One Piece at a Time

Anita's Arrowhead Quilt

2012-02-16T19:28:00.001-06:00

This is the beginning of my Anita's Arrowhead quilt. I am using the same white on white in each of the squares. I have made one WOF strip for each of the five colors. After finishing this much, I have decided to make another set of blocks to make the quilt 6 blocks by 8 blocks.

The uniqueness of this block is that it is made from 8" squares of the colored fabric and the white fabric that is sewn together on the edges. The the square is cut corner to corner and then cut twice to make the pieces for the finished block. It really is fun and easy to make. There are lots of bias edges so starching helps make things easier.

Five Color Quilt

2012-02-14T15:58:00.001-06:00

This is a photo of part of my Five Color Quilt from the booklet, Mosaic Memories. I think I purchased the kit in Salina. I remember thinking how much I loved the purple squares in the quilt sample, but no such color in my quilt. The colors are much brighter than the photo. The top is queen sized at about 97" x 97". It really was rather easy to make--just a perseverance task. I did use a lot of thread and it did take a lot of time. I am glad to have it finished. Now on to my Anita's Arrowhead.

Anita's Arrowhead

2012-02-02T18:00:00.000-06:00

These are two of the blocks that I completed today during the workshop I attended. The instructors showed us how to stitch the blocks, the cutting techniques, and the sewing tips. The range of fabrics was fabulous--from batiks to Victorian-looking prints. I think this will be a quick, complex-looking quilt. More on it later.

Mosaic Memories

2012-01-31T07:56:00.003-06:00

Several years ago, I purchased a kit for Mosaic Memories in Salina. It is one of the projects that I brought to AZ with me. So I have been working on this quilt. Lots of strips to stitch together and then cut. I have about half of the blocks constructed. Just mindless stitching.

Thursday I am going to a class for a quilt block called Anita's Arrowhead. I found the fabric at the quilt festival. Yesterday I made a trip to Quilter's Oasis for some neutral fabric and found the perfect coordinate. Now to get the blocks cut and ready for stitching.

So Many Squares

2012-01-13T15:02:00.003-06:00

This is my first finished top for the year. It is called So Many Squares by LaBenne Publications. I found the kit in Paducah a couple of years ago. It certainly is not my color palette but I really liked the look of it. It will be striking when it is finished. Probably a Christmas gift in the near future.

Now for the next project...

10-Minute Table Runner

2012-01-06T09:47:00.002-06:00

Yesterday was a fun day. The quilting room is busy on Tuesday and Thursday. Tuesday is a free stitching day, so you can take your machine and work on whatever you want. Thursday is more structured. In the morning, Karen and Louise gave a lecture on quilting from beginning to end. They showed lots of notions and gave people lots of ideas. In the afternoon, I taught the 10-minute table runner. I have seven people signed up but had ten show up during the afternoon. I wish I had taken my camera because there were some beautiful fabrics used for the table runners and placemats. Everyone was so joyous when they finished their projects in a short time. One lady made three of the table runners and another finished her table runner and two placemats. I have been working on a kit I purchased in Paducah two years ago. I have all of the rows sewn and now just need to sew them together. I should have it finished in a day or two and will have a photo.

Sunday Dinner Apron

2012-01-03T13:36:00.002-06:00

This is Haley with her Christmas apron. It is the same pattern as Kacie's. I also gave them the "fur" leg warmers that are sitting on the arm of her chair. One of my Bernina stitching friends made them and I thought they were fun for teenagers.

Christmas apron

2011-12-31T18:28:00.002-06:00

This is Kacie's Christmas apron. She loves pink so I was sure this would tickle her fancy. During my apron making marathon, I used many different patterns but this one was my favorite. I did add ruffles to the bodice and to the skirt. Bernina has a ruffler, so I used it and also the hemming foot. Both saved me lots of time. My most favorite foot is the number 10 that makes me look like a professional when stitching edges. The pattern directions show to hand-stitch the back of the waist. I used Roxanne's glue and ironed the back into place. Then I could use the #10 to stitch around the entire waist area. The pattern is called "Sunday Dinner Apron" by Vanilla House Designs. I did make some major revisions to the pattern.

Great Grand Gift

2011-12-30T12:22:00.002-06:00

This is Avery telling me thank you, thank you, thank you. She loved her storybook and storybook quilt. The Little Kitten panel was supposed to be made into a soft book but I used the pages as quilt squares. The panel also had coordinating fabric for the book and the backing. Really a nice youth quilt.

Christmas gift

2011-12-28T21:36:00.003-06:00

For several years, everyone in my family has gotten the same gift. This year it was an apron. This is the "chicken" apron for Della. The guys had some fun with this as they tried to figure out what to do with their gift. It was probably good I was in Arizona at the time.

10 Minute Placemats

2011-12-24T20:48:00.003-06:00

Yesterday I purchased 3/4 yard of two coordinating Christmas fabrics. Then I cut 11 inches from each of the fabrics and used the directions for the 10 minute table runner to make one runner and two placemats. The placemats are similar to making the table runner except I cut the runner in half before stitching the ends. The directions for the 10 minute table runner can be found by doing a google search. It does take me longer than 10 minutes to complete the project but it is a rather quick gift for a special occasion.

Gold Canyon, Arizona

2011-12-22T22:09:00.002-06:00

We arrived at Canyon Vistas in Gold Canyon last Friday. It took us a day or so to get everything set up. Needed a new piece for the sewer connection, a new pop-off valve for the hot water heater, and the trailer was extremely dirty. We did drive in the rain for two and a half days so you can imagine the way the truck and trailer looked.

Our satellite dish has had some problems, so we had to solve that problem. That means we bought a new dish. So that took an afternoon to go the Camping World and then get it set-up correctly plus a call to Dish.

Charlie, our Australian shepherd, was so excited to be here. He loves the big dog pen where he can play with his friends. He allows everyone to pet him which is a rarity at home. He and I walk a couple of miles a day.

I had the Bernina out this afternoon to get some stitching done. Made a couple of gifts and have a couple of more started.

We were planning to return home for Christmas but the storms have put a kink in our plans. So we'll stay here and spend Christmas with friends in the resort. I hope everyone has a great Christmas with their family and friends.

No Photos

2011-12-09T10:02:00.003-06:00

I have been extra busy with stitching Christmas gifts that I cannot show you now. So I will post about some other things in my life.

My big adventure continues. I am almost three years out from my breast cancer diagnosis. I have been back to the cancer center every three months for check-ups and a zometa IV (industrial strength boniva). That is all part of a research study to see how bisphosphonates (sp?) help with bone density while taking breast cancer drug treatment. Early this month I had a bone scan and everything was okay. So now I am on a six-month visit schedule.

We are getting ready to go to Arizona for a couple of months. So I have the fifth wheel to clean and stock. I'll post a photo of it later.

Aprons

2011-11-30T07:45:00.003-06:00

More gifts for the grands! I attend a Bernina Stitching Group that meets once a month. This is a pattern I received last year. The aprons are made from hand towels. The bottom of the towel is turned up to form pockets. They are really soft and cute.

Quilt Number Four

2011-11-26T10:14:00.002-06:00

This is the fourth storybook quilt and for my greatgrand daughter. They are all going to be Christmas gifts along with a book similar to the quilt story. Each quilt has the grand's name embroidered on it. I quilted each of them with my 830, jumbo hoop, and an embroidery group called Classic Line Quilting by OSED (#12345H). I really like it because it has all the elements needed for a quilt--block, sashing, and border. Now I just have to get them wrapped and labeled!

12 Days of Christmas

2011-11-21T09:37:00.004-06:00

The Christmas Tree Skirt is for Mea Bernina's Festival of Trees entry. The designs are the 12 Days of Christmas from a set called "Redwork for Children" by Betty Alderman. It is an older set of designs but they are very beautiful. The tree skirt itself is a blank that is available at Mea Bernina. I enlarged the designs and then used decorative stitches around the top ring of fabric. I hope Mona likes it!

Zipper Pillow

2011-11-17T10:52:00.002-06:00

This is a pillow sample that I stitched for the Overbrook Quilt Connection. The Zipper Pillow is in a pattern from Atkinson Designs called "Pillow Trio,"

It is an easy pattern to complete. The front is backed with an iron-on stabillizer and the back has two pieces of overlapping fabric. The back of this pillow is a black-background Asian fabric.

Joy Banner

2011-11-15T16:55:00.003-06:00

The "Joy" banner is the project for Bernina's Software Sampler this month. The banner is made with Bernartex Christmas fabric. The background is three large log cabin blocks with a wide border. The rest of the banner is machine applique. It was easy and fun to make.

I had to cut the shapes by hand because the 830 plate for the cutwork tool is on back order.

Behind the Scenes

2011-11-07T09:13:00.002-06:00

I know it looks like I have not been doing much, but that is far from true. Last week I worked three days at Overbrook Quilt Connection while the rest of the crew were in Houston. Roxane, shop owner, had purchased some quick project sheets. Since she is having a holiday shop hop and then holiday open house, I made some projects with Christmas fabrics. The first one was an apron made from a tea towel. I chose a dark green check and some green Christmas fabric. Well, on Thursday is sewing day at the shop for a group and one of the ladies bought all the red and green check towels. So I had to make another one from a different towel.

I also made some small cocktail napkins. Then they are folded to look like a Christmas tree. Really cute and easy. I made a mitered placemat from Laurel Burch fabric. It is the post before this one. I also made a traditional-looking gathered apron.

I am also quilting the small quilts with my jumbo hoop for Christmas gifts. I have one to finish the borders and one more to piece and quilt. So I have been busy. I hope everyone has a productive week.

Mitered Placemat

2011-11-03T19:27:00.002-05:00

Roxane, my local quilt shop owner, has some new project sheets--directions for easy projects. This placemat is one of the projects. I used Christmas Laurel Burch fabric and metallic thread for the quilt lines. Then the oversized-backing is folded to the front. A fast and easy gift.

Baby Quilt

2011-10-22T15:40:00.003-05:00

This is a baby quilt I am going to give to an unsuspecting acquaintance. The mother-to-be has shown kindness to me on many occasions. So this will be hers in the near future.

I used fabric that was leftover from a couple of baby quilts I had made in the past. I love this fabric. It is so soft and cuddly. Just right for a baby. The backing is a blue flannel with teddy bears. I hope the quilt will bring her lots of smiles.

The Shy Little Kitten Quilted

2011-10-13T12:27:00.003-05:00

I found a CD titled "Classic Line Quilting" from OESD that had exactly the kind of quilting shapes I wanted for quilting with the embroidery module. The CD included squares, long rectangles, and squares for corners and borders. The stand-alone squares were the one I used in the blocks. I used the long rectangles in the sashing. Then I connected the corner and border squares for the last step. I have used quilting collections before but they did not contain all the elements for an entire quilt. This collection contained circles and ovals. There are three other collections on the CD. You may have to enlarge the photo to see the quilting. I used white thread throughout. I really am pleased with the quilting.

The Pokey Little Puppy

2011-09-29T07:00:00.001-05:00

The Poky Little Puppy is my third greatgrand pieced top. I made a quick stop for a couple of items at a local store and found the golden book for this quilt. So that is going to be included with this. I will also embroider the recipient's name in the block that says "This book belongs to...". This should be a fun gift.

Fun in Some Bunny's Garden

2011-09-27T09:25:00.000-05:00

The book panel is called Fun in Some Bunny's Garden. It was quick to make and is ready for quilting. This is also a greatgrand gift. I hope they like this "drag along" quilts.

Pillow #2

2011-09-25T10:03:00.002-05:00

This may be my first pillow with a ruffle. The design is Rose Wreath by Kathleen Ackley. Anna Aldmon has digitized her original applique design into machine applique embroidery. I was asked to test the design with my Bernina 830. It is a two-hooping wreath for a 7" x 12" or 6" x 6" stitch area for ART, VP3, PES, and JEF. I used my jumbo hoop. The directions are the best I have seen and helps with success on the first try. The wreath would also make a wonderful start for a table runner. The Rose Wreath will be available in mid-October.

October Software Sampler Project

2011-09-23T16:54:00.002-05:00

This is my project for the October Software Sampler. The lesson is using a technique called photosnap. I have a picture of my dog on the other side but it is kind of hard to photograph so it can be seen clearly. The pillow is from a pattern called "It's a Wrap!...pillow sleeves!" by Vanilla House Designs. The pillow wraps are very easy to make and can be changed quickly.

The Shy Little Kitten

2011-09-20T22:09:00.002-05:00

The Shy Little Kitten quilt kit was a "find" in Paducah. I had been looking for this type of panel for several months. The kit only takes three hours or so to stitch together. The kit also includes backing. So now I just have to get it quilted before Christmas.

Top Border

2011-09-15T19:19:00.004-05:00

This is the top border of the Chelsea Gardens quilt that I as testing. The birds are beautiful! Anna Aldmon makes machine embroidery with multi-hooping so easy. You would think this was completed all in one sitting but it was five days of work. I did have to plan which color each bird was before I started. I am anxious to receive the rest of the patterns for this quilt.

April Flowers is Completed

2011-09-14T10:16:00.003-05:00

My April Flowers quilt is finished. I stitched the binding and label on last evening. This is from a kit called a Snap Sack. I have seen them in several quilt shops lately. The kit contains all the fabrics including the backing. It did not include the batting. I used my embroidery module for the quilting since the blocks are four inches. Then I modified the block design to put in the border and the cornerstones. I really enjoy using my large embroidery hoop. This quilt is 18" x 22". Great colors.

April Flowers

2011-09-12T09:52:00.002-05:00

I am in the middle of an applique project, but was having an itch about doing a little stitching. I received this Snap Sack at the Bernina Celebration last month. It is a small 18"x22" project and I love the colors. This is as far as I got last night before my eyes became heavy. I still have the top and bottom borders. This has been a fun, quick project.

Embellished Garment

2011-09-06T16:06:00.003-05:00

This is one of my recent projects. It is a sample for the Bernina Software Sampler Class that I host at Mea Bernina. One of the new--to me--techniques is using paintstiks on fabrics. On this garment, I stitched on raw-edge batik flowers and then embroidered a design. Then I used stencils and paintstiks for the rest of the design. Thanks to my stitching friend, Diane for the use of her paintstiks. You may have to enlarge the photo to see the details. This is a shirt I would wear. Then next one is a little more jazzed-up. We'll see how that turns out...

The Tree

2011-08-26T11:08:00.003-05:00

The Christmas Tree kit that I found at Keepsake Quilting is finished. I love using piping around a quilt, especially since it is so easy to make with the serger piping foot. After looking at the photo with the kit, I decided they gave me too many medium tones and not enough light tones. Theirs glowed and mine just has too much noise in the immediate background of the tree. Since this is headed for the children at the cancer center, I put lots of decoration on the tree. You can see that better if you make the photo bigger. I would have put on more "stuff" but time became a factor. I know the kids will enjoy this little quilt.

Chelsea Garden Side Border

2011-08-23T09:20:00.003-05:00

Anna Aldmon is at it again. She is the digitizer for the Nouveau Fleur quilt that I stitched in greens. Chelsea Garden is a Pat Campbell applique design that will be available for machine embroidery in October. Anna asked me to test the border designs. This is the left side border. The border also runs across the top and has the same design on the opposite corner. The quilt has 25 designs that are eight-inch circles. You can see some of those designs on Anna's website. Anna's directions are the best I have seen. This border has six-hoopings that are well-planned and easy to stitch. I am anxious for this pattern to be completed.

Software Sampler August Project

2011-08-08T15:32:00.005-05:00

The Bernina Software Sampler lesson for August is based on a recycled denim slouch bag. The bag is a collage of different techniques. I used fabric etching to make holes in the denim. Bleach was used to distress the fabric. Then I added stenciled designs with fabric paint, embroidery designs, and grommets. It is not a bag that I would use but it is interesting.

September Addition:

Today I was at Mea Bernina where my denim slouchy bag was displayed. Several ladies where there before heading to a retreat and one wanted to know if I would sell the bag. So she wrote me a check on the spot. She wanted to use it to teach a class for her friends.

Umbrella Project

2011-08-08T15:25:00.002-05:00

This is one of my latest projects. I was looking at blogs on other sites and came across this one about recovering an umbrella. Well, I just happened to have an old umbrella that I wasn't going to use again and this is the result of my efforts. Amazingly covering an umbrella is a two to three hour project. It is fun and my friends are in awe...

Christmas in July

2011-07-12T21:50:00.004-05:00

This is my latest project. It is a kit I found at Keepsake Quilting. This little quilt should look great on the wall of a children's room at the Cancer Center. The background is made with blended squares on a fusible grid and then stitched. The gold trim is glittery gold piping. The rest of the tree is raw edge applique. I still have to quilt the top and add the finishing touches--bows, crystals, etc. Angels will grace the tree. It is going to be a fun wall quilt because it has very interesting items found in the dark squares.

New Project

2011-07-03T18:52:00.002-05:00

I am working on a small Christmas wall hanging. It is a kit that I purchased from Keepsake Quilting. The background of the quilt uses a blended technique with a decorated Christmas tree in the middle. I have the background finished and am working on the Christmas tree. You'll see a photo in a day or two.

Last evening we planted two Knockout roses that my DIL found on a 70% off sale. They were in a gallon tub, so they are very large with plenty of blooms. They are looking great after a brief shower this morning.

We are heading for Colorado later in the month, so yesterday I smoked four chickens and have them frozen. Today I smoked a pork and a beef roast. It came out of the smoker a while ago and we had a delicious sandwich.

I am headed back to my "studio" to work some stitching magic!

Home Again

2011-06-26T12:04:00.002-05:00

Thursday morning almost before the sun was shining, I left with Roxane and Helen to go to the Omaha Quilt Show. We had the booth set up by 3pm or so and headed out for a little lunch. The show opened at 5 pm. I demonstrated the Bohin chalk pencil, three-pocket bag, and cell phone bag make with s quiltsmart panel. We sold all of our stock of pencils and three-pocket bags. It is such fun to talk with quilters and learn what they are doing. Friday was especially long as the show opened at 9 am and closed at 8 pm. The quilts they had hanging at the show were very nice. They said the attendance was better than last year. Our booth had lots of quilters in it most of the time. We got back home about 10 last night.

We saw houses surrounded by the high water in places. Highway 75 was the only one open into Omaha from our direction. It was a fun three days.

Nouveau Fleur Quilt

2011-05-31T15:35:00.002-05:00

This is my embroidered quilt from Vicky Lawrence's book Garden Nouveau Quilts. Anna Aldmon from Texas digitized the original hand applique pattern. I was fortunate to test the digitizing for the Art format and stitched this quilt on my 830 machine. Vicky works at the Overbrook Quilt Connection, my local quilt shop, so the shop has kits with the fabrics similar to the ones used in the book. I used the original green fabrics and then used batiks for the flowers. The top was quilted by Kathy Smith from Burlingame and she did a great job with it. It is a beautiful quilt and I am quite proud of it!

Quilted Bowl

2011-05-25T16:44:00.003-05:00

This fabric bowl is the project for June's Bernina Software Sampler. The design is printed from the software on a piece of fabric with the printer. Then you can design the stitching to go with the flower with the embroidery software. Then it is just a matter of stitching out the design on the printed fabric to enhance the flower. It was a fun project. Now I will have to see if I can design a flower bowl with my own photo.

New Embroidery CD

2011-05-18T20:29:00.002-05:00

This is a small table runner that I have stitched to try out the designs on "Hop to It" by Laundry Basket Quilts. The designer is Edyta Sitar. The designs come in most formats and are 5.5" to 8" square. I have chosen the largest size. This is going to be a birthday gift.

Graduation 2011

2011-05-15T10:13:00.004-05:00

On Sunday two of my granddaughters graduated from the local high school. My daughter-in-law graduated from the University of Mary with a Masters in Nursing and a Masters in Business Administration on Friday. So we have been attending ceremonies, luncheons, dinners, and parties for everyone this week. It has been a joyous time for family get-togethers.

Mousepad

2011-05-13T12:14:00.003-05:00

This is my version of the mousepad for the May Software Sampler. The lesson is about making a crazy quilt-type of block. I love the Floralicious fabric by Bernartex and have made a couple of small items from it. This block was completely stitched in the jumbo hoop. The block can also be make in the large hoop but the corner motifs must be hooped a second time. I could not find the mousepad kit so I just used iron-on vinyl for the top covering.

Graduation Wall Quilt

2011-05-09T09:22:00.005-05:00

One of my granddaughters brought her chenille high school letter to me last year to put into a quilt. She graduated yesterday and this was one of her gifts. (Thanks for the idea from my quilting friend Diane.) It is a wall quilt of about 21" x 21". I used a pattern by Double Diamond called Diamond Wine. The diamonds are made with a special double diamond ruler. The area has a second piece of fabric fused to the back and so the diamonds show that color when tucked back and stitched. She did love her little wall quilt. It was a grand graduation day for two of my granddaughters!

Red and White Quilts

2011-05-07T08:05:00.003-05:00

This is the most amazing exhibit of quilts that I have seen. I just wish I could have been there in person. Take a look at the quilts and the format of this amazing exhibition.

More photos from The Selvage Blog.

Paducah Quilt Show

2011-05-02T19:18:00.002-05:00

We got home about 5 last evening from the Paducah Quilt Show. I went with Roxane, owner of Overbrook Quilt Connection, and Dee, a quilting friend. Dee and I helped Roxane with her booth. This was the 25th anniversary of the show and it was eventful. On Sunday they received word that the main exhibition hall had to be abandoned because they were shutting the flood gates in the flood wall. Because of all the rain the Ohio River was near flood stage and could possibly flood the city. So many of the vendors were moved to other buildings in the city. We were very lucky to be in the Finkel Building which was in the downtown area. So we got to town last Monday and set up the booth.

We opened the booth on Tuesday morning. Dee demonstrated the 3-pocket purse, the Bohin chalk pencil, Clearly Perfect Angle, cell phone bag, and the Quilter's boot for binding. We had many customers on Tuesday but our best days were Thursday and Friday. We met quilters from all across the United States, Australia, and Canada. I had great fun and love going to Paducah.

New Billfold

2011-04-17T10:46:00.004-05:00

This is the billfold or checkbook holder that I made with the Texture Magic fabric. I used temtex for the stiffener and that was just not perfect. It makes the wallet too thick in the area of the credit card holders. The pattern designer suggested a product called decor bond 809 that I will use for the next one. If you look carefully, you can see a place for your checkbook on the bottom half and a place for money on the top half. There is plenty of space for credit cards and even a pen holder. This is fairly easy to make and goes together quickly. The Overbrook Quilt Connection is going to have a class for this--watch for the class schedule.

Saturday I was a co-hostess on the Crusin' Kansas bus trip that went to four great quilt shops. Thirty-two of us had breakfast, loaded the bus at 8:30, and headed out to Needle in a Haystack at Severy. We shopped for an hour in this great shop that had lots of help and lovely fabrics. Then we picked up our lunch and headed to Charlotte's Sew Natural in Newton. Charlotte has a great variety of batiks and new florals. Then it was on the Prairie Pieces in Emporia. Another hour of shopping with lots of variety and fun. On to Quilting Bits & Pieces in Eudora for supper with homemade pie and more shopping. Back to Overbrook Quilt Connection by 8:15 for our last chance at buying fabric. Dee and I shared some fun techniques with the bus along the way. The textured billfold or checkbook holder was a hit. All the Texture Magic along the route was purchased. Everyone had a great time making new stitching friends and finding treasures along the way.

New Project

2011-04-08T22:17:00.004-05:00

This is the first step of my project. The first photo is the fabric with Texture Magic on the back and I have stitched a grid on the fabric. I used my embroidery machine to stitch the grid and could have completed the task much faster by using a decorative stitch on the machine. But that did include digitizing the grid which I now have. The I thoroughly steamed the texture magic to complete the shinking process. The fabric shirks approximately 30% in all direction. If you make the photos larger, you can see the details much better. I used a metallic teal thread in the bobbin to give the glitz. I am going to make a lovely wallet from this beginning. I hope to get it finished tomorrow.

April Software Sampler Project

2011-03-29T19:16:00.002-05:00

This is the small project for the April Software Sampler. The lesson is about using the same design and changing the fills to change the design. It is a fun lesson and also is a fun project. The small quilt is completed in the hoop and just sewn together after the blocks are stitched. It is a unique technique to complete a quilt but very easy. I will take the quilt to the shop next week when we have sewing group on Wednesday.

Small Cosmetic Bag

2011-03-26T20:58:00.003-05:00

This is a small cosmetic bag that I made for Della. It really is the cutest one that I have made. I made tabs for the ends of the zipper and I am much happier with that look. The other unique feature is "iron-on vinyl" that I used on the lining fabric. The cording is couched onto the purse using the embroidery module. Really a neat technique. I have enjoyed this project from March Software Sampler.

Cosmetic Bags

2011-03-11T14:40:00.002-06:00

These are samples of the cosmetic bags that will be part of Software Sampler this month at Bernina dealers. The small ones are about 3.5" x 4" and the larger one is 4.5" x 5". They are relatively easy to make except I am not an expert with zippers. I really need a lesson on how to make them look great instead of just okay. The software lesson is about digitizing different types of patterns. Mona, the new Bob's owner, has many new Benartex fabrics--so I get to use them to make samples.

What Do You See?

2011-03-07T10:23:00.004-06:00

This little quilt is from a Keepsake kit. It is called What Do You See. The entire quilt is a panel and I just did a little quilting along the black triangles. I just had to provide the binding fabric. It makes a nice, quick quilt for a child. I took the quilt to the Cancer Center in Topeka during my routine visit yesterday. I had three nurses and the children's doctor come into my room and thank me for the quilt. They were very appreciative. I wish I could have told them I put a lot of work into it, but it was one of those easy peasy quilts.

Muslin Quilt

2011-02-20T11:41:00.004-06:00

My newest project is a muslin quilt. This week I have my third lesson for this quilt taught by Doris Davidson, who has won grand champion ribbons for her quilts. The book(s) for this quilt are by Jennie Rayment from England. She uses different folding techniques to make many block designs. The technique takes advantage of bias and embellishments in many of the blocks. She also uses lots of tucks to create texture. I took the lessons several years ago but never got to the finished quilt. So I am trying again and have several blocks ready for the top. The most fun in the class is seeing what others do to embellish their blocks. It is the first time I have used pintucking, bias bars, and ruching. I enjoy learning the new techniques.

Garden Nouveau Quilt

2011-02-12T12:42:00.003-06:00

My friends are not tall enough to hold this quilt but you get the idea. I just have to put the back together and it is ready to take to the quilter. I am extremely happy to have this quilt completed. It was a unique challenge and my new 830 was up to the task. In all of the satin stitching I may have seen two thread loops and they may have been my fault for not changing the needle sooner. The quilt took a lot of stabilizer because each block required two to six hoopings. The side borders had seven hoopings and the top and bottom had five hoopings. Now I just have to decide who receives this quilt...My thanks to Vicky Lawrence for designing and Anna Aldmon for digitizing this beautiful treasure.

Working on Garden Nouveau

2011-02-07T18:17:00.003-06:00

I thought maybe I would have this quilt finished in early January, that did not happen. Each of the side borders took 14 hours of stitching and the other two borders took 12 hours each. Then there were four corner blocks to embroider. All of that is complete and the embroidered borders are on the quilt. Now I just have two more borders to finish this task. I am getting a little tired of this quilt and will be glad to have it finished. My machine quilter is about ready to tackle the task of making it look beautiful. I'll have a picture before long.

Happy Stitching!

My First Cross Stitch

2011-02-01T10:00:00.003-06:00

This is my first attempt at cross stitch with my embroidery machine. I digitized the pattern in Designer Plus V6 software and then stitched it on muslin. The cross stitch itself is only about 2.5 inches square. The design is pretty amazing as I watched it stitch. The crosses are so small and perfect. I would never attempt something like this by hand. The design has some areas that need work, but I really do like it.

Heirloom Heart

2011-01-25T09:38:00.003-06:00

This was a project at last week's Machine Embroidery group at Bob's Bernina. The project was really an heirloom pincushion stitched in white on white with a white ribbon. The design uses a wing needle and gives that heirloom look. It was really striking. As usual, I modified the design a bit by using red thread on a muslin background. On the back piece I stitched a large buttonhole using my embroidery module, layered the two pieces and now I have a candy holder for Valentine's Day.

Computer Bags

2011-01-14T16:40:00.003-06:00

These are laptop bags that I embroidered for Christmas gifts. Most had initials but some adults got their name if it was short. The monogram section of the Bernina V6 Designer Plus made it easy to design a special monogram for each person. This side is black and the other side has a wide color strip around the bag. I made one for 20 of the family including myself. Almost everyone had them packed as they left for their homes.

Design Wall

2011-01-09T16:50:00.002-06:00

This is the quilt that I have been working on. It is Vicky Lawrence's Garden Nouveau quilt that is in her AQS book. Anna Aldmon from Texas is digitizing the original quilt. I have to stitch on the inner borders and then I will be ready to work on the applique borders. This quilt is going to be beautiful.

Tiaras

2010-12-26T14:02:00.003-06:00

These are tiaras that I made for my great-granddaughters. The four-year-old said, "This is the most beautiful crown I have ever seen!" Now wouldn't that melt a ggrandma's heart...The designs came from Dainty Stitches. They are very inexpensive and easy to stitch. The big problem was to find a headband that would fit in the small slots. I finally found some that were just right at Dollar General. Now I have some for the next greats. Aren't they beautiful? The dark one are really purple. I also gave them net skirts. They were beautiful princesses.

Merry Christmas

2010-12-24T22:02:00.003-06:00

A very Merry Christmas to all of you. Last year I made new stockings for all of the family. This year we added Landon, so his is the only stocking that was needed. I am sure that he will look forward to hanging his stocking in the coming years.

Some of last year's stocking were a bit big and I have heard complaints that it takes a lot of items to fill them. I bet some are not complaining...

More pictures after Christmas.

More Blocks from Garden Nouveau

2010-12-06T09:56:00.006-06:00

These are my latest two blocks from the Garden Nouveau book by Vicky Lawrence. The tulip block is 12 1/2 x 18 1/2. I am using a Bernina 830 with the jumbo hoop. These blocks can also be completed with the mega hoop. These blocks have multi-hoopings. Anna Aldmon, digitizer, has done an excellent job of providing registration marks for hoopings and has an excellent set of directions. Anna has a website that shows the blocks in a different colorway.
The designs are available for machines that have large hoops.

Block 5 of Garden Noveau Quilts

2010-11-28T22:20:00.002-06:00

Anna Aldmon continues to send me digitized blocks to stitchout. This is the fourth block that I have completed. Each block is a shining star and will stand out in a quilt of stars. You will have to get Vicky Lawrence's book, Garden Noveau Quilts, to see the beauty of this quilt.

Second Garden Nouveau Block

2010-11-21T22:09:00.002-06:00

This is block 4 in the Garden Nouveau quilt. It is fascinating to watch the designs stitch out. Anna Aldmon has done a terrific job of digitizing the designs. She has the most comprehensive directions that I have used for quilt blocks. Check out my last post for all of the particulars about the quilt and where you can find more information.

New Project

2010-11-19T18:17:00.004-06:00

This is a block from my newest project. I am testing the Bernina format (ART) for the digitizer of Vicky Lawrence's Garden Nouveau quilt. Anna Aldmon is the digitizer and has the disks ready for Viking and Pfaff embroidery machines. The hoop can be 200 X 260 or 200 X 360. She said she should have her website available next week but you can

email her at annaaldmon@grandecom.net.

You must purchase Vicky's book to complete the quilt. The embroidery format is in addition to the directions for the quilt. The original quilt is hand applique. I am so excited to try the quilt in machine applique because everyone who knows me knows that "I do not want to touch the needle."

Vicky's quilt is hanging at the Overbrook Quilt Connection. Roxane has the Garden Nouveau books available and also has Anna's embroidery patterns.

15-Minute Table Runner

2010-11-08T16:18:00.002-06:00

These are 15-minute table runners that I have made while waiting for an embroidery design to stitch. While Roxane was gone to Houston, she asked me to make one of these for a shop sample. Wow! they are just so easy that I decided they would make great gifts. I showed the Thursday sewing group at the shop and they started making them too. They really can be made in 15 minutes or less.

Design Wall Monday

2010-11-01T13:29:00.004-05:00

There are three "quilts-in-progress" on my design wall. The Christmas one is made from the OESD Christmas Collection 3. I have to embroider four designs around the corners by the wreath and then embroider the border. That is what I am doing today. The other is Wild!flowers by Smith Street Designs. I still have to finish the sashing around the blocks. It was supposed to be finished last week. The third one that you cannot see is Montana Log Cabin and I just need a few hours to work on it. Lots to do and time is getting short. Check other posts on Judy's Blog.

Heirloom Christmas Tree Skirt

2010-10-30T18:32:00.002-05:00

Bob's Bernina is carrying many different blanks now. One of the items is a Christmas tree skirt that has a cutwork-look to it. I am going to teach this class at the shop and decided to make the tree skirt white-on-white. I am using the designs in the OESD Christmas Collection #3 in addition to another OESD CD entitled Swirls. I washed the blank before working on it so that it would not shrink and pucker when I have to wash out the stabilizer. Then I used Fresh Press to give it some body before embroidery. After all the designs were stitched, I swished it in very warm water before throwing it into the washing machine. With a little more Fresh Press and a lot of ironing, the Christmas tree skirt does, indeed, resemble an heirloom.

Christmas Collection #3

2010-10-26T22:35:00.002-05:00

The OESD Christmas Collection #3 has these eight designs that are used in a small quilt. I still have to stitch out the center design and assemble the blocks. I have also been using the designs in a heirloom Christmas tree skirt. I have a few more hours on it before I am ready to call it complete.

Working on a quilt!

2010-10-16T10:31:00.003-05:00

I have a class at Overbrook Quilt Connection that is working on Wild!flowers or More Wild!flowers by Smith Street Designs. The quilt blocks are flowers made with machine embroidery. So I have been working on getting the blocks put together into a quilt top. Then I want to layer the top so I can demonstrate how to quilt with the embroidery module. That is what I have been working to complete. So no new pictures or new ideas this week.

Cuddly Teddy Bears

2010-09-30T19:40:00.005-05:00

Last time I was at the cancer center, they put me in the children's examining room and I would not have recognized it if they hadn't told me. So I am going to spend a little time making some things to make the room more cozy for kids. So I ordered a couple of teddy bears for the room from Great Notions. There is a white one and a brown one and they are cute and cuddly. One says "Superstar" and one says "BFF Best Friends Forever." They are fairly easy to embroider because the body has a zipper and the stuffing can be pulled out. Right now I am thinking about making a kerchief for each one. Then maybe a wall hanging that is bright and cheerful. That room can use lots of work!

Montana Log Cabin

2010-09-13T09:31:00.004-05:00

This is the start of a quilt called Montana Log Cabin by Janet Kessler for Benartex. The quilt starts with a silhouette panel and log cabin blocks. It will be a quick and easy throw for someone's Christmas gift. The directions for the quilt can be found on the Benartex site about 2/3 the way down the page. I purchased my panel and fabric at Overbrook Quilt Connection.

It's Newton Again!

2010-09-11T11:58:00.005-05:00

Newton is in the washer for his first bath before being gifted this afternoon. The entire quilt was quilted with my 830 embroidery machine. The blocks and borders are quilted with line quilting designs that I have had for a long time. The sizes were changed to fit the block. The sashing between the blocks is a design I tried to use from the 830. In the end, I put the design in my Designer Plus software and digitized it so I could make it the width and length I needed. My machine worked almost perfectly on this quilt. I am sure the couple of small glitches were operator error and easy fixes. I really love this quilt and hate to give it away. It was a joy to make from start to finish.

Baby Design

2010-09-10T08:08:00.002-05:00

In a few week I will get to meet my new great grandson. So I made him some new shirts. The designs came from the Newton Collection of OESD. They are so cute because the designs are only about one inch in size. Yesterday I was busy quilt his Newton quilt. My 830 Bernina is having a fun time with all the work it is doing. I love the jumbo hoop and the new design for tightening the hoop. It just makes hooping so easy. This will be our fourth great, the other three are the cutest girls.

Floral Visions Quilt

2010-09-07T16:20:00.005-05:00

This is my floral visions quilt. It is in purples, greens, a smattering of blue, and a soft gray.

I still have four center embroideries to complete. The colors were chosen from the colors in the final border. It was fun to do until I came to the center design. I really struggled to get it centered and had to attempt it several times. I am trying to decide if I want to do another one as a gift and make it for a double bed. A couple of the designs are mine and not part of the original pattern and directions. Floral Visions is a software design package from OESD. You can see the colors and detail better if you click on the photo and make it bigger.

Newton Baby Quilt

2010-09-02T20:24:00.004-05:00

This is a baby quilt that I have been working on since yesterday. I purchased part of it as a kit when I saw the fabric while I was in Arizona two or three years ago. Then I ordered more of the fabric online. A new great-grandson is expected this fall, so a new quilt is in order. Newton is the name of the fabric and is the lamb in the panels and the border. OESD, the embroidery company, also put out a collection of Newton embroideries. So I will be adding some designs from that collection. This is a quick quilt and should be completed in a couple of days. The center is sewn but the borders are just stuck to the design wall. You may need to click on the picture to view it in bigger format to see the details.

The Anything Holder

2010-08-28T13:12:00.002-05:00

This is my anything holder--you can use it for sewing supplies, art supplies, or anything else you might want. It unfolds and inside is three-inch-wide elastic sewn with slots for keeping your supplies. This was the project for the All About Machine Embroidery program at my Bernina dealer. I found the elastic at Hancock's and it has a frilly top--really neat elastic! The design is from OESD's Rose of Sharon Collection. The Bernina USA website has one of these designs to download right now. It was fun to make and would be a great gift for someone who sews.

It's Wild!flowers Again

2010-08-24T18:54:00.003-05:00

These are the six embroidered blocks that are in Wild!flowers by Smith Street Designs. I first saw this quilt in an Arizona quiltshop. It is the first embroidery quilt that I truly fell in love with on sight. You can see my quilt here. Tomorrow at the local quilt shop I will be teaching the techniques needed to make this quilt to a class of seven. I know they will really like making this quilt and lead them on a non-stop journey into embroidery.

Floral Visions

2010-08-18T18:11:00.002-05:00

This is the Floral Visions quilt that I am working on. It is Crafter's Collection #1 from OESD although I can't find it on the website. I purchased mine at my Bernina dealer. The quilt has nine blocks and five of those are finished. The center block is over-sized and flows into the sashing. OESD has a thread kit for this design, but I have a floral I am using for the border that has purples and a smattering of blue. So my colors are different. I want to see if I would like this as a bigger quilt.

The Christmas Collection from OESD is now available at your dealer. The first set has tree decorations including a beautiful angel. I have not seen the other sets.

Design Wall Monday

2010-08-15T21:33:00.006-05:00

I know this is not a wall, but I could not get it to stick to the wall because it was so heavy. The ABC quilt still needs a final border. This quilt is "shocking" red and can cause red dots to appear before your eyes!! I am so glad to have this almost complete. I want to work on a quilt called Floral Visions that I will embroider on my new 830. Happy sewing week!

ABC Update

2010-08-12T20:52:00.003-05:00

The 26 alphabet blocks and the 4 corner blocks are finished. Photos of blocks on my design wall are cumbersome to take because it is right below my stairway. I can't get all of the blocks or take the picture from in front of the blocks. So you get the idea. I do have the sashing cut and have two horizontal rows sewn. This is a busy quilt!

Design Wall Monday

2010-08-09T09:20:00.006-05:00

This is Redwork ABC by The Stitch Connection.

The embroidery has been completed for all of the blocks. Now I am sewing the piecing around each of the blocks. I only have 16 more blocks to go! This is my second redwork quilt this summer. I think the next one will have to be bluework or greenwork because I am a bit tired of seeing red. My new 830 and I are getting to know each other as we work on this quilt.

Canada and Alaska Rivers

2010-08-07T07:22:00.005-05:00

The streams in Canada and Alaska were very interesting. If the river came from a glacier, it was usually a milky gray. The color comes from the ground-up rock and sediment that is produced as the glacier moves. But some streams are an amazing blue-green that is almost beyond description. This water comes from inside the glacier where the oxygen has been squeezed from it. Then there were streams that were clear and usually came from snow melt. Streams came in all sizes but most of there were huge. My camera just did not catch the true essence of the streams.

My New Baby

2010-08-05T20:38:00.003-05:00

This is my new Bernina 830! I picked it up last Thursday. Bob, of Bob's Bernina, had a retirement party on Saturday and then was going on a trip to Pennsylvania. So I picked it up before he left the store. His plans include working at the store a couple of days a week. I know a lot of people trust him to work on their machines. Mona is the new ower and has her sister, Rose, working at the store. They also are planning to enlarge the store with a classroom next door. It will be fun to have classes with plenty of room.

My friend in Amarillo just purchased a Bernina 630. She is falling in love with her new machine. We plan to do some power sewing soon.

I am sorry to have been off-line so long, but my modem was not working when I got home. So a phone call to the fix-it place was supposed to have one in my hands in 3 to 5 days. It took three more phone calls and 9 days to finally get on-line. Thanks for your patience because my ran out for a while.

Almost Home

2010-07-26T22:20:00.002-05:00

Tonight we are at Gunsmoke Campground in Dodge City. We have spent the last seven days at River's End Campground at Taylor Reservoir. It is north of Gunnison, Colorado. Our boys and families were there with their atv's. So we stopped to have a little fun with them before heading home today. They will be home later in the week.

No updates because there was no wifi connection. I did get an email message or two sent from one of the daugher-in-laws Iphones. I think I will have to have one of those before long.

Rex and Elaine have gotten their trailer fixed and are on the road again. We did get a call from them today and they are in Washington state. They are going to attend a wedding there in a week or two. So happy to hear from them.

More news about the trip later in the week. Thanks for making the journey with us.

Still in Montana

2010-07-17T21:02:00.002-05:00

Saturday, July 17
We stayed at Dick’s RV in Great Falls, Montana last night. The park is on the river and very nice. With asphalt pads. We did some power buying at WalMart as we were out of fruit and vegetables. We also purchased a soft long-handled brush and some automotive soap. When we got back to the park, we washed the truck and fifth wheel. It really looks nice now that the Alaska mud is gone.
Today we took Highway 89 to Interstate 90. The highway was a scenic route and that was really true. It ran through a narrow valley with a river. There were big bluffs, lots of pines, and clear streams. The views were awesome. We stopped at a turnout and the guys saw one of our tires was separating, so it was time to use the big tools for a job quickly done. Then 50 miles on down the highway, the PressurePro indicated that tire had low pressure, so we stopped and pumped it up. We stopped at a co-op in the next small town and they put in a new valve stem in less than half an hour. It was an interesting stop in a town with a mercantile and two cafes.
Then it was back to big rolling hills beside the Yellowstone River and gigantic wheat fields that are almost ready to harvest. Tonight we are parked at the 7th Ranch RV. We stayed at this park when we were northbound.

The North Country for my Sewing Friends

2010-07-16T16:43:00.002-05:00

This is a picture of the back of an aspen leaf. I noticed that the aspen trees had the color of a Russian olive and I just had not remembered that before. So one evening at a campground I looked closely at the leaves. Most of the trees have this pattern. There is a very small moth that looks like a small piece of cottonwood fuzz that blows through the air. Well, the moth lays it eggs on the leaves and then the larva make this pattern as it eats part of the leaf. I decided that it looks just like the stippling that would be on a quilt. All the leaves are different and have interesting patterns.

Monday and Tuesday

2010-07-14T23:01:00.004-05:00

7-12 & 7-13
We are working on getting back to the United States. The Yukon Territories and British Columbia seem to be extremely big, especially at 45 mph. Yesterday the biggest news of the day was that Elaine and Rex have plans to solve their problem. The second biggest event was that we saw a brown bear walking along the ditch and I got a picture.

Today is Happy Birthday to me Day! We headed down Highway 37, or the Cassiar Highway. The first few miles were kind of rough and then there was lots of road construction. So it was slow going for about 5 hours. We did stop at the Jade Shop along the way and found out that 90% of the world’s jade is mined from an old asbestos mine in the Cassiar Mountains. After getting to Dease Lake the road became smooth and it was great driving. It was a 300 mile day. Our animal sightings were a small herd of horses in the road and a black bear hurrying up the hillside. I don’t know where all the moose are hiding. The Cassiar Mountains are a new awesome experience at each new turn in the road. There were lots of lakes and they were beautiful blues, but not quite as pretty as Dease Lake.

Venice was so kind to fix me a birthday dinner complete with a birthday cake and candles. She hurried a little with things and the wax on the part of the candles stuck in the cake melted because the cake was still hot. It really didn't matter, it was great cake.

I couldn't get any pictures to upload. Maybe next time.

Saturday and Sunday

2010-07-11T23:59:00.002-05:00

7-10 & 7-11
These two days have not been the best ones on the trip. Saturday morning in Valdez, one of the sensors on the trailer tires said we had a low tire. So the day started with changing a tire in the rain. We drove in rain about half the day and when we finally arrived in Tok, it was sunny and mild. We had supper together on the picnic table. Venice had a wonderful angel food care and berry topping dessert--yum!
Sunday dawned rainy and stayed that way for most of the day. From Tok we headed down Highway #1 to Haines Junction. The road was awful. Lot of patches and rough spots. It was impossible to go very fast--not over 45mph tops. After clearing Canadian customs, Rex and Elaine said they had serious problems. They had broken welds on the hitch. They found a RV park just .5 miles down the road and checked in. So after much discussion, unanswered phone calls to their roadside assistance, Excel, and their insurance-- and at their insistence, we left them there to find a fix for their problem. It could take several days or a couple of weeks. So we headed for Haines Junction. The road we were on got even worse than in the morning. So it was slower going for 200 miles. Tonight we are staying at Kluane RV Park in Haines Junction. Nothing special but it has water and electricity. I did not see the elusive Sunday moose…We really miss Rex and Elaine!

Prince William Sound

2010-07-10T22:44:00.007-05:00

On Friday, Elaine, Jim, and I got on the Lu Lu Belle about 1PM for a cruise around Prince William Sound. The rest of our crew had gotten up early for a fishing excursion for halibut. We arrived early and decided to sit on the upper deck with Captain Fred. The captain did an excellent job of telling us the history of the Valdez area, the real deal on the Exon Valdez, about the Aleyeska pipeling, the 1984 earthquake, and the natural history of the sound. We left the dock area by going by the fish cannery. The fishermen of the Sound transfer their catch to a bigger boat which brings it into the cannery and it is sucked up by large flexible hoses. We next saw sea otters who were just resting on the water. He put the tip of the boat into a crevice in the rocks to see the nesting area of puffins--one of the items on my Alaska list. We also saw puffins floating in the water. Then it was the seal lions sunning themselves on the rocks. They are not really like in the Sound because they eat so many salmon, but they were put on the endangered species list to protect them!!?? We saw whales--lots and lots of whales and some so very close to the boat. I have some great whale pictures--even one of a blow as they surfaced. Then it was on to look at the Columbia Glacier as it comes out of the Chugach Mountains. The captain took us right through many of the ice chunks. We had a great time and the weather was perfect.

Journey to Valdez

2010-07-09T12:42:00.008-05:00

7-8
Today we traveled from Palmer through Glennallen and on to Valdez. The drive had awesome views. The mountains are beautiful and seem to go on forever. Mountains are covered with alders and other bushes or much higher and covered with snow. We saw the Matanuska Glacier which is quite close to the road. It averages 2 miles wide and has been stable for 400 years. We also saw the Worthington Glacier as it appeared to flow down from several mountains. The oil pipeline was visible as we headed south to Valdez. We saw two massive falls--Bridal Veil Falls and Horseshoe Falls--that are beside the highway.
After setting up the trailers at Bear Creek RV, we drove into Valdez to check out a glacier tour for Elaine, Jim, and I. Rex, Jim M, and Venice are going halibut fishing tomorrow. We checked out the dock area and watched fishermen fillet their catch. A bit north of town we checked out a small stream that flowed into Prince William Sound. We saw people catching salmon in the sound as they were headed up to the stream. There were also many eagles, gulls, and sea lions. We were looking for bears but did not see any.

Anchorage

2010-07-07T23:24:00.006-05:00

Today we went touring in Anchorage. The weather was warm and partly cloudy. Our first stop was at the visitor center in downtown Anchorage. The flowers all over Alaska are the most beautiful I have ever seen. They hanging baskets are awesome with vibrant color. The visitor center has lots of flowers as well as most of the stores. We chose to take the trolley tour of the city and our driver was Jody. She has lived in Anchorage her entire life and has great pride in the city. This is her last year driving as she will be student teaching next semester. She did a great job and had lots of facts about the city. One of the dates important for the area was the 1964 earthquake that registered over 8 on the Richter scale and the tsunami. One of the stops was at the seaplane part of the airport where they have connected two lakes with two channels that allow the planes to taxi and takeoff. After the tour we stopped at the musk ox cooperative where articles are sold by knitters using the soft hair. We even found a quilt shop in the area. We also stopped at the ulu factory. Ulus are a curved knife that are great for chopping vegetables. Our last stop was the natural history museum.

Celebrating

2010-07-06T01:49:00.004-05:00

On the fourth of July we moved from the Denali area to Homestead RV Park close to Palmer, Alaska. We drove in rain for much of the 200 mile trip. The owners of Homestead are Bill and Cathy, who we met in the park in Arizona. The afternoon was spent getting things set up. We watched eagles below the bluff we are on. Venice has a friend who lives in Wasilla, so they were off to visit with her.
July fifth is Rex’s birthday. This morning Elaine and I checked on the lowlands and saw a moose taking a nap. We spent time watching him and taking pictures. I baked some cupcakes and then Venice’s friend took us all on a tour. We went up Hatcher Pass and stopped at a resort for some tea and coffee. The stream beside the road was beautiful with many huge rocks. The mountain sides were covered with alders. We also saw fiddle ferns. After a little lunch we headed for Cook’s Inlet. The inlet has miles of mud flats when the tide is out. It was very windy and rough on the water today. We stopped at Indian Valley Meats. They take people’s fish or wild game and fix it however they want. They can smoke it or make jerky from it. It was a very interesting place. Our last event of the day was a drive-by of Sarah Palin’s house in Wasilla. Then it was back to camp to frost the cupcakes, make some ice cream, and have a birthday party for Rex. It was another fun day.

Denali National Park

2010-07-04T18:37:00.005-05:00

July 3, 2010
The alarm went off at 4:30 a.m. because we had reservations for a 6:00 a.m. bus tour. It really did not seem like 5:15 when we left our RV’s because it was so light. The first highlight of the day was the moose and baby that were right outside the parking lot. That was a real treat. We didn’t see much wildlife until a couple of hours into our trip. Then we stopped to watch the Dall Sheep on the mountain ridge on the right side of the bus and the caribou in the river bed on the left side of the bus. After that we saw lots of sheep on the high mountains and more caribou. We were almost to our turnaround at the Eielson Visitor Center when we saw a momma grizzly bear and her big cubs. They were grazing on grass on the meadow. We saw them again on the return trip and they were napping on the hillside. We saw another set of grizzlies further down the road and they were grazing. We also saw a golden eagle. The sad part of the tour was that Denali Mountain or Mount McKinley--whichever name you want to use--was in the clouds today. We were back home by about 3 p.m. and it rained the rest of the day.

The area is a favorite of hikers and backpackers. When they are back to the road any of the buses will pick them up and take them back to the park headquarters. We picked up a 20ish young man who had been in the wilderness for 5 days. The national parks are also a favorite for foreign travelers. We had people from New Zealand, Germany, Korea, and Sweden.

The first picture is an Alaskan sunrise! The second is a picture from the bus as we drove above a valley in Denali Park.

Sled Dogs

2010-07-03T22:00:00.002-05:00

July 2, 2010
Today we moved near Denali Park. We toured the park as far as they would allow personal vehicles to drive. Then we stopped an dropped in at the Denali Park Kennels where they raise, train, and use sled dogs. Most of the employees of the kennels are young women. We heard a presentation about the dogs, their training and use in the park. They they brought out the “summer sled” and hooked five dogs to it. As soon as the first dog was taken to the sled, all of the dogs barked and howled because they wanted to be the ones chosen. When all the dogs were in their harness, they were off like a shot--they ran like the wind. They came around an oval that put them back before the audience and then the trainer answered questions. It was a great event.

The Alaskan Pipeline

2010-07-03T21:44:00.003-05:00

July 1,2010
Yesterday we checked out the Trans Alaska Pipeline System near Fairbanks. Oil was discovered in 1968 in Prudhoe Bay in northern Alaska. Pipeline construction began in March 1975 and was finished in June 1977. Crude Oil began flowing on June 20 of that year and the first tanker was filled at Valdez on August 1. The 48-inch diameter steel pipeline runs 800 miles and crosses three mountain ranges and 800 rivers or streams. Because of the permafrost large segments of the pipeline were elevated above ground to keep the permafrost from melting. More than 16 billion barrels have moved through the Trans Alaska Pipeline System. Alaska supplies nearly 14% of the United States’ domestic crude oil production. Over 19,000 oil tankers have been loaded at Valdez. The Marine Terminal cost $1.4 billion to build, covers 1,000 acres, and includes 18 oil storage tanks with a capacity of 9 million barrels.

I thought maybe you would like the little board that was posted at the pipeline sight about sunrise and sunset.

Fairbanks

2010-06-30T09:22:00.005-05:00

Today is Tuesday, June 29 and our 20th day of travel. We drove from Tok to Fairbanks on Highway 2 in a gentle rain.. The highway today was excellent and took us in a NNW direction. We left Tok at about 7 a.m. and got to Fairbanks at about 2 p.m. Today we saw several moose, one with a baby. We did stop at North Pole, Alaska and have a little chat with Santa. After that we had our first look at the Alaska Pipeline as it crossed a river. We went to Pioneer Village for a Salmon Bake this evening. We had prime rib, salmon, halibut, and cod with all the trimmings and dessert. We then walked around the village and saw many different antiques.

2010-06-28T13:18:00.005-05:00

Saturday we drove from Whitehorse to Dawson City in Yukon Territories. It was a rather uneventful 349 miles. We did find a place called Moose Creek Lodge that was supposed to have good food and pastries. It did not look very promising, but the food was great! I had a grilled roast beef, onion, and cheese sandwich on homemade bread. Then had a raspberry tart that was delicious.

We went to the “dome” when we got to Dawson City. It is a high point that overlooks the city and the Yukon and Klondike rivers. From above the city, the places where they dredged the Klondike river for gold look like big worms. From the highway, the dredging looks like big mounds of rocks. The area between the street and river is a green belt that had lots of activity--people camping, kids playing, and walkers. The guys went to fill with fuel and to get a few groceries. Milk was $8 a gallon, so they decided we really didn’t need it for another day or two.

Sunday we didn’t go very many miles, but we were on The Top of the World Highway. To go from Dawson City to Chicken in Alaska, first you have to cross the river on a barge. We left the campground at 6:45 and had a 90 minute wait for our turn to cross the river. Then it was 80+ miles of gravel roads up and down the tops of mountains with a little rain thrown in. The views were truly amazing. In the middle of nowhere, was the port of entry back into the United States. We stopped for lunch in Chicken. We drove on to Tok. The first thing we did when we got to Tok was to wash the rigs.

Monday is a day of rest for us. It has rained all night and is still raining. We are just doing the maintenance things like washing clothes, getting groceries and watching a little TV.

Train Trip

2010-06-25T23:15:00.006-05:00

Today, June 25, we got on a bus to take us on a train trip! How about that!!! From Whitehorse, YT we took Highway 2 or the South Klondike highway and stopped at Carcross, YT. Carcross stands for caribou crossing or the narrows the caribou used go between two lakes in the area. There is an area of sand dunes know as the Carcross Desert close by. The sand came from lake-bottom material left behind by a large glacial lake. It looks like the OK sand dunes except it has pine trees growing in it.

Then it was on to Fraser, BC where we boarded a narrow gauge train, the White Pass and Yukon Route Railroad which was completed in 1900. We saw spectacular scenery as we rode to Skagway, Alaska. There were two tunnels, several bridges, lots of waterfalls, high mountains, and sheer drop-offs. It was a fun trip.

Before getting off the train, our passports were checked because we were now in the U.S. We had also crossed a time zone. Skagway was one of the staging areas for the gold rush in the Klondike. Now it is a port for cruise ships and so there are lots of tourist shops--especially jewelry shops. It is a neat little town--with a feel similar to Leadville in Colorado except the shopping is more upscale. I found a quilt shop with great Alaskan patterns and purchased a little fabric.

Back on the bus and heading back to Whitehorse and another passport check to get back into Canada. We got back about 6.

Observations

2010-06-24T17:22:00.003-05:00

North of Watson Lakes for many miles, rock messages are spelled out along the highway on the slopes of the ditches. The rock messages were started in 1990 by a Fort Nelson swim team. Now there are lots of names and messages.

The continental divide divides two of the largest drainage systems in North America--the Yukon River and the Mackenzie River watersheds. The Yukon goes 2300 miles to the Pacific Ocean and the Mackenzie flows north and empties into the Arctic Ocean after 2650 miles.

The landscape is full of small, calm lakes surrounded by pines just like the pictures you have seen. We did follow a lake for a while that was 86 miles long, so there are huge lakes here too.

We have crossed the Rocky Mountains and now are in the Cassian Mountains, which are not quite as rugged as the Rockies.

We are traveling with a couple who were here four years ago and there were not many people traveling then. This year there are lots of campers and trailers. The RV parks are about filled by evening. There are many pull-outs along the highway for truckers and travelers.

It is light here 23 hours of the day this time of year. The sun was still not set at 10 p.m. The first day of winter they have about 5.5 hours of daylight.

British Columbia is the energy capital of Canada with gas wells everywhere. The RV parks had many oil workers living in them.

Today we are riding a train to Skagway.