The Machine is Humming

 Hello Everyone,

When I'm not at my sewing machine, I'm working on applique for my secret project. This quilt design is unlike anything I have designed in the past.

I love combining a bit of applique with pieced blocks.  When I get tired of working on piecing, I switch to applique.  The entire time I'm working, I'm listening to audio books.  The hours just fly by and it's time to start thinking about fixing dinner before I know it.  We had company over for dinner last night, so dinner tonight will be the yummy leftovers.

I thought I would tire of working with my Hearthstone fabric collection.....but that hasn't happened yet. I find that it is quite versatile, and the designs and colors play well with each other.

I have bolts and bolts of it in my sewing room and plan on cutting more bundles for my booth at the Independence Hall Quilt Show in Angels Camp in October.  I have to plan ahead in order to fill a booth with loveliness.

I have a ZOOM meeting this morning to discuss the secret project.  I wish I could share everything with you......but not just yet.

Soon,

Lynn

Memorial Day 2024

 Hello Everyone,

I love this picture when Mazey was a little puppy.  She was just as sweet now as she was then, 10 years later.

A friend of mine posted this on her Facebook page and I thought it was so significant and true.

As luck, or timing, would have it, I'm reading The Women by Kristin Hannah.  The book follows a 20-year-old Army nurse who does two tours in Vietnam.  I'm down to the last 50 pages and I've been reading when I should be quilting. This book has made a profound impact on me and it's one to be remembered for a long time to come.

The first half of the book is about her time in Vietnam, and the second half is about her assimilation back into life in the US.  

I grew up in a very sheltered, small town in Northern California.  I listened to Huntley & Brinkley every night or Walter Cronkite and heard about the horrific things going on an entire world away.  Had I been male, I would have been focused on my draft number instead of who was going to be my date for prom. I went to the local library to find out where Vietnam was located.  The World Book Encyclopedia was not updated very often, and all I could find was French Indo China.

I didn't know it at the time, but my then to be husband enlisted in the Air Force and volunteered to go to Vietnam.  Mr. Joe was a jet mechanic and they needed helicopter mechanics, so he was passed over.  His life and my life would have taken a dramatic change in the blink of an eye.

Remember freedom......with every breath you take today and every day.

Soon,

Lynn

Taking the bull by the horns

 Hello Everyone,

As usual my week has been filled with catching up after the quilt show in Modesto.  I had trouble downloading the pictures at the hotel, so I'm going to post a few today.  My sister Gail helped 'man' the booth.

I had a small booth by the entrance of the show, and it was so much fun meeting everyone!  It was like old home week since I knew so many of you who stopped by.  The hardest thing was remembering names.

I had 128 fat 1/8's of wool in this cheese wheel at the beginning of the show.

This is what was left.

Kits were a popular item too.  I'll take an inventory today, and I may put some kits out on my Etsy site for Spring Frolic.  The pattern for Spring Frolic is now available in my Etsy shop HERE.

I've been working on my new super-secret project and it's coming along.  I keep getting pulled in other directions with Zoom meetings and other deadlines for Marcus Fabrics.  I will be getting the strike-offs for my next line in the next few weeks.  I've been designing a new BOM with that fabric and I'm writing the directions.

Yesterday I played hooky, and we drove to Oakdale, about 1-1/2 hours away to watch our grandson participate in the Chute Doggin' competition. 

Jess jumped the gun and grabbed the horns before the steer's horns passed over the white line and he got a 10 second penalty which put him out of the money.

He has another opportunity today and his two scores will be averaged.  We are staying put today so I can work on my projects.  I realized that I need to put a spreadsheet together so I can see exactly what needs to be done and by when.  If I see it in print, I may flee from the room and say no, no, NO!

Today, and all this week, I'm going to take the bull by the horns and get some of these pressing things off of my list.  When I can reveal what I'm working on, you will understand and see the complexity of my to-do list.

Soon,

Lynn

Heart of the Valley Quilt Show

 Hello Everyone,

Here's just a very small sampling of some of the product that will be in my booth this weekend at the Heart of the Valley Quilt Show at Modesto Junior College in Modesto, CA this weekend. 

My friend Diane helped me put half yard bundles together of my Hearthstone fabric line.  They are yummy.  Diane got very distracted fondling the fabrics!

While watching TV the other night I rolled 128 wool fat 1/8's.  These look good enough to eat.

I have 175 patterns and books packed and lots of bundles of other fabric lines that will be for sale in my booth.  I haven't done a show in a long time, by choice, since it is a lot of work.  I'm rusty thinking about what I need to bring, and my master list is missing in action.  Then there's the fact of just how much can I get packed in the car?

I'll head down to the valley on Thursday to get set up for the show on Friday and Saturday.  My sister Gail will be in my booth with me, and we'd love to see you and make some new friends.

While getting ready for the show, I've also been working on a new BOM for Marcus Fabrics.  I just submitted my final, final fabric requirements for my BOM using the new fabric line.  I'm SOOOOOOO excited about this new line!  I can't wait to start working with it in my new design.  There's just so much swirling all around me and it's all GOOD!  But there are days when I don't know which end is up and what needs to be done first.

Soon,

Lynn

Busy Days Ahead

 Hello Everyone,

It was a very busy and fun week last week as we traveled to Arizona for our granddaughter's college graduation.  This week I'm preparing for the Heart of the Valley Quilt and Textile Arts Show in Modesto where I've been asked to be the featured artist.

I will have product for sale in my booth......so I have to get that product ready to go! Please stop on by my booth so we can hug, and chat and you can enjoy the show. 

We had a whirlwind trip to Arizona.  We left the cabin last Sunday and returned Thursday evening.  

There was a large ceremony Monday night at Sun Devil stadium for the ASU graduates which we chose not to attend.  No names were read, and no one walked across the stage to receive their diploma. We opted for the smaller ceremony on Wednesday.

The smaller ceremony was held in the basketball arena for several different disciplines for the Fine Arts.  Our granddaughter received a BFA (Bachelor degree in Fine Arts) for Film.  She would like to become a director or a screen writer.  This ceremony was much more intimate, and we could really see and hear what was going on.

It was interesting that all of the names were read by AI.  The graduates had to write their names phonetically on a card which was scanned and read aloud.

She graduated Cum Laude, and we are so proud of her!  The ASU campus was absolutely overwhelming in size and scope.  When she arrived on campus three years ago, she wasn't sure that she could navigate all of the pitfalls of student loans, apartment life, roommates, and homework, lots of homework and working on movie sets.  She also worked part-time to help with expenses. 

 

We stopped outside of Parker and had lunch on the Colorado river.

On the way back, we stopped for dinner by the London Bridge in Lake Havasu City.

I'm having a Mother's Day sale in my Etsy shop HERE.  The 20% off sale will run today and tomorrow, Mother's Day.  

I'll be cutting and making bundles for the next few days.  Patterns need to be printed and priced, and I need to pull everything together for a show.  I'm rusty at this as I haven't done a quilt show in the past few years.  I'd forgotten how much work it is!

Soon,

Lynn    

Snow on the Dogwoods

 Hello Everyone,

Mother Nature not only 'kissed' the dogwoods, but she planted a sloppy wet kiss on them!

It was just a light kiss in the beginning and then it turned into a full-on assault on the poor blossoms!  At this writing, it is still snowing lightly.

I was busy packing for our trip to Arizona where we are going to attend our granddaughter's graduation from ASU.  It was so hard to think summer clothes when the fire was roaring in the fireplace. All I wanted to do was curl up with a good book. I was also cleaning and getting everything ready for the house/pet sitter.

Since my last post, I've been working on my new fabric line and BOM for Marcus Fabrics.  It is going to be a busy and fun summer with everything that I have going on.

We will try to get out of here early this morning and meet up with my sister who will be traveling with us.  

I have my applique ready for stitching in the car during the long stretches down the Central Valley of California and across the desert.  I found this adorable plaid, metal lunch box that holds all of my supplies.  My good friend Julie made the little needle minder.  I love it and it goes where I go.

I'll be back in a week after spending the days celebrating with family.

Soon,

Lynn

Sew'n Wild Oaks Retreat

 Hello Everyone,

The quilts that I'm posting today were made by members of the Independance Hall Quilt Guild who attended my retreat.  We were auditioning border fabrics for Mary Sue's fabulous quilt. 

Next up are Cynthia's two quilts.

Cynthia is relatively new to quilting, but you would never know it when you look at her quilts.  She's a natural.

Jocelyn is always entertaining telling us about her creations.

This is Jocelyn's Lil' Orphan Scrappy block.

Sue showed us two stunning quilts. 

Diane made a quilt perfect for mountain life.

Ann picked up two needlepoint kits on the 'free' table at a guild meeting and she made them.  They are beautiful!

Cindy showed us quilts she made from classes offered by the guild.

Here are the talented Independence Hall quilters.

The weather was nice enough for us to enjoy being outdoors in the beginning of the week. 

The rest of the week we had all of our meals indoors.

I still have more pictures to post this week.

Soon,

Lynn

Sew'n Wild Oaks Retreat

 Hello Everyone,

It's been a whirlwind of activity over the last few days and I'm just now getting around to posting pictures from my Sew'n Wild Oaks Retreat at Snowflake Lodge.  The first picture is a beautiful Winterset made by my sister, Gail.  She enlarged the pattern by adding extra blocks and pinwheels.  She is also going to add another border.  She worked hard on it at the retreat to get it to this point.

There is always a lot of discussion around the design walls, and the design walls are always decorated with beautiful quilt blocks.

Quite a few of the girls were making little cottages for Calico Cottages.

I taught a class for Lil' Orphan Scrappy.

Here are some Bridle Path blocks.

We had show and tell every night. This quilt by Jocelyn was stunning!

This is my Christmas Ribbons pattern which Taimi made from her stash.

We started each morning with an inspirational message to set the tone for the day ahead.

I taught a couple of workshops and one of them was Lil' Orphan Scrappy.  Paula brought her beautiful quilt to show the class.

This beautiful wall hanging was made by Diane and was very apropos for two of the quilters.  They were late coming in one morning because there were four bears right outside the front door of their cabin!

Our cousin Melody joined us this year.  Lil' Orphan Scrappy is the backdrop for our picture.

Mel isn't a quilter, but she brought two quilting puzzles.

This is the fabulous group of fantastic quilters and women who made our time together so special and memorable.  They are all so giving, compassionate and just plain good souls!  What fun we had.

I have many more pictures to post, and I'll get to them throughout the coming week.

Soon,

Lynn