Ingrid Whitcher

There are few things in life that bring me more joy than a group of 2-3 year olds. (Mind you mine are all older.) There is something about that age that makes me giggle and just want to play. I love their sticky hugs and wet kisses.

Friends of ours had their 2 year old spend the night last night. He fell asleep with his 2 stuffed dinosaurs. When I heard talking this morning, I went in the bedroom and found my 14 year old daughter and him laying on their stomachs talking about the trees in the backyard. Granted, he refused to eat anything I made him to eat, but he was going home to Mommy mid-morning and then she could worry about it.

My boys never got into the dinosaur craze – so there has never been a need for a dinosaur quilt - until now. Kaelen went home mid-morning and I got to work. The whole family is coming back over tonight and I was determined to make a small cuddle quilt for him.

The dinosaur image came from an on-line coloring sheet. I love personalizing the quilting – so I wrote his name at the bottom.

Another friend is due to have her second baby soon. Her shower will be this next weekend. It has been fun to work on some small quilts for a change. Most of the fabrics were in my scrap bin already made into blocks. I made them into half-square units and then played with the setting.

I LOVE the flip-flop border fabric.

I got a green and white poka-dot flannel for the backing.

The boys enjoyed walking through a pond at a near-by park. Logan is thrilled because the pond is full of tadpoles right now. I think will be going back often to check on their progress.

Well, the Pensacola Quilter’s Guild Opportunity Quilt is safely in someone else’s hands now. The quilting is FINISHED! I logged 56 hours of quilting. I figure that the design work, sketching patterns, quilting, pulling paper and basting threads took in all 75-80 hours. ( My kids also helped out with pulling off the tracing paper which was such a BIG help.) Not bad for a quilt that measures 100 inches square.

Here are some of the last detail shots and a teaser. I will try to post a final picture after the binding is on and the “reveal” for the Guild.

I am working on a few new projects and finishing up some old ones. I have had a piece of fabric from my grandmother that I have been wanting to use for some time. I finally found a design for it. The squares are 2 1/4”. I think it is going to be a stunning quilt!

It has been a very busy week!

A friend of ours is expecting her first baby (girl) in June and her baby shower is this next Saturday. I struggled with a new pattern and found this sweet design in a magazine. She is doing the nursery pink/brown, so I tried to put in a lot of pinks.

The eyes are hand sewn with embroidery floss.

The backing is a dark brown flannel. I still have to write on her label. I loved this striped binding!

I used a new thread for the quilting and I LOVED it. It is Aurafil cotton thread (50 weight) and it was a joy to use. I used a #12 needle and had no problems with fraying thread or skipping stitches. I will be adding this to my rayon thread for quilting. I had used it on a small sample at my Mom’s a year or so ago, but had not found anyone in the area that sold it. The Quilting Station in Pace now has the whole line! I like to take my quilt to pick out the thread instead of seeing a color swatch on-line as it often ends up being the wrong shade.

I have finished the blue section on the guild’s quilt and am now working on the flying geese! This section should only take 3-4 more hours and then on to the corners and outer border. It is almost at the 40 hour mark, I anticipate it will be done by 65 hours. (we’ll see if I am right)

Mark and I have been busy this past month or so converting our garage into a quilting studio. I have moved in and am loving all the space. I went from a room that was 6×12 to a double garage. WOW! I love the high ceilings and the open space. We found several good deals on carpet and privacy screens which made it even more fun.

Here is a mini tour.

My design wall is 96 inches high by about 200 inches wide. I can fit several quilts on it at a time! The art along the top of the design all is all Mark’s work that had been up in the closet. It is so nice having it out.

Mark left me two big sheets of pegboard, which is great for hanging scissors, ribbon and rulers.

One of the walls was painted a bright blue which makes the quilts shine. It is so much fun to have the quilts hanging instead of crammed into the closet.

I made a false wall to separate “my” space from the big room. This will be nice this summer with the kids sewing classes. I can just leave my stuff and walk away from it.

This is Emilie’s paper crafting area. She has got so much stuff – but now it is all organized and at her fingertips. We re-cycled a twin sized headboard as her design wall and glued cork-board to it.

I found 4 shutter-like door panels at an area Habitat re-store for $10! It was exactly what I was wanting to make a screen around my laundry area. Now I do not have to look at all the dirty clothes and just keep on sewing.