Antiquing via quilts

I have to start off by sharing the pride of the week when I was told by a former colleague that I should to go to SuperOneFoods in Walla Walla, WA and see some of my former engineering students with their new product--a bread baking machine that the public can watch as the bread is mixed and baked right before your eyes. Two of the designers were part of the engineering program where I was the Assoc. Dean of Engineering a few years ago. I was the advisor for one of them on their senior project. Check out the story of the bread baking machine created at Wilkinson Baking Company. Every 3 minutes a loaf is ready. It takes 96 minutes from start to finish for one loaf to be made. It smells wonderful!

I'm so proud!!!!





I was also awarded --twice no less, a 'Versatile Blogger' award. So honored! Thank you to BEAQuilter and WhataHootQuilts for naming me in your list of 15...you would each be in my list if this came from someone else!!
The Rules:

1. Add the award to your blog.
2. Thank the blogger who gave it to you.
3. Mention seven random things about yourself. (see below)
4. List the rules.
5. Award to 15 bloggers.
6. Inform each of those 15 by leaving a comment on their blog.

So the 7 random things....

1. I grew up on the coast of California --I so miss the ocean.
2. I come from a family of award winning teachers--I try ;-)
3. My California vanity plate at one time was MBASISE.
4. I feel like I'm into my 3rd career (typically have spent about 10 years in each or had a major transition at the 10 year mark each time).
5. Didn't marry until in my 40s.....but God was working on both of us. Everything in HIS timing!
6. Although affection is my #1 love language (thank you Gary Chapman for helping everyone understand this)...quality time is a close second.
7. I'd prefer to just design quilts and be able to hand off the concepts to a team of fabricators! 

I award a Versatile Blogger award to:

1. Lee @ Freshly Pieced -- she got me going in a major way with the on-line community through her Supernova Quilt-a-long.
2. Becky @ Becky's Blabber--met through the Supernova Quilt-a-long and only lives about an hour from me. We've gotten together several times--so fun to meet up with another quilter.
3. Anne Henrie @ And Sew It Goes--a fellow McCalls 2011 Quilt Design Star challenge 1 finalist.
4. Shirley @ Sewing Obsessed! --a fellow McCalls finalist and round 2 winner!
5. Mary @ Quiltin' Grandma's Blog --a fellow McCalls finalist...and in the next town from me! 
6. Carl @ 3 Dog Design--a fellow McCalls finalist.
7. Megan @ CanoeRidgeCreations --host of {Sew} Modern finishes on Mondays.
8. Leila @ Sewn -- I'm enjoying the Skill Builder Sampler with the Rosie the Riveter/We Can Do It quilter button
9. Melissa @ Sew Bitter Sweet Designs--a fellow Pacific NW Quilter
10. Chrissy & Linda @ SewLux Fabric & Gifts --have gotten some great online fabric deals here.
11. Leona @ Turbo Quilter - a very talented long-arm quilter and part of the Outlaw Quilters!
12. Diane @ A new tradition in quilting - beautiful machine quilting
13. Sierra @ The Bee Keeper's Wife - one of the first bloggers I ever met.
14. Suzanne @ Suzanne Thompson Photography -- my SIL...an aspiring photographer who has an eye for it! I wish she lived closer so she could photograph all my quilts.
15. Vegan Sisters - some wonderful looking food can be found here!

So...here is my intended subject for the week!

Opportunities this week saw me looking at several antique quilt tops and figuring out what to do with them.
The 1/4 Dresden Plate design, resulted in me doing a completely free motion design, the background inspired by Irena Bluhm. I figured out a continuous path to go from left to right on the quilt on each row without stopping. yee haw!

The next quilt was a lightweight fabric crazy quilt, put together in four pieces backed with 10 lb sugar sacks. The embroidery stitches at the seams were all the same design, but in different colors. Any ideas on how to appropriately quilt this? Right now I'm thinking it should just be tied with 28 wt cotton. What do you think?

The last is a medium weight fabric crazy quilt, put together in blocks with lots of different embroidery designs over the seams, but not on the square block seams. With additional fabric from the client that went with the thinly weighted border, I intend to finish up the borders to make the piece complete. After much research, I decided that I just should quilt the square block seams and leave it at that. Any other ideas? What type and color of thread should I use? The backing is a taupe background with dainty red flowers occassionally--looks very period. Do you see the pink initials stitched (left side)?  There is a date that includes '97 also stitched in it elsewhere. We're thinking it is 1897.

ok...a lot accomplished in this blog...hope you're still with me.

If anyone is still deciding about Ireland...NOW is the time to make that decision. I've heard that some options are filling up. C'mon let's go!

Have a wonderful Valentine's Week--its my 3rd wedding anniversary on Valentine's Day! I've got dough rising to make special heart shaped cinnamon rolls in the morning.