Red and Yellow Log Cabin #2 DONE!!

Yeay!
One of my favorite parts of quilting( besides the sense of accomplishement when it's finally done!!) is when it gets unpinned from the machine and falls into its own new shape, free from the tension and constraints of the frame.

I also got lucky today because the weather was photo friendly. I'ts also nice to be able to stand back and view the quilt as a whole, instead of the right under my nose perspective.
Plus!! the timing is finally right and I will be able to deliver it and show it( with the owner) at Guild tomorrow night.

Greater Chicago Quilt Exposition II

Well we survived it again this year!! Thankfully this years event was "targon free"
which just added to the enjoyment.
I would like to start with the above quilts "Digital Shibori" ; by Tricia McKellar.
These were by far my favorite of the contemporary entries. Her shibori images are transferred digitally and manipulated to create a collage on silk.
Upon close examination, the image is made up of several "pieced " pieces of the image that has been transferred to silk. Very interesting,some sort of abstract, minimal and serene. Elegant in only the way a tractor tire image on silk would be .
The next day , a synopsis has to be discussed ( as any mumsy and daughter would do) and mumsy concluded she didn't like the show and that there weren't more than a handful she wouldn't care to wipe her #@&! on!! ( no need for alarm, she is taking a much needed vacation very soon!)
That being said, it was no wonder she ended up in the bar later that afternoon.
My friend and I had decided to call it quilts for the show.
The concrete floor had taken its toll on us!
I had brought the 7 Lb lunch to drag around for most of the day, and she was positively exhausted from the 30's fabric shopping session I orchestrated for her next project. ( LOVED!! spending her $ for her!!)
She insisted we search out beers at the mystery "bar" we had been hearing about throughout the day. Heard they had "hot food!!.....
Lo and behold what did our weary eyes spy but a very lovely and posh bar complete with lime green patent leather lounge chairs and quite the industrial beaded curtain!!
( for you quilt show newbies......THIS IS NOT STANDARD AT ALL QUILT SHOWS!!)
WELL!! this was just what the quilt Dr. ordered!! We proceded forward with a lovely pilsner each of Sam Adams SUMMER!! ale on draught and it was heaven!!( not a sam adams fan normally but this was a surprise and now a new favorite) too bad I have to wait only 6 months for another one!
A few other quilt cronies wandered in for a late bite of lunch and I proceeded to chat them up about my favorite subjects and ones they are knowledegable in :the appraisal,restoration and historical studies genre'.
I was interrupted by a phone call from my farm hand regarding the possibility of burning the pile( he had spent the day with our friend "the pyro") and inviting some friends out to do so. I agreed but only if he clean a couple specified areas of the house.Well I dodged that bullet cause he called back later and said the party had been moved to my friend and her husband "the Pyro)s house.Good for me , not so thrilled was she.
Meanwhile, my friend had orderd us another round and was treating us to some calamari!..and
next thing you know, Mumsy and her (*our) cousin, show up looking for a bit of refreshment themselves.We proceded to harass the bartender( like only a gang of old lady quilters can do) and generally make a nuiscense of ourselves until the cops showed up and hauled us off to the pokie where we taught our fellow cell mates the art of bad vest making!

Ha! Just kidding about that last part...making sure you were paying attention.

I cannot stress enough the difference this bar made in my quilt show experience.
Usually towards the end when the old ladies are pooped , we have to settle for a folding chair if we're lucky, most of the time it is a piece of carpeted concrete floor, while waiting on friends or the bus. Had I just heard about it and not experienced it for myself I know I would have been skeptical.
This show wasn't on par with the major players like Paducah or Houston/Chicago ,but was worth the trip if one was in the general vicinity. Not to mention, Shaumburg is a shopping mecca complete with IKEA and any other possible retail experience one may hope to find.
Next up;: more photo worthy quilts from around the world..........

Log Cabin #2 and QUILT SHOW ALERT!!!!!

I've been working on this:
the second yellow and red log cabin for a new customer. The two matching quilts are for her grandchildrens beds at her home.
The first one was finished just as she was coming to pick it up and went out the door without pics ; I didn't want to post anything until she saw the final product.
I have to say I've really enjoyed quilting these also. I've just fallen in LOVE with this color combo and want to somehow do something for myself in these hues.
I'll just ADD IT TO MY LIST!!!
QUILT SHOW this weekend in Schaumberg,IL at the rennaisance center(?).
My Guild is taking a bus full of ladies up for a big fat day of quilt related
festivities and stash enhancement....... You know!!!!!
F.A.R.T. !!!!(fabric aquisition road trip)
Unfortunately I will have to be satisfied with just drooling and fondling( maybe some sniffing?!FOR SURE SNIFFLING!!) only........
(See previous blog regarding large shiny expensive necessary equipment.....)
So So Sad Schnoobie!:(

More fun.........

Old, wornout, funky and gunky....

New! Shiny! Gut Wrenching Expensive! Looks Like a Thermos!!!

again... a chance to say goodbye......

Let's look at them together!!..sort of a "Generational Portrait".........


What's long, shiny silver and costs more than my Mortgage???????
That's RIGHT kids!!!!

I'ts a brand new, shiny and VERY EXPENSIVE Well Pump!!!!!!!!!!
wow!! Just when you hoped things wouldn't any worse.........
( I had a very long and drawn out post documenting the inhumanity and blatant disrespect at the job yesterday but lost it due to god only knows)..
Lets's just say it was a 2 beer evening and exactly 2 hairs away from being my "previous job"......
And then today!!......(I thought my shower water looked extra dirty last night??..)
Good morning!! Your water is very murky!!!
We called a well guy and he diagnosed it over the phone pretty accurately.
He showed up with his crew in the afternoon and confirmed the horror.
(I guess it could have been worse...like needing a new well dug!)
Thanks anyway this will do just fine for a second runner up.
I guess they last 10-15 years and it looks like we're right on schedule folks.
According to the date on my well tank in the basement its 15 years old.
So after much wailing and moaning and gnashing of teeth ( that was just me..)
the new shiny silver pump complete with new pipe and wiring was installed in less than one hour.
One very painfully expensive and shiny hour.
Did I mention my ETSY shop?? 2 quilts for sale....also ...
Farm Fresh Organic Brown and Green/Blue eggs...... Organic Catnip for sale ...
Donations accepted.........

Safari Baby Quilt Done!!

Finally!!
Some Quilt Content!
Today was the "Perfect Fall Day"!; clear and crispy !!
I took advantage of the gorgeous colors and took some photos of the trees turning at the back of my field and the new (old recycled metal!) roof that Doug was installing on the chicken coop just in the nick of time.( next up blog....)
I was especially pleased with the majestic Fall sky and the rich contrast of colors in the backdrop of this shot against the neutral quilt.
I've had this Baby Quilt quilted for some time now....just needed to pull threads and put the binding on.
And now its done!!!!!Just in time for the upcoming Holiday gift shopping season.
So now I've got 2 (count 'em wooo hooo!) QUILTS FOR SALE in my ETSY shop.(see link below!)
Selling on ETSY is something I've been wanting to try for a while now, but I've been concentrating on "Guaranteed Income" like quilting customer quilts.
Selling on E bay or ETSY has always been "iffy" for me anyway.
Kind of like a bonus or extra credit ....or something.....?

wake up kitty

This is Snarf's evil twin ...separated at birth no doubt!!!

Crazy Chicken

Check this chicken out!
I love the Jerry Lee Lewis influence.......

" out here in the fields, I farm for my meals........"

"I get my back into my living....."
Wait!! What's that rumbling noise??
Now if you know me at all, you know I love me some farm equipment.
I ran like mad for my camera. It was all I could do to not run up to the driver,all excited jumping up and down and beg to ride with him!!!
My adult senses got the best of me and I figured the next best thing would be to just blog about it!!!( Bummer!!that's sooooo not even close!)
Back in the "working in Chicago days" I would come home @ 7 p.m. to darkness and sometimes miss the fact that my field had been picked.
Once I even got to drive a combine while picking corn! That was EXCITEMENT!!
I was so thrilled with my new experience and was eager to tell my coworkers the next day.
They just didn't get it. Not even that but most of them had no idea what a "COMBINE" was. Just one of many city-dwellers-don't-get-the-farmy-thing moments that used to happen quite frequently actually!!
I finally got smart and started selling them "blooming weeds" in their farm fresh cut flower arrangements that I would schlep in every week on the train. It was a huge pain but a nice bit of extra income.
They loved it. Ate it UP!
I also remember conversations regarding harvesting "wild asparagus" which invoked much fear and concernation in the heart of the city-dwellers. Forget about speaking of your spinach crop for bugs could surely be a problem....not to mention the dirt in which its grown.
Good times.
I can just imagine the !HORROR! my fresh organic eggs would invoke in the hearts of the city-dwellers. They're BROWN! and GREEN!! Unspeakable! Are you sure they're OK to eat????
I always used to say to them when the end of the world is near and your neighborhood Starbucks runs out of Latte' fixins and pastry , you'll be showin up to harvest that "wild aparagus" down here on the farm.
Right after you take your turn manning "the shotgun in the window" shift.
Can you tell I'm thinking about the new season of "Jericho"??
And I must apologize for the lack of new posts.
I've been struggling to acclimate to a new job and time schedule.
Pre-Up-with-the-Chickens time. Still Dark.Power nap when I come home.
Painful and definately cramping my style in so many ways.
I let the last finished quilt out the door without any pics(NAR!) thinking I would just get shots of the second identical one. Which is still in progress.
oh yeah ...a not so closet pyro friend called whilst I was blogging all this and told him of the news that the field was being cut.
His first response?
GOOD!! That means now we don't have to wait till December to burn the pile!!!!
Pyros!