Batik Bazaar Finished !

Batik Bazaar

72 x 96

It's a finish! 

I made the top waaaaaay back in 2019. 

 These 24 inch Massachusetts block instructions can be found at Quilter's Cache. 

The centers of these blocks, framed four patches, were leftovers from a long ago swap.  The Massachusetts block calls for an 8.5 inch center so I used a framed four patch instead. 

I quilted it on my sewing machine with vertical lines in a variegated green thread. 

The backing is a floral on black and the binding is a woven look black. 

My theme to move UFOs forward this month in the sewing space is "Oldies and Biggies" and this one fits both categories. 

And sew on...

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CELEBRATE! (My word of the year)

Nov. 2 - Finished a book - The Hit by David Baldacci.  The second mystery thriller book in the Will Robie, U.S. government assassin, series. 

Nov. 3 - Added an hour to my day! 

Nov. 4 - Received a box of goodies from Cindy - beautiful comfort quilt tops with backings, bindings  and thread. (Not sure I will be able to complete them and get them donated until next year). 

Nov. 5 - 

...From the mountains

To the prairies
To the oceans
White with foam
God bless America
My home sweet home.

 

Bits and Pieces

Sixteen Patches

6 inch 

Made with 2 inch width scraps in the Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC) color of the month plus green scraps.   

While sorting scraps I throw anything suitable for these blocks into the project box. I try to sew them up right away whenever I have scraps; however, I have been blessed with quite a few scraps this year so I sewed up some of what was in the box. Otherwise for RSC blocks I cut off a 2 inch strip from a small scrap chunk in the color of the month each month to make blocks. I'm aiming for a 60 x 72 block quilt so need quite a few more so this block will continue as a RSC project again next year.  

Sawtooth Stars

10.5 inch

Made with 3 inch scraps in orange, purple and green. 

In September I emptied out most of a big box of 3 inch width scraps and squares. One of the quilts I didn't have enough scraps for was this one. I put the pieces I did have in a baggie and this week I found scraps in appropriate colors as well as some 5.5 inch centers and completed the 35 blocks for this block set so now it will go into the SAR - Some Assembly Required box - to be assembled at a later date.

November's theme in my sewing space is "Oldies and Biggies".  I hope to move some very old UFOs forward and to quilt some of the bigger quilts in the TBQ - to be quilted pile. 

And sew on...

RSC ScrapHappy Saturday

NOTE - I spent quite awhile replying to comments on my last two blog posts only to notice the replies were going into thin air and not to the commenters. Something has changed with Google blogger. When someone commented it was published right away and then I received an email with the comment so I could reply via email if the commenter had their email addy visible on their profile. Well, the last couple of days no one's email came with the comments to my email even if their addy was visible on their profile. I just noticed the problem.   I have enabled comment moderation to see if that makes a difference although I doubt it will.  🙁

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CELEBRATE! (my word of the year)

Nov 1 - Quote I like - "The secret, Alice, is to surround yourself with people who make your heart smile. It is then, only then, that you will find Wonderland". - Mad Hatter (Lewis Carroll)

Also...I am so happy that I have been able to get some things ready for hand quilting, applique, embroidery, etc. It's been a long time!  I really need to be able to do something with my hands in the evenings; however, with my husband John being ill for so long I've just not found the time until very recently. 

 

Hearts and Hands Finished!

Hearts and Hands

54 x 69

It's a finish!

My 17 year old granddaughter Kayla passed away unexpectedly on January 15, 2022. After an autopsy and some further genetic testing the cause of death was ruled "probable cardiac arrhythmia". Needless to say I am still grieving her death.   

After her death several members of the Sunshine Online Quilt Guild (SOQG)  sent me some Heart Blocks and some Hand Blocks as a show of their sympathy and support. SOQG is an online charity quilting group. 

I made a few more Heart blocks and some little  4 inch Friendship Star blocks and put all the blocks together into a quilt top back in February 2023.

I hand quilted it with black perle #12. 

Sadly, Carol, who made the block with the lace cuff, passed away the same year (if I remember correctly) as Kayla.   

I wrote the maker names in permanent marker next to each hand. 

The backing is as colorful as the front. I had to insert a couple of strips of buttterflies to make it big enough. The binding is a mottled rainbow with some black stripes. 

The black hand quilting on the block blends right into the backing. 

This one is for me! 

And sew on...

Finished Or Not Finished Friday at Alycia Quilts

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CELEBRATE! (my word of the year)

October 31 - Granddaughter Isabelle's 20th birthday!  (She was born 5 weeks before her cousin Kayla). 

 

Halloween Postcards Finish

Halloween Postcards

It's a finish!

45 x 60

I finished the top back in May 2021.   That year  I  made three different tops with big prints using the Double Sawtooth pattern from Quilter's Cache. It's a good pattern for big prints because the center of the block is 9.5 inches. 

With this quilt I also used up almost all of my Halloween fabrics. Some went into the pieced backing I made at the same time I made the top. 

I quilted it on my DSM (Brother PQ1500SL) with swirls in black thread. I really wanted to use orange thread but didn't have any and had plenty of black. I usually use lime green thread to quilt on black but decided to see how black thread would look since I have a few other quilt tops with black backgrounds that need quilting. 

I said I was going to try to get bigger quilts finished the rest of the year; however, this one in the to-be-quilted pile I'm trying to reduce already had a pieced backing made and since it 'tis the season it went under the needle. 

This one will go to my granddaughter Isabelle who was born on Halloween. She will be 20 this year! 

And sew on...

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CELEBRATE! (my word of the year)

Oct. 28 -- A roll of batting magically appeared at my door. I did manage to track down the sender. Thanks, Teresa! Now there is now excuse for moving forward on getting some twin sized quilts finished!

Oct. 29 - I early voted!   That triggered a few memories... I remember the first time I voted was 1972. At age 20 I was able and very excited to vote that year because the 26th ammendment (1971) lowered the voting age from 21 to 18. McGovern and Nixon were the candidates for president.  At around the same time in 1972 Iowa lowered the legal drinking age to 19 so I was able to sit in a bar and order a drink. So, lucky me...I didn't have to wait for my 21st birthday in order to vote or drink.   I also remember reading The Making of the President 1960 by Theodore White in my American Government class in high school and was rather surprised to read that a lot more than votes went into the making of a president. 

 

Bramble Blooms II Update

Audrey from Quilty Folk is hosting a Quilt Along (QAL) called Bramble Blooms - an "informal, structured, yet unquestionably improv. style of QAL" that will include prompts for making a series of 3 quilts. 

Our first step of the Bramble Blooms QAL was to make three piles of fabrics for the three quilts in the series. All three of my piles started with orange and lime green bits and pieces. Each of the three piles had more greens added plus an additional color. Bramble Bloom I had purple added. Bramble Bloom II has pink added. Bramble Bloom III will include aqua/turquoise. 

I completed the top for Bramble Blooms I and now am working on Bramble Blooms II. 

I completed the Bramble Blooms I center piece  back in May. 

" BBII: First Border Prompt

Putting together the first border in the 2nd Bramble Blooms quilt. Making connections with the first BB quilt but trying for a new look."

The first border contains 8 inch Quarter Square Triangles (QSTs) but instead of lime green and orange like the center piece the blocks are made of other greens and pink. AND instead of alternating the colors of the blocks in the layout like I did with the centerpiece I matched up the greens and the pink/orange in the second border. Doesn't really seem like a border but that's how I introduced pink into the quilt and I was not really feeling inspired to do much of anything after thinking about it for a long while. 

" BBII: Second Border Prompt

Sewing the second and last border onto the quilt. Considering making it with random pieces of fabric in a simple yet improv. style. Adding applique motifs in the same style as the first BBI quilt. The choice to include bias vine, including a tutorial for making your own bias vine without any special tools. "

Ok. So, I've never added an applique border let along an improv appliqued  border. So, I've never made a bias vine or bias binding for anything.  I know it is recommended that the applique be done before it is added to the quilt; however, I don't think I can do that so I've gone and added the border - that lime green, pink and white floral. I'm thinking I will applique some vining roses going around the corners. That means I will make some bias vines for the first time and add some needle turned rose leaves. And then, I hope to add some ruched roses if I can remember how to make them from those days long ago when I used to do quite a bit of crazy quilting.  If my ruched roses don't turn out then I might try some broderie perse roses.   So, if I get as far as rambling roses in my corners then I might add some butterflies to the rest of the border. Or not. 

So my next step is to make a bias vine. I've cleared off my little 18 x 24 cutting mat now I just need to gather my vine fabrics and go for it. 

And sew on...

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CELEBRATE! (my word of the year)

October 27 - Beautiful pink sky at sunrise. 

AND I finished a book! - I Will Close My Eyes by Amy Fillion.  Barbara, Martha's best friend since the age of 3 passes away. 101 year old Martha remembers their lives together.  This is not the usual type of book I read; however, I have to say it was light reading and a pretty good book that covered a lot of different life issues and how they were dealt with by different characters. 

 

Bits and Pieces

It's been a busy couple of weeks; however, in bits of time  I have worked on a few Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC) blocks. 

I had accumulated a lot of brown 2.5 inch width scraps. I've been making quarter stars to be turned into full stars later on. I think this is the last of my longer scraps so now I need to see how many stars I can make from the quarter star pieces. 

I made a few Boo Boo Patches from gray 1.5 inch scraps. 

And I now have met my goal of 300 - 4 inch finished Windmill blocks for a 15 x 20 block layout which will make for a 60 x 80 inch quilt. 

And sew on...

RSC ScrapHappy Saturday

 

A Finish! Peacock Feathers

It's a finish!

Peacock Feathers

60 x 80

If you are interested you can read about the making of this quilt from beginning to quilt top 2017 - 2021 on my December 2021 blog post. 

The tumblers were cut from 4.5 inch width strips with the EZ Dresden ruler. The scraps were left over from making a Peacock Fan quilt (in the quilting queue since 2017). 

Back in 2017 peacock fabrics must have been the rage because I remember there sure were a lot of different ones in the stores. I think I must have bought a 1/4 to 1/2 yard of dozens of them. 

I quilted it on my DSM (Brother PQ1500SL) with squiggles and loops in a variegated thread. 

The binding is scrappy - different purples from the leftover binding box. The backing is half peacock feathers and half dotty. 

And sew on...

Finished Or Not Finished Friday at Alycia Quilts

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CELEBRATE! (my word of the year)

October 18 - I treated myself to some new fabrics. It's been quite awhile since I've bought any fabric. I received an email from Marshall Dry Goods that they had a new line of "vintage florals" for $5.99 per yard. I had to look. Then I had to buy some - a yard of about a dozen different florals. Most featured roses. I do love roses! 

October 19 - Shipped 6 quilts to the coordinator for Quilts Beyond Borders and Wrap-A- Smile. She will get them to the programs where they are needed most.  And speaking of shipping....I ship packages using the free Pirate Ship software. I have found it easy to use, compare costs and print labels. Then all I have to do is drop off packages at a UPS drop off location. 

October 20 - Finished a book! - This Savage World by Anna Housego.  Historical fiction. A woman in England is sentenced for theft to transportation in 1790 to Australia leaving behind a young daughter. 

October 21 - Received a box of scraps from Donna! 

October 22 - I bought new work boots.  The bottoms had started to come off my boots so I duct taped around the top of my shoes hoping to get through the rest of the gardening season that way. BUT while digging with a shovel the duct tape broke, snagged on the shovel and sent me tumbling. I went on line and ordered new boots that same day. 

October 23 - Finished a book! - The Innocent by David Baldacci. Mystery thriller. #1 in the Will Robie, government assassin, series. It was definitely a mystery thriller. 

October 24 - Finished clearing an area of invasive honeysuckle for a new goth/moon garden. More on that later. 

October 25 - Rain!  We haven't had much lately and are in a severe drought area.  This is the first time in over 30 years that my little man   woman made pond has run dry. It had several inches of mud in the bottom so I dug all that out and put in my veg garden.