My Mamma Taught Me...

My Mamma Taught Me... {with a side of Flea Market Fancy}

{My Mom, the best quilter I know}

In the old days, we learned how to quilt from our mothers and grandmothers. They taught us how to make a knot, find the straight of grain and how to pick a properly fitting thimble. However as “crafts” fell out of favor during the era of mass production, many of our mothers lost the knowledge.

{a quilt made by my mamma}

More recently, a woman (or man for that matter) looking to reclaim the lost art of quilting turned to classes at the local shop or large tradeshows. But we are at the edge of a revolution. Today we empower ourselves and learn to create whenever and wherever we want…on-line.

There are plenty of tutorials out there that talk about the basics of quilt making: the quilt sandwich, paper-piecing and machine stitching bindings. From A to Z we can learn to quilt online. But can we truly learn as well on line as from another experienced quilter in person? Pictures are wonderful, but can they show you just how to pile the quilt on the table to minimize the tug when you are machine quilting? Can a tutorial remind you to keep your wrist relaxed when hand stitching so that you don’t get carpel tunnel? Maybe a good tutorial can.

My point is this: there are many fine elements to quilting and I’d like to start a discussion on a few of the things my mamma taught me. I am fortunate to have a mom that’s quilted for decades and she has passed many of her tips and tricks to me through lots of hours of joint sewing. So we are going to push ourselves to share on-line, the wisdom we have learned in-person from quilting experts.

{Thanks to Victoria at Silly BooDilly for the great picture from a vintage needle book}

So begins a series of posts by me and by you on what “My Mamma Taught Me” about quilting. If you have a pointer that you learned from your mother or grandmother about quilting, I invite you to share it with us.

To participate in “My Mamma Taught Me"

1. Write a post with what your "Mamma Taught" you between Nov 11-18th
2. Link back to this blog using the button on the right (just copy the code into your post)
3. Leave me a comment and then send an email to me KatiesModernNest@hotmail.com with your tip and pictures
4. You can also post pictures and tips in our flickr group: http://www.flickr.com/groups/MyMammaTaughtMe 
5. If your tip is included in the "My Mamma" series I’ll include a brief bio of you, link to your website and share your story.

The best part, if your tip is featured as part of this series, you will win one Fat Quarter of Flea Market Fancy!

“My Mamma Taught Me” kicks off on Monday, so Stay Tuned!

A Few Friends

 

My best friend is having a birthday bash for her 1 year-old daughter and her 3-year old son. These great kids are like family to me, so I wanted to do something special for them. Most of all, they want to continue swimming lessons at the local pool. So we gave them a couple months of lessons.

But what kid likes opening a gift card? What a downer, to be all excited about your birthday and to get a piece of paper. So...I found this precious pattern for stuffed toys here and got to work.

I'd like to introduce you to Geoffrey the giraffe and Dottie the dachshund…ta-dah!

  

These cuties were a lot of fun to make. My favorite part by far is Geoff’s neck tie. What a great use for this scrap of Katie Jump Rope plaid. Little Dottie is looking sporty with her flea market fancy accents and a scarf made from some fabric I found at a real flea market.

Check out the buttons that hold together the arms and legs (no buttons on Dottie, because her new owner is too young for those small parts).

 This project was a fun change from quilt making, and the little guys just loved them.

Gee that’s Generous!

What a great mail day I had today!  I had two thick envelopes waiting in my mailbox and both were filled with fabric goodies.  Best of all, both came with EXTRA goodies!

First I got a yard of blue bouquet (flea market fancy) that I bought from TiggleGiggles on etsy (here's her blog).  She surprised me by adding in a fat eight of pink bubble dots and a fat eighth of pink buoquet.  What a find! 

Next, I opened a fabric swap that I did with Bessiemae .  I have been looking all over for green ribbon flowers (Katie Jump Rope) and was glad to swap for them.  What a nice surprise to get some Heather Ross Mendocino as well. 

A BIG thank you to both for your generosity!

Wild Windmills

Finished! 

I finished piecing and quilting my Wild Windmills about 2 weeks ago and have been taking my sweet time with the hand sewing on the binding.  It was worth it...I love how my whirlygiggle quilt turned out.  I was totally inspired by crazy mom quilts, but chose to make my blocks a little smaller than hers.  The finished quilt is just smaller than twin sized, but I think I can fudge it and make it work on my guest bed if I use a pretty pillow sham at the top.

The fabric was a Christmas gift from my hubby and I used white muslin for the background.  I think my absolute favorite part of it is the binding, which is a stripe that ties in all of the colors on the front with my orange backing. 

For the back, I decided on a fun orange with a tiny flower print that reminded me of windmills.  I really like how it plays against the muted blue in my border.  I mimicked the whirlygiggles on the front by making a chain of smaller "blades" for the inset panel on the back.  I also used mini whirligiggle blocks for the corners of my back panel.   I think it turned out really fun.

For the quilting I used my trusty PFAFF 297-1 to machine quilt randomly spaced diagonal lines.  It reminds me of the wind blowing past my windmills ;-) 

Now I just have to decide where this quilt is going to live. Though it looks great in my living room, I already have about 3 quilts in there.  I want it to get lots of love and use and to be the center of attention.  Maybe Wild Windmills would like to live with our friend Amy (who stood up for my husband at our wedding as the "best maid"). 

PS.  Have I mentioned anything about my obsession with Flea Market Fancy?  If you have been living under a rock and aren't familiar with Denyse Schmidt's fabulous out of print fabric, check it out.  I have been on a quest to find some and cannot wait to show you what I've managed to scrounge up.  Stay tuned.