NORTH WOODS

This nice lady worked in registration. She and her husband loved to spend weekends in their cabin up north. When I made these blocks, it reminded me of her. Now that she's retired, I hope she's enjoying her cabin! Thanks to my daughter for rotating the image.

A FISH STORY

He taught tech ed, she worked in registration. They loved to go fishing and that was the perfect theme for this couple's quilt. I found a batik that captured his gray hair very well, and put him in his standard plaid shirt. The marbled fabric really matched her blonde hair and she loved her polka-dot t-shirt. After this photo was taken, I added fishing rods made from twigs from the yard, and each had a string line with a tiny cloth fish attached. He vowed he would not shed a tear when leaving his job, and he didn't - until he saw this quilt. And that is the reason I create these quilts: to let friends know how much they mean! Isn't there someone you know that needs a quilt?

THE EASIEST QUILT IN THE WORLD

This quilt was made for a friend who's a very talented photographer. It is made of clear vinyl, stitched down in standard photo sizes so that she can design her own quilt, over and over again. She can choose what photos she wants, whenever she wants. The border is a clock fabric that symbolizes the time she'll have in retirement to take photos whenever she wants.

HALLOWEEN DOORS

Every year back in the good old days, we'd hold a door decorating contest. There were prizes, but the most fun was actually doing the decorating. The recipient of this quilt organized the decorating in her area for many years. When she retired, this was the only concept I would consider. I made fifteen blocks and gave them to her friends. They each created their own door. The last door at the bottom right opened up with a message for her. This was the quilt that taught me a valuable lesson - when others do the work for you, your job is easier. Her dearest friend actually hooked up a small battery pack so her door lit up! This was one of my favorites ever, even though it was horrific sewing the vinyl windows. A lot of angry words were hollered at the sewing machine when this one was constructed.

GOLF, GOLF AND MORE GOLF

This quilt was made for one of the most avid golfers I know. I picked the eighteen offices he had the most contact with, created a golf hole for each office, and they signed below the flag. Knowing next to nothing about golf, I consulted another golf fiend to find out how to do the flags and the holes. I think it turned out pretty well! He wrote the nicest thank you note, saying he never knew how much work went into a quilt until he got one.

LUCK O' THE IRISH

This all started because I needed a pin to wear on my jacket on St. Patrick's Day. I started making little green hearts and ended up making this quilt for the most Irish friend I know! I think she liked it...

FOR A SAILOR

This quilt pattern came from a quilting magazine. It was a lot of fun creating the sailboats with different fabrics, using different shades of sky for night and day. In fact, it was difficult to stop creating the boats and skies! I ended up making three of these - two to give away and one to keep.