Gobble gobble!!

Thanksgiving is almost here and the turkey comes out for fridge thawing tonight. So far, it is just Mr W and me, but I usually find a few people who would be alone, and talk them into coming over. We have a relaxed Thanksgiving here. No fancy dishes or glassware, but plenty of good food and lively conversation.

As far as quilting goes, I have been hit or miss with the projects I have here. My quilt mojo is still very low, and I have to push myself to get in the studio and work. I hope to have what's here done by the end of the year so I can have a good end date and a fresh start in the new year. Meanwhile, here is what I have done. (keep in mind we had a rush trip to Texas for a death in Mr W's family that set me back a week)

The first two are for kids in the same family.

The fabrics are so calm and sweet! The maker says she is adding cording tails when she gets them back

A pretty swirled feather panto.

Number two...just as nice!

Oops! Upside down! I used a daisy panto

Okay, you may have to stand on your head to enjoy the photos!

Next up were two Quilts of Valor for a Florida customer.

The difference between the two is the starry pantos.

In Texas, my sister was packing for their move north, and she had a quilt top she gave me for the flood victims in NC. She had the backing and binding, too! I quilted it and turned it in last Thursday to the evening guild. We are sending quite a few coats and quilts.

She had this pretty jelly roll and put it to good use.

Flower Power panto

I like the pieced backing.

I thought I was finished with the custom embroidered quilt, but when I took it off the longarm, I couldn't stand how the backgrounds looked. I hadn't quilted them because the maker did a design in each block's background and I didn't want to mess them up. Too bad, so sad. I put it back on and did background quilting in the blocks. It looks way better and so much less floppy. You'll have to trust me on that, because it went home on Thursday without a photo of the end result.

Also from Texas, my friend Nancy had this quilt ready to go except for the quilting. It is for a family member and she wanted it as soon as possible. Wow! Great gift!! This king-size log cabin quilt is beautiful. It is made with marbly looking fabrics in saturated blue hues. Really lovely. I did the quilting as well as the 408 inches of hand sewing the binding. It took four days to quilt and bind. Yikes!

I laid it on our bed so you could see it better

I wish my computer showed the depth of color better. The backing is really dark blue.

The pantograph pattern is called Malachite. I know malachite is green, but the pattern ws perfect for the fabrics used.

My favorite buddies are still as cute as can be, and I thought I'd share the latest pictures. My grandson is holding one of the robot models we sent for his birthday. He had them assembled in one day! I'm getting something harder next time!

Another grandson sent this happy picture.

Self portrait with my best girl watching Hallmark in the hotel.

She's a love. We sit together every night and enjoy commercials with dogs in them

This is for those of you who practice yoga.

 

It's time to quit blogging

 I have been writing here for sixteen years, and I think I'm done. My business has slowed down and I am in a new phase of my life. I don't want to work forever! I want to make quilts, take trips, read books and just enjoy a few days of doing nothing. So, this is the last post. For a while, at least. I think once or twice a month will do me just fine.

Meanwhile, here at Wazoo, I have been mostly busy with repairing quilts. Like a forgetful old person (ha ha...that's me!) I finished one  this one last week and here it is.

I replaced almost 90 of the patches, and some holes on the back.

It takes a lot of time and skill to do this kind of work, I wonder why the customers are so slow picking them up? They are all gang-ho when they drop off the quilt...

After the repairs were done, I gave it a wash.

It is soft and smells good, too!

My granddaughter in Massachusetts loves to hike and climb mountains. She and her friends took a trip to New Hampshire and climbed Mt Major and Mt Straightback. She sent a few pictures from the top to give her grandma a heart attack. She is so happy when she is outdoors!

Merry band of hikers

What a view!

This gives me palpitations!!

Doesn't matter. She is comfortable there.

Back in the studio, I have been working hard  trying to crank out the remaining quilts. My mojo is on vacation, so it has been tough to get in the groove here. Don't worry, though, I'll be okay. I have had slumps before and always came back to my love of quilting. Here are a few quilts for you!

Remember this? It is the custom quilting challenge for the longarm group.

Not too fancy, but pretty.

Maybe it shows better on the back

This customer makes the cutest quilts! I also have two elephant quilts of hers to do, as well.

The panto is falling snowflakes

This is an illustration from a book she has about a ghost quilt. That explains the smiley face!

It is quilted with a paisley pattern

This quilt is for a Florida Gators student

It is the first time I have quilted something with NO batting. Just the Minky backing.

It is more like a blanket than a quilt. Perfect for Florida.

Here we have an embroidered quilt brought to me from a friend. Her lifelong friend made the quilt top and had no idea how to finish it. She wanted custom quilting.

My tip for you is don't add the embellishments before the quilting is done. Your quilter will thank you.

I carefully went around all the buttons, yo-yos and 3-D embroidered bits.

Here's the back

I'll end with another grandkid, going trick or treating with his parents in the costume his dad made. He is a Cyberman from the TV program Dr Who. The outfit is made from thin foam, cardboard and duct tape, then painted silver. My son is so clever!

I never had a costume like this!

Posing with the neighborhood ghost

Returning home.

The haul.

We "Fall back" this weekend, so don't forget to change the clocks! One hour back on Saturday night at 12:00. Ugh...

The blazing red maples at church