Pam's newest quilt

This is one Pam just finished.  She made it to bring comfort to her friend whose youngest son leaves for Afghanistan in September, followed by the oldest son leaving in December.  Pam said the family spends a lot of time at the beach.  There are friendship star blocks, seashell panels, and I know the other blocks have significance, but I don't really remember the names.  I'm sending Pam the link to the blog, so hopefully she'll let me know.
This is a thoughtfully designed, perfectly constructed quilt.

Pam says:
"Here are the names of the quilt blocks I used besides the friendship stars. The blocks at the four corners are The Army Star, for my friend's oldest son, who is an Army Ranger and has already done two tours in Iraq. The four blocks at the cardinal points (top, bottom, middle right and left) are The Marine's Star, for her younger son, a Marine. The blocks connecting all of these stars are Mother's Dream blocks. What mother doesn't dream and pray that her sons will be safe during the fighting and I felt that her sons' service also protects her dreams of being a free American who can go to the beach and search for the shells she loves."

The full quilt

There are three different block panels and I outlined the vases in each.  All of the sashing has loops in the center section.

I quilted stars in all four corners of this block, but this photo of one partially quilted shows the quilting best.  There are double circles in the center, which are repeated in the friendship star block.

Ribbon candy in the darker blues of this block.  Pam fussy cut the seashell fabric for all these blocks so the fabric is the same on opposite sides and every block is the same.  She definitely pays attention to the details!

Ribbon candy in the white sections here

Straight lines echoing the angles of the friendship star, and again, double circles in the center.  I love the blue flange around the center square. 

Perfectly mitered corners on a border quilted with perpendicular lines every 2"

A pieced back with more coordinating fabric

Pam's FIRST QUILT!

This was Pam's FIRST QUILT!  Can you imagine?  I guess no one told her how hard it is to make points like that.  And then, just in case THAT wasn't hard enough, she set them on point.

The full quilt

Perfectly pieced block with mirror imaged swirls in the pink sections and stitching in the ditch for the rest of the block.

Free hand leaves in the setting triangles

Side view of the quilting--stippling in the pink and white solid areas.  I used pink, white, green and black threads, alternating to blend with the backgrounds.

Better view of the quilting from the back--and isn't that gorgeous fabric?

4th Annual Island Shop Hop 2010

Both locations of my favorite quilt shop, Pieceful Quilting (http://piecefulquilting.com/), participated in the 4th Annual Island Shop Hop 2010.  Pieceful Quilting Riverhead looooooooooooooves Halloween and chose that holiday for the theme of their Shop Hop quilt.  There are a few kits left for this fun Halloween quilt--and there's plenty of time to complete it!

The full quilt

block

Can you see where I quilted "boo" in the black sashing?

Doesn't this remind you of a cauldron? 

And how could I NOT quilt spiderwebs on a Halloween quilt?

Edie's Blueberries

Edie made this 93" x 104" four patch on point quilt with this delicious blueberry fabric.  It's freehand quilted with leaves.

The full quilt

Close up

The back

Debbie's Hopscotch

I wish I had thought of posting on a blog when I first started my machine quilting business three years ago, but, alas, I did not.  I think it would be a shame, however, if you didn't get to see the sweetness of Sheryl's 30's quilt from my first post.  Or if you didn't get to see how Debbie put those vibrant hand dyes together to make that beautiful Barrister's Blocks quilt.  SO, as I quilt each new top, I will share past quilts from the same maker.
This is Debbie's most recent quilt.  The quilt pattern is Hopscotch by Atkinson Designs and the quilting is the pantograph Joust by Willow Leaf Studio.  I love the inner patchwork border.  When I piece my own quilts, I'm more likely to slap a plain border on, or leave it borderless, because I want it to be DONE, DONE, DONE.   But this scrappy border really adds to the quilt.

The full quilt

Close up

The back

Debbie's Cheese & Crackers

This is the second one of Debbie's quilts I've seen completely finished.  I couldn't talk her into showing her face, but you can see her toes! This bright quilt was made from an Atkinson Designs pattern called Cheese & Crackers.  The quilting is the pantograph Chrissy by Willow Leaf Studios.

The full quilt

Close up

The back

Debbie's Barrister's Blocks

I don't always get to see the quilts I work on totally FINISHED.  Their edges are ragged and raw when they leave me.  The extra batting on the sides is randomly decorated with scrap squares and thread tails where I've tested the tension.  It never fails to amaze me how that little sliver of fabric that binds a quilt can so dramatically change the appearance.
So it was a real treat to see Debbie's Barrister's Blocks quilt hanging at the 2010 Eastern Long Island Quilter's Guild quilt show ( http://www.eliqg.org/ ).  The jewel colored hand dyes are GORGEOUS, and well paired with the multiple shades of gray.  This one is also quilted with the pantograph Rhapsody by Jodi Beamish.

The full quilt

Close up

The back

Sheryl's Mariner's Compass

This is the very first quilt I quilted for Sheryl.  It was made as a gift for her father.  Not only does he have a wonderful daughter, now he has a wonderful quilt to remind him!

This is a Mariner's Compass made with Quiltsmart printed interfacing.  It's 90" x 96".

The full quilt

Freehand feathers on the entire background

Close up

In case anyone is interested, this is how I usually begin to design custom quilting.  I take a photo of the quilt, and then turn it into a faded grayscale picture.  I print several copies and then I just play with different options for different sections. Sometimes the quiltmaker says "Do whatever you think will look best", like Sheryl did with the 30's quilt in my first post.  Sometimes, they prefer to make the decisions themselves, which is what Sheryl did for this one.  Okay, it was the first one I quilted for her, so she may have been just a teeeeeeeeeeensy bit nervous.  So I emailed her these sketches and she chose which quilting designs I would place in the various parts of the quilt.  I think we make an awesome team!

Sheryl's blue quilt

My blog looks a little bare.  I think I'll cover it with some quilts : )

Since Sheryl's quilt sparked such positive comments, I'll share another of her quilts.  This is quilted with the pantograph Rhapsody by Jodi Beamish.

The full quilt

Close up

The back

My very first post!! Sheryl's 30's quilt

Sheryl posted pictures of her quilt on her blog, and sent me a link. I noticed that her followers were asking for a web site to view my work. So.................., I guess it's time. And it seems only fair that I post Sheryl's quilt as my first entry, since she provided the motivation for this blog.

It's a beautiful quilt that includes fabric from her grandmother's curtains. Sheryl gave me free rein on the quilting design (thank you so much for that, Sheryl!) and I decided to try my hand at feathers. I've quilted feathers before, but mostly an all over, free form type. This was my first attempt to fit feathers into a border space. I'm relatively pleased with the results, and, if the hug she gave me was any indication, so was Sheryl!

The full quilt

The first border, still on the frame

Stippling when the white is outside the circle and a flower when the white is in the circle

The back