Old Yeller is done!

Old Yeller is on the way to becoming a real quilt.

I have finally finished my yellow quilt top. I love the design, but I'm a tad disappointed that the stars don't quite pop as much as I would have liked. I think I was so conscious of they're being too bright that I toned it down a little too much. Still, just one glimpse and there is no doubt this is a yellow quilt. I do have options for those stars too. I could embroider around them, or as a friend of mine suggested, I could simply quilt them with a darker color of thread. Brilliant. There is always a solution.

I don't think quilting would be as much fun without one or more of my feline friends. Here is Ryan checking it out. I think she likes it and has made this her quilt. Hmm, seems to me she did that with the last one too.

Batting and backing should be here shortly. I ordered them online and they should be enroute via USPS and UPS any time. That is when the real cat fun will begin. I am a lap quilter, so I usually have at least one cat, on top of my quilt, and at least one beneath it. That is Ryan's favorite place--under the covers. Kasey, Ryan's twin, likes to sit in the hoop. Keni, usually hovers on the back of the couch. JR will probably try to wrap herself up in it.

Quilting is such a challenge. I think that is what I like about it. Not only are there the normal issues with cutting, sewing straight seams, etc., but there is that cat aspect as well. I can't wait to start quilting.

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Having quilt withdrawl--time for a new quilt

I want to make a new quilt--a yellow one. I have been collecting fabric, basically varieties of yellow, in the after Christmas online sales, my favorite being Fabric.com.

The first decision was easy. I really knew I wanted to make a yellow quilt, the bright sunshiny kind of yellow, rather than a mustard, gold, or other shade.

For the last several days, I have been going through old quilting magazines. I have a plethora of them. For some reason, nothing really 'moved' me, although the experience was quite relaxing and enjoyable.

When that didn't pan out, I hit the online sources. There are so many sources for free quilt block patterns, simply by googling 'free quilt block patterns.'

I joined a quilting board, not so coincidentally at http://www.quiltingboard.com, where there is a plethora of information and lots of willing-to-help experienced quilters. I even started a blog there. Now this is just what I need--another blog. At least this one will be strictly for quilting rather than all the other things I find intriguing in the world.

I found some quilts pictured there that I absolutely loved, though none that I really wanted to make that would showcase all the fabric I had purchased.

I even went back to a computer program I had purchased long ago but had never really explored -- Electric Quilt 5. I have no idea why I never used it before, except that I found it a bit cumbersome. The company is up to EQ7 now, so I didn't even know if my program would work on Windows 7. Much to my surprise, it loaded with no problem.

I played with the program all morning and lo and behold, I have designed a quilt.

I'm not going to get too excited yet, or post pictures of it yet, since it may be beyond my skill level. I have plenty to think about before I start it, but for now, at least I have made the difficult decision about what to make. I hope I can do this because I don't want to have to make that decision again.

Now, it is just a matter of assigning fabric, figuring out what else I might need, and perhaps making a sample block. Even after making seven quilts, I am still not comfortable with all of this, so I'm going to take it slow. I really can't wait to get started. Wish me luck!