Around the World in the Pink

Another product of fun quilting weekends with Ruth and Emily. I thought this would make a nice wedding quilt, but I was told that wedding quilts are not pink.....too bad...

Brown Bear for my grandchildren

Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin and Eric Carle, is the wonderful book. From the fabric based on this book, came my version of the quilt for my grandchildren.

Antique Carpenter's Wheel c.1890-1910

Bought in Miami, Florida, this quilt has been used as our wall Christmas Quilt for 20 some years. It is well loved.

Sonora Spring

The colors of this quilt reminded me of the spring in the desert where I grew up in Arizona. The turquoise of the Indian jewelry and the sand of the desert. I took a class from Cathy Bogan at Mardell Smith's Beach Party several years back. This quilt design is a take from Strips and Curves, by Louisa L.Smith.

A-mazing Cats

Took a class from the wonderful Priscilla Hair at Mardelle Smith's Beach Party a few years back. The pattern is Fair Play, templates from Mr. Hair. I had alot of fun mixing batiks with African fabrics, etc. This quilt won a second place ribbon last year at the show.

Our bedroom, full of quilts

The story. First of all our bed. When we lived in Miami, we bought a new house with a rotten bathroom. The seller gave us money back to fix it, and we commissioned a friend to design and make this bed for us from solid Mahogany instead of fixing the bathroom..As usual, priorities are right in our household! Then, the wall quilt. When I was travelling to NYC, I was enthralled by a store called American Hurrah. On the wall there was a red and white house quilt which I photographed. My husband used graph paper and charted out this house quilt which I copied onto cardboard using carbon paper. I cut out the templates and drew around them on the fabric of the times and made the houses. I decided that the quilt needed stars, so I added them in the border. (no rotary cutters then) That was in 1982. Several years ago at the Charlotte Guild, there was a challenge to each of us to finish a UFO...so then, out came the house block top. I basted it and machine quilted it and won the oldest UFO challenge of 25 some years undone!!! So never say never. Then there is the bed quilt. I just love the green and pink reproduction fabric so I made a log cabin top to replace the one I made when my husband and I got married in 1980. It faded in the Florida sun. This quilt turned out sooooo big that I certainly did not feel like quilting it. And then came Terri!!!! She was so nice to use it to practice on her new and awesome longarm machine. Thank you Terri...it is perfect!!!

Dorothy's Quilt

The Charlotte Irish quilters loved Dorothy alot...we made this quilt with shamrocks and things to send hugs to her when she was sick.

Apron-a-thon at my house/ Ruth and Emily

And when I finally decided that scraps would never ever be finished and took them to Ruth in Asheville!!

Homemade aprons

Thirties baby quilt from one inch squares

Bought from original owner at Metrolina in Charlotte, NC. I jotted the information down somewhere...will post when I find it...LOL

baby quilts from orphan blocks

Orphan block sampler

Using up bits and pieces from other quilts and potholders to be...things started and not finished or finished with extra blocks left over. All this makes a picnic quilt!!

Daddy's shirts 1

This was the first quilt I made from my father's shirts after he died 12 years ago.

Antique Peony

Peony..a quilt from our collection, made in New Hampshire in early 1900's. The quilt is hand quilted with templates from the quilter's own environment...eg the donut cutter and the leaf from the yard. This quilt has Turkey red and a green that has faded to tan. This quilt was purchased from the same estate as the brown Lone Star quilt in another post. It was purchased in Miami from a dealer 20 some years ago.

Yesterday's strips

When I was young, I was a flight attendant for Pan Am. Flying in and out of India was exciting and in those days, buying clothes from India fit

right into my lifestyle. These clothes were eventually cut into fabric for quilting and since I cannot give anything away, the fabric was kept forever. About six months ago, I decided to strip that fabric from the early 1970's, adding some current fabric and make these strip quilts for myself. A

good choice I think.

Lynsey in the fall

I just love my 8 month old granddaughter, Lynsey...Here she is enjoying a drink under her new little snowball quilt I made her and checking out our pumpkin for her first Halloween!

My solids of forever

I have been collecting fabric all my life, since I was 13. My sister has too, but she is better able to de-clutter. So, she gave me her solids to donate to the Guild, but instead, I donated them to myself. I have had these solid fabrics for 25 years, untouched, having collected them from Mae's Discount Fabrics' Wearhouse in Miami. I have had Pumpkin for 13 years so she knows:) She is so proud of me for starting some quilts using solids. She is sitting on quilt number 3. The others are basted and when they are quilted, I will share them with you. Diane

Pink and Yellow Forties Fan

This fan quilt has a story. I was giving a talk in Concord some years ago when I dropped into an antique store and found this quilt. My husband and daughter had been talking about going to Riverdance and wanted me to go, but I didn't want to spend the $67 for my ticket. I saw this quilt and decided to buy it if they would sell it for $67! They of course said no, but at my insisting, called the owner who said YES!!! So, my priorities in order.....I stayed home from Riverdance and hung my new quilt on the wall. Later, I decided to mend a small tear. As I was doing that, I noticed an unusual batting. On further notice, I saw that this quilt was batted with a sort of fluffy pollen that comes down from a very large tree here in the Carolina's in the spring. On researching that tree, I have found that it is the Southern Cottonwood tree, also known as the Carolina Poplar. Most unusual and very enjoyable.

Tropicana

This quilt won first place in the Charlotte show a few years back. The pattern was from the book, Square Dance, by Martha Thompson. The colors used in this quilt reminded me of Miami, the place that was home for me for so many years....hence the name, Tropicana.

Veggie Jars

MP had a birthday and I made her a veggie jar quilt. The pattern and design is by Ruth Ingram (Bags by Ruth, Asheville, NC). Thank you Ruth. And thank you MP for making tea at quilting for 10 years straight! The backing is her vegetable garden.

Johanna's quilt

The Charlotte Irish Quilters love Johanna....so we made her a quilt...naturally:) She paints water colors. I took two of her water colors to Staples and enlarged them to different sizes on the color printer. Took those prints, scanned them into the inkjet printer and printed them out on (Printed Treasures ) paper. Since Johanna is Irish, into the quilt went things Irish and things she loves: Potatoes, shamrocks, music and birds. Since she likes things healthy, we put in the yoga monkey block and I latticed the quilt with cucumbers. A border of water, sheep and shamrocks was all it took to tell Johanna how much we care...