Gentry's Mill Fabric Announcement

 Hello Everyone,

I'm so excited that I can finally share images of my new fabric line called Gentry's Mill and my new block of the month for Marcus Fabrics.

You can see the entire line up close HERE.  This is the new BOM which will start next year.

The large red and blue floral prints are gorgeous!  

The line is elegant and classy.

Surprise, I didn't include a plaid in this line or a flange in the quilt!  What is wrong with me?

Part of the beginning design process starts with scans that I send to the graphic artist.  This is a scan I sent of one of Mr. Joe's silk ties.  I'm always searching for interesting designs that can be tweaked into a fabric.  This little scan started the entire process to the birth of a new line.

After a lot of back and forth and color corrections, this is the final pattern.  The graphic artist incorporated little vignettes of flowers in the intricate design. I will always look at this fabric and remember Mr. Joe's tie.

The colors complement all of the SKU's in the line.  It's a fun, labor intensive process and I love every step along the way.  My plan for this line, includes designing a quilt around the large blue and red prints. I can see the design in my mind, I just need to make it become a reality and get it out of the back recesses in my brain.

When you don't hear from me for a while, just know that I'm working on bringing fabrics and designs to a reality and to you.

My sample yardage should arrive any day now from the mill in South Korea.  Every ounce of work will stop when the FedEx delivery person knocks on my door.  

Being a part of the Marcus Fabrics group of designers is a dream come true.  Throughout the weeks, emails and zoom calls take place from the beginning to the end of the process.  The graphic artists carry out my every thought and include their own suggestions.  The process is fascinating and fun!  What you don't see is the attention to detail by the Marcus Fabrics staff from beginning to end.  They are sticklers for perfection in the delivery of the final product.  I appreciate that attention to detail.

I'm still working on other projects which I will be able to reveal over the next few weeks.

Soon,

Lynn

Laurel Ridge Applique

 Hello Everyone,

I'm making small clusters of flowers for my latest project. To enhance the 'cuteness factor', I've chosen to incorporate a handstitched buttonhole stitch rather than using a machine.

I'm using a #12 Valdani thread to outline the pieces. 

I'm assembling tutorials to illustrate the differences between the two applique methods: freezer paper and raw edge applique. I have not been a fan of raw edge applique, until now.  I like to have a nice, finished edge, and the buttonhole stitch gives me a sense of completion and a finished edge.

Each method takes me the same amount of time, so it's a toss-up in my opinion. The freezer paper method does give me a look with more dimension after machine quilting. Yet, the buttonhole stitch makes the design more whimsical.  

Another scorching hot day is on the horizon up here at Wilder's Last Resort. Stitching doesn't require much effort, so that's my plan for today!

Soon,

Lynn

A Ribbon Runs Through It 2.0 version

 Hello Everyone,

I received an email from a quilter wondering what fabric line I would suggest for A Ribbon Runs Through It since the original fabric line is no longer available. I thought about it and went to the Marcus Fabrics website to check out what lines are going to be available soon.

I saw the Elegant Estate Collection by Judie Rothermel and fell in love with it. You can view the line with larger images by clicking HERE.  I downloaded the images into my EQ8 software and played around recoloring my original design.

Then I started playing around with it some more and added a stripe fabric from my Hearthstone line. Here are the center blocks with and without the stripe.

Without the stripe and the posts are teal.

Here's the quilt with a black border or the teal border.

I had a lot of fun after I posted the pictures on my Sew'n Wild Oaks FB page and quilters around the globe started chiming in with suggestions.  This is very much a fluid idea, if ideas can be fluid. My ideas are usually flowing around in my brain night and day.   EQ8 software makes it so easy to audition different fabrics and creates an excellent rendition of the quilt. This is the final version of the quilt in EQ software.

Last week, I received this picture from Shirley who made A Ribbon Runs Through It as a wedding gift for her daughter.  Her daughter must have been thrilled to receive her gift! I love the fact that Shirley added more borders to make it larger.  She put her own spin on the design.  

Now I'm adding this new version of the quilt using Elegant Estate Collection to my TBM (To be made) list which is about as long as my TBR (To be read) list.  I'm an avid reader and have a long list of books I want to read.  Each and every day gives us the opportunity to be creative or have some quiet time to curl up with a good book.  But when I curl up to read, I drop my book and wake myself up snoring!

We had a bit of a scare last week when Mr. Joe passed out and did a face plant at his SIRS picnic.  The paramedics packed him up into the ambulance and took him to the emergency room.  He was so disappointed that he didn't get to hear the sirens.

We spent six hours in the emergency room, and he was given a CT scan of his head and neck, and chest x-rays.  He was hooked up to a heart monitor and received three bags of fluid. When he fell, the brim of his hat covered his face, so he actually looked okay, except for his nose.

It was determined that he was dehydrated, and his blood pressure was extremely low. He has been in recovery mode this past week. Yesterday he was going a little stir crazy and wanted to get out of the cabin and go for a walk.  We headed up to Lake Alpine where it was nice a cool and Mazey went for a dip in the water.

Here's to staying vertical!

Soon,

Lynn