My grandmother taught me to knit and my first project was a doll skirt. My first cross stitch project was a rooster on a red cloth with black floss. I embroidered a pillow case at camp. I made my first outfit in middle school (then it was called junior high)! And I made all my clothes when I went to college. And it didn’t stop there. I always had a project going my entire life and I still do today. But if you would have told me that I would become a designer with my own company because of a cat – I wouldn’t have believed you.

Twenty years ago we moved to Florida with our 2 cats. My family had vacationed there and I loved it. It was my dream to become a "little ol’ lady on the beach with lots of cats"! Be careful what you wish for! Thanks to a loving husband, I am living my dream!

However, one thing I didn’t anticipate was having lots of hurricanes (a few maybe, but not lots)! We evacuated many times. Not much fun, but very necessary. We always took our cats – there was no way I would leave them behind. But 20 years ago, not much thought was given to animals in emergency situations. Hurricane Andrew in 1992 changed all that thanks to the many animal agencies that responded to that disaster. Emergency Management officials saw the need, but it was a slow learning process. The issue was raised again with Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and fortunately, since then, emergency officials have listened.

There was a little black cat that came into my life right before Hurricane Opal in 1995. Casey was a feral cat and I couldn’t get close to him when we evacuated, so I had to leave him behind. The next day when we returned (and that is another story) Casey ran to my arms. I became very attached and when he passed, I decided his little life should not be in vain. Read the complete story of Casey on my blog!

Because of Casey and my love of animals, I became involved with The Humane Society of the United States and was part of their Disaster Animal Response Team (DART). As a result I worked fires, floods, tornadoes and hurricanes. I saw firsthand the need to get the word out about taking care of pets during disasters. Therefore I created The CASEY Plan (Caring for Animals Safely in Emergencies during the Year) in memory of my little black cat to help promote animal disaster preparedness.

And that is also when I created Purrfect Spots. Living in a resort area, I designed cross stitch patterns of local landmarks. A portion of my sales goes to The CASEY Plan which promotes animal disaster preparedness. My first effort was the Seaside Post Office (Picture).

One thing led to another and I started creating all sorts of cross stitch patterns and then added needlepoint.

Well it was only natural to go into quilting as a lot of my patterns worked beautifully as appliqué.

I fell in love with quilting and that is what I design today, both applique and pieced.

I love to hand quilt as I find it very relaxing and good therapy. It is one place in my life that I can make the pieces fit (if they are cut right). I am also the Marketing Director for The Quilt Pattern Magazine. However I still am very much involved in the promotion of animal disaster preparedness and safety. Casey’s legacy lives on! That is why I created this “Safety Tips for Pets” slide show for all my sewing friends with pets.

Give-Away

I have enjoyed being a guest on the Quilting Gallery today and I hope you have enjoyed the story of my journey as a quilter and animal lover. In appreciation of your visit, I do have a contest!

Leave a comment below telling me if you have a pet, (name & description) plus what poses a threat for them in your sewing room. There will be a random drawing for a special gift next Wednesday!

Thank you again for visiting.

For the animals,
Nan Purrfect Spots

Author Linda Hubalek

Isn’t it funny how we used "old bedding" when we were growing up, and now realize how valuable these antique quilts are due to the work and love put into each of them?

This fall I moved my parents from the farm they had called home for 65 years to a smaller home in town.

Because my parents didn’t have room for two trunks of quilts, I was lucky to inherit them. Inside these wooden chests were the handmade quilts, made by my great grandmother and grandmother, which we had used on our own beds when I was young.

Oil tinted photos of Kajsa Swenson Runeberg standing in front of her house featured in Linda K. Hubalek's book Butter in the Well

My childhood years in the 1960s were spent in a wood frame house built back in 1870. The only heat for my upstairs bedroom came from a floor vent, which let a little warmth drift up from the room below. Therefore, during the winter months, there were "blanket sheets" on my bed, plus three or four quilts on top.

Author Linda Hubalek and her little sister in front of the "Butter in the Well" house in 1966

Then I grew up, left home, and started using the light modern blankets on my bed.

Looking through the inherited quilts again brought back many memories. Not only of the quilts, but other flashes—like tucking my feet up inside the flowered flannel nightgown I wore to bed, pink sponge curlers, and having only my nose sticking out from under the pile of bedding.

Now I think of how I treated those quilts that we had used for everyday bedding, and am amazed that they survived.

Pink quilt used by Linda Hubalek while growing up in the "Butter in the Well" house

I marvel at the thousands of tiny handmade stitches and the variety and colors of the fabric—all scraps from past clothing of my ancestors.

How many hours did the quilters spend cutting out the block pieces, and then sewing them together?

Who sat around the quilting frame to quilt them?

What was the conversation those days back in the late 1800s and early 1900s?

Pink quilt used by Linda Hubalek while growing up in the "Butter in the Well" house

Did these women ever consider their handwork would keep their decedents warm after they were gone? Or that I would treasure these quilts and the memories of the quilters a century later?

Just think, whether it was a hundred years ago—or present time—a quilt made by someone’s hand, is keeping another person warm.

How valuable is that? Priceless…

About the Author of Today’s Post

Hello from the Kansas prairie! I’m pioneer writer Linda Hubalek. Because one of my book series, Trail of Thread weaves stories and quilts together, the Quilting Gallery is the perfect place to share some thoughts about antique quilts.

Book series by Linda K. Hubalek

Today I’m thinking about my first book series though as I write about the quilts I used while growing up. Butter in the Well series, written in dairy form from 1868 to 1888, features the Swedish woman Kajsa Swenson that homesteaded the farm I grew up on. The series continues in Prarieblomman as her daughter Alma Runeberg blossoms into a young woman. Egg Gravy is a reading recipe book that features quotes from the first two books about food, and then features the old-time recipe. The series finishes with Looking Back as Kajsa reminisces her final week on the land she homesteaded.

Enter a Give-Away

Want to win one of my ebooks for your Kindle? Please enter my ebook give-away by leaving a comment below, and a randomly picked lucky reader will receive a Kindle version of Butter in the Well, featuring the old house I grew up in.

Because quilt patterns can have more than one name, please tell me what you’d call the hand tied quilt I used growing up (pictured above – that I got in trouble for pulling out some of its yarn ties) as your entry for the ebook drawing. Winner will be chosen next Tuesday.

Many thanks from the Kansas prairie for following my trail of thoughts about quilts!

Linda K. Hubalek
Facebook | Blog

Kim Hanson

Good day everyone. Thanks to Michele Foster, I have another opportunity to speak with you again. I’m so excited to write about my brand new home office quilting studio. Well, it’s not exactly "brand new", but it is revamped and so, so much better than what I had before.

Once our three adult children left the nest, I was beside myself with anticipation! I now had the entire, developed basement to use as my quilting workspace. What a joy, I thought, to have so much space to spread out in. My husband had purchased me a fabulous quilting table for Christmas and I was all set to go. We put together my new table – I’d certainly be able to free motion, machine quilt to my heart’s content on that baby! Woo-hoo. I set up a desk for my computer, put up a few bulletin boards as "vision" boards, used bookcases to store my quilting books and my folded fabric and I was ready to roll.

Dreaming of colour schemes and fabrics, the next day I made my way to the basement. Hmmmm…..I thought – light seemed to be coming in through the tiny windows, all the ceiling lights were on, but it was kinda dark and even a little foreboding. I repurposed a few household lamps, placing them strategically around my workspace and told myself it would all be good. It never was.

I worked in the basement for several years before deciding a move upstairs was a must. Most nights, I went to bed, closed my eyes and reconfigured different rooms in our home, trying to "picture" my new workspace. I finally set my sights on our under utilized living room and dining room. We had family Sunday dinners in the dining room most weeks, but the living room wasn’t used much at all.

So, after convincing my husband my idea was darn good, he and our eldest son hauled "my operation" up from the basement to the dining room. The living room furniture was moved mostly to the basement, and the dining room furniture was repositioned into the living room. Such a fabulous decision I must say! I could not be happier. Now, natural light comes streaming into my workspace every day, I can watch the neighborhood squirrels frolic in our backyard, and most importantly, I can now see the UPS man delivering my fabric!

Here’s how I planned out my new workspace:

Using graph paper, I drew a room plan for converting the dining room to a home office quilting studio. First, the new space was measured (13.4′x11.8′) and then three separate stations were configured into that space. Station A – cutting table; Station B – sewing/embroidery machines; Station C – computer/printer; Station D – fabric and more storage. Since the space in the dining room was limited, I combined Stations A and B together.

Stations A and B – The cutting table that I use is an old drafting table that my Dad used in his business eons ago. I sanded, primed and painted it black prior to moving it upstairs from the basement. It’s a fairly large surface (5′x3.2′) so it accommodates two fabric cutting mats and both of my Brother sewing and embroidery machines. A bar stool purchased from HomeSense allows me to sit at the drafting table and see outside to the backyard when I’m working at my machines. At night, I turn on both lamps and my workspace is comfortable, cozy and well-lit.

On either side of the drafting table, there is some fabric storage – IKEA-style wire baskets that are very versatile. On the left hand side, I have all my sewing accessories contained in old Starbucks tea tins – fabric cutter, scissors, pinking shears, marking pencils, etc. which are easily accessed when the need arises. On the floor beneath the drafting table, there is a thread rack which holds colourful machine embroidery threads. Since I am a quilt designer and a freelance writer, I need to maintain some files, and a wicker basket file box sits under the drafting table with all my files in one handy spot.

Surprisingly, my very aged Home Depot computer table works well in the new space and holds both my laptop computer and printer easily on its surface. The table faces towards the living room window allowing me to keep tabs on what’s happening outside (ala the cute UPS man!). Tucked into a plastic three drawer cart on wheels beside the computer table, is paper and envelopes, camera, chargers, printer ink – all very easily accessible. I have one of my quilts hanging near my desk – it was recently featured in Quilter’s Connection magazine and some prints and artwork that I love, on the walls.

Station C – is more storage. I was fortunate to find three coordinating, inexpensive glass door cabinets at HomeSense which fit the alcove in the new workspace perfectly. (I just love HomeSense!) More fabric, bobbins, threads, cording, ribbons, strapping, pattern books, etc. are in the cabinets. Even with the glass doors, the items inside seem to be hidden from view. The ironing board conveniently folds up and fits neatly beside the cabinets.

Adding a living green plant and design board gave my new workspace some much-needed feng shui.

My new workspace is now very open. There is no door to close. Now, when someone appears at my front door they are easily able to see into my creative mess. I found a way to hide my "creativity" at Pier One…a vintage room divider that I can easily pull across in front of my computer table to camouflage what lurks beyond.

So basically, for a few hundred dollars, an under-utilized living room and some sweat equity, I am now so fortunate to have a workspace that I love.

Give-Away

I will be giving away this great resource – Creating Your Perfect Quilting Space, by Lois Hallock. To win, post a photo of your quilting space to my Kim Hanson Quilts Facebook page and one lucky winner will be chosen! Good luck everyone. You have until the end of January to share your photos to be eligible for the give-away.

Aloha from Hawaii! This is Linda Ezuka from Quilting Under The Influence. I am just a random modern day mom quilting under the influence (cocktails, chocolate, children) as I run thru the journey of life… I quilt for fun, my sanity and to build a community of quilters in Hawaii and beyond! And yes, it is another beautiful “winter” day in Hawaii, a beautiful blue sky day with the palm trees swaying through the 85 degree weather… I apologize in advance for those who are surrounded in snow right now!

Well, I decided to organize QUTI’s (“Cutee”) first exchange this past holiday season and I am still beaming ear to ear! Not only did we get great participation, everyone sent their fabric packs (you longtime exchangers know how rare this really is!), and I have new quilty BFFs. Woohoo!

We started with a simple mission, to exchange 5 pieces of 5 inch squares of Christmas fabric with no other guidance or expectations! That’s right, the mini-charm packs were sent in November and you are not going to believe the creativity that resulted! These women rock! Each quilter was instructed to go forth and be as creative as they wanted and the best part… they got to keep their lovely creations!

There must have been some serious convergent and divergent production going on in these ladies processes, because I am and will remain in awe of their talents, spirit and art! We all sent such different fabrics, some blue, some pink, certainly a challenge to bring it all together! But have no fear, the QUTI Club delivers!

Our Fearless Participants: Kelly G. of QUTI, Deanna, Stephanie, Dawn, Lizzie Marie, Jan, Marta P., and Dorthy G.

See their amazing work:

Jan

Stephanie

Killerella

Kelly

Jan

For my project, I chose to expand my horizons to be wild and crazy with a new technique – English paper piercing! What was I thinking, I thought once I got one piece pierced!?! No joke, patience isn’t quite my virtue, so this project took all I had to complete it! I have absolutely no shame in admitting that at times I had a cocktail or two, just to keep me paper piercing! But in the end, I love my new skill, new-found patience, and a lovely new technique. Oh, before I forget, I love, love, love, http://www.paperpieces.com/! They have awesome tools, ideas and they ship super fast!

I also attempted my first ruche, aka ruching. First of all, I had no prior knowledge of this word and it is still so fun to say… “I ruched today” or “Got Ruche?” or Ruche it baby! Hmmm, maybe I should make up a cocktail to go with that Ruche? See, I got a little distracted! Back to topic, I used a ruffler… ok… this is another funny one… this tool is a little intimidating and looks like something from the doctors office at first and then you should see it whirl! Woohoo! Too much fun! The lovely little models are holding up the finished product!

Want more fun? Join the QUTI blog, friend us or tweet with us!

Cheers, Linda Lewis Ezuka

Blogging Under The Influence
Tweeting Under The Influence
Facebooking Under The Influence

Hi everyone! Thanks so much to Michele for inviting me to share with you all today.

Over at Lilac Lane, we’ve been spending the last couple of months learning the VERY BASICS of quilting. If you’d like to check that out, it’s there for all time, or until Blogger breaks down. haha Anyway, it goes through step-by-step everything you need to know to quilt. Everything from supplies to choosing colors and patterns and sewing.

As a pattern designer, I want everyone to learn how to sew! But not just so you can buy my patterns. I think there is such a sense of accomplishment when you create something yourself.

I thought today I would give you some tips that will help beginning sewists, but might also be new to more advanced seamstresses.

Irons

The iron is your very best friend in sewing. Until I figured that out, my projects were pretty cruddy. If you think about it, the iron flattens wrinkled fabric, turns back seam allowances, sets seams and does a myriad of other things.

Tips:

• Never iron with your iron. No, we want to press, a simple up and down motion. Ironing — moving the iron from side to side — can stretch your fabric.
• Use a lot of steam. Some will disagree, but I LOVE steam. It’s the easiest way to get rid of wrinkles. I love how it sets seams.
• Sewing is full of gunky adhesives, fusible interfacings, wonder under, etc. All of these things can really gunk up your iron. And that stuff can get transferred to your fabric. Take a dryer sheet and rub it on the plate of your iron while the iron is hot (I use an oven mitt) to remove all that gunk. It works like a charm. Just make sure to remove the greasy stuff before using it on your fabric again. I rub the iron on a scrap of fabric and then you’re ready to go!

Knits

I love knits. To me, they are the easiest fabric to make garments from. After all, you can usually skip the buttons, zipper and finishing seams. But there are a few tips to keep in mind.

Tips:

• Prewash! Knits shrink A LOT the first time you wash them. Wash exactly as you intend to wash the finished garment.
• Use a ball-point needle. They’re available everywhere and won’t snag your knits.
• I sew with a long, thin zigzag. Just enough so that you can barely tell it’s a zigzag. This allows the knits to stretch.
• While we’re talking about stretch, don’t forget to use polyester thread!

Cutting

Rotary cutters and rulers are such time savers for a quilter and for a garment maker. We’d be lost without them. If you’re new to quilting, you can get by with a good 6″ x 24″ ruler.

Tips:

• Keep your blade sharp. The duller the blade, the harder you have to push, which can lead to nasty accidents.
• Line your body up with your cutting table. It helps to put your cutting mat on a corner. Then you can always cut “straight on”.
• Keep firm pressure on the ruler with your left (right if you’re left-handed) hand. Try to focus the pressure downward so the ruler won’t slip.
• While we’re talking about slipping, always cover the fabric piece you are cutting with the ruler. If you do slip, you won’t ruin your good piece, just a bit of the extra — and it will be fixable!

My Number One Tip for Quilters:

Invest in a quarter inch foot with a guide along the side! These are usually fairly inexpensive and will make a world of difference in your quilting. After all, in quilting, size does matter. Of the seams that is!

And if you made it this far, I’m happy to offer Quilting Gallery readers a coupon for 30% off my patterns with the code QUILTINGGALLERY. Just visit my store at melissastramel.com. Coupon is valid for one month (until Feb. 19th 2012).

Love,

xoxo

Linzee Kull McCray, writer & editor

Hi! I’m Linzee Kull McCray and I’m so pleased to have a chance to visit with you. Like you, I love fabric (and yarn, and textiles of all kinds). And perhaps like you, I thought that the opportunity to write about those topics would be a dream come true.

Writing has brought me joy since I was a young, when I loved to pen fanciful stories (my mom still has one I wrote when I was seven called "Stan the Man"). I also loved to read, and so I studied English in college. But while fiction was my reading material of choice, I found that I most enjoyed writing about the people I encountered in everyday life, particularly those who are passionate about what they do.

Quilt with 561 squares/134 different prints for Etsy and Quilt Country

As it does, life kept me busy—I worked at numerous jobs including childbirth educator, gardener, bookstore clerk, child life specialist, and more, and with my husband raised two daughters. But the urge to write was strong. By the time I returned to graduate school to study writing formally, I was the same age as most of my professors and old enough to be the mother of many of my classmates.

Crochet & tatting story for Etsy

After graduation, I landed a job as the editor of the faculty and staff newspaper at the University of Iowa. I loved that it connected me to fascinating people who were obsessed with their work—my favorite kind of folks. Along the way a colleague taught me to quilt—I’d sewn for years, but never attempted a quilt—and I was hooked. That’s when the idea of writing for a quilt magazine took hold. I was fortunate to have a contact in the publishing world and sent her a query. As luck would have it, she was looking for a freelancer and sent me my first assignment: a profile of Amy Butler for the Summer 2006 Quilts and More magazine.

Melanie McFarland at retreat for Quilt Country column

Over the years, my business grew and I’m now a fulltime freelance writer and editor. I am a regular contributor to Etsy’s blog, Moda’s catalogs and blog The Cutting Table, and have a bi-monthly column in the French quilting magazine Quilt Country. I write regularly for Stitch magazine, Quilt Sampler, the French publication Magic Patch, and have written dozens of articles for American Patchwork and Quilting and Quilts and More. I’ve beefed up my skills as a photographer and take photos to accompany many of my stories. And I’ve taught magazine writing to journalism students at the University of Iowa.

Mary Lou Weidman retreat for Quilt Country column

If you’re interested in writing for publication, here are a few tips to help you get started.

1. Read! While you may not be striving to write for The New Yorker or the Los Angeles Times, you can learn a lot about putting together words effectively by reading top-quality writing. When you come across something profound (or funny or moving) in a novel, an essay, or even on a blog, stop and consider what the writer does that grabs your attention. Exposing yourself to good writing helps you shape your own.


Crocheted doily for Etsy story

2. Practice! Writing is sometimes compared to a muscle, and it’s true that the more you do it, the stronger you become. If you find yourself freezing up at the keyboard (or with pen and paper in hand), start small. Write a description of what’s on your desk or what the person across the room at a coffee shop is wearing. Write a bit every day—set a timer and write for 15 minutes or write 400 words—the topic doesn’t matter. Don’t overwhelm yourself by deciding to write the Great American Novel (or even a piece that you’re sure will be published) your first time out—it’s a sure road to discouragement. Even blogging once or twice a week provides writing practice (and you might even get comments from readers, which will inspire you to keep writing).


Younger women quilting story for Quilt Country column

3. Volunteer! While many writers say you should never write for free because it denigrates the value of paid writing, I think it’s a perfect way for a new writer to get what journalists call "clips". Clips are published articles that you can show to an editor you want to hire you, as evidence of your writing prowess. If you’re interested in writing about quilts, volunteer to write member profiles or book reviews for your guild newsletter. Write stories for your community paper about an upcoming quilt show. Blogging can show an editor you’ve got stick-to-itiveness—write a series of posts on your favorite quilt blocks or fabric designers.


Thimble holder for Etsy crochet & tatting story

4. Be yourself! This is one of the hardest lessons to learn. It took me a long time, but I’ve learned that if something interests me, there’s a pretty good chance someone else will be interested in it too. Trust your instincts when it comes to the topics you choose to write about for your blog. And this brings me to what I think is as important as good writing.


Sock creatures from my friend Todd's collection for Etsy story

5. Be curious! Ideas are a writer’s currency. Once you’ve worked for an editor, he or she will call you with stories they want you to cover. But until then, you need to snag them with fantastic ideas. Those many jobs I had before settling into my journalism career supplied me with lots of story ideas. So does staying abreast of current events, traveling, and simply taking an interest in people around me. Have a neighbor who is making a quilt in the shape of every state of the Union? Know some young women creating new quilts from recycled fabrics? Have a work colleague who teaches women in a shelter to crochet? When formulating ideas for stories, take advantage of the world and people you encounter everyday.

Michael Zahs with feed sack quilt for Etsy and Quilt Country stories

Writing can be a satisfying way to explore a favorite topic more deeply, as well as to share that fascination with others. If you’re just starting out, don’t give up your day job—I freelanced on the side for five years before I felt I had enough regular clients to give it a shot fulltime. But I haven’t been sorry. My only real complaint? I spend so much time writing about textiles and crafts that I rarely have time to sew myself!

Memory quilt (detail) by Janann Schiele for Quilt Country story

For more from Linzee on writing, sewing, and more, visit her blog.

Do you have an interest in writing about quilting? What kinds of quilting- and sewing-related stories do you like to read?

Hello everyone. I’m Jennifer Schifano Eutsler, and I am so excited to be a guest blogger for the Quilting Gallery this week. First, let me just say how much I love the Quilting Gallery web site. They have so many great contests and give-aways. I’ll be having one today at the end of my post. My favorite feature at the Quilting Gallery is the blog locator. I love how you can look up bloggers by country or state. I haven’t come across anywhere else on the web where you can do that. I have been writing my own blog for about eight months, now. You can keep up with what I’m doing regularly at Curlicue Creations.

One of my passions is collecting vintage sewing items. I believe I have enough to start a small museum dedicated to sewing and quilting. I’m going to show a few of them here, but you can view many more at my Facebook photo albums. Someday I would like to have a facility for the museum, but for now, I have the world wide web.

It all started with an iron. Years ago, maybe 20 or so, I started to look at antique irons at the flea market. They intrigued me. I wanted one, but not badly enough to pay the $20.00 to $30.00 price tag. After years of casual searching, I found one for $4.00, and so the collecting began. This photo shows that first iron, along with the current project I’m quilting on, a Frosty table runner. Now I have twenty or so irons! Sad irons, antique irons, toy irons, decorative irons, etc. I thought I might be a little crazy. Who has an iron collection?

Eventually, my collection grew to include other things. Here are a few of my favorites, along with some of my quilting projects.

My Singer Featherweight 221. I love it. My fiance found this at a yard sale and didn’t really know what it was. He bargained them down to $4.00. I couldn’t believe it! The quilt in the photo is my Ice Pellets quilt. Also shown in the photo is the oil can and accessories box.

Roosevelt’s New Deal Needle Book. This is from the 1930s. I love this because of the history associated with it. It still has most of the needles inside. One of the needles is threaded with some twine. I have to wonder how long the twine has been in there, and what it was used for. The photo also shows my Checkerboard Cat quilt block.

Singer wooden accessories box. This box unfolds in a really unique way, as you can see. It is shown open in the photo. It is stamped “Patented February 18, 1889″. My box still contains most of the original accessories. The quilt in this photo is one of my firsts, a Bowtie quilt – all hand quilted and still one of my favorites.

Now, for my giveaway. I’ll be giving away a copy of my Checkerboard Cat quilt block pattern to the winner. You can see it at my shop, Curlicue Creations. I recently acquired an adorable button dolly. See her photo? She needs a name.

To enter the give-away: Leave a comment below suggesting a name for button dolly, and I will pick a winner next Tuesday, Jan. 17th.

Thanks so much for reading. It’s great to meet new quilters. Until next time…have a super day!

Jennifer – Curlicue Creations

Update: The winner of the dolly naming contest is #19 Cora who wrote:

Love your projects and especially the block pattern you’re giving away. Thank you for sharing your antique sewing items, I love the Roosevelt Needle Book. I’d name your doll Candy Cane or Pepper Mint. She is so cute!

An email is being sent to you from Jennifer.

This month, Shruti is doing an ABC’s of Quilting series on her blog. She’s invited guests to help her out. Check out the various subjects that will be covered here.

My post is a Blogland Tour of 10 of my favourite modern bloggers. I have to admit, it was not easy to pick just 10. I could easily have picked 20.

Head over to read my post and see who I chose: Blogland Tour: 10 Favourite Modern Bloggers.

Share your favourite bloggers in the comments below. I cleaned out my RSS reader earlier this week, so now I have room to add a few blogs.

My name is Bea Lee and I LOVE LOVE LOVE to quilt!

I’m grateful that Michele has let me be a guest blogger here.

I’m originally from Denmark- Born and raised, moved to Florida when I was 18 to go to college then met my husband etc… that was 15 years ago (OOPS I just gave away my age, didn’t I?) Now we live in the STICKS of North Carolina and have 2 great kids.

I wanted to tell you about how I got started with this OBSESSION – quilting.

7 ½ yrs ago I was pregnant with our 2nd child – a girl, and my church had a quilting class over the summer for a few evenings, taught by a pastor’s wife, so I figured I’d try it out and see if I liked it. I actually have a degree in computer animation – my goal was to work for Disney, but while I was in college I met my husband and I also soon after that got saved, so my view on life totally changed….

So, I took this quilt class and made a little baby girl quilt for my daughter (she still has it and it’s loved to shreds!)

My daughter's quilt - first one I made.

I remember at the end of the class we were asked if we’d get into quilting and I said, NAH not really…. Oh boy, was I wrong, and I’ve apologized to her several times for saying that.

I slowly got more and more into quilting, a few years later we moved into the country and I got my own craft room, WOW!! PLUS, some of my neighbors quilted – really inspiring.

Then I started submitting a few quilts to the local county fair, I think I brought in 4 quilts and got 4 ribbons, I was thrilled. That Fall, my husband was looking at my quilting magazines and asked me if I wanted a long arm machine, because he could tell I really liked it – well SURE!! So he researched it and a month or so later I got my Hinterberg setup, a Voyager machine and a Summit frame.

A barcode quilt I'm making for my husband (got the idea from a Radio Shack ad/competition - it links to Radio Shack!).

Now I also long arm quilt for customers, I love doing that too!

I love every part of quilting: designing in EQ7, buying fabrics, cutting, piecing, applique – needle turn or machine, long arm quilting, adding on the binding and label.

My least favorite part of a quilt is maybe the border! Piecing a long strip for the border is just BORING….

I make lots of small quilts and love giving them away, either to expecting mothers or babies or others who needs them.

A bunch of owls I've made and sold/ given away.

I also make quilts that I would like (one day) to get published, where I designed the patterns and have written up patterns for a few already. If anyone would like to be a TESTER for me, let me know.

A Pink ribbon quilt for my best friend in Denmark who has breast cancer and is going thru chemo now, I'm mailing her this quilt for Christmas.

I’ve also taught a few quilt classes, some at a local quilt store and recently at the local college.

I also try to make quilts for shows, and have won a few ribbons already :-) one was at an international quilt show in Washington State a few years ago, called BARGELLO MIRAGE.

Bargello Mirage

I’ve mentioned already I won a few ribbons at the local county fair, and last month I won two ribbons at a county quilt guild show, I missed the submission date for the state fair this year, I’ll try next year.

Don’t get me wrong, of course I love to win ribbons, but it’s not my main focus in quilting. What I truly love is giving them away. I feel God gave me this gift and I want to Bless back with my quilting in different ways.

I love to BLOG about my quilting projects. And I love to get inspired by other quilters too. Until Dec 18th, there’s a great give away from Electric Quilt. Have a look. I also have a web site.
If you have any comments I’d love to hear from you via my blog or web site or email.

For a couple of months now I’ve been reading all about the guest bloggers on Michele’s Facebook page. You all are inspiring, though at times I feel a wee bit guilty for not keeping my blog up!

My name is Heather Spence and I am a Quilt Artist. Primarily I longarm quilt for others but pattern design has become much more of a focus. Quilting is a way for me to release all the creative energy I have inside, it connects me with my very creative children, provides a way for me to stay home with them and gives me an avenue to show how much I love and appreciate others by giving them special gifts of quilts.

In April of 2009 my mom was diagnosed with Chronic Leukemia. Since then she has undergone chemotherapy twice and her diagnosis has changed a bit. It is now Lymphoma/Leukemia and is much more aggressive than originally thought. Currently she is in remission, which is such wonderful news, however, as she puts it, "The Mother Ships are still out there." Meaning, the cancer will come back, it is just a matter of time.

You can imagine what a blow this has been for our family. My parents just celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary in May. Besides myself I have three siblings and, between the four of us, there are seven grandchildren. My husband is Australian, one of my sister-in-laws is Japanese and the other is from El Salvador. Family get-togethers are a sight to behold with different languages, accents, children…oh…and beer. My mom told me recently that she wants to grow old with her family. To see her grandchildren get married and, hopefully, see great grandbabies be born.

The good news is there is an excellent chance for this to happen. She is the perfect candidate for a stem cell transplant. Apparently the vast majority of people with her cancers who get the stem cell transplants these days go into permanent remission, though there are a lot of things that can go wrong, it is her best chance of long-term survival. I am, and on behalf of the rest of my family, so grateful for all the people who have given in the past to make the research happen for innovations such as this procedure.

However, she needs to do fund-raising for herself and I am determined to help her.

I have created a quilt pattern called Dan’s Climb and it is my next Mystery Quilt By Email. All monies raised go directly to her. My goal is to have 100 quilters join the Mystery Quilt.

Here’s how it works: Once a week at noon starting October 7th you will receive via email a clue that is one or two steps towards finishing this quilt. This is not a complicated pattern. Beginning quilters (though I wouldn’t suggest it as your very first quilt) can easily make this quilt. You should be able to complete each clue in about an hour or two.

It is a fat quarter quilt with one fat quarter equaling one block. There are two sizes: twin and queen. Each block is 16" (finished) with the largest piece being 8" (finished).

The cost of the Mystery Quilt is $10.00 USD. You will receive fabric requirements when I receive payment.

There are several ways to get a hold of me… stop by my blog/website or send me an email heather@heatherspencedesigns.com. I can also be found on Facebook.

The support I’ve had so far has been mind-blowing!! It moves me to tears that so many want to help my family. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

With kindest regards,
Heather

This is a guest blogger post. For more information or to join the Mystery Quilt by Email, please contact Heather directly via one of the links above.