Finally Finished!!!

A few years ago I took a trip to Hilton Head, SC and was so excited to see the Harbour Light... the iconic symbol of Sea Pines.

Imagine my surprise when I learned the lighthouse was not an old relic who helped navigate war ships at sea. There was never a light house keeper, or any stories of maintaining the light during storms. No, this lighthouse was built with private funding, started in 1969 and finished in 1970.

I'll admit, I was disappointed. I have seen so many 'real' lighthouses up and down the coast... and after paying a small fee to even enter the area, I was really taken aback when they charged yet another fee to walk to the top of the lighthouse to look out over the shops. Actually... I laughed. It was ridiculous!

Later that week I was in a  needlepoint shop searching for a canvas that was local to the area. I settled on the Harbour Town Lighthouse as a reminder of how funny I thought the whole thing was. When I got home I tucked it away to do 'later'.

So much happened since that day... including selling most of my possessions and packing up the rest to move. I honestly thought I lost the canvas in the move. I was bummed.

A few months ago I unearthed it... and let out a cheer! Whoop! I brought it along with me on my trip south and worked diligently until it was finished. I finished it TONIGHT!!! Take a look!

If you look very, very close you will notice I used beads on the star, and sparkly thread to help make the lighthouse shine. Now I have to finish it off into a pillow.

Now that THAT'S done... I'm on to my next project.

I-Scream!

I-Scream, you scream, we all scream for ICE CREAM!

I wanted to become proficient at painting birthday cards with birthday cakes on them... but after only painting a few cards I got bored... so I reverted back to my comfort zone. Birthday candles and Balloons were the designs that flowed freely from my brush.

Until I got bored... Again.

I had to ask myself... what do I think of when I think of birthdays??? The answer was clear as day...

ICE CREAM!

So I put my mind on cruise control and let the scoops flow off my brush. Maybe it was just that it was hot outside... but I think I did a pretty good job.

Double Wedding Ring Quilt Challenge

It's time to do something I have NEVER done before... enter a QUILT CHALLENGE!

The New York City Metro Modern Quilt Guild (say THAT three times fast) AKA... NYC MOD
is hosting a Quilt Challenge using the traditional block Double Wedding Ring. The challenge is affectionately called... DWR Challenge and you can find the 'rules' HERE.

Housesitting in the south for the past month has left me at a bit of a disadvantage. All of my tools, fabric stash and supplies are back home... but I didn't let that deter me from starting the challenge. As a matter of fact... it forced me to search out quilt shops in an area I wasn't familiar with. Oh SHUCKS!!!

It took three shops to find my mecca. The first two shops were great... but focused more on traditional quilting like Civil War fabrics and such. Totally not me. The third shop was the charm!

From the moment I checked out their website I knew I had found my 'happy place'. The actual store is just as thrilling!  Intown Quilters located in Decatur, GA carry an entire section of my beloved designer Kaffe Fassett... and if that alone wasn't enough to get my creative juices flowing... then the adjoining wall displaying almost every Kona Cotton color certainly had me doing cartwheels!!

In my dreams... if I ever owned a quilt shop...this is EXACTLY the one I would have. Bright, cherry, full of fun fabrics... and a wonderful staff!

So... I'm drooling all over the Kaffe Fassett fabrics and the light bulb pops on... I'll make the Double Wedding Ring Challenge out of Kaffe's fabric!!! Yes!!!! Mixing traditional blocks with new ideas is what Modern Quilting is all about!!!

I rushed back to the house and just couldn't go to sleep (or eat) until I cut out my blocks. It took F-O-R-E-V-E-R to position the design in the same manner as what was in my head. Finally by midnight I was happy with the design. Now... to sew it all together.

Here is the beginning of the layout.

A bit bright huh! Well... that's Kaffe for you. 

Keep an eye on this site for updates. There are three different categories for the challenge and I intend to submit in each of them. I'll post pictures as I move along.

You can read the original post on my other blog... Deb Hathaway.