Amazing CQ story

Years ago (I believe in 1999) I traveled to Australia and spoke at a International Heritage Rose Conference in Australia and made a CQ jacket to wear on the trip.  Recently Mary Corbett mentioned my buttons in her newsletter.. A lady in Australia read Mary's newsletter and remembered my name AND the CQ jacket I wore and  she took the time to write to me yesterday... I can't begin to tell her how it lifted my spirits and warmed my heart. I wore the jacket  at all garden shows at which I spoke or had a booth.  Over the years it has been hand washed several times and a little worse for wear and the images have faded...

I made this in about 3 weeks and I had just gotten a new sewing machine which did lettering.. So the jacket is covered with witty garden sayings...including "I consider everything hardy until I kill it myself."  






































And I had to include a picture of the famous gardening maven, Penelope Hobhouse and myself when we were on the same speaking agenda in Texas. Because of the time element there was very little handwork and is entirely vintage linens.


The conference was over several days and I spoke several times.  There were dinners, luncheons and speakers from all over the world. They were the most gracious audience and, much to my relief, laughed at all my corny  jokes.  In fact I made the jacket so in case my talks bombed, the jacket would distract them.  We had a grand time...  Afterwards we celebrated our anniversary at a restaurant in Melbourne recommended by someone at the conference. The waiter brought us a lovely bottle of wine to our table as a gift from friends at the conference.  My husband order kangaroo steak.  We talk about this trip often.   Many wonderful memories.

Some years ago I gathered together tips and techniques for assembling vintage linens into a CQ project and I listed it again on my Etsy site.  This is a vest I made for my husband to wear when working in the booth.  The sayings are all "guy-related"  including "I am a fungi"


As a foot note:  I knew I was going to be speaking in NZ two years hence and I asked an Aussie if she thought they would laugh at my jokes  (my presentations depended heavily on laughter at the appropriate moments)  and after some thought, she had some reservations as she thought the New Zealanders were a sober lot.  But she was wrong....they were wonderful.

Back to my CQ Beginnings -next big project

I read with joy Allie's recent post... When she finishes her current book she is going to do a project with doilies and linens she has been given or purchased on ebay.  Her post plus a student asking how I got started in CQ has reminded me that I want to give my own CQ beginning another go...

For years, long before I even knew about crazy quilting, I collected damaged embroidered linens...I had no plan for them but I just couldn't bear to see them discarded.

There were pillowcases. tablecloths, doilies, and even hankerchiefs in additional to lots of crocheted pieces. All from the days when a home was not properly decorated unless every surface had a piece of needlework adorning it.

In the 80s I used to speak at garden shows and festivals.  Quite often we would also have a booth at these events so I made this vest from vintage linens for my DH to wear while working in the booth... I had just purchased a new sewing machine that could do lettering...and as you can see I was enjoying this new toy.  I thought he was really cute wearing it and he was a good sport when people wanted to "read" his chest..

Since I often spoke several times at these events I wanted something   I could wear every time and just slip over the casual clothes I wore in the booth... This jacket was actually my very first attempt at crazy quilting. I made it when I was going to speak at the International Heritage Rose Conference in Mebourne, Australia.. Over the years it was worn many times and had to be washed by hand... Now showing its years of service  it has become a keepsake.

These are garments were both  pieced entirely with  vintage embroidered linens.  Here are a few close ups..

I put together full double-sized pages of helpful hints and techniques for assembling a crazy quilt garment using vintage linens... covering everything from supply list, preparation, and actual construction... 

It all applies to any garment you wish to make.... jacket, vest, apron, or jumper. Detailed closeups and simple-to-follow instructions.

These directions are now on my Esty site so now's your chance to make something really special with all those embroidered linens you've been collecting....especial those with a stain or damaged edge or two...

I still have a couple big bins of such vintage linens and when I finish my suffragette quilt I am going to drag them out and do some more projects with them...

My crazy quilting life in one blog post!

Pigtails and Quilts is  having a "Crazy Quilts are Quilts Too" celebrating crazy quilting and I'm pleased to be participating..  Crazy quilters are being asked to tell about their work...show examples, tell when you started etc.

  I live on the "dry side" of Washington State with mountains to the north and wheat fields to the south. If I'm not wearing an apron and cooking, I'm wearing my chatelaine and stitching. I especially love creating art that is functional, dimensional and tactile. I have a huge barn filled with endless bins and boxes of interesting bits and pieces for more projects than I have time left. I live on a farm with one husband, numerous Tunis sheep, three chickens, two corgis and a large garden planted for wildlife

I started crazy quilting about 16 years ago and it was entirely different from anything I do now...  I used a foundation fabric and applied vintage cutter linens and embellishments.. I had just gotten a new sewing machine which did lettering so I had sayings all over this vest for my husband..  It was one of my very first pieces.. We used to have booths at flower shows and this was his "uniform."  There was very little in the way of seam treatments as all the edges were the linens themselves.. and all the embroidery work was what was already on the linens.  I still have a large supply of these linens and would like to do another project using them.  I especially like the saying "I'm a fungi."

This block pretty much defines the encrusted look I love to do..... pieces that the longer you look at them the more you see... And I  like to tell a story with my blocks even though I may the only person who hears it...  I also have a real soft spot for the whimsical and it often shows up in my work.

Even though the traditional lace and embroidery work such as my piece on the left is my comfort zone, I continually try to stretch the limits of what I can do with a needle.... such as on the right.

This quest for challenges is why I love to join round robins.  I'm asked to do things and use colors that I would have never done on my own... Over the years I've been in Crazy Quilt International, I figure I have worked on well over 100 blocks which are now around the world.  Here are just a sampling. Please enjoy and thanks for stopping by.  I would love it if you would become a follower and visit regularly...   Also drop by Pigtails and Quilts and visit other crazy quilters and see what's happening.

Rickrack lace information

Apparently combining rickrack (sometimes  referred to as wavy trim) with crocheting and tatting was all the rage around the turn of the century.  I found some pictures of this book and you can read about it at
http://forums.ebay.com/db1/topic/Needle-Arts-Vintage/Rick-Rack-

This site http://crochet.about.com/library/weekly/aa082600.htm  actually has pictures and on a linked page directions to making this lace.  It also has a great deal of history and trivia about this kind of lace making... I am so delighted to have a piece of this history of lacemaking..

Rickrack Lace....

My other treasure from the linen pile at the flea market in California was this table runner..  It is lovely linen and about 18" x 24." I loved the look of it before I even realized what it was... I had only seen vintage rickrack lace once before and tried to duplicate it but couldn't make it work with our modern rickrack.  It was a very different pattern from this variety in the way  it was connected.  I'm sure this was a whole art form...
I'll google it when I get time.... not today though.

There is only one section that is in really good shape. I will try to do some repairs in some areas to figure out how to do it.... I will keep it in its entirety because it is so unique and I will take it with me to show when I can.. Has anyone else had experience repairing this kind of lace?

It hard to believe that it's rickrack until you look closely at it..  Gorgeous.

Now for those of you who like to cook and even for those who don't like to cook but like to eat... here's what's on our menu tonight.

I butterflied a leg of lamb and made a stuffing of  spinach, feta cheese, pine nuts, garlic and rosemary.  After rolling it up and browning it well, it went into the slow cooker and now smells heavenly...  It and a green salad will be dinner for a happy husband...  My mother who doesn't like my cooking and lived on fast food,  often tells me that I am so lucky that I have a husband who will eat the stuff I cook....and since I love to cook, she's right...

Stuff from the Barn

Not only did I still have the printed instructions with all the tips and techniques for constructing a garment from vintage linens, I actually went out to the barn and found them. ....under a bench behind some bins.... but I found them.. So I started a whole new area in my etsy shop ... "Stuff from the Barn" .... and will start adding more treasures from the barn.


Three full double-sized pages of helpful hints and techniques for assembling a crazy quilt garment using vintage linens... covering everything from supply list, preparation, and actual construction...

It all applies to any garment you wish to make.... jacket, vest, apron, or jumper. Detailed closeups and simple-to-follow instructions.

Now's your chance to make something really special with all those embroidered linens you've been collecting....especially those with a stain or damaged edge or two...

So if this is something you might want to add to your list of things to do in your spare time I listed them for sale on etsy for $3.

I did this years ago and all the good photos are on a zip drive... and of course zip drives have gone the way of film...