Walking in a Winter Wonderland...

Marny here...This is what I get to look at today.  Our town is entirely frosted with ice.  The sun is shining and the skies are blue.  The effect is all that you could possibly ask for.  It will disappear before long, but it is magical while it is here.

This is our last post in 2010.  We've posted 53 times.  Seems hard to believe.  The weeks have flown by.  Modern Quilt Relish is happily growing.  We have enjoyed sharing our quilting and business lives with you all.  Your comments are always such a treat for us.  Please keep them coming.  We value what you have to say.

yum, a treat of a different sort

Jill and I wish you all a joyous and safe New Year.  

May you spend lots of time with the ones you love in 2011.

until Tuesday...

2010 Basket Bonanza

Marny still...and that brings us to the twelfth year of Christmas amongst friends at Jill's house.  We made these wonderful fabric baskets just a couple weeks ago.  

Jill welcomed us with tasty hot cider and a beautifully decorated home.  We gathered around in the kitchen (of course) and chatted, catching up on one another's lives and sharing laughter. 

Next we chose fabrics, fused, cut to size, and sewed a few seams.  It makes it seem so simple when it is worded like that.  But it really is a few seams and the project is complete.  Another good choice for the sewing party group.    

Here we are concluding 12 Years of Christmas....

wondering what the thirteenth year will hold?

till Tuesday then.

2009 Not a Rocket Science Bag

Marny here...maybe you remember seeing this bag before.  We blogged and gave a tutorial here.  It really is a terrific project that Jill created.  This is the long/tall version.  The one illustrated in the tutorial and the blog post is somewhat shorter.

Some of you know we carried these bags full of lifesavers and blog handouts to advertise at Quilt Market in May.  Hopefully we can say hi here to some of the nice folks who checked out the blog following that  "gorilla marketing" attempt.  We appreciate your support right from the beginning.

Our sewing day started with Jill setting out her stash on her large cutting table.  Several color stories were stacked in pleasing piles.  Choosing multiple fabrics times eight individuals takes awhile.  The bag's construction is so straightforward we all blasted through to completion though.  The sewing group started a new tradition with this bag...division of labor.  Each station had an expert.  The bags came together quickly and were immediately found to be very useful.  It was a great project choice!

Year eleven and counting.

one more time tomorrow...

2008 Pillowcase Prestidigitation

Marny here...2008 brought slight of hand on the sewing machine.  To produce this pillowcase you make an unlikely roll of body, accent piping and cuff, sew a seam, and then pull the whole thing through the tube you've created.  Magically you have a pillowcase!  It is a wonderful technique and the pattern is free with a pillowcase kit purchase at the The Quilting Connection in Ames, Iowa.

If memory serves, we chose our fabrics ahead of time.  It was just a matter of cutting large, simple pieces, making a few seams, and pressing.  This project makes a perfect gift for young or old.  Several of us went on to make multiples.  Again, we had lots of fun and a feeling of success.

We know Grandmothers that make one for every holiday for their grandchildren.  (or even every month) The kids request them even as the go off to college!  And now we all know how to make them thanks to the sewing party.  Very handy...

again tomorrow,

2007 Recipe Notebook

Recipe Notebook,
Easy does It for Friends, Nancy Halvorsen

jill still.....This is one of those projects that can grow; it brings me joy nearly every day!

I asked my friends to bring 6-10 of their favorite recipes in various categories, printed on an 8X10 sheet of paper.  An embellishment was the history of where it came from.  Some friends chose to share more than others.....  We slipped the recipes into plastic sleeves with binder holes and organized them into food groups.

For the notebook cover, I punted.  I chose the Art To Heart applique, and we decided on a title.  "Good recipes are like good friends, tried and true!"  The cover was lined (pillow case method), sandwiched with a layer of craft batting and had sleeves to hold the cover in place.  Upon completion, we all signed our names.  It is a great resource and now I have some family recipes all printed to hand to my kids.  It would be clever of me to do a similar family album for them!

This notebook took more preparation time but it is the gift that keeps on giving.

'till tomorrow....

2006, The No Complaining Bag

Humbug Bag, McKenna Linn for
A Quiltwoman.com Company

jill here...Back to the bags. This one is so much fun.  Even my daughter and her friends felt successful after making these totally useful, quirky bags.  They are the perfect size for a little gift, camera, change, make-up etc.

We used pre-quilted fabric.  Finding attractive quilted fabric is not easy but you could quilt a large square yourself, then cut it apart.  The embellishments are the fun part....beads, bobbles, bells, ribbons.  Once you've made the pattern, you'll want to make more.  They are just too clever!

Check out the Santa ashtray in the photo;  this was a  fun discovery from my parents stash of Christmases past.

So no humbug, laugh out loud!

'till tomorrow.....

Full Body Apron, 2005

Apron, One of Martha Stewart's Designs

jill here....Back in the days before HGTV, I occasionally watched Martha Stewart.  She and someone famous made this full body apron, sort of like the kind my grandmother used to wear for her full day cooking experience.  At any rate, we chose yards and yards of fabric and made these reversible designs!  To be honest, they aren't very "body" attractive but they certainly do cover you up!  I went on line to find the free download and she has 79 options (probably better than this one).

The best part is they are gender neutral so you can hand over the cover to some other family member.  Hope your holiday kitchen is happy!

'till tomorrow.....

2004 Santa Shows Up

Marny still....Year six.  What to do?  Aaah.  Jill decided we were up for a new challenge. Applique.  Eeek!  Applique required a whole new set of skills.  But there is always that good lunch we get served if we behave so no mutiny from the followers.  There may have been some grumbling, but no outright revolution.

Nancy Halverson's Santa's Coming

So here are the results.  The group made Santa bags, Jill made multiple Reindeer bags as gifts, and I produced the pillow because I collect Santas and wanted a way to display him throughout the holidays.  Didn't we all do a fine job!

See you again tomorrow...

2003 Five Years and Counting (or Drawing as the case may be)

Marny here....Year five we returned to bag making.  Jill opened her stash to the group and the fabric started flying.  Everyone needed two fabrics, and the choices were endless.  Once that all important step was conquered we cut, folded, pressed and threaded the cording and magically the bags appeared one by one.

This little sack like bag is called Drawstring Bag with Interior Pockets.  It was one of my first attempts at pattern writing.  See the very fine illustrations? :-)

It was a happy little project requiring little time and only two squares of fabric, add a little ribbon, and you were good to go.  Jill and I demonstrated it countless times.  We even taught it to an audience at a large quilt show in Central Iowa. 

The Jill and Marny quilting partnership was starting to take shape.  Who knew then how far it would go?

see you tomorrow....

2002 and Still Twisting....

Twisting Star Table Toppers, pattern by Carla Brinkman

available at The Quilting Connection 

Marny here.....It is year four.  Wow, this Twisting Star Table Topper pattern is still popular today.  It is one of those hardworking patterns that is written for eight sizes and shapes, looks good in a variety of fabrics and is addictive to make.  The Quilting Connection staff often refers to it as "a potato chip" pattern because you can't stop at one.  There is a mesmerizing construction technique circling the center multiple times.  We know quilters who have produced dozens.

This was an opportunity to try a Hoffman metallic large scale floral on black in the outer border and the center.  Paired with two values of subtly textured greens and a tone on tone cream it becomes very sophisticated.  The tiny black, cream, and gold check is one of our all time favorite fabrics because it adds a bit of zip without overpowering the lovely print.  (You just might find a bit of it still being hoarded in our stashes...)  Using the same geometric fabric in the inner border and binding generally works well.  It can be a stripe or a check or a plaid, but a little geometry helps those organic florals and riotous novelty prints often chosen for the center and outer border.  (This picture shows one that was constructed without binding using the sew and flip method.)

The sewing machines hummed, lines formed at the ironing boards and those seam rippers might have had a little "unsewing" to do, but each member of the group certainly felt satisfied to complete (eventually) such a lovely table topper in their choice of fabrics.

You need to understand that Jill fortifies us every year with incredible soups or mushroom lasagna and other delicious entrees.  We know if we keep at the sewing eventually the call to the table will be heard and heeded.  Eight of us sit at the table year after year and revel in the history of our friendships.  Thank you Jill.

till tomorrow...

2001 Twisted Thinking

Japanese Twist Bag,  Lynda M. H. Faires
  Quiltmaker, September "01

jill still.....One of the best parts of blogging is that it pushes the mind to recall.   Details like time and place, recreating patterns and recipes  are easily forgotten if not documented.  To say this was our 2001 project is likely due to the date of the publication, but I can't be certain.

I know when I chose this bag for the group it was because it was smaller and attractive.  Sometimes sewing smaller is trickier....but we persevered.  The twist bag works great as a gift bag or jewelry bag and fits perfectly over a square box of  tissue.  And the directions come in two sizes.

 So, what seems to be easily remembered can get blurry.  It's a good thing I write an annual family letter at the holiday. Here's hoping the new year makes me a better historian.

until tomorrow.....

Second Year Ambition

Friendship Star Table Runner

2000, jill here.....Perhaps I didn't mention that each guest made their own project, customized to their interior or gift choice.  So after the first year's success, I chose a more ambitious table runner, a Friendship Star.  It was amazing to teach non-quilters about not nipping off the star points! And, of course, some took it more seriously than others!

This was a party and one hates to be a task master.  It is the holidays after all.   Chatter is far more important!

I had to take breaks to check on the food so Marny stepped forward to keep the project rolling. We had machines upstairs and down with at least a couple of pressing stations.  It was mass chaos with the fun factor.  At the end of the afternoon, the guests left with a nearly finished runner (or left it for instructor finishing).  A little binding and we were good for another year.

  Until tomorrow....

Twelve Years of Christmas Friendship

1999, Year One
jill here...One of the best gifts I ever gave myself was starting a holiday tradition.  Twelve years ago I invited 7 friends (some sewers, some not) to a project party.

I warmed up the cider as they arrived early on a snowy December day.  We chatted for awhile and then we attacked what I considered an easy wall hanging.  "Merry and Bright" (a free pattern available to quilt retailers) was our first endeavor.  We took a welcome break for a soup lunch and then attempted to complete the hanging or pillow in the afternoon.

The project took longer than that day to complete. What a surprise! The sense of accomplishment  was worth the challenge.

Merry & Bright, Designed by Susan Fuquay, American Quilt Retailer

The tradition of getting together has been repeated for another eleven years.  Join us daily in our celebration of "Twelve Years" of Christmas Friendship.

See you tomorrow.

Design Directions

Christmas Quilt from Successful Scrap Quilts

It has become apparent that we all have different ways to problem solve.  Some might call this divergent design directions; we get stalled and stuck on a project.  Marny and I have differnt approachs.

jill here....I don't know if I have a case of latent onset ADD where I am easily bored (or challenged) and start yet another project.  I do eventually return but there is a very large pile  of "laters", possibly "nevers".  Some would call this multitasking.

marny here...I am a plodder. One project at a time, not necessarily to completion, but I have to understand where it is going before cutting into the next pile of fabric.

I make lists in the morning of what needs to get done or remembered for my household--often those grocery and to do lists become a place for doodling and recording ideas in my head for my quilting life.  It is almost like the logical list making process liberates the flittering creative urges.

Even airplane napkins are fodder for my scribbles and organizing.  It surprises me how often the little pile of paper scraps add up to a successful quilt idea.  

jill here....A list?  That might mean a commitment.  Actually I do keep a sketch book (several, whatever is handy). I'm always anxious to cut into the fabric...I can only vision so much on paper. One approach to finishing is giving myself an actual number of blocks but usually it is a layout decision where I just have to keeping trying different solutions.  Sometimes I call Marny for a look-see, sometimes I have a glass of wine and fret.  Sometimes I go to bed and wake up with fresh eyes.

And sometimes, there is a deadline!

Marny again.  When excited by a new quilt design it is an interesting challenge to think in terms of how could this work for a new pattern.  Making a single quilt a single size for a single purpose is one thing, but making it work in multiple sizes and for different purposes is an enjoyable design challenge for me.  It adds another layer to those decisions that need to be made as the project moves forward.  All good for those gray cells.....

We're curious as to what you are working on.  Gifts? Long term projects?  Something fun for yourself?  Any suggestions on design approaches?  Please just comment and send a photo if you can!  Stay sane and warm, until next Tuesday!