Hello Levi

 

"Hello Levi" - made for my sweet grandson born in February 2022

When darling Levi was born, Sam told me an amazing story about his birth, arriving at sunrise.  Welcome to the world sweet boy: 

That story gave me the idea to include a sunrise in his first quilt.  Yes, a child with a quilting grandma will have more than one quilt!  

I used a quarter circle pattern from "New York Beauties and Flying Geese" by Carl Hentsch to start the sunrise

and layout idea and letters from "Quilt Talk" by Sam Hunter.

This really speaks to having a well stocked craft space, with tools you know and can draw on as you need them. 

After paper piecing the first sunrise block, I drafted 4 other blocks to extend the sun ray lines.

With the center done, I wanted it a bit larger, So I created these wonky stars.   Here I was testing whether they would look ok. 

My son works in space science, so a star theme is appropriate. 

Also, I'm very happy with the way the sun rays look like one giant block, instead of the 4 it really is. This was accomplished by matching fabric across seams. 

 

Then I created the letters from Sam Hunter's book, pieced it all together and quilted it. 

The sun rays are quilted all the way through the stars, to the outer edge.  Then I overlayed large handwriting quilting over the pieced printed letters. 

And finally, a hand embroidered label to my darling Levi from Nana who loves him more than all the stars:

From start to finish, this was created in about 10 days.  (and I work full time ;-) 

Here I am, meeting my grandson for the first time.  💗💗💗💗💗💗💗💗💗💗

Oh handsome boy.  I can hardly wait to see you again.  

I look forward to creating more quilts for you and maybe even with you! 

In Memory of cousin Pablo

Four quilts made from Pablo's shirts. 

Cousin Pablo passed in March 2019 too young.  I offered to make memory quilts for his wife Nancy, son Kelby, daughter Solange and mother. 

Nancy sent this box of shirts, and I got to work cutting them into squares and strips to be used to make blocks.  Mostly I wanted to preserve the sense of 'shirt', as much as possible, so I kept button plackets and pockets.

Once all the large squares were cut, I cut strips to be used in making blocks such as this one:

 

I also found a way to keep sleeve cuffs whole and attached only on the 'arm' end. 

Next I started embroidering a personal block for each recipient.  Solange sent me this phrase: "Remember to breathe so you can laugh" which was something her father wrote to her on her last birthday card.




Kelby called his dad "Papi", Nancy called her husband "Chuchi", and his mother called him "Pablito", each of which I transferred to fabric and hand embroidered:

This is the first time using Sulky Solvy as a way to transfer a pattern to fabric, and I really enjoy using this stuff, rather than writing directly on the fabric.  

Once all the blocks were created, I booked open sewing time at my local quilt shop - Gotham Quilts - so i could use their design walls.  These are batting covered walls to which you can 'stick' blocks for arranging a quilt top.  Here are a couple in progress: 

After sewing all 4 tops together and also creating backs for each (using left over squares from the front, combined with quilting fabric sections) I again booked time at Gotham Quilts, this time on their longarm quilting frame.  This was a marathon quilting session, where I spent 5 hours meander quilting all 4 quilts.

Then the binding.  I created over 1000 inches of scrappy binding as each quilt required about 250 inches (that's the measurement all around each quilt) 

As luck would have it, Nancy and Kelby came to visit NYC so I could deliver these quilts in person.  It was wonderful and emotional to have them see Pablo's shirts this way.  They can hide little keepsakes or notes in the still operational pockets and wrap themselves in the love Pablo had for each of them. 

"Pablito" quilt for Pablo's mom

Kelby with his "Papi" quilt:

 Quilt for Solange with "Remember to breathe" quote:

"Chuchi" quilt for Nancy

Nancy and I have been cousin-friends since I visited Argentina in 1978 when we were both teenagers.  She was learning English and was glad to have a pen pal in the USA.  In her early 20's Nancy's family moved to the US, and she married Pablo.  They had 2 beautiful children, whom I had the pleasure of knowing when they were young.  What an honor to be trusted to make these memory quilts after Pablo passed.  He was a sweet, smart, honorable, loving man.  He died too young and will be remembered forever. 

love, 

Paula 

PhD2B

Sam, our son, is studying for his PhD in Applied Mathematics at UC Davis.  The "math" part has to do with creating mathematical models for the "applied" part, which has to do with the life-cycle of a parasitic worm called: Schistocephalus Solidus.   I created this small quilt to hang in his university office, which illustrates the life-cycle through three hosts.  The quilting is text from a definitive article on this parasite  (Barber and Scharsack, 2010).

 
This is the text from the research,  not all of it made it into the quilting: 

• Schistocephalus solidus is a trophically transmitted pseudophyllidean cestode with a three-host life cycle. The definitive host can be any warm-blooded vertebrate; most typically these are fish-eating birds though other endotherms can harbour adult worms, including otters (Hoberg et al. 1997) and, though presumably only rarely, humans (Coombs and Crompton, 1991). Schistocephalus solidus does not grow in the gut of the definitive host but undergoes the final stages of sexual maturation there, reproducing sexually either by selfing (if singly infected) or by cross-fertilization (in multiple infections). Eggs released into the water with the bird’s faeces hatch to produce free-swimming coracidia that are transmitted trophically to a wide range of cyclopoid copepods, the 1st intermediate hosts. Here the parasites develop in the copepod haemocoel into procercoids, becoming infective to three-spined sticklebacks, the obligatory specific 2nd intermediate hosts (Bra ̊ten, 1966), with the formation of a hooked cercomer. Sticklebacks acquire infections when they feed on parasitized copepods, and in the stickleback digestive tract infective procercoids shed their outer layer, together with the cercomer, and penetrate the wall of the intestine. The parasite then develops into a plerocercoid, which grows to a large size in the fish host’s body cavity. The life cycle is completed when sticklebacks harbouring infective plerocercoids are ingested by a definitive host (Clarke, 1954).

 Here is Sam, the PhD-to-be 
 
















And here we are together when I gave him this quilt:

And with his lovely wife, Kelly! 




Sam and Kelly have a couple larger quilts at home, but I knew Sam's head was full of this topic, so I wanted to honor his work. 

Good luck with your studies, Sam! 

Peace, 
Paula

Micah's Bar Mitzvah Quilt - August 2016

"Cousin" Micah Frank, wrapped in his Bar Mitzvah gift,  August 2016

64"x80"

Micah is the son of Abbie and Mark Frank, St. Louis, MO.  Although not 'actually' related, we have always considered Abbie one of the cousins, and when she married Mark, he was a lovely addition to the family.  Of course, Micah's birth and inclusion as a cousin was a given. 

The year before Micah's Bar Mitzvah, I started working with him via FB Messenger to discover what he might like as a quilt.  He was pretty clear:  The colors should be orange and blue of his favorite soccer team:   The Netherlands                        

In terms of design, Micah wanted  "something modernish with orange"  to which Abbie added "...whatever the heck that means!!"   but I understood him, and started hunting down some possibilities.

I gave him some options, then got more details from a young man who understands design!  In messages from his mother:   "He said he likes something, "modern...not a white background but if all the squares were together that would be amazing!" He said no random shapes placed here and there...he wants something that goes together. So he says his style is modern, orange, squares and rectangles without a white background. Make much sense?!"  

In fact, yes, it made perfect sense.   After posting many possible quilt images, he decided he liked this one:  (not the colors, just the pattern - I LOVED that he could separate color from pattern)  

 

Those are pretty basic square shapes, so I drafted up the 4 basic blocks  and decided on a size, then off to the fabric store.  Based on his soccer team images, these are start of my fabric collection for this quilt:   I added some lighter blue, and lighter and darker orange, then got to stitching.

Here is the finished top and back:

I sent it off to my friend Janet Mease at SLO Creative Studio for all over quilting with a soccer ball theme, and then hand stitched a label 

I think he likes it!

By the way, his Bar Mitzvah service was beautiful and meaningful.  I remember the Rabbi from his parent's wedding; she is inspirational.

Micah:  may your life be a blessing always.

Peace.

Sam and Kelly's Wedding

My son Sam proposed to the fabulous Kelly in a London park the summer of 2015 (and got some unsuspecting strangers to snap photos and video of the moment!)  Lucky for us we have these great photos.  My daughter Anna did some photo color manipulation, and so I had the image on the right as a starting point.  I sent that off to be printed on fabric at Spoonflower.

I added some pieced fabric inserts, and the pop of red (on the advice of my friend Kim) which then became a heart:

I started some all over embroidery, and after a couple of false starts decided this would be covered all over with sunflowers, because Kelly loves sunflowers!

I did this bit of detail on Kelly's bag and then outlined the heart :

My daughter convinced me to frame this, rather than create a soft art quilt, and I think she's right. 

Mazel Tov Sam and Kelly !  To many many many years of happiness for my darling son and his wonderful wife.

Peace.