rockin' and rollin'.

Upclose glimpse of the light quilting inside the blue areas.

Lots & Lots & Lots & Lots & Lots & Lots & Lots & Lots & Lots & Lots of little Pebbles. Even though I only had to do this in 4 narrow areas, those pebbles took forever because they averaged about 3/8" in diameter. But look what they do for the quilt!

Trying for a better shot of the 3D action. The lighting in this one also better shows the actual colors of the quilt.

This a grainey, washed out pic, but I posted it to show how successfully my feathers butted up to one another. Since the feathering in the border areas was not one continuous design, I needed to be sure to "blend" where one feather started and one ended. I avoid gaps. Gaps do not look good. Hope you've enjoyed this post as much as I have Nancy! (She also reads my blogs ( :

Hearts of Love...

2009-06-01T14:25:00.000-07:00

I had fun playing around with this one. At first I had planned to keep the hearts simple, but then decided to go all out and fussy quilt around them. The large white setting triangles provided the perfect space for free-form feather. Enjoy all the pics!

Go Mom!

2009-05-30T17:27:00.000-07:00

Here's a beauty of a quilt done by my lovely mother for a family friend. See below for a larger blerb on this...

Above: My mom Nancy and I. Here are a few pics of a quilt my lovely mother just finished quilting for a friend of ours. She's the one who's taught me most of what I know about quilting. She also started the quilting biz, and I began learning how to use the longarm when I was about 16. She is very talented artistically and really knows what she's doing. If I'm ever unsure about something I know I've always got a brilliant opinion handy. She and I love to bounce ideas off of eachother. Thanks Mom! Enjoy these pics of her beautiful handiwork.

Debbie's Quilt Up Close

2009-05-27T19:38:00.000-07:00

CLICK ON any of the pictures to make them larger. You can see some of the details better this way.

Lot's of ribbon was thrown here and there. Looked terrific in the skinny red borders.

This part of the quilt is the 'busiest' due to the fact that it has a stippled background, basketweave pattern in the basket, special quilting in the petals to make them pop, careful accent quilting around and in the stems of the flowers, and more ribbon in the red border that frames this center block.

This corner of the quilt showcases the 3 different types of feather designs I used. Well, technically it's the same feather...but bent in whatever direction it needs to go in order to fit in a triangle, square or gynormous border!

Planning, Rehearsing and Actually Sewing!!!

2009-05-27T19:12:00.000-07:00

I spent well over twice the time drawing this border than I did sewing it!!!! I toyed with different ideas for the border - mainly different feather variations. I knew from the beginning I'd do a feather in the border. I proceeded to sketch and sketch and sketch some more until I was satifisfied with the results. No wabbles or wiggles allowed! Feeling quite confident after all that sketching I marked the center of the feather with white chalk. I rehearsed with my finger, the path of the feather. Then I actually sewed it...FINALLY!!! The preparation for this took a loooong time. I made a template in order to be able to evenly space the undulating areas of the feather. Below are a few pics of this step by step process.

Sketches and circular template that aided in the design a border feather template.

Making the template.

Cutting out the template along the marked line.

The template is ready to be used! (the dark brown wavy line down the middle of the border there is just basting stitches.)

Feathering...My pics finally uploaded!!!!

2009-05-27T18:35:00.000-07:00

Here's more of Debbie's quilt! Finally...This is a "zoomed in" part of the big border. You can see a "zoomed out" pic of the big border in the last post. The feather overall undulated up and down in a wave pattern. In order to fill in the border sufficiently and make a fuller, more elegant feather I added some branches where the feather dipped up or down. These pics show the evolution of the branches step by step. It required much practice...but again...it was worth all the hard work! Gotta' love that white chalk!
Step #1 mark path of feather with chalk wheel.

Step #2 Following premarked line sew the first side of the feather from tip to base.

Step #3 Starting at the tip again, but using the first side of the feather instead of the chalk as a guide, sew the other side. It is important with this step, because of the tight curve, to be sure to make an extra long "stem" on each plume of the feather. Also none of my feathers have spines. This avoids a "messy" looking center vein where all the plumes of the feather meet unevenly - with my method they simply don't meet. After adding the branches to the feather it was completed after I echo quilted it entirely. It turned out smashing!

I am Sooo Annoyed!!!

2009-05-27T07:40:00.000-07:00

For some reason I can easily post at work with photos from the internet. But anytime lately that I've tried to post on this blog from home with pics from my camera it has malfunctioned!!! Arrrrgh! So I haven't forgotten about posting more pics of Debbie's quilt! And by this time of several other quilts! I've just got to work out some technological bugs!!!!

PRESTO!!! Here it is!

2009-05-16T18:44:00.000-07:00

Debbie did a fantastic job putting this quilt together. I enjoyed the challenge of quilting it. As I said earlier, it was quite an adventure!

I have been able to sew free-form feathers for several years now. This was the first time I ever sewed them from front to back, instead of back to front. This involved more stopping and starting. It was tricky at first, but the results were worth all the hard work. I literally drew each type of feather (there were three) over 20 times. I learned so much with this quilt. Old techiques were adapted and sharpened and new ones were aquired. This really turned out to be quite a masterpiece. I look at it as a significant milestone, a mark of accomplishment, in my quilting career. I feel like a little girl showing a drawing to her mother loudly exclaiming, "Look what I did all by myself!!!" Yes, a bit goofy, but I can't help it! I am so excited! I feel like I am on a plateau. I can see how far I've come and feel ready to continue hiking up more mountains and embarking on more adventures.

The feathers had to fit into the squares and triangle shapes. The squares were the most intimidating/challenging so I saved them for last. By the time I got to them it was a piece of cake because I had practically been doing "backflip" feathers in the border.

Tear drop paisleys always add an elegant touch wherever sewn. Below is a pic of the border feather before I echoed it. It is beautiful in this stage, but somehow echoing finishes a feather. I'll have to do a post on "the evolution of the feather" if I get the chance. But not now. I am sooo tired! Whew! I am goin' to bed people! Enjoy! And stay tuned! Because there's more of where this came from!

Surprise!!!

2009-05-10T19:58:00.000-07:00

I have got a few new tricks I'm perfecting. Soon I'll be posting pics about my latest quilting adventure. And let me tell you...it has been quite an adventure. I've been stretched but am learning so much. Wait til you see this one!

New Blooms! New Thread - Yay! And a touch of Whimsey...

2009-04-24T16:09:00.000-07:00

Remember those Irises I posted a few weeks ago? They had not bloomed yet, now they're blooming non-stop! So beautiful!

Heather pieced a busy christmas quilt...whimsey turned out to be the most appropriate quilting design. It faded in and out of the fun prints of the fabric and complimented the overall feel and look of the quilt.

New thread! New Thread! New Thread! I was so happy to get it! I always wait too long to order it so by the time it comes I really, really need it! Beige, gold, light brown, and cream are the main colors I seem to use constantly!

I Just Got Back from La Campamiento Beisbol!!!

2009-04-12T18:59:00.000-07:00

Hello Everybody! Can you guess where I went for spring break?

I just returned 2 days ago from a week long trip to Mexico! Some of the students and professors from my college were hosting a baseball camp in Acuna. Kids ages 5 and up came and learned how to play baseball all week. I went as one of the interpreters! It was a fantastic experience! Here's a few pics of my team. I had the youngest kids - ages 5-8 - way too cute! ***I will be resuming my regualar quilting posts as soon as I get back into the flow of things!

What the Quilting Process Looks Like...

2009-04-01T06:57:00.001-07:00

I am giving a 10 minute speech for my COM class and needed to do a post for it. I will be talking about my long arm quilting business. I also thought some of you would enjoy seeing some of the steps involved in the longarm quilting process. My Gammill frame is 12 feet long. The photo above shows a quilt that, has just been pinned onto the canvas attached to the metal rollers and is ready for the batting to be laid between. After those steps it's ready to be quilted (stitched) together. For sewing at night, I use the light on the machine to see. I ususally have more time to sew at night. Occasionally I turn the overhead lights on.This picture below, shows all three layers of the quilt that I stitch together when I drive the machine over them in a free motion design.

THE MACHiNE....yeeeessss it's very fun to use!!!! I've got the Power! Yeeehaaah!

Me upclose carefully and evenly moving my hands to allow for same lenghth stitches. Any jerking or speeded up hand movements causes uneven lenghth stitches. I regualte the length of the stitches by how fast I move my hands in accordance with the speed of the machine.

Quilting always makes the quilt.

Here's the Bright Something I Promised...

2009-03-30T20:35:00.000-07:00

Patti Murphy put together a bright array of colors in this quilt. The colors really shimmer. And the quilting enhanced the whimsical feel of the fabrics. Patti is the first customer I've had who requested whimsy with hearts, stars, and flowers. It really turned out cute. I have to go now...I'm supposed to be studying for a midterm....oh the joys of college....

Flowers....

Hearts...

Lovely colors...

This was a BBBIIIIGGG quilt. Took a while, but turned out rather nicely...

Something Bright is on the Way...

2009-03-25T14:29:00.000-07:00

This is the coolest pic I found on google. I will soon be posting pics of a very bright and cheery quilt that I am currently working on. It will be a little while as I am in the middle of midterms - YUCK! And not to mention the fact that this quilt is a biggon'!

Hello Springtime...

2009-03-20T10:22:00.000-07:00

I'm in between quilting quilts right now but had some time take pics in out in my yard. I love the first hints of Spring! The pansys are smiling their hello to all!

If you look closely here, you can see my cat, Pebbles, in the tree above me.

This Iris bed will become a sea of purple blooms in about a month.

This purple flower was actually just a weed in the backyard - the kind you're so proud to bring your mom when you're a kid.

Funky Spirals

2009-03-15T11:41:00.000-07:00

Betsy's modern, jewel toned quilt turned out perfectly with the spiral quilting. I love doing spirals. They really complimented the quilt pattern and colors well.

Over 1,000!!!!!!

2009-03-10T12:29:00.000-07:00

HOORAY! YEEEHAAAH! ZIPIDEEDOODAH! I have officially had over 1,000 hits on my blog since starting it in December! Yay! Just a few weeks ago, I was at 500, and wow....now a 1,000?! Hah! Yessssss!!!!!! Ya know it's kinda funny, but this cartoon looks like me! That wasn't actually planned.

Perfectly Paisley

2009-03-06T10:03:00.000-08:00

Eileen put a lush collection of colors together in this top. It is beautiful! The quilting echos many of the designs in the fabrics. It is also similar to the quilting I just did on Carol's quilt in the previous entry, except this is a combination of teardrops, curls, and paisleys sewn in medium size. The teardrops on Carol's were more open. It's interesting to see how many variations can be done with a few elegant designs. The quilting and the lush fabrics made for a smashing palette of rich colors and textures. I think it turned out fabulous. I really enjoyed working with such happy colors.

Soft & Elegant

2009-03-05T17:20:00.000-08:00

Carol Brown gave me another one of her lovely quilts. It's smooth quilting when I'm doing one of her tops because they're always well pieced and pressed. Large teardrops and pedals quilting complimented the soft colors and feel of the quilt. The open stitching also left the quilt with more of a drape than if I'd quilted it closer.

The Quilt is on Fire!!!!!

2009-03-02T16:12:00.000-08:00

The flames were licking up the quilt as I stitched along. So exciting!

It's up in flames! Yeehaah! It worked! Thanks Nancy for letting me set your quilt on fire! It was fun!

This picture looks slightly odd because of the overhead light. I use these when I sew at night.

Here's the blazing hot entry I promised! Nancy, as always did a great job piecing her top, and she liked the flames. They were what she requested actually. This was my first try at flames. After drawing them ninety million times I was finally ready! I filled countless 81/2 x 11 sheets of paper till I felt proficient enough to move on to the real thing. All the hard work paid off!

FIRE!!!!!

2009-03-01T17:13:00.000-08:00

Expect a blazing hot new entry soon!!!!