Lisa Kay Knits... and Quilts!

How much of a difference does wet-blocking make?  I took "before blocking" and "after blocking" shots of the finished Abstracts in April , 4/21 Skill Builders Club. The "before blocking" case had some squirrelly places that would not lie flat, however coaxed. The "after blocking" still was not perfectly flat, but showed a marked improvement.  After Blocking: Before Blocking (I coaxed these as flat as possible; trouble spots are more obvious on the back): I was worried that I wouldn't like the the "traditional" look of the washed quilting, for the modern style of this quilt, but I ended up liking it. I think I'm going to be a blocking fan. Maybe it is my knitting background. I wet-blocked everything except maybe an occasional pair of socks.  Here are a few close-ups of the blocked quilt: I am not sure how I'll manage blocking a king size quilt. In the past, I've taken pictures of king-sized quilts laid out in the living r

I finished quilting, bound, and wet blocked the second trio of Jumpstarters , the previous Skill Builder Club (SBC) sets, from Methodist Hill Quilt Studio.  I learned a lot and feel like I'm ready to take on some of my own projects... though I'm likely to do a few more SBCs, first. "Abstracts In April" is already in the post-quilting "burying ends" phase... I can't tell you how awesome the club sets are, with all the associated instruction for how to do each section of each project. The software is complicated enough that having such a "walk thru" is totally invaluable! I joked with Rob from At the Heart of Quilting, when he set up my machine, about getting eight Skill Builders done in a weekend... Well, it wasn't quite that fast. I'm on my 14th day (not counting install day), and I've just taken the seventh off the frame (pictures of that one are coming...). I did have to work my "day job" during the first week of that ti

 We have chipmunks living in the yard, and we have sort of adopted one (him, her, them, not sure), and we refer to it as Alvin. It may be more than one, but we've only seen one at a time. We put out sunflower seeds (which get pouched and taken away in minutes), and even a water bowl. Alvin is on Chris' naughty list, today, though. He got caught in the blackberry patch. Oh, those precious blackberries. Chris said, "Suddenly, I'm not as fond of Alvin." Fat and sassy little burglar, isn't he? Happy Quilting, Lisa Kay

 Of the six Jumpstarters  in the Skill Builders Club sets, I'm on the sixth one, the August 2019 set of placemats. I have all four basted and Stitched in the Ditch (SID), and I finished quilting the first one. I had a mishap last night, as I was just about to change thread for the last time on the fifth Jumpstarter, the May 2019 Border Corner set. I hit the "single stitch" button while my finger was too close to the needle. It both stabbed and crushed my finger. I also pulled my finger away, instinctively, and the needle ripped sideways out of the little bit of meat it had caught. Ouch. I'll see if I can get into the doctor, tomorrow, and get a tetanus shot. Mine is eleven years old, so just out of date. Here's the border corner project, just before putting the white thread on for the cross-hatching. I finished it today, and I'll get some pics after I put the binding on... Happy Quilting, Lisa Kay

 I have finished my first Jumpstarter set, the first trio of Skill Builder Clubs (SBC) from Methodist Hill Quilt Studio. The sets are a great way to get under way, as the instructions and videos are made for the purpose! The first SBC was shown quilted in my last post, but now I have it bound. This lesson focused on "pattern to boundary." The second SBC in the first Jumpstarter trio is the Edge to Edge (E2E) lesson. I tried to line the "circles" up with the squares, but the E2E mode isn't really suited to tweaking in the blocks.... Finally, the third lesson in the first Jumpstarter set is the "Repeat Pattern" mode, with a wide "modern" design.  After doing handwork all day, yesterday, binding the first three projects, I started another quilt, tonight, the first one in the second Jumpstarter trio... the first "custom" lesson.  So fun! Happy Quilting, Lisa Kay

 An exciting day, indeed, and my Statler is home. It is a tight fit. Rob even left off the perpendicular handle on the pick up bar's wheel, which leaves just enough room for me to scoot around the end. (Time to diet.) You can see the first practice piece in place. Super fun. After Rob left, I quilted my first Skill Builder's Club from Methodist Hill Quilt Studio. I'm certainly learning. My first Stitch in the Ditch (SID) was a bit wonky...  It was an awesome day. Rob from At The Heart of Quilting was super nice and very helpful. What a cool job! It must be so great to go meet people who are so happy to see you. :) I am so excited! I have two full days of regular work this week. It will be hard to concentrate!  Happy Quilting! Lisa Kay

 As I am twitching and squirming about, waiting for my Gammill Statler to arrive (two hours and forty minutes to go...), I thought I'd share some pictures of the custom quilt rack that Chris had made for my birthday. It just arrived on Monday. Yes, that is a few days late... but it was being made... to specifications. You gotta love this man! Yes, yes, I have it upside down in the photo. The top of the bars go parallel to the floor, of course. I haven't decided where to hang it. It will have to be on a stud, certainly. It will also take up a fair amount of space, once the four arms are loaded and sort of overlapping each other. How cool is that? It's beautiful. It was made at Kunz Carpentry in Trenton, IL. The workmanship is incredible. Chris said that they liked the design and said they should have made two... one for display in the shop! When Chris was telling me I'd have to wait for my birthday present, he said he had "drafted" something. I didn't figu

 My dear friend, Babs, made a beautiful beaded ornament for my birthday, focused on the quilting theme. I am amazed at the little scissors and spools of thread, and the workmanship blows me away.  Babs shares my excitement for the long arm arriving this week! Happy Quilting! Lisa Kay