#45 "Starburst" {March 2014}

Size: 17.5" w x 17.5" h
Pattern: "Starburst" by Canoe Ridge Creations (Fresh Mini Quilt Club)
Fabrics:
Moda Bella Solids: Feather
Moda Bella Solids: Kansas Red
Moda Bella Solids: Cheddar
Moda Bella Solids: Dark Teal
Moda Bella Solids: Charcoal
Thread: Aurifil Quilt Patchwork and Embroidery Thread - Bright White (2024) 50wt
Backing: Moda Bella Solids: Black
Batting: Warm and Natural
Binding: Moda Bella Solids: Charcoal

#44 "Modern Chevron Multiplicity" {March 2014}

Size: 19.5” w x19.5” h
Pattern: "Flyin' South" by Canoe Ridge Creations (Fresh Mini Quilt Club)
Fabrics:
Moda Bella Solids: Feather
Moda Bella Solids: Pesto
Moda Bella Solids: Charcoal
Thread: Aurifil Quilt Patchwork and Embroidery Thread - Bright White (2024) 50wt
Backing: Moda Bella Solids: Black
Batting: Warm and Natural
Binding: Moda Bella Solids: Charcoal
Having spent the better part of 4 months sewing nothing but chevron fabric camera straps and then receiving this pattern....

#43 "Bits of Wire" {March 2014}

Size: 21” w x 21” h
Pattern: "Stix" by Canoe Ridge Creations (Fresh Mini Quilt Club)
Fabrics:
Moda Bella Solids: Feather
Moda Bella Solids: Kansas Red
Moda Bella Solids: Chocolate
Moda Bella Solids: Cheddar
Moda Bella Solids: Longhorn
Moda Bella Solids: Pesto
Moda Bella Solids: Dark Teal
Moda Bella Solids: Lagoon
Moda Bella Solids: Merlot
Moda Bella Solids: Charcoal
Thread: Aurifil Quilt Patchwork and Embroidery Thread - Bright White (2024) 50wt
Backing: Moda Bella Solids: Black
Batting: Warm and Natural
Binding: Moda Bella Solids: Charcoal

#42 "Winter Lights" {March 2014}

Size: 24” w x 24” h
Pattern: "Winter Sky" (Adapted) by Canoe Ridge Creations (Fresh Mini Quilt Club)
Fabrics:
Moda Bella Solids: Feather
Moda Bella Solids: Lagoon
Moda Bella Solids: Dark Teal
Thread: Aurifil Quilt Patchwork and Embroidery Thread - Bright White (2024) 50wt
Backing: Moda Bella Solids: Black
Batting: Warm and Natural
Binding: Moda Bella Solids: Charcoal

#37 “Mental Heath Service Dog” {February 2014}

Size: 18” x 18”

Made for Ron Murray of Montana Murray Kennels

A Mental Health Service Dog can be trained to help with the effects of a disabling condition classified as a psychiatric disability.  In particular, tasks were developed for people who are officially diagnosed as having as well as disabled by Panic Disorders, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Depression, or conditions associated to a brain chemistry malfunction.

The stigma in having one or all of these conditions is horrific. We are consistently labeled as having “This Problem” or “That Angry/Violent Disease” or “The Sadness Issue.” All we want it to be “Normal.”  Somedays our brains feel like shards of different colored glass. Nothing fits right and “normal” activities become a big deal.  Words meant with kindness come out as criticism.  There are days where everything you try to do makes it worse, so what is the point of getting up and putting yourself through the Harsh Words, The Staring, The pulling of the children away, and the “Get it together!” pep talks. With the help of a MHSD, they help us take those shards and put them in an order that allows us to do The Normal.

Training a dog for these tasks is a gift and shows both a firm compassion as well as a heart of knowledge. Training a person to work with a dog trained for this, well, you need to be sainted. We’ve met one saint in Florida, this is for our saint here in Montana. Ron has stepped up to the plate on many, many occasions for both Charlie and Bentley and more so for Steve and myself. To be able to put himself on our shoes and think the process over before telling us “Nope, you are doing it incorrectly” or “You are confusing the dog” his mind set is to see a pack that works together as a healthy, happy, functioning Team. We’ve watch him work with small children, small dogs, big adults and massive dogs. We are all Ron’s Pack with the secret password of AT-AT, Shhh-Leave-It.  Sometimes it takes him pulling us back away from the situation to see the shard of colored glass scattered and tell us, “Let the dog help you! Let him do his job!”

Thank you Ron for all of your support, your knowledge, your laughter and your firm/gentle reminders.

Fabric: Bella Solids for Moda
Thread: Aurifil Quilt Patchwork and Embroidery Thread - White
Backing: Bella Solids for Moda - Black
Batting: Warm and Natural
Binding: Bella Solids for Moda - Black

#26: "Retro Vogue" {January 2013}

The retro/vintage red's and teal's blend beautifully into the grays, pinks and sage greens giving this line of fabric a fun, funky, vintage feel without going overboard on the colors.

Size: 19.25" x 19.25"
Pattern: The original quilt design. The pattern is a series half square triangle blending from light gray to pink to red to teal. These were left over scraps from the “L4” quilt and I wanted to challenge myself to make a mini quilt.
Fabric:

• Vintage Modern by Bonnie & Camille for Moda
• Kona Solids - White

Backing: Apple Of My Eye" by The Quilted Fish for Riley Blake
Binding: Apple Of My Eye" by The Quilted Fish for Riley Blake
Batting: Mountain Mist White Rose 100% cotton needled batting

#25: "Present Primitive" {January 2013}

I am a broke quilter, so when I get fabric I will use everything up to and including the "Scrap Barf" a.k.a., the little tiny pieces. So when I made our Kat and Goggie Yule Stockings this year, I purchased 2 charm packs of this fabric. With the exception of the backing, all of these fabrics were leftover "Scrap Barf" from the project. At that time, the chevron patterns were starting to come back into fad again, so after the New Year, I decided to give one a try! The colors leaned to a very "primitive country" style, particularly when paired with the deep reds and blue. The quilting along the red boarder what my very first ever attempt to free-hand quilting. That's where I discovered that if I listened to music instead of my audible book, my quilting would become more free-flowing and I would have a lot of fun just playing with it!

Size: 20.5" x 23"
Pattern: Self created chevron
Fabrics:

• Front: "Holiday Medley" by Kansas Troubles Holiday Medley for Moda - 100% Cotton
• Back: "Navy Blue Stripe" by Kansas Troubles for Moda - 100% Cotton

Binding: "Navy Blue Stripe" by Kansas Troubles for Moda - 100% Cotton
Batting: Pellon Legacy White Quilt Batting, 100% Cotton

#20: "L4 (L to the 4th Power)" {October 2012}

This wall quilt will bring a neat vintage pizazz to any home, office, or classroom!
The retro/vintage red's and teal's blend beautifully into the grays, pinks and sage greens giving this line of fabric a fun, funky, vintage feel without going overboard on the colors.
Size: 25.5” x 25.5”
Pattern: A traditional nine-patch block surrounding the machine appliquéd words: Live, Laugh, Learn, Love using white thread on the white muslin. The effect is both stunning and subtle and allows the pop of the color to draw the eye to the quilt.
Fabrics:

• Vintage Modern by Bonnie & Camille for Moda
• Kona Solids - White

Backing: Riley Blake Designs "Apple Of My Eye" by The Quilted Fish
Binding: Riley Blake Designs "Apple Of My Eye" by The Quilted Fish
Batting: Mountain Mist White Rose 100% cotton needled batting.

#14: "Only If" {March 2012}

Leftover fabric? Me? have you SEEN my Lab? So I had these tiny little 2″x 2″ swatches of the “Good Fortune” by Kate Spain for Moda Fabrics charm pack left over from the “Good Fortune to You and Yours” quilt and I thought these would make a cute mini/wall hanging. I still like the textured “Raw Edge Pez” quilt pattern created by Megan from Canoe Ridge Creations, but reverse it.

Size: 24″ x 24″
Design: Based off the “Raw Edge Pez” quilt pattern created by Megan from Canoe Ridge Creations. Colored pieces are sewn onto a white thick muslin. The ends of the colored squares are frayed to give it more of a texture and a softer feeling. Each square is then quilted twice around in order for it to “puff” up a bit more and make them stand out
Method: Machine pieced and quilted
Backing: Light heather gray background with white tropical/Hawaiian flowers and leaves
Binding: Light heather gray background with white tropical/Hawaiian flowers and leaves
Batting: Warm and Natural 100% cotton
Thread: Gütermann - White

# 15: "Lazy Days" {March 2012}

So, I had another stash of charms....And obviously I needed to do MORE in my world! So I found a delightful pattern online called The Bookworm but P2 quilting. It was too easy and fit these blocks to a T! This quilt was one of those, "Oh hey! I've got more charms I can do something with!" quilts. I loved the summery colors of the Central Park pack, and I happened across the Bookworm photos from Patchwork Squared, and even though my charms were smaller, I think the end results were way cool! I happened to be listening to "The Hunger Games" while I was creating the patchwork and decided to do a random drawing (just like the book) for each of the squares. I guess that kind of makes me like Effie?

Size: 34" x 40"
Design: "Bookworm" by Patchwork Squared.
Method: Machine pieced and quilted quilt
Fabric: "Central Park" by Kate Spain for Moda Fabrics charm pack.
Backing: Dark chocolate background with white sprigs of Queen Ann's lace.
Binding: Grey/brown circle on circle pattern
Batting: Warm and Natural 100% cotton

#11 "Geek Love" {July 2011}

We have a "Big Bang Theory" and Geek Haven type of bathroom decor. Yeah, yeah, I know, the jokes abound. Needless to say I wanted something in there that softened it up and came up with this design having found a website that will calculate what elements spell out the word you want.
Size: 20" x 16"
Method: Machine pieced and quilted. Machine embroidered.
Fabric: Scraps leftover from attempts of making really, really bad cell phone pouches.
Backing: Black swirls
Binding: Black swirls
Batting: Warm and Natural 100% cotton

#10: "Big Bang Theory" {April 2011}

Miniature wall hanging made for an acquaintance for his birthday.
Size: 24" x 12"
Design: Paper piecing star design from from Carol Doak from her Introduction to Paper Piecing Free Pattern from Carol Doak
Fabrics: Scraps
Backing: "Canyon" ???
Binding: Kona Solid - Black
Batting: Warm and Natural 100% Cotton
Thread: Gütermann - White

#9 "Above All" {June 2010}

A 2010 Father's Day gift to my father, Gary, who was a pilot in the USAF. The top left shows the year he took his oath and the year he retired and the Air Force motto: Above All in the lower right hand corner.

Size: 24" x 24"
Design: The Air Force Star from The Quilters Cache
Method: Paper piecing, machine quilted and embroidered.
Fabrics: Verious JoAnn sale finds
Backing: Kona Solids - Navy
Binding: Kona Solids - Navy
Batting: Warm and Natural
Thread: Gütermann White and Navy