Finishes

Lots of pictures to share today for a change.

The first thing I did this week was finish the crazy quilt I started last Saturday when our guild met to work on community quilts. Our president called it a "Gather The Crumbs" day and we were challenged to make quilts using some of our tiny scraps. She also suggested we try the "Fun and Done" method of making blocks.

I modified it a bit, chose to make crazy patch blocks first, then layer and quilt them before joining them in the Fun and Done method. I'm not sure this will ever be my favorite method of Quilt As You Go, but it was something different to try.




Actually the scraps I used didn't seem all that small to me. Making the crazy patch blocks was the fun part. Other guild members thought it was great fun to keep adding to the full tote of scraps I brought with me.

And since the Olympics were winding down last weekend I even found a discarded paper pieced Maple Leaf block among the donated scraps.

It's not the best work I've ever done, but it's a nice warm quilt for some little one to cuddle and play with.

Then I dug out another UFO and am happy to cross it off the list.

My grandmother wasn't the most accurate hand piecer, but she sure loved to pick the more difficult patterns and also the ones with small pieces. I guess I come by it naturally as I gravitate to those as well.

She pieced this little quilt and I started to hand quilt it a couple of years ago. I lost interest and set it aside, mostly because I couldn't decide how I wanted to quilt the plain hexagon blocks. This week I dug it out and finished quilting and binding it.

The pattern is called Kite (or Periwinkle, Arkansas Snowflake or Four Point). This time she set the pieces differently and it made for a very challenging finishing edge. I decided to applique a small border around it to square it off.

I used a wool batting and just love the way the piece crinkled up after it was laundered. I wish I could afford to use wool all the time on my large quilts. It sure is cuddly, not to mention it doesn't hold creases.

Most of these fabrics are from the 1950's and possibly some earlier.

I don't have any quilts that Grandma made that are in good shape. I do have two REALLY tattered and worn ones. One of them is a large quilt in the same Kite pattern, though this time she oriented the blocks differently.

A close up shows just how worn the fabrics are. I still wouldn't dream of tossing it.

A couple years ago I happened to spot a quilt in this pattern for sale online and purchased it for my birthday present. The blocks are quite a bit bigger and it's in excellent condition. Was told it was made in the 1940's in Oklahoma but no official documentation.

I have several more of the small block pieces that Grandma cut out and strung together. They are next to the unquilted piece in the photo below. I debated using them to make the original piece larger but decided I wanted it to be just Grandma's work. At some point I'll figure out what to do with the remaining pieces.



Since I've been good and finished a UFO, am I allowed to start on a new project? We have an impending trip to Iowa in the next few days and I'm thinking a new applique project would be just the portable project I need. Like maybe this one.

Dinah's Delight Step Three

Cynthie, at Iowa Star Quilts has continued to struggle with computer problems, but she now has step three of Dinah's Delight posted. Scroll to the bottom of the page as all three steps come up on the same page. Here's a pic of my blocks.

Next step you can start assembling. It's a really cool quilt..trust me!

It Doesn't Look Like Spring

I should be posting something to herald spring as I'm more than ready for it's arrival! But I realized I had not shared a picture of the silk flower piece I made when teaching the class last month. I finally finished quilting the background and binding it a couple weeks ago. It's a very simple piece using fall leaves.

Close up. I love using metallic threads for accents.

Today's mail brought siggies. Two friends, Anne and Sylvia from Germany sent these lovelies.

Happy Thursday!

Two New Siggies

Two more siggies to share today.



From Mandy in Australia..isn't he cute?
Simone in Croatia makes a personalized Gothic initial for everyone she swaps with.

Not much else to report..except I am making progress cleaning the sewing room.

Siggies & Some New Goals

I'm once again behind sharing the siggies that have arrived in the last week or so.

From Cristina in Italy

Ria in The Netherlands

Mary from The Netherlands

I finished cutting, sewing and embroidering 4 new siggies last night so I'm good to go for a few days or so on that front.

I've decided I have to set some goals for myself and maybe if I at least mention them here I might be more apt to stick to them

First of all.............my sewing room is a MESS!!!! I'm going to devote at least 1 hour each day until it is back in order.

After that is done (or concurrently??) I am going to devote at least 1 hour a day to about five projects that keep nagging at me but not getting done.

1. Copying all of my best recipes to the computer so all of my kids and grandkids canhave copies. I started doing this several years ago and actually completed several sections and gave them to everyone at Christmas a couple of years. But I have a long way to go and no progress has been made for much too long.
   
   
2. Going through the last of a stack of hometown newspapers and cutting clippings I want to save for genealogy records. I finally got smart and started cutting and pasting the info from their website directly into my genealogy software. But I still have a stack of a couple years worth of newspapers from before I got smart.
   
   
3. Washing my kitchen cupboards. Enough said about that.
   
   
4. Updating my quilt record books
   
   
5. Updating family picture albums
   
   

Well, there are probably a dozen more things I've been putting off. But that's good for now to work on. Don't bet your hard earned money on me getting it all accomplished very quickly. But I'll let you know every now and then if I've been sticking to the hour a day commitment or not.

Of course tomorrow doesn't count because we have a 3 hour drive to Wichita (each way) for a doctor appointment. But today works assuming I get off this computer and get started!