Tag: patriotic quilt

Mark Twain is in the house again!

Published on by car2ole1 Comment

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I probably should be more careful about folding Mark.  But look at that detail in his hair!

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I scanned the signature and stitched it out on my Destiny.  What a great sewing machine.

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The woodgrain in the fence makes you just want to run out and whitewash it!

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This amazing quilting was done by Deonn Stott, a true artisan.

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Every detail comes alive with her great vision.

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The paddlewheel blocks were quilted to look like, well, paddlewheels on a river boat.

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I embroidered a different quote on the quilt, one that felt more like “me.”

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Be gentle, it’s my first: Mark Twain and all his little friends are ready to go public!

Published on by car2ole8 Comments

I am entering a quilt in the Kauai Quilt show!

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I’ve never entered a quilt in a show.  I’ve only been quilting for a couple of years, so I guess that’s not surprising.

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I call my quilt “How Did I Get Here?”  It’s like a pictorial representation of the places in the US where I have lived and learned.  How cute is little Mark Twain in the corner of Missouri?  I hope I haven’t seen the end of Mark Twain’s head on my quilts.  That one is going to take a lot of thought.

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I’m pretty sure that embroidering the state of Minnesota is the only opportunity I will have to make a gopher.  Unliess I decide to do a Caddyshack quilt some day.  What the heck would that look like?

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Hawaii is actually the first one I did of the states.  When I started this one, I didn’t have a plan for a quilt, and certainly not a thought of making a quilt for a show.  Everything just snowballed from here.  Or erupted from here.

The designs are all from the 50 States collection by Anita Goodesign.  I love using their designs; so detailed and perfect.  Each state took me a full day to embroider.  And I have half of a Missouri sitting around somewhere.

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These small state outlines are from Urban Threads, another awesome source for machine embroidery designs.

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I listed all the most important places in my life using the lettering in my Destiny.  It’s hard to tell in this photo, the thread is a variegated blue/white.

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I like my little appliqué cornerstones.  There are two Hawaii’s on the bottom.

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The gorgeous stars and stripes are from another Anita Goodesign set called Free Motion Frenzy.  Gotta love anything with the name Frenzy.

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I just had to use this red and white Hawaiian print on the back.  And look at that adorable blue and white check I found for the binding!

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I have to finish sewing the hanger thingie on the back, and I want to make a quilt label for it.  No pressure, it’s due tomorrow at 10am.

What do you think of my first show quilt?  I don’t have any expectations.  I am just thrilled to have put together something that means so much to me.  And I think it’s cute.

Mark Twain is in the house! Holla!

Published on by car2ole3 Comments

I’m from the state of Missouri.  The one pronounced Mi-zor-uh.  And there’s a famous dude that came from the same town in which I was born.  So today I’m sending some love to Hannibal!

There is an adorable quilt shop there called the Hickory Stick.  I spend hours there every time I visit my mom.  I blame that shop (and my mom) for my newish obsession with quilting.  On my last trip I saw the most amazing quilt with Mark Twain’s head on it.  And I knew it must be mine.

Mark Twain's head hovering in space

They used the Mark Twain/Hannibal fabrics, which are way too muted for my loud tastes.  And I’ve been longing for a red, white and blue quilt.  So tuh-duh!  Meet my patriotic friend Mark!

We’ve got your boyhood home there on the bottom, along with a fence, freshly whitewashed.  The swirly star thingies are paddlewheel blocks, and they look like paddlewheels (in case you live under a rock and don’t know what paddlewheels look like.)

paddlewheel blocks, although I am sure they also have another name

By the way, Mark is NOT a printed panel, I machine appliquéd his cute little head on there.  That was some fussy work!  And I scanned his autograph on my cool new Destiny sewing machine and stitched it out with the press of a button.  (Now I’m just bragging.  Sorry.)

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I changed Mark’s quote to one that better suits my own badass outlook on life.  Stitched that puppy out on my machine also.  The quote used in the pattern is, “If you tell the truth, you don’t have to remember anything.”  I seriously considered using my very favorite quote, “Go to Heaven for the climate, Hell for the company.”

When you go to Hannibal, give a shout out to Pat and the wonderful folks at the Hickory Stick Quilt Shop.  And check them out on Facebook.  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Hickory-Stick-Quilt-Shop/283780778455063  They have this cool pattern by Susan Marth, it’s called A Tribute to Mark Twain.  And say hi to my mom on the hill.