Three Little Quilts

Over the course of the last year I pieced a dozen quilt tops, but never quilted any of them because Covid temporarily closed the studio I where I was planning to rent time on a long arm machine, and then I got in the habit of staying home and didn't re-book time to quilt. Now that establishments are opening up and I have one vaccine in my arm I am venturing out more and finally made it into the studio. 

I spent a long afternoon at Over the Top Quilting Studio in Cedar Park, Texas, and got three small tops quilted. (Photographing your children in the bluebonnets is a springtime ritual in Texas, so naturally I photographed a couple of these babies in the bluebonnets.) The idea for this first one, a cross quilt, came from the Dallas Modern Quilt Guild and was a great way to use up a bunch of larger scraps and some not so favorite fabrics.

I've previously shared a photo of this one, called "Blues Around the World," when it was just a finished top. I hand pieced it, using up a lot of scraps, during various travels before the world shut down due to the pandemic.

I think this cheater panel from Denyse Schmidt makes a really fun back for it.

Speaking of Denyse Schmidt, this next top is from the Free-Wheeling Single Girl quilt along she led last year. It's a little wonky because I sketched my own paper templates and pieced the circles by hand without being terribly fussy about accuracy. I've finally made myself honest by buying a set of the acrylic templates -- Denyse deserves to be paid for her creative work. I know I should have made more of an effort to pay sooner, but better late than never.  

As for the quilting, I used APQS's QuiltPath on a Millie long arm machine to quickly and accurately quilt closely spaced straight lines. Just set it up and let it go.

Now that I've got these three completely finished, it's time to reserve another block of time at the quilt studio. I should note that I felt completely safe spending hours at Over the Top Quilting Studio because they follow strict health safety guidelines to protect themselves and their customers. It doesn't detract at all from the fun of quilting with like-minded crafters.

Croatia's Dalmation Coast

Croatia is a tiny country, smaller than West Virginia, but it packs a lot worth seeing into that small space. Dalmatia, the southernmost region of Croatia, strung out along the Adriatic coast, encompasses about a quarter of the country's area and includes 79 little islands. It is packed with lovely and historic towns, stunning scenery, kind people, and many delightful restaurants and cafes.

The best way to see the islands and visit the smaller towns is to book a tour on small boat. Last fall, along with my family, I went on a seven day excursion from Split to Dubrovnik and back, with lots of stops in between, aboard a 38 passenger boat, the M/S Desire. This post focuses on Split, the second largest city in Croatia. I'll follow up with another post or two on the other towns.

Split's main attraction is Diocletian's Palace which was built for the Roman Emperor, Diocletian, in the 4th century as a place for him to retire. Here is a view of the peristyle, or central courtyard, the heart of the palace.

Original construction of the palace included twelve sphinxes from Egypt. This one is the best preserved of the remaining three.

Wander through the palace and you can spot other original decorative elements, such as this mosaic floor,

and the round vestibule, or waiting room.

Today you can see the sky through what was once a domed roof.

It is fascinating to explore the narrow alleys,

the impressive basement (which now houses vendors of local wares),

and open courtyards.

Today the palace is a fascinating patchwork of private residences,

shops, hotels, and restaurants.

Speaking of patchwork, here are a few images of patchwork that I have been stitching away at recently.  I worked on a few pieces for Denyse Schmidt's Free-Wheeling Single Girl quilt-along during this trip, using fabrics from my visit to Phoenix. I will need nine of these to make up an entire quilt so I am clearly way behind on but it's fun to work on here and there.

And here is a top that I finished almost a year ago, using up some blue scraps. I've finally picked out a backing for it, so maybe I'll have a finished quilt soon.

Phoenix, Arizona

Back in the days when I worked for Motorola's semiconductor business, I made a number of trips to Phoenix. And in all that time never saw anything other than the inside of the airport, air-conditioned cars, and air-conditioned offices. This time I was lucky enough to have a few days to explore, along with unseasonably wet and cool weather to make it comfortable. We started with an alfresco lunch at the Phoenix Biltmore, after which we strolled in the gardens and through the public areas of the hotel.

Opened in 1929, it was designed by Albert Chase McArthur, a student of Frank Lloyd Wright. The blocks and other elements of which the hotel is constructed all have a geometric design that struck me as something that would lend itself to quilt blocks.

Interestingly, the blocks are called "textile blocks" because of how they are held together with lengths of rebar in two directions, like the warp and weft of a woven fabric.

After a day spent attending meetings and lectures indoors, Steve was eager to get outdoors, so we set an early alarm and drove to Phoenix Mountain Preserve, arriving at the trailhead to Piestewa Peak before dawn. Lingering clouds from the previous night's rainstorm made for interesting views. 

The trail is short but steep, gaining more than 1,000 feet in just over a mile, but it is well marked and in most places the footing is good due to carefully built stone steps.

Still, it is rated as "extremely difficult." I suspect the Phoenix climate may contribute to that. The weather was comfortable for our hike, but Phoenix summers would make for a brutal outing.

Having started before sunrise, by the time we finished our hike, and found some coffee and breakfast, we still had most of the day ahead of us. Next stop was the Desert Botanical Garden, 140 acres dedicated to preserving and showcasing an enormous variety of desert plants.

I liked the playfulness of these Chihuly glass sculptures at the entrance.

It is truly a wonderland of texture,

color,

and shape.

I highly recommend a visit, though definitely go early if the day promises to be warm. In addition to wandering paths through several themed areas (Sonoran Desert, wild flowers, etc.), you can have a drink or lunch at the cafe, browse the shop, and participate in special events.

Our final stop was completely serendipitous. We happened to see a sign for it, and being curious about fire fighting because our daughter has worked the past three summers as a wildland firefighter, decided to make a visit.

It is quite an amazing place, filled with thousands of fire-related items spanning several centuries. As you might expect, there is a lot of red and gold. Firefighters have clearly taken great pride in their equipment for a very long time!

In addition to these older pieces, there is a tribute to 9/11 first-responders and videos of current practices in wildland firefighting.

Naturally I also had to visit a local quilt shop, so I chose Modern Quilting. I picked up a few pieces of fabric, with the intention of participating in Denyse Schmidt's Free-Wheeling Single Girl sew-along.

I guess most participants are finished by now and I haven't completed even one square yet, though I do have a few pieces started. I've been doing this by hand, and without Denyse's templates so it will be interesting to see how it turns out.