Northern Lights...and some quilting

On the 11th of November we had a wonderful show from the Northern Lights.   I just couldn't seem to get a blog written until today  (and there will be a little quilty content).                                   

This photo was taken from my deck, looking kind of Northeast, using a 3 second exposure. Usually we see more purple and green, but on this night the reds were popping.

Often in our area when these lights are visible, you can hardly see them with the naked eye, but a 3 second camera exposure will give you beautiful color. I wanted to share some comparisons with you of the "naked eye" view, and the "3 second exposure" view.

When I take the first view, I don't always get the camera framed up exactly the same after resetting for the second view, but you get the idea.

I could post dozens of photos from this night, but I will just share one more pair. Interestingly, this pair was taken looking due east.

The first shot in this pair was zoomed in a bit more than the second.

I hope you enjoyed those. I was out on the road between our home and our son's, taking photos for about 1 1/2 hours, with a brief hot chocolate break. It was a wonderful night!

Now for the quilty stuff!

In our tiny guild (only 7 members now), we like to have a small monthly project everyone can make individually. The last couple of years we have purchased the Temecula Monthly Mini postcards.  Tammy had made each monthly quilt, and then put them all together in one large top. Here she is displaying the finished product. I love this finish! She used fabrics from one designer, and it made it cohesive, but still very colorful.

Ruth brought her finished tops to share, and I got a couple of photos showing a few of them. She favors Civil War prints for a more vintage look. That is where I usually land, too, so these really speak to me.

This year we are using Pam Buda's Vintage Patchwork book to make a small project each month. All of the projects in the book are named for books of classic literature, or characters in such books.

The first project for our guild year was a pincushion that I opted not to make. It was a busy time. This month several of us brought our finished tops for the November project, and I can't believe I didn't get a photo of them all. But I can show you a photo of mine. 

This project is titled Scarlet. If you have this book, and check out page 43, you will see how I went a little rogue (a very little).

Mine finished about 11" square

And finally, the house quilt is still progressing. After I had sewn together all the rows you saw in my last post, I draped it over our bed to see if it needed a border or not.

I liked it best when just taken by the window's light, because the colors were more true. 

This shows you the original design I have been loosely following. Valerie Langue is the designer, and the pattern is found in American Patchwork and Quilting, October 2020, page 48. (I am not on Instagram, but apparently you can find Valerie there.)

Valerie has a row of sashing and stars around her outer row of houses, and then notice how her outer border is a darker neutral? I like that idea. It is just a little different than what you'd expect. I do love Valerie's original quilt, but I was determined to make a two-color quilt entirely from stash, though I did originally intend to make the stars red. That changed.

My quilt is large enough without adding the outer row of sashing and stars--besides, I didn't want to make that many more stars. I will just put that darker neutral around the outer edge with stars in the corners. A bonus was that I found in my stash that darker neutral shown above that was the same print as my sashing, just in a different, darker color-way. Hooray for stash!!

I am planning to put that final border around all 4 sides, but the edge of my design wall was full of other things, so there was no room to place the fourth border up there, in case you thought I didn't realize I only had it on 3 sides. ;)
                                                                                                      I share a lot of sunsets here, but not many sunrises. This was taken by my son, as he and his wife were leaving their home the morning before Thanksgiving. (That is our home to the right.)

So much for which to be thankful! The friendships created through blogging are among them. They have been a blessing in my life!

Until next time,

Be creative, and be kind!

Janet O.

October Happenings

At the Village Dry Goods "Chit Chat, Finish That" the first week of this month, I finished the last houses I needed for my house quilt. And they are tiny.

 I had the idea that in place of a few stars used in the cornerstones, I would slip in these little houses. You can find the link for the foundation paper piecing pattern HERE. I tend to go rogue here and there with a pattern. And you can see the results below. Excuse the really poor lighting in the photo.

I have assembled each row, but have only sewn three rows together--the three that include the center block. I like that you don't notice anything different at first, but as you look closer, you can see the three tiny houses. I have yet to decide if, or what kind of a border should be added. I had planned to make just 2 blocks a month for this, sewing along with Lori @ Humble Quilts blog as she made a different traditional block in 2 colors. But when I decided to attend the "Chit Chat" events as much as possible this year, I decided to get as much done as I could. It feels good to be this close to a finished top.

I also took along a project from a few years ago, "Every Little Bit," by Pam Buda.

This was published in the June 2015 American Patchwork and Quilting Magazine. I love how scrappy it is, and that you can use even the tiniest scrap in making the sides on the churn dash blocks. Even the on point 4-patch blocks don't take much fabric.

I still have quite a ways to go with this one, but it has no deadline. I will take it with me if I am able to go to any more Chit Chat's this year.

I finally got this little piece quilted and bound. I made two versions back in 2023, and I finished and gifted the other one earlier this year. It is shown here along with the quilting-themed games my youngest son has gifted me over the past several years. Hubby is not a gamer, so I enjoy playing these with my kids when they come for visits.

I've dabbled with a couple of minis, but the only other real progress has been placemats for the guild service project.

So that ends the quilty content. 

We took a short jaunt to Yellowstone National Park this month. Wanna see?

Watch a mud pot. I love these!

(Click the "Full Screen" image to get the full effect.)

And then we came home.

Due to our extremely dry summer, the fall colors are not very bright.

Too long between posts--I need to improve on that.

Until next time, be creative, and be kind. I want to say more on that subject, but I'm at a loss for words. 

Janet O.

p.s. Blogger is messing with the background color on my text and I can't seem to change it back to normal. It is hard to look at, IMHO. Sorry about that.

A New Subdivision

In this valley right now, that title is a sore spot for many. Subdivisions and apartment complexes are popping up all over the valley, and many of the apartment buildings are in quiet, single family neighborhoods, and subdivisions are gobbling up previously pristine farmland. In the "historic district" where I grew up (5 miles from where I currently live), I can count at least 3 multi-story apartment buildings that have gone up in the past few years, within 1/2 mile of my childhood home, and they aren't usually welcome by the long-time residents. But this subdivision below shouldn't cause a stir.

At "ChitChat, Finish That" at Village Dry Goods this week I made the last five houses, and the last 2 cornerstone stars. When I have this assembled I will decide if I want another round of sashing and stars on the sides and bottom, or if I will just put a blue border around the whole thing.

This quilt was begun in February of 2021, using the pattern shown here from the October 2020 issue of American Patchwork and Quilting. It was designed by Valerie Langue. I love the design, but deviated from the pattern when I opted to use the AccuQuilt die to make the rest of the houses, after using Valerie's pattern for the first 5 blocks. I have still let the original pattern be my inspiration for the layout (other than the center).

Also at ChitChat, I finally stitched together the top that I asked for help with in my last post. 

I received 30 preferences or suggestions (and I appreciate each one) when I asked for input on the setting squares for this little quilt. The red squares definitely won the popular vote, but Diane Bryant's suggestion to try red stars on the dark background (which I know looks black to many, but is actually a very dark navy) got me thinking. I had actually hoped NOT to have to make more stars, but I decided maybe I needed to give it a try. 

I didn't want to make the same stars as the other nine. In the back of my mind I remembered a "floating star" that Barbara Black had shared (with permission) from Lindsey Weight's Instagram post. Find Barbara's post HERE with the link to Lindsey's post. It is a 4" finished block pattern, and it took me a couple of tries to get the measurements correct to make it finish at 2.25". You can see the results above or below, and I am happier with this than with any of the plain setting squares options. I can't decide if it is a starry night, or fireworks.

This photo gives you a better perspective on the size of this little quilt. I don't know that I love how I pressed the seams, and many of the original stars ended up "pointless", but I'm not going to think about that right now.

We have had such a hot, dry summer. I am looking forward to cooler days and some occasional showers, as we move toward fall.

Until next time,

Be creative, and be kind.

Janet O.

July's post in August

Back in May, when our guild had its closing social, I made little quilts to gift to our previous president, and our current one. Our guild is now so small that we no longer have everyone make a block and put it into a quilt for the outgoing president. I forgot to get photos of the finishes before I gifted them. With the recipients' help, I can finally share them.

This first quilt is one I made from a pattern from Pam Buda that we received at a day with her that our Circa 1880 group won. I actually made two of them, but didn't get them quilted in a timely manner. The second one is basted, but who knows when it will be quilted?

This went to our previous president, Ruth. Like me, she likes the 1800s repro fabrics.

Andie, our current president, likes batiks, and brighter colors. I made this for her based on a Temecula Christmas pattern entitled Half Square Holiday. I couldn't find the pattern anymore on her blog or website, or I would link you to it.

The theme for this is a loose interpretation of a day at the beach. I called it Sea, Sand, Swimsuits and Sky.

I haven't done much sewing, other than making more houses for the quilt that keeps showing up in my posts (I'm sparing you this time. I'll share my progress next time after attending another Chitchat, Finish That session next week). But during July I had an itch to make another little R/W/B quilt. I do have quite a collection of them (see a few of them here), but I haven't made one for a long time. So I pulled out my scraps from the blue and neutral houses, grabbed some red and gold from the scrap basket, and went to work. I made 9 stars that will finish at 2 1/4 inches, and then chose fabrics for the setting triangles. But the setting squares have me stumped.

Though my intention was to create a R/W/B quilt, I'm not feeling the red here. I tried several reds, and this was the best of them, but I'm not sold on it. I'll share the next three attempts with other colors, and I'd appreciate it if you would weigh in, if you have a preference.

I do have enough of the setting triangle fabric to make the setting squares the same, but I have been trying to make the setting squares have contrast of some sort. Maybe that isn't the best. Input welcome.

I'm sharing something that has been on my sewing room wall for a while, but after I bought it at JoAnn years ago, it stayed in my closet for far too long.  I bought it with the intention of hanging little quilts on it (it is meant for photos), but it took me a while (years) to get it hung and filled with little quilts. I think 9" square is about the largest it will accommodate.

I will finish up with a few of nature's beauties. A recent sunset did not fill the sky, but the intensity of color was impressive.

Last week we had a double rainbow, but the top of the arc got lost in the storm.

The colors on each side were pretty intense. My visiting granddaughter and I were going back and forth, up and down the road in from of our home, and the neighbors' on either side,  looking for the best shot, and occasionally getting wet with rain. It was great fun.

Until next time, be creative and be kind!

Janet O.

Little Things and Big Things

I'll start with the little things. The first little things are all about leftovers. In the photo below you see on the left side the results of my participation in Lori's Homestead Quiltalong (Humble Quilts Blog) started September 2024. I will state the obvious--it still is not quilted.

On the right you see what I did with the handful of 2" finished 9-patch blocks that were leftover and have been kicking around the sewing room, getting shifted from surface to surface, because I had intentions of making something from them. I finally followed through. It is hard to see, due to the poor choice of fabric for the outer border, but the chain continues to the outer corners. The fussy-cut plaid in the 4 light colored center blocks was what I almost used instead of the gingham in the quilt on the left. 

You may recall the tiny blocks I've been making off and on for a few years with Lynn's Tiny Club. The first batch I made were in repro fabrics. I also threw in a few blocks I made just by shrinking down some other blocks. This is the collection of those blocks (the star being one I cut with the wrong rulers and ended up too small). Other than the star, these will finish at 2".

I have been wanting to try the setting below, on the left, with these blocks for a long time. I finally did it! I haven't decided yet whether or not I will border it somehow.

The leftover blocks that didn't seem to "fit" in that layout went into the little quilt on the right.

Earlier this month I had the "opportunity" to do a trunk show for the Tiny Club at the little shop over the mountain. This is the fifth trunk show I have done for guilds and groups, over the last 12 years. There is just enough time between them that I kind of forget how much work they are.

I gather little quilts from all over the house and figure out how I will set them up, by putting it all up in my living room first. Then I take photos and take it down as carefully as I can so that I can put it up quickly at the trunk show. After everything was packed up, my son, who lives here on the family farm, walked in. He looked around at the bare walls and tables and asked, "Have you given up quilting?"  I got a kick out of that.

This was held in the new classroom area (called "Village Next Door") of Village Dry Goods in Brigham City, UT. The Tiny Club meets there once a month. They were a great group. There was much laughter!

On the big end of things I will just give a quick update on the house quilt. All of the stars around the center block are completed. I have chosen fabrics and soon hope to cut the stars for the next round of sashing. Next week I am going to the next "ChitChat, Finish That" at Village Dry Goods and hope to get a few more houses and stars made.

I think I will not put another row of houses at the top of the quilt. I like my quilts to just tuck under the pillows, rather than tuck and come up over them. If I do another row of houses at the top, the center of the quilt will be toward the bottom of the bed. 

Have you ever made a center "medallion" style quilt where the medallion was not truly centered?

The other "big" things to share are the winners of the drawings from my last post. The anniversary drawing winner is Gladi. Congrats, and I will get that sent off to you, as I believe I have your address. 

The winner of the Thimbleberries bundle is Kathy S. If you can email me your snail mail address, I will get your bundle in the mail.

Last of all is the biggest thing, really--the moon! From June 11th, a shot of the "Strawberry Moon" coming up over the Bear River Range of Mountains--view from the front deck. Click to get the full effect.

Until next time, be creative and be kind.

Janet O.