Kay's Wonderful Quilts!

As you may know, we went to visit our dear friend Kay Huston this weekend. I have lots to share on A Colorful World when I can post tomorrow. But, tonight I wanted to post these amazing quilts made by Kay many years ago. She never had a lesson, but was taught the "basics" of quilting by her husband, Jack's, aunt. For several years Kay worked feverishly on these creations, perfecting her technique totally on her own. She not only hand-pieced each of these, she also handquilted them and many more that are carefully folded on the shelf of a Victorian dresser. She doesn't own or know how to use a sewing machine! I have always been SO IMPRESSED by the quality of her wonderful work, and at her determination to do a good job. One day she just decided she was done, and moved onto other things, such as beading and sketching. But these quilts are a testament to her hard work and artistic abilities!

This last shows both the back and part of the front of a quilt she used an actual flag in as part of the backing.  She won quite a number of blue ribbons at county fairs during the time she was quilting! I wish I had taken more pictures...she had over two dozen quilts folded on the dresser!  Maybe next time...

Success!

OK, it's READY!  Look at the sewing room transformation!  I still want to put up a design wall, curtains, that sort of thing....but I am ready to get busy!  YAYY!!!

The desk will make a good-sized sewing table until one day when I can replace it with a real one.  I also need a new sewing machine.  I am using the one my Mom gave to my daughter, temporarily.  This also doubles as the guest room, and our grandson sleeps among the quilting things when he comes to stay over...

 I have a TV for watching while I work (and our grandson likes having it there for cartoon-watching too) and the basket is an old one that holds some special family scissors and thimbles that belonged to my Aunt Annie years ago, and are treasures.

Lots of quilting magazines, but also my Birds & Blooms, Southern Living, and a collection of books and magazines for our grandson.

Speaking of treasures, this was my Grandmother's handmade wooden spool holder.  She had to work all her life, and this spool holder was at the dry cleaners she owned with my step grandfather when I was growing up.  She would do alterations for customers, and was an amazing seamstress.  She also of course quilted when she could, though her time was very limited.  She (her name was Dovie, like that gentle bird) and Papa Curt would get up before the sun rose, cook their lunch and supper as well as breakfast, pack up the lunch and refrigerate the supper and drive many miles to their shop.  After a long day of work, they would deliver dry cleaning to some people from their car, and return home at dark, or after, to reheat their supper, bathe and fall into bed.  It was a hard life!  She also got what would now be considered COPD from the dry cleaning fluid, suffering with asthma and chronic bronchitis for many years.  She was one of the most wonderful, sweetest people I have ever seen or known, with a gentle, caring heart, and I have always wanted to be just like her.  This spool holder is one of my most prized possessions!

This is a much newer treasure...a very special gift from my daughter and son-in-law last Christmas!  It was exactly what I needed!

And, several years ago I was given this very treasured quilt!  This was a gift from my Mom who made it especially for me, and I love it dearly!  (It is just for show....comes off the bed when our grandson is here!) :)  Well, now that the sewing room is ready for me to get in there and get busy, I guess I better do just that!

The Sewing Room!

OK, I am sure that many of you have been wonderful WHERE I have been!  The last five months have been interesting...two moving trips from Virginia to Arizona, plus all the unpacking that has ensued....and now our daughter and son-in-law just moved into a new rental as well (in Tucson still, though) and we helped a little plus they are opening a new restaurant in town, which is now up and running, but both of them are working every day and I am watching our grandson after school....OK all that was a huge mouthful!  The bottom line is I just haven't been able to quilt YET!!!!  Unfortunately, THIS is what the sewing room looked like a few days ago....

It has actually improved somewhat since then...I'm getting there slowly but surely!  The big chest of drawers is full of fabric....

And this is a closet with a shelf piled high of MORE fabric.  You can see part of my collection of feedsack fabrics here....

And I am absolutely DETERMINED to finish getting this room squared away and start quilting again within the week!  I miss it!!!  Here are a few of the projects I have waiting for me....

This is a quilt top and backing that needs to be sandwiched and quilted...

 These are the squares I made the very first time I attempted to do a sampler quilt.  I didn't know what I was doing and they are NOT very good....BUT I still want to get it made into a top and backed and quilted after, what, 40 years!!!!!

And these are some squares that I worked on in Texas when I lived there years ago, and the rest were made in NC for a Bee Friends challenge we were doing.  They were purposefully made to "go together" but now I need to make about four more squares to finish it off, and get it made into a top as well...
And I won't even go into all the other projects that are partially done, or that I want to start.  I have to GET BUSY!!!!  Hopefully in a week you will have a really good progress report on the room.  Wish me luck!