Damon's Christmas Quilt

I made this little quilt for my dear Damon. Even though I was making another labor intensive quilt at the same time, it didn't phase me much because of how this quilt was designed to be made. It was intended to be an easy block of the month quilt. So having instructions that only allowed me to focus on one portion of the quilt at a time ultimately was my saving grace.

I really like it and think it is completely splendid.

I hand stitched this above tree a few years ago to give to a friend. When I was done, Damon took one look at it and said we needed to make a quilt with. So I kept it but all it did was gather dust as it became forgotten. I was thrilled when I stumbled upon it and thought it was very fitting to use for the label for this quilt. 

The writing on the label reads: 

Damon, Embedded in every fiber, thread, and grain, 

we match, we rhyme, we fit. I love you! 

Clair

And of course, I love Lainey's quilting! Perfect as always.

 I came across a blog where I happened to know the author. She was writing about her husband and his wonderfulness to her. I was thinking, as I read, how much the loving things she was describing of him sounded just like my own husband. I truly am so lucky to have Damon. He betters my life in every way. We have a good, fun, happy marriage with very little fighting. We love being with each other, talking to each other. A friend told me once that she didn't know what she was going to talk to her husband about once all her children moved out. I was grateful at that moment for a husband I love to talk to. Something I also love about Damon is that he is never critical of me or tries to make me feel bad in anyway. I feel like over the years of being married, I have became a better person. But not because I had someone hounding or scolding or passive-aggressively telling me to be better. If I'm better at all, it's because I had someone gently holding my hand, lovingly leading me along. Someone like Damon is rare. He is a blessing that my loving Heavenly Father gave to me.

When Stars Align

 This pattern is called Starstruck! by Deonn Stott. 

I have to say, this quilt has the Clair seal of approval!

I do wish that it had one more dark red star at the bottom. That would have made it perfect-o.

 In the center of each star is a fabric called Toile. Claudia Johnson give it to me and I loved it right away. I had never even heard of Toile and I'm still not sure that I'm saying it right when I speak it out loud. I knew, though, when Claudia gave it to me that it was going to make something beautiful. So when I stumbled across Starstruck! I knew that was the quilt where this fabric was going to spend the rest of it's life.

 When I began piecing this quilt I thought every star would be the exact same, with this (above) red for the  spears, the Toile center and varying creams. I quickly came to realize I was way off and I didn't have nearly enough of any red fabric in all of my sewing room to make this an easy task. And of course I found this out three stars into every red(because I thought the same thing of every red). So, I would then pick a new red, thinking it was enough to make the rest of the stars and then find out I didn't have nearly enough of that fabric either. I would move on to a new red and cream fabrics and hope they would match the others not sure if they did. I honestly couldn't tell. It was a very stressful process for me. Though, I did have enough of the Toile for all the centers and enough of the blue for the little stars. That was a life saver to me, because it meant I could feel good that at least there would be some consistency somewhere. 

My dear friend Brenda Olsen helped me make a lot of these blocks. She really saved me and this quilt wouldn't have been completed if it wasn't for her selfless act of love for me. Really. I couldn't have done this without her. I am ever so grateful for and indebted to her and her dear friendship!

 The ever lovely Lainey quilted and bound this quilt. And she also made the label for me. 

 This backing was generously given to me by dear Claudia Johnson. I was so grateful to have it, too, because this quit is a queen. The second queen I have ever made. Queen backs are killers.

 I love these baskets. I buy them from the Spirit Goat and love that they smell like soap! It the best part. Sometimes I don't love the color combos, but I chose this one because I felt okay about it. I gifted this quilt to a lady named Paula. I don't know her very well and only have spoken with her a few times, though I have noticed and admire her. I always have enjoyed her comments in church. They are insightful and smart. She is good mom. I love to watch good moms mother! Their quiet, good example is a pillar to me. 

 Paula is a true artist. And in a way, that draws me to her because my dad was and artist by occupation. His art meant so much to him. But he was never successful so his art was also a source of sadness for him.  

 I know that Heavenly Father wanted me to make this quilt for Paula. It was a clear prompting. All the things I needed to make it were easily provided for me, from the supplies I needed down to having the help I needed to accomplish it before Christmas. Whenever I am prompted to serve someone in this capacity, it testifies to me of how much Heavenly Father loves and cares for his children, particularly that child. It is so moving and humbling to me that He would ask me to help someone feel of His love through little quilt I had a hand in making. To me, this is special and I hold it dear.

During the Covid-19 Consider the Lilies lock down series, I used up 13 spools of thread! 

Pretty good.

 The three large back row ones were almost gone anyways. 

Still impressive. 

All the smalls were used for bobbin thread as the large cone

in the back has been suppling me with my top threads.

I have 7 more of those large cones. 

So you see, I'm ready for the zombie apocalypse.

My goal is to consolidate til I only have one little brown thread holder.

I'm on my way up!

Brown and Cream Consider the Lillies

There were only going to be four of these little Consider the Lillies quilts. This one was sneaky. But I'm glad it was! It might just be the best one! It keeps eyes busy for hours. Well, it could. Let's be real. Who has hours to stare at a quilt? Next time, I'm going to make it so you can't see the individual squares... making it harder to determine the difficulty of the quilt. It's funner that way.

I found this idea a little too late to do this with the others. I wish I had seen it before I started all this. I would have loved to have done this with the purple quilt. Let's face it. The purple quilt needs help. It certainly is not going to be considered for any quilter's choice awards.

They say don't pick favorites, your quilts will feel bad.

Lastly. 
This quilt really is square. 
Even if it doesn't look it. 

Gifted to: 

Juanita Furlong

Quilted and bound by:

Amy Christensen

Love is Sunshine

This is such a happy quilt!! It is pretty down to its core and I love it. Plus, it is the 4th addition to the Consider the Lillies series. 

 Claudia gave this amazing backing to me. It is a beautiful textured fabric that is so soft. I loved it right away and am thrilled that it matched so perfectly for this quilt! It turned out to not be big enough for a full backing. However, I'm actually really glad it wasn't because I prefer it like this. My photo is blurry at the top. So you'll just have to trust me that it's way good.

I have a hard time writing on fabric with pen. I am always looking for a magical pen that will let me write with ease. I think if I had that my labels would look better.

Made for Shiloh Burt

My Sew Room!

Also known as my very happy place. 

 Whenever I find something that my dad has made, that I like, I take what I find. I have this belief that if it's in my possession, it will be protected and preserved. So I take everything I possibly can. Especially small things. This rule applies to pretty much everything in my parents house, not just things made by my father.

I am very proud of my wood board. Just by looking at it you see it's a lovely treasure trove. I love to add and take away from it. It's ever changing and busy. I think that is one reason I like it so much. Also, it's personal to me. It displays buttons from my maternal grandmother and a work button from my paternal grandma. Many things from Mom's and Dad's. The cast iron S is from their coal furnace that was original to their house. My parents have the oldest house in Mayfield. But it's not a fancy pioneer home, it's just old. Two of the front living rooms have adobe walls. Then the house was added on from there.

 It's weird how crazy I am about things with rust on them. 

This little basket is just special with all the old spools, thimbles, and bobbins.  My most favorite things to adorn it with are safety pins, teeny-tiny ones and little lightbulb safety pins. I love those!

 

Damon lets me buy all the vintage decor I want. As long as it fits into my sew room. 
That's the deal. Take it or leave it.

I love my little turny-button thing! 
I found it at an estate sale and it is the best!

This is my little typewriter that I love and use! Also, I have a nice big box of type paper that has watermarks that reveal that this awesome paper was made with some linen! That's how you know it belongs in my family.

Damon has amazing wood working talents that he so generously and willingly shares with me. Damon is so great and I love him most dear. He is so important to me and I can't imagine what I would possibly do without him. He is a constant in my life of goodness and love. Damon never ceases to endlessly serve me. Making these beautiful peaces of cabinetry and bowls are just a small sample of the wonderful things he does for me every day!

My sew room art work is provided by my artist father. The majority of pantings in my room are by him. 

The house I grew up in. It may not be fancy, but it was a home to bats for many years. Beat that fancy house people! Bats in your attic? Pretty cool. Unless you're a kid in a really small town. Then not that cool. 


Whew!
If you've made it this far-- congratulations!
You deserve a break.

Green and Orange Consider the Lillies

 I really like this one. Love the green/orange.

A few things about orange:

I really love the color orange and it might actually be my favorite color. Especially burnt orange. 

I like orange cars and orange fruit.

I always spell orange wrong. Should be easy. I know.

The back is okay. 

Gifted to: LuAnn Wilhelm

Quilted and bound by:

Amy Christensen

Blue Consider the Lillies

Love is blue. Every little piece of it.

This is proof! Just look at it! And these scraps  make it so. If you are hating on your scraps and are calling them little stinkers for moving in and taking over your sewing room; keep this in mind: Scraps are a quilter's deepest and best kept secret. Her best friend. An irreplaceable sewing tool in your belt. They prove to be lifesavers time and time again--for that appliqué quilt that you need just the right red fabric for that you no longer own...but, wait! You have just enough of a single scrap to help you out. Voila! Or paper piecing, when you don't want to cut into a whole new fat quarter or yardage(no one want's to do that). Scraps to the rescue! They are there for us. They wait patiently and don't complain. They are good like that. So don’t give up on them. After a long, difficult quilt that has drug you through the dreary trenches for months or years (yikes!). These little scrap quilts can pull you up and rejuvenate! They have the magical ability to make quilting fun again! Scraps are pals. 

To fully appreciate this quilt, you'd need to see it in person. Just seeing the photo you may be thinking; 'meh'.  

Trust me. 

It's cute.

A few things about blue:

I am drawn to blue like a crazy moth to a flame.

I own more blue clothes than any other color. 

I don't know why, but blue clothes always win and end up in my shopping basket.

My eyes weren't sure if they wanted to be hazel or blue. So they decided on a little bit of both. My eyes have a little inner ring of hazel and then all blue. Like an Aggie.

I love singing to "Never Saw Blue Like That" by Shawn Colvin and "When the Stars go Blue" by The Corrs and Bono. Love those songs!

This quilt is for my dear friend, Linda Hayes. She is a fun lady that I have gotten to know though my sewing group. One of the things that captivates me about her is her detest for technology. I get a kick out of it! She will complain about kids these days not knowing how to use a phone book and things like that. She is a cliche. It makes me laugh. I really like her.

Quilted and bound by:
Amy Christensen

Consider the Lillies

Here lies the first quilt that is the beginning of what I call "Consider the Lillies Series". There's going be four Consider the Lillies quilts all exactly the same. Except all will be with different color families, one will be a twin, two will have two color families and one will not be called Consider the Lillies. Other than that, exact same. 

A simple scrap quilt. It's what every gal needs! If she knows it or not. I was thrilled to have such a fun and easy quilt to make. Quilts like this make the world go round! Mainly because now I can move around. In my sew room. Because now there is room. With all the scraps gone. 

A few fabulous facts about purple:

First, when someone asks me what my favorite color is, I always say purple.
The book Purplicious is a must read. Pinkalicious is better.
My people are purple people. My paternal grandma, maternal aunt, Mom, Dad, and oldest sister all claim it as their fave color. I was bred to be this way.
In my closet, you'll find no purple dress, skirt or pants and only one purple shirt. It's not fancy or cute--I should have put it into this quilt.
I own only a tiny pile of purple fabric. 
Purple eggplant is disgusting. Any color of eggplant is disgusting. And when you tell me you like eggplant, I don't believe you. I think you are lying. Don't lie. Nobody likes that.

Cropping this photo made it blurry. 

Gifted to Deleyne Wentz

Quilted and bound by:

Amy Christensen