Sunday, December 12, 2010

Another Baby Interruption: Andrew Michael Martin

Hannah's quilt once again got placed momentarily on the back burner. Friends, Annie and Mark, had a bouncing baby boy. They didn't want to find out the baby's sex before birth, so I had to make this quilt unisex. The quilt is from City Quilts by Cherri House; it is called City Sweets and is suppose to call to mind a box of Petit Fours.


Here is a close-up showing the quilting. When I was deciding what to use as the binding, my first thought was white. However, Colette, owner of Quiltology, suggested using the dot material from the back side of the quilt. I was hesitant, but decided that white might not be a good idea on the edges of a baby quilt, too likely to become soiled. I like the results.

This shot shows the back. I have instructed Annie that if it looks like A. Michael M. (that's what I've decided to call him) looks like he's going to spit up: place him on the dots side; if he looks like he's going to be cooperative, place him on the rectangle side. Of course, I'm kidding. The only squabble I've had is the order of the child's names: Andrew Michael Martin. I mean, why not Michael Andrew Martin, or even Michael Martin Andrew? I finally figured out that she wanted him to have the same initials that she has. Oh well, I should be happy that Michael got included at all.

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Panama: Birds, Waterfalls, Capybara and Mountain Produce

The Quilt returned to Panama in November. It didn't really have a good time last time, and so decided to give the country another chance. First stop was the Gamboa Rainforest Lodge on the Chagres River where it meets the Panama Canal.

Birds, birds and more birds. At our second stop, the Coffee Estate Inn, the birds would flock to the feeders to eat bananas and oranges. Five different species can be seen in this photo. We saw a total of 224 species this trip.

In the mountains near Boquete, we hiked to the end of the Pipeline Trail and came to this beautiful waterfall. It was an adventurous hike, crossing scary bridges and fording streams.

The grounds of the Coffee Estate Inn were beautiful. The purple flower loved to wander around on the many trails visiting.

Near Gamboa we saw many wild capybara. I know there are people who think they are cute, and want to pet them or keep them as pets. The Quilt feels that they are best left to graze in the wild and isn't impressed with their looks.

The purple flower made many friends during it's afternoon hikes. Here it spends some time hanging with some oranges.

The purple flower tries to decide which it likes better, red berries or green berries. In any instance, the mixture of the two brought Christmas to mind.

Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Turkey & Greece

In September, the quilt journeyed to Turkey and Greece. Turkey included Istanbul, Izmir and Bodrum. From Bodrum, a quick boat ride took us to the Island of Kos.
This is a picture of Bodrum Harbor from our hotel, if you look closely, you can see St. Peter's Castle in the background. No, it's named after the other St. Peter.

Here the quilt visits the walls of the castle and the Turkish flag.

On the Island, the quilt insisted on visiting Hippocrates' Plane Tree, rumored to be over 2,400 years old.

On the boat to the Island, the quilt decided to have a photo taken with the Greek flag, something about equal time.

4th of July - A Visit to Washington, D.C.

The quilt felt very patriotic this past 4th of July and decided to visit the nation's capitol. The National Parade, Fireworks on the Mall and visits to the White House, Capitol Hill and Arlington Cemetery. The fireworks were amazing, but short given the tight security and lines.

Visiting the White House, one entrance.

Visiting the other White House entrance.

Capitol Hill. Flags were all at half-mast due to the death of Sen. Byrd.

Henry's Quilt - Final Product

Here's Henry's quilt... completely finished. Not only am I happy with the results, Henry likes it too! It makes a marvelous addition to his nursery. His parents hung it on the wall in such a way that it will be easy to take down to actually use as a quilt and not just a wall hanging. Good job Ron & Nizida.


This detail shows the quilting. I'm also very happy with how it turned out. The swirl looks like waves in the water and blowing wind in the sky, basically... perfect.

You can practically feel the breeze blowing the sails.

The back of the quilt is a world map.

Sunday, June 6, 2010

Another Interruption

Hannah's quilt has had to take a back seat for a little bit. Our dear friends Ron and Nizida are expecting. We know it is a boy and have been angling for him to be named JoeMichael. I am making him a quilt, Sailboats & Stars. Here is the current shape of the quilt. All the pieces have been cut and some of it sewn together. It's looking quite nice.

This shot gives a better idea of what it will look like hanging on the wall. I am designing the quilt in such a way that for JoeMichael's first few years it can hang on the wall and once he moves into a big boy bed, it will be able to be used as a bed cover.

Detail of one of the sailboats. This one has already been appliqued on. Some of the others haven't been completely shaped yet.

Detail of a star. Each one is composed of 13 pieces of material. There are 14 total stars.

JoeMichael is due in October. I hope to have this finished in time for his entry into the world.

Paris....Again...This Time Monuments & Landmarks

IM Pei's Pyramide du Louvre provides an interesting entrance to the Musee du Louvre.


The drapeau tricolore (French Flag) on a street corner in Paris.

No one will be staying in this Hotel. The Hôtel de Ville, Paris is the Paris City Hall.

Bois de Boulogne, on the west side of Paris, is perfect for early morning walks.

35 miles southeast of Paris is the château de Fontainebleau (I was surprised to learn the 3rd syllable is pronounced BLOW, not BLUE)

The Tour Eiffel is the tallest building in Paris, and from 1889-1930 it was the tallest building in the world.

Notre Dame de Paris, we were told, is actually owned by the State and rented to the Roman Catholic Church.

Paris.....A Taste of French Culture.

This trip to Paris the quilt decided to take in a little culture.
Here it visits La Joconde, better known as the Mona Lisa.

The Nike of Samothrace, better known as Winged Victory enjoyed a visit.

Vermeer's Lace Maker seemed a little jealous. She would rather be known as the Quilt Maker!

Vermeer's Astronomer, painted in 1668, is the second of his paintings on display at the Musee du Louvre.

Aphrodite of Milos, better known as the Venus de Milo, also expressed jealously toward the quilt. She of course had to admit that without arms, quilting is out of the question.

This pair, Psyche and Cupid, captured in Psyche Revived by Cupid's Kiss, were the only two that did not express any interest in the quilt at all. I guess they were otherwise occupied.

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Costa Rica ... Again

The quilt journeyed once again to Costa Rica. It seems that the quilt has developed quite a liking for Costa Rica. That's good because I like the weather there too.

The Gulf of Nicoya is visible from the balcony of our Monteverde Hotel.

From this view, you can see the front of the hotel and the rainforest in the background. The hotel really looks like a mountain lodge, which of course it is.


From Monteverde, the quilt traveled to a part of Costa Rica that it has never visited previously, Tamarindo. It is a beautiful area, sunny, dry, mountains, sea side. What's not to like? Oh yeah, there is also a very walkable beach. Notice that I am wearing a Chicago Public Library Summer Reading Program T-shirt.
Beach during the day.
Beach at night.


I have made several additional flowers for the quilt, but have not had the opportunity to incorporate them into the quilt as of yet. Next up, the quilt will visit another of its favorite spots in the world.... Paris.... in April... Sounds like a song to me.