Up the wall

I like wall hangings. They're another good way (besides this) to make a quilt without...well without actually making a quilt.

This, naturally, is one of my favorites. I got my degree at K-State, and this flag lets me show my quilt-y and purple pride at the same time. The powercat is a licensed logo, and it's a big no-no to reproduce it without permission. If you're ever in Manhattan, KS, you'll see lots of powercats displayed backwards (facing left instead of right) in an attempt to get away with copying the design. So when I found this pattern about two years ago in Wichita, I felt like the luckiest girl in the world. Now we have these patterns in the shop, so you can feel just as lucky as I did! Oh yeah, and if you're a fan of that other school in Kansas, there are flag and quilt patterns with their mascot also.

Here is another wall hanging I did right after I opened the shop.

Right now it hangs in the entryway to the shop. It's done in blue and brown 1800's reproductions with reproduction shirting prints for the white. Each piece is just 1" wide. It took longer than I thought it would b/c of the small pieces, but it still went pretty quickly by using strip piecing. The pattern is called "Martin's Pennies." It's a good way to use up scraps in case you're one of those people that has extra fabric lying around =)

What?

What is going on with the weather?

This was the view from my shop windows yesterday afternoon. Snow. In April. Just when I was beginning to think I could retire my socks and jackets until the fall, mother nature pulls a fast one on me. I suppose I shouldn't be complaining about a little snow shower after the winter we had, but I'm complaining anyway.

One nice thing about quilting is that it doesn't matter what the weather is like. So while mother nature does her thing outside, Cindy and I have been busy in the shop making quilts. Well, she mostly churns out the tops while I work on other projects. But between the two of us, we managed to get this one pieced and quilted.

Okay, so the binding's not done. But binding is one of those tasks I save for the couch, so there's a good possibility it might get done this weekend...especially since it's small.

Happy Easter everyone!

Ribbon Cutting/Cookie Feed

Here we are doing our ribbon cutting last Friday. It was pretty cold outside, but quite a few people still showed up to witness the cutting and have punch and cookies. And boy, did we have cookies. As a matter of fact, almost a week later there are still some cookies left. They are safely stored in the freezer for when I lose the pounds I gained the first time. Anyway, back to the picture. From left to right are Bruce Fairbank of Labette Bank, Kanak Patel of Commercial Bank (representing the Chamber of Commerce), my husband and business partner, Byron Stokes, myself, and Mayor Lewis Smith. As I said, it was chilly outside, but many of my friends and acquaintances came out to show their support, and a good time was had by all. I truly appreciated the event and everyone that attended.


But on to quilting...



I whipped the binding down on this little number last night. (Please forgive the amateur photography.) It's made of the Aunt Purdy's Parlor 5" charm pack by Kansas Troubles for Moda. It went together pretty quickly, and it's small enough (24" x 24" finished) to quilt at home if you want to. It would make a great little wall hanging or table topper.

Lots of things in the works right now, but I'll try to show you a quilt next time!