Tuesday, September 4, 2018

Welcome to Alaska

 I was so pleased to get an invitation to join the fun of a blog party. I look forward to meeting some new folks in the blog world and introducing myself to you!

I'm Debbie Bailey. Mother of two grown sons who are professional pilots and wife to a professional pilot. I am a homemaker. I have sewn most of my life and would spend everyday quilting if life's responsibilities didn't demand my attention

I have been living in Eagle River, Alaska for 20 years with an unexpected 3-year stint in Paris due to a great opportunity for my husband with his job. It was a great experience to live in Europe but I missed Alaska. 

We have spectacular mountains and snow...

Glacier Tour for my birthday with my son, Zack, as my pilot and tour guide.

I can look right outside my door and see all kinds of unique scenes from wildlife. This is a grizzly that we have seen several summers. She was dubbed Fabio on our neighborhood Facebook page until she showed up with this cub last summer. Not a "he" as most assumed, but a "she" that is now called Fabia. 


We also see moose pretty regularly. Both of these wildlife photos were taken on the road in front of my house. You might be surprised to know that moose are more deadly than bears in Alaska. 


But these are my favorite critters, our Gordon Setters, Logan and McKinley.


But you came here to see quilts!

My preferred quilting designs are patchwork with batiks. I have a 17" Nolting Fun Quilter that I use for machine quilting. Here's a little look at a quilt I designed on the software EQ, titled, "Paris Flower Shop." I made this in my little Paris sewing room. My intention was to design a quilt involving 2 1/2-inch strips. 


I'm rather known in my quilting sphere for being a bit obsessed with taking the scrap Half Square Triangles from quilt projects with 2 1/2-inch strips and making a new quilt. The finished size of the HSTs are 1 1/4-inches.


One of my current favorite quilts came from a panel challenge my Material Girls quilting group organized last year. Below is a peek of it getting blocked. I had a set of Hoffman Batik Hawaiian Applique-looking 10-inch squares. I had been coveting them for years trying to decide how to put them in a quilt. The background fabric was a batik piece I had in my stash for even longer that I bought at an adorable quilt shop on Kauai. The challenge was just what I needed to marry everything together. 


I use my blog as a journal to keep track of my projects.
I do more than quilt. 

Gardening and Landscape Projects


Bucilla Christmas kits


Santa cross stitch ornaments


And every now and then a little travel adventure.
 Hard to top my Bali trip in 2013. 
Black plastic bags full of batik fabric I bought at $2 a yard.


Now it's time for you to meet more bloggers in the quilt world. And don't forget to enter the fabric give away. Just click on the linked box below to visit with more fun quilters.


And click again to enter for the Grand Prize.




Hope you will visit again.

25 comments:

Denise :) said...

Nice to meet you, Debbie! My nephew is a park ranger in Kodiak, AK, and he loves living there. :)

Jennifer said...

At $2 a yard, I would have been tempted to buy out the whole store! You showed great restraint. Nice to meet you from Texas!

CecileD said...

Hello friend ! Nice to read you and see again your beautiful quilts ! ;)

Diane H said...

Lovely post. Thank you for the great introduction.

Amy, a redeemed sheep said...

Alaska is on my wish list to visit. I am envious of the wildlife you get to see on a regular basis. I also like to save the bonus trimmings of HST and making another quilt, but mine aren't as lovely as the one you shared! It's a pleasure to meet you!

Tammy said...

Lovely to meet you and your blog. Love your projects. Beautiful photos . Your country is absolutely gorgeous.

The Joyful Quilter said...

LOVE your Gordies and the Bali photo!! It was a pleasure to "meet" you. Have fun with the Meet and Greet!

Frédérique - Quilting Patchwork Appliqué said...

Hi Debbie, nice to meet you! Beautiful batik quilts, and, wow, $2 a yard, I understand the big bags ;) Love Alaska, we visit the State with our sailboat, from Ketchikan, to Tracy Arm (gorgeous glacier!), to Juneau, and many small places and coves between, 2 unforgettable months!

Alycia~Quiltygirl said...

Oh I love seeing where you live too - but the quilts are amazing!! and 3 pilots in your family - how cool is that!!

Cheryl said...

Beautiful quilts and wild life, great to meet you!

Needled Mom said...

Your work is so pretty - especially the HST star. My niece and her family live in Eagle River too.

Nann said...

I'm familiar with Eagle River, Wisconsin, but no one there is likely to have grizzlies strolling on their property! I love the flower shop colors. The HST quilt is really wonderful. I have a box of HSTs waiting to be made into something . . . Nice to get to know you on the Meet and Greet.

Carole @ From My Carolina Home said...

Super to find another quilter who enjoys more things, love your wildlife! Your quilts are lovely. I also like gardening and crafting. But I'll pass on the small planes, LOL!! Visiting from the Meet and Greet.

Sandi1100 said...

I enjoyed your Blog learning about you and Alaska. Alaska is on my bucket list to visit one of these days. I'd love to see all the wildlife. Thanks for sharing.

Suze said...

Your quilts are beautiful. I must say that your life in Alaska is much different than my life in Oklahoma. Thanks for participating in the Meet and Greet and sharing some of your life with us.

Beth said...

France is a wonderful opportunity, but did you have to leave Logan and McKinley behind? Are the French rules as Draconian as in the U.K.? That would have been a deal breaker for us, I'm afraid.

Benita Skinner said...

Wonderful wildlife & wonderful quilts, Debbie.
Especially love your Paris Flower Shop quilt.
Thanks for being part of the Quilters Meet & Greet! <3

Magpie's Mumblings said...

Your airplane ornament is very fitting for a family with so many pilots! Thank you for inviting us to visit - I've enjoyed seeing your pictures and your quilts.

LJ said...

I'm glad to meet you, Fabia and her sweet baby (All babies are sweet, right?) $2 a yard batiks...OM gosh...The last yard of batik I bought was $17!!!! Wonderful quilts coming from wonderful Alaska from wonderful you.

Calicojoan said...

I've followed you for years. My heart is always in Alaska and that's what drew me in... You talent in boundless and I love reading about your adventures.

OhioLori said...

Great to meet you & hear about Alaska & seeing your Gorgeous quilts! Wow! Awesome job!

Nancy J said...

Alaska, I read every book I can find about that wonderful place. Our daughter visited there years ago, and so enjoyed it. Batik? down here from about $25 to $35 or more per metre. I save every tiny scrap!!!

Melva Nolan said...

This hop has been great fun with the opportunity to learn more about each quilter and what the individual preferences are... as well as filled with inspiration! I often tell others that travel to bring back some sort of fabric item for me as a souvenir... often times they do! So nice to meet you.

Anne said...

Hi-your HST challenge quilt is a beauty, so is Alaska!

harini said...

that's a beautiful read!