Quilts of 2011

I actually made more quilts this year than I realized...there are a few more that I never took photos of. 
I hope every one is doing well and has a wonderful holiday!


Warm cheers,
Cathy

Quilt tops are piling up.....

I have been piecing quilt tops and the number of unquilted tops is now 6 with 2 more tops almost finished. Thank  goodness, 2 of them are small doll quilts. 

 Love this fabric....I am making a quilt with her Little Apples Line and and am very excited about her third line coming out.

Must have at least one whirlygig in the line up. I have to say that I think this pattern is my very favorite.

 And of course, always working on new dolls......

Now that fall is here it is so fun to snuggle under quilts at night.
Have a great weekend,
Cathy
P.S. I hope everyone is doing well!!!

Bitty Bud Giveaway

Wow,  what a wonderful feeling I have right now!!  Thank you everyone for entering your name for the new little doll.  She is so excited to be coming to: Agnes :-)

 I will email you Agnes and get her in the mail as soon as possible.  I will be having an October giveaway and will post on my my facebook page when it is, so please come back! I just love having giveaways!!

Take care,

Cathy

P.S. I know how to do screen shots on my Mac but have no clue how to make it larger....any advice please. 

A Little Sweetness.......

I absolutely love Tasha Noel's etsy shop and her fabric that she has designed.......http://www.etsy.com/shop/alittlesweetness.  I placed a custom order a little while back and received some of her fabrics.  They are as adorable as I knew they would be.  I  have made 2 doll quilts with it so far and plan on making a baby quilt and a toddler quilt with what  I have left. I can just imagine a child picking out the different things in each square that they love.

My little Emma from Moonchild Studio is looking at the little girl in the red cape. :-)

So adorable.....I may just make myself a quilt with it!
Take care,
Cathy

A little Studio Organizing

I came across this wonderful blog and found this great method for folding fabrics......http://cuttopieces.blogspot.com/2011/02/fabric-folding-tutorial.html.  Placed an order with Amazon to get 200 comic book backer boards.....free shipping of course and went to work.  I am in love. It looks so nice and I am able to store so much more fabric on my shelves.  Happy, Happy, Happy!!!

 Most of this is doll clothes fabrics but I also use quilting fabrics.

 Cute little storage shelf form Target....

 Love the way the fatquarters are folded and  stored. I believe they are mesh CD bins.

My work table by my sewing table.  I have an U shaped work area with the work table on my right, an ironing table on the left and my sewing machine table at the head. That way with a swivel chair everything is at my fingertips. I just have to remember to get up and move around though.

Off to work on a few custom dolls and a quilt for moi!
Take care,
Cathy

July already and a 12" doll giveaway

I have to say I am more of a winter person than summer person, mainly because of the heat and mosquitoes here in my area of Virginia. But, it is hard to believe that tomorrow will be the 4th of July!

I have been making dolls as usual and a few baby quilts. I saw a bowtie quilt along and decided to  make that a project for this summer. The quilts looks so neat the way a lot of people have their  blocks facing.

I am going to have another giveaway....hopefully my doll from June has made her way to her new home. She was caught in Canada's Postal strike.  :-(

This time the doll will be a little 12" doll with a smocked dress.  The dress will be a different fabric from this ( since I am almost out of this)  and the winner is welcome to choose hair and eye color.  If you would like to be included please leave your name in the comment section.  I will pull a name next Sunday night.

I hope everyone is doing well,
Cathy

Sherbet Pips :-)

My little great niece had to undergo major surgery so of course a little quilt was in order. She loves dogs and I love Sherbet Pips' little dogs so I made just a simple quilt using white and the pink print.

 Do you think she is checking out my quilting to see if it is up to par?  ;-)

 Really giving it the once over! I think it passed muster though.

Hope everyone is doing well,
Cathy

Petunia Baby Giveaway

Thank you so much everyone!!! What a nice surprise for me to have so many people commenting!  I decided to give away 2 babies instead of just one.  

Paulette is the first name chosen.....I think Paulette has been reading my blog since I first started it. She is a fellow quilter and loves fabric as much as I do. I am thrilled that one of my little dolls will be helping her sew. 

*****paulette said...

Wow!! SEW adorable! Thanks for the chance to win one!
Paulette

And Berrie is believe it or not my dollmaking mentor. When I first started making dolls, I would look through Berrie's pictures of the dolls she had made over the years. Then I got brave enough to ask for a custom outfit and when she mailed it to me she included  dollmaking goodies. Little did she know that she would become my mentor and I would drive her crazy with questions. LOL  Now, I shall be making the teacher a  doll.....I hope I  will make her proud. :-)

*****Berrie Hamby said...

Holy smokes Miss Cathy! Pick me! Pick me!
xoxoB

Please email me at clcknits@aol.com so we can talk about skin, hair and eye color Berrie and Paulette.

Thank you again everyone,

Cathy

May Giveaway :-)

I am almost finished with this months customs and decided it is time for another giveaway. This one is for my  11" Petunia Bud Baby.  You will get to choose the color of the skin, eyes, and hair color.
Here are some pictures of what they look like.  The baby has curved arms like she is reaching up for a hug and her legs are curved at the knees.

If you are interested,please leave your name in the comments.  I will pull a name on the 21st.  Thank you for visiting!
Have a great weekend,
Cathy

Newest Little Dolls

I have been busy making customs dolls for people and just love how they all turn out with their own personalities. It still amazes me that these creations come from a lump of sheep's wool, cotton stockinette and cotton tricot. No one is alike.....regardless of how scientific I can be weighing and measuring they all still turn out different.

This little one went to a good friend who has had too much sorrow lately.

This little guy will be going to a new home at the end of the week. He is sporting new yarn for his hair.

 This one went to a Kindergarten class in Canada....oh to see all her adventures......

 This one is going to a lovely lady in the US who is such a delight to work with. Her hair was a happy dyeing accident. It was supposed to be brown, but turned out Plum.

I now have 8 quilt tops to be quilted......they are starting to stack up. In between dollmaking I quilt as much as I can.
What are you working on?
Take care,
Cathy

Carrycot Winner :-)

I am sorry that I am so pokey picking a name. The weekend got away from me with Easter preparations.
The winner is the last commenter, Susan.  If you will please send me your address, I will get it in the mail for you on Wednesday. Also, if you would like a name monogrammed on the pillowcase, please let me know and I will add it.

Thank you so much everyone for visiting my blog and entering.
Take care,
Cathy

Doll Carrycot Giveaway :-)

I sold my first doll last year on April 23rd. :-)  To celebrate I would like to have a little giveaway. I have a carrycot that will fit small dolls. It is made with Alexander Henry fabric and comes with a little pillow, pillowcase and fleece blanket edged with binding.

If you would like to be entered please leave your name in the comments. I will have Brodie  um, I mean Mollie pull a name on the evening of the 23rd.  And thank you so much for all the support this year.....it is so greatly appreciated.
Take care,
Cathy

New Quilt Tops

Yes, I have been doing a lot of sewing and getting myself right back in that position of having lots of unquilted tops.   LOL    But that's okay because  I love  all parts of quilting. 

This one is just a small doll quilt....I got a charm pack from Quilt Taffy on etsy, they have really neat charm packs. 

 "Happier" from Riley Blake. I am going to add a bird applique to this one.

 And what can I say "Sherbet Pips"!!   I love this and will plan on making several more quilts from this line.

It is going to be a quilting weekend and I can't wait. What will you be doing this weekend?
Take care,
Cathy

Bliss isn't just for quilts :-)

I fell in love with "Bliss" by Bonnie and Camille  for Moda in a big way.  I have made several doll sized quilts with it and have a whirlygig quilt in the works also.

But it also makes the cutest doll dresses.......

 I am going to make my great niece an outfit like this in her size.

A few of my dolls for upload on Sunday night.....a little pink aren't they? LOL

I hope everyone has a great weekend,
Cathy

Need Help With Solid Color Fabrics Please

Most of my quilts are made with a plain white fabric, usually Southern Belle Muslin which I adore. Lately though, the last 2 orders of it have been very disappointing. It used to be a 220 thread count and so soft, now its weave seems a little less and it isn't very soft. I ordered it from 2 different places so I am assuming that it has changed.

I am on a mission to find a new white and actually other solid colors to use. My problem is I don't care for Kona Solids very much. Does anyone know of other manufacturers that you are happy with their solid colors. It seems that Bella Solids are softer than Kona, but still not as soft as Southern Belle.

Thank you so much for any suggestions that you might have!
Cathy

Zig Zag Quilt

I finally made a zig zag quilt after wanting to make one for a couple of years now.  It is just a doll quilt though. :-) I enjoyed making it, but it was a little tricky pressing the seams. I ended up pressing them open.

I think that I will make another one but use Crazy Mom Quilts method.  I would love to see your Zig Zag quilts if you have made any.
Have a great weekend,
Cathy

New Whirlygig Doll Quilts

I had a lot of fun making these little doll quilts. I make them the same way as the Charmed Whirlygig patttern but cut the rectangles 4" by 4.5" and used just 12 squares.  I loaded them together on my quilting frame  since my machine quilting skills on my domestic machine could use some work. ;-)

 "Bliss" by Bonnie and Camille for Moda

 "Quite Contrary" by In a Mind's Eye for Riley Blake.

I hope everyone is doing well,
Cathy

Parmesan Peppercorn Bread Recipe

I just typed this recipe out.....(I am a very slow typist)  and thought I would share  this yummy recipe here also.


I have a Kitchen Aide and let it do the kneading for me. :-) Told you I was lazy!

Parmesan Peppercorn Bread


1 cup warm  water
1 pkg quick rise yeast
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
4 Tbsp Olive Oil
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
fresh ground pepper as much as you would like
3 cups unbleached flour


Mix water and yeast together to dissolve, add 1 cup flour, oil, salt and sugar....mix well.
Slowly add the rest of the flour making sure not to let the dough get too thick. It should take in all the flour but still feel soft. Add in the parmesan cheese. Knead for about 10 minutes.
Leave in your bowl, oiling the top with olive oil so it doesn't dry out. Cover with a dish towel and place in the oven with the oven light on. Let rise for about an hour or until double.
Grease a large bread pan and put the punched down dough in it. Again oil the top and cover with a towel. Let rise in the oven again with the light on until double again about an hour.
Preheat oven 375 degrees and bake the bread for about 40 minutes. Let cool a little and then enjoy!

Take care,
Cathy

Charmed Whirlygig Quiltalong

Are you ready to begin?  I have all the necessary materials to begin here.   Oh, you don't have any chocolate, we will wait while you zip off to the store. :-)  Must. Have. Chocolate!

Then take your background fabric and cut it into 5" strips, you will need 11 strips total

 Flip each strip the long way on your cutting mat and subcut into 4.5" rectangles. You will need 84 rectangles.

Take your rectangle and place it on your cutting mat with the 5" side on the bottom and top. Come in with your ruler 2" on the top and mark with a little dot. Do the same on the bottom coming in from the right hand side again measure 2" in and mark.  You do not have to mark if you don't want. That is the beauty of this quilt..no templates and no marking.  You can just line your ruler up when you make the diagonal cut.

 With your ruler on your marked dots or coming in 2"from the  left hand side  on the top and 2" on the bottom from the right hand side make a cut diagonally upwards.

 Take your charm pack and MAKE SURE THAT THE FRONT SIDE  OF EACH SQAURE IS FACING UP( ask me how many times I haven't done this and have learned the hard way) If there is a pattern that you want to go in one direction now is the time to make sure that it is facing up now. You will cut off 1/2" of each of your charm squares. I stack a few and cut them all at once, but then I am a lazy quilter! LOL

 Now with your charm squares in the center of your cutting mat(mine has  5" square area) with  the 5" sides on the top and bottom. come in 2" from the top from the left hand side and 2" on the bottom on the right hand side and mark if you wish or just line your ruler up.  Cut this upwards diagonally.

 We should stop here, but I  am always in a hurry to see how things are going to turn out so we will move ahead a little.  Line up your pieces like in the picture to help you keep you from turning them in the wrong direction.

 Line up your 2 pieces with a little tip sticking out below.

 Chain sew your pieces together until you need a chocolate break. ;-)

 Press the seam with the charm square part on the top and then press it open.

This is what your first part of the square will look like.  You shouldn't have to trim it but you may with some of them.

On Tuesday we will start putting the parts together to make the whirlygigs. Now Jacque is trying to move to the front of the class and started her cutting early. LOL

Have fun and don't forget to post pictures on the flickr page http://www.flickr.com/groups/1347288@N21/

Cathy