Another step closer

This week, our new mystery clue was to make quarter-square triangles.  I am so glad it wasn't more strings!  I had a lot of fun with this one, and though I didn't use Bonnie's preferred method, I came out with the same result, so I'm happy with it.  Bonnie's method including using narrower strips and her rulers, and since I am using yardage instead of scraps, it was just easier to cut and piece these in the traditional manner (making larger half-square triangles, then pairing each of those up with a square of the dark and repeating the half-square triangle process). Different process, same results.

And of course my layout (to put them in a square for the Monday Mystery Linkup page) isn't exactly symmetrical, but it IS 4am - had to get up to let the dogs out, so I finished trimming the blocks and took the pic in a hurry while they were outside.  Now they are in and I should get back to bed, but here I am at the computer instead.  I'm distractable like that.  I can be on a task (like heading to bed), and suddenly - SQUIRREL!!!  Anyway, fans of  UP will get that.

Here is the link to Bonnie's Monday Morning Linkup. I just love seeing the colors others are using... They are all so amazing!

Tomorrow I will be able, I hope, to get on to other projects... Still presents to wrap and Blocks of the Month to catch up on.  So much to do!  Christmas Day plans may have fallen through (we were going to spend the day with a friend whose wife just passed, but it turns out he may have other plans and we may be off to the movies instead.  It's fine, we just didn't want him to be alone on Christmas day, and we will be content as long as he is not alone for the day)  So tomorrow we might be buying tickets to see Mary Poppins Returns, wrapping presents and (for me, at least) sewing.  (My husband will be busy too, he's got his writing and his radios to keep him busy).

As for the mystery quilt, there has been much speculation on what the finished block(s) will look like.  So many quilters have proposed so many interesting and inventive layouts.  I played with the pieces a little and came up with a few myself, but Bonnie always manages to surprise and delight us with something unique, so I put all the pieces back in their respective baggies without taking pictures of what are sure to NOT be the final blocks... but I have to say I am very happy with my colors together.

As we get closer to the final clues, which Bonnie usually reveals around New Years, the antici...................................................................pation becomes intense.  Can't wait to see the final product!  I am a little leery of how I'm going to make the quilt not be square... Will I make more blocks?  Should I simply sew on some extra and uneven borders?  Oh, the quandary!  Only a couple more weeks to find out... oh my!

Well, now it's almost 5am and time to crawl back into bed...

I do not like it, Sam I Am

Today I finished all the necessary blocks for clue 4 of Bonnie Hunter's 2018 Mystery Quilt, Good Fortune.  I re-discovered during this process that I do not like string piecing.  Now I consider this kind of odd, because I love paper piecing, and string piecing is really just kind of loose and easy paper piecing.  But what I love about paper piecing is that you are usually making some kind of picture, and the results, to me at least, are fun and revelatory.   And weird too because I love making things from selvages and that is kind of like string piecing too.   String piecing to me is sort of mindless and the results are just... well ... stringy. I know lots of quilters love string piecing, it's just not for me, I guess...    Anyway, I suppose I could have just cut some blocks in the finished size and called it a day, but I did it Bonnie's way.  Maybe I'll like them in the finished quilt.  We'll see.

If you want to see other folks' blocks, check out Bonnie's Mystery Monday Link-Up for week four here.

I certainly hope next week's clue is more fun for me because I'm loving most of the process and having fun with it.  Can't wait to see what comes next!

Holiday Fever and other maladies

This month has been pretty hectic, what with the holidays, DH gone for 5 days, and other complications.  This year, I actually lit no Chanukah candles until the last night - I was alone in the house and it seemed like such a lonely, sad thing to do by myself.  In retrospect, it was even sadder NOT doing it, but hindsight being 20/20, I was too overwhelmed and sad in the moment to realize I was simply adding to it by ignoring the tradition.  Sigh... Anyway, another holiday is approaching now and I've still got so much to do.  Our lights are up, and the tree is up for the Solstice, but undecorated, because we're still not sure it would survive the new puppy.  She seems unfazed by it sitting there in the living room, but she is totally 'Danger Dog', knocking over everything in her rambunctious play.  Our delicate electronic decorations might not survive her boisterous activities. 

Anyway, last week while waiting for clue 3 to drop for the Bonnie Hunter mystery, I cut for another quilt... and then the clue dropped Friday morning while the blocks for the other quilt were half-sewn.  I set those aside to work on the mystery, but the weekend was a total loss for sewing.  Went to see the LIttle Mermaid (the stage musical) on Friday night, played Pathfinder most of Saturday, and half of Sunday.  The week has been busy as well.  I sewed on Monday, leaving mostly cutting apart the HSTs and pressing left, then, I had to run a Pathfinder game on Monday night.  Tuesday, one of my quilt guilds had their Christmas party, and I had a doctor's appointment as well.  Today, I finally got to finish cutting and pressing my pieces for the mystery quilt.  Yay!!!  I am again caught up, with a day and a half to spare.

To see other folks' part 3 blocks, take a look at the Mystery Link Up #3!

Tonight, my other quilt guild has their annual holiday party, and I've got errands to run on the way... So I'm off to get a mani-pedi, fill my gas tank and do a little holiday shopping... Ah the joys of the season!

Contemplating the Infinite

Today, a sweet and dear friend lost their battle with cancer.  I am devastated, and at the same time, I am inspired to consider the options we have in life and in facing the beyond.  Those who know me know that I am not a religious person.  I do not find solace in arms of any kind of savior.  I believe that life is about what we do in it, not striving for some reward after it.  The more good we do, the better we make the world around us, and that is what life is about: performing mitzvahs. 

I really don't think I do enough, thinking about it objectively.  I maybe do little things... donate quilts sometimes, let my son and dau-in-law live with us rent-free while they are seeking employment, let people into my lane when driving, all little things in the scheme of the bigger picture.  I don't want acclaim for the things I do, they are indeed very small things.  I know I can do more.  I don't know really what I might want to be remembered for when I'm gone... I know I don't want people to shrug and say 'big deal' when I'm gone.  I need to strive for more.

I know me though, and I'm afraid I don't know where to start.  I'm not the kind of person who gives hugs to random strangers or hands out food in homeless camps... I sometimes do pay for the random car behind me at Starbucks, which is fine and anonymous, and that's how I frequently pay forward my gratitude for the abundance in my life - anonymously. 

Still, not sure how to proceed with making the world a better place.  I hope I can find a way, because we are all mortal and every one of us has an expiration date... I guess I just want to make a difference before mine comes due. 

Having contemplated this now, I'm not sure where it's leading me... I hope I find a path and follow it while I still can.  I know that for most of us, the love and acknowledgment of family and close friends is enough.  My family is very small, and my close friends are a very small group as well... I guess I just need to know there is still time to make a difference to all I know.. and maybe a broader circle as well.  When is it too late to remake ourselves?  Maybe never?

Time is fleeting...  Life is short...  Live like there's no tomorrow... get it done today!

Keeping Up!

So very much to keep up with this time of year... gifts, lights, decorations plus all the normal stuff of my life like errands, appointments, social stuff... sometimes it gets a little overwhelming.   With my son and daughter-in-law on a trip up north to visit her parents for 9 days (I drove them to the airport yesterday), and my husband leaving tomorrow for 4 days up north on business, I will have the whole house (and all the daily household stuff) to myself.  That means, of course, caring for 2 rambunctious young dogs, both of which need medications at least twice a day, and 3 cats.  I think I will be missing my quilting clubs for the week, and not much time for quilting at home this week either.

That said, I decided I would make a push to finish clue 2 of the Bonnie Hunter mystery quilt before DH leaves for his business trip.  I did all the cutting on Friday, the sewing mostly yesterday and today I finished up the sewing and did all the trimming and pressing.  I'm done!!!  and with a few hours to spare before we take off for an evening with friends.

 
Bonnie doesn't want us mentioning how many we made or what size they are... suffice it to say, there are a LOT of them...Sew much fun... can't wait to see the next clue!!!

Here is your link to Bonnie's Monday Morning link-up page to see what everyone else has made!

Catching Up

Sometimes I think my brain just shuts off and when it reboots, it forgets what it was doing last... I read a previous post talking about my pumpkin quilt, and realized I never posted a picture of it here.  I really like Edyta Sitar's quilt designs... They are usually fun to make, easy applique, if a bit repetitive, and they make great lap quilts for keeping warm on a cold tv night, and fun wall quilts too.   I made this one mostly because I had a layer cake of fall fabrics I wanted to use up and it was a pattern that caught my eye in Quiltmania Magazine.  Super easy pattern, and would be great for teaching machine applique (there are convex and concave curves as well as corners).  I think I made them backwards (put my 'highlight' crescents on the 'wrong side', but Quiltmania printed the pattern for hand applique and I didn't feel like reversing it before I traced the shapes... so it is what it is).  I like it.  And I quilted it myself this time instead of sending to a longarmer.  This was actually done in July, just never posted a picture of it finished.

Having made the pumpkin quilt, I saw this Edyta Sitar pattern for Elephants at one of my LQS (local quilt shops).  To add a little interest, I reversed one of the elephants.  I call this quilt 'There's One in Every Crowd', referring to the one elephant who is bucking the trend and following her own path).  The backgrounds are all Moda Grunge, some with spots, some without, and the elephants are mostly Kaffe Fassett fabrics.  To make it easier to trace, I bought the plastic template that ES makes for this quilt.  Highly recommend using the template for this quilt.  As with the pumpkins, I quilted it myself.  This one, too, was finished earlier this year (in July). 

On the KINDNESS note (see the Word of the Year post I made previously), a dear friend and fellow quilter is a member of my minigroup.  We all chip in to a general fund each year for birthday presents for each other.  My friend wanted something that exceeded her individual budget so I chipped in so our birthday guru could get her the item she wanted.  She will never know how she lucked out.  It will be my secret.  I have also been working on my 'assertiveness' as a driver (no, I'm not an 'aggressive' driver... but I am trying to be more accommodating, letting people waiting to turn get into my lane, that sort of thing.  I still don't like to get stuck behind big trucks, but I am trying to be more courteous to other drivers.  It is a small step on the road to KINDNESS.  I am trying to smile more at strangers instead of avoiding their gaze... on the road to POSITIVITY.  And it's not even 2019 yet... but no reason not to start early and develop better habits before the year begins.

Making a Mystery

I love making mystery quilts.  I'm not sure why... after all, not every one is a gem, some are very disappointing, but others are simply amazing and just 'sing'... Some designers are more dependable than others in the type and complexity of their mystery designs, too.

Bonnie Hunter of Quiltville fame is one of the best!  Her designs are always unique, complex and lots of fun to make.  She designs a mystery quilt every year, with the first clue coming out on Black Friday, subsequent clues releasing on following Fridays.  (Note: it's not too late to join the fun, clues remain free til the quilt is done sometime in early January).

Clue 1 was to make a bunch (no numbers here, if you want to play, go to her site, and click on 'Good Fortune' in the menu) of 4-patches (no dimensions here either).  I made a bunch and then some, (12 extras just because I cut a little too much fabric, and I don't know how they are going to be used... if they are going to be sewn into rows of 4-patches, having a few extras means less chance of the same fabrics touching as I have more to choose from near the end).

Anyway, clue #2 comes out tomorrow and I am SO ready to play!  Can't wait to see what comes next and what colors we're going to be working with for our next clue.

Note: Bonnie's colors don't usually agree with my aesthetics, so I change them up, and this year was no different.  I chose lime green, turqoise, purple and pink with white (see below) instead of hers, which were orange, red, blue and green with a neutral.

If you want to see what others are making for these clues, check out Bonnie's Monday Morning Link up on her blog.

Here are a couple of previous Bonnie Hunter Mysteries to give you an example of what you might be making.  This first one is 'On Ringo Lake' (my colors, not Bonnie's), her 2017 mystery:

This is En Provence, Bonnie's 2016 mystery, in her colors, which I didn't like but used anyway...  Love the design, tho!:

So come play!!!  It's fun!  And lots to learn about cutting and sewing techniques!!!  Bonnie always has something to teach about efficient ways to cut and use scraps as well as just quilting techniques in general. 

Word(s) for the year, 2019

It is time to choose a word for the year to inspire my creativity, passion and enthusiasm. While they are nice words in their own right, they are goals, not a means to achieve them. I have been thinking hard to come up with something different than the ones I have chosen in the past – Journey, Focus, Passion and so on.

This year, disgusted by the rising open displays of hatred, anger, impatience and disrespect in our world, I have decided that one of my two words is going to be KINDNESS. I am going to offer kind words, kind thoughts and kind deeds, hoping to brighten the days of others, and help them know that someone cares.

My other word is kind of related in a way, but it is going to be POSITIVE. I want to put positivity into the world (yes, I know that’s not really a word, but I’m making it one!). I find that I’m angry a lot lately… mostly at the daily news, so I am going to try to channel this anger and use it to spark positive change in myself and those around me. When I see something wrong, I’m going to try to be proactive and try to change it instead of quietly seething and letting the anger disturb my serenity. At the same time, I need to be somewhat sensitive to other people’s issues. It’s important to know when to stop arguing with people and simply let them be wrong. This is all going to be hard for me, because I don’t like confrontations. They terrify me. I want to overcome that and learn to keep my cool while doing it. Wish me luck!

I know these things are not really quilting related, though in a way they can be depending on how and when they are applied. KINDNESS and POSITIVITY can spread to others when applied liberally in ANY context.

Meet Kaylee

Our family has grown by one member.  Today we adopted Kaylee (formerly known as 'Bessie').  She is a 1 year old female St. Bernard.  She's a real sweet love and has double dewclaws, something I've never seen before!.

So far she is still exploring the yard and house... when she isn't napping like now.  She seems to like it here, and even got to chase a bunny today (it came from the botanical gardens behind the house and the dogs thought it was great fun chasing it til it got out of the yard).  Poor bunny must have been terrified. Glad they didn't catch it!

Working Hard / Hardly Working

So lately I've been working in fits and starts... dealing with depression and passion at the same time can be a real roller coaster ride.  One minute I'm up to my armpits in passion for my work, then I'm drowning in a morass.  It's truly mystifying how I get anything done sometimes.

Yesterday, I sewed up a storm, making the sections of the first block for a quilt for my Dear Daughter-in-law (DDIL)... Lots of applique and some piecing as well... It looks a little chaotic and disjointed, but several of the pieced blocks are actually parts of a larger motif that will all come together in the finished quilt. (google 'Dear Daughter quilt pattern')... it is a busy, chaotic quilt, but it does have some rhyme and reason to the design.

This morning I wound some selvages that I've cut off recently... Here is a picture of all my collected selvages.  Seven balls of them so far - I DO use them but not often enough obviously.  

Here's an example of what I actually do with them when I use them:

 Here's a picture of the bear paw quilt I made on my Mediterranean cruise...

And finally, the reveal of the mystery quilt I did on the Mediterranean cruise.  The designer said I could reveal the quilt after the first of November.  I emailed her a week ago (well into November) asking if it was okay now and never heard back from her.  I'm hoping silence means consent... and if not, it's easier sometimes to get forgiveness than permission.  I am happy with it... I love those pops of turquoise in the sashing!  The turquoise in the cornerstones was actually my own design (the quilt pattern called for white squares in the corners.  I wanted to pull the pop of color out into the borders. 

Currently content that I am caught up on my block of the month projects.  However I'm not feeling really inspired to start anything new.  I've got lots of kits I could delve into, and I've seen so much eye candy lately in the quilt world, but nothing has inspired me enough to begin a new project.  And I'm really okay with that - I've got SO many UFOs.  We'll see how things develop from here. 

Happiness and Quilting

Enchanted Garden, blocks 1-6

I've been a little depressed lately (ever since I got back home from my trip to Europe).  I loved the trip and had a lot of fun, and I loved coming home and sleeping in my own bed again, being with my kitties and my dog and my friends.  But for some reason, I've been somewhat depressed of late.  Can't put a finger on why...

Purrfect Moments, blocks 1-6 (January-June)

However, the past 2 weeks, I've been furiously preparing for a 4 day retreat at the beach house north of Ventura.  Piecing blocks, cutting blocks, tracing and fusing appliques on those blocks... It's been a long two weeks.  Last Weds. I packed up the car with the help of my husband, picked up a friend's stuff to take to the beach (she came on retreat too, just in someone else's car).  We all met at the house, set up our sewing paraphernalia and worked on quilting tasks from Thursday afternoon til Sunday afternoon.  It really works out to 3 days of work time, but we call it 4 days because we're there for four days on the calendar.  Anyway, 31 of us in one house was a little crowded, but we made it work.  (it IS a big house). 

Purrfect Moments blocks 7-10 (July-October)

I found my mood improving incredibly the longer I was there... I think there endorphin stimulators in fabric!  By Thursday night when I went to bed (about 2am) I was pretty relaxed and happy.  By Saturday evening, I was ecstatic over all the work I was getting done and thrilled seeing what everyone else was accomplishing as well.  By the time I got to bed Saturday night (about 1am), I was coming down off the quilting high a little as I contemplated leaving the next day.  I wanted to finish everything I came with, so I made a mad rush to finish all my applique by noon on Sunday... Mission Accomplished. 

Woodland Creatures (blocks 1-7)

But then we all met in one room for show and tell, and while I was thrilled with what everyone had done (some of these ladies did SO much and everything was beautiful!!!), I was starting to get overwhelmed with sadness at the thought of loading up the car and driving home.  Got everything loaded and set off for home (to the tune of grinding brakes, another part of 'real life' that came up the day before retreat - I gladly blocked that out during the retreat).

You Lucky Dog (blocks 10 & ll) - (making one for me and one for a rescue group, Sunny Saints, Saint Bernard Rescue, to auction as a fund-raiser)

Now that I'm home, (auto-less, as the car is in the shop), I'm still in the process of unpacking and sorting and dealing with all the things that built up in my absence (mail, laundry, lots of little daily tasks).  As with my longer trip in September/October, I am glad to be home, sleeping in my own bed and having kitties and a dog (and a husband) to cuddle.  Still, I am sad to not be totally immersed in the making of things.

Strip Joints, Warm - a new finish

I hope this feeling passes... I like the calm happiness (it beats out the sadness hands down, and is even preferable to the euphoria).   Quilting makes me happy... it's gotta be some kind of additive in the fabric.. that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Disappointment Can Turn to Happiness

Went to Quilt Emporium in Woodland Hills this morning and LO! they had not had a Row by Row winner yet. They let me take my choice of 25 fat quarters, and gave me a jelly roll as a bonus prize for having their row in my quilt.... Love my prizes... thank you, Quilt Emporium... They kept my quilt to hang in their shop for a while, which is a first for me (my 5th row by row win, but no shop has ever asked before. I'm honored and glad to oblige).

Came home and finished appliqueing my pumpkins and sewed all the blocks into rows.  Still need to press them and then sew the rows together.  I already have a back chosen for it, just waiting for the new bolt of batting I ordered.  That will give me two quilts ready for basting, to add to my 7 quilts in the binding queue for my backlog of projects (and those don't even begin to make a dent in my total UFO count). 

I have yet to begin my 20 minutes of working on one project (for the Stashbusters 20 minute challenge).  20 minutes a day to make steady progress on a project is something I SHOULD be able to keep up with, but I missed yesterday, July 1, completely - just spaced out and forgot all about the challenge.  Spent my quilting time yesterday looking for a shop to turn in my challenge quilt at, and then working on applique for the rest of the day.  I won't make that mistake again (the mistake being spacing out on the 20 minute challenge)!

Tomorrow is my mah jongg day, but I will get my 20 minutes in after the game... I have all night because Tuesday is my husband's radio night... I have the whole evening to myself.  (I am a ham radio widow on Tuesday, lol).

Appointments and Disappointments

Well, I finished my row by row.. got it quilted, bound, labeled and embellished on Friday night.  Saturday, I went to play Pathfinder (a roleplaying game, similar to D&D) with friends... I was gone all day, so unable to take my quilt to a shop to try to win a prize.  This morning, I rushed off to one of my favorite shops, to find out they'd already had a winner on Friday!!!  So I went to another shop, and discovered that they'd had a winner on Friday, too.  My next nearest shops were both closed on Sunday, so I guess I'll find out tomorrow if they are still open to a winning quilt.  Sigh... I'm very disappointed.  I really wanted to win closer to home, especially at the first shop because they let you choose your own fat quarters instead of giving you a pack of Kona solids (which are cheaper fabrics, and ones I don't use... I rarely use solids, except black, and I don't like Kona solids, as they fray too easily imo).  We'll see what happens tomorrow, when I visit other shops.

Here's how it came out (with the final borders, though this picture doesn't show the buttons that I added):

Today I spent the day doing a little driving and shopping...  came home to start blanket-stitching some appliqued blocks I made before this challenge started.  I've got them maybe 1/3 of the way done... still plenty to stitch, but I think I'm done for the time being... time to relax a bit, recover and recharge my creative batteries.  I'm a little upset and disappointed in the events of the day, and need to remember that it's not about winning, but about doing.  I'm glad I made the quilt, even if I don't win, or have to travel far afield to find a shop that has no winner yet.  It's important to keep things in perspective. 

Tomorrow morning, my dog goes in for grooming...  I have some trepidation at the process even though I know everything will be fine (my older dog got groomed 2 weeks ago.  She always found grooming stressful, and her heart failed later that day).  My younger dog doesn't have a heart condition, and he doesn't stress over groomings, so I'm sure it will all be fine, but the wound is still raw and I miss my girl.  Here they are together, Maggie on the left, Chewiee on the right... RIP, Maggie-girl.

Dancing to the Muse

So I've been trying to follow my muse today... but she's not speaking to me much... not sure what to make of that... I hope she returns shortly, I miss her... or is it him, or both, or it?  Can muses be any gender, or none at all?  whatever...

I've got my row by row top done... it has a couple of borders on top and bottom that aren't pictured here (yet)... (a blue border strip at the top, a white border strip at the bottom, both music themed)...

I also finished a couple of pillowcases... they are sandwiched, quilted, backed with a zipper closed backing and then bound.  Love how they came out... and yes, that peacock is cross-stitched (an old hobby that I'd pretty much given up on since I started quilting in 2003).  I made that pillowcase for my mother-in-law, Susie (Zetella), who passed away a few years ago.  My father-in-law just entered assisted living and this was one of the things he didn't take with him, so I brought it home, quilted it, put on a new back with a zipper and put an oversized pillowform in it to really fill it up.  The raven pillowcase is one I made for myself, just updated it by quilting it and giving it a zipper closure on the back. 

Tonight, I meet with my mini-group, a great group of ladies, who help keep me grounded and focused.  While there, I will pin baste my row by row quilt so I can start quilting it tomorrow.  If I can finish the quilting by the eob Sunday, I can rush to my local shop and claim a prize on Monday!

I know I'm too competitive, but that is what helps keep me driven and active... Speaking of which, the local county fair is coming up soon... and I've got to finish getting quilts ready for that as well... so much to do, so little time...

Progress and Depression

Depression is an insidious disease/condition/whatever.  It has no outward signs like measles or chicken pox, but it can be devastating to those who suffer from it and their families.  It plays havoc with my enthusiasm for all things, including quilting. I have complete and thorough empathy with anyone who is dealing with depression, either personally or indirectly.

That said, I've been powering through with the help of some pretty heavy duty meds, which have their side effects, but totally worth them, most of the time. 

I've been working on hard on my 2018 Row by Row challenge quilt.  I've got 7 blocks completed, the 8th (and last) being cut and fused, ready for pressing, but I'm holding off because a friend wants to trace my appliques before I put them on the block (I had to reverse them because they were drawn for hand applique in the pattern, with double-sided sheets which made tracing in reverse with a lightbox extremely difficult.  Since I've already done it, I wanted to save my friend the headache.  I see her tomorrow, and once she has traced mine, I can finish the block... I think Thursday I will get to sandwiching and quilting  Hopefully I'll be done by Sunday... I know I'm not first, as someone in Oregon already turned one in... but it'll be done when it's done... I'm sure I'll get it in first somewhere (every participating shop can have a winner).

Here's mine to date:

My last block is antoehr 18" square, and I'll have to cut some filler blocks and/or panels to fill the side (haven't yet decided if the 18" squares will go on the front or the back though).  Anyway, I'm content with my progress.

I finished my Faerie Dreams quilt, two tops and two pillowcases.  Faerie Dreams was started about 14 years ago for a friend's young daughter... I never finished it, and now she's a grown lady and a bit of a goth, so this wouldn't go over well, even as a lap quilt for her.  I found the cut triangles pieces in a box when cleaning my studio and decided to finish it... If I don't get a granddaughter sometime soon, I'll probably end up donating it to Linus or some other kids charity.

This is Laundry Basket Quilts "Pumpkins" from a Quiltmania Magazine from last September/October.  Fell in love with it and wanted to make it... just got the blocks fused and ready for blanket stitching when Row by Row started... Had to put these on the back burner for the time being.

This elephants quilt, which I call "There's One in Every Crowd," was fun to make... also a Laundry Basket Quilts design.  Can't wait to finish the back and quilt it!

Maybe I'll get some pictures of the pillows soon.... Now, off to work on one of the many bindings I'm far behind on (I've got a current queue of 7 projects quilted, trimmed, and awaiting bindings). 

Busy week ahead, but I think I can squeeze in some sewing and quilting.  I wish I didn't have to squeeze time for such things into my day.  You'd think being retired, I'd have lots of time, but between lots of activities, and the depression, good time management is not something I can honestly put on my resume.

Spending this evening watching musicals on TCM... love Tuesdays and Thursdays this month!  Back to The Music Man...

Diamond Tiles Border - Decision made and implemented

I agonized a bit over what to do with the Diamond Tiles quilt top... the borders were too plain... even with the square in a square corners.... I thought about taking them off and piecing them instead... but finally decided on some applique.  I drew the shapes, blew them up to 2 more sizes, then traced them onto fusible (eight times for each size), fused the black fabric, cut out the shapes, and then agonized a bit more over the thought of actually fusing them to the background... what if I put them on and hated it????

Finally, I took the plunge, heated up the Rowenta, placed the motifs and put iron to fusible-backed fabric.   I did the opposite (bottom right) corner as a mirror image to this top left corner.

I think I love it!  Whew!!!  What a relief.  Just have to sew all the pieces down, and I can call this one done, and ready it for quilting!

Piecing progress

I made 12 blocks from a pattern given to us during the 'Get-to-gather' at Quilt Emporium in Woodland Hills, CA... instead of using their civil war colors, I used something that appealed more to me, however.  The block is called 'All Roads Lead Home' and each block is 16".  I added piano key borders and mitered the corners, because I think that (or cornerstones) looks best with piano keys.

I also finished another top, including the borders this morning... no picture yet as I'm too short to take down the one above and hang the new one on the design wall...

The second quilt is made using Bonnie Hunter's Diamond Tiles block pattern, with a feline theme... fussy cut all these kitties on point to set in the tiles and chose some pawprints for the borders.   The white outer border might be a little stark, but didn't have anything else that looked remotely good with it. 

New Baby

Okay - not a baby baby, but this new-to-me Featherweight followed me home today!  Can't wait to get a chance to use her... but first.. a trip to the movies to see a preview of 'Ready Player One'....

Ignore the chaos in the background of course.  Isn't she a beauty???  Just my color and so pretty... She was born in 1953...

Now off to the movies!

If Hexagons are Hexies, does that mean Octagons are Octies?

Today I sewed some octagons from an awesome Australian design fabric I found at equilter.com... The original fabric looked like this:

I cut them into 8 identical strips, stacked those carefully matching the designs and cut them into groups of 8 identical triangles.  I sewed the triangles into pairs, the pairs into fours, and the fours into eights, making kaleidoscopic hexagons:

I love how they came out, and I will probably be making more of them... or maybe a mix of hexies and 'octies'...

Recent Work

I've been doing a lot of small things lately - working on bindings (I have currently 8 quilts in the binding queue), a couple round robins, and some individual blocks for Block of the Month projects.

Here are the round robins I've been working on (2-3 months of each challenge):  For my guild's round robin challenge: in January, I added flying geese in the same colors as the embroidery... February, I added the southwest themed appliques to the block.  In March, I added the green 'grassy' outer border and appliqued some bunnies in the grass.  

 

For my mini-group's round robin, which we started in February,  I added four different borders to the first block I got, each one slightly 'land-' or 'sea-' or 'sky-' scapelike, and for March, I was stymied for a long time... the first person added two borders (the blue and the ombre), and it seemed so 'complete'  (and big) already.  I had to think hard to do something original and special.  I ordered 3 yards of the border stripe fabric (one yard at first, but it wasn't enough, so then I ordered two more, but two would have been enough total if I'd thought about it and knew what I'd be doing before I ordered).   I cut it up into groupings of six identical triangles and sewed them into One Block Wonder hexagons... I put these all around the quilt... hope she likes it.

A local quilt shop (LQS for short) has a monthly meeting that several of my friends and I attend.  It is called 'The Get To-Gather'... they give us coupons (so we can feel good about spending lots of money there, lol) and a little freebie (usually fabric or a notion) and a new pattern each month.  This months pattern was a modern mini-bowtie quilt.  Here's mine:

I am also doing a couple of BOMs:  One is called Purrfect Moments and is all fusible applique, with a little piecing  Every  block is a cat with a birdcage... they are all different of course... Here is the beginning of my first block:

Thimblecreek quilt shop is also doing a mystery quilt, which they give out clues for every other week.  Here are my first six blocks for it... I am doing mine in all batiks...

Finished another top as well... Nine-Patch Madness is the pattern (from MSQC), and I used yardage instead of charm packs... I busted a lot of Asian fabrics from stash for this one... used a metallic gold for the first border (not shown in this photo), and still looking for a good border for it.  I love the chained look  of it, and the complex secondary pattern, but the blocks themselves were super easy. 

Looking forward to more of these, and a couple of new BOMs as well!  Sew many projects, sew little time, but at least my time in my studio should be more productive now that the sale is over!

I am STABLE !!! (STash Accumulation Beyond Life Expectancy)

I've been working hard the last 2 months, preparing for a major de-stashing sale.  I culled all the fabrics, kits, notions, tools, thread, embellishments, fasteners, and patterns from my stash that I no longer had the desire to work with (or that were duplicates).  I set the sale date as March 17th... a Saturday which was also National Quilting Day (or is it Worldwide Quilting Day - depends on which website you check)... Anyway... most of January was spent thinking about what I did and didn't want any longer.  February was spent starting to sort fabrics for the most part.  The last week of February and the first two weeks of March were spent advertising the sale and gearing up with final decisions on items and sorting more fabric.  Here's a couple of pics of a small percentage of what went into the sale:

The day of the sale was supposed to rain, but we set everything up indoors (in the garage).  I was afraid rain would keep people away.  But Lo! the day dawned bright and clear, with only a few remaining small clouds.  Crowds showed up right on time and it was almost overwhelming!  I was floored by the response, and much fabric and other items walked out with new owners... My husband was a great help because I was overwhelmed a bit by the response!

We made it through the day and closed up a bit earlier than expected (about 2:15 instead of 3pm), but everyone who wanted to come was gone by then, and we were tired.  We figured if anyone came late, they'd knock and we'd open up for them, no problem... there were no late comers though.

I sold my featherweight and LOTS of fabric and other items.

After the sale, I bagged up ALL the fabric into 12 yard-sized trash bags... four bags FULL for each of three charities - Project Linus, Simi Valley Quilt Guild and Camarillo Quilters Association.  I made sure each set of bags got about equal amounts of each color grouping so no one got stiffed on anything good.  Project Linus came by today and picked up their four bags.  The others will get theirs later. 

My big promise to myself was that NOTHING would come back into my stash.  I broke that promise for one (and only one) piece of fabric, which should never have been in the sale in the first place... I'm actually surprised it didn't sell, to be honest, but I'm glad it didn't because I would have sold it, reluctantly, but still would have.  I even sold most of the plastic bins that held so much of these items!  It feels great to be rid of so much 'stuff'.

I'm free of SO much burdensome crap... Feels wonderful!  To give you some perspective, here's what remains of my stash.. as you can see it is still quite ample... I'm not gonna run out of fabric in my lifetime!