FINISHING TOUCHES QUILTS

New socks

2010-03-02T13:04:00.000-08:00

Another timely post! Here is a pair of socks I am knitting on double circular knitting needles. The needles are Harmony Wood circulars from http://www.knitpicks.com/. The yarn I am using is a sock yarn I bought from http://www.yarnmarket.com/ and is a NORO Silk Garden Sock Yarn. The pattern is from "Knitting circles around Socks" by Antje Gillingham. Great book with great tutorial! Pictures to go with the text for those of us who are visual learners.

I love how they are coming out looking like 2 completely different socks! The one on the left is from the outside of the skein and the one on the right is from the inside of the skein. I wonder if they will match as I get closer to the middle! haha!

It takes me a while.....

2010-01-06T13:55:00.000-08:00

.....to actually post! I'm still not comfortable writing about the day.......

Here are three quilt tops I finished up over the past weekend......

This is from a Linda Ballard retreat in Trinidad I went to with Faith and Joan last August. It is called Goshen Stars.
Mine is very much a Halloween quilt because of the background fabric I used. There are little Pac-Man faces inside of the spiderwebs! Here is a close up of the background:

This a quilt called "Spice Cake" from Mary's Cottage Quilts. Here is the link to the site: http://maryscottagequilts.com/

I used a layer cake by Moda called Charisma by Chez Moi.

This quilt top is from an Atkinson Design called Merry Mosaic. I bought the kit last year from the quilt shop in Mt. Shasta City. Here is the link to the shop: http://www.sewuniquequiltshop.com/

Okay, that took me way too long to edit and post. I'll get faster at blogging, I hope. I also hope to start posting more quilting photos as I get back to work. I'm still in vacation mode and I'm still working on getting my "studio" in shape.

That's all for now.

Laurie ::

one year later.....

2009-12-30T20:45:00.001-08:00

not hard to believe a year has gone by with me not posting a darn thing about my life. no time to write a blog! we'll see if this year is any better......

the year has flown by. quilting has taken over my life. or at least a lot of my time.

first girl born is doing wonderfully and has established herself in the ultrasound dept at mercy general, sac. love, love, love her!

baby girl has moved to boston and is getting her masters degree in education at harvard. love, love, love her!

the love of my life is one day closer to retirement. love, love, love him!

i have joined facebook. i have connected with family and friends. love, love, love them!

i promise to post regularily about the quilts i have the privilege to work on. with photos. starting in january......

for now - my girls.....

Christmas Blogging via Lindsay

2008-12-24T22:02:00.000-08:00

Welcome, all! I am setting up this blog on behalf of my wonderfully talented mother, the expert quilter of the fam. She's awesome and an inspiration to my sister and I. She started when I was a wee one, teaching cross-stitch classes at the Vallejo Craft Barn and eventually bringing the gaggle of stitchy ladies into our house twice weekly. Roughly fifteen years later, the "Twisted Stitchers" have evolved from a cross stitch group to a clan of rubber-stamping enthusiasts to a skilled guild of knitters and quilters, all lead by my dear ma. She's the ringleader and still the teacher of all. Now, the living room where I hosted slumber and birthday parties as a youngin is occupied by a big-ass long-arm quilting machine, which today was piled high with prettily wrapped presents.

Finishing Touches began, way back when, as a needlework framing company housed in my older sister's former bedroom. The walls were decked with frame samples and the closets brimmed with mats and tools. My mother is the queen of resourcefulness: while others have custom-built sewing rooms with heaps of storage, she has made the most of the available space in our 1970s suburban home. I was always the eager assistant, giving advice on mat color combinations and inlay designs.

It would be an understatement to say that I am proud of my mother, the amazing, creative and truly kind-spirited person that she is. I can only hope to take her tenacity, diligence and precision into whatever line of work I pursue in my life.

I hope this blog will be a place where she can share her stunning creations and collaborations with the world, and connect with other talented quilters and creative-types around the world.

Happy holidays + enjoy!

I love you, mom!