Dancing with Francis

***Don't forget to follow me on Instagram! @dancingwithfrancis for daily inspiration! *** This quilt pattern is from the great gals over at Sew Kind of Wonderful . The invention of their Quick Curve Ruler (QCR) is fantastic and makes cutting those curves a piece of cake. Also, the pattern directions are easy to read and follow. Add all of this to the easy, and yes, it is easy, curved piecing and you create a beautiful quilt!  I had been wanting to complete this pattern for a about a year. I had the perfect opportunity to go to my local clubs Kamp Sew a Lot ( a three day, in town, retreat, with lots of yummy food, friends and laughter). I decided that this is the quilt that I would make while I was there. I did cut out all my pieces before going, and it did take me all three days to complete this quilt top. There really was a lot of sewing happening in our group!  Normally I am a three color person when it comes to quilts. I love white as a background ...

**Follow me on instagram for daily posts of fun** I love when long time clients bring me projects that have been sitting in their closets, all finished, except the machine quilting. This lovely lady, Marcia, brought me this top that she did a few years ago. Recently she found it while moving to a new house and just had to have it finished! It is just beautiful, right?! Marcia wanted me to keep the quilting traditional. Many of you know that I love doing straight lines, so this was a challenge to keep it simple and traditional. Sometimes it isn't what you would put on the quilt, or what you prefer to quilt, but what your client wants. Because this quilt was traditional, it called for traditional quilting as well. I used Madeira's Monolon thread to outline the applique and go inside the applique as well. I love monofilament thread in projects like this because you can see the texture, not the thread, and it compliments the entire quilt. I also us...

When Sharon sends me her quilts it is like Christmas morning opening the box. I am always amazed at the beauty of them and the perfect piecing that accompanies them. It makes quilting a dream!  I have Sharon hooked on wool batting too from Quilters Dream Batting . It really is a dream to quilt with. The texture that is achieved makes the quilt just come alive! Here is a picture of some feather work. Mimi (my grandmother) recently showed me a video of Judi Madsen's that featured her doing some feather work. In her video she showed how to do these feathers and I decided to try them out. Turns out I loved the rhythm and the look that was created. Judi's design adds detail to the traditional feather look and creates something special. I am glad I could find a place to incorporate the feathers into this quilt.    In these rectangle sections I wanted something different than feathers because: a) this piece is going a different direction b) it is surrounded by purpl...

Good afternoon from snowing Kalamazoo! This weather can't seem to make up its mind. One minute it is 60 and the next it is snowing. I'll take the snow on this Saturday to get caught up on invoices, design work, and blog posts! My grandmother (Donna) brought me this quilt in the hopes of tacking down all these beautiful yo yo's, to a piece of backing, that my great-great-grandmother pieced together. It is in pristine condition as it was kept in a cedar chest most of its life. I think I found one yo yo that was detached from its mates. Absolutely beautiful piece. My first thought was...How the heck do Francis and I accomplish this?...Do I go through each yo yo both vertically and horizontally?...Do I just do every other row?... Do I go around each yo yo in a circle? What color thread do I use? As you can see I had a million questions running through my head. I have never done a piece like this one, so I really needed to think it through. I belong to a group on Facebook...

Life is hard. I wish I could go back to the days of being five and not having a care in the world. Not have to pay bills, deal with deaths, family drama, marriage issues, customer complaints, waiting in lines, the list could go on and on. But... you can't be five forever and have to grow up and eventually make your own decisions. Having moved here (Michigan) last September, my entire being has changed. Some may not understand, and they don't have to. Living in a new place and not seeing the ones you want to see everyday is hard. I consider myself an artist, and maybe it is that free spirit inside that is calling me home to Washington again. I must listen to myself and do what is best. My art has been affected and so has my relationships. Therefore I am moving back next month. I don't know all the details yet and I am leaving those up to God. Needless to say I am tired of struggling and want to be home! This quilt done by Lisa was a God send. Literally. It picked me up...

Good Morning from Michigan! I am sitting here at the dining room table watching the snow fall and enjoying a nice hot cup of decaf coffee and granola with fresh blueberries from this summer. Yummy! Only thing that could be better is if the coffee was regular! Little Baby, however, isn't supposed to have too much caffeine in one day. How was your New Years and Christmas? Tommy and I had a wonderful time with family for Christmas. We are truly blessed to have our family and friends. New Years Eve we made it up until about 11:30 and then we both fell asleep on the couch! We woke up at 12:05,  wished each other a Happy New Year and went to bed! I wanted to share with you a quilt that actually came across country when we moved to Michigan back in September. Can you believe it has already been 4 months since our arrival?! I cannot wait to go back to Washington for a visit at the end of the month! I miss so many people there! Sharon, bless her heart, was so patient to wait for thi...

Who doesn't like black and white? It can be classic, it can be modern, it can be whatever you want it to be. Combining printed blacks with solid white to get this design was brilliant by creator Lynn who was following a Bonnie Hunter Quilt Along.  When Lynn first brought me this quilt, she wanted me to accentuate the white in the quilt. Makes sense given that this would be great negative space and where you would actually see the quilting. If this quilt were done in less busy colors, then you really could have two different designs to go for, that is quilt them so the eye is drawn to these specific areas. Because this particular quilt is so busy, as far as fabric choices go, the only quilting the eye would see is in the white and in the solid black border.   Accent Quilting #1 Accent Quilting #2 How did I come up with my quilting choice for the white? Well, by now you must know that I prefer to do straight line qui...