Locker Hook Rugs

Four years ago I made a locker hook rug for my husband for Christmas. Locker Hook rugs are made using fabric strips, cotton string, and rug canvas using a special tool that looks like a crochet hook with a large needle eye. It's an original design with my husband's sailboat as the center and the shoreline of Lake Murray as seen from our lake house. My second rug was the state of SC. Then I taught my sister to make them. She's made at least 20 rugs, teaches classes, and sells them. She even gave me one as a present.

Buzz Saw

Buzz Saw was made using forty 2 1/2" strips of civil war reproduction fabrics and twenty 2 1/2" civil war reproduction background fabrics along with a navy border fabric. The quilt was very easy to make. I really had fun quilting feathers in the light areas. Finished quilt is 60 x 72.

Floral Jelly Rolly

I made this quilt using 40 strips of different floral fabrics a couple of years ago. One of my friends quilted it for me for my birthday 2 years ago using her computerized longarm machine. I really appreciated her thoughtfulness in quilting of one of my quilts as a gift so I gave one of my friends a gift certificate for quilting one of her quilts for a housewarming gift.

Stepping Up

I made this lap quilt a few months ago. I'm working on making another slightly larger version of it in blue, green, purple with a purple fish print border. It's made from fat quarters. As usual, I've changed the orginal instructions to be efficient in cutting and sewing with no fabric waste. I quilted varigated feathers on the one shown.

t-Shirt Quilt

A customer requested a t-shirt quilt for her son from his baseball shirts. I made this quilt using just 6 shirts. It's 54x54 with baseball fabric on the back. I also made a matching pillowcase and embroidered a label for the quilt.

Unnamed blue/yellow quilt

I made this quilt several months ago but it still doesn't have a name. It's quilted with allover flowers and hangs in the quilt shop so that I can show customers one of my quilting designs. It's fairly large, probably about 80x80. Any suggestions on names?

Dorito's Quilt

Lex love's my new Dorito quilt because it's personal. The saying on it says 'If I bury a bone, will it grow to be a Bones-I tree?' It will be hanging at the lake house on the breaker box cover with the dog leashes hanging on hooks below it.

B&W backing

As you can see the back of 'Black and White Lime Squeeze is quite bright. I guess all of the color from the front drained to the back. lol. The quilt is 80 x 86 so it's about the right size for a full bed. Why not make the back of a quilt as fun as the front?

Black and White Lime Squeeze

Here's my most recent quilt. The back of it is full of color - bright pink, purple, lime green. It was very challenging to quilt because I couldn't see where I'd already stitched with the white thread.

FPQG Quilt Show

The local quilt show was this past weekend. I won one first place and three third place ribbons. Seems I should have won two second place ribbons too. (1 1st, 3 3rd).
The first place was for a quilt I call Stepping Up. I had fun quilting feather designs on it.
The 3rd places were for a tote bag, my mini baltimore and the Hearts on Fire (same quilt from the H&C challenge.) These winning quilts can be viewed on foothillsquilts.com.
I was disappointed that my Black and White Lime Squeeze didn't place but happy that some of the quilts I quilted for others won ribbons.

Upcoming Quilt Show

Foothills Piecemakers Quilting Guild is having their bi-annual quilt show April 16-17. I'm working on quilting a couple of quilts for members to put in the show. I'm also in charge of the quilt show directory. After I get the directory to the printer, I have 2 quilts of my own to finish. There are about 180 quilts in the show (I know since I'm doing the directory).
We're also deep in baseball season. On the way to the baseball game Sat., we stopped at the quilt store in Lexington and I am now scheduled to teach a class there in May!

Swag border

One of my customers made a Dresden Plate quilt and wanted a swag border. The photo is from the back of the quilt. I think it looks great. I hope she adds a curved binding.

Quilt Shop Challenge

In celebration of the quilt store in Central, SC being open for 25 years, they issued a challenge. Using fabric from their store, make a quilt. Of course their were size limitations and they didn't announce the challenge until Oct. and the deadline was end of Dec. I picked out my fabric mid Nov. and completed the quilt (along with my Christmas presents) by end of Dec. Heirlooms & Comforts had the quilts critiqued on 2 pages of items - quilting design, seams meeting, binding, etc. Although I didn't win the judging, I did win viewers choice. I was thrilled and immediately spent my gift certificate. The photos are the original fabric and the quilt I made from it. The interior is made from just the one fabric.

Quilting Retreat - not much quilting

This past weekend about 25 quilters attended a retreat in the mountains. We arrived about 10am Fri. We set-up socialized, ate, and sewed. Did I mention it snowed? We woke up to complete darkness - no power. With snow on the roads and trees down blocking the roads, there was no leaving either. A roaring fire kept us warm and provided light while we did whatever quilting we could do - basically handsewing or cutting fabric. Power was supposed to be back on by 5pm. Then 5pm changed to 7pm. At 7pm we started playing games (while passing around a flashlight). Eventually (9pm) it was time to retire, especially since the fire was dying down. Originally we were in 2 separate cabins, but there was only one generator. So everyone moved to the larger cabins, with some people sharing double beds. The generator was started about 8pm to power the heater. Problem was the door had to be cracked open to run the power cord into the building with temperatures dropping to 17. After the fire alarm went off at 2am, we turned off the generator because the door being cracked open was letting out more heat than the heater was generating. Next morning (still with no power) after the snow started melting, we left, passing various tree and power company trucks. First I showered, then slept, then quilted.