QUILTING IN OZ

Blogation

2012-01-06T15:27:00.002-06:00

I'm sure I don't need to point out that since finishing my Dutch Treat #3 quilt last month, I really haven't had much to share in the way of quilting. I've been doing a little bit of piecing, both by hand and by machine on a couple of different projects. Nothing to stir great excitement. Truth be told I'm feeling a bit of burn out. I don't see myself giving up quilting by any means, but I think I may slow down even more for awhile. I have some other projects I'd like to work on.

I also am feeling like I need a break from blogland. So if you don't see me on here for awhile don't assume the worst. Now that I've announced I'm taking a break I suppose tomorrow something will happen that I just have to blog about. Then again, maybe not.

I'll still be reading blogs so I can stay in touch with my cyber friends.

Wishing you all a happy and productive 2012 and I'll see you all later!

Merry Christmas

2011-12-24T09:46:00.001-06:00

Having a wonderful time. Oldest son and his wife from Arizona arrived last Saturday and will stay until next Monday morning. Youngest son and his wife from Iowa were here T-W-T but had to go home Friday morning. Middle son, his wife, youngest daughter and her daughter, all from Missouri, were here for a full day on Thursday (those who work in retail don't get a lot of time off during Christmas). We'll see the Missouri folks again tomorrow when we travel to our other Granddaughter's home tomorrow. But I at least got one day with all three sons together and I am grateful. It had been four years since it last happened.

With sons Jeff, Mike, Mark

Tom and I with all four sons (son Jean-Richard in the painting on the left is deceased). We didn't plan the picture this way, but it is sort of cool it worked out that way.

Mark (middle child), Jeff (youngest), Mike (oldest)

Four Generations

Mark, Mary, Alyxandria, Caitlin

The daughter-in-laws

Deb (Jeff), Stephanie (Mark), Lindy (Mike)

Miss Aly--getting ready to walk

Aly in the cap and poncho I crocheted last week at her mom's request (not a lot of quilting going on lately, but I haven't been totally idle)

Lots of calories consumed

And lots of cards played

And because you can never have too many cute baby pics (at least I can't)

Wishing all my friends in blogland a Merry Christmas and healthy, prosperous New Year.

Dutch Trade is Done!

2011-12-14T18:20:00.000-06:00

A Christmas present to myself...my third Dutch Treat quilt, which I'm calling "Dutch Trade" is now finished! Tom says it is the best of the three.

I will need help getting a good full on picture. But for now here are a few angle shots

The individual blocks and progress pictures of this quilt can be seen here

Dutch Treat #1 can be seen here

Dutch Treat #2 can be seen here

Is there a fourth one in my future?

Goodies

2011-12-09T16:10:00.000-06:00

Trying to get a few goodies made in preparation for Christmas week. This year is one of the special ones when we'll have the three sons with us, at least for a few days prior to Christmas, if not on Christmas Day (Iowa DIL has to work that day).

Yesterday I made some Munchy Crunchies, a candy I've been making for about 40 years. The original recipe called for chow mein noodles, but somewhere along the line I started using shoestring potatoes instead and we like them better. The salt in the potatoes is a nice contrast to the sweetness of the chips.
Sorry I forgot to take a picture before putting them in the freezer (away from temptation) but here's one I found on the internet

MUNCHY CRUNCHIES

These have been a particular family favorite for many years.

6 oz. chocolate chips

6 oz. butterscotch chips

2 (3 oz) cans of chow-mein noodles

1 C. peanuts (optional)

Spread candy evenly in an 11 or 12-inch electric skillet. Set control at 200º. Cover; cook 5 minutes. Stir to combine softened candy; mixture may not be smooth. Add noodles & nuts; stir until coated. Remove from heat. Drop by teaspoons onto waxed paper.

Variations:

**I prefer using shoestring potatoes. The saltiness gives excellent contrast to the sweetness of the chips. I often substitute peanut butter chips for the butterscotch chips and I never include nuts.

I had a big can of shoestring potatoes so there was some left over after making the candy. I decided to try using them as a substitute (actually in addition to) the potato chips in these long time favorite cookie. I made them today and they turned out great

POTATO CHIP COOKIES

I first made these cookies about 1972 and they became one of our favorites. A great way to use the last broken chips in the bottom of a bag.

1 C. soft butter or margarine
1 tsp. vanilla
1 C. brown sugar
1 C. chopped walnuts (optional)
1 C. sugar
2 C. crushed potato chips
2 eggs, beaten
1 tsp. baking soda (optional)
2 ½ C. sifted flour (or slightly less)

Combine butter, sugars and egg in large mixing bow. Beat until creamy and smooth. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Roll in balls and place on greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 º for 12-15 minutes. Cookies will appear not done when first removed from oven. Let set a few minutes before moving from sheet to cooling racks. Makes about 6 ½ dozen.

Note: Can add butterscotch chips or oatmeal or coconut and less flour. Pecans are good in place of walnuts.

Happy Baking!

Christmas Wallhangings

2011-12-05T23:09:00.000-06:00

Since I haven't had any finishes to show for awhile (well I finished a T-shirt quilt last week, but haven't taken a picture yet), I thought I'd share some pictures of the wallhangings I got out to hang today. I've shown several of them before, but it's been a couple of years at least, so maybe they will be new to some of you and the rest will have forgotten they've seen them.

Frosty (aka "Fumity"). This one is an original design. It has glittery pom-poms for snowballs and white paint sponged on the tree fabric.

Santa in the Trees. The tree blocks are based on a published pattern, but the Santa is my design. I used the "strings" from a recyled chenile bedspred for his beard.

"All Tangled Up". Pattern found in a magazine.

"Chillin' With Sue". the Skating Sue is a published pattern. The others are my designs.

My December table runner

"Crazy Patch Santa". My original border around redwork embroidery

"The Road Home". Another crazy patch border around embroidery.

"Winter Trees"

That's what I have left. Many others made and given away. Guess I need to make some new Christmas decorations one of these days. Happy Holidays!

Childhood Games

2011-12-04T11:59:00.000-06:00

Trying to go to sleep last night I started thinking about the outdoor games we played in the 1950's and how sad it seems to me that my great-grands may never enjoy this kind of simple fun, preferring cableTV, computers and electronic games.

How many of you remember playing Fox and Geese after a nice big snow?

And just making huge snowmen and snow forts?

Or Red Rover in the warmer months?

Also Kick the Can?

Annie, Annie Over?

Crack the Whip?

Roller skating up and down the sidewalks and back and forth to school with our skate key on a string around our necks. It was the height of fashion to make a braided chain out of yarn or string for your key.

Hour and hours spent in the municipal swimming pool playing Bird Catch (though I have no idea why we called it that or exactly what the rules were..basically a tag game).

What fun times we had growing up in a small Iowa town when it was safe for kids to be gone for hours without cell phones to keep in touch.

Parents didn't have to max out credit cards to buy Christmas presents for us. I even got the same doll for more than one Christmas. I told that story here

In this picture my cousin Phyllis is holding that doll, with my sister and me sitting behind her.

Miss those simple days!

Lastly, because this is a quilting blog..a couple of pics of the progress being made in quilting the borders on Dutch Treat #3. Two borders done..two more to go and then bind the scalloped edge. !

Think I'll make it by the end of the year? "2011" is appliqued on the botton border, so I'd better

Quilting Again

2011-11-27T09:42:00.000-06:00

The corners are appliqued with butterflies

And one side border is mostly quilted

Happy Sunday!

Border Progress

2011-11-22T23:04:00.001-06:00

Someone asked me last night if I'd been sick since I hadn't been posting regularly. Nope..not sick..just haven't had anything new to post. I've been working on the appliqued borders for Dutch Treat #3 and last night I finished the 4th side. Just have to decide what I'm going to do in the corners and then it will be time to start quilting the borders.

Took some time out this afternoon to start working on a memorial T-shirt quilt for one of the daughter-in-laws who lost her brother earlier this year. And in the middle of doing that we had a surprise visit from Great-grand#5 (aka Aly).

Much more fun than quilting!

Center Finished

2011-11-08T14:10:00.000-06:00

Last night I finished the quilting on the 196 center 4" blocks.

Close up of one section. Wish the quilting showed

Now "all" that is left is to add the four outer borders, design the applique for them, do the applique, quilt them and lastly bind the quilt. It will be another scalloped edge like the first two.

Not sure why the quilting is taking longer this time, but I've spent a little more than 3 months on just this part of it. I started the quilt in April. Still hope to have it done by the end of the year.

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T21:16:00.000-05:00

Quilting on the third Dutch Treat quilt is going slowly so nothing to show in the quilting line.

Had so much fun tonight at our church handing out candy and hotdogs to the little ones and not so little ones.

The Great Pumplin, aka Tom

County Fair Quilter's Quilt Show

2011-10-23T15:11:00.001-05:00

A beautiful weekend to attend a great quilt show in Claremore, Oklahoma. The Country Fair Quilt Guild hosts an annual show and they do a fantastic job. There were about 200 entries, lots of demonstrations, bed turnings, vendors, etc.

I didn't get pictures of everything..even forgot to take a picture off my Dutch Gold which won another blue ribbon..how'd I forget that???????????????

But here are the pictures I got with labels indicating the winning Best of Choice and Viewer's Choice quilts as well as those entered by members of our Pittsburg, Little Balkan's Guild.

Enjoy the show by clicking here

Five Generations, Times Three

2011-10-21T09:26:00.000-05:00

It's hard to believe it's been 2 weeks since I've posted. Thanks to those who have inquired about my welfare. I'm fine..it's just been an insanely busy time. I think all will settle down now.

One of the fun things going on was a visit from my mother and sister who live in Iowa. They were here for five days and last Sunday we were able to gather together five generations. My mom had yet to meet the newest great-great grandchild and it had been five years since she had seen the other two. All together we have five, with the other two living on the east coast.

In the picture above are my mother Marie (Iowa), son Mark and granddaughters Ashley and Caitlin (all MO), great-grands Aly, Jeramiah and Maison (all MO) and myself in Kansas.

And here is Mom and I with the little ones

We are fortunate to be able to enjoy five generations but believe it or not we actually had six living generations at one point in the 1980's!

Perhaps now I can get back to some quilting. Quilt show in OK this weekend!

All Those Feathers From Just 3 Birds!

2011-10-06T17:57:00.000-05:00

My Baltimore Album Sampler is finally done..5 years after starting the applique blocks. About half of them were done 2006-7. Then the project got put aside for a few years. I finished the applique blocks last year and once again set it aside to be quilted. Got most of the quilting done before we left for Iowa last week. Monday and Tuesday I finished quilting the borders with lots of random feathers. Yesterday and today I put the binding on.

I'll have to get better pictures when I have help holding it up or a rack to hang it on.

Home Again

2011-10-03T09:48:00.002-05:00

We're back home. Enjoyed seeing family in Iowa and had a terrific time at the AQS Show in Des Moines on Saturday.

It was such an honor to have my Dutch Gold hanging in the show with so many awesome quilts.

I'm restricted in posting pictures of the show quilts without owner's consent, but you can view the winning quilts on the AQS site by clicking here.

The Des Moines Area Quilt Guild also held their show in an adjoining building. My camera battery decided to die shortly after we started viewing the quilts and I left my spare in the car so I didn't get many pictures. This was one of my favorites of those I did get

I think ultimately there will be pictures from the show posted on the guild's website and it will be worth your time to take a look. There were some really great quilts!

Des Moines Area Quilt Guild

Gorgeous weather, gorgeous quilts, time with family!!! It was a good week.

Now back to quilting.

Blocks 24 & 25

2011-09-25T14:32:00.000-05:00

I have the last two blocks quilted and I'll be taking a blogging break and a short trip while I decide how I'm going to quilt the border. These blocks were fun to quilt once I got started. I haven't done a lot of machine quilting this past year so I felt like I'd forgotten how.

Five More, Two To Go

2011-09-24T15:41:00.000-05:00

Finish line is in sight

I still have to go back and quilt something in the sashings and of course there is the border.

Tornado Alley

2011-09-23T11:06:00.002-05:00

This week's theme for the Quilt Gallery contest is Tablerunners and I submitted one of my favorites.

In 2006 my friend, Cynthia, from Iowa Star Quilts offered a free tablerunner pattern every month. I'm lucky to be a pattern tester for her. She called her April pattern "Storm Signal" but since I live in Kansas now, I called mine "Tornado Alley".

I quilted it with silver metallic thread (Glitter from Superior Threads). Click on the picture to enlarge even more

You can see all 12 of my runners here

You can order a book with all 12 patterns and pictures of both Cynthia and my runners here

If you'd like to vote for my runner you can do so here

Thank you to those who do. If you see another you like better, vote for it instead or in addition to mine. You can vote for up to four entries.

Four More Baltimore Blocks Quilted

2011-09-22T16:45:00.000-05:00

I think four of these in one day is too many..at least that is what my neck and shoulders are whispering in my ear.

Seven more blocks to go.

Jasper Quilt Show

2011-09-20T23:42:00.001-05:00

Friday we drove over to Jasper, MO to take a few quilts for their annual show and Saturday we went back to view all of the quilts on display and then bring ours home. I had four entries and Tom two and we brought home ribbons on everything. Most important (to Tom anyway) is that he beat me once again..taking a blue ribbon in a category where I got a third place! How do you like those apples?

As is the case every year there were some really cool quilts.

Here are some of my favorites:
An antique Grandmother's Flower Garden

Look at the size of those tiny hexagons!

Another cool antique quilt. I will have to try and find the name of this pattern.

Beautiful hand applique, hand quilted

A lovely blue version of Sylvia's Bridal Sampler

A very interesting Cathedral Window quilt. How unique is this?

Not all of the "windows" were opened.

Each year there are some really beautiful embroidered quilts in this show

A really pretty Double Wedding Ring took 1st place in the machine quilted category. My "Waste Not' placed second. The red and blue quilt on the right took third place

Nancy Perez from our Joplin Town and Country guild entered her two gorgeous applique quilts in the Applique-Machine Quilted category. That's my Orange Co. Baltimore in the middle sporting another blue ribbon.

Isn't this just the cutest quilt?

Small Wall hangings..That's Tom's on the left, mine on the right

I love, love, love this Jack's Chain quilt that was started by the grandmother of the woman who finished it. This pattern has been on my to-do list for a long time.

My Raggedy and Friends that I still think is ugly got another blue ribbon in the child quilt category

And Tom's Teddy Bear's Parade in the same category got a 2nd place red

Hope you enjoyed the show. I have pictures from two trunk shows over the last two days that I'll try and get posted before we leave for Iowa next week.

A Few More BA Blocks

2011-09-16T16:01:00.000-05:00

Quilting is slowly progressing.

Another Baltimore

2011-09-13T18:43:00.000-05:00

Last week I began quilting a Baltimore Album top that I started in 2006. I finally finished the applique blocks last year so it's past time it was quilted.

I have a hard time getting pictures that show the quilting. These were taken without a flash in the hopes the quilting would show up. Unfortunately that also means the colors are muted and a bit blurry.

These are the blocks I've quilted so far

17 more blocks to go plus the border. This may take awhile.

Paducah

2011-09-12T11:42:00.001-05:00

Dutch Gold has been safely delivered to Paducah AQS headquarters to be shipped to Des Moines for the show the end of this month. I still think I will feel like the country girl who goes to town wearing the wrong clothes when I see it hanging among the awesome quilts I know will be there.

It was a beautiful drive over to Paducah with good friends riding along for company. We took in the AQS Museum of course.

Sorry we couldn't take pictures of the wonderful quilts on display. I was particulary thrilled to be able to view up close the two beautiful quilts by Susan Stewart . As I've mentioned before, Susan lives here in Pittsburg and I've seen several of her amazing quilts in person.

I knew that "Gloria's Garden" won a purchase award last year so I wasn't surprised to see it hanging. But I was surprised to see "Every Cloud Has a Silver Lining" and learn that Susan donated it to the museum to thank them for the wonderful job they did producing the show following the flood in Paducah.

Can you imagine giving away something you've put this much work into? What a generous spirit Susan has. The quilt takes your breath away! Please read about it here.

More beautiful weather this week. Hope you all have the same.

Lots of Heart

2011-09-05T14:12:00.001-05:00

Spending today relaxing after all the activity surrounding our guild's quilt show. Also getting Dutch Gold ready to deliver to Paducah this week. I'm still so thrilled to know it will hang in such elite company the end of this month.

Early last week I finished most of the piecing for a project I started a few months ago.

At this point it's a true charm quilt with no repeats of the colored fabrics.

Still haven't decide what I'm going to do about a border or borders. It's already over 80" square.

Won't be much sewing going on this week.

I'm Thrilled!

2011-09-03T17:23:00.000-05:00

I was already more than pleased with the ribbons I'd won with my entries in our quilt show. But today ended with the announcement I'd won Viewer's Choice with Dutch Gold! I'm totally thrilled. Especially since last year my blue Dutch Treat quilt missed winning Viewer's Choice by one vote (and that after Tom had already informed me that while he usually votes for one of my quilts, that year he decide to vote for something else!).

It's a terrible picture of me, but I sure do like all those ribbons..1st place Applique, Hand Quilted, Work of One Person; Celebrity Judge Award (Pittsburg Mayor), Viewer's Choice.

Little Balkan's Quilt Guild 2011 Quilt Show

2011-09-03T08:27:00.000-05:00

It's hard to believe that it's Labor Day weekend already. Where has the year gone? And that means it's Little Balkan's Days in Pittsburg and today and tomorrow is our guild's quilt show.

So much work goes into staging this annual show. Thursday I spent the day assisting with scribing as the judging took place. Yesterday the quilts were hung. It was amazing to see how organized things were this year. 165 entries were hung by mid afternoon. Having the some PSU basketball players there to assist with the final step of raising the poles is so helpful!

And today and tomorrow Tom and I will spend hours surrounded by beauty! Each year the quilts are more amazing than the last. We'll take turns with others working as hostesses, selling donation quilt tickets, etc. It takes lots of people to put on a quilt show and we are fortunate to have wonderful members who jump right in to help. I love this weekend!

So without further ado, here is some eye candy for you.

click here for slideshow of quilts

Good Things Come to Those Who Wait

2011-08-29T11:26:00.000-05:00

Two years ago, when I was the program chair for our Little Balkan's Quilt Guild I was excited to discover a quilter named Carlene Buck who made such intriguing and imaginative quilts. I booked her for a trunk show in August 2009. Unfortunately Carlene got sick and had to cancel. And since programs are pretty much booked a year in advance it wasn't until this month that we were able to reschedule Carlene.

But, WOW! I knew I'd love her quilts and the stories behind them, but they surpassed my expectations. What a wonderful night we had. You can visit Carlene on her website, Quiltbabble to learn more of the stories behind some of her quilts.

Two quilts in paricular were the reason I first became interested in meeting Carlene.

Armistice..Mom I'm Home

The back..mom with open arms

This is Carlene's quilt representing the soldiers returning from the Vietnam war. Some returned whole..others were missing pieces of themselves...and some didn't return at all. Mothers welcomed their sons home with prayers that this would never happen again (and unfortunately of course it has).

Another of Carlene's quilts is truly a masterpiece.
Holocaust: A Hate Movement

This is the explanation sheet Carlene passed out as she talked about her quilt

Holocaust: A Hate Movement

Carlene Buck visited Israel in 1992 with her church group from the Des Plaines First United Methodist Church,

Des Plaines, Illinois.

At the encouragement of a Jewish friend,

she requested the guide take them to Yad Vashem,

Israel

’s Holocaust Museum located near Jerusalem.

Carlene was very touched by the sculptures,

photos, documents and exhibits.

She knew God wanted her to make a quilt about the Holocaust and later visited the National Holocaust Museum in Washington, D. C.

All details (blocks titles, layout, colors, fabrics, quilting design, wording on blocks, etc.) were inspired by God.

She chose the block names from Barbara Brachman’s

Encyclopedia of Pieced Blocks.

The top border fabric represents ashes blowing in the sky.

The bottom border represents ashes in the furnaces.

The right border represents small tendrils of life growing from the ashes.

The hand quilting reflects the barbed wire fences in the camps.

The bright pastel print fabrics of the 1920’s and 1930’s

(on the left side of the quilt)

suggest life before the Nazi Party took control.

The solid colored fabrics depict the loss of joy

and the struggle to survive.

Black represents hate, red represents loss of life, orange fear, and brown the Nazi uniforms.

Blocks which have been pieced backwards

(with seam allowances on the surface of the quilt)

have the opposite meaning of the historical block name.

[Like Peaceful Hours and Peace and Plenty]

You can view a slideshow of the photos I took that night on my photobucket site
click here

Please don't miss the opportunity to see Carlene's quilts in person if you get the chance!

Quilting Progress

2011-08-24T10:42:00.000-05:00

The first four rows are quilted.

It's laying on top of another project I've been working on.

Trying to get quilting to show is always difficult.

I've received several siggies in the last couple of weeks.

Adrianne from the Netherlands

Marieke from the Netherlands

And sisters, Angela

and Deborah from South Australia

Receiving siggies makes me smile!

Buttons and Blooms & Butterflies Too!

2011-08-19T10:10:00.000-05:00

There are lots of terrific quilts in the weekly contest at Quilting Gallery. One of them is mine.

Buttons and Blooms and Butterflies Too! was a BOM by Appleblossom Quilts in 2006 I believe. Connie has wonderful applique patterns and has a yearly BOM for those who sign up to receive her free newsletter.

I added the three dimensional butterflies as my own touch.

I love the texture of this quilt

If you like it too, please hop over to Quilting Gallery and vote. Thanks!

Redwork Opportunity Quilt

2011-08-15T15:10:00.001-05:00

This quilt has won half a dozen or more blue ribbons and has been appraised at over $2,000. It could be yours! Made by members of the Little Balkan's Quilt Guild in Pittsburg, KS, it is a redwork quilt (see inset) which means a Christmas-themed picture is embroidered in red in each block. It is hand quilted. A $1 donation to the Little Balkans Quilt Guild gives you one chance to win the quilt. You can donate as much as you like, increasing your chances to win. What a deal! Let me know how many tickets you'd like to donate. The drawing will be held at the LBQG show over this Labor Day weekend. Send me an email if you'd like my snail mail address.

Waste Not

2011-08-14T15:02:00.000-05:00

The quilting on Dutch Treat #3 (aka Dutch Trade) may be going slow, but I finished another quilt made from the SCRAPS of DT3. Remember a few months ago I showed what I was doing with the skinny little strips left over from trimming these blocks

Here's where I talked about it

I'm so glad I decided to sew these as I trimmed, because I now have a completed quilt instead of the boxes of trimmings that I have left from DT #1 and #2. Sitting down and sewing all of them together is going to be a long boring task that may or may not ever happen.

But since I worked on these a few at a time, I now have this

I machine quilted it Thursday and Friday. Yesterday I decided to add some Broderie Perse applique to three of the corners

It has a wild orange back with some gold detail that doesn't show well in this picture.

None of these are very good pictures and I apologize for that. This was another quilt on which I used Superior Thread's King Tut "Old Giza". I absolutely love this color of variegated KT thread and it ends up working well on many of my quilts lately. Who would think that looking at it on the spool

I had a terrible time thinking of a name for this quilt, until a friend on Facebook suggested "Waste Not". I think that will be it unless some of you have better suggestion? Thinking of names may be the hardest part of making quilts. Do you name yours?

Slow Progress

2011-08-11T11:18:00.001-05:00

Evenings are now spent quilting Dutch Treat #3 but I don't feel like it is going very quickly.When I did the first two I was able to average a row a week if not more, quilting the whole quilt (plus stopping to applique the borders) in 3 months. I started quilting this one July 25 and I'm not quite finished with two rows, so we'll see if I can catch up and maintain the pace.

It's really hard with my camera to get good shots that actually show the quilting. I'm still not the best hand quilter, but I'm no longer ashamed to show my stitches. That's improvement!

We've had a dramatic cool down in our temperatures. Almost feels like fall is in the air. With schools starting soon I suppose it really is.

Happy quilting.

I Love The Fair!

2011-08-07T16:37:00.001-05:00

(The blue and white on the right are Tom's)
The Grand Champion Quilt ribbon is the purple one..smaller than the Reserve Champion for some reason.

Raggedy and Friends

2011-08-01T10:02:00.001-05:00

With temps remaining over 100º over the weekend, it was good to stay inside and get my Raggedy and Friends top quilted. It feels good to cross another UFO off the list.

This was a free BOM from the Painted Quilt last year. Thank you Kaaren!

I didn't do the fancy quilting she did on hers. Just an overall stipple and a little quilting to add dimension in the embroidered blocks.

This may well be the homliest quilt I've made to date! LOL. That isn't a reflection on the pattern..it's cute as can be. I just don't like my fabric choices for once.

Stay cool everyone. No end to the heat for us.

Teddy Bear's Picnic

2011-07-27T22:52:00.002-05:00

I haven't taken the time to post anything for over a week, but I have been busy.

First of all, Tom's quilt "Teddy Bear's Picnic" is finished as of this evening. He finished putting it together last week end after finding some fabric that would work for an outer border at JoAnn's.

Yesterday and today I quilted it for him and did the binding this afternoon and evening (he really dislikes that job).

Here is the finished quilt

I just love the color play in this quilt!

He came up with the vision for this quilt after seeing the Bear Tracks pattern on Quilter's Cache. He based it on the song "Teddy Bear's Picnic", a song from the 1930's. An interesting trivia fact....it was used by Jerry Garcia as a tuning song.

Here are the lyrics:
If you go down to the woods today
You're sure of a big surprise.
If you go down to the woods today
You'd better go in disguise.
For ev'ry bear that ever there was
Will gather there for certain, because
Today's the day the teddy bears have their picnic.
Ev'ry teddy bear who's been good
Is sure of a treat today.
There's lots of marvelous things to eat
And wonderful games to play.
Beneath the trees where nobody sees
They'll hide and seek as long as they please
Cause that's the way the teddy bears have their picnic.
If you go down to the woods today
You'd better not go alone.
It's lovely down in the woods today
But safer to stay at home.
For ev'ry bear that ever there was
Will gather there for certain, because
Today's the day the teddy bears have their picnic.
Picnic time for teddy bears
The little teddy bears are having a lovely time today
Watch them, catch them unawares
And see them picnic on their holiday.
See them gaily gad about
They love to play and shout;
They never have any care;
At six o'clock their mummies and daddies,
Will take them home to bed,
Because they're tired little teddy bears.

edit: actually I looked at a slightly different version when I did the quilting which says "if you go out in the woods today" rather than "if you go down to the woods today". Both Tom and I are more familiar with the version I used.

Many people are familiar with the first verse or two, but don't know the suggestion of it being "safer to stay at home". Tom wanted to have fun with that. So his quilt has teddy bears picnicing (well actually it's Christmas fabric but they have a basket, and Tom says with their fur coats they can picnic in December) but also the scarier bears....in other words "every bear that ever there was" happen to be in this woods.

It's made of flannel and to date the most complicated piecing he's done. I warned him that piecing HST's from flannel wasn't going to be real easy, but he ended up doing a really good job. (Dare I say he has a good teacher?)

And I quilted the words from a couple of the lyrics in the outer borders.

More of the forest fabric was used for the backing

Didn't he do a great job?

For myself, I finished embroidering the final blocks for the Raggedy Ann and Andy BOM and set the blocks together. I'm ready to start quilting it in a day or two.

I have the first four rows of Dutch Treat #3 layered and started hand quilting it last night. Here's what it looks like spray basted and ready to quilt.

I'm doing it "quilt as you go" like the first two. After these first four rows are quilted, I'll add two more rows to the right side, quilt them, add two more, etc. until all 14 rows are done. Then I applique, add and quilt the borders. Works well for me as I quilt in my lap without a hoop.

When the applique blocks are trimmed to 4 1/2" from the original 6" working squares, I've saved all those trimmed ends. I have two boxes full of them from the first two DT's. This time I decided to work with them as I was doing the applique so that it wouldn't be such a daunting task all at once. I made strips of no sent length, using whatever I trimmed each session. Now I've cut those into 4 and 5" blocks, bordering the 4" ones with a brown frame and then piecing all together. So far I have this much set together.

LOTS and LOTS of seams which may make it a nightmare to quilt. We'll have to see.

That's what I've been doing. How about you?

For Posterity

2011-07-19T10:59:00.000-05:00

Do you keep track of the quilts you make? Do you take pictures? Scrapbook about them? Make lists for insurance purposes? Label each quilt?

All of those are good ideas, but if you are like me, it is much more fun to actually be working on a quilt, than spending time writing about them. I try to do it all, but sometimes I put it off much too long.

TO THE RESCUE............

A few days ago I received a copy of a wonderful new software program called "Quilt Album"

It is an easy software that helps you keep a quilting journal- a database that keeps all the important information about your quilts in one place and makes it simple to print it out for different purposes.

You have spent many hours creating your quilts – this program creates a lasting and complete record of your work - for yourself or for your descendants!

For every quilt you can store as many pictures and information as you want. And you can easily print out those photos and information – as pages that you can bind into a physical album.

Since I have only had the program for a couple of days, here is just a quick example of what an album page might look like for the quilt I finished yesterday.

I will share more examples with you as I create them over the next few weeks. But I can tell just from a short time testing it out that it is something that will save me a ton of time making labels, and documenting my quilts. I have kept picture journals from the very beginning, but confess as time has gone on, I've become more and more lax in documenting all the facts about each quilt. With Quilt Album I can do that in a jiffy! And I can define a template that will include all the things I want to remember to include.

For now I hope you will take a few moments to watch this video and start imaging how Quilt Album can make your life easier.

When you are ready to get your own copy use the coupon code below or on my sidebar to get $5 off the purchase price. You will be so glad you did!

Finished!

2011-07-18T15:13:00.000-05:00

Last stitch in the binding this afternoon. So happy to have this one finished.

Orange County Baltimore pattern by Lyn Brown

82 X 90"

Needleturn applique, machine quilted

Final Border Left

2011-07-17T09:07:00.000-05:00

Only the final border remains to be quilted. Hopefully that will happen today after church.

Progress

2011-07-16T11:09:00.000-05:00

Still have at least a full day of quilting left to do on the Orange Co. Baltimore.
Here are some preview pics. It's hard to get the quilting to show.

Happy Saturday!

Where Did I Go?

2011-07-15T10:33:00.000-05:00

It seems odd not to have Dutch Treat blocks to work on. So what have I been doing? I've taken a few days to decide what batting and backing I want to use on the DT quilt. I think I've settled on a wool bat this time. That may make the hand quilting even easier.

I've spent this week machine quilting my Orange Co. Baltimore top.

All of the individual blocks are quilted. I'm working on the sashings and then I have to decide on border quilting.

In the evenings I've been working on the embroidery in the last three Raggedy Ann and Andy blocks.

I have to admit I'm missing my DT blocks!

Happy Weekend everyone.

Ready to Start Quilting

2011-07-11T17:45:00.000-05:00

I'll be working on the hand quilting in the evening (trying to get some machine work done in the daytime). I'll quilt as you go in sections as I did the first two. I think I will like this one best of all.

95 Days

2011-07-11T16:40:00.001-05:00

The last three Dutch Treat blocks are done

Wrought Iron

Zig Zag

Zygote

95 days..196 blocks..let the quilting begin!

Also received this great siggy in the mail today from Simonetta in Italy.

She also included some great pictures and information about her beautiful corner of the world. Thank you!

Closer and Closer

2011-07-10T10:22:00.000-05:00

Four more Dutch Treat blocks

Wheels On Fire

Windmill

Window

Wooden Shoe

And then there were three..left that is!

Happy Sunday

Getting Close

2011-07-08T09:49:00.000-05:00

Some of least favorite blocks are in the last row. For one reason or another most of these take a bit longer.

Undergrowth

Valentine

Violets

Waiting For Life

Wallpaper

Water Lily

Only 7 more blocks to go!!!

Spent most of yesterday with a friend removing the machine basting on two of the tops and in basting them. Still have 3 more tops that will need that done, but I can only quilt one at a time, so we'll save those for another day or two.

Twizzler

2011-07-06T10:11:00.002-05:00

Well, it was an interesting verdict, to say the least, but I'm not going to discuss that.

I made it through the dreaded block.

This is what Twizzler looks like in the book

Lots of little areas..TINY little shapes. The worst, and what always makes me dread this block is the little indentations in the middle of the "twizzly" shapes. With something that small to begin with (remember these are 4" finished blocks) making that shape just isn't easy, at least I don't find it so.

This was my block for Dutch Treat #1

Some of them look okay, others are really wonky. And the most important thing..I DID NOT enjoy making it.

Here is the block from #2 Dutch Gold

Maybe a tad bit better, but I still DID NOT enjoy making the block.

So this time I decided it was time for a change and I just made them as pure ovals (for lack of a better word)

They still aren't perfect, but the process of making the block was much more enjoyable and kind of fun watching the colors come out. It still took me most of the day to make.

Whew..I'm glad it's done. 13 more to go.

We're off to Joplin for a doctor's appointment this afternoon. It will be the first time since the tornado. I'm really not looking forward to it.

My Heart is Pounding!

2011-07-05T12:53:00.000-05:00

Just a few minutes ago it was announced there is a verdict in the high profile murder trial I've been glued to for the last few weeks. So I'm excited about that.

But about half an hour before that announcement our mail came.................

And guess what was in the mail?????????

Documents relating to the acceptance of my second Dutch Treat quilt.."Dutch Gold" into the juried AQS Des Moines Show Sept 28-Oct 1.

I am in absolute shock and at the same time scared to death! I'm not sure exactly why. I've entered many of my quilts in many shows. But with the exception of the Oklahoma Winter Show, none have been juried and certainly none have held the prestige of an AQS show. So I am humbled and honored.

I can't imagine that I will have any chance in the world of winning against the other 230 juried quilts. But I'll be happy to count this as a high point in my quilting life...just to be juried in.

Doing a happy dance.

Now, lets hear that verdict

Can You Believe It?

2011-07-04T23:20:00.000-05:00

Row 13 is finished! The trial is over (gone to the jury), so maybe I won't be spending as many hours sitting in the recliner listening to TV (I say listening since my eyes have obviously been on these blocks).

Swan

Sweet Pea

Target

Tea Cakes

Teddy Bear

Test Pattern

Tetras

The Alps

Tiara

Time Warp

Tree of Life

Trellis

Tulip

Twinkie

One row left..............

14 blocks................

Unfortunately, my least favorite block is next.

See you on the other side................

Teddy Bear Picnic

2011-07-04T20:12:00.001-05:00

Happy 4th of July to my American friends. We're especially in a celebratory mood today as our grandson returned home this week from his 2nd tour in Afghanistan. He's also done 1 year in Iraq so we are thankful to know that his next assignment will be Belgium.

We've had a picnic going on in the house today. Tom has been busily working on his Teddy Bear's Picnic quilt that he started a couple years ago. Last I checked he was chain piecing more HST's and commented that if voyagers and fur traders could festoon themselves with bear paws, he supposed crazy quilters could do the same!

He's really making progress and those points are looking pretty darn good! He said if he has any brain cells left after piecing this many HST's, he doesn't think anything about quilting will scare him again.

It's going to be a great quilt!

12 Weeks = 12 Rows

2011-07-01T17:55:00.001-05:00

Row 12 is done and I've regained my pace of a row a week.

Sprout

Square Dance

Squirrels

Star Fruit

Steps

Sunburst

Sunny Day

Only 28 more blocks to go!!!!!

Have a safe and happy 4th of July weekend and stay cool!

Seven More

2011-06-30T16:46:00.000-05:00

Okay, I have to admit I've been spending a whole lot of time glued to the TV watching the Casey Anthony trial. I won't get into my feelings about it. But it means I'm really blazing through these blocks. Yesterday and today's blocks follow.

Spinning Star

Spinning Wheel

Spirograph

Splash

Sprig

Spring Growth

Sprites

Heat advisory for today and the next few days, means it's a good time to be staying in the air conditioned comfort of my living room.

Row 11

2011-06-29T10:33:00.000-05:00

Smarties

Snowflake

Songbird

Southwest

Space Invaders

Spacemen

Spears

Row 11 complete

Three more rows to go and I can start quilting!

On Monday I received a beautiful siggie frorm Maree in Australia. I just love the cute little hexie flower.

Monday I quilted the little top I made in last week's workshop. First I added an additional border to make it a bit bigger. When I took the birthday quilt last week, the recipient commented she could use a quilt for the times she is in her wheelchair. This should now be the perfect size.

I just did simple overall free motion but I used one of my favorite King Tut threads (Old Giza) from Superior Threads. I just love the colors in it and it was perfect for this piece.

7 of 11

2011-06-26T16:12:00.000-05:00

Half of row 11 done since Friday.

Segments

Separate Tables

Shapes

Shasta Daisy

Shooting Stars

Silver Bells

Singleton

Had a great time at our church picnic this afternoon. The late morning showers cooled things down just enough to make it comfortable.

Row 10

2011-06-24T10:36:00.000-05:00

More Dutch Treat Blocks this week.

Queen of Spades

Remembrance

Riot of Growth

Rotunda

Sailboat

Salt & Pepper

Scallop

Schoolhouse

(I always dread this one..those windows are TINY)

Sconce

Sea Wave

Searching

Row 10

Rows 9 & 10

They'll be added as a section during the quilting process.

It's hard to believe that I only have 4 more rows to go. Getting to the "S" blocks seems like it must be close to the end. Then I remember there are 2 1/2 rows of "S" blocks. They seem to last forever!

The Gentlemen Quilters From Tulsa

2011-06-23T10:38:00.000-05:00

Monday afternoon I had a great time in workshop taught by Gary Wasson and Joe Galusha, aka The Gentlemen Quilters from Tulsa, OK. We all COMPLETED a wallhanging using their EZ Circles technique. While not an entirely new technique to me, they do use a slightly different method to achieve PERFECT circles with no sewing (3 different type glues were used).

Step one

Ready to apply to background fabric

The wallhangings required 4 circle blocks which took an hour or less to make

Three of them were sliced to make this 9-patch

And about 2 to 2 1/2 hours later we all had wallhangings made.

In the evening Gary and Joe gave a wonderful trunkshow which you can view here

I hope you enjoy!

Another Finish

2011-06-20T10:41:00.000-05:00

My finishes are few and far between so far this year. But I did get the Thangles top finished including binding it yesterday. Now it's been washed too.

Because I was working on the above quilt, I only managed to squeeze in 3 Dutch Treat blocks over the weekend.

Poirot

Pussy Willow

This is always one of Tom's favorites in each quilt. He refers to it as "that sparkler block"

Pyramid

I have a short workshop this afternoon and then guild tonight. Hope everyone is having a wonderful Monday.

Row 9

2011-06-18T15:59:00.000-05:00

More progress on Dutch Treat #3

Partridge

Pea Pod

Phazer

Piazza

Picture Frames

Pineapple

Pinwheels

Plantaganet

Here's row 9

And here's all 9 rows draped over a quilt rack (but not all joined together). It's become quite colorful!

I've also been machine quilting one of the tops I had basted last week. This one was made in 2006, if you can believe it. It was a BOM at my local quilt shop using Thangles . There would have only been 12 blocks but I wanted a bigger quilt, so I bought 3 of the strip sets each month and browsed a block encyclopedia to find more blocks that were composed entirely of HSTs and squares. I can't say I'm a fan of Thangles because I'm not. I still prefer to use oversized squares to make HSTs and then trim them to the perfect size.

Here I am working on the quilt.

But I ran into a problem..or as I prefer to call it..a design opportunity. The friend who basted my quilts on her long arm, lined up the top and batting EXACTLY with the edge of the backing when she started, rather than centering both on the backing as I had expected and do myself. I didn't realize that and started quilting in the center as I always do. The top also wasn't as taut as when I pin baste and moved as I quilted towards the outer edges. And then I realized I was going to be short of both batting and backing. Ugh...................I was heartsick.

I could think of a couple of solutions....one being to sew more backing along the short edge and then baste more batting butted up against the other. But the top had pieced cornerstones like this

And the way the top had shifted I was afraid I might run short of backing and batting at all four corners and with pieced blocks such as this I couldn't just trim them to fit.
So I removed them, added plain squares of the same fabric I used for cornerstones in the body of the quilt (a green print) and spent a couple of days appliquing flowers in each of them.

Now I'm ready to quilt the borders. I may even end up liking it better than the original design....maybe.

I'm trying not to think about the other (and much bigger) tops that were probably basted in the same manner.

Project First Day

2011-06-17T09:32:00.002-05:00

I apologize in advance for the length of this post, but it's important, so I hope you will read it all.

In the past I've shown you beautiful quilts made by a local artist named Susan Stewart. You may have also seen her name several times as a big winner in Houston and Paducah. I've always felt honored to know Susan personally. She makes amazing quilts like this one

But before Sue was a quilter she was an heirloom sewing designer and artist. In addition she is also such a sweet person with a kind and giving heart. Last month, following the Joplin tornado, she initiated a project to reach out to the children in Joplin. I'll let Sue's own words explain as I quote from her May Newsletter:

From newsletter...
Sunday afternoon (May21), the tornado sirens sounded, so I unplugged my machines, went in the basement, and watched the weather. The storms didn't materialize here, so I went back to work. A short time later, I checked the weather again. The same storm system that skipped us had devastated Joplin, MO, a town of 50,000. I've lived within 100 miles of Joplin, in several different towns, for the past 26 years, and for the past ten have lived here in Pittsburg, KS, which is just 25 miles from Joplin. Joplin is where we go out to eat, to shop at Sam's Club, to do anything we can't do here in little Pittsburg. Now, one of the two hospitals is destroyed, over 40 doctor's offices, hundreds of businesses including WalMart and Home Depot, the high school, part of a middle school and several elementary schools are gone, and I've heard reports that 5000 homes have been destroyed. I'm sure you've all seen the pictures in the news.

First, until the end of June, for every Iris pattern you purchase, I will donate $5.00 to the Red Cross for Joplin tornado relief.

Second - and this is a much bigger idea - thousands of people have lost everything. The summer will pass and the Red Cross will leave. And school will start, somehow, somewhere, because all those schools will not yet be re-built. Do you remember being excited about the start of the school year when you were young? I certainly do! And I always had a new dress for the first day of school. I loved those new first-day-of-school dresses; I think my Dad took a picture of me every year, and for years I remembered what I wore for the first day of each new grade. Now, what do we all do? We sew! Most of you, my newsletter readers, make children's garments. I would like to ask all of you to please consider making one or more first-day-of-school dresses for little girls in Joplin who have lost everything. They don't have to be fancy; this is not heirloom country. Pretty, bright, and happy is good. Easy-care is good. All sizes are good, from pre-school sizes up through size 10 or 12 (and don't forget dresses for plus-size girls, who want to be pretty as much as anyone else.) And, hey, boys are more difficult to sew for, but if you want to make boy's shirts, that's fine, too.

Unfortunately, I won't be able to distribute ready-made clothing or quilts; I just don't have the space or resources. And there are other charities that help there. This project is just for hand-made items, to let children know they are special and not forgotten.
Ship the garments to me, and I will coordinate with an organization to distribute them. I don't have any definite plans yet, but my husband is a chaplain at the hospital here, and the ministerial alliance in Pittsburg is actively working with its counterpart and the Salvation Army in Joplin. Perhaps the school system would be interested in helping. I am sure the distribution can be worked out. When communications are back on line in Joplin, and after the immediate crises are past, I will check on what the dress codes are for the private schools there.

So please think about it. I can't offer tax-exempt deductions. It's just a chance for you to give a little girl something new and pretty and special and created just for her. Besides, you can look at it as a way to work through some of your stash and put it to good use!

To those interested, I'll send more details later - after all, these things won't be needed for a few months.   But, if you're so inclined, start sewing. I, and a lot of little children in Joplin, thank you.

Update 1...
Thank you for your generous offer to help with Project First Day, our effort to provide new, hand-made first-day-of-school outfits for children whose lives have been turned upside down by the devastating Joplin tornado. Reports are that besides the tragic loss of life, nearly 1500 have been injured, over 5000 buildings were destroyed, and over 4000 jobs impacted. So many children were affected, either by the loss of someone near to them, the destruction of their homes, or the loss of their parents' jobs. We are working to make the start of school a happy and hopeful new beginning for them.

• This is an important part of Project First Day: Please include with each outfit a simple, personalized note written to the child who will receive it. Something like "To a very special girl/boy/young lady; I thought of you and prayed for you as I made this outfit for you to wear on the first day of school. I hope you have a very good school year. Love, Susan in Kansas." You can, of course, write whatever you like, but I really want to have these notes included with every outfit so that a sense of "you are a special child" is communicated to the kids. Write the notes on a note card or something a little sturdier than printer paper, and safety-pin them to the garments. Also please write the size of the garment on the envelope or the back of the card.
• School is scheduled to start on August 17. Around here, that's still summer, and the weather is usually quite warm. Sleeveless and short-sleeved garments made from cotton are probably best.

• For girls, think of simple, pretty dresses, capri-and-top sets, or cute skirts. For boys, camp shirts are easy to sew. While I want to keep everything primarily hand-made, you could use a purchased T-shirt and add an applique or machine embroidery design to coordinate with a skirt or capris you've made. Peasant-type tops and tunic tops are good for girls who are a little older, and will fit a wide range of sizes. If you haven't already started, I'd suggest pre-shrinking the fabric and trims so that the garment doesn't shrink or pucker after laundering.
• Several people have asked about uniforms for private schools. I don't yet have the answer to that, but I will try to address that in future communications.
• Ship the garments to:
• Susan Stewart
          PO Box 1371
          Pittsburg, KS 66762

• I will need to receive garments by August 1, 2011.
Thank you for the overwhelming response! Please forward this to all those you have contacted about helping with this.

A little over a week ago, I had no idea I would be organizing a nation-wide project! But we all think this is important. As Ruth wrote to me:
"Your email just touched my heart. Our news... has been reporting this disaster in Joplin regularly, and it has made us all aware of how devastating this is for so many people. I love to make children’s clothes, so I am going to make dresses, knowing that some little girls are going to be so happy to have something new and pretty for school in the fall. I’m also an elementary teacher, so I see how excited children are to wear their new outfits. Count me in, and I will pass this on to others who sew."

Update 2...
I have gotten the "OK" from Sis Hutchinson to have a wall or space to display garments for Project First Day at the Martha Pullen school in July in Huntsville. I'm teaching at the school. So if you are attending, bring your garments with you and we will display them there, and I will take them home with me. Or send them with a friend who's attending. Other appreciative "sewists" will get to see your creations, plus, you'll save on shipping!

Several people have asked about dress codes in the public schools, and whether sleeveless tops are allowed. I have checked the handbooks for every elementary and middle school in the system, plus the system-wide guidelines. Halter tops, tube tops, midriff tops, over-sized armholes, and spaghetti straps are not allowed, but I don't think any of you would make those for school-wear, anyway! Regular, fitted sleeveless tops and dresses are fine.

Thanks for your efforts!
Until next time... Sue

You can also join the Facebook Group Project First Day to see what others are making and share your own pictures.

If you are a sewer besides being a quilter, won't you consider joining in?

Weekend Blocks

2011-06-13T11:55:00.000-05:00

Saturday's Civil War Block was Ladies Aid Album (#24)

Six more Dutch Treat blocks

Old & New

( Sometimes I have no idea how these blocks ended up with the names they have)

Oranges & Lemons

Orbits

Order

Paper Planes

Parsley

Here's the top I quilted last week for a friend's birthday. The top was given to me several months ago .

I just love all the fabrics that were used in it

I just did a simple large meander

And a pretty blue backing

This is a quilt I hope will get lots of use and laundering.

I picked up the six tops I had machine basted on Saturday. Now I need to get busy. Which one should I start with?

Have a good Monday?

Row 8

2011-06-10T14:54:00.000-05:00

More blocks and Row 8 of 14 is finished

Maze

Mums

Muskeeter

Nappa Valley

Nesting

Neutral Zone

(Design Opportunity....I miscut when trimming this block and got it off center. Tom suggested adding the embroidery. Works for me)

Night Light

Nine Patch

Row 8

Six more rows to go and the center applique is complete!

I also machine quilted a sofa sized top this week. Will post a picture after I finish binding it.

Have a great weekend.

Weekend Blocks

2011-06-06T11:32:00.001-05:00

I don't have a design wall to show this Monday, but I do have some blocks.

I caught up on the Civil War Quilt blocks

Block 22 Blockade

Block 23 Illinois Roads

And a few more Dutch Treat blocks

Maltese Cross

Maple Leaf

Marina

Marks the Spot

Mata Hari

Matrix

It's going to be HOT this week. I think summer has arrived early.

Row 7--Halfway!

2011-06-03T13:14:00.000-05:00

I think I've said before that my least favorite quilting related job is basting. I'm going to correct that and say it is sewing backings. I spent several days this week doing that for 6 quilt tops that have been waiting to be quilted far too long. A fellow guild member is going to baste them for me on her long arm. That's a good thing, but I'll tell you, I hope I don't have to piece another back for awhile!

In the evenings I've been plugging away on the Dutch Treat blocks and have reached the halfway point..at least halfway through the 196 blocks. I'll still have border to applique but that is way down the road.

Kaleidoscope

King Arthur

Kiwi

Lace

Lattice

Lily

Lizard

Logo

Lotus

Love Grows

Row 7

Rows 1-7

Have a good weekend!

Our Joplin Quilt Guild

2011-05-30T14:02:00.001-05:00

You may have noticed I removed my post about our Joplin Town & Country Quilt Guild and the loss of community quilt resources. The response has been so touching and I thank those of you who contacted me. Not surprisingly things are a bit confusing in the tornado's aftermath and after I posted I discovered that some of the items might have been stored elsewhere and saved. It sounds as if we did lose all the community quilts made for this year but maybe not all the supplies to make more. We'll know more in the days ahead.

So for now I ask that those of you who feel called to contribute to tornado relief consider donating to the Joplin Red Cross or any of the other organizations readily found online. Here is a link to one list.

Quilters are such giving, caring people and I thank you once again for your concerns and prayers for Joplin.

Bless you all.

Memorial Day

2011-05-30T13:12:00.001-05:00

On this Memorial Day...............

There is discipline in a soldier, you can see it when he walks. There is pride in a soldier, you can hear it when he talks. There is courage in a soldier, you can see it in his eyes. There is loyalty in a soldier, he will never compromise. A soldier isn't a title that any man can be, these special men and women are chosen to protect YOU and me.

Thinking of our close family members who have served and continue to serve this country. And of ancestors who have fought from the Revolutionary War to the present. We are proud of them all!

Blocks in the last few days:

Inlay

Iris

Ivy League

Jigsaw

Row Six Finished

2011-05-27T13:36:00.000-05:00

These blocks completed row six of Dutch Treat #3

Head Dress

Heart

Highway

Hurricane

Impala

This block has a really, really narrow place to applique. The finished piece is about 1/8" wide.

Here are the first six rows. The first four are joined and the 5th and 6th are joined together at this point and just laying next to rows 1-4. That is why the sashing between 4 & 5 looks wider.

One more row and I'm half done with the blocks for this one.

Have a safe and enjoyable Memorial Day weekend.

Continued Prayers Needed

2011-05-26T10:47:00.001-05:00

Not much sewing going on here. The news from Joplin continues to be heartbreaking. 9 people have been rescured alive since Sunday. But the death toll has risen to 125. Hundreds are still unaccounted for and we can only pray that most of them have simply left town and not notified anyone. I can't imagine the difficulty authorities are facing in trying to determine the safety of everyone amid growing pressure to do it fast! This will not be a fast process. Cleanup and rebuilding will take years. An aerial view of the destruction can be seen here.

A friend had been shopping in JoAnn's

and at this Walmart

just 90 minutes before they were hit. I'm still awaiting confirmation on the safety of fellow Joplin guild members. At this point I know that at least two had homes destroyed.

There are many ways to help and we will be contributing in several things over the next weeks and months. Judy at Patchwork Times has organized this opportunity.

Most of all I covet your prayers for this community. The pain is enormous.

Update

2011-05-24T10:16:00.001-05:00

As the death toll from the Joplin tornado continues to rise (currently 116) and people continue looking for missing relatives and friends, my heart is breaking for the massive loss that has occurred. Today's weather forcast is for more violent weather in our area, and it's hard not to be frightened and worried.

I've been glued to the TV set for the last two days, hoping to hear something positive, like the 7 people who were rescued alive yesterday. There is still hope and I'm praying fervently that more will be found.

While I watch my hands are busy making more blocks. How I wish that I was well enough to be able to volunteer in the rescue efforts. Our granddaughter and her husband (she a police officer and he a fireman) were there the first night. There will be a great ongoing need for donations of goods and money and I will have to take that avenue to help.

Please continue to pray.

Garden

Gems

Geometry in Motion

Goldfish

Greeting Card

Harlequin

Joplin Video

2011-05-23T09:27:00.000-05:00

Please Pray For Joplin

2011-05-23T06:54:00.001-05:00

Yesterday when I posted the tornado sirens were going off here in Pittsburg. We quickly ascertained that the worst of the storms were going to pass just south of us (the sirens go off when a tornado is spotted anywhere in the county). This felt like pretty typical spring weather here in S.E. Kansas. This is what the radar was showing.

We sat down to eat supper while listening to the news on TV and learned that a tornado had touched down in Joplin, MO, just 30 miles to the southeast of us. While that was troubling, we expected to hear that a few trees were maybe toppled and some roofs damaged.

The radar turned to this. You can see both Pittsburg and Joplin clearly.

What a shock as the news started to filter in. Joplin took a direct hit with what may turn out to have been an F4 tornado that cut a swath through the center of town. One of the two large hospitals was heavily damaged (St. Johns).

This is the same area.

There are pictures all over the web if you Google Joplin, MO tornado and many, if not all, of the major TV networks are covering the story. The death toll is now up to 89 and climbing. One of our granddaughters is a police officer and her husband is a fireman. They were both called out last night from their hometown of Neosho.

Please pray for those affected by this storm and for those who are working so hard to find people still missing.

This morning another severe storm is building to the west of us.

Weekend Blocks

2011-05-22T16:18:00.000-05:00

Three Dutch Treat blocks done yesterday

Frets

Funny Face

Gaia

And this week's Civil War Block 21..Underground Railroad

Per Crispy's request here are the Civil War blocks to date ..not necessairly in the order they will end up.

Stormy weather again tonight.

This Week's Blocks

2011-05-21T13:54:00.002-05:00

Civil War Block 20--New England Block

1800 Sampler Quilt Block 20
Uneven Nine Patch on Point

1880's Sampler Block 19 Puzzle Block

Dutch Treat Flower Basket

Dutch Treat Flower Pot

Dutch Treat Flower Tag

Dutch Treat French Urn

Which completes row five

This will be the start of the second section when I begin quilting. But here it is just laying beside the first four rows

I haven't quite kept the pace I wanted. It's been six weeks since I started Dutch Treat #3 and I had hoped to do a row a week. Still five rows isn't bad considering.

The sun is finally shining today. Yesterday it rained most of the day and the sun didn't come out until it was nearly time for it to set. Seemed like a good day for a pot of soup.

My version of Pasta E Figoli

And some yeast corn bread to go with it.

Today I made some banana cookies.

Not too bad but I think I'd rather have banana bread.

Row 4 and a Siggie

2011-05-21T10:51:00.000-05:00

Found this post in my drafts folder. Somehow I never got around to hitting the "publish" button I guess. It's from May 11.

Yesterday I received the cutest siggie from Helma in The Netherlands

And I also finished Row 4 of Dutch Treat #3 plus a couple of more.

Dinner Party

Doily

Dolphins

Doorbell

Earrings

Giveaway

2011-05-21T09:59:00.000-05:00

My friend Karen is celebrating her 1000th post. Hop on over to her blog for a chance too win some lovely gifts and tell her congratulations! You'll fall in love with her beautiful work while you are there!

It's Graduation Time

2011-05-17T02:28:00.001-05:00

It's the time of year that families are celebrating graduations. I just had to share this special story about a weekend graduate here at Pittsburg State University.

Caution...you might want to grab a handkerchief first!

Read on and be sure to watch the video!

Dutch Treat Blocks

2011-05-16T11:22:00.000-05:00

This weekend's blocks

Fan

Field of Dreams

First Date

E's

2011-05-13T15:48:00.000-05:00

Not much sewing going on in the daytime the last few days. I've been sorting and straightening up my sewing room, getting ready for a rummage sale at our guild's meeting Monday night. It has been a good way to get some needed cleaning and purging done.

But in the evenings I can still knock off a Dutch Treat block or two and made my way through the "E" blocks and on to "F"

Edelweiss

Entwined

Epaulet

Evening Star

Family Tree

Have a good weekend.

Four Rows

2011-05-11T15:35:00.000-05:00

One month and 2 days into #3 and four rows are finished.

My Garden

2011-05-11T14:34:00.000-05:00

Once upon a time I used to love to garden. I had big vegetable gardens many years ago, and after I moved to Kansas in 1986 I began flowering gardening. At one time I had over 1000 different perennials in my yard.

About 8 years ago I had to give that up due to my respiratory problems. Now it has become survival of the fittest. We have returned many beds to what passes as lawn in this part of the country (definitely not KY bluegrass!). What beds that are left have only those things that pretty much take care of themselves and survive the hot dry months of July-September without any additional watering.

Today I took a walk around and find I still have some pretty spots. The pictures are in the previous post. (I still have issues with posting slideshows from Photobucket and adding commentary).

Enjoy!

2011-05-11T14:33:00.000-05:00

Still fighting Photobucket issues. If you can't see the slideshow here, you can view it here

Weekend Blocks

2011-05-09T11:55:00.000-05:00

Dauphin

Deer

Diadem

Diamond Square

Only 3 more blocks to go and 4 rows will be done.

Civil War Blocks

2011-05-07T12:13:00.001-05:00

Civil War Blocks, a set on Flickr.

My Civil War Blocks to date

Catching Up with CWQ

2011-05-07T12:11:00.000-05:00

Caught on with my Civil War Quilt blocks

Last week's

CWQ Block 18 Union Square

Today's

CWQ Block 19 Kansas Star

And two Dutch Treats done last night.

Dancing Daisies

Dandelion

I Can't Believe It's Friday

2011-05-06T11:54:00.000-05:00

This week has gone too fast! But then they all seem to anymore. I thought when you retired time was supposed to slow down, but that certainly doesn't seem to be the case. I've been retired 8 years now and time just seems to move faster with each year.

Several more Dutch Treat blocks this week

Crest

Crossroads

Crossword

Crown Molding

Daisy

Last week's 1880's Sampler block....Railroad Crossing.

This week's block looks like a real bugger! Going to have to work up courage.

And finally, I got the binding on the Stack n' Whack project. I think I'm going to call it a table topper.

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there!

Finally Some FMQ

2011-05-04T11:15:00.000-05:00

After my comment a couple days ago that I only had one finish so far this year, my friend Crispy asked if I had a small UFO I could do just to say I finished something. I replied that all I had were big tops. But then I got to thinking and pulled out a wallhanging I pieced in 2008 when I was playing with stack and whack.

And I actually got it quilted and half of it bound last night.

You can see more pics on the FMQ challenge blog.

I don't have the foggiest idea what I'm going to do with it!

Row 3

2011-05-03T10:57:00.000-05:00

Really love the way these are looking together!

They look good from a distance but the closer you get, the more color pops out.

Happy Tuesday!