Hooked on Quilting

Great day! I made a continuous bias binding and attached it and now I have a completed quilt to hand-sew the binding while I watch television. Lots of flaws, but I'm so happy to have this one ready to go. I've promised to smock some Christmas bishop dresses, so I'll have to take some time off from quilting, however, I think I'll load a baby quilt, just in case I have some time to play with the Pro-Stitcher. I'm almost ready to sell my unused groovy boards and rulers and such, anyone interested?

I am enjoying a quilting/sewing retreat at home this weekend so I actually finished the quilting of my first HQ16 Pro-Stitcher quilt! It's a Take 5 pattern and I see some piecing things that I wish I'd changed. I'd also wanted to add a second inside border, but that thought got lost in our move. This was one of my first classes I took at my LQS in MD. I didn't do the best job on piecing or placement on this one so I'm hoping I made most of my learning mistakes with it. I learned lots on how to program the Pro-Stitcher, however, I "nudged" nearly everything to get it to fit. Also, I designed, in QuiltCad, a little quilting motif for the inside border. I also did a single design in the corner because I didn't have time to learn how to intertwine the outside borders. All in all it turned out rather well. I run out of bobbin thread once and it's a bit of rat's mess right there, but I'm hoping to fix that. I hope I can remember how I did every...

Well, I should apologize for not posting for such a long time. Life just has a way of side-tracking us. <grin> Anyway, I've agreed to smock some Christmas dresses, so I'm about to renew my smocking skills and try to remember how to pleat and construct a bishop dress. I worked on my Take 5 quilt and learned a lot about how to use the HQ 16 with the Pro-Stitcher. It really doesn't take very long for the quilting process when it's automated. I'll be back with some photos--if I ever find that darned camera or move all the photos off of this card for my old one so I can share. I'm trying all things to make a design wall happen, but so far, nothing's worked, except in a room way down the hall and I've messed up twice carrying blocks from there. More soon.

I've gotten side-tracked from playing with my HQ16 Pro-Stitcher--call me scared--by starting a new project, Haunted House, a wall hanging for Halloween. Here's a few photos of the first steps...the window/shutters: Did a little playing tennis this weekend and fell so I'm not doing too much sitting as I really think I may have broken a rib or two.

My daughter has suffered a miscarriage and I made her a small quilt just to have around or she can put it away. Her call. How do you think I should quilt it?

I'm so excited! I finally put my HQ16 together and after switching out the monitor, it's ready to go!!! I have so many things I want to learn how to do.

Can you believe it? I won a small prize at one of the shops...no, not the $7K sewing machine! Two patterns, a stack of fat quarters and P&B fabric! Terribly excited! Can't wait for the next one...no, I haven't done the quilt yet!