Loch Lomond Quilter's

I'm back from a glorious week full of family, friends, quilts and fun in Utah. We suffered from quite a bit of Utah homesickness! (it is nice to be back in our own beds after 10 days though)
One of the trips highlights, for me, was the Loch Lomond Quilter's Show on Saturday. Twelve of us participated in a casual exhibition in Kristin's beauitful backyard. I was blown away, as I always am when we get together, by the quilts my friends have created. We have been an unofficial guild since 2005 when Kristin organized our first exchange. She must have been inspired. This has been a great outlet for us to use our creativity and develop a deep friendship with each other.
Since 2005 we have had have five quilt exchanges in which we've exchanged fabric or most often blocks for a quilt. Each time it has been so fun to see how each person's personality and creativity have come out to create diverse and beauitful quilts.
I count myself lucky to be a part of this group, to know each of these women and to be inspired and uplifted by them.
Here are some photos from the day. They aren't in an particular order. And some of them are very poor photographs. But I think you can still get a sense of how lovely and inspiring the day was. Captions are below the pictures.

Can't remember whose 2007 Group Exchange Quilt this is.
Here is one of Anna's and Elizabeth's Nosegays.
Another one by Elizabeth
I loved this scrappy one by Kristin. She called it Matilda Mae. It was part of a three way tie for People's Choice Award
Michelle's (correct me if I'm wrong) 2007 Group Exchange
My 2007 Group Exchange. This won me Honorable Mention and a tied People's Choice Award
Kristin's 2007 Group Exchange and 2006 House Block Exchange Quilts
Kristin's 2007 9 patch Exchange Quilt
Jennifer's House Block Exchange (sorry this is such a horrible picture)
My unquilted Feathered Snowflake Quilt
Baby Quilts across the front porch (another bad pic)
I think these are both Meghan's - her House Block Exchange and her 9 patch Exchange Quilt
Several people's Shoofly Exchange Quilts. Coincidence that they were finished in blue.
Kristin's Hand Dyed Mali Stars
Another that I'm sorry to say I can't remember whose 2007 Group Exchange this is.
Elisa's Robot Quilt
Jennifer's 2007 Group Exchange. I really like how she did hers.
Two cuties: Anna's on the left and Elizabeth's on the right.
Elizabeth's stunning Strawberry Fields
Another great one by Elizabeth done in civil war reproductions.
Kristin's that I can't remember the name of but I love the fabric.
Elizabeth's Halloween Quilt and Butterflies
A gorgeous one by Kristin hiding behind the tree and Michelle's cute Butterflies
Such a simple and cute one done by Dana
Anna's 2007 Group Exchange
State Flowers by Kristin. This one was very cool.
One of the favorites: Amy's Martha's Tea Towels. Made with Martha Stewart Tea Towels. I love, love, love the colors.
This one won best of show. Elisa's Joseph Smith Quilt. She, like so many of the other girls, has a very good eye for fabric and color.
Kristin's Flowers. I hadn't seen this pattern before and thought it was darling.
Another of Amy's that was one of my favs. Denise Schmidt fabric.
I think the top was MEghan's and the bottom Anna's 9 patch Exchange.

A bunch of great baby quilts along the back fence.
Another favorite: Michelles's House Block Exchange. The embroidery on here is fantastic!
L-R Back: Dana, Jackie, Kristin, Elisa, Miranda, Anna, Amy Front: Meghan, Michelle, Me, Elizabeth, Jennifer
Oh! how I love these ladies. I think I'll print out this photograph and hang it by my sewing machine as a reminder of the day.

My friends and I are having a Quilt Show!

If you are going to be in anywhere near the Lehi, Utah vacinity on September 27, between 1 and 3 pm come on by and check us out. :) I'm so lucky to have so many talented friends!

And for all of you who can't make it, I'll post pictures when its over.

We're flying to Utah tomorrow night for a week long vacation that will include catching up with friends and family, showing off our kiddos and oohing and aahing over kids we haven't seen in a year, going to the BYU v Wyoming football game, visiting my favorite quilt stores, this quilt show and breathing in the crisp, fall mountain air. Oh! I'm excited!

A Quilt for Ike

Wow! What a weekend. Ike has come and gone. I have a new found respect for hurricanes and Mother Nature in General.

We were so fortuante. Millions of others were not as lucky as we.

Going into the storm I wasn't really nervous. Here on the northwest side of Houston we were told to stay put and ride it out. The news was all about evacuations and preparations on the coast and in Galveston. I guess I just expected a big thunderstorm with lots of wind up here.

What I didn't expect was to hear and feel my house shake in the wind. We slept in our windowless, upstairs hallway. The winds started getting bad around 2 in the morning. I kept hearing a creaking sound and in my tired dilerium thought our house was just getting old and creaky. And then it started to annoy me because I couldn't sleep.
Later, as the creaking got worse and more frequent, I realized it wasn't a normal house sound. Both Hubbie and I slept in little increments for most of the night.

Around 5 am my husband woke me up and asked if I thought we should go down to our little downstairs bathroom because the floor was moving. I layed there and felt it shake underneath me. Being a California boy, Hubbie said it felt similiar to an earthquake. The winds were howling outside and I started to gain a little more respect and fear for nature.

Thank goodness our two little kids slept through the scariest times.

I also didn't expect the storm to last so long. The winds started picking up (here) in the early evening on Friday. The eye passed near us (not directly over us) around 5:30 or so in the morning. And then the winds and rains continued long into the day on Saturday. The rains finally subsided around 3 or 4 in the afternoon.

We emerged on Saturday to survery the damage. Our trees out front were still standing as were most of the trees on our street. The next two streets over from us, and many others around town, weren't as lucky. There are so many mangled trees, trees on top of houses, and even trees completely uprooted and pushed over on their sides.

Miraculously our power came back on Saturday at 7 pm. I hate to even say that outloud here in Houston because there are still so many people without power.

Our water is still having some issues. We had low pressure again this morning. As a precaution we still aren't drinking our water.

Whew! Now, how did I occupy myself in the aftermath? Well, by finishing this quilt, of course.

I think this will always remind me of Hurrican Ike. Look at the swirly fabric on the back. I bought that a few years ago and it looks like a swirling hurricane! I started and almost completed this quilt several years ago. But then I just decided it was ugly or got tired of it or something and put it away. I'm happy with it now. I finished it a little hurriedly. Its not perfect- especially the quilitng. I sort of just had fun doing that. I attempted straight lines for the first time and then did fun little swirly flowers in the white spaces.
I got this pattern online several years ago. I think I found it at McCall's quilting site.

What's to like about Ike?

Here comes Ike.

At about 100 miles inland, we've been told to not flee from the water but to hide from the wind. So we'll be hiding from Ike tonight. And hoping the winds don't blow us away. And expecting to be without power for awhile.

It was a beautiful morning. You would never have guessed there was a monster storm in the gulf laying in wait.

I've got a scrappy quilt to bind. That'll keep me busy when the power is out. In fact, I'm kinda happy I didn't hurry to get this done a few weeks ago for the summer scrap challenge. If I had hurried and finished it on time I wouldn't have anything to keep me busy during Ike! :)



So hopefully in a few days I'll report back that we stayed high and dry, and I'll have this completed and ready to show off.