#35 “Wind and Water” {February 2014}

Size: 63" x 51"
Pattern: Jelly Roll Race/1600" Quilt
Fabric: Hoffman Bali Pops "River Rock"
Thread: Aurifil Quilt Patchwork and Embroidery Thread - White
Backing: Kona Bay Solids: Black
Batting: Warm and Natural
Binding: Kona Bay Solids: Black

The Fusion of Two Projects

So, I got in way over my head. Again. But in a way this was a good thing because it lead me to a very important situation.  This Yule, I received a fat quarter stack of Island Batik's "Courage" collection from their Quilted in Honor line.  The hope was that I would have time to make on of the quilts to enter into the contest and have it donated to a solider. Now,  I snicker not because of the whole giving it way thing, but because I apparently thought I was going to have time.  (insert laugh track here)
As I looked around to my friends who are soldiers, a good percentage of them received quilts through various organizations when they got home from OIF/OEF.  All but my husband.  He's never received one. At the same time I was pondering this, I came across the Gen X Quilters's Visa Versa BOM. Again, because I have the time, right? I'm also part of Canoe Ridge Creations Fresh Mini Quilt BOM and then there are those pesky orders that keep dragging me away from my dreams of doing a hostile take over of quilt shops that had managed to mess up orders or owners that rub me the wrong way.

So, I have a plan. I'm going to make Warrior Husband his own "Welcome Home" lap quilt using the "Courage" collection and doing the  Gen X Quilter's Visa Versa BOM. Kinda satisfy 3 things at once.  The quilt will go to an Army Veteran, I get to play with the BOM blocks and doing so will keep me on track with the quilt, and Warrior Husband finally gets a quilt by me no less!  SO I've already named it, "13 Bravo" which was Warrior Husband's MOS in the Army otherwise known as a Cannon Crewmember.  The Army definition is, "Cannon crewmembers work the howitzer cannons that support infantry and tank units during combat, and play crucial roles in the Army’s success on the battlefield." In other words he got to make a lot of really loud booms.

#22: "Eventide Sonata" {November 2012}

The design for the “Eventide Sonata” is called the 1600” or Jelly Roll Race quilt. It started as one, huge, 1600" long strip of batik fabrics and then folded in half, sewn, folded in half, sewn in half, sewn on and on. The fabrics for this quilt were a true spurge, and are all dyed batik fabric. I did another splurge for the backing and purchased a yummy batik for the backing that looks like it was made from the same dye lot as the front; pretty much makes this quilt reversible! The colors of these lines are so reminiscent of a sunset, that as I was working on it, I would put on various sonatas that reminded me of my Seattle home and quiet summer evenings on the water. This was an original attempt to do a free-handed quilted design, and in the end I backed out of it and decided on an echo pattern. I also found a beautiful set of silk variegated thread from deep red to yellow that shows up on both the front and the back of the quilt beautifully.

Size: 64" x 50"
Pattern: 1600" Quilt and/or The Jelly Roll Race
Fabrics: "Java Flame" by Timeless Treasures Tonga Treats Batiks - 100% Cotton
Backing: "Kapalua Batiks - Sunrise" Moda - 100% Cotton
Binding: "Hoffman Batiks - 100% Cotton
Batting: Pellon Legacy White Quilt Batting, 100% Cotton

#21: "Over Mountains and Minds They Watch Over Us" {November 2012}

This quilt is a gift that I made to Brenda York and President Waded Cruzado from Montana State University for all that they have done for Steve and I. Both women soon became what we called our guardians angel in red, white and blue. What they didn’t know was had it not been for the article we read with Brenda York’s comments in the from the July 2012 Missoulian, Steve would no longer be in school. He was fed up, failing classes, and falling more and more into his mental health issues because of the UM Yellow Ribbon catastrophe. With one phone call, Brenda made it possible for us to transfer to Montana State University quickly and smoothly within 2 months. She not only managed to get Steve in the right programs for the school, she made sure he wanted to take the classes he was taking and getting the major he was looking for. She is the one who showed him the doors to new places and then said, “Go in and figure it out. Let me know what you find, and don’t forget to kick butt while you are in there.” With that, President Cruzado has helped to create an amazing space for Veterans to come to school and pursue their college career by bringing in faculty and staff who understand that Veterans uniqueness and needs they bring to a classroom. Both Brenda and President Cruzado will never know just how much they have affected my life with their gifts of service, and for that I will always be grateful.

Size: 46.5” x 35.5”
Method: Paper Pieced - Machine Quilted
Design: Based off of Memories of Sisters Quilt pattern by Vivienne Moore
Fabrics:

• Hoffman Fabrics – Tiramisu Bali Pop and Blueberry Bali Pop for mountains and trees.
• The “ground” is Hoffman’s “Caramel” batik and the sky is “Ink”.
• The Armed Forces Stars are “Metallics Stonehenge Stone Chips” by Northcott Fabrics

Backing: “Woodland Quilters” by Kelly Mueller of the Wooden Bear for Red Rooster Fabrics. Binding: “Black Tonal Stone Texture” Stonehenge by Linda Ludovico for Northcott Fabrics. Double French binding.
Batting: 80% cotton, 20% polyester