Latest Project

So I have been really busy at work since coming back from Paris.  I've helped some - but all of the credit on this one goes to my mom.  It's a Judy Martin pattern - Shoreline Log Cabin, done in green (opposite of the pattern - lights are used on the background instead of darks).  It fit really well....I can't believe how well it turned out.  It's a Christmas present for Adam...he's seen it already.  I really want one now too!  I think mine will be in navy for the background (replace the lights) and lights for the dark green.

Finding Nemo!

So the Monterey Bay Aquarium is the only aquarium in the world to host a great white shark.  I took this short video at feeding time, thinking that it would be a great time to see Jaws in action, but ended up getting more excited about the sardines schools swirling like finding Nemo.  It was breath taking!

Big Sur

More Inspiration from Big Sur....what a great God we have!

We also went to see Pebble Beach as well - what a historic place for golf!



California 2011

In August I went to see my great friend Stef in California - visiting San Fran, Monterey and Big Sur.  It was super fun.  My favorite aquarium is in Monterey...it inspires so much through all of the colors!  Like these jellyfish:

Or this shot of kelp:

Or these fish:

Or these sand dollars:

Civil War Fabric

So I've always had an "old" soul.  One of my loves is history - pretty much anything to do with it.  I read history books for fun, took all of my electives in college as history classes, take continuing ed classes at Rice for history, etc.  I read a blog by accident that discussed the use of reproduction fabrics in quilts.  I feel so drawn to things with history - antique furniture, jewelry, etc.  If my future hubby is reading this - antique engagement ring!  I don't care the size of the rock - just make sure it's got a story!

So I'm working on a Judy Martin sampler with civil war fabric.  History!  Yeah!  Pictures to come.

Paris Part 3!

Next week, I'm headed to Paris for the third year for work.  So many great memories:

I'm working almost the entire time I'll be there this time.  However, I'm hoping to sneak away for an hour or so and go to Le Rouvray and check out French fabric....not buy of course.  Way too expensive.  But just to see would be cool.

Purple Quilt - Finally!

After finishing the Negative Positive from LCintheRound (my mom's couch quilt), it was my turn.  I don't own a homemade queen size quilt (hard to believe given how much quilting my mom has done over the years!).  So I decided it was time for my own.  I chose the Poinsettas pattern from LCintheRound, but used purple because it's my fave and I've never had a purple quilt (another shocker!):

So it ended ended a little shorter than we expected.  So another trip to Gerline's for some consultation (and to drop off Negative Positive).  We decided to add a fancy border from Judy Martin's Log Cabin book (Snake River).  I'll post a picture after it's quilted, but I'm just so excited...it looks fab!





Full Service Quilt Shops

So all of the quilt tops above are machine quilted by the ladies at church and then delivered to PACN.  After we worked on those, we found out that a local quilt shop was going out of business after 20+ years and 10,000 bolts.  My mom and I created a stash for me from the sale and started plotting how to make new quilts for our family.  At this point, I found that fabric is addicting, as are quilt books.  We discovered Log Cabin in the Round, a great pattern book for log cabins.  We also discovered Judy Martin's Log Cabin book.  DANGEROUS!  So the first quilt my mom and I did together (her drawing, me hand cutting, me telling her where to sew, her sewing, me laying out the pieces and her combining) was the LCintheRound "Negative Positive":

At this point, we now have 2 quilt tops that need to be quilted.  My mom is a huge proponent of hand quilting, however, she has horrible issues with her arms (3 surgeries over past 3 years).  And I really only have time for the piecing - hand quilting would cause me to lose interest sooo quickly.  So we have a real dilemma - neither one of us know how to machine quilt.  My parents have a small place near Giddings, where Gerline's Quilt Shoppe is.  We stopped by with my first quilt top, just to see what a "full service" quilt shop was.  Gerline is so great - she explained that some people hand quilt, some people machine quilt and some people quilt with their checkbooks.  I don't feel guilty at all in admitting that I'm in the third category for sure!  She quilted my first quilt...pictures to come.  I just finished the binding, she did such a great job that I'd recommend to anyone.

Piecemakers

So I clearly stated in my last post where I stand on faith.  If you couldn't tell, I'm kind of a fan of Jesus.  After I pieced my first top, I wanted to learn more about log cabin quilting.  Given that my mom does nothing but log cabin, I had the perfect teacher.  She started making blocks again for a group called "Piecemakers" at Trinity Lutheran Church in Spring.  They make baby quilts for Pregnancy Assistance Center North, where new mothers get to pick out a baby quilt after the first ultrasound.  So here are my first renditions for donations to Piecemakers:

These two were done using log cabin blocks and a border from a book I can't recall the name of right now.  Not bad first attempts, I thought.  Here's a few of my mom's:

Here's my next one I took a picture of that I put together:

A new blog adventure!

So I have the worst track record when it comes to keeping up with blogs.  But I'm hoping to keep up with this one because I can keep all of my pictures for projects in one place and keep up with continuing to work on new projects.  So here's how this all got started.

For those who don’t know me, my name is Lindsay Kelly.  I am a long time member of Trinity Lutheran Church in Spring Texas, completing Kindergarten-8^th grade at Trinity and high school at Concordia Lutheran Tomball.  I graduated from Texas A&M in 2005 and at that time began looking for a way to give back on my vacation time from work.  Each year, I find ways to give a week, either through chaperoning youth workcamp or a mission trip in Mexico.  In 2010, God led me to Trinity Ablaze in Kenya.  After getting off the plane in May 2010, my life has changed in dramatic, subtle and everyday ways.  I can trace these changes back to two instances, one from each trip.

On my first trip in 2010, I was nervous terrified.  It was a huge stretch to get 10 straight days off of work and miss what I thought were important events at the office.  Getting on the plane was nothing short of God pushing me on the plane.  After arriving, I’m not sure I can explain the first 48 hours in Kenya.  It is a complete assault on all of the senses.  The smells, the traffic, the “wild” nature of everything going on around you leaves you in bewilderment.  It’s exciting, overwhelming, and eye-opening.

After the initial excitement relaxes, it’s time to get to work.  I worked in a number of different spots in the clinics in Namanga and Kumpa, but the one that stands out to me the most was in triage in Namanga.  In triage on Wednesday, I had my first experience that changed how I view life and God’s power in my life.  I met Asha, a 22 year old Muslim college student.  Asha came to my station where I worked with the translator, Pastor Titus.  Asha was extremely shy, more so than any person who had been through my station.  She wouldn’t talk to me, but Pastor Titus was able to get her name and she explained what was wrong with her eyes.  She needed distance glasses to see the blackboard at school.  Pastor Titus shared the gospel story with her, which she acknowledged but did not react to.

After receiving her glasses, I felt the need to ask her if they helped and to give her a hug.  Just a simple gesture to let her know I was glad she came.  I had no intention of more coming out of that last discussion.  However, God had other plans.  After she told me how much better she could see and that she could now read clearer, she asked if we could just talk.  She needed to practice her English.  I said yes, that would be lovely, and we talked for the next hour about her family, her schooling and faith.  She explained that she was very interested in learning more about Christ’s love and forgiveness.  After discussing with Pastor John, she agreed to pray with him.  Being there in that prayer changed a simple act of a hug into life changing salvation for Asha.  She received a Bible in Swahili and support from the local church in her new life in Christ.  I don’t know where Asha’s life will lead her, but it will have a happy ending.  I do know that without the clinic, Asha would not have heard the good news of Jesus Christ. 

The second experience was on my second trip.  This trip was special to me because I got to share the trip with my mom.  This was the first mission trip for my mom and I got to see her experience the power of God’s love through a simple act of putting together glasses.  Our relationship will never be the same as a result and I encourage you to consider doing a trip with your parents or child.  There is nothing better than bonding in God’s love through the power of service for Him.

I very much believe that I am nothing without Jesus Christ and that His love and forgiveness sustains me.  God takes us, poor and condemned sinners, and uses us in ways we cannot begin to comprehend.  Kenya reminds me that faith is not complicated; life makes faith complicated.  Stripping away all that distracts reminds me that God’s grace is all that is needed.

After both of those trips, my mom and I decided to make as many eye glass pockets as we could from my mom's existing "stash" of fabric.  This resulted in little dent in her stash, but 2000 pockets:

So after the 2000 and playing with different fabrics and seeing what I could do with a sewing machine, I started to get the itch to learn more.  I had a staycation in August 2011 and decided that during my staycation I would make my first quilt, using my grandmother's sewing machine Bernina 830 (essentially my only inheritance).  With my mom's help, we got the machine running again and during the week, I pieced:

I pieced it using my own "stash" - meaning I got fat quarters from Joann's (so naive - didn't know about quilt shops!).  It took me all week, but it was fun and very rewarding to see the final product.

Next post will explain my next steps!