Lots can happen...

Haven't posted to my blog since before Christmas!!! Oh well.... here's what's been happening:

I've been working on a quilt for my youngest daughter's wedding and now that it's over, I can finally post a picture.

They had a birdcage theme for the wedding and her colors were yellow and blue.

Corin and Mikey married April 7th, 2012

Here's the happy couple!

And then there's me....before......
And me.....AFTER!!!

I've lost 92 pounds on Weight Watchers and I made goal after 14 months of hard work and lots of walking! (4 miles a day)

Happy Quilting everyone!

Chirp, Chirp,

Robin

Home sweet home....

Well....the quilt I've been working on for this past 6 months is finally finished and found it's new home at my Aunt Luanne's house. It looks GREAT!!!
We quilters know that sometimes it feels like "giving birth" when we finally finish a quilt. Only this time, it found a home with my Aunt.
It always feels so good to finally be able to send it in the mail and imagine the excitement when the box arrives and they get to open it! I couldn't be there this time, but I could picture it.
I'm so glad that I was able to make her wish come true for a new quilt on her bed. (That puppy looks like he's going to enjoy it too!)
Merry Christmas Everyone!
Chirp, Chirp,
Robin

It's been slow...but steady.

Hi there,

I don't have any pictures to share, but still wanted to make a progress report on my Aunt Luanne's quilt I've been working on.

I'm happy to report that the quilting is finished and I'm sewing the binding. This is the by far, the biggest quilt I've ever made and it took me 3 hours to quilt it on the long-arm.

It's not going as fast as I had wanted, but I've been out of town the last two weekends and busy with work and getting ready for Christmas!

But I'm hoping to have it finished and off in the mail next week!!!!

Meantime, here are a few pictures of what I've been doing:

Last weekend, my youngest daughter, Corin, finished her first marathon at the Sacramento International Marathon. It was an awesome experience and I'm so glad I was able to be there.

Here she is looking strong at mile 20!

Finish line!!! Her time was 4:54:38


Her sister Erin finished her first marathon in Portland, Oregon on Oct 9, 2011.
Her time was 5:04:??


Here I am with my beautiful girls the day before the race.


And here I am 70 lbs lighter and feel'n great!!!

(I think it's about time to get some smaller jeans, those are looking pretty baggy!)

I LOVE Weight Watchers!

Well, I'll keep plugging along and get that quilt to my Aunt just as fast as my little fingers can sew the 400+ inches of binding!

Chirp, chirp,

Robin

Border Story....

It's always so exciting when you get to the point in a quilt where the borders go on. This weekend at "Pieceful Days" in Ferndale, I was able to finish putting the borders on the quilt I'm making for my Aunt Luanne. Next step, get it quilted.....

Last border (there are three) going on.
Voila!!!!! The top is finished!!!
You can see how big it is because it took two people holding it sideways to see it.

Chirp, chirp,

Robin

My own "Runaround Bag"...

I'm in love with the web-site, "Pintrest"! (Warning: It can be adictive!)
Yesterday I found a really cute purse idea and decided to buy the pattern from Anna Graham at Noodlehead. Then this morning I went to work using some super cute fabric I bought from Fabric.com. I was going to make some PJ pants out of it until I found out it was heavy curtain fabric instead of quilting fabric. Oh well...It made a super cute one of a kind purse.



Just thought I would share.



Chirp, Chirp,



Robin

It's on the Design Board!!!

As any quilter can tell you, the day you get your quilt to the point it can go up on the design board, it's a red letter day!!! I think it's going to look GREAT!!!! Just wait until it has the boarders and gets quilted, it's going to be a STUNNER!!!
Still plugg'n along......stay tuned!

Chirp, chirp,
Robin

Making progress....

I haven't had much time to quilt in the past few months, but I finally was able to make a huge dent in the quilt I'm making for my Aunt Luanne. I know she must think I'm REALLY slow when it comes to getting it done, but I've found that it's best to have the time to concentrate on a project so you don't mess it up.
Well that time finally came when I was able to go to Willow Creek for the weekend and sew with friends. We really had a great time! And I made lots of progress. I was able to square up all the half-square triangles and cut them into 3" segments and then rearrange them into the order I needed them for the block.
Then sew....sew....sew... and sew some more.

Now I'm putting all the blocks together and then I can put them up on the design wall and sew the top together. It's looking really good and I know it's going to turn out great!



Anyway....that's the progress report.

Chirp, Chirp,



Robin

Progress.....

Well, I was able to start on my Aunt Luanne's quilt this last weekend. We had a quilting get-together in Ferndale on Friday and Saturday. Had a great time and was able to get going on the quilt. Here's what I did:

First, cut 8 - 10 inch squares from each of the 5 colors of maroon she picked.
Here they are.

Next cut 40- 10 inch squares of the gray background fabric.

Then, you have to draw a diagonal line on the wrong side of all 40 squares.

Pair them up with one of the maroon squares and pin them together.

Next, sew a 1/4" on each side of the drawn line.

Here they all are sewn and ready to cut apart.

Yep, you guessed it, here they all are cut apart.

Next, over to the ironing board to press them open.

Here they are all organized and pressed.

I forgot to take pictures of when I was cutting those triangle blocks into thirds, rearranging them and then sewing them all back together again. I'll try to remember next time I sew on them.

It takes 4 of those "half-square triangle" blocks to make one of these big 17" blocks that will make up the quilt.

We quilters really are crazy to cut up perfectly good fabric and then sew it back together again!

I did find one thing out:

You can't take a block that was originally a 4 1/2" block and double it and have it come out the same. It just doesn't work.

I think it's going to look great, but it doesn't look the way I thought it would.

Anyway, I got 4 out of the 20 large blocks done this weekend and now I just have to find the time to do the rest. It might be a while, but I know it's making progress!

Chirp, Chirp,

Robin

Birth of a quilt....

My Aunt Luanne contacted me after seeing a quilt that I made for my Mom and asked if I would be willing to make her a quilt. "Of course I would!" I told her the best thing to do would be to let me figure out how much fabric she would need and then she could shop for it herself. Well, the other day I got this fabric in the mail. She wanted maroon and grey. I told her that "one man's maroon is another man's purple" so it was good that she picked out the fabric. I think she did a great job!

Here is the quilt I'm making:

She saw my pattern called: Windcatcher Charms and liked it, so I just tweeked it a bit and came up with this 87"X 103" version.

Right now my son and his wife and our grandson, Kellen are visiting, so I'm not going to be able to start it right away, but I'm going to post my progress here on my blog so she can see.

As you can see, we are having a great time! Time with Kellen is so precious that quilting will just have to wait!

Chirp, Chirp,

Robin

Catching up!

I'm sure anyone that has ever read my blog and checked back to see what was going on said, "WHAT THE HECK!!!" Why hasn't Robin posted to her blog since Nov of last year!
What can I say?! The word "Slacker" comes to mind.
Oh well.....life has a funny way of just marching on, blog or no blog!
I'm just going to post a few things that have been happening. Nothing exciting, but at least it's not the same old post from last year!

I bought a new car this month. Isn't it cute!


We lost at good friend in the quilting world this month. Lori Dinsmore fought a good fight against the cancer they discovered in January. She will be missed by all of us that knew her!


Since January, I've joined Weight Watcher's again. I've lost 40 pounds and have started riding my bike to work.

Kellen is almost three now and LOVES the movie, "Cars".

I sent him a t-shirt for Easter.

He also broke his arm....AGAIN!!!

He's such a little trouper through it all.

"Doesn't EVERYONE get to have a cool red cast?!"

He's our little "Super Hero"!


Here he is wearing the hat that Oppa (Grandpa) gave him.
He's getting ready to visit Humboldt County in style!


In December, I got to fly to Las Vegas to my sister's and spend Christmas with my parents.

It had been since before I was married that I got to spend a Christmas with them.

Here's a picture of me before losing 40 lbs.

Hopefully it won't be 6 months before I blog again!!!

Chirp, Chirp,

Robin

I Am Thankful!!!

It's always good when this time of year rolls around and we take extra special notice of all the wonderful things we have to be grateful for. Family, friends, jobs, faith....just to name a few.

Here are some of the people I'm thankful for:

My family Oct 2010

My Dad

The Dastrup Tribe

And KELLEN!!!!

Thank you all for being part of my life!

Chirp, Chirp,

Robin

Kellen Turns Two!!!

Our little grandson Kellen has had quite a life in his two years here on earth. It's been full of concerns and worries, but full of love and pride from all of his family. Kellen has made the world a better place for us. His sweet smile can melt his Grandparent's hearts. He's a special little boy that Heavenly Father saw fit to send him to two very special parents.

We are so blessed to have him in our lives and want to wish him a very

Happy 2nd Birthday!!!!

We love you!!!!!!

Chirp, Chirp,
Robin

Quilting Friends From Across the Country

Designing patterns is so much fun! Especially when someone from across the country buys that pattern, makes the quilt and then is nice enough to share the final result with you.

That was the case when I got the nicest e-mail from Mary in South Carolina.

Here's what she wrote:

Dear Robin,

Last spring I visited a quilt shop in Madison, Indiana, and saw a shop sample for Charms Gone Wild, and I purchased your pattern. When I get into a "quilt slump", I enjoy fun projects with charms and jelly rolls. They make up quickly and some of the work has already been done (fabric selection and cutting).

At any rate, I am almost finished with my quilt top and have been so pleased with the process.

Everything is going together beautifully and quickly.

This project was so much fun that I have already purchased charm squares and border fabric to make another one from the same pattern. And after visiting your website, I see some more patterns that I would like to try.

Sincerely,

Mary

Beaufort, SC

Well....yesterday I got another e-mail from Mary and she finished the quilt! She also shared two pictures. And said this:

Hi Robin,

Just finished my quilt top and wanted to show it to you. I am so pleased.

This project was so fast and so fun! I will definitely make another quilt with the same pattern, as soon as I complete a few things on my "to do" list. (I have quite a stash of charm packs. They are addictive.)

I used "Wrapped in Paisley" from Moda for this quilt.

Happy Quilting to you!

Mary

Charms Gone Wild - Sewn by Mary in South Carolina

Thank you Mary for your feed-back and taking the time to share!

I just had to do the same.

Thanks again Mary!

Chirp, Chirp,

Robin

Super Fast Jelly-Roll Quilt

Approximate finished size: 65" X 79"

A friend shared this idea with me.

I've written it up so I can share it. Enjoy!

What you will need: 1 Jelly roll

First border: 1/2 yard
Second border: 1 1/4 yards

Directions: Sew all the jellyroll strips end to end in random order. Cut the selvages off as you go. You will have a very long strip of fabric approximately 1600 inches long.

(40 strips x 40")

Important: Cut 20" off of the beginning of the long strip of fabric and throw it in your stash. You won't be using it. This will make it so your seams will be staggered as you sew them together.
Now find the 2 ends of the strip and put right sides together and start sewing!!!
Sew down the long side of the strip to the end and cut the loop at the end of the strip.

You now have a very long strip that is 2- jellyroll strips wide.

If you want to at this point, you can press them open, but pressing is really not necessary until you have the whole thing sewn. Remember this is supposed to be a fun and FAST quilt.
Don't stress over anything!
Next...find the two ends of this long strip again and put right sides together. Sew all the way down to the end and cut the loop at the end again.

You will now have a strip that is 4- jellyroll strips wide.

Now...find the two ends of this long strip and put right sides together. Sew all the way down to the end and cut the loop at the end.

You will now have a strip that is 8- jellyroll strips wide.

Again...find the two ends of the long strip and put right sides together. Sew all the way down to the end and cut the loop at the end.

You will now have strip that is 16- jellyroll strips wide.

For the last time.... find the two ends of the long strip and put right sides together. Sew all the way down to the end and cut the loop at the end.

You will now have a strip that is 32- jellyroll strips wide.

You are finished!!!!

You now have the center of your quilt... It should measure approximately 50" x 64".

Square it up.

Borders are next:

First border: Cut 6 - 2 1/2 inch strips. Join together. Measure and apply borders as shown.

Second border: Cut 7 - 6" strips. Join together. Measure and apply as shown.

Checking in...

Just didn't want anyone to think I'd totally abandoned my blog. I've been busy doing lots of things, but couldn't tell you what they are at the moment. Isn't that the way life is? We are so busy all the time, but then when you are asked to make an accounting of it, you are at a loss.
Here are a few pictures of Kellen and other things.....

Kellen and his Daddy making beautiful music together.

"I think I can reach it!!"

Another version of my pattern, "Charms Gone Wild". This one is made from the fabric line: Birdy by Moda

I've had a great time sharing some things with my friends over at the Quilting Board.

It's really fun to share and talk with other quilters around the country.

I just recently posted my free pattern for "Super Fast Jelly-roll Quilt" and it was a big hit.

Check it out: http://www.quiltingboard.com/t-44258-1.htm

Well, that's the news from my nest for now.....

Chirp, Chirp,

Robin