Wednesday, September 17, 2014

Around the World Blog Hop

I'm late, I'm late for a very important date!

 My good friend Kathy of Kwilty Pleasures tagged me last week for this blog hop but in all honesty, I almost forgot about it due to some unexpected craziness around here last week, in the form of a trio of unscheduled medical professional visits plus 2 scheduled ones. Thankfully I got a quick reminder when reading others' blog posts and so I'm scrambling to get this written.

Kathy and I have been good bloggy friends over the past couple of years and I can always count on her for her honest opinions when I need it, a few great laughs now and then and lots of fabulous Halloween and Ghastlie eye candy as she shares my love of both. 
I'm sure you've seen this going around the blog-o-sphere a ton so far but it is still fun to participate and learn a little more about other quilters. So here goes:

1. What am I working on?

Truth be told...quite a number of projects at the moment are in the works including another 100 Good Wishes Quilt for a friend's daughter. All that I have to add to this are the borders and the top will be done and then it will be time to get it loaded on my frame and quilted. It will be gifted to her at Christmas.
Many of my recent evenings have been spent un-quilting the EMS quilt because during the initial stitching I got horrible tension results and a massive amount of eyelashes on the back. The industry trade show were this will be raffled off will be at the end of next month but I want it done and off my To Do list now. I have a small amount of unsewing to finish and then this one will be on the frame later this week.
I've pulled the next fabrics needed for The Primary Bee blocks to be made by the kidlets. The September Bee Prince requested Red and Blue and Yes these are Red even though they look a bit more Orange in this photo (blame the dang early morning pic with loads of fog outside instead of nice sunshine).
Along with the scheduled projects, I've also had an unscheduled one in the works in the form of a leader/ender quilt.  These charms have been sewn into rows and the rows are in the process of being stitched together into Nine Patch blocks.
And finally on the "Current" WIP list is my secret project using Kate Spain's newest line Horizon. I'm super excited about this project and can't wait until its big reveal which will happen later in the Fall but in the meantime I just might tease you some more with a few sneak peaks of the progress.

2. How does my work differ from others?

Lets see....I don't think my work differ from others all that much. Yet. I'm still a newish quilter, having only discovered this craft and my total obsession with it a mere 5 years ago. Since then I have made a quite a number of quilts and have started designing a few of my own which I hope to get published or distributed to local quilt shops and online for sale in the coming months.
With my patterns I'm both working with existing block patterns in new layouts and also creating totally new blocks which I will result in stunning new designs that I hope you will love.

3. Why do I create what I do?

Like so many others, I have an inborn need to create via whatever form I'm currently working in. I have learned that if I don't do something creative in 2-3 weeks I really start to get cranky and on edge.  That isn't pretty.It is my outlet and my escape from the daily life of work and kids, errands and household chores.  For the past 23 years I've also been a cake decorator (amongst other crafts I do) and although I don't do nearly as much of that as I have in prior years due to problems with my hands and, let's be totally honest here, much less time available for that since I've become quilting obsessed, I still enjoy the happiness my cakes bring to others.

Here are just a tiny sampling of the sugary confections I have made in the past.  This is just one of many, many wedding cakes I've made. This couple wanted simple elegance and this cake definitely showed that.
This cake was for my Grandmother's 90th birthday party.
And Yes this all was a wedding cake. The "Groom" was a Chocolate cake with Chocolate Mousse filling, the "Bride" was a White cake with my White Chocolate Raspberry Mousse filling and the "happy couple's" wedding cake was Italian Rum Cake with Bavarian Crème filling.
  It was all very yummy and disappeared in about 30 minutes. Nineteen hours of work was gone in a flash that is just one more reason why I prefer quilting now since my projects get much more love when they are created and don't end up as just a pile of leftover crumbs.

4. How does my creative process work?

This all depends on who I'm making the project for. Sometimes I want to make something for a specific person and I rack my brain and hunt for just the right idea to get me started.  Sometimes I have fabric that I just have to cut up into pieces and sew something together instead of just letting it age gracefully in my stash drawer.  Many times lately, my brain goes off on a totally new tangent and then I have that light bulb moment and a new project is born. 

More so now than ever, I'm continuously seeing project ideas in the world around me.  I'm forever snapping pictures with my camera or cell phone, printing out the photo and then start drafting yet another new idea from the inspiration.  Now I just need to find more time so that I can get those new ideas completed and the samples made.

I still enjoy looking through magazines and books for more inspiration and as usual typically find myself brewing up thoughts of changing this or that up just a tad and seeing a totally new look. As in my cake decorating days, sometimes all it takes is combining elements from a few different areas to create something fresh and alive.

So now, enough about me. As part of this hop, I'm supposed to tag other people to continue the party so I'm sending tags to:

Heather of A reformed heath'n - I "met" Heather when she joined my Quilt U Be Mine mini round robin 2 years ago. Ever since we've been keeping in touch over the interweb and she continues to join my newest parties.  I hope you enjoy "meeting" her and getting to know her better.

My good bloggy friend Bea of Beaquilter, another fun person that I "met" when she joined my first ever hosted event, the Modern Mini Mystery Round Robin (which she is also begging me to do again). She was instrumental and so helpful when I was researching longarm brands and I think she was beyond tickled Pink when I ended up buying a Voyager 17 like she has.  Now that my Penelope has received her fancy schmancy upgrade, I'm trying to convince Bea that she needs to upgrade her Voyager too.

Check in with Heather and Bea next Monday the 22nd to see their posts. This hop certainly has been fun, learning about so many others quilters and what inspires them.





7 of you added your own colorful comments:

Kathy @ Kwilty Pleasures said...

Great post. WOW those cakes are incredible. I did cake decorating about 30 years ago on a very small scale. Imstill have my Wilton tips and a thingy to make a rose. LOL I wouldn't remember what the heck to do with em now! Thanks for playing tag!

beaquilter said...

Oh I Looove those cakes, the wedding couple is hilarious!

Yeah I NEED the upgrade, want to pay for it?? I've turned off the SLR and it's much better overall.

How many people do we tag?? I need to start emailing people and ask.

HeatherK @ A Reformed Heath'n said...

I love learning new things about my online friends :) I can't believe how many quilts you're working on. I get overwhelmed with more than 2 on my desk at a time.

Needled Mom said...

.....and you do cakes too???? Those are fabulous and my mouth is watering as I read about them.

Siouxzq64@gmail.com said...

Oh my your cakes are gorgeous, just like your quilts.

Carol said...

Your cakes are wonderful. I love the bride and groom. They are hilarious. I can totally see how watching people eat all your hard work in minutes would be difficult.

Carol said...

What Voyager upgrade? Did I miss something?