Quilting Retreat

Just a quick report on how the quilting retreat went this weekend.  Great!  It hit a couple of bumps getting here, but it worked out great.  We both got alot accomplished.

I managed to get a row and one block done for this Lucky Stars patter a.k.a Donkey Quilt.  The inside of each star is a picture of my friend's donkey.  All done in blacks, greys, and white.  This is turning out quite nicely.

I just need to kick it in gear.  15 more blocks to do before I can do the borders.  And I am taking it to the quilter's shop to quilt my self on the long arm in march.  So gotta get going.

Definitely will do another quilt retreat again soon!

Awesome Day!!!!!!!

And it is finished!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Crab Apple Cove top is done and ready to go to the quilters.  I am so proud.  It felt like it took forever.

And now on to the next project.  This is a quilt I have been planning for some time now.  A good friend of mine that would give you the shirt off his back to help you out.  He had a pet donkey that he loved dearly, and the donkey, Doc, passed last fall.  I wanted to do something special for him.  So here is a picture quilt of his beloved donkey.  Two blocks out of 20 done.  And now I got to take a break for the rest of the night.  Whew!  I am exhausted.

And my girlfriend's quilt is coming along really great.  She got so many blocks done today.

She does great work.  Sometimes she makes me so jealous.  And when her quilts are done, she hand quilts them.  That is so special.  I don't have the patience for that.

Break Time!

I am taking a break.  And as you can see, it's the coffee and chocolate that keep us going.  I did manage to get all my blocks done by the time I went to bed last nite.

and this morning, I was able to finish the quilt insides.  Now I am working on the flying geese borders.  128 flying geese to be exact.  Now my goal is to finish this quilt by the time I go to bed tonight.  Think I will make it.



My girlfriend is working ferverishly at her blocks.  All the flying geese she made on friday are now coming together in her blocks.  This picture does not do it justice.  Such beautiful shades of green.

Ok breaks over..................more coffee!

"Let the Quilt Retreat Begin"

Here it is Friday nite, and the retreat has started.  Now alot went wrong that almost made this a no retreat weekend.  We got canceled from the Retreat House and almost didn't have any kind of a quilt retreat at all.  Then my girl friend comes up with the idea that we will just have the retreat at my house.  So I kept my vacation day on the books at the office and the plans were on.  Oh and then my boss took my vacation day away from me because he needed me at the office since there was no one to cover me.

Once again, the weekend looked like it was a bust.  But my girlfriend says, come pick me up thursday nite and I will be at your house starting the retreat without you.  So yes she is here, picked her up last nite to begin the weekend.

This is the quilt that I whipped together wednesday night trying to keep myself busy.  A small baby's quilt to add to my collection.

this is what I managed to get done thursday nite.  Two blocks.  That's it!

And this is what she got accomplished today while I had to work.  Now the race is on.  Let's see what can get accomplished tonight.  Let the quilt weekend begin.

Sunday lazy day......

I slept in!  8:15 this morning I rolled out of bed, even had to wake the dogs.  They wanted to sleep later.

But I needed to start a nothing day.  This is my wall hanging that I started at my daughter's house.  Finally got it finished, quilted and hung up on my bedroom wall.  Then I took some time to cut out two different projects for my quilting weekend.                                                                                                                              

My quilting retreat has been canceled but not my plans.  My girlfriend was so looking forward to her first retreat and I could not let her down.  So the quilt retreat will go on at my house for the weekend.  And these are two of the projects I will be working on that weekend.  One is that Crab Apple Cove quilt I have been working on the embrodiery for since like forever.  The other will be a picture quilt for a friend of mine that lost his pet donkey.  Hopefully I will at least get a start on that one.
So excited for next weekend.  I never hosted a quilt retreat before.  This should be fun.



Home again!

I am home!  After months at my daughter's helping her out I am home.  She is doing well but still not back to work.  In time and more therapy she will get there.  But for now, she is more self sufficient and doesn't need mom anymore.
I have been busy reorganizing my sewing room, new shelving units helped. It is not the same as the beautiful huge room in the basement my son in law had fixed up for me while staying with them, but my little house is glad to see me back home and my sewing room is filled again.

The last few days have been filed with just cutting material.  I have a quilting retreat coming up in 1 1/2 weeks and need to take some projects with me.  I now have three projects cut and labeled and ready to go.
I better get some done, cause one is a birthday gift for my youngest daughter which is March 14th and the other is a gift for a friend of mine that helps me out with man stuff around my house.  And I just made a reservation for March 17 to go to green bay to rent the long arm machine.

My weekends are backed to being full and busy again.  I already have my weekends filled till after valentine's day!  My goodness, that candle surely does burn on both ends.