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Labor, sharp objects and my husband

Occasionally I go to a knitting night at my local yarn shop called the Knaughty Knitters. It’s a fun bunch. There’s usually wine and everyone is always willing to make sure I haven’t screwed something up too badly. The last time I was there, hugely pregnant finishing a baby sweater, I asked if they thought […]

Last-minute gift: GAP-tastic cowl

This post is for all you quilters out there that are also closet knitters. I started and finished the GAP-tastic Cowl in one week. Yes, just one week, and I am by no means a fast knitter. This pattern is super simple. You just alternate knit and purl stitches, so even a beginner can handle […]

Learning to quilt feathers

Whenever I’ve had an inkling to learn a new quilting skill, I never start small. More often than not I decide I’m going to do it, and it is going to be king sized. That’s how I learned to paper piece, sew curved seams and triangles. Now I’m going to learn how to quilt feathers […]

Liberated quilting with Gwen Marston

Liberated quilt champion Gwen Marston was the featured speaker at the Mississippi Valley Quilt Guild this month and I really enjoyed her presentation. She started her lecture by describing her experiences learning to quilt with Mennonite women and then having the opportunity to see a large collection of antique quilts early in her quilting life […]

Little girls, their dolls and dresses

http://instagram.com/p/llKlITP4R8/?modal=true When I was a little girl my American Girl doll and I both had matching dresses. That outfit was my absolute favorite, mostly because with thick bangs and dark brown hair, the Samantha doll looked like a mini me. So when I saw this pattern and fabric during a trip to Hancock Fabrics for […]

Loading up the frame

Last summer I spent a lot of time piecing and no time on the longarm, which means I have a backlog of tops in need of finishing in my sewing room closet. So I’ve resumed my monthly trips to Quilting By You in Bettendorf, Iowa, where I can rent time on a longarm machine and […]