Put on your yarmulke, here comes Hanukkah, Its so much fun-akkah to celebrate Hanukkah,

These bolster pillows were given to siblings on their first night of Hannukah,  The brother followed his sister to the University of Michigan where they are both Wolverines.

As usual, we were able to incorporate not just t shirts and sweatshirts, but also a Bengals fleece scarf, a silk tie and.a satin yarmulke. Both kids were very busy as it was difficult to include all the shirts.

The yarmulke was from the daughter's Bat Mitzvah.  The seams of the curved panels were undone and moved to 2 groups of 3 panels each.  We were then able to incorporate the polo shirt of the overnight camp that both kids attended as campers and later as staff.  The image doesn't show it as the light was too strong but the other white triangle was from the lining of the yarmulke which had been stamped with the Bat Mitzvah girl's name and date of the ceremony.

The son's quilt also used a camp staff shirt as well as the tie from his Bar Mitzvah.  The tie was in an actual tie shape in one end of the bolster and as piping for the entire bolster.

In the navy, come on and join your fellow man. In the navy, come on be bold and make a stand.

This quilt was made for a recent graduate of Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology. Jefferson is one of the top magnet schools in the country ie lots of big fish in a small pond. The recipient did not just excel academically, but he was a skilled athlete as well.  He was on both the football and wrestling teams and he was one of the founders of the power lifting team.  

He asked to include his varsity letter so we did.  I was a bit worried that the inclusion would make the quilt non-washable but it did fine.  I really liked the sixth man shirt as the words are different team spirit type phrases.

He is now the third member of his family to attend Annapolis. Plebe year is a tough road despite being a double legacy so I wish this young squid the best.

Q: What do Navy Midshipmen Football players always get on their final exams?
A: Drool.

How can you laugh? Because you know I'm down!

I recently participated in an art quilt challenge.  Each participant had to pick a different song from the Beatles discography and interpret it in a 24" by 24" wall quilt.   The results of this challenge were compiled in a book called Inspired By the Beatles.

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All the quilts are presented in alphabetical order and we each had a full page for the picture and accompanying narrative.

 
The following questions were part of the submission package:

Why did you choose this song? 

I’m Down was released by the Beatles in 1964.  Michael Jackson owned the rights to the Beatles vault in the 1980s and refused to let the Beastie Boys sample I’m Down.  This song went out as a demo to various radio stations of that era but was not allowed to be a track on the Beastie album.  I never was a MJ fan, but this made me even less of one.

What inspired this quilt? 
Obviously  I’m Down needed directional arrows.  The seven arrows represent the 4 Beatles and 3 Beastie Boys.  The Beatles arrows either have beetle insects, beetle cars, or London double decker buses as motifs.  The Beastie Boys arrows represent each of the members of the group: crowns for King AdRock Adam Horowitz,  guitar-playing buddhas for converted Buddhist MCA Adam Yauch, and diamonds for Mike D Michael Diamond.  The downward pointing arrows are arranged in the shape of a capital letter I.

The sequin thumbs-down hand with the NO sign represents that bad decision of Michael Jackson’s not allowing the sample.  The HA! represents the “How can you laugh because you know I’m down?” that is on both versions of the song. The HaHa fabric is from the curtains in my oldest child's bedroom.  The fact that I still had them 20 years later just shows what a packrat I can be.

Materials used in your quilt: Cottons, Flannels, Sequins, Beads

Do you consider yourself a Beatles fan?  I am a moderate Beatles fan.  I like their original albums, really did not like their later work.

Do you have any Beatles memories or stories to tell?  I wasn’t even born after the British Invasion had already occurred but at the age of 8 when I was given a portable record player for Christmas, my parents included “Introducing the Beatles” album which I alternated with my Partridge Family album.

What effect does music have on your creative process? I do have all the Beastie Boys albums on permanent rotation in my car.  I tend to design quilts in my head during my commute.

Tell me if you have a musical background, or experience. 6 painful years of violin and orchestra, 3 of bells for marching band.

Why do you quilt?  I find it relaxing.  In my younger days as a SAHM and officer’s wife, I enjoyed taking on projects with permanent results. Meals get eaten, laundry and houses get dirty again, the lawn keeps growing.  Doing something that did not come undone made me very happy.  Although the kids are grown, I still enjoy seeing completed endeavors.

Why are you participating in this challenge? I like challenges and being forced to think outside the box and/or my comfort zone.

Do you have a typical quilting style?  Is this particular quilt typical? I tend to design picture quilts and pick my fabrics accordingly.  I am not a huge fan of making traditional quilts  (although I admire other people’s work!) and tend to go with my own designs.  In terms of this quilt being typical, I am rebelling a bit as usual by making this quilt about both groups singing the song.

Did you listen to Beatles music when you made this quilt? I initially listened to all the versions of I’m Down that I could find on youtube.    I have repeatedly listened to the Beastie Boys and Beatles versions as I was coming up with ideas.

Did anything special happen when you were making this quilt?  I just enjoyed breaking the rules a bit by including the controversy as images.

 

 

With a harmony and a pair of vowels, heed the word of the owl- HOOT

This pillow was made for a Chi Omega who initiated at Washington and Lee.  W&L upperclassmen sponsor incoming freshman and she was paired with a student who had attended the same prep school.

 

The Worcester Prep Mallard logo was from a hoodie sweatshirt.  It was backed with interfacing as it would be for a quilt block to minimize stretch.

 

The W&L Trident side was made with uniform skirts from Worcester Prep.  The green plaid is worn by the upper school girls and the middle school girls wear the grey.

Jack, Luke, Ryan, that's our team. Step inside the party disrupt the whole scene.

These 3 bolster pillows were made for 3 recent grads of Worcester Prep.  The 3 recipients have been great friends all through the upper school grades.  All 3 are avid athletes on the field, whether it be lacrosse or soccer.

 

The school tie was used in each of the pillows.  From back to front, you can see it as piping, as vertical sashing, and finally as the focus on an actual shirt and tie block.  The right square on the back bolster was to designed to commemorate the uncle of the recipient.

 

In this block, you can see that I have now added yet another textile to my repetoire.  The left square on the front bolster incorporates a W&L Trident gym sock.  I love this recipient's mom.  She always comes up with amazing ideas and items.  The red sashing (vertical in the back bolster and horizontal in the middle and front ones) is actually from a Virgin Airlines blanket.  The senior class all traveled to Great Britain during a Spring Break and one of the boys brought home the airplane blanket as a souvenir.

 

The grey sashing is from the uniform pants worn by the male students.  Grey plaid and dark green plaid uniforms were also incorporated but they were from female student skirts .  The right block on the front bolster was to designed to commemorate the life of the recipient's uncle.

 

These fine young men will be attending Washington and Lee University, UNC-Wilmington, and Michigan State.

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!

Well, I'm Lilly-Lill most of the time But I make a lot of noise when I bust a fresh rhyme

This bolster pillow was made for a newly-minted graduate of Worcester Prep in Maryland.  Like other Mallards, she is a very busy young lady, involved in many different activities.  She is an outstanding lacrosse player as well as an excellent equestrienne.

 

These bolster pillows are quite large.  The length of the pillow is the width of a twin bed and the diameter of the circle is nearly 9 inches across.

Here is a link to other Bay Leaf Bolsters.