PUMPKIN SPICE STARS

 

I just finished this colorful wall hanging, which will celebrate Pumpkin Spice Season over my mantelpiece for the next three months.

MEMORIES OF EMILY'S PASSING - IT'S BEEN 26 YEARS

 Emily at age 17 in 1996                 Rebecca at age 23 in 1981

 

Friday, June 27, 1997 - I spent most of the day that day with my 18-year-old daughter, Emily. I had just bought a little rental house, and I showed it to her, and she was begging me to let her rent it from me and move away from home. We looked at other houses that day, too, and Emily was helping me pick out the next investment.

That evening, we rented and watched the movie Jerry Maguire and I made her cover her eyes while I fast forwarded through the "racey" scene at the beginning of the movie.

  

Sunday, June 29 - After church, Emily was up on the roof, cleaned out the gutters, which she volunteered to do. At one point, she was laying down on the roof with her head hanging over the edge, and I told her to stop fooling around before she fell off the roof and broke her neck.

Monday, June 30 - The four of us (Bill, me, 20-year-old son Barry and Emily) made plans to see My Best Friend's Wedding on Thursday. It was the last time that the four of us would sit in a room and talk. It was the last time we were a normal family. It was the last time I saw my daughter conscious. 

 

Tuesday, July 1 - I left for work before Emily got out of bed that day. After working a while, I ran an errand, and when I got back to the office, I saw that Emily had left me a voice mail. "Hi, Mom - it's Emily. I just wanted to let you know that it's 2:00 and I'm leaving for work. I'll see you later. I love you. Bye!"

I listened to the message with my finger perched over the "delete" button on the phone. I started to push it, then I hesitated. I thought, "What if Emily gets killed in a car accident tonight, and this is the last time I will hear her voice? I'll be sorry later that I deleted it." I realized that it was just a morbid thought, and deleted the message.

I had been having thoughts like that for about 18 months. Every time she would leave the house, I would grab her and hug her and say, "I love you! I would die for you!" I always wanted it to be the last thing I said to her, just in case she died in a car accident. I did not treat my other family members this way. Just Emily.

When she left to go to work that day, she never came home again. 

 

Wednesday, July 2 - If we had not had the window air conditioner running, we would have been awakened by the sirens at 1:00 am. About a mile from our house, Emily, alone in her compact car and on her way home, swerved to miss a deer and lost control of the car. Her car spun into a telephone pole on the passenger's front door. The car wrapped around the pole, which struck her head.

We got the call at 2:15 am. We rushed to the hospital to find our daughter in a deep coma. She had brain surgery that day, but it was no use. She never woke up, and around 6:00 pm, the doctor told us that Emily had experienced brain death. We went to sleep at my father's house, because all the beds at my house, including mine, were occupied by family members from out of town who had rushed in to be with us.

 

 

Thursday, July 3 - Around 4:00 am, after not sleeping, I told my husband that we were going back to the hospital. We spent all day there, waiting for all the arrangements to be made for the four men who would receive Emily's vital organs. Between Wednesday and Thursday, there were at least 100 family members and friends in and out and just hanging around. At noon, the hospital told everyone to leave so that they could prepare Emily for surgery. Bill and Barry and I stayed. 

Later that afternoon, we invited Emily's fiance to return and he came back for an hour or so. 

 

 

In the evening, I held Emily in my arms one last time and told her about the surgery. I was so afraid that there was a chance that she was still "in there" but couldn't communicate with us and that she was terrified. All I could do was tell her not to be afraid and that she was going to go to heaven and be with God, and that it was going to be all right.

Finally, around 11:30 pm, we said goodbye and went home. 

 

Friday, July 4 - I did not sleep. I stayed awake and called the hospital several times throughout those hours to see how the surgery was going. A wonderful nurse told me details and let me know when Emily's heart stopped beating. They removed her from life support just before dawn on the 4th of July, 1997.

 

 

NEW DIGITAL DESIGN AVAILABLE NOW - "RIPPLES"

 I just got a new digital quilting design from Urban Elementz! This design, called "Ripples" is perfect when you are looking for a design that is aquatic in nature. I will be putting it on a quilt with a river theme.

 

 

MOUSE-FETTI BY MARILYN ISLAS

 

Marilyn always brings me cute and colorful quilts, usually kid or baby size, and I always enjoy working on them. This time, however, she brought me a real challenge!

Marilyn bought this fabric for the purpose of having it quilted as a wholecloth, then cutting out pattern pieces to make a Travel Bag, shown below. The challenging part was that she did not want quilt batting in between the top and back, but a foam rubber-type product, covered in polyester, that is about 1/8" thick that is made for purse and bag construction! I had no idea if my machine would be able to sew through it! 

 

After using a piece with some scrap fabric to practice, it turns out that my Tin Lizzie could do it, but only if I ran the machine at the lowest speed, which is about four times slower than what I usually use! Plus, the hopper foot had to be lowered greatly, which pushed the fabric around quite a bit. You will notice in the video below that I was using my hand to keep the fabric as flat as possible. Also, I sped up the video to two times the real playback speed, because it was stitching so slowly.

 

I used YLI "Vineyard" cotton thread. The digital quilting design is called "Target", and it is available from Anne Bright Designs. Because the fabric was going to be used for a bag, I shrunk the design to itty-bitty size.

 

Here are a few photos of the quilting process, and a photo of the bag pattern. When Marilyn finishes the bag, she's going to send me a photo of it to update this post. I can't wait to see it! Because the fabric is Mickey Mouse themed, she even bought purse hardware with Mickey on it to complete the bag in true Disney style!

 

The quilting is done (phew!) and it's ready to be cut up by Marilyn into pattern pieces, and assembled into the travel bag.

Here is a short video of the fabric being digitally quilted with my Tin Lizzie Ansley 26 quilting machine and Butler Perfect Stitch computerized system. Maximize the screen to maximize your viewing pleasure!

 

 

The size of this wholecloth is approximately 36" x 60", and the cost for my services was $48.68, which included a set up fee, digital edge-to-edge quilting, and thread. And the quilt was finished and ready to be picked up three days after Marilyn dropped it off!

 

If you are a quilter looking for affordable rates for your latest project, give me a call! Don't quilt, but looking for a great gift for a special person in your life? Or maybe you want something special for yourself. I would love to design and create a quilt especially for you! Contact me for details at (815) 735-0997.

WINNIE THE POOH BY MARILYN ISLAS

 

This kid size quilt, made by Marilyn, is the third of four that she brought in a few days ago! Marilyn made this for a friend's baby. The backing fabric is called "Luxe Fleece", from JoAnn Fabric and Craft Store, and it is a step above standard fleece. It is so soft and comfy!

I used YLI "White" cotton thread. The digital quilting design is called "Classic Stipple 1", and it is available from Intelligent Quilting. This is a simple design that has been used by quilters for many years, and it has stood the test of time! 

Here are a few photos of the quilting process.

 

 

 

The quilting is done and it's ready for Marilyn to bind.

Here is a short video of the quilt being digitally quilted with my Tin Lizzie Ansley 26 quilting machine and Butler Perfect Stitch computerized system. Maximize the screen to maximize your viewing pleasure!

 

 

The size of this quilt is approximately 45" x 50", and the cost for my services was $58.97, which included a set up fee, digital edge-to-edge quilting, Pellon cotton batting, and thread. And the quilt was finished and ready to be picked up two days after Marilyn dropped it off! 

 

If you are a quilter looking for affordable rates for your latest project, give me a call! Don't quilt, but looking for a great gift for a special person in your life? Or maybe you want something special for yourself. I would love to design and create a quilt especially for you! Contact me for details at (815) 735-0997.

MACEY BY MARILYN ISLAS

 

This kid size quilt, made by Marilyn, is the second of four that she brought in day before yesterday! Marilyn made this for a friend's "miracle baby". The backing fabric is called "Luxe Fleece", from JoAnn Fabric and Craft Store, and it is a step above standard fleece. It is so soft and comfy!

I used YLI "Pyramids of Giza" cotton thread. The digital quilting design is called "Hearts and Flowers", and it is available from Stitch Happy. I have had this design in my library for years, and this is the first time a customer has chosen to use it. It is so cute and perky, and a dream to stitch out!

 

 Here are a few photos of the quilting process.

 

 

Here is the finished quilt, ready for Marilyn to bind.

 

UPDATE: Marilyn just sent me this adorable photo of Baby Macey on her new quilt! Beautiful baby, beautiful quilt, and beautiful photo! Thanks for sending this, Marilyn! I don't often get to see the finished quilt with the lucky recipient! 

 

 

Here is a short video of the quilt being digitally quilted with my Tin Lizzie Ansley 26 quilting machine and Butler Perfect Stitch computerized system. Maximize the screen to maximize your viewing pleasure!

 

The size of this quilt is approximately 37" x 45", and the cost for my services was $55.25, which included a set up fee, digital edge-to-edge quilting, Pellon cotton batting, and thread. And the quilt was finished and ready to be picked up two days after Marilyn dropped it off!

If you are a quilter looking for affordable rates for your latest project, give me a call! Don't quilt, but looking for a great gift for a special person in your life? Or maybe you want something special for yourself. I would love to design and create a quilt especially for you! Contact me for details at (815) 735-0997.

BABY YODA BY MARILYN ISLAS

 

This kid size quilt, made by Marilyn, came in with three other projects! Marilyn made this for a friend's grandchild. The baby's parents are decorating the nursery in a Star Wars theme, and Marilyn found the perfect fabric for the top at JoAnn Fabric and Crafts Store. The backing fabric is called "Luxe Fleece", and it is a step above standard fleece. It is so soft and comfy!

I used YLI White cotton thread. The digital quilting design is called "Wishing Star", and it is available from Anne Bright Designs. I think this design is a great choice for the Star Wars theme.

 

 Here are a few photos of the quilting process.

 

 

Here is the finished quilt, ready for Marilyn to bind.

 

Here is a short video of the quilt being digitally quilted with my Tin Lizzie Ansley 26 quilting machine and Butler Perfect Stitch computerized system. Maximize the screen to maximize your viewing pleasure!

 

The size of this quilt is approximately 42" x 50", and the cost for my services was $58.63, which included a set up fee, digital edge-to-edge quilting, Pellon cotton batting, and thread. And the quilt was finished and ready to be picked up the day after Marilyn dropped it off!

If you are a quilter looking for affordable rates for your latest project, give me a call! Don't quilt, but looking for a great gift for a special person in your life? Or maybe you want something special for yourself. I would love to design and create a quilt especially for you! Contact me for details at (815) 735-0997.