Personal Helicopter Car

This is the first car that transforms into a personal helicopter, made by PAL-V. It's expected to be in production in 2014. See a short video here. Wow!

Memorial Day 2012

Today we remember our fallen heroes and pray for God's blessings on their families. 

To all our armed services, "We deeply appreciate your service. Thank you."

String Quilts in the Works

String quilts are so much fun to make. This is another of the design wall auditions for the "Tracks, Combs and Ladders" pattern. Today I'm making some string baby girl quilts with lots of florals in bright colors. I'll show you soon.

New String Quilts! Pattern Too!

This is my latest publication, a 17-page pattern and idea book about string quilts made with rectangular scraps. One of the many designs is shown below. I've made a bunch of these quilts. They're fun because they're fast and easy, and the design possibilities are endless. No measuring, matching etc. 

Perfect for new quilters, or for quilters who are new to string quilting. This is what I was working on when Eileen visited on Tuesday. It was easy to talk and sew; no concentration necessary to do this quilt! See "Tracks, Combs and Ladders."

My Sister Eileen

My sister Eileen and I spent the day sewing in my quilt room yesterday. What a great time we had.

She made a rainbow quilt for a young friend's graduation gift. I'm working on a series of string quilts. 

She's moving from RI to the Lansing, MI area next month. So we were visiting while the drive is still easy. But a 13-hour drive won't stop us! We had fun remembering things from our childhood while we sewed. 

She showed me how to make the most delicious chicken dish. Measure 1/2 cup of each: mustard, molasses, and cider vinegar. Marinate for 30 minutes or more. Bake for 1 hour at 360 degrees. Eileen can whip up a dinner for any number of people without missing a beat. She has a big heart. You can probably tell from the photo, right?

Guesthouses for Your Feathered Friends

Are these charming little birdhouses or what? Check out this treasury of birdhouses.

My sister Eileen is visiting today and we're sewing all day! Ya-Hooo! I'll show you photos tomorrow.

Hahaha

I had to think about this one for a second! Haha. See Rocket Surgery by Fit to Print in New York.

You'd have to pay attention to which ear you put each earring in so it reads from left to right. In One Ear, by Carol Ann in San Diego, CA.

And last, "Find X." I love this. Haha. Over 4,200 people looked at this ad. I guess I'm not the only one who likes it. 

Thousands of Dolls

Did you know that there are over 13,000 doll patterns on Etsy? Yikes! After browsing through a ton of them, here are my favorites in a treasury.

Galactic Quilt by Bruce Seeds, Treasury Too

 

This big quilt "Galactic" is the creation of Bruce Seeds of Wisconsin. He has it listed on Etsy for $4,300. He made it using just one fabric! This is one of the quilts in my new treasury of Father's Day quilts. 

String Quilts Rock!

This string quilt by Southern Belle is so cheerful. It's part of my new treasury of string quilts. Take a look. Warning: It will make you want to drop everything and make a string quilt.

Here's another link, String Thing Along, from Brenda at Scraps and Things in Canada.

New Sewing Baskets

Take a look at my treasury of creative sewing baskets. 

The beaded fringe in the bottom photo is a nice touch.

Nifty Quilts

This is one of my favorite quilts! It was made by Nifty Quilts from Washington last year at a retreat in NYC that we both attended. Some of my scraps are in this quilt. I thought I was a marathon quilter, but she started before me in the morning, and was still going strong when I went to sleep! I want to make one of these.

Gunpowder Pincushion!

Karin Peirce of Maine found this image (above) of a vintage gunpowder pincushion, and was inspired to make the one below. Nice job! She didn't say if she filled hers with with gunpowder. And like Karin says, you could always throw it into the fireplace if necessary!

I did a quick Google search for a connection between gunpowder and pincushions and didn't find anything.

Some vintage pincushions were filled with crushed walnut shells, straw, sand, rice, human hair or horsehair. Most of the vintage pinucshion ads on eBay don't say what's inside. 

Karin also sent this photo of two pincushions from Russia. Thanks, Karin!

Improv Quilt by Lu Summers

This improvisational quilt is the work of Lu (Lucie) Summers of the UK. You can read about it here on her blog. She started with this block shown below. Then she just kept adding on until it looked finished. This is a wonderful quilt, don't you agree?

I found this quilt on a site called The Long Thread.

Lu has a new line of fabric: Summerville. My stash could use some lights so

 I'm keeping an eye out for some of this.

New Tutorial for Pinsies!

Have you noticed the beaded pins that decorate all my pincushions? They're getting pretty crazy, as you can see in the upper right corner. Haha. I've been getting emails asking for info about how to make these little beauties so here's a tutorial complete with supply list, photo instructions, and handy tips. 

Pinsies make nice little gifts to exchange with your quilting buddies too.

Good project to do with kids. 

I do tend to get carried away with projects like this. They are so much fun to make!

I've had beads waiting for a project like this for a long time. 

Thanks for all your comments yesterday about where you get your creative inspiration!! 

Where do you find quilt inspiration?

Please share some of your sources of quilt-making inspiration. I'll be giving a guild presentation next week and I'd like to hand out a long list of ideas. I'll post the list here too.

I get lots of quilt ideas in the shower. And I love to browse through my quilt books, especially the state quilt survey books and the old Quilt Engagement Calendars compiled by Cyril I. Nelson.

What is This? A Sugar Scuttle. Thanks!

I found this little silverplate item at an antiques fair and of course turned it into a pincushion. But now what do I call it when I list it on Etsy? Does anyone know what this is called?

Slippers to Write Home About

Take a look at this treasury of amazing slippers! Haha, something to warm your sense of humor as well as your little tootsies.

Huge Pillow Shop in Europe

This Suzani pillow reminds me of vintage applique quilts. It's from Sukan, an Etsy shop in Europe offering over 1,600 pillows for sale. 

This long Suzani pillow is another of my favorites. I was browsing through the 39,000 decorative pillows on Etsy and clicking on my favorites. So many were from Sukan, I had to visit the store. Wow!

SEE THE WHOLE TREASURY HERE.

P.S. I was a week ahead in celebrating Mother's Day. Haha, now I get to celebrate again next week.

Happy Mother's Day! (Especially to you, Mom!)

Awww. Does this picture warm your heart or what? See this treasury of cute Etsy models. I made it for Mother's Day. My two babies are 6'4" and 20-somethings now, with beards! Have a great day.

Kathy Kinsella and the Quiltsy Team

Colorful fiber art cuff from Kathy Kinsella! See the whole treasury of colorful items from the Quiltsy Team here.

Show-Stopping Purses

Here are some show-stopping purses that I found on Etsy. I like the spiky one above from Kyla Crawford in MI.

The handmade sterling silver bag above is from Mythic Silver in Ohio. It sells for $5,500.

This polymer clay bag is by Karen Ablow in Madison, Connecticut.

See the whole treasury here. Sixteen show-stopping purses. Did you know that if you go to Etsy and enter "purse" in the searchbox, you get 350,000 results? Haha, let me save you some time. 

Do you remember this pincushion named "Endurance?" It originated a long time ago in Japan and was recently rescued in Connecticut and given a new silk cushion and two pretty pinsies. It has just been purchased by a woman in Victoria, Australia! What an exciting life this little guy is having! If only it could talk!

I've had a computer virus which has kept me off the Internet for a few days, but I'm back now.