March Monthly Mini and More

Could not resist the alliterative title for this post.

My monthly mini is in the photo below, on the right. This is based on Pam Buda's "Glad Tidings" pattern. I couldn't finish the borders according to the pattern because I couldn't find fabrics that I liked in combination for the borders as written. The green I used in the quilt is a very old one, which I couldn't currently match, and I had used all I had in the blocks. This photo was taken in the "Christmas Corner" of my sewing room.

I had planned to make this my monthly mini last December, but was still trying to match the green, so I set it aside and made the quilt on the left in the photo above, instead. I finally faced the fact that I couldn't match the green and made do with a black Judie Rothermel print that had tiny red/green flowers printed on it, and I didn't use cornerstones. 

Since it is in holiday colors, I chose a holiday print for the backing, which you can see below. I really struggled to get photos that show the quilting well, since I couldn't get the sun streaming through the window at 9:00 p.m. This is the best I could do, with the Ott-lite on my cutting table laying on its side.

This finished at about 11"x14". I am linking this with Wendy The Constant Quilter, where you will find the list of mini-acs with links to check out their creations.

My version of Gay Bomers "Heartfelt" quilt has been delivered to my neighborhood longarm quilter. I just can't quilt everything I piece--there isn't time. 

It is about 86" square. You can see the ripples in the two lower corners. I did try to correct those, and they look better, but I didn't get a photo after the repair. I did not do any of the appliqué in the pattern, including the center medallion. I did my own setting and borders. After the fussy sashing and cornerstones I chose, I couldn't bring myself to do fussy borders. Except for the 4 corner blocks, each block contains different purples. At first I was worried that I would not have enough purples to use different ones in each block, but I had a box of purples left that I didn't even touch. (And I bought more yesterday.)

Yesterday was the final meeting of The Tiny Club at Village Dry Goods.  I have yet to get all the blocks made, but these are some of the ones I have made since my last post.

Can you believe all those tiny pieces in a 2" finished block? 

Wait until you see some of the blocks in the patterns we got yesterday! Lynn told me to let you know that if you have been waiting for the next set of patterns and rulers to be available, he will have them ready by April 7th and you can contact Village Dry Goods to get your hands on them.

Here is Lynn with one of the ways he is using his tiny blocks.

But that isn't an end to the fun I've had lately. Last week Chooky had a spur-of-the-moment Zoom session and I was able to pop in and enjoy the gals chatting and stitching for an hour.

I really need to get back into the routine of posting more than once a month, so I don't have such lengthy posts, but if you have stayed with me through it all, I thank you. 

Until next time, be creative and be kind,

Janet O.

I wanted to leave you with a peek at what makes me smile each  morning during the long winters. I have these at 5 windows in my home right now, but these two window ledges are the ones where they have been blooming all winter. Click to enlarge.

Staying On Top Of Things (sort of)

This is my first year participating in the Humble Quilts Doll Quilt Swap. I am so pleased that I actually got it sent off before the end of the month deadline. I am not going to share my quilt until it has been received, but this was the inspiration.

 

 

This quilt is from the book "Childhood Treasures" by Merikay Waldvogel. It measures 16" x 21".

It is from an unknown maker and is estimated to be from the 1890s. The pattern name is Sugar Loaf. 

My version is not exactly this design, but was definitely based upon it.

 

 

 

                                                                    This is the label on my quilt.   

            

 

 

 

 

 

 

I am caught up with the Hands All Around sew-along with Barbara Brackman. One block a month, and I am making two of each pattern. The color on this photo is very poor.

Had been doing pretty well with Gay Bomers' Heartfelt BOW, until last week. Haven't done that one yet. And a new pattern being released just after I post this will put me two weeks behind. But this is what I have so far. You can still join up through the link. She has extended the registration.

 

We won't talk about how I am doing with the Little Blocks 365. But in case you are interested, Gay has extended the registration again--the requests just keep coming. So click the link, if you dare, and play along. They are very fun.

Now for the results of the drawing. I split the wool patterns in half and drew 2 names, since there was so much interest.  Joyful Quilter and Denise Panter will each get 7 patterns. Julie Q was drawn for the apple cores, and Darlene was selected for the Lori Smith kit. All have been notified.

Very soon I will be attending a tulip festival in the Northwest, on a day with an 80% chance of rain. But I am thrilled because my youngest granddaughter (oh, and her parents) will be there. :) Really looking forward to it!    

Until next time,

Janet O.

                                              
P.S. Just in case you get notifications of these posts via email, you should know that Feedburner will discontinue those notifications after July of this year. I understand that signing up through the bloglovin' widget will still give you email notifications, and I have that option on my right sidebar, as well.

Catching up

Since I have been hopping on so many SALs lately, I thought I'd give an update.

These two are Barbara Brackman's "Hands All Around". It is just one block a month, but I always make two, using the same fabrics in both, but switching up the placement.

This is the Gay Bomers' "Heartfelt" block. It is a Block a Week program, but you may be instructed to make more than one of the block pattern any given week. This week only called for one.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Amazingly, I have kept up with both so far. It hasn't escaped my notice that they are both using 8" blocks, so if I fall too far behind, I could combine them all into one quilt and call it "Heart and Hands". I've never made a pink/purple/brown quilt before. Hopefully I won't be doing it this year, either.  :) 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I found a backing fabric I love for my "Curves" Challenge piece with Cecile at Patchwork Inspirations.

It is now basted and ready to quilt, but I keep changing my mind as to how to quilt it. Haven't struggled this much with a quilting design in a long time!
 

A week ago I caught a brief visit with Chookyblue and some of the other bloggers that enjoy Zoom sew-ins with her. Almost feels like the retreat I didn't get this year. This is my third time joining in and it is always a delight. As we chat it is interesting to see how different things are from one country to another--and also how alike.

 

 

Major rearranging going on in my sewing room in the coming week. Maybe I will even remember to take before/after photos.

And before I finish I should confess--I signed up for another Gay Bomers project! Her Little Blocks 365 was just too tempting!! I talked myself out of joining when sign-ups were about to close, and was proud that I had been so strong. Well, she had so many people beg requests for sign-ups to open back up, that she obliged. And I succumbed! Don't expect to see me making seven 3" foundation pieced blocks each week, but I couldn't pass up those patterns! And if you want to succumb too, sign-ups are open at that link until March 17!

Until next time,

Janet O.

 

Earlier this week we woke up to 5" of snow, but it melted by the next day. In scenes like this I think the mountains and sky look like a fake backdrop in a low-budget movie.