Melissa and Mike surprize the pants off me! Not quite...

Oh boy - did I get a wonderful surprize from Melissa and Mike! On Friday night, they called to say they had found an antique Singer sewing machine at a local thrift store. I was a bit skeptical because all the antique machines I have seen have usually been too far gone to actually use - which is what I plan to do.

When they got the machine home on Saturday, I was shocked to see that they had found a 1928 Singer Model 99 in absolutely beautiful condition! The pics don't do it justice, but all the gold filagree is intact and barely worn. The sewing arm is graced with a beautiful silver filagree piece that is gorgeous!

The electrical cords are original, fabric wrapped cord that is frayed slightly. I am going to have the machine restored so that I can use it. I would like the cords to be replaced, and perhaps a foot pedal control added instead of the knee control that the machine has.

If the machine sews like I think it is going to, then this machine will become my "piecing" machine, the large Baby Lock will be for my quilitng, and the new Baby Lock will be used for travelling and decorative stitches.

I am so excited! I'll keep you posted on my progress restoring this machine!

K

Dear Janiac

For several years now, I have been awestruck by the civil war era quilt. So, I decided to make one and have become a Janiac! The blocks are tiny and there are 5606 pieces to the quilt! Hope I make it! I'll keep you posted!

There are 13 vertical rows and 13 horizontal rows. Each horizontal row is given a letter A-M and each vertical row is given a number 1-13. Using a grid, each block is then given a code. For instance, the upper left block is A-1, the next one is A-2 and so on.

When I first got the materials a couple of weekends ago, I made A-1 and !-2, which were tough, but not too bad, even for a small block. Over the weekend, I prepared A-3 for hand applique (which I will do in the evening while watching TV with Fred) and completed A-4.

How much fun!!

K

Living Rooom Quilt

Here is a pic of the quilt I have hanging in my living room. Of course, my little boy is the real object of this pic!

As you can see, there is another beehive!

Cherry Pie Quilt

Here is a pic of the quilt I have hanging in my dining room. It is called "Cherry Pie."

My Sewing Room

Lots of people ask me about my sewing room, so here it is. I love it! My husband helped me set it ip several years ago.

Many years ago, my father purchased an old library table that had been painted many, many layers of paint. He refinished the table and it turned out so beautifully! The table has two large drawers that I use for my sewing tools. The table is also tall enough that it doesn't hurt my back to sit and sew. I put the table up on blocks when I baste quilts so that I don't have to get on my knees

I have a large closet that holds all my projects and extra stuff. I also have shelves lining one whole wall with all my fabric and books on it. The opposite wall has my design wall on it.

Completed Quilts

Here are a couple of quilts that I made in the past:

1. Pieceful Harbors - This quilt is hanging on the wall of my family room

2. Martin's Piano - I made this quilt with a friend as a gift for my daughter's piano teacher:

Quilts in the "Sewing the Block" Stage

Here is my list of quilts in the making-the-block stage

1. Forever Friends Quilt - I am drawn to quilts with beehives on them because they remind me of my daughter, Melissa. Her name is Greek for "honeybee." I have gotten her lots of bee things for gifts over the years and bees have become her trademark, so to speak. I am going to hang this quilt in my living room. I am trying to make a variety of quilts that match my living room so that I can rotate them. That helps to decrease the amount of light to which they are exposed and also makes it more interesting to look at.

I have finished the block with the beehive (of course!), the block with the red roofed birdhouse and blue butterflies, and the greenish birdhouse in the middle. The next one is the birdhouse with the red and white checkboard pattern. These are really fun blocks to make! I am really looking forward to making the border, for once! I usually do not really like making borders, but this one looks like fun!

2. Rosebud Lane Cottage Quilt - This quilt is for our master bedroom wall. Our bedroom is red and green and also has a "victorian house" kind of theme. I have all kinds of victorian house pics and such, so I thought this would look great above our bed. My husband, Fred, is so cool with our bedroom decor. He is not worried that it is too feminine. He just wants me to be happy. What a neat guy!

I have finished the top three houses. I am getting ready to work on the left bottom one.

3. Main Street Quilt - This is another quilt that I have planned to hang on the living room wall. It is sure great that I have such high ceilings! You can probably tell that I like old-fashioned houses!

4. Summer Lonestar Quilt - This is a pic from my sewing room while the quilt is on the design wall. Here is another pic of how it "should" look when I am done! I am not exactly sure what I am going to do this this quilt. I may hang it in my office. These are not the colors of my house, but I really like jewel-tone colors and I liked this quilt so much that I decided to go with the brights instead of the duller country colors.

5. Montana Cartwheel - Another quilt for my living room wall. I just love the way this quilt looks! Of course, mine is planned for browns, greens, and red.