Puppy Dog Lost

I have completed the Puppy Dog Lost mini quilt and five others for AAQI. The last time I talked about Puppy Dog Lost was St. Pat's Day. I've been quilting slowly. This little quilt has been a quilt that evolved. I was going a different direction and the quilt just seemed to have a mind of it's own. I think I mentioned in the last blog about the quilt that the little dog was to be a Scottie and now he look more like a Terrier. I used a variety of techniques on this quilt, including: a vintage 9-patch quilt block, needle turn applique, raw edge applique, fabric weaving, embroidery, beading and fabric paint. The quilt just kept growing and the message was becoming more clear as I continued to stitch. The puppy dog seemed to be lost in a maze of different fabrics and stitches, at times he is almost difficult to see. I understand that as our beloved four-legged friends, dogs and cats, begin to age they to suffer from the feeling of being lost---an Alzhimer's all their own. I have dedicated this quilt to all of us who have loved and cared for our best friends from their puppy and kitty days to their elder years.

Spingtime Song

I'm starting to bind the mini quilts I plan to send to AAQI this month. This little quilt, Springtime Song, was an experiment. It was fun to make and I plan to make this type of quilt again, I used paper. The little birds are from a vintage note card that I found in the bottom of a stack of paper my hubby bought at an auction. I thought they were just too cute to throw away---so they ended up in a mini quilt. I added vintage lace and some beads. Sewing with paper is easy---tip loosen the stitch on your machine so you don't end up tearing the paper. Card stock will work easier than a thinner paper stock. The quilt measures 7 1/2 by 9 inches. Here's wishing all of you a day filled with Springtime Song.

The Generals

My hubby is a Civil War buff and I wanted to make him a Civil War themed lap quilt for his birthday in 2006, that's how The Generals came to be. This was my first attempt at designing my own quilt pattern. I started with the idea of making a soldiers quilt. But, then one day while browsing on eBay I discovered a lady who made quilt panels from old tobacco cards. She happened to have a set of Civil War Generals made from a tobacco card set dating back to the late 1800's. The panels had both Union and Confederate generals represented and each set contained 25 generals. When the panels arrived they were all different sizes, so I have to add fabric to crate a standardized block size. I added the red star, flannel fabric to create a block 7 1/2 inches by 7 inches. Each row of blocks was then separated by a row of 4-patch and solid 4 inch blocks. I tried to select fabrics that represented the war. The red flannel represented the south, the solid blue with tiny hearts the loved ones lost in that awful war on both sides, the tans used in the 4-patch represented the cannon balls, and gun fire from both sides. The border of blue stars is for the north and the backing is Confederate gray. I alternated the generals so that no two Confederate or Union Generals were side by side. My hubby truly loves this quilt and will tell the story of each and every general on the quilt.
This was also the beginning of a new quilting journey for me. From this quilt on I never use a pattern---I find creating my own very fulfilling.

Landscaping Continues

I try to post three times a week, but it has been so crazy around the house that I hardly remember the last time I posted or even quilted. The back yard is complete, but of course needs some addition tweaking. The front yard now has the stone retaining wall (with one more row of stone to go). The side walk is complete. The driveway is almost complete about 40 feet to go. After the driveway is complete they will be making curbs, filling in flower beds and the yard with top soil. The blue tarp is covering a load of top soil. We are expecting rains today, so construction has stopped and will start up again tomorrow.

One of my quilts is up for auction with AAQI---check it out.

AAQI April Auction

My quilt was selected from hundreds of quilts donated to the Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative to be auctioned during the month of April. These are online auctions to raise money to fight Alzheimer's. As you know, I support AAQI and dedicate all my quilts to my Mom, Helen.

Mom lost her battle with Alzheimer's in December, 1995.

Now is your chance to own one of my quilts. Please bid in the Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative online auction. Even if you don't make the winning bid, your support would make a big difference to me and to the AAQI, a nonprofit national charity that I support.

Here's where to bid: http://www.alzquilts.org/quiltauction.html

AAQI April Auction

HAPPY EASTER TO ALL