An Adirondack chair, cup of Jasmine tea, a good book AND , , ,

Close your eyes and imagine . . . . sitting by the shore, the sun is just about to rise over the water, there's still a bit of a chill in the fresh morning air . . . . you've got your steaming cup of tea, a good book and one hour all to yourself. .......


All you need now is this cute little "Beach Chair Quilt" to wrap around your shoulders and all is perfect.

Beach Chair Lap Quilt



Beach Chair Lap Quilt - close up of borders

 

 

Even the back looks like it should be at the beach!

  

I wish I could photoshop the quilt into this scene . . . but you can use your imagination . . .

aaaahhhh . . .


I wanted to show you how different the quilt top looks once it is quilted  - here are before and after pictures of the Beach Chair Quilt . . .  (Fil-tec Glide thread, Hobbs 80/20 batting)



Beach Chair Quilt top - Before



Beach Chair Quilt - After




 

On to My Irish Dream quilt . . .

...... for those of you who are not quilters, here is a picture of the "tools of the trade" . . .



Cutting mat, rulers and rotary cutter

 and here's My Irish Dream all cut out and waiting to be sewn together . . .  doesn't look like much right now, does it???

.. . . until next time we meet in the Little House . . . May the road rise to meet you. May the wind be always at your back. May the sun shine warm upon your face, the rains fall soft upon the fields . . .





What a "Sweet Heart"!

There's something about the contrast between pink and white that I really find bright and cheerful . . . quite stunning on a quilt.   Have a look . . .

I thought free style hearts were perfect for this "Sweet Heart" quilt..... and I used a lot of fabric from my stash and scrap bin - though it never seems to be depleting!  Hobbs 80/20 batting, Fil-tec Glide Thread -  "Cotton Candy" on top, bottom is "White". 



Sweet Heart Quilt

 Doesn't look "scrappy" at all, does it?




Sweet Heart Back



Sweet Heart Quilt - back - close up



Sweet Hearts Back - Close up


Any guesses why I named this little beauty "Sweet Heart" ???



Hint



My Irish Dream . . . . from start to finish . . .





Actuallly . . .  this is just the start . . .  stay posted for the finish. 



A few years ago, I went to Ireland with my younger sister, Sharon and my friend, Teresa.  We had an amazing trip!  I have been meaning to make a Celtic type quilt ever since, in honor of that trip.  No time like the present - Sharon is going to Ireland again tomorrow (with another sister, Janice and BIL Brian), I have friends that are visiting there right now, and a whole crew of quilters will be in Galway  for the International Quilt Festival of Ireland - June 2012. 


Here's some of my inspiration -




This is the latest issue (Issue 14) of the magazine "Irish Quilting"
















These are a couple of the quilts from that magazine - don't they just pull you in?  Now, these are pictures right from the magazine, inspiring, yes - but not mine.

Knotworks Throw (page 16) -



Celtic Cross (page 65)



While I was in Ireland, people thought I was crazy because I kept taking pictures of the floor, or wall, or ceilings  . . . and  I meant to!

I have another book that I think I'll start with - it's Karen Combs Celtic Pieced Illusions

Karen Combs - CELTIC PIECED ILLUSIONS

This book is great - it contains so much information and patterns ranging from "beginner to advanced".  I've not made a quilt like this before, so I'm considering myself a beginner.

The pattern I have chosen is "Celtic Cross" on page 60

My own picture of a Celtic Cross - Ireland

 . . . . and what do you know, I just happen to have some fabric hanging about that I think will work quite nicely.

The darker color reminds me so something . . . now what was it???



ah, yes . . . the Guinness Girls!




 So, over the next few weeks, I will cut the fabric for "My Irish Dream", begin piecing it together, quilt it on my Lenni the long arm, and finally, put the binding and label on . . . . and I plan to keep a photo journey here on my blog throughout the process.  If this goes well, I'll try another pattern that is a bit more challenging.

If I can't go back to Ireland, this will have to do!  Slainte!!

Check out the new "Did you know . . " page on the right!