Thursday, May 29, 2014

A Quilt for Meghan...

The sewing community and quilting world can be such a wonderful place to share life events....
whether it is difficult times or times of joy...
the folks you sew with and the things you create are often expressions of the journey...


I began stitching with a group of girls about a year ago...
we worked our way through Kathy Doughty's Gypsy Kisses quilt.  You know the quilt!  That amazing pickle dish!

 
some have finished....some are still working, but that's okay, there are no deadlines...afterall, it's about the journey.


Since the year we have been meeting, one has moved and now has to book a flight for our sewing get-togethers...one is about to have a baby...and one has just gotten married!

Naturally, a quilt is the perfect gift to mark such an occasion!
Jenny and Amanda set to work.

They had some very special help!


Even Milo got into the act!


I was thrilled to be able to contribute a label!  Meghan likes robots and Adam is an artist...


It all came together perfectly!
Doesn't this quilt just sparkle?!

    
Congratulations and Best Wishes Adam and Meghan!
xo mary  

Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Liberation!

It is getting warm in Ohio!  I think our Spring lasted about 5 hours!

But no matter how steamy the temps, the quilting continues :)

sorry for the pictures...not sure if it was the light or my camera
 
 I love revisiting liberated quilting....Gwen Marston is the woman behind this process.  If you have not heard of Gwen or read any of her books....I highly recommend them.  I began quilting long before the days of blogs and you-tube videos.  I read every quilting book I could get my hands on.  It is wonderful to have the internet for quick research, but I think books are so much more comprehensive.     


How fun are these 'sails' in pops of solid color! Liberated Quiltmaking is a very forgiving process.  No need obsess over seam allowance or accurate cutting.  

I have posted a tutorial on the process for making this block...but it is worth a refresher...
Begin with your foundation piece of fabric.  I have used Kona Snow for my foundation fabric...the piece in my example is 4" X 6"...therefore my block will be 4 X 6.

     
 for the 'sail' you can use scraps of fabric...the smaller the scrap the smaller the sail....and vice versa.  

I have cut a solid red piece a little larger because I want it to extend from the lower left corner to the upper right corner.


Next I place my red fabric on top of the snow foundation fabric.  Place it so the corner you want covered is exposed.  This can seem awkward, but as soon as it is stitched you will flip it into place.

  
  

stitch with a 1/4 inch seam allowance and flip the 'sail' piece open and press.

   
now turn the entire block over so you are looking at the wrong side of the block.  Using your ruler and rotary trim the 'sail' even with the edges of the foundation piece.


You can see my red fabric is much larger than I needed....


Next, trim away the excess foundation fabric to reduce bulk.



There you go!  Now you can set your own sails!  Make your own summer sailing quilt!


xo mary

Friday, May 23, 2014

And then....I won! Thank you, McMaster & Storm....

I enter a few giveaways now and then...
But there was one on Instagram that I was truly hoping I would win!

Well...wish, wish, wish...
and I won!


 
I have mentioned before, how I love great packaging...and Kara has it down perfectly!  Just the right touches!


 So what did I win, you ask?


a European stapler and all the goodies seen here!
Extra staples, and tags!


Oh my!  This will certainly come in handy!  
I have stalked watched Kara and her website for years! Her family is located in Ohio (my state).  Unfortunately, I found her after she transitioned from a Brick and Mortar store to an online store.  

But none-the-less, I love her style.  It is nostalgic, warm and authentic.  

She has some wonderful items in her shop and there is much more to come in 2014.  So, please, keep an eye on her! 

Before I leave, I also wanted to make you aware of a pod cast featuring my dear friend Rachel from Family Ever After!  You really should listen!  She is just such a sweetie!  You can find the link on her blog....OR....go directly to Modern Sewciety!

Have a great Memorial weekend!
mary 

        
 

Thursday, May 15, 2014

We Have a Winner!

The winner of the Arizona bundle....

 
a number randomly selected by 'The Boy'....is....

 
# 25 Patti!!!!

Patti...I am sending you an email to get your mailing address!!! Yay!

I will be gone for the weekend.  Cuz, this little Piggy is going to Market!!!

  
I hope to come back full of inspiration!  I will be sure to give you a complete review.

Congrats, Patti!
xo mary

Arizona Giveaway....{the American Southwest}

It is my day on the Arizona blog tour!  As I mentioned in my last post, Arizona is a Limited Edition line from Art Gallery Fabrics.  Art Gallery chose 3 designers to share their vision.  Arizona is the vision of April Rhodes!
  

When I was asked to participate in the blog tour, I started brain-storming ideas for my makes.  I have spent some time in our wonderful American Southwest!  When I was a child, my family traveled west to visit my uncle in Los Angeles.  It was a car trip in a huge 1964 station wagon...from Ohio to California.  No air conditioning...mom and dad and three kids...pulling a pop-up camper!  
It was awesome!  We hit all the hot spots along the way...

  
  
that's me with the cheesy smile...at the Grand Canyon.

I learned so much about our western country on that trip...and gained such an appreciation and compassion for the Native American culture.  I recall stopping at a gas station in New Mexico. Almost every gas station had a souvenir shop selling bad knock-offs of Native American culture. A tourist attempted to take a picture of an older woman. She was obviously a member of a Native Tribe, but she ducked behind a post when the man pointed his camera at her.  I was told that she didn't want her photograph taken because this would steal her soul. Even as a child, I knew there was more to these people and their culture than the trinkets being sold on every corner.

Many years later, I traveled again to the Southwest to stay with my sister in Oklahoma.  Her husband was stationed at an Air Force base in Oklahoma and I spent many summers living with her while on vacation from school.

Not only did I learn more about the Native Tribes in the area, but about the women of the prairie.  
I was shocked when I saw my first sod house!

       
This is actually a much nicer version of the sod house I saw!  The one I visited was not nearly so swanky!  
  I could not believe the fortitude of the pioneers who traveled West. These were people who left their familiar surroundings behind in hopes of a better life.  Even as rough as the sod house seemed, it was their home and their piece of land.
 They were Sooners!
  They raced to claim a piece of the "Unassigned Land". Of course, these lands were opened up for settlement because of the Indian Appropriations Act.  Seems like a nice title for an Act that moved the Native Americans from their land to reservations.
The west is a huge expansive area...it's unfortunate a better solution could not be found.   

 Well, I could go on and on about my love for the American Southwest and my appreciation of our Native American people and their culture... 
      they truly are a National Treasure.

I decided on two projects for the Arizona blog tour...

 
 A small quilt...

actually a very large version of an Album Block...

 
 I replicated the Arizona as it appears on the selvedge of the fabric.

 
 it is quilted by machine in the ditch and then hand quilted.
 
I had another idea rattling around in my brain!  
A pillow...similar to this one...

     
But, of course, I wanted it to reflect the American Southwest...
 what is more iconic than the image of a longhorn!


I hope I captured it...

This is the final week of the blog tour!  

Thursday, May 1 - Anna Graham / @noodlehead531
Friday, May 2 - Shelley Figueroa / @figgysstudio
Saturday, May 3 - Julie Herman / @jaybirdquilts
Sunday, May 4 -  Erin Sobon Sundet / @sewbon
Monday, May 5 - Jenna Brand / @howtobejenna
Tuesday, May 6 - Kelli Ward / @truebias
Wednesday, May 7 - Rachel Howard - @familyeverafter
Thursday, May 8 - Delia Randall / @deliacreates
Friday, May 9 - Kelly Costas / @cutcutsew
Saturday, May 10 - Rachel Gander / @imaginegnats
Sunday, May 11 - Devon Iott / @missmake
Monday, May 12 - Mary Dugan / @mollyflanders
Tuesday, May 13 - Shannon Cook / @soveryshannon
Wednesday, May 14 - Penny Layman / @sewtakeahike
Thursday, May 15 - Katie Blakesley / @swimbikequilt

 But you still have a few chances to win your very own fat quarter bundle of Arizona!  

For my giveaway you will have two chances to win....here's what you need to do....
1. Become a follower of Molly Flanders and leave a comment here
and for a second chance
2. Become a follower of my Instagram and leave another comment here that you did!  There is a link to my Instagram on the right or you can find my account under MARYSDUGAN

Please be sure that you are not a No Reply Blogger or leave an email address in your comment.

I will close the giveaway on Thursday May 15th.

Best of luck!  
xo mary  

   

Saturday, May 10, 2014

A Giveaway is Coming!

That's right! Monday is my day on the Arizona blog tour! I will be sharing my makes for Quilt Market....


and that means you will have a chance to win a bundle of Arizona...a Limited Edition of Art Gallery Fabrics by April Rhodes!
So be sure to stop by on Monday!

 
Have a lovely Mother's Day weekend!
xo mary 

Monday, May 5, 2014

Checking In....

Well, May is off to a busy start!
I am preparing a couple of projects for a quilt market booth.  I am sure the entire quilting and sewing world has heard of the wonderful opportunity Art Gallery Fabrics has launched with their limited edition line of fabrics.  They have chosen a group of three Bloggers/Seamstresses/Pattern designers to design a line of fabric.  It is my understanding, this will continue with another round of designers chosen to represent their ideas in fabric!
So the first round of designers include: Caroline Hulse, Sara Lawson, and April Rhodes.
I am creating a couple of projects for April Rhodes booth...
so here is a sneak peek...

   
I will be hosting a bit of a giveaway here on the 12th. of May....so be sure to stop back...

    
This quilt is finally bound and washed....


I have decided to open an Etsy shop for baby size quilts....
That is still in the works...I have often been asked if I sell my quilts.  Years ago I did sell my quilts and bags in a small boutique near my home town.  Then the economy went south and that was that.  My focus this time around is much more narrow and completely on my own terms.  


Like most quilters, my mind is always creating!  This will give me an added incentive to create...totally for the joy and love of it!

Oh....and I am going to Quilt Market in Pittsburgh!  Yay!  My first time going to Quilt Market...what a great opportunity.

So what is on your plate for May?  I would love to hear!
xo mary