Clips, Snips & Quips

Landon's Christening Day

What a beautiful spring Sunday it's been. 

My third grandchild was baptized this morning and I finally got to give him the baby quilt I made back in February soon after Mom had passed away.  Mom was the master quilter in our family and had made beautiful blankets for each of her first three great grandchildren and gave them to them when they were christened.  Of course, Landon came right after she was gone and she didn't have the chance to make his special gift.  In my own way I picked up the torch where she left off.  I'm now officially the grandmom with the quilts.  I have some big shoes to fill.

The quilt is called Flying Geese.  Mom had the Eleanor Burns Quilt-In-A-Day how-to book on her sewing machine when I went back to her house in February.  Maybe she'd planned to use it for Landon's quilt just as she'd used it for Rylee's and Evan's last year.  Maybe she just hadn't gotten around to putting it away.  Whatever her plans, it seemed like a good place to start.  (FWIW, it's not just any How-To Book.  It has her writing in the columns, and for the life of me I can't figure out what she was calculating.)

The second picture shows how I embroidered his name right in the center. 

The third picture shows the tag I embroidered yesterday afternoon which I mounted on the back.  It says, In Honor of Landon Donald's Christening.  May 31, 2009.  Made with Love by Grandma Jean Delaney.  In memory of Great Grandma Grasse.

So, Mom, when we said good-bye at Christmas, I said I'd see you at the Christening.  Guess that didn't work out quite like I planned, but I think you were there just the same, and I made sure to bring your gift.

Kindergarten Quilting -- it's not all about cards sometimes

 Remember when I wrote about the scrap quilt I was making with Mom, I told y'all that one thing was leading to another and that quilting was becoming a monster?  In the words of my precious granddaughter, R-O-A-R!!!! 

A major part of the addiction I thought originally had to do with the new sewing machine I purchased the day after Christmas, my new toy.  That's actually only a small part of the truth.  After all, what good is a machine if you don't know what it can do?  That's where the family of people who makes up Hayes Sewing Machine Co. in Wilmington, Delaware came in.

As Loretta was demonstrating one machine after another, I picked up a sample quilt laying on a pile and looked it over.  I told her whatever machine I needed to make that quilt was the machine I was ready to buy.  The only caveat was someone needed to show me how to make the quilt!  What I ended up with was a Babylock Ellure Plus, a cominbation sewing machine/embroidery machine that does everything I've asked of it and I'm sure will do much more.

The first thing I did after getting the machine was to sign up for a bunch of classes Hayes offered.  I started with the basics of the machine.  Next, how to embroider towels, et cet.  The last class I signed up for was called Kindergarten Quilting, and these are the quilts we learned how to make from nothing more than our machines, some fabric and our imaginations!

The top quilt shows off the nine patch block and some simple diagonal machine quilting.  The bottom quilt is my pride and joy.  It uses a simple four patch block, but after I'd put it all together, I put the embroidery unit on and embroidered flowers into each solid blue block.  That was what was on the quilt I originally saw the day I picked out my machine, and that's what I wanted to learn how to do. Mission accomplished! (Click on the picture if you'd like a better look at my flowers.)

So, thanks Loretta, Stephanie, Pam, Mom and Dad for starting me on my new obsession.  I have a king-sized Northern Star quilt started for myself...which means I'll need new window coverings in my bedroom...which means I'll have to re-learn how we used the piping attachment...which means I'll be back for more Finish-It-Up classes.  Or they'll be getting one of those, "I'm stuck" phone calls they're so famous for handling:)

As for stamping...don't go worrying about me.  It's kinda like when Michelle brought baby Landon home and explained to Caleb that there was enough love to go around...I haven't put one passion aside for another.  I've simply added to it.

P.S. -- There probably won't be posts for a few days.  I'm in Wisconsin working on a rummage sale for Mom's house and we've pretty much gotten rid of the essentials in life...like our internet connection.  I'll be back.

P.P.S. -- Has everyone remembered the Sketch Challenge requirements for Thursday night, May 28th?  We're sending Get Well Cards to Terry and she's going to bring them with her to class.  If you haven't gotten one in the mail yet, what're you waiting for?  You can't win unless you play, so let's keep flooding her mailbox!

 

Quilting 101, Completed

It's finished!  It took all winter and even a few days into spring, but the Tumber quilt I started in December is finished.   

Of course, the trees are budding and the temps are rising, so I won't be needing it any time soon, but it's finished and I'm so pleased with it.

Saturday I start Kindergarten Quilting, a five-week class meant for beginners like me.  With luck, I'll have another one to show you soon.

Happy stamping, quilting, cooking gardening -- or whatever it is that takes you away from the ordinary and brings out your creative side.

In Loving Memory...through the tears

Just before Christmas I got the bug to start a patchwork quilt.  Not a fancy,hand-stitched masterpiece, but a durable, usable blanket, the kind Grandma made to keep us warm in the winter. It wasn't that I didn't want to do the masterpiece, mind you.  Mom had done a dozen or so of those.  And while I was envious, I thought I'd start on a smaller scale, try to learn one step at a time.  She taught us we could do anything we set our minds to.  It was just a matter of taking baby steps.

With Mom 1000 miles away, I headed out to buy a rotary cutter, cutting mat, fabric, pulled out the template she had copied for me a while back and set to the task of piecing some blocks.  When I had questions, I'd pick up the phone and ask.  When I went to Milwaukee after the holidays, I tucked the quilt in my suitcase, and one afternoon when Mom was too tired to shop, we sat in her sewing room, laughing, piecing, and eventually weeding out her fabric stash.  It was an afternoon to remember.  It was the kind of afternoon memories are made of.

The above photograph is a miniature version of what we worked on.  The points aren't perfect.  The colored blocks aren't placed in just the perfect spots.  But it was a labor of love, an afternoon of connecting on the level Mom was always most comfortable, sitting in her sewing room and doing what came naturally.

Eventually that "girl's weekend away" came to a close and I flew back to New Jersey.  I sewed in my spare moments and eventually used up almost 1000 of those tumblers, a block for each mile we were separated.  This past Tuesday morning I looked at the handful of leftovers sitting on my sewing table and decided to make them into a small top I'd use to practice quilting on.  I called Mom and told her that this sewing thing was becoming a Monster, just like stamping had been years before.  I started with scraps, bought the cutting tools, special pins, and even a sewing machine.  Then I used up my scraps and had to spend another $10 at Wal-Mart for batting and backing.  And we just laughed.  She said if all it took to make me happy was $10 of "stuff" from Wal-Mart, I shouldn't worry.  That was just fine. 

In that conversation we talked about the sun, the moon and the stars  About the new baby that's ready to come any day.  About how my cats were happy to have me home after spending time away around the holidays.  Packing the suitcaes away.  About how she'd gone to Denny's for the Big Slam for breakfast.  You know, the important stuff. 

Before we hung up, I got down to the nuts and bolts of the call.  Now how do I go about finishing up this quilt top?  Should I use plain straight stitches and just "stitch in the ditch"?  Should I use a fancier quilting stitch?  What's next?  Do I miter the corners of the border?  Make them straight?  How big is a lap quilt?  Baby blanket?  Of course she said, "Oh, it's your blanket.  Just do what you think is best."

And eventually we both were talked out and I hung up.  Little did I know that was the last time I'd talk with Mom.  For, you see, today I got that dreaded call we all know will come one day.  A neighbor went to the house after I couldn't get hold of her and Mom was there, sitting on the sofa.  Her jacket half on, half off.  Her mail sitting in her lap.  Sound asleep with a peaceful look on her face...but not really.  For tonight she's more than 1000 miles away, reunited with my dad, looking down at me and my unfinished quilt and tears flowing uncontrollably.

Love you, Mom...