Big Bang Weary

Final-Lucy-Sleeping

Well, after episodes of Big Bang Theory and 4th of July Fireworks last night, we are a little Big Bang Weary this morning!  I’m feeling a little cat trampled, as the cats were all so scared from the ongoing evening fireworks, that I think they bounced across me all night.  Thank goodness it’s Saturday!

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Raining Cats and Dogs

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All the Presidents’ Dogs

 

The trip last weekend to the Houston International Quilt Festival was a feast for the eyes.  This year the festival had a special “Raining Cats & Dogs” competition category.   I wanted to share these amazing quilts with you.  Enjoy your trip through this virtual art gallery!  And if you have a favorite, do comment and let me know.  They are all so wonderful!

This post is part of a Wednesday blog hop. Please click the “Blog Paws” button in the sidebar to follow all the other wonderful pet blogs. Happy Blogging!

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Cat-at-Water

Caught in the Act, by Barbara McKie
Lyme, Connecticut
Techniques:  Digital imagery, threadpainted, trapuntoed, free-motion quilted

I urged my cousin’s cat, Taz, to come to the kitchen sink to drink, and she obliged as I captured her in this funny pose.

Kool-in-Alaska

Kool in Ketchikan, by Ingrid Cattaneo
Grass Valley, California
Techniques:  Fabric collaged

Kool in Ketchikan was inspired by a photograph I took of two dogs – both wearing upside down sunglasses, perched in an open window of the Bayside building in Ketchikan, Alaska.  It was drizzling, I looked up and there they were.  The pit bull mix dogs, mostly white with black spots, are iconic to Ketchikan, both to locals and tourists.  I wanted a playful reminder of our visit to Ketchikan, consequently one dog is pink and the other dog is blue.  It literally rains and pours at our local shelter with pit bull mix dogs.  Won’t you please consider offering a “forever” home to a dog from your local shelter?  We did.  His name is Yuba.  He, too, is part pit bull and a big love.

Kitty-Color

Cornered!, by Wendy Starn
Alexandria, Louisiana
Techniques:  Hand-stamped, threadpainted, collaged

In August of 2008, my son found a tiny kitten under the hood of the car, covered in grease and fleas.  He cleaned her up and she won his heart, as well as the scorn of our other two cats.  Boris, the black cat, is determined to be Alpha male, and is also proud of his prowess at catching (catnip) mice, while Moose, the orange cat, is the might hunter of lizards and bugs, who’s afraid of everything.  Oslo the kitten sleeps, dreaming, no doubt of how best to annoy her big brothers.

Final-Weimaraner

Charlie, by Melinda Sword
Port Charlotte, Florida
Technique:  Pictorial quilting with machine applique
Materials:  Cotton batting, thread, décor bond, cotton and batik fabrics

This quilt was made from a snapshot of my weimaraner, Charlie.  He is lying at the foot of my bed waiting for his daddy to get home from work to play with his ball.

Yogi-Bear

Yogi Bear, by Kathy Zieben
Houston, Texas
Techniques:  Raw-edge appliqued, machine stitched and quilted, design from fisheye lens photo

The inspiration for creating this Yogi Bear quilt came from a special love I had for my pet, a shelter dog we rescued at 16 weeks old.  Yogi had the most adorable face that peeked out from his cage.  I felt it best highlighted his unique character.  Everyone who was him commented on his unique look.  Yogi Bear was only with us for a short five years.  Making this quilt has helped me to deal with the loss of Yogi.

Final-Yellow-Lab

Live Free, by Kathleen Everett
Batavia, New York
Techniques:  Improvisationally pieced, printed, free-motion quilted

After creating a collage on a playing card, manipulating it in Photoshop in a class by Red-Dog Enterprises, my pup was printed by a large format printer onto fabric.  I pieced varying sized improvisational star blocks using Marcia Derse fabrics, quilted my adorable lab and stitched him to his background.  He would be at home anywhere!

Final-Cat-Reflection

Unfortunately I do not have the details for this quilt.

Final-Artie-Facts

Artie Facts, by Joyce Paterson
Ukiah, California
Techniques:  Hand and fused applique, machine quilting

I have long known that dogs have their own set of rules and facts about how the world works.  So, when faced with a Mendocino Quilt Artists challenge to create a quilt based on the theme “Artifact,” my mind went to dog facts.  Artie is the representative of the dog world, and these are some of the known dog facts.

Final-Sheri

Sherri, by Sue Bleiweiss
Uptown, Massachusetts
Technique:  Hand-dyed, raw-edge fusible appliqued, machine quilted

As soon as I found ou about the “It’s Raining Cats and Dogs” special exhibit, I sat down and sketched out this quilt.  The pup on the quilt is keeping a wakeful eye out for any bone thieves!

Final-Pup-on-Couch

I’m Watching You, by Barbara McKie
Lyme, Connecticut
Techniques:  Free-motion threadpainted, trapuntoed, disperse dye printed, free-motion machine appliqued, free-motion machine quilted

A friend’s dog had the habit of lying on the back of the couch and watching me while I stayed with them.  Fortunately, I had my camera and transferred the photo to polyester using disperse dye digital transfer.

Final-Shade-Black-Lab

Shade, by Mary Davis
Sunnyvale, California
Techniques:  Fused applique, machine pieced and quilted

I began this quilt in a class taught by June Jaeger in Sisters, Oregon,  It’s from a photo of my dog, Shade, when he was a puppy.  I wanted a small dog.  He was 19 pounds at the time.  He grew up…now he’s 80 pounds.  While his name may be Shade, he brings a lot of sunshine into my life.

 

Nest Beds

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Nest Design.

Kitties are having fun in these new beds!  Soft, reversible, adjustable, foldable, and washable.

 

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Bed as open mat.

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Pattern side as mat.

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 Drawstring gathered up.

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Lucy pretending to be a turtle!

This post is part of a Wednesday blog hop. Please click the “Blog Paws” button in the sidebar to follow all the other wonderful pet blogs. Happy Blogging!

On The Move

 

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I only want a peek!

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Seriously…where are my toys?

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Ok…I think we’re good to go now!

The last two weeks have been a whirlwind of activity.  There have been trips to the airport at 4:30am, multiple texts and phone calls, vehicles in for servicing, and packing assistance.   But now the center of the whirlwind, my daughter, is gone.  The reasons are good – she secured a new job and a new apartment in a matter of days in her new home state of Minnesota, where she will complete her last semester of school at the University of Minnesota this fall.

She left early this morning for the long two-day drive back to Minneapolis with her three kitties.  I know that Binx, Mr. Moo, and Caska travel well, as my husband and I brought them to our home in Texas last February.  Having been under my care for such a long time, though, I have grown quite attached to them and will miss them greatly.  Already this house seems too quite…although my daughter and her kitties have once again left my home, they will certainly never leave my heart!  And I want PHOTOS of the kitties enjoying the STAIRS in their new home!!

Have you ever cared for a grown child’s pets long-term?  Did you become as attached to them as I have to my daughter’s kitties?

This post is part of a Wednesday blog hop. Please click the “Blog Paws” button in the sidebar to follow all the other wonderful pet blogs. Happy Blogging!