Sometimes when I start on a theme or an idea that I like, I keep going on the idea and working in different directions around it until I get my fill and then I move on. Well, I'm still fixated on the matryoshkas. I sewed and quilted a matryoshka banner to hang in my sewing room. It was a lot of fun and it came together fairly quickly. The border fabric on the banner (I only had a tiny bit of it) was my inspiration point. Its pieced, not appliquéd because I wanted to see what one of these dolls would look like if pieced into a little quilt instead of stitching it on top.

Posed next to it is a little matryoshka I got from Ravenhill at her Etsy Shop. She is very darling. I'm going to sit her next to my other ones on the shelf in my sewing room.

I think I might have one more matryoshka project in me. We'll see. I'm enjoying these little women.

-nanette
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Lots and lots of pictures for a quilt I am so proud of and so happy with. I made this quilt for my boyfriend of two years. He is part Navajo American Indian and part cowboy at heart, so I made this cowboy/indian quilt. I appliqued the stars (almost 90 total) and it took me nearly six months to complete. He is a good sport and shows it to anyone who comes to visit him. He says he is proud to be dating a creative woman, and I am proud to be dating someone who supports my hobbies and talents.

It was my first quilt - EVER - so it took a lot of coaching from my mom to get it done. It is nearly king size but I was stubborn and wouldn't compromise my "vision" in order to have a managable first project. I learned a lot and though there were difficulties, I would do this again in a second and have all sorts of baby quilts in mind with the same theme. A lot of the fabrics are vintage, antique or reproduction. You'll probably recognize a lot of them from popular recent lines as well. - Natalie
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I had been looking for just about forever for a cute poncho pattern that was a bit sophisticated, and could be dressed up or down. I have yet to find the pattern but i did find exactly what I wanted at etsy.com from Meduska's Studio. Its very soft and surprisingly warm. And i love the rosette on the collar. When ever Iwear it i get a lot of compliments on how pretty it is. And since so many people have asked me where I got it, Ithought I would post about it and share the link. - Whitney
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I've been tagged by PKM. I adore Pam and her blog. It was one of the first blogs I started reading about a year ago. I love Pam's humor and taste in everything. I like to believe that if Pam and Elizabeth lived in my neighborhood (and belonged to my quilt group) that I'd be included in their adventures.

How to play the game . ..

1. When tagged, place the name of the person and URL on your blog
2. Post the rules on your blog
3. Write 7 things about yourself
4. Name 7 of your favourite weblogs
5. Send an e-mail letting those bloggers know they have been tagged


I'm actually flattered because I admire Pam so much but now I have to play the game. And you know, this was harder than I thought it would be. I'm all about the "vintage" so of course there are lots of vintage things in my 7:

Disclaimer: Some of the pictures of my 7 things are really terrible recreations of pictures not digitized. Sorry about that.

1. I am a mom to 8 kids, some of the girls share this blog with me. Starting at the very top middle and going clockwise is: Chelsey - 20, Shelbie - 24, Tracey -22, Jamie - 17, Laurie - 15, Whitney -22, Natalie 25, and in the very center is Mason - almost 13.

Tracey and Whitney are identical twins. And Mason was a complete surprise to be the boy. Ultrasound (in those days) said he was probably a girl. I went to the hospital with a pink blanket and pink outfit. Needless to say I didn't bring him home in Pink.

This picture was taken a few years ago as a Christmas present to me from my kids. I love it. It was taken at the perfect time before any of them were married and off too far on their own.

2. I am the youngest of 5 sisters. I have all sisters so it wasn't unusual to me to have 7 daughters. In the back left to right is my dad Paul, mom Freda, and sis Susan. The front row left to right is Paula, Teri, Michelle, and me. I won't give ages here to protect those OLDER than me!
3. In 2003 between the middle of October and December 24, I made 54 quilts. They were all lap sized. I cut, sewed, quilted most of them myself, and bound them all in that time. I have to say my familywas a HUGE help. Wren Woodland, a local machine quilter, quilted 15 of them, I believe. Some of them were gifts, some of them were sold to several customers but the bulk of them was an order by 1 person that owns a large local company and they were given as company gifts. I will never do that again! I used the money to buy my husband a plasma cutter. His hobby is metal work. It was a fun surprise for the kids and me to do for him. Again, without the family help this would never have happened.
(If you look to the left hand side of the picture you can see stacks of quilts ready to be photographed)
4. I have been married for 28 years. This is Dave and me when we were young, a very long long long time ago. We met in 1976 and dated until we got married in 1979. (I know this is a scary picture and I have to apologize to my kids for putting it on the internet. They are all horrified that I would put this up. But hey, I think any picture from that long ago looks fantastic.)
5. This is another frightening fact about me. Since we moved to our current home 13 years ago we have had more pets than we can count. I would scare you if I told you our estimate. When we bought our lot it was open country with fields, farm and cattle ranch around us and cats from the barns behind us roamed our property. They adopted us and over the years we have fed and cared for many many cats. We also have had dogs, guinea pigs, pet mice (thank you whitney! ew) and chickens.
6. One of my all time favorite vacations was in Bethany Beach, Delaware. We camped at Tuckahoe Acres, right on the shore (in those days) when I was a teenager. We played on the paddle boat, clammed and I always got so sunburned that I got sun sick (every year). Those were the days before sunscreen. I wish I could take my kids camping there, it was great fun.
7. If you look in the mini fridge in my sewing room you will see mostly diet Mt. Dew. Its my favorite. And I even have some caffeine free. Where else but Utah County would they make caffeine free soda?

Ok. Thats it. My 7 things are out there on the world wide web for all to know.

I'm going to tag 7 blogs now. Of course T from Purple and Paisley. She's a great blogging bud. And because I like to feature locals I will also tag Lola Again, Busty LaRue, Kairle, and Thimbleanna (well, she's not local but some of her family is from here), and Janet Clare (Janet is absolutely NOT local) because I admire Janet's style, love her name, and I'm inspired by her work. And if you girls have already been tagged. Oh well. Too bad.

Whew. That is a lot to post!

-nanette
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As I have said before about knitting, I sometimes have a hard time finding clothes that fit the way that I want them to, look the way that I want them to, and are made out of fabrics that I don't absolutely hate. And on top of that, there is the constant struggle to wear something somewhat chic, not too trendy, and just a little bit unique to help me show my personal sense of style.

I found this dress pattern from Vogue Patterns -- I have made a few alterations - like how the sleeves fit, I hate elastic in sleeves. For the dress fabric itself, I used a beautiful green fabric from Yuwa from their Sketch Flowers collection that I got from Purl.

The dress came together quickly, and since I got to alter the pattern to my personal measurements, it fits just as well as I could have dreamed that it would.

The only thing that is funny, is that it has such a spring tone to it, and it snowed all weekend while I made it. Oh well.--

Shelbie
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When my friend Jan called today it felt like Christmas in February even before she came to see me. Jan is a fabulous painter and I love all her works of art. She's brilliant and so talented.
I traded last year with Jan and I got the best end of the deal. Jan painted my childhood home for me and I made 2 quilts for her. I absolutely love my painting and it means so much to me to have that piece of my vintage childhood in my home today. I have left Jan an open invitation to swap any time with her.
She brought me bucket of fabric she got several years ago to make a quilt for her oldest daughter for Christmas. It didn't get made obviously (lucky me). We both decided we do what we love best. She paints, I sew. Jan proposed another trade!!!! I'm thrilled beyond belief. Jan's paintings are so lovely, I feel so blessed and lucky that she would want to trade with me again.
Jan knows I love old houses and vintage things. She brought a painting to show me that she is currently working on. Its a lovely victorian farm house set in the country in the fall. It even has a quilt drying on the porch. I can't believe she would even offer to trade it for a quilt! Anyway she told me I could have my pick of subjects or take this one she is working on now. How fun to dream of a new painting! Right now the walls in my living room are freshly painted and I have nothing hanging on them. After you have a real painting by an artist in your home it makes you not want to hang prints!
I'm really feeling Christmas in February today, thanks to Jan, and because its snowing AGAIN!
- nanette
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Ha. I just had to use that word after watching Project Runway reunion show tonight. I wonder how it would be if they had a show like that for quilters? Give inspiration and then 2 days to make a quilt top. It would be crazy. Of course no one would ever put that on TV. Would you do it if they had a quilters, crafters, knitters Project show? Just a random thought.

Ok. Here is my fierce. I very rarely buy a whole line of fabric and I almost never ever use a line of fabric for a quilt unless its commissioned by a store or customer.

But . . . I really like Sandi Henderson at Portabellopixie. I think she's a great person and very talented designer. I got all 19 fabrics - the whole line - at Fat Quarter Shop (fat quarters of each, of course). I think they are pretty fierce (its ok I'll never use that word again, I really hate catch phrase words). There is a mix of vintage, fresh and traditional about them. I love the colors and I think she's really going to be successful with this line. Anyway I decided to make my baby tumbler quilt with it. I think it will turn out really interesting. I've made the baby tumbler quilt about 5-6 times but not with fabrics like Sandi's. So it will feel fresh to make it again in this different fabric. I love baby quilts that are unexpected and more of a fashion accessory for the mom.

The finished baby tumbler babushka quilt picture is taken on my awful 80's mauve sofa I am planning on recovering. I'm scared to start it but it needs to be done. Its one of those 8 way hand tied couches that is in such good shape and such a clasic style I think it will be great slipcovered. I just have to get up the nerve to do it and stop putting it off.

In the mean time I have been hand appliqueing my leaves on my bird quilt (yes, another picture of the birds). I haven't stopped working on it. I'm enjoying that so much I'm savoring it and in no hurry to finish.

I think Sandi's fabric will make a good weekend project. I hope I get enough time to work on it. I haven't felt too great the past day or so. So we'll see. I'm having fun thinking about it in the mean time. Half the fun of a new project is dreaming about it and enjoying the imagination part of it. Don't you think?

-nanette

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I visited some friends in Vegas and Phoenix over the weekend and was so excited to try out (again) the elephant pattern from this book. It was hardly easy going because I get frustrated, but I was so thrilled to get them done in and time and so happy to see them in the hands of my friends.

The quilt was a lot of fun once I got going, but I also had to be nursed through it by my mom. It was staggered strips of fabric and I just loved how it all came together. It has a minky back and is so cuddly and soft! - natalie
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The babushka tea cozy is finished. I loved making it. I took the whole face off after I posted yesterday and made it all bolder. I made the eyes bigger and instead of pink nose and mouth I embroidered with red floss. I made the blush slightly bolder, too. I backed the whole back of the doll with linen. The finished babushka fits on a taller thinner teapot from my collection. I never use teapots but I think they are such a pretty shape so I have and display several.
The little doll in the middle I got from Erleperle at her Etsy shop. I think its really cute.
Blogspot is really acting up today. I'll be surprised if this actually posts. - nanette
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I have been wanting to make this tea cozy to put over a teapot on a shelf in my sewing room for a while now but I didn't have a pattern, just an idea.
I bought a pattern for matryoshka dolls from Aimee Ray at her etsy shop. I adapted it and made it bigger so I could use her basic pattern to come up with my own version of a matryoshka tea cozy. This weekend I got it mostly done.
Mine is definately not the same face. Thats where I ran into trouble. I think I need to make the eyes bigger. I'll work on it a little. I have to cut out a back for her and hem her, too. It was fun do something different. I'm definately not a doll maker but its not too bad for a first attempt. - nanette
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I'm not much of a traveler. My husband and I are pretty much home bodies. So I think this 'Trips around the World' quilt is maybe the closest thing I have to traveling around the world.

I'm not even sure why someone named this quilt 'Trips Around the World'. I understand that the center square is probably supposed to be the world and all the squares around it are the trips. And that's kinda cute. It's just that sometimes I see quilt names and wonder how someone thought of naming them that? Anyway, I like this quilt. And now the name has kind of grown on me.

In the 80's my mom made a bed spread quilt for us in a 'Trip Around the World' design. Its tattered and in shreds now. (Why did I use it? It was beautiful. I know, quilts are made to be used. Still I wish it was new and fresh . . .)

Several years ago I decided to use that idea of her quilt and make a 'trips' quilt more scrappy with smaller squares and in my own busy style. I'm always trying to use up squares in my scrap bin thatI have precut cut into 2 1/2". When I cut anything out I either fold the extra fabric and put it into my mesh baskets or I cut the smaller scraps into 2 1/2" squares and save them in a bin for future use. I love 2 1/2" squares and I use them all the time. I suppose those may be my trade mark.
I didn't have a pattern for my 'trips' quilt so I had Chelsey help me lay the entire quilt out on the floor and then I had her hand me each row starting at the top working left to right. It was a little confusing to do it that way but it worked out.
These are beautiful flowers my friend Chirine brought me on Valentine's Day when she came to visit my new sewing room. I don't know of anyone I have ever met that is more thoughtful than Chirine. When we were living in the big mess of the flood last fall many of my friends brought us meals and wonderful treats to get us through life with no kitchen. I will never forget the generosity and love my friends and neighbors showed to us during that difficult time. I think Valentine's Day represents all kinds of love and I was reminded during the big awful mess in the house that real love is love that serves and helps others. I have great friends and family that embody that kind of love. - nanette
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We have one more picture to post of Meloney's fabulous flag. Its never too late Meloney. Thank you for sending it to me. Meloney's doing some nice things on her blog.
I am so overwhelmed by the responsed to Freda's Hive. We are in contact with people all over the world. I think that is magical that women can network from their home to other women in all parts of the world and share their experiences and talents. Its just wonderful.
Thanks to those who shared ideas about hand applique. I think that many quilters can gain from your tips. They were great.
Happy Day after Valentine's. - nanette
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Happy Valentine's Day everyone. Thank you so much to those that participated in the Valentine Flag pattern. It is so fun to see my design created by you in so many individual ways.

Also, thank-you for all the great comments and the great e-mails we have received since starting our blog. We are so glad to have the great input and participation. Thanks!

In no particular order here are the pictures I have recieved of the Valentine's Day Banner. They are all lovely and each one is unique - isn't that great!

These two were made by Cherrie Neameyer and her friend (sorry I didn't get her name) and I'm not sure which one is Cherrie's and which one is her friend's. But they are both darling. Cherrie is from North Dakota and contacted me about putting the valentine pattern in her quilt group newsletter and of course I was very excited to have my pattern go to her group and even more excited to get these pictures. They are wonderful.


This is Darlene's Valentine Quilt from Arizona. I love her valentine fabric. It couldn't be sweeter. Darlene has a great blog that I read.

This is Heather from Virginia's flag. Heather's has a lot of texture to it and I love the pink, its lovely.

This is Kim from New Jersey's really cute flag. I love the rich dark red and the extra red block in the corner. Nice job. Kim has a great blog, check it out.

This Jodi's fabulous flag. Jodi is so clever. She even added another project! I love her blogs. Yes, she's together enough to have 2. See Jodi here and here.

These 2 come from Denise in Saudi Arabia! Its hard to imagine my pattern going around the world. That is the magic of blogging. Denise you did a super job. I just love both of them. Well done!


My biggest fear is that I missed someone's email or (scatterbrained) didn't add it to my valentine folder. Please e-mail and remind me or me if you have a new picture I can add it today.

All get a prize! This was really fun. Thanks again. - nanette
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