Happy Birthday to Lady Dresden

Dear Readers, 

We have some fun in store for you today!  My long-time readers will remember that there is a fictitious bed & breakfast aspect to my blog that has not been visited in a couple of months.  Although you cannot see any evidence of it on the blog page right now, it has not been eliminated.  Today I will be sharing with you the latest adventure.  It looks like this will be a long post, so if you want to pause and get yourself a cup of tea or coffee, now would be a good time to do that.

Amanda Suzanna (aka "Mandy Sue")

Hello Everybody!  You have come by at a most exciting time and I am really glad to see you!  Grateful Grammy is very, very busy today with a project that has both excited and worried her.  She will be working up 'til the very last minute, so she asked me to be your hostess today -- and I am thrilled!  

You see, Lady Dresden is coming to Whistlestop on a tour with her handmade quilts and her people asked if they could set up her display at Grammys Place Bed & Breakfast, and would we rent our dining room out for her lecture?!!  Wowzers!  That's terrific!  Lady Dresden is  the very best there is with a quilting needle in hand!   We are so honored that she contacted us!

Lady Dresden's publicity photograph

We contacted the Home and Garden Editor of the Whistlestop Weekly. She was pleased that something of this magnitude was [finally!] coming to our humble little town and quickly made it her business to get the word out.  

Home and Garden Editor of the Whistlestop Weekly

But then the problems began.  Grateful Grammy wanted to make her own version of Lady Dresden's most recent quilt in time to have it on display at the lecture, so she got very involved with that. At the same time, the response to news of the big event spread like warm  honey and almost overnight we realized our dining room would not be big enough for the great number of ladies who wanted to attend!

Grateful Grammy worries while she sews

Just between you and me, this is what happens when one over-plans and doesn't carefully consider ahead of time ... fretting, despair, and all kinds of gnarly problems bring on great strain. She was also worried about Beloved.  He had a knee replacement a couple of weeks earlier and although he was doing very well, we didn't like to leave him alone for long periods of time lest he forsake his walker entirely and go ride in the woods on his scooter.  I have been his nursing aid since he was released from the hospital, but I did not want to miss out on all the fun with the girls by staying with him.

I was talking with Mrs Mertz (our B&B chef) about everything one morning when she suggested we find another location that could better accommodate the crowd we were expecting.  Hmm.  That really was the best plan, although when it was all said and done, our B&B would not bring in as much income since we would have to share the ticket sales with another business.  But it was the right thing to do.

Mrs Berniece Mertz, Chef at Grammys Place B&B

As is so often the case, the wisdom of the older woman was the answer to our problem.  She called  Sister Suites (one of our competitors) and worked out an amicable plan to move the crowds to their place. Truth be told, although we would miss out on some of the revenue of having everybody at our place, we would not miss the traffic and parking problems!  

As for someone to keep an eye on Beloved, we called Rent-a-Nurse and for a reasonable fee made arrangements to keep our invalid "grounded" while we were away.

Beloved stares wistfully out the window while Rent-a-Nurse stays close by

The day of the big event dawned mostly cloudy and cold, with a killing frost on the zinnias, which was perfect for turning our thoughts to beautiful quilts.   Sister Suites out did themselves with a welcoming look to their wrap-a-round porch.  

Sister Suites 

Although this was all done pleasantly on the surface, Sister was no fool. This was her golden opportunity to make a good impression for repeat business.  She even posted some of her staff outside to greet the guests with a cheerful smile and handshake. The largest pumpkin patch in Whistlestop is on the Sister Suites property.  They would probably net some serious sales of the orange globes before the day was done.

The Welcoming staff at Sister Suites

As the guests began to arrive, we were more than mildly surprised at how far the word had spread that Lady Dresden was coming to our town.

A well-known figure from Orlando

High Society Matron

And then of course there were those who have been participating in quilting bees for years.

A traditional quilter

Even at Sister Suites, however, seating became a problem.  Those familiar with Grammys Place B&B already know that our Mrs Mertz is a very height-challenged lady with weak knees, so she often carries with her a can of Cream Style Corn on which to sit wherever she goes.  But other guests did not have chairs, so the Sister Suites staff had to improvise.  We saw that one young lady was given a can of Water Chestnuts upon which to stand so she could see over the tight bun and hair net on the head of Mrs Mertz.

Lack of sufficient seating necessitated clever solutions

Lady Dresden's staff took this group picture just before she began her talk.  Our best count is that we had twenty in attendance.

Women of all ages and stations in life  were eager to see Lady Dresden

Finally the moment had come when this dear dignified lady stepped up to the podium to share with us the wisdom and creativity learned while sitting at her Bernina for so many years.  She enthralled us with her tales of seams that needed to be pressed flat before proceeding to the next step, and  how to set up an efficient sewing room which, if at all possible, should be just steps away from the kitchen for maximum efficiency with all the responsibilities in a home.  Examples were pulled out of a trunk of quilts for wounded soldiers, bibs for newborns, and dinosaur quilts for little boys.  We learned that she hasn't much experience sewing pink quilts but plans to remedy that very soon.  

(continued below --  click on "Older Posts" to the lower right of this paragraph.  I've inserted as many pictures as allowed for this post and therefore need to begin a new one to finish the story)

Happy Birthday to Lady Dresden, continued

(Story continues from above)

Her most recent enterprise was saved for last:  the table topper named for its creator, "Dresden Plate" (affectionately nick-named, "Table Scraps.")  Completed in a delightful variety of blue prints, with textures and shades carefully arranged, the quilt brought a hush of admiring silence from the crowd.

Dresden Plate, "Table Scraps" 

Then Lady Dresden graciously directed our attention to a room just off the lecture area where the quilts of Whistlestop residents had displayed their versions of the same pattern.  Grateful Grammy's contribution was made in autumn's best rusty oranges and browns.

Grateful Grammy's version of Dresden Plate, "Table Scraps"

Then entire event was a wonderful success.  Word got out during refreshment time that this very day was the birthday of Lady Dresden.  I wished we had known ahead of time so we could place a luscious cake in the center of the quilts, but alas, none of us needed the additional calories, so we sipped our punch and nibbled on our cookies.

The crowning moment of the day, however, was when Grateful Grammy got her picture taken with our famous guest.

Lady Dresden and Grateful Grammy

This is a fictitious story, although October 19th is the real birthday of  "Lady Dresden", who has previously been referred to in my blog as "Quilting Queen."  I have written this story as a "thank you" for all the helpful advice and patterns my friend has shared with me over the years.  Throughout the years and over the miles, she has been very encouraging to me with quilting and in our shared walk with Jesus Christ.

The pattern featured is from Quilt Magazine, page 63, but I don't know what month or year.  The project maker and machine quilter in the magazine article  is Louise Krush.  The finished size of the quilt is 25 inches in diameter.  

For further information,  contact Thimble Cottage Quilt Village.  Phone: 800-845-9331 or go to thimblecottage.com.

Sew While You Wait, Part Two

A couple of weeks ago I shared with you the cute little piece of furniture we bought for reading materials in the guest bathroom of our home.  It proved to be the inspiration for another hand-needlework project to take with me to the hospital while waiting for Beloved in surgery.

One craft I can't ever seem to get enough of is applique.  I seldom do it because the projects I sew often require that the finished product be able to withstand machine washings and loving (i.e. rough) handling, as with the many baby quilts I've sent off to family and friends.  But this topper is destined to do nothing more than lay there and look pretty.

If, like me, you are a Mary Engelbreit fan, then you will recognize this style of flower which I captured years ago from one of her magazines or books in a design for a throw pillow.  One doesn't really need a pattern to copy this, just a steady hand with the scissors.  The gentle curves lend themselves well to the classic Buttonhole embroidery stitch.  This picture (above) is the top of the piece.

Before starting the applique on the front, I practiced a similar design on a piece of scrap fabric and then decided to transform it into a label for the back.  I have used my iPhoto program to blot out private information on the label (for security reasons here on the Internet), but you can see that I recorded the name of the designer, the occasion for the piece, and the date.  Labels are a priority with me.  One day my children may go through all of my needlework, noting the information on the labels, which will tell a story about my life and what was important to me.  

Sew While You Wait

Nobody likes to wait.  But it's a necessary evil of life.  Perhaps the time spent in a surgical waiting room is the worst.  

It actually wasn't that bad for me while Beloved was having his knee replacement surgery.  Yes, I will admit that I was a little nervous, and I had shed a few tears before that day when worrisome possibilities about what could happen tried to plague my mind.  But it wasn't heart or brain surgery, and knee replacements are becoming almost a fad, it seems.  It could have been a lot worse.  

Since we decided two months prior to the surgery to go through with it, I had a lot of time to think about what I wanted to do with myself during the nearly 3 hours that would transpire between the before-surgery-good-bye-kiss and watching him get rolled into his hospital room.  

I like to do things with my hands, something simple so I can keep the fingers busy while keeping my mind alert and listening to [whatever].  Elizabeth Elliot has taught Christian homemakers to keep their hands busy so they can meditate on Scripture, pray, or listen to a teaching tape, things like that.

I Thessalonians 4:11-12 ... study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you; that ye may walk honestly toward them that are without, and that ye may lack nothing.

My long-time friends know that I have been sewing since I was a little girl (age 9) and the past nearly 30 years have kept me busy with quilting when I wasn't occupied with cooking, cleaning house, and wiping runny noses.  Earlier this year I put away my quilting, supposedly for good, because a serious shoulder injury in 2008 had left a permanent disability that affects my enjoyment of quilting.  However, quilting has been my passion for too long and I decided to change my personal expectations of the hobby and get back into it.  Beloved's surgery was the catalyst for that.

Before the surgery, I worked very hard on assembling a "snuggle quilt" (45 inches square) for the daughter of one of my nieces.  My goal was to get the quilt to the place where I could hand-sew the binding onto the back of the quilt while sitting in the hospital.

When I told Surfer Girl of my plans to sew in the waiting room, she confirmed my thinking with the following:  I never schedule an oil-change or road trip unless I have a quilt binding to attach!  It's such an efficient use of time!  :)  I just pack up a large tote bag (like the beach bags you have sent me).  I fold up the quilt & place it in the bag first, then I have a little sewing "to go baggie" with my needle, thread and a small pair of scissors.  

Quilt blocks have been sewn together;
bent safety pins are very helpful
for holding the 'quilt sandwich' together
in preparation for machine quilting.

The step of pinning the quilt densely is time-consuming and
worth every single minute!
You don't want the top,  middle, and bottom layers crawling apart!!!
 I spread this out on the breakfast bar in my kitchen and
watched an entire afternoon of Food Network
 while doing this tedious chore.
As a result I was delightfully entertained and
we ate well with the new recipes I saw demonstrated!!

The next step was the machine-quilting,
which I chose to do on our breakfast table -- again
while listening to the Food Network!
The smooth surface of the table helped the weight
of the quilt to slide along easily as the machine stitched.  

Grammy Bear stitches straight lines, about 1/4 inch from the seams,
in both directions, all over the quilt's surface.
Upon close inspection you can see a pink rubber finger
on my left hand.  It is helpful to wear these "fingers"
on any or all of the fingers, or a quilting glove
 to give the seamstress helpful traction while
moving the quilt through the machine. 

This is a fabulous tip straight from Surfer Girl (my quilting daughter).
Use the largest size metal hair barrettes (12 in a package at Walgreens)
to hold the binding in place instead of straight pins.
Place the clips about 3 inches apart.
You can buy these at quilting stores, too.
I suspect they cost less at Walgreens.
This makes the project much more comfortable to transport.
This is how it looked when I took the quilt to the hospital.

Beloved models the completed baby quilt the day after his surgery.
He was using oxygen when the picture was taken.

Ta-da!

Always label your quilts!!!  (this is my soap box issue)
I have altered this picture for the sake of my great-niece's privacy.
I use the charming illustrations from the quilt label books by Kim Churbuck.
With the aid of a light box and a waterproof  pen,
trace out the design and add any information you want.*
ALWAYS put the name of the recipient, your name, and the date.
A quilt historian will someday thank you for this - even if you're dead by then!
Heat-set the ink and then hand-sew the label onto the back of the quilt.

*Some years ago I made a quilt for a newborn boy in our church.  I think he's about 7 years old now and both he and I go to different churches now.  However, his mother and I remain in contact via Face Book.  She wrote recently to say that he still enjoys his quilt and that the previous night he had read aloud to her the Bible verse I had written on the label.  Don't you know how that warmed my heart!!!

Farewell to Summer

Although summer doesn't officially end until sometime around September 21st, Labor Day weekend is approaching fast. For most of us this means it's time to pack away the white shoes and purses, arrange socks closer to the front of the undies drawer, and make sure to set the alarm clock to wake us because the sun is slower to rise in the east. It's also getting just a little easier to get to bed because darkness has set in by the time I am brushing and flossing my teeth at night.

So many of us love Autumn -- the colors, for one, are gorgeous.  Last year at this time Beloved and I were preparing for our "Leaf Peeping Tour" in New England.  I'm sure glad that was then and not now! Much of what we saw in Vermont is now under water, or impassable at best.  

Before long we'll be needing to pull up a quilt over us when we nap or crawl into bed after the 9pm news.  My daughter sent me a link to her Etsy shop this week, where she sells her creations.  The desire to sew runs strong from her grandmother, to me, and now to her.  I have to tell you, I am very proud of the projects she comes up with.  

Don't you love this fabric and the colors?!  For information about this quilt, the fabrics, and pattern used, click on this link:
http://www.etsy.com/listing/70652463/easy-does-it-babylap-quilt?ref=v1_other_1