Only 13 days until QuiltFest in Jacksonville, FL, and there are many things to do (not counting all the months of work the Board members have put in since the show last year!).
Tomorrow is Take-In, when local quilters bring their creations to one of several locations around the area. Mail-in quilts have already been received and assigned to volunteers who will care for them through the show.
There's no minute like the Last Minute! It's been tha Last Minute for a couple days around here, but I am happy to say I am ready to go for tomorrow morning!
I did have time to do a mediocre job of quilting down the pink border on Roxanne's Honeymoon.The border is 2" wide, so I marked every 2 " with my handy chalk marker. Using 3 marks, I started at one side mark , curved up to the next mark on the other side, then aimed backed down to the third mark to stitch an arc shape.
(note use of the term "aimned"...I was in a hurry and doing this by eyeball...'nuff said!).
The arc continued from one end of the border to the other. Then I went back and started on the opposite side, but making the same arcs using 3 marks. This ultimatley creates a design called "Egg & Dart", an oval and a diamond alternating along the border.
I will say this: it does improve on the un-quilted look the border had, and since the thread matches the fabric perfectly, the quilting design is not too noticable.
That was it for Roxanne's...I already had the binding, sleeve and label on!
So on to The Black T-Shirt Quilt.
I kept hoping I could just leave it alone, yet it still wanted more quilting.
Today I did free-motion quilting all through the various sized sashings, and they are improved by having some stitching in them.
This quilt may have the perfect backing fabric:
It didn't matter if I used red or black, top or bottom, it all desappeared into this busy print!That was fine until I had to go look for the thread ends to snip.
You can see here a clip-on reading light, which I needed to find the thread, and a great pair of little scissors. They have curved handlesso I can keep my hand above the quilt, and then the ends curve back up, too, so they are not as likely to poke through the fabric.
At last, two quilts bagged and ready to go!
The one on the right is going in a pillowcase I have especially for show entries. I took a big Sharpie pen and wrote my name, address and phone number really big on each side. The fabric is red & white striped, so it's easy to pick out of a pile.
The one on the left is going in a humongous bag I sewed for toting quilts...first, it is rather ugly, so nobody would want to take it. Secondly, and most important, it is HUGE.
Friends, do not send your quilts to a show stuffed into a bag like a sausage!
I know tomorrow at Take-In we will see some that are so tight inside their bag that it's a struggle to get them out. The after we check the measurements, paperwork, and show requirements (such as the sleeve being 90" from the bottom of the quilt), it is extremely hard to get that quilt back into the bag! It really puts un-needed stress on the quilt.
And consider this: by the time a quilt is checked in, judged, hung at the show and then taken down so you can have it back, it has been in and out of that bag 4--5 times!
Be kind to your quilt AND the show volunteers....use a bag that holds the quilt comfortably!
We have 4 hours to check 71 quilts at the Take-In where I'll be working. It will be busy, hard work, and lots of fun!
I'll try to get some pictures for you to take a peek behind the scenes.
After we're done, the quilts will be loaded into 2 vehicles (yes, the QuiltMobile is one!) and delivered to the hotel where the judging will be done over the following 3 days.
Stay tuned for more Quilt Show Countdown!
Meanwhile....
several people have been asking about Shayla O'Puss and her adjustment from living in a shelter to living in a house.
I am happy to report, she has settled in quite well,and is friendly to my husband and other people, if they are sitting down (she's still suspicious of anyone on their feet!).
She's pretty well taken over the whole house, and enjoys her roles as Office Cat and Studio Cat.
But first and foremost, she is....
A QUILT CAT!
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