Wake Forest Watercress

This Watercress Wallhanging was made for a Demon Deacon alumna. The client (the recipient's spouse who also is an alum) provided 4 shirts but there were 9 motifs all together so we were able to create a 3 x 3 grid quilt.

Wake Forest's colors are Black and Old Gold. I used a gold paisley to size up the tiny motif blocks, a fabulous black/dark gold floral (Alexander Henry) for the sashing, and a classic gold and white toile (Windham Fabrics) for the backing. The client also wanted a hanging sleeve and a personalized label on the back.

Interesting Factoid:

Wake Forest has an unusual tradition of tp'ing themselves when they win a basketball game...the bigger the win, the more festooned the campus will be.   http://www.wfu.edu/athletics/traditions/

Summer Row by Row part II

Because love grows where my Rosemary goes And nobody knows like me
Garden: The Bee Buddy who did this row pieced a profusion of brightly colored flowers embellished with fun buttons. 

But there's booze in the blender, And soon it will render
That frozen concoction that helps me hang on
Food:  This lady (who also is a delightful neighbor) appliqued a beautiful bowl of fruit in her row.  She also added margarita glasses with wedges of citrus and umbrellas to complete the scene.  Oh so thirst-wuenching! :)

Our house, was our castle and our keep. Our house, in the middle of our street
Home:  In all the row-by-rows that I have done, the final row is always called home and hearth.  Obviously not much hearth time is needed in the summer but the cottage is too cute for words.  The 4 heart flowers represent what our family was doing at the time.  We were active-duty Army, sewing away at kids' sporting events...

Straight out of Cape Cod, We're keeping it real
Finally the rows all put together.  I had done several row quilts and wanted to come up with a different layout.  The Pentagon shape is an obvious homage to what brought us to the District in the first place.  The background is a hot pink background with many,many appliqued alligators.  I was trying to go with a somewhat preppy theme as summer and the pink& green combo go hand in hand for me.  I embroidered white diagonal lines and then hand-quilted it with kelly green thread to allude to an argyle theme.  

Summer Row By Row

A row-by-row quilt is a group project where each member makes rows for each other. We came up with a theme for the entire quilt and then for each individual row. Row 1 is done by the original owner which sets the tone for the rows she will be receiving.  The width of the row was set at 40" (40.5 unfinished) and there was no limit on height.  Although I have done row-by-rows with other themes, I'm sharing the Summer one as I would much rather think of warmer, sunnier days while looking at the snow outside.

Our overall theme was Summer.  Each row had a theme as follows: Owner's Choice, Recreation, Food, Water, Garden, Activity, Home.  We each provided a list of key words and memories for the others to draw from when planning the rows. We had a month to complete each row and we kept the results secret from each original owner until the end.

Beach baby, beach baby, Give me your hand,Give me somethin' that I can remember
Owner's Choice: I developed a scene at the beach that I based off a child's coloring page. Techniques used were hand-applique, raw-edge applique by machine, embroidery and macine-piecing. I have a lot of fabric that depicts natural elements so it wasn't too hard to find a tan that worked for the sand and I had lots of sky fabric.

Shadows on the wall, I can see them fall Here and there and ev'rywhere.
Silhouettes in blue, Dancing in the dew; Here am I, Where are you?
Recreation:  We are all quilters so the woman who did my row thought that a lady quilting would be appropriate. She used a shadow-applique and embroidery technique along with machine-piecing.

We sail on yachts and we ride on horses, Every meal we eat comes in multiple courses
Water:  The woman who designed this row knew that I sailed on the Charles River in high school.  That was a long time ago and I only did it during the academic year but seeing boats on the water is a wonderful sight in the summer as well as other times of the year.  Each of the sailboats has a college name on the sail.  The one with the plaid hull is obviously for the Home of the Tartans, This row was paper-pieced.

Last night I had the strangest dream I sailed away to China
In a little row boat to find ya And you said you had to get your laundry cleaned
Activity:  This quilter made an outdoor scene with Sunbonnet Sues hanging quilts on a clothesline. It was machine-appliqued and embellished by hand.

You got your sundress on for game day

The final Paprika of my 4 part series is pictured below. This Paprika was made for a female student at W&L. She is a sister of the Zeta Tau chapter of Kappa Delta (ΚΔ). We used the pink version of the Trident pajama pants to create sleep shorts. The remaining yardage was saved for the piping, the Trident and Greek Letters. The background fabric is a decorator-weight Waverly print.

ΚΔ’s colors are olive green and pearl white. The client wanted pink as the 3rd color as the intended recipient has her entire room decorated in pink and green. That is one of my favorite color combinations as well. Not only would the pink and green be great for a ΚΔ but it would be great for a ΔZ, AKA, or anyone who my kids say “rocks the croc”.

As requested by the client for the 3 other Paprikas, a zipper was installed in the bottom seam and the designs on the back of the pillow are skewed towards the top so the monogram can be added.

I'm A Funky Skull And I'm A Scorpio And When I Get My Flow I'm Doctor On The Go

This Paprika is the third of the four-pillow order that a client requested for her 3 boys and one lucky girlfriend of the oldest son.  The recipient of this pillow is a student at Washington and Lee University.  This symbol depicted on the pillow is the W&L Trident.  I altered the Vineyard Vines pajama pants sold at the bookstore into boxer shorts.  That way I had enough material for the Trident, the piping, and the fraternity letters. The blue and white fabrics in the pillow are twills.

The Trident was designed by W&L student Thomas Greene (Tubby) Stone back in 1904. It is a monogram of the 2 letters superimposed on each other.

The Greek Side of the pillow has this General's fraternity letters of Phi Kappa Sigma (ΘΚΣ). Phi Kaps are also known as the Skulls hence the title of this post. Like all the Paprikas for this client, the letters are closer to the top of the pillow to allow room for monogramming.

Like all the pillows in this series, a zipper was placed in the bottom edge seam so the casing could be removed for easy cleaning.

Paprika II

This Paprika is the second in a set of four for a client. The intended recipient is a student at Denison University. He is a member of the Ohio Iota chapter of Phi Delta Theta (ΦΔΘ). Denison’s logo is a bicolor capital D. The client wanted solids for the majority of fabrics and a touch of coordinating plaid for the outline of the Denison D, the Greek letters, and the piping.

The flip side of the pillow has his fraternity written in 4″ block letters centered left and right but positioned towards the top so the client can have the pillow monogrammed. These are the same size letters that the Greeks wear on their shirts. I used the same plaid for the letters.

Both the Denison D and the ΦΔΘ are appliqued with a satin stitch to provide a finished appearance. This pillow has a hidden zipper in the seam so the exterior can be removed for easy washing.

Paprika I

The Paprika is a pillow that has been appliqued, quilted, or in this case: both!  This Paprika was made from a middle-school student's t-shirt.  One side of the Paprika is a large rendition of the school mascot from the back of the shirt.

The other side of the Paprika incorporated the miniaturized mascot from the front of the shirt as well as award patches from 2 different sports that the boy plays for his school.  The client wanted the little designs to skew towards the top of the pillow so she could have it monogrammed. So there is a nice big space at the bottom for his name or initials.

This Paprika incorporated piping and a hidden zipper in the bottom seam so that the insert can be removed so that the actual pillow cover can be easily washed.  Both sides of the Paprika were free-motion quilted using a meandering stipple design. Like a t-shirt quilt, this is a necessary step for a t-shirt pillow so that t-shirts remain stabilized.

Semper Paratus

This combined set of the Parsley, Wasabi, and Chive was custom-made for a US Coast Guard wife.  The client wanted a nautical theme for her items so a sailboat fabric was incorporated as the primary coordinate.  One side panel of her Parsley was customized with her initials in signal flags.  The Wasabi had a Reef Knot appliqued to the outside of the wallet.

Sage I

The Sage is any size signal-flag quilt.  I really should call this category Seaweed since signal flags are primarily for maritime use but that would wreck my theme of naming my various project categories as herbs. 

Each block is 12 " square.  This Sage incorporated 2 rows of 7 blocks so that made 14 blocks total.  Instead of using bright solids like the real signal flags, the clients wanted prints and shades that coordinated with the decor of their home. So red turned into maroon fishing motifs, white led to cream floral, bright yellow was replaced with 2 different yellow florals, navy blue was substituted with a cobalt blue and black batik, and solid black was changed out with a party motif with black background.  They chose a sea green as a sashing.This Sage fits perfectly over the clients' couch.  I could see a single row of signal flags, perhaps spelling out a phrase or a family's last name, being used as a table runner.

Basil Backpack III

This Basil Backpack was made for the client’s son. Her little guy loves sneakers and sports so the coordinating fabric choice was easy. The Basil is made from bottom of the uniform leg.
BDUs had a drawstring built right into the hem of the pants so that the leg would remain bloused when tucked in the boot. A Basil is an upside down section of the leg so that the cuff of the pants is now the top of the backpack. The ACU pants that the client gave me does not have that drawstring . So sticking with the military theme, I used 550 cord instead.

The girl who is modeling the backpack is an average-sized 5 1/2 year old. Hopefully that gives a good idea of how this would fit on your little one.

Wasabi III,IV

The Wasabis were made for a mother and teenage daughter. Mom is active-duty and wanted her wallet to match her muted-tone Parsley. The wallet was able to include the pleat work that is located on the side of the uniform. Daughter is a teenager and likes vibrant purples and pinks.

Parsley III

This Parsley was not made for a military spouse but rather for a female servicemember. Because she wanted to use her Parsley Purse and matching Wasabi Wallet while in uniform, the coordinating fabrics had to be the color of the ACUs. After much auditioning of grey-green, taupes, and tan fabric against the ACUs, a selection of these muted colors was finalized.

Parsleys are made from the uniform shirt. Most Parsleys have exterior pockets since those were the breast pockets on the shirt. This Parsley was made from a maternity ACU which does not have pockets on the top. It does have patch pockets on the bottom of the shirt which I used in the interior of the bag. A mini-pocket was added to hold a cellphone or IPod.

Chive I and II

The Chive is a fully-lined zippered change purse that is made from the uniform cuff and sleeve end. It can easily hold coins, lip gloss, and calling cards. These two Chives match the Parsleys and Wasabis posted on Rosmarinus Designs in July. I had lost these Chive pictures in the depths of my computer but my friendly resident computer expert was able to unearth them. Thanks kiddo! :)

I love you truly KKG

Let me be the first to say that I did not make this quilt. Rather, this beautiful wallquilt was created by the Needleworkers Interest Group of the Northern Virginia Alumnae Association of Kappa Kappa Gamma (ΚΚΓ). These sisters of mine took time out of their extremely busy lives to create this beautiful quilt for me when I needed it most. Needless to say, I was overcome when they gave this to me.

For all you Kappas, you will recognize the fabulous symbolism that was incorporated into the design. A fleur-de-lis medallion was appliqued in the center. The inner border has gold key and light blue owl appliques. Each key and owl has a Kappa Needleworker signature along with her undergraduate chapter. The next border is a modified Virginia Reel which not only ties into our Commonwealth but also references our 2001-2004 Philanthropy Quilt. You can't see it in the picture but the machine quilting on the quilt incorporates beautiful fleur-de-lis, hearts and the crossed-over loop of an issue ribbon. On the back is a hand-lettered label embroidered with gorgeous long-stemmed blue irises. In case you non-Kappas haven't figured it out, the owl is our mascot, the key is our badge, and the iris and/or fleur-de-lis (technically a stylized iris) is our flower. Our colors are "the blues of the sky and the sea".

Our Needlework Group membership transcends age, birthplace, career status, etc. We were born in different decades, went to different colleges (and pledged different chapters of Kappa)came to the DC area at different times, yet our love for Kappa and for needlework transcends these differences and renders them unimportant.

I will treasure this quilt always!

Fennel I

The Fennel is a quilt that sizes nicely on a full-sized double bed. It also works great for a college twin bed that has been slightly lofted with cement blocks or those plastic cup riser things that you can find anywhere that sells dorm supplies in August. The extra width hides whatever the student is storing underneath the bed. Fennels are usually grids of 5 x 5 or 5 x 6. This Fennel was based on a 5 x 6 grid but 3 shirts (column 1 top, column 3 middle, column 5 bottom) had designs that were longer than the grid, so I used mini-designs from the front of shirts, or in some cases the mini-logos from the recipient's shorts.

In any case, this Fennel was made for a female high school graduate, who also was a Gold Award Girl Scout, Governor's School Student, Girls' State Delegate, a varsity athlete, officer in several school clubs, and was involved in state and federal politics. These quilts are like mini-resumes. I learn so much about the recipient based on the provided clothing.

Thyme I

I'm a decent needleworker but only a so-so-at-best computer geek. My fellow Tartans would be appalled as our school is fairly well known in the computer world. In fact, I just recently discovered that it was at Carnegie Mellon where the sideways smiley :) evolved. This was back in the days when we had bboards and computer labs instead of PCs or gigantic mainframes with cards. In any case, I am not so great at formatting these posts but I will keep plugging along and hopefully I will get better. Thyme marches on....

The Thyme is a tote bag that uses both the back and front of the uniform. This Thyme was made for a Coast Guard wife who incorporated the colors of her sorority by selecting two shades of blue (and yellow) for her coordinating fabric. With the additional yellows and the blues, this color choice would be ideal not only for sisters of Kappa Kappa Gamma (ΚΚΓ) but also members of Alpha Xi Delta or Sigma Gamma Rho. The recipient opted for an exterior side pocket so she could put a water bottle in it.

BDU shirts have 4 patch pockets with flap closures. My designs always use the two breast pockets on the exteriors of the Thyme, Marjoram and Pansy and I use the lower pockets in the interior of the bag. Since the Coast Guard utility uniform only has 2 pockets instead of 4 like the DOD service uniforms, I made interior pockets from the patches on the arms which I am assuming are there for reinforcement.

Wasabi I and II

The Wasabi is a wallet. It has 6 pockets for credit cards and IDs and it has 2 long pockets for cash and a checkbook. It is made from little pieces of BDUs and coordinating fabric. You will notice that these two Wasabis coordinate with the Parsleys from a couple of posts ago.

Lavender II

Another Lavender laptop quilt was made for a female high school runner. This Lavender was designed as a 4 by 4 grid of 16 blocks. One block (Row 2 of the right-hand column) had a very long design so we shortened another block so the long design wouldn't have to get cut off.

In the left-hand column, 2nd row you will see 3 mini designs sewn together as one block.

The sashing fabric is very appropriate for this quilt theme as it depicts female runners (and a couple of guys) in a race.

Watercress I

The Watercress is a wall-hanging sized quilt incorporating any number of shirts up to 12. This Watercress is composed of 9 blocks in a 3 by 3 grid. It was designed for a Massachusetts Institute of Technology alumnus. He played baseball at MIT and was a member of the Massachusetts-Iota Tau chapter of Sigma Alpha Epsilon. His shirts are mostly his MIT baseball shirts but you can see an SAE Christmas Party shirt in the center.

This client only had 8 shirts but didn’t want a 4 x 2 quilt. Luckily 2 shirts had mini motifs on the front that coordinated with larger designs on the back. I was able to incorporate the breast pocket designs by using plain sections of the other t-shirts. The result is the left block on the top row. The middle block on the bottom row was actually a child’s shirt so I added triangles and strips to size it up to the other blocks. The sashing fabric is a mostly purple and gold batik which represents the colors of SAE.

A little-known factoid about MIT’s athletes: The Tech mascot is the Beaver. Do you know why?

Because the Beaver is Nature’s Engineer.

“So we turned to Mr. Hornaday’s book on the animals of North America and instantly chose the beaver….The beaver not only typifies the Tech man, but its habits are peculiarly our own. Mr. Hornaday says, ‘Of all the animals in the world, the beaver is noted for its engineering and mechanical skills and habits of industry. His habits are nocturnal, he does his best work in the dark.’ “
—Lester Gardner, Class of 1897

Basil I and II

The Basil is a kid-sized backpack made from the combat uniform. These two Basils were made for two military dependents from their dad's US Navy uniform. One bag is customized with the NAMETAG found over the breast pocket. It was appliqued with pink thread to match the frog fabric. The other Basil utilized the US NAVY tag (also from the uniform shirt). The straps can be made from the waistband as it is depicted in the Bug version or from a thin strip of uniform fabric backed and quilted with the coordinating fabric as is shown in the Frog version.

Parsley I and II

Parsleys are soft-sided quilted purses made from uniforms and other fabric.

The two wide sides (front and back) are from the left and right upper front of the uniform. One side is the NAMETAG half with pocket, the other is the U.S. SERVICE. These particular uniforms belonged to Navy and Army Servicemembers. The inside of each bag incorporates a double pocket made from coordinating fabric plus another uniform pocket complete with patch. The usual closure is made from the button-cuff from the sleeve. An alternative option is to substitute a zipper closure for the button-cuff closure. There is an extra charge to substitute the closure.

One Parsley was coordinated with pink and green fabrics. It would be great for a military AKA or DZ or simply any uber-prep like the client for which it was designed. This Parsley has the default button-cuff closure.

The other Parsley incorporated palm tree fabric and various purple based coordinates, one of the client's favorite colors. Palm trees are special for this client as she and her family were stationed in Hawaii (lucky!) and are from a state with a palm(etto) tree in the flag. Her Parsley has a zipper as a closure. This client customized her bag even further by having the patches from the sleeves added to the sides of the bag.

Tarragon II

Tarragons are twin-sized quilts ranging from 20-24 shirts that would result in a grid of 4×5 or 4×6 shirts.

This Tarragon was commissioned for a recent high school graduate who is off to college this fall. This young man is a talented athlete playing baseball, lacrosse, and football. He also was in marching band, DECA and….I'm saving the best for last…he is an Eagle Scout! Some of his baseball shirts had either patches from the Little League/Babe Ruth organizations or the two-button neckline. I was able to include the buttons and the patches on several blocks. The recipient is very into military history hence BDU fabric was used for the sashing and binding. He also is fascinated by frogs so a vibrant amphibian fabric was chosen for the backing fabric.