Weight on my shoulders and now I'm stressin' Gotta get back and count my blessings

Once again, a Webster t shirt quilt was made for a departing employee from her old garments..She was not just a great employee but also a Marine wife and a competitive bodybuilder and weightlifter.

The employee was the Veterans Affairs School Certifying Official  so when I was looking for theme fabric and saw this Va print, I snapped it up.

 

This was actually 2 different polo shirts that were vertically cut in half and the collars were reversed. 

Best of luck in her new endeavors!

Like a scientist, mmm, when I'm applying this

This  little wallhanging was made for a Webster employee in less than a week.  She only had 3 shirts so it ended up about 40 by 40 inches.  I love the old NBC logo/letter and had previously used it in a baby quilt.  The former Gorlok is now off to a new job in a new state and she will be greatly missed by staff, faculty, and students alike!

Her azaleas made a beautiful backdrop for a quilt display, don't they?

And I've been k-kicking the new k-knowledge An emcee to a degree that you can't get in college

This is yet another Webster University Gorlok quilt.  I really loved making this one as I discovered an extra-fun design from Sew Adorkable.  Back in the day when our calculators could just do simple operations, we used to write words using the number pad and then flipping the calculator upside down.  Basically any word using only the letters B E H I G L O S could be written.  The girls tended to type in 0.7734 (when the fours used to be written with  2 vertical and one horizontal line rather than the modern 1 vertical, one horizontal, and one diagonal)   and the boys would write 58008 and variations thereof.

In any case, the recipient's name is Bobbie and of course her name can be written on a calculator.  She had several Webster World Works shirts with numbers on them and other Webster items as well.  Not all the numbers on the keyboard have an actual number shirt but she did have a mousepad we used for the decimal point key and the bottoms from drink koozies that were used for the dots on the division sign. I was also supplied with a couple of Webster totebags that we incorporated as well. 

 

 

The mousepad was difficult to applique and didn't look great when it was done so I embellished the circumference with a gold lace.  All the quilting was just machine-stippling.

 

 

And then someone snuck into my quilt studio and decided to help....

 

I  rarely take photographs of myself but our Main Campus asked the various departments to depict ourselves doing something fun and/or silly.  As I explained in the statement that was submitted with the pictures, quilting is fun for me and I know the design was silly but I couldn't resist as I am sort of a geek at heart.

Carmen, Carmen, Carmen, Carmen, Carmen, chameleon, You come and go, you come and go.

This ABU Thyme totebag was made for an Air Force officer's baby gear.   The bag was designed to have bright accent colors to please Mom, yet not too feminine so Dad could lug it around and not be embarrassed.

These bags hold up really well as DOD battle uniform fabric is tough and this one is no exception.  The rank was removed from the collar and appliqued at the base of the handle straps. The various tags, awards, and buttons, remained as originally placed.  The pockets are still fully functional.

On the inside of the front of the bag, a huge fully lined quadruple pocket was added.  The military uniform pockets come from the bottom of the front of the ABU. On the narrow side, a small pocket was added to fit a cell phone.

The interior was lined with 4 different fabrics.  The front and back interiors were made from denim and and a bright home-decorator weight print.. 

The side panels were made from quilting fabrics.  The patch panel had a vertical strip of the same floral to add some color.  The Dad's unit patch was appliqued on the top. Mom works at a university so we added the school mascot (repurposed from a drink koozie) to the bottom.

The other side panel was all about the Mom.  She is a PhD candidate in the field of Biology so we designed the panel to look somewhat like a DNA strand.

 This couple will be awesome parents and their future baby will be in great hands!

FBI and the cops keep all filing Who protests the war and who they're dialing

This quilt was made for one of the most unique multi-faceted individuals I have ever met and this quilt depicts just a few sides of her most interesting life.

The recipient pledged the Central Michigan Zeta Rho chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha, Incorporated as an undergraduate student.  AKA was the first sorority founded by and for African-American women.  Currently there are 4 NPHC sororities in existence.
 

The middle section was made from a large silk scarf.  This had to be sewn with kid gloves as it was a very fragile fabric.

Although I am a Kappa Kappa Gamma and NOT an AKA,  I love their choice of pearls as their official jewel and the color scheme of pink and green.

The recipient was also an FBI agent for many decades.  When I was asked to make the quilt, I made sure she included one of those awesome windbreakers with the gigantic letters on the back.

Because she is an associate pastor at the historic Shiloh Baptist Church which was actually founded during the Civil War in Confederate Virginia, I made sure to incorporate some fabric with religious motifs.

She was a Webster University academic advisor for several years and still is one of Webster's adjunct faculty members.

This is the fabric we used for the back of the quilt.  These whales are just as cute as can be and the color combination is perfect for an Alpha Kappa Alpha or a Delta Zeta project.

It's Vicky who certs VA, to cert VA every day It's Vicky, it's Vicky (Vicky) Vicky (Vicky)

This quilt was made for a longtime Webster University employee who recently retired. She worked for Webster National Capital Region for over 16 years.

As well as being a Gorlok, the recipient was a military wife of a career Marine.  These two Americans met in the most romantic way.  He was posted to the US Embassy in Paris and she was a student at Le Cordon Bleu! The BDU block (bottom row, center) was the husband's uniform shirt. The pockets weren't quilted down so they are still usable.

In their free time, they raised and showed Briards, an ancient breed of herding dog originating in France.  They both love all canines so much that they eventually opened a day care for dogs in their home.

The main responsibility of her position was to deal with our Post 9/11 beneficiaries.  I saved this shirt from a 2010 VA Conference for this quilt I knew I would have to do some day.

The back used a Marine-themed polar fleece and a coordinating national colors flannel. 

I drink Brass Monkey and I rock well, I got a campus on Brookley, that's where I dwell

This is a needlework depiction of the former BAFB/now JBAB Education and Training Center on Brookley Avenue.  All the design but the flag was cross-stitched or embroidered.  The appliqued flag was from a flag motif fabric that happened to be the perfect size ratio.  It was made for a Cornell alumna who worked at one of the schools at the Ed Center from 2000-2002.

Je m'appelle Darlington. M and D in the chateau and we got it going on.

This Watercress wallhanging is to celebrate the marriage of a Gorlok and her fiancé.  She is a lovely person and I wish her the best!

Make you bounce, rock, roll and skate Don't underrate how I operate

It's door-decorating time at the office again.  Last year we went all out but unfortunately not this year as we went supply-shopping way too late as there was very little left in the stores for maxxing our crafty capabilities.  We modified the Webster mascot a bit from this:

to an action figure who has been clearly enjoying ice time so much that s/he lost weight!

Happy holidays to all Gorlocks everywhere!

I've got billions and billions of rhymes to flex 'Cause I've got more rhymes than Carl Richards got turtlenecks

This quilt was made for the retiring Regional Director of Webster University-National Capital Region.  Dr. Richards worked for Webster for nearly 20 years, expanding the one campus at then-Bolling AFB to four locations in the National Capital Region.  Webster-NCR is composed of 4 campuses to include the regional hub at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling, Fort Belvoir, the Bureau of Naval Medicine and Surgery, and Joint Base Andrews.  

The 3 branches of service are memorialized by the nautical signal flags that spell out CARL RICHARDS, the airplane fabric used in two flag blocks, and the Army BDU fabric used as sashing.  The BDU fabric is part of a uniform from an employee’s spouse.  The digital ACUs are from a former coordinator  who also serves in the National Guard. Carl is an avid skier, so snowflake motifs are utilized as well. The R fabric was chosen as it is the first letter of his surname. These can be seen in the H block at the bottom of the complete quilt.

 

The yellow with the light blue scrolls is the same fabric as used in the window treatments at the Fort Belvoir office.  Dr. Richards is a known coffee aficionado and an oenophile, so 2 coffee designs and a wine print were incorporated as well.   

Webster’s main campus is in St. Louis, so Cardinals fabric was incorporated. Additionally, Baltimore Oriole fabric was used to represent Maryland, Dr. Richards’ home. The cherry blossoms represent the District of Columbia, and the gold coin motif was chosen as a symbol of the financial success of Webster-NCR under Dr. Richard's reign. The bright blue fabric with large lettering is repurposed from Webster tote bags as is the central square.The center of the quilt depicts the Webster Gorlock, mascot of the University. I hand-tinted the image before quilting it.

   

 

We will miss Carl greatly as he steps away from Webster World and embarks on his new ventures.  Best of luck to him.

Live Well, Laugh Often, Love Always

This quilt was commissioned for yet another Webster employee who was departing for greener pastures.  Actually she was going to Georgia which was just fine with her as it was closer to her extended family.  Once again, the Webster Gorlock is front and center.  The recipient loves the color purple so I made sure that was incorporated in the border.  She also is a big fan of angels so luckily I just happened to have some angel-motif fabric in my stash and said fabric also had touches of purple.

The quilt was machine-pieced and machine-quilted.  The recipient lives by the quote in the title of this post.  She has it on memo pads, a framed calligraphy, a quilted messenger bag (haha, guess who designed THAT! :) ).

I had a chance to share an office with the recipient (an SC State alumna!) for awhile.   She was a lovely, lovely lady, a true pleasure to work with (yes, I know that is a dangling participle at the end of the sentence).  Her husband was always so polite when he dropped by or called and her little guy was darling as could be. I will always remember that she specifically got a flu shot when my immune system was compromised due to the chemo and radiation.    I didn't ask her to do so.  She just always went above and beyond in caring for others, whether it was a student, a young soldier's wife,  or even her crazy co-worker.

My name's D.M.C. with the mic in my hand And I'm chilling and coolin' just like a snowman

My building is having a holiday door decorating contest.  Since we have people of various faiths at our site, I wanted to decorate doors with a variety of images.  The boss gave me a budget and let me go shopping during a time when I would normally be in the office.

Door 1 is in homage to Kamikazi Carl and his love of snowboarding.    You will see that St. Nick is also an avid X-gamer.

Put on your yarmulke, it's time for Chanukah! Door 2 is honoring the Festival of Lights.

And the entry that we hope will win:



My co-worker is so clever.  She said she was going to add gingerbread men but the fact that they are all wearing college shirts is just too cute. And I love the expression on Santa Gorlock... 

And no, I didn't retire, I'll snatch you up with the needle-nose pliers

The recipient of this quilt actually DID retire so the university commissioned a commemorative quilt for her retirement.  The picture isn't wonderful as we photographed it in a crowded office and the person holding the quilt didn't have much space to stretch out her arms but it will have to do.

The white squares were cut from canvas tote bags. The original bag print was just navy blue so I colored all 8 Gorlocks to provide a bit more visual interest.  Half of the squares are on point and half are not. Webster colors are blue and gold so that was the obvious color choice for the coordinates.  I used an 8-pointed star design for the gold and then a dark blue with little bits of gold for the border.  As I do with all machine-quilted projects, I quilted in the ditch to stabilize the layers and then stippled everything.

Webster University was founded as a  Catholic women's college by the Sisters of Loretto.  Nearly half a century later, they went co-ed and secular.

Webster Watercress

This is another Watercress quilt.  The intended recipient was an employee of Webster University and had been recently diagnosed with cancer.  The quilt was originally going to be made for him to take to his chemo treatments (chemo patients get very cold even with the warmed blankets).  Tragically, the Webster employee died before he even underwent his first treatment so I changed the plan a bit by now intending it for his family.  I had his fellow faculty and staff members sign the center block so that the family will know how much these Gorlocks enjoyed working with this individual.

The center block is made from a canvas tote bag.  The Webster mascot in the middle is the Gorlock, a hybrid of a cheetah, St. Bernard, and other creatures.  The shirts are from the most recent Webster Works Worldwide Day.  Webster has many satellite campuses all over the USA, Europe and Asia as well as its flagship school in St. Louis.   Every year, each of the campuses donates a day to a local charity.  The large yellow and blue squares were added so the quilt could be a 3 x 3 grid.

The quilt looks a bit skewed as my niece is holding it.  Usually I hang a quilt on a photographer's backdrop pole as it will be nice and square.