Quilt Show

In September I went to a quilt show at a local expo center.   Here's some of the beautiful works on display.  All photos are clickable for larger views.

 These individual hexagons were the size of a dime!

This was my favorite although it is very hard to pick just one.

 Here's a close up.

 Nothing but stitches created this design and texture.

Whimsy

 This one gave the appearance of painting or silk screening.   Not so.   See detail of jacket below.

Beautiful applique.

Variation on the log cabin

I want to someday do a quilt in blacks and whites with a splash of color.   Here they used gold in the inner border.   I think mine with have turquoise or red or lime green.

Tee-shirt quilt

Loved it

Loved it more.....my favorite colors

Yo-yo's

More applique - gorgeous  

 Love this color combo

Photos don't do these works justice.

Same quilt, different color combinations with batiks.

Some people are crazy talented (an must be retired!)

Another traditional applique quilt

Pieced quilt

I jump for joy at the feast for the eyes and senses.   

 This was the weekend trip earlier this fall that I used to get my mojo back when I had 

seemed to have lost it.  These were taken by my cell phone and I finally downloaded 

them to my downloaded them to my laptop.  Nothing like surrounding yourself with 

creativity to get your own creative spirit back in line.

Did you know

there is a National Sewing Machine Day and it is today!   Check out Lelia over at Stitches of Life.  She got this information from the Holiday Insights webpage.

Sewing Machine Day celebrates a very important invention ----- the sewing machine. The first sewing machines were made in France in the 1830s. It wasn't until 1846, that they were patented in the U.S. What a great invention. Prior to it's creation, clothes items were sewn together by hand...stitch by stitch.


Take a mental inventory of your friends, do they have a sewing machine? Chance are, the answer is no.  I hope you have a sewing machine and I hope you enjoy using it.  If you don't sew, consider picking up sewing as a hobby.   It is just another facet of our creativity.  Now join in; there are classes to be taken and fabric to be bought and stash to be enhanced.

~~~~~~ I have two machines - a Janome and a Husquvarna.   Each daughter has at least one machine and one daughter I know has two...they each may have two...  It is good to learn it is not a lost art.~~~~~~~

I justified it!

 I can't believe I did it but I did. I have incredible justification powers. I figured since I drive a hybrid it was my gas money I had saved. I figured since I brown bag my lunch it was my lunch money I have saved. Since I don't smoke anymore, it is the cigarette money I have saved.  And I will sell my Janome................but really it is becaues I am WORTH IT!!!!!! I did it............here is my new baby.


 
Look at her!  The Sapphire 835

When I brought it home I also had purchased a 30 inch separating zipper to replace yet another zipper for Mr. Wonderful (what does he do to them????)  And I said, "Look honey I got you a zipper and it came with a new machine."   He was marginally amused.   Of course, to his credit he wanted to know what was so different about it then the machine I have.  And to his credit when I told him it was expensive and then the price, he scoffed..."That's not expensive".   Men!  How is it that men and women have such a different opinion on costs??  I explained how much nicer the button holer was, how it comes with a DVD, how it has interchangable (model to model) feet, how it has a much bigger throat and will allow for quilting so much easier and that is a far as I got.   You know guys...he had to go there.   He can't wait to tell his friends I had to go out and buy a Deep Throat machine.   Sorry ladies for being rude but right now I am so happy with my purchase I care not!      I have debated on a new machine for some time and on this one for a week.    I don't even know when I will be able to take it out and play with it.    I am still catching up from being away last week, have a friend coming over for a quilting lesson tomorrow  and my sister coming for quilting instructions on Sunday, have meetings out the wazoo, am hosting stitching group next week and leave for retreat next Friday morning........it is OK though....because I will be able to savor the anticipation of playing with my new baby. 

Oh and yes, I made the personal vow to myself that this is the last machine you will ever buy!