the emotional life of sølje

I received the fabrics I was thinking about using for this quilt (that I already had in my stash, but can’t find). I like George up there in the corner, the Declaration of Independence looks a little washed out, but it kind of works. I also turned the cut up Disappearing 9-Patch blocks again.

I may go ahead and try some stars for applique on the top, but I don’t have the right yellow. I have a bright solid, but I want something a little more subdued. I also thought about putting in some solid blocks– 7″ squares (the size that the Dis.9-Patch blocks are currently) from my patriotic fabric stash, but so far the the prints on the fabrics are too small to work with in that size. I have a print with the Star Spangled Banner I hoped to use, but unless I trim one section and add a border to make the block, it wouldn’t work right.

I am getting closer to the vision I see in my head anyway…

Tags: Quilting // 2 Comments »

I have shown this quilt to a couple of quilt groups and at facebook, but thought I’d add it here. I don’t have a name for this one, but for a long time (years), it was known as “that dang quilt” because the quilting was so terrible that it needed to be ripped out. So one sunny afternoon while Kevin thought I should be helping him clean the garage *heh* I pulled out a lawn chair and sat in the driveway ripping out the quilting stitches while Kev was tossing and sorting things in the garage. I’m sure I was good company A few days later it was re-quilted, and I was once again a happy lady :-).

The flying geese are a 3-D block, idea brought into this world by Christine Schnaufer. directions here

The quilt:

I appliqued cats from a Laurel Burch panel onto batiks. The whole quilt (with the exception of the cats) are batiks and hand dyes… I love the fabrics!

Tags: Quilting // 1 Comment »

with wild cats! Pattern can be found here: Paradigm Shift. I have talked about this on a couple of different groups I am in, but wanted to post it here to be able to refer to. This was a fun and easy quilt, and the quilt grew! I made the top before WASIQ’s quilt retreat, and before I made this quilt I had an idea in my head with using very busy fabrics. I had thought about the hippy flower power/girl power types of fabrics out there, but I wanted to draw totally from my stash. I have been “collecting” cat fabrics for years, and this worked out to be a great pattern for this. After the top was made, I thought about Joy Neal, our retreat extraordinaire. She’s a cat person too, and I thought it might work well as a gift for her… but I wasn’t sure since her style is different than mine. Julie Huffman thought she would love it, and offered to quilt it before the retreat, but I hmmmed and hawed on it and ended up bringing the basted quilt to the retreat just to see what Joy’s reaction would be. Well, it was positive and the quilt sandwich went home with Julie to quilt The speed quilter that she is, it was finished before the new week was over and made it’s way to an unsuspecting Joy.

Thank you again Julie for quilting on this baby. Your quilting is wonderful and the wording in on the black was so cool!

The quilt:

Kitty fabrics:

Kitty Quilt with model Smokey:

Tags: Quilting // 2 Comments »

ok, so far it is still just in the partial block stage, and I still have more strips to cut. But aren’t they fun?

I used strips from the Folklorica line and Moda Marbles. I caught the bug when I came across this site: http://www.jaybirdquilts.com/2010/03/hexagon-quilt-along-supplies.html I have no idea how I got there, but glad I did because it really got my creative juices flowing again. Check out the flickr pool… I think it was when I searched through the flickr pool that I decided to use my Folklorica fabrics. I’m not planning to make the quilt at the site, I think I am going to stick with just one block pattern. So far I have the half-hexagons sewn together, and once I have my final plan figured out, I will sew them in long strips.

The quilting/sewing dry spell has been long, and I am glad it has been broken!

Tags: Quilting // 2 Comments »

I planned to make this Boy Scout quilt for Daniel for his birthday, but in reality, he received it three months later. He was thrilled with it Very simple pattern by Robert Kaufman. I thought it would be on their site, but I am not seeing it.

I have some more fabrics and thought about making pillow cases, we’ll see! Kevin has been hinting about making a shaving kit bag using the fabrics, but I think they’d get dirty with use.

Here is a bag I made that I use for my sewing machine things. I love it. It is the style Kevin is thinking for a little mess kit for when he and Daniel go camping with the scouts.

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Well, not in my household, but a new great nephew was born last week to my sister’s oldest son. I have seen so many great BQ quilts out there, I wanted to try it out. I enjoyed the pattern, but these blocks were just 9″ finished compared to the larger BQ quilt patterns. I think I will do a larger size next time as I do wish this quilt was larger. I like baby quilts, but I like bigger baby quilts

a little closer:

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I am playing with scrappy right now. I don’t know how much I like this, so if you have an opinion–let loose! I decided to do a quick project tonight with two charm packs. Both are of patriotic fabrics from a few years ago that I have just been collecting dust. I was thinking that I had a panel with the Declaration of Independence on it… but I can’t find it. Anyway, I was thinking of using that in the center but since I can’t find it I can’t add more kapow to this already screaming quilt. Yes, it is screaming at me because it isn’t my favorite right now… I am not sold on a totally scrappy Disappearing 9-Patch. The idea was good to try, but just not liking. Should I add some Ohio stars to the outside? anyway…
Charms sorted:

Sewn together:

Cut in half twice:

Put up on the design wall, ready to turn:

Turned two blocks in each set. Seems confusing to me:
Moving blocks around:

Turned and moved around blocks in the same direction. I like this best, but it is blah:

So the question will be, will this remain just a quilt top when I finally decide because right now I am just not “feeling” it.

Tags: Quilting // 9 Comments »

long time, no posts! It’s been busy, my head full, and very little seems to even connect to quilting or art type stuff I normally write about. I am homeschooling again, so our days are full… but I am happy to say, the change out of public school has been a blessing. I fought it, but knew it was going to happen, and am pleasantly surprised with how it is going!

Anyway…

Every year when I polish my mom’s tea set, I wonder what the makers mark means. This comes from a bread basket dish/piece/whatever that belonged to one of my great great grandmothers. So, I google every year to see if a maker’s mark comes up that is similar, but haven’t found a match yet.

Any silver types that have an idea? I am also wondering if it really is silver, but maybe pewter. it doesn’t oxidize like the silver tea set, which makes me wonder. I think I have rubbed off the old patina that it may have come with… or maybe the silver content is so small it doesn’t oxidize? I don’t know.

Thoughts?

Tags: A Family Affair, Folesesliv av Solje, Uncategorized // 1 Comment »

I have written about some of my sponsored Women For Women sisters in the past. Today I received a large envelope that had a letter and this beautiful beaded doily enclosed. After spending the weekend at Warm Beach on our church’s woman’s retreat, I was emotionally overflowing. To receive this precious gift from a woman that is absolutely struggling in an unsafe, war-torn area has filled my heart to overflowing even further.

As a someone who beads, I know the time it took to create this doily (especially considering my lack of patience with seed beads!), and considering this woman has eight children (as well as caring for her sick inlaws)–you can imagine how she manages her life, as difficult as it is already! I feel blessed that she took the time to even consider creating this for me!

Having been remiss at letter writing over this past year, I promise to be more active with that. Typically Women For Women discourages sending gifts like this because postage does get costly as you can imagine. I feel very blessed right now.

Clicking through to the flickr page, you can choose to view the item fully when clicking on “all sizes”. So much work!

Tags: Art, Women For Women writings // 5 Comments »

Unless someone is for certain otherwise, I am going with a Townsend’s Warbler for identification. They are pretty!

I think the birds were around all day yesterday. We must be have good enough seed to be on the permanent snacking route or something I used Kevin’s camera to try and get some better photos, and a couple did turn out ok. I tend to be shaky, so mix that in with a flitting bird and we have issues.

Kevin took the picture below. This was in the early evening and he stuck around while everyone was outside on the deck! I guess either the guy is getting too fatten up to move or he knows we are harmless. After the eating that went on earlier, I tend to think it is the first thought.

Tags: A Family Affair, Washington State // 1 Comment »

Today was a quiet, pleasant, foggy morning. But there was a flurry of activity through the trees and the bird feeders. Though, it would appear that Daniel’s peanut butter pine cone with birdseed was a little more popular with one bird. I am not positive, but I think this might be a Goldfinch. I will have to scour bird sites and see if I can find a match. If I had Kevin’s camera, detail would have been much better, but this bugger kept flitting from one spot to another. I would have probably missed him in the process of finding him!

It’s narrowed down to a warbler. Townsend Warbler?

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First, Julie… I am so laughing right now! I JUST read your comment about suggesting a red border etc! Guess what I did?

I am thinking about adding some length to it, considering some scrappy squares or something (like a pillow tuck), and continuing the border I created today. I am liking how it is coming. The red added some excitement to it.

I am so ready for this week to be over. I am hitting my limit on parenting/ADHD issues, and learning about being badmouthed on a forum I had no clue existed (beads!) has really kept me on edge. I take things to heart and it has been hard to let it go. I would prefer people ask for clarification on my words rather than simply making presumptions. Usually when I am in the middle of a scrap, I’m at least 50% to blame–along with knowing it is going on.

My batteries need to be recharged in a bad way.

One nice spotlight was Darrin had his first haircut yesterday! Those wispy baby hairs are something else. Kev and I went back and forth about going to his barber or not, but yesterday we just decided we’d give it a try at home. Kev does Daniel’s hair, which is pretty easy, but Darrin’s being so straight–mistakes would be quickly seen! I think Kevin did a great job

Tags: A Family Affair, Quilting // 5 Comments »

sorry for not doing a better picture. I didn’t want to move my table because it has things underneath and it was too much of a hassle for this quilt in progress.
Blocks together (grrr on the corner starting to fold down). Now what. It needs something else.
size approx: 56″x56″

I don’t have enough of the black/white batik to use in a border, I was thinking gaudy… red/white candy cane striping around the quilt Ok, kidding… just making sure you’re paying attention! LOL! Maybe a row of something Christmasy or something, a scene? I’ll let it simmer a little longer.

Tags: Quilting // 2 Comments »

Here are a little less than half of the blocks. I tried out another fabric (posted at flickr if you’d like to see the difference) that looked like I had enough yardage to use as the background triangles, but I think this black/white snowflake batik had the look I was going for. I am thinking about a prairie braid border, but haven’t decided yet. It would definitely add to the strippy-ness of the quilt. We’ll see. I am liking how it is coming along.

Yeah…. it’s Friday! Tomorrow Kevin and I are going to the performing arts center at Bothell High School to see the final showing of “I Remember Mama”, a play! I am very excited. This is a Christmas gift from Kev, and when I opened the envelope telling me we were going, I started crying! It reminds me of my family, not too mention we’d watch the movie every year around Thanksgiving. I hope they have Uncle Chris is in it, a good black Norvegian! This will be a first date alone in a long time!

Tags: Quilting // 2 Comments »

ok, so it wasn’t muddy water. Had Kevin chosen to be baptized during the summer, perhaps so since our church goes to the lake for baptisms. Instead, it was in a hot tub My sister and her family came for the event, and Kevin’s testimony was beautiful.

So, I was wondering offhandedly if there is a bachelor party the night before a wedding, what is there pre-baptism? anyway… Kevin’s testimony had the inclusion of our son (who had been asking a lot of questions regarding God, Jesus, and everything in between) who basically led us back into the church, and Pastor John Czech had a nice statement (”out of the mouths of babes”) thanking Daniel (who, in front of a few hundred people, replied, “you’re welcome”) for leading us there. It was a journey for us, and the time was right to seek spiritual guidance.

Friends of ours had been attending this church for a few years, and had on occasion suggest visiting. They had checked out other churches in our area (I think eight?), and found this one on a whim after being discouraged on not finding a right fit. I’m glad they laid out the ground work, we are hooked

We had lunch afterward with friends and family and had a great time.

Love this song (not too mention I have a crush on Trace Adkins)…

Tags: A Family Affair // 1 Comment »