Phoenix Song

Somewhere out in the darkness, a phoenix was singing in a way Harry had never heard before: a stricken lament of terrible beauty. And Harry felt, as he had felt about phoenix song before, that the music was inside him, not without: It was his own grief turned magically to song that echoed across the grounds and through the castle windows.

How long they stood there, listening, he did not know, nor why it seemed to ease their pain a little to listen to the sound of their mourning, but it felt like a long time.
–J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, page 614-615


I've finished the quilt I'm going to donate to Phoenix Quilts.

Julie, a woman who lives near the Wood Hollow fire put out the call for quilts to be donated to families who had lost their homes in that fire. She called it Operation Wood Hollow.

After a good response, she decided to expand the donation area and asked for suggestions for a new name for her organization. In the meantime, I tossed ideas around for a name for my quilt. I thought of "Out of the Ashes," and then about "Phoenix." Both of those seemed a little too dramatic and I didn't want the recipient to be reminded of something that was probably very traumatic. I Googled synonyms for phoenix, but there are none. Then I remembered that phoenix song has a healing quality {at least in Harry Potter's world} and decided that would be the name for my quilt, in the hopes that it will be part of the healing for the family who receives it. I also thought of suggesting "Operation Phoenix" as a new name for Julie's non-profit, but somebody beat me to it.

I tried a new FMQ pattern on this quilt. I kind of dragged my feet on getting started and was frustrated at first because it wasn't coming out how I pictured it in my head. In the end it turned out pretty OK and I like it quite a bit. Some parts of it look better than others, some areas have smoother, more even stitches than others, but all in all, I think it was a success.

And I used the constructive remarks the judges gave me at HMQS to improve my binding. I cut it at 2¼" rather than 2½", sewed it on to the quilt before I trimmed away the extra back and batting and I made smaller stitches to sew it to the back. I did not, however, sew the miters closed. I like them open and will only do that for quilts that are for shows. Overall, it was definite improvement on my binding, I think.

In just three short weeks, Utah has gone from more than a dozen wildfires to just one, which is now 95% contained. At last count, 849 homes have been lost in Colorado, Idaho, Montana and Utah, so there is still a great need for donations. Julie will be delivering quilts in Idaho and Colorado shortly. I'll be putting my quilt in the mail to Julie tomorrow.

HMQS: Youth Division Best of Show Spotlight

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.
–Marianne Williamson

I volunteered as quilt monitor at the Home Machine Quilting Show at the beginning of this month. I entered a quilt in the show and volunteering was the best ticket price to get in to see the quilts, so I took the opportunity. One of the quilts I was most impressed with was shoved way back in the corner, about as far from the door as you could possibly get. As a matter of fact, there was a whole group of quilts back there that should have had a better spot for display. What initially impressed me about this particular quilt was how well all of the corners matched, so I started to read the description card attached to the quilt:

This quilt is made of 238 3" bowtie blocks, each from a different fabric. While I was working on the top, I read about prom in the teen section of the paper (even though I'm not a teen yet) and noticed that the guys wear ties to match the girls' dresses. The different bowtie colors dancing across the quilt made me think that Prom Night would be a perfect name.

When I read even though I'm not a teen yet, I did a double-take and then I realized that I'd accidentally stumbled upon the Youth Division quilts {note to self: send suggestion to HMQS to put the youth division quilts in a better spot next year}. When it dawned on me that the person who made this quilt was under the age of 13 {I later found out she was only 11!!!}, I was all the more impressed with the precision of the work, and the fact that she had pieced and quilted it herself. She definitely deserved her ribbon.

When the quilter's mom stopped by and left a comment on one of my posts about the show asking about my quilt and saying that her daughter entered as well, I e-mailed her back and asked her which quilt was her daughter's. When she told me it was Prom Night I told her how amazed I was with her daughter's work. I asked her if her daughter might be interested in answering a few questions so I could share with you her beautiful quilt and a little bit of insight into it. I hope you will enjoy my interview with Sparkle Jane as much as I did.

Elizabeth: Tell us about the quilt you entered in the HMQS.
Sparkle Jane: Prom Night is a lap sized quilt, made entirely of bowtie blocks. The squares started out at 2" and each {3" finished} block is a different fabric. I finished the quilt in about one month from the time I heard about the show until it had to be submitted. My favorite part of the quilt is probably the pieced binding. It was a last-minute idea, but worked really well.

Elizabeth: How old were you when you first started sewing?
Sparkle Jane: A neighbor, who helped my mom when she was learning to quilt, gave me a box of sewing pins when I was about 18 months old. I would stand on a chair next to the ironing board and stick the board full of pins in colored patterns. At three I would sew buttons all over scraps of fabric. I think Mom still has one or two of those works of art. At six I finished my first quilt.

Elizabeth: What was your first project?
Sparkle Jane: As I said before, at six I made a blue and yellow flannel lap quilt that I still use regularly. Mom cut and I pieced then she made the wrapped binding. I don't really like that type of binding. But for a first quilt it is OK.

Elizabeth: What interested you in getting started?
Sparkle Jane: My mom. I grew up watching her quilt. Also, when I was little I had a box of fabric scraps that I could do anything I wanted with. This helped me get used to being creative with fabric. I made a few hand pieced blankets for cats. Those might be around here somewhere, too.

Elizabeth: Who taught you how to sew?
Sparkle Jane: Once again, my mother. She introduced me to sewing early and kept me interested in it.

Elizabeth: What is your favorite project?
Sparkle Jane: My favorite project is probably a wall hanging that I made when I was eight. It has leaves blowing in the wind that are fused applique. I traced real leaves to get the shapes. Details on the leaves and the "wind" are chain stitched embroidery. It is the only applique project I have done so far, but I have another one planned.

Elizabeth: What project are you working on now?
Sparkle Jane: Which project out of the twenty are you referring to?

Elizabeth: Do you have a list of projects you’d like to do and what are they?
Sparkle Jane: Long list. I am making more baby/lap sized quilts for sale.

Elizabeth: What techniques would you like to learn?
Sparkle Jane: No idea. There are so many options out there.

Elizabeth:How often do you sew (every day, a few times a week, etc.)?
Sparkle Jane: I sew in most of my spare time when I am not playing with friends, harrassing the cats or reading. School, chores, church activity and ballet really eat into my sewing time. But, I do manage to get in some time with fabric almost every day.

Elizabeth: What else would you like to tell us about yourself?
Sparkle Jane: When I grow up I want to be a mom who makes her kids clothes and quilts. If that doesn't exactly work out, I plan to be an engineer or an architect.

So many people have helped me along the way. People have been sending me fabric scraps, helping me learn, giving suggestions, buying quilts and generally being amazing. Thank you to them all.

My new blog is: Sparkle Jane Please consider visiting.

Thanks for inviting me to be a guest on your blog.

Sparkle Jane.

It was really fun to have you Sparkle Jane! Thank you for taking time to answer my questions!

You can see the other neat projects Sparkle Jane has been working on at her blog, and you can see where she gets her talent at Wedding Dress Blue, which is her mom's blog. You can read about their experience at the HMQS here.

HMQS: Judge's Marks

You're not obligated to win. You're obligated to keep trying to do the best you can every day. –Marian Wright Edelman

I got the judge's marks back on the quilt I entered in the HMQS today. My marks were mostly positive, but there were a few items in the “needs improvement” category. After I got past the initial reaction to protect myself from criticism {which only took about 30 seconds}, I found the judge's marks to be very helpful. In the quality of quilting, I need to work on better control of the curves, as well as backtracking. In the last year since I finished the quilt I think my curves have improved, but I'll definitely be more mindful when I next do curves. I'll agree with the judge on the backtracking. It's a tricky business to learn and I still need to improve that.

My other “needs improvement” notes were on finishing—the entire category: straight edges, binding filled & securely stitched, miters stitched closed and square corners. This was kind of a surprise to me because binding a quilt is one of the things I love best. But I'll definitely take the notes and use them for improvement. Learning is the name of the game and I already I know how to improve the binding. I've been cutting it at 2½”, which leaves it a little bit loose. I'll start cutting at 2¼”, which should help with the fill. And I'll start stitching the miters at the corners closed. I kind of like them open, but if the judges want them closed, I'll give them what they want.

There were lots of positive comments; integration of color and design, overall precision of work {piecing, seams, points, borders, sashing} and the back of my quilt were all marked “well done.” I was particularly pleased with the things that were marked well done in the quality of quilting cateogry; stitch length, tension, distribution of quilting, and quilting pattern enhances. The final comments from the judge were, “Use of fabrics to form unity in design well done.” I'm really glad I entered and can't wait for the next show!

I wanted to share a two more of my favorites from the show. This first one is called Wisteria and it was amazing! I love all the 3-D details, the little embellishments in the flowers and the scroll-work border. Amazing! If you right-click on the photo, you can open it in a new tab and see it close-up.

This next quilt is called His Light Reflected. I love things in rainbow order. When I'm working with fabrics for a scrappy quilt, I always stack them in rainbow order. I always admire rainbow quilts and someday I'll maybe do one of my own. This one is so beautiful. I love how certain elements are repeated throughout the quilt.

Here is the center of the quilt. The quilting is absolutely spectacular.

The quilter matched the gradations of fabric from the center of the quilt out to the edges and matched her thread to the fabrics. It is such a simple quilt, but it is so gorgeous!

It is quilt show season and I am definitely looking forward to seeing more beautiful work!

HMQS: Best of Show

I don't believe you have to be better than everybody else. I believe you have to be better than you ever thought you could be. –Ken Venturi, Success Secrets of Super Achievers

Attending the Home Machine Quilting Show was really fun. I didn't take any classes {see also; new dishwasher} but did volunteer as a quilt monitor. My ulterior motive for volunteering was to get to see the quilts without paying admission. My job was to walk around the quilt displays giving plastic gloves to anyone trying to touch the quilts. When I checked in the woman who marked me off told me that I could take pictures as I wandered. It was a pretty sweet gig.

My first mission, while looking out for quilt-touchers, was to find my quilt. It was exciting. Once that was done, I took pictures of quilting motifs I want to try. Then I started to feel overwhelmed at all the beautiful quilts at the show. My little daisy among all those roses was starting to look more and more like a wilted dandelion. I started thinking about all the quilts I would never have time to make and that I will probably never be a show-stopping quilter. I wished that I could quilt full-time. It was a little sad.

And then I met the Best of Show winner. Her quilt is called America, Let it Shine.

I don't even know her name, but she is a mom, just like me, fitting in her quilting time between kids and chores and whatever else that life throws at her. She likes to draw her quilt designs out, just like me. And just like me, she works with the things that are available to her. She pieced and quilted this beautiful tribute to America on her 20 year-old Bernina.

I realized that I don't have to better than everybody else. I remembered that someone else's successes don't make me a failure. I was happy just to be a quilter—a better quilter than I was two years ago, and a member of a world-wide quilting community.

Putting a quilt in the HMQS was on my list of 40 things to do before I turn 40. I've got a few days less than eight months to work on my list, which makes it good timing for a little update.

I've checked a few things off my list since I posted the finished version of it, I have a few more things in the works, and was actually glad to be reminded of what is on there.

I'd forgotten about the tutorials. Two of them are half-written.

I'm pretty sure Mr. Bug is on board for taking the Little Bugs to Disney World in the fall.

I might have to re-think my goal of reading 5 books I haven't already read. I love to read, but you can't multi-task while you do it unless you listen to an audio book, which is just not the same thing.

I've discovered, in my pursuit to learn to love mornings, that it isn't mornings that I dislike. It is the waking up that I dislike. And conversely, I dislike going to bed at night, even though I very often wish I could during the middle of the day.

Posts about most of the things I've checked off the list:
Entering a quilt in the HMQS
Finished Quilts: Polka Dot, Rooster Table Runner
The Tulip Festival
The Piano Guys Concert
Tutorials completed: FMQ Swirls

Various & Sundry Monday: Vol. 27

Little drops of water,

Little grains of sand,

Make the mighty ocean

And the pleasant land:

So the little minutes,

Humble though they be,

Make the mighty ages

Of eternity.

Little deeds of kindness,

Little words of love,

Help to make earth happy

Like the heaven above.

–Julia Carney

More from the Home Machine Quilting Show
I've been picking up the HMQS catalogs every spring for probably the last 4 or 5 years, always admiring the quilts they show off and browsing the class lists. As I flipped through those pages I thought I'd never, ever, in a million years be quilting my own quilts. But last year when I was looking at the catalog, I was particularly interested in the quilt show because I'd started quilting my own quilts. I'd missed the entry deadline, which was OK because I didn't really have anything good enough to go in a show anyway. But I decided then that I would enter this year. I entered my Snowball Quilt. I knew it would be a daisy among the roses and didn't expect to win. I thought it would be fun to enter, though, because at the time I'd finished it {which was about 11 months after I started doing FMQ}, it was the best quilt I'd done. The show was last weekend in Salt Lake and here's my quilt hanging in the show.

Quilt shows are subjective and each person gets a unique experience when they attend, which is why, I think, it is hard to share them properly in a blog post. I mostly took close-up photos of quilting techniques that I liked and want to have as a reference. But there were a couple of quilts that I really liked and want to share them with you. I started yesterday with one of my favorites and I'll share another today. Maybe I'll show a couple of others in the next few days, or maybe not. I haven't decided yet. The lighting wasn't the best for taking photos. I alternated between using the flash and not using it. I used the flash on this quilt and should have gone with my gut and taken some without the flash. I did the best I could in editing.

These little embroidered dresses are so amazing! I love the bead details the quilter added. It is hard to pick a favorite!

Can You Tell Me How to Get {Back} to Sesame Street?
I've had to put my Sesame Street Quilt on the back burner for a little bit, because I had some prior sewing commitments that are a little time consuming, but not very interesting to post. Mostly, I'm participating in a half-square triangle swap that I signed up for in February, but that isn't due until the end of this month. I figured there was plenty of time, right? Right. Anyway, there's no set number of HST's you have to make. You just make however many you want, keep a few of each of your color combinations for yourself and send the rest to the coordinator. You get back the same number of HST's you sent in and then you can make something fabulous with them when they come back. I decided that I didn't want to be on top of the deadline for this one, so I've put the Sesame Street quilt on hold and have been working on getting them together. The HST's are 2" finished and I'll need 888 of them to make a nice lap-sized quilt. Picking and prepping the fabrics was fun, but sewing them together, even using a speed-piecing method, is killing me. Can you say snooze-fest?

My point is, 888 half-square triangles in the prep and sewing stages does not make for interesting blog fodder. I'm still looking for the balance between work, home, kids and me, so when I have a few free minutes and the choice is between sewing or blogging, sewing has been winning, even though it's not interesting enough to post about. When I get my swap triangles back and start sewing them together, then that will be interesting. And as soon as I get them wrapped up and in the mail, I'll be back to the Sesame Street quilt, racing for the deadline. The first quilt show is June 8^th and 9^th. If I miss that one, I have a few days before the entry period for the next quilt show. If I miss the second show, then I have three more weeks until the show here in town at the Art Museum, which is the show I really want to make it to. Hopefully, I'll be done with these HST's in the next few days and back to Sesame Street before mid-week {yeah, yeah. I know. Wishful thinking.}.

I was really inspired by Michelle's patterns and that's where this quilt started. As I've worked on blocks, I've also been working out all the details of the quilt, including how to quilt it. I wanted to do something other than my favorite swirls in the sashing and feathers in the border. Those didn't seem to really fit this quilt. I was inspired by a couple of things Lane is doing on his red silk quilt. I loved the pumpkin seed border and figured it would fit really nicely in the sashing of the Sesame Street quilt. Not so much.

The outer corners don't match up, and the intersections are kind of weird. So I asked Lane what he thought. He made some really great suggestions for making a motif work in your space. I revised. Lane {and everybody else}, what do you think? Do the little spacers work, or do I need to go back to the drawing board?

Monday Music Spot: A Thousand Years
The Piano Guys' latest release is an amazing! I don't think there is one thing they've done that I haven't like. But this one is extra cool because it also has a really great Twilight connection. They've put together an arrangement of Christina Perri's A Thousand Years from the Breaking Dawn soundtrack and it is beautiful.


Available for purchase from The Piano Guys or on iTunes

Story behind the song:
Our kids give us great inspiration for our music. When Jon's 17 year-old daughter said how much she loved this song, Jon decided to try it. He experienced a flood of inspiration. "Never has a piano part come together this fast" Jon says. Steve experienced similar inspiration while composing the cello parts. Since the lyrics suggest a bride walking towards the groom in a ceremony we thought we would include a quote from the Bridal Chorus by Wagner in the climax of the song (it is carefully disguised).

As it seems to always go, Paul and Tel didn't find the spot until they spent 9 hours driving around southern Utah the day before the shoot looking. After getting a little discouraged by not finding anything that great, they just happened to check out a little hidden spot right near Baker Dam and thought it was perfect for the song. The next morning we all loaded up the piano and headed out there to film, but after getting the Truck and Trailer stuck and waiting for the sun to move, we didn't get started filming until that evening having about 3 hours of light. It was so fun to film and play in the middle of the trees!

Credits
A Thousand Years written by CHRISTINA PERRI, DAVID HODGES
Published by SUMMIT BASE CAMP FILM MUSIC, EMI BLACKWOOD MUSIC INC, CHRISTINA PERRI D/B/A MISS PERRI LANE PUBLISHING
Arrangement produced by Jon Schmidt
Arrangement written by Al van der Beek, Jon Schmidt, & Steven Sharp Nelson
Performed by
Jon Schmidt: piano
Steven Sharp Nelson: acoustic cello, & cello-percussion
Music recorded, mixed & mastered by Al van der Beek at TPG Studio
Video produced by Paul Anderson & Tel Stewart

HMQS: Their Mothers Knew It

stripling: [ˈstripliŋ] n. a boy or youth not yet fully grown

In The Book of Mormon, there is a story of 2000 young men who go to war to defend their families, their liberties and their beliefs. Years before this, their fathers had been a bloodthirsty people and were constantly at war. Killing had become a way of life and they did it just for the pleasure of it. When they came to know Jesus Christ, they swore an oath that never again would they shed any blood and they buried their weapons as a symbol of their commitment to obey to the commandments of God. However, they were about to break their covenant because an army of their enemies was on its way to to destroy their peaceful way of life and they saw that the army defending them needed more men to fight. When their sons saw this, they knew that they could not let their fathers break their covenant to God.

Now they never had fought, yet they did not fear death; and they did think more upon the liberty of their fathers than they did upon their lives; yea, they had been taught by their mothers, that if they did not doubt, God would deliver them.

And they rehearsed unto me the words of their mothers, saying: We do not doubt our mothers knew it. –Alma 56: 47-48

These 2000 Stripling Warriors went to battle, never having fought before but with great faith that God would protect them because their mothers had taught them to believe. These young men played a major role in saving their people and though many were wounded, not a single one of them was killed in battle.

Today, it is my sincere prayer that the young warriors I have been given charge over will not doubt that God will help and guide and protect them; that they will not doubt that their mother knows it.

---

On Friday, I volunteered as a quilt monitor at the Home Machine Quilting Show. One of the quilts that I loved most was called The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ. I loved the beautiful fabrics and colors the quilt maker used, and I was especially touched by the block that portrays the story of the 2000 Stripling Warriors from the perspective of the mother watching those young men depart for battle.

Request a free copy of The Book of Mormon.

The Starry Night Quilt: My Oldest UFO

I often think that the night is more alive and more richly colored than the day. –Vincent Van Gogh

Once upon a time {about nine years ago} my mom, my sister and I started making quilts. We were all actually making the same quilt; each of us did our own version. My mom bought the Starry Night pattern, fabric kit and templates for my sister {a high school graduation gift} and my mom and I each bought our own fabrics {from the $2 fabric table at Wal-Mart}. Then we all set to work. I, with my pregnant-with-LadyBug-belly, would drive up to my mom's, the little bitty Grasshopper in tow and we'd cut and sew and chat and laugh and have a really great time together.

We started out working together, taking turns cutting the fabrics for each other and doing each step together. But I moved at a little bit faster pace, and so pretty soon I got ahead of my mom and sister. To give them a chance to catch up, I started doing all the cutting for every step. Still, I'm not super patient and I worked ahead of them. I was able to get my quilt top finished except for the borders before LadyBug was born. Then my quilt sat for a while. Like probably six years.

In the meantime, my mom had finished the most amazing Christmas sampler quilt and took it to a woman who has her own long-arm quilting business for the royal treatement. I absolutely loved what the quilter, Sue McCarty, did with my mom's quilt. My mom had a second appointment for quilting later that summer, but wasn't sure what she wanted to have Sue quilt for her. So, I asked if I could have that spot and decided to finish up my Starry Night quilt. I only had borders left to do. Pieced saw-tooth borders. And I did not have a ¼" foot. So the borders were wavy. Too wavy for Sue to get the quilt on her table. Fortunately, she had another customer who had brought her quilt early, so she did that woman's quilt in my spot and moved me back to a later date so I could fix my borders.

When I took my quilt back to Sue, I asked her for stitch-in-the-ditch quilting as much as she could. It seems that may have been a waste of her talents {see also, seven awards at the 2010 HMQS}. I was naïve. I really hadn't seen much of what a good free-motion quilter could do. The Starry Night sample quilt at the shop where my mom bought the kit and templates had a stipple all over it, and we thought it was such a waste to spend all that time piecing a quilt and then have the work covered up by a stipple {obviously, I've changed my mind about that }. So, I asked Sue to do stitch-in-the-ditch because in my mind, there were only two kinds of quilting — stippling or stitch-in-the-ditch. Fortunately for me, she didn't strictly adhere to my instructions. She did beautiful feathers in the dark blue borders, the maroon hearts and the dark blue squares in the center, a pretty hearts and swirls in the pink border, and a wave in the grey-blue border around the center. I gave her the template from the quilt pattern for the design that is in the points of the feathered star in the center and asked her to do stars and loops in the lighter blue around the feathered star, because I'd left off the appliqué stars in that part of the quilt. My favorite detail is the compass {I guess that's what you'd call it} she quilted in the pinwheel at the very center of the quilt.

I absolutely love how the quilt turned out. I could stare at the quilting for hours. The only regret I have is wondering what sort of amazing quilting she would have done in the sawtooth borders had I not requested stitch-in-the-ditch . As a side note, I think I'd would like to have Sue quilt my Woman's Work quilt and this time I'll give her carte blanche. I hope I can still afford her — her prices may have gone up .

For all its beautiful quilting, this quilt is still a work in progress. I'd originally intended to make it into a duvet cover. I even have the down comforter and yards and yards of that dark blue fabric to finish it off. This quilt was for our bed and Mr. Bug didn't love it, so I didn't finish it. And it has sat in the bag that I brought it home in from Sue's for three more years. I've debated lots about what to do with it. I've seriously considered binding it and giving it as a gift. But I used a plain white muslin for the back because it is really supposed to be a duvet cover. Winter is coming and I really think this quilt is going to become a big, heavy, warm duvet cover for me to sleep under and stay warm.

I made a long strip to go along the back {I even had Sue stitch-in-the-ditch for me}. It is the top 'flap' of the 'envelope' that the duvet cover makes. I'll bind one edge and put button holes along that edge so that the whole thing buttons nicely closed and the down comforter stays put inside.

With the bulk of the work finished, I could have a whole new bedroom ensemble with not too much more work. You see, I have enough blue fabric to make a bed skirt and I did two king-size pillow sham fronts. And after I make the bed skirt there should be enough blue fabric left to make big fluffy ruffles and backs for the pillow shams.

I think I'll start working on this right after I clean the fridge. I'll leave the ruffles off though.