Lisa Kay Knits... and Quilts!

My brother married his bride, Stephanie, in 2001. Well before-hand, I decided to make a wedding quilt for them, and I twisted our mom's arm into agreeing to hand-quilt it. Mom even purchased a Grace Company quilt frame especially for the purpose. Well, one thing led to another, and it was just over half quilted before Mom was unable to work on it any more due to her arthritis. There were three of seven rows of blocks remaining to quilt, along with the top borders. Flash forward about 14 years... In all the time that it has been waiting to be finished, I knew I *could* finish hand quilting it, but I just didn't get my mind set to do it. One reluctance was remembering how rough and sore my fingers would get from even just a little bit of hand quilting. Last summer, I came across the "TJ's Quick Quilter" spoon, and I decided it was the answer to the problem. I tried out the spoon technique on a little bit of a small quilt (which I haven't actually finished, ye...

As I was making the "Summer in the Park" quilts (previous post), I ordered more jelly rolls (and flat strip packs) to make two quilts for my nephews. For Dane's quilt, I chose red and blue. Those are the same colors I used in Dane's baby quilt . For Reese's quilt, I wasn't sure what colors I wanted to use, and I just looked for batik strips that appealed to me and didn't seem girly. I ended up with earthy colors. I hope it isn't too dark. When it came time to make them, I decided to do something different than Summer in the Park. Dane's quilt uses a simple checkboard which is simple to assemble by sewing four 2.5" strips together lengthwise and then cutting them crosswise 2.5" apart and flipping every other unit before sewing them back together. I kept the sewn blocks in units of four and then alternated the types of blocks for a checkerboard within a checkerboard. The second quilt I decided to make into a log cabin. I had eno...

I made these "his and hers" quilts for my mom and dad. I used jelly rolls in batik prints, a mix of different brands and colors, choosing a half of the jelly rolls in neutrals to get the contrast. The pattern is based on a "Summer in the Park" tutorial I found on Pinterest from Missouri Star Quilt Company. The jelly roll strips get sewn together lengthwise and then cut into squares on a 45 degree angle, turned, and sewn back together. The toughest part is not stretching the bias edges. Tamara Lynn at Itch'n To Be Stitch'n in Staunton, IL, quilted them using a pantograph design with large feathers. I really like how the swirly quilting design contrasts with the geometric lines of the blocks. Happy Knitting, Lisa Kay

I gifted six quilts this Christmas. The first one was based on a pattern called, "Cattle Crossing," by Myrna Giesbrecht. It was in a booklet called, " Strip Quilts in a Hurry ," that I purchased back in the last century. (Really. Doesn't that sound funny? It was published in 1994.) "Cattle Crossing" is the cover quilt on the booklet. It used a lot of white for contrast, which I replaced with green, but I used the same cow fabric as the original. (It is likely not available any more. I've had it as long as I've had the booklet!) It was originally a wall hanging, (49" x 57"), but I sized it up for a queen sized bed. After seeing it made up, I understand the wisdom of using white fabric for alternating squares, providing more contrast. I got a little carried away with appliqueing the cows coming out of the blocks... They are fused down and then edged with mono-filament thread. It was quilted by Aubry Dunn in Edwardsville. The co...

Now that all my Christmas gift crafting is finally done, I'm free to work on other projects that have been queued up... In September, I took a business trip with a co-worker and new friend who likes to bead, and we went to some bead and other craft shops while we were there. I purchased some blue beads to make a necklace, modeled after one of their displays (number of beads and alternating sizes), but choosing my own beads. I particularly liked the blue glass beads with the white polka dots and alien-looking protuberances, and I chose the rest of the beads to go with them. It was really quick, once I finally sat down to do it... Happy Knitting, Lisa Kay

We went to see Star Wars Episode VII on opening night. We were going to wait until after the weekend, but I got antsy on Friday and checked for tickets. There were still seats available, so we went. I think there is a fun symmetry in the fact that I saw Star Wars when it came out, just after my tenth birthday, and now it is just after Mitchell's tenth birthday, and he is seeing the next generation of Star Wars. He said it was the best movie he ever saw. (I wouldn't go that far, but I thought it was fun that he said so.) He has been anticipating it for months. He has been taken in by the merchandising. I have to agree that the stormtrooper jacket is pretty cool. He's really beginning to change into a young man. Happy Knitting, Lisa Kay