For Kennon

"Kennon's Quilt"
Size: 45" x 57" (I think)
Pattern: "Kid in a Candy Store" by Bill Kerr and Weeks Ringle
Completed: August 2008
Made in: Hawaii
Given to: Kennon Liljenquist
Machine pieced and quilted on a Pfaff Hobby 301
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The story: This pattern was featured in American Patchwork and Quilting's April 2006 issue. It was shown with beautiful bright pinks, greens, oranges, yellows, blues and purples. I flagged the page and always planned to come back to it. I have made a quilt for each of my nieces and nephews and as soon as my sister Maggie found out she was having a boy I went fabric shopping. I had kept this pattern in the back of my head and when Maggie said she wanted just simple blues and greens I thought it would work. I was desperate to get it finished after working on it for over a year, so I did very simple rectangles for the quilting. I was pleased with the end result and Kennon got it before his 1st birthday! (Barely.)

Leif's Name

"Leif"
Size: 7 3/4” x 20”
Pattern: original design
Completed: January 2007
Made in: Hawaii
Given to: Leif Kalama

Machine pieced and quilted on a Pfaff Hobby 301

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The story: Cory and I took a pretty casual approach to naming Leif. We both would throw a name or two out there during the pregnancy and I guess we sort of had a list. But we didn't share any of our ideas with anyone and we only ever called him "Boy" (which we still do quite frequently.) Toward the end we both had a feeling we knew his name but still weren't sure. Then, the night before my due date I dreamed of this wall hanging in great detail. I had never made anything like it before and it wasn't something I had seen anywhere or considered making or been working on in my head or on paper. The dream was the first thought of it.

The next day, January 2, 2007, I designed and made it - pretty much exactly as I dreamed it. We still weren't 100% sure, but I figured I didn't have anything else to do that day. He didn't arrive for five more days and after he was born it was still about 3 hours before we decided for sure. It helped that he came out super blonde!

Cory found the driftwood stick at the beach and sanded it down. The fabric was all scraps from Leif's two baby quilts I had finished in December. I just quilted it in the ditch, but sometimes I think about going back and stippling the dark blue background - maybe when I have nothing else I'm working on.

Now, sometimes when Leif is going to bed he'll point to his baby quilt hanging on the wall and say, "Mama made that quilt for Leif." Then he points to this wall hanging and says, "Mama made that special quilt for Leif."

Pink Batiks

"Pink Batiks"
Size: 12 1/4" x 38 1/2"
Pattern: original design
Completed: December 2004
Made in: Bellingham, WA
Given to: Laurelyn Miner

Machine peiced and quilted on a Pfaff Hobby 301

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The story: Mmmmmm. I love reds and I love batiks, so when I found this red swirl batik fabric, I had to have it. This was another Christmas project for 2004 and I knew my dear friend Laurelyn in Alaska would love the fabric as much as I did. Because I was so ambitious that Christmas (I think I ended up making 4 or 5 table runners for gifts) I had to be efficient in my designs. This was a simple alternating pattern bound with a light striped batik to help the reds and pinks pop.

Red Floral for Billie

Close up to see the flowers and paisleys. I loved this fabric!

On Mike and Billie's beautiful cherry wood dining table.

"Red Floral”
Size: apprx. 12" x 100"
Pattern: original design
Completed: December 2004
Made in: Bellingham, WA
Given to: Billie Bennett

Machine pieced and quilted on a Pfaff Hobby 301

The story: With my new found passion I decided I was ready to make quilt Christmas presents in 2004. This one was for my mother-in-law Billie in Nebraska. She and my father-in-law Mike had just built a beautiful home and I wanted to make her something for her formal dining room. I can't recall where I found the fabric, but it was most likely from Fourth Corner Quilts in Bellingham, WA. I used two coordiating fabrics in 3" wide strips with a contrasting green binding. This was the first time I used strip piecing and it worked great. I believe I just quilted it in the ditch.

Koi Pond

"Koi Pond"
Size: 12 1/2" x 66 1/2"
Completed: Summer 2004
Made in: Bellingham, WA

Machine pieced and quilted on a Pfaff Hobby 301

This quilt is kept on the table in my entryway.

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The story: This quilt is the result of falling in love with a fat quarter bundle at a little quilt shop in Anacortes, WA. I loved the Asian elements of the fabrics and the boldness of the red. The bundle sat in my craft room for a while until I found the perfect use for it. After having taken two classes I decided I was ready to venture out on my own. I purchased Marsha McClosky's Block Party book of 120 block patterns and went on a search for something I could do with this beautiful bundle of fabric. I knew I needed something fairly basic since I was on my own with this one. I settled on the Stepping Stone block, placed on point with four patch blocks and large triangles to highlight the red coy fabric. Looking at this quilt even now I am pretty impressed with how I put it all together. But I think the credit really belongs to whoever put the bundle together. I remember that I ran out of the red koi fabric and none of the shops in Bellingham carried it, I think I had to have my mom search for it, too. Luckily I found what I needed and was able to complete the project. This is the last quilt I hand sewed the binding on!

May Basket

"A Golden May Basket”
Size: approximately 22" x 22"
Completed: Spring 2004
Made in: Bellingham, WA
Given to: Emily Dade

Machine pieced and quilted on a Pfaff Hobby 301

The story: This wall hanging was also a class taught by Nancy at Fourth Corner Quilts in Bellingham, WA. I took the class in May2004 and completed the piece sometime that spring. The class just got me as far as the 12 1/2" May Basket Block and I turned it on point and added the borders, white triangles and cornerstones. I also did a lot more quilting that was visible on this piece. My first quilt was just quilted in the ditch, but I did some pretty heavy quilting on this one. Not bad for only my second quilt.

I loved the bright colors of the batik fabric, but it didn't match anything in my house. Eventually, I hung it in my office at work, where it looked great. Then, in June 2005, when we were moving to Hawaii, for some reason I decided to give it to my sister Emily. She found the perfect palce for it in her house. She passed away from breast cancer in July 2007, but her husband Gary has kept it and even found a perfect place for it in their new home. It means a lot to me that Gary and the kids have it. I know Emily really loved it.

My First Quilt

"Winter's First Snowball"
Size: 30 1/2" x 39 1/2"
Completed: February 2004
Made in Bellingham, WA
Machine pieced and quilted on a Pfaff Hobby 301
This quilt now hangs in my sewing room.

The story: In January 2004 I took my first quilting class - a series of I think 4 or 6 evening classes. It was for beginners and I was definitely a beginner. The class was taught by Nancy at Fourth Corner Quilts in Bellingham, WA. The photos are not great and I wish I had a better camera or lighting to really show the colors, but oh well.

When selecting my fabric I first chose the fabric for the large snowballs and then tried to match all the others. I have learned A LOT about fabric selection since then. And I would not love this quilt if it weren't for the fact that it was my first. I learned so much - most importantly that I HATE hand sewing binding! I quickly figured out how to do it by machine. It may be cheating, but I don't care.

Not bad for my first 1/2 square triangles.

Just a close-up to see some of the quilting.