Blown away by Giveaway Response!

Tree from Niagara on the Lake last Thursday

  Omigosh!! I was totally unprepared for the response to the Fall Giveaway I linked to Vicki Wesh's page. I had tried a pattern giveaway before. I was going to give a free pattern every Friday for 8 weeks. I had no takers. So, I thought I would put a big pile together and try again for at least one someone. Well, the outpouring of quilters was amazing. 
  I have been the recipient of generous quilters, especially in fabric, as I make comfort quilts for chemo patients. Lots of scraps and FQs have come my way so I can keep sewing and giving.
   I was pondering what to do and it hit me that I should spread the wealth around. I am going to split up the patterns to a number of  you who identified an interest and pattern, I am going to email you for your mailing address and send to more than one. I pulled some magazines and a few other patterns that I know I won't get to. I am going to contact about 6 of you and see if that works for you. I will just pay more postage, so what! 
   Remember, if you are a no comment responder or a google + responder, I don't know your email to reply.
   Thanks so much for responding and sharing a bit about your quilting!

Giveaway Linkup

   Vicki Welsh has a giveaway promotion on her blog right now. I am linking up with it and hope someone wants the whole bunch of new quilt ideas for free! Here are the patterns I will pack up for you and send in the giveaway if you would comment and let me know something about your quilts! Make sure I can get intouch with you and that you are not an unreachable blogger!

Some tops out for sun

     I am not sure if I posted the whole You've Got Mail all quilted. It is ready to go. It is the time of the year that the sun is lower in the sky and leaves shadows on the area where I photo the quilts. The white areas are all white.

    The exploding squares pattern is back and this time I used 4" squares to start out and used 4 total squares instead of the 3 when I start with a 6" center. This needs a back and quilting yet.

    The 3 Dudes quilt is also back. This time I used alternating white strips in the strip sets. I don't really like it as well. There is going to have to be some serious quilting on this to make me like it better.

HST trimming

     I won a charm pack at QBL this summer. I put another black and white charm pack with it to make HSTs. The print charm pack was short squares and the cuts seemed off. So, although I matched the squares and drew two lines off the center with a little ruler tool, when I cut them in half, they were not even. I used my 4 1/2" square ruler on the diagonal line to trim them as in the photo. They are closer to perfect than when I do not trim, but just sew them together. I am trying to be more precise and professional. When I get them all trimmed as it is time consuming, I will arrange them on the design wall.

The HST opened and it is not square and has dog ears.

The HST folded back in half, see the uneven?

The HST with the diagonal line of the ruler on the seam line

The HST edges and dog ears trimmed

The HST the best I can get it with those pinked edges
and keeping it 4 1/2" square.

Another made fabric star

     Since I bought a smaller template from Victoria Findlay Wolfe this summer, I used some new made fabric (from the treadle) to make a smaller star. I am thinking of making four to use in one quilt. I have to treadle a lot more scraps. I don't know what fabric to set them with. I have some nice light gray. I don't know if I want to use a patterned fabric there. Might be too much?

   I also used some made fabric to make a larger Maverick star than the ones I made in Bonnie's class. They were four and a half inches. I made each of these squares 4 1/2". I used dark fabric as the setting because it show off the star colors better I think. I am thinking of making a lot of these, but I don't know how I would arrange them. Not sashing.

Quilting around Chautauqua Part 2 eye candy

     Besides dropping money at vendors, I was amazed by the quilts. One of the raffle quilts was the exploding squares that I have done a tutorial for and use all the time for comfort quilts! Done in white and rainbow and exquisitely quilted, I bought some chances.

Detail of block and quilting

A great scrappy quilt!

     One of the exhibit spaces is done by some sisters. They make these sort of panoramas of a scene with all sorts of props and hang the quilts inside. It was spectacular. It was in such a cool building on the Lake.

Detail of border from quilt above

Look at that quilting detail!

quilting detail

quilting detail

quilting detail from above

quilting detail

Crummy photo, but check out all these pieces!

If you see this Robi, all these tiny pieces are for you!

Quilting around Chautauqua Part I, minis and picture quilts

     Every year for 11 years, Judy Fenton of Millcreek Sewing has organized Quilting around Chautauqua, a quilting show and vendors on the grounds of the Chautauqua Institute. I have never gone before. Two guild friends invited me on Sunday and I had a wonderful time. The weather was September spectacular. 
    I took a lot of photos, but I had my small Canon point and shoot because the SLR would be too heavy to lug all across the Institute so I apologize for not real clear photos. First, I am showing a bunch of miniature quilts that were made by a guild from Warren, PA. They are less than 12". I marveled. It is hard to see the scale in the photos. I stuck my finger in one of the photos to give you and idea. The pins may show some idea also. They also had a pincushion challenge, and I really wanted to bring my choice home to my studio. It made me laugh.

     There were a couple of pictoral quilts that were outstanding to me.