Eclipse Block Repair

This is what I was shooting for the first time around.

I was trying to replicate this photo I took on our trip to Ririe, ID to view totality.

At some point I may still give a small Mariner's Compass a try, but for now, I will be satisfied with this attempt. Not sure what I want to do with it from here.
In case you have forgotten, this is what it looks like next to my first attempt.

 I got the fabrics all wrong in the QSTs on each side, that first time.

These are 6" blocks, unfinished. This photo gives you a size perspective.









The pattern I used is shown on the left.
It is from the book shown on the right.

 




The only other quilting I can show you is the finish on this little quiltlet . 
Made from the leftovers of the quilt my Mom named "My Happy Quilt", I named this one "A Little Bit of Happy".
I had shared that this is for my brother, who has had 4 heart procedures in the last 5 months. The latest procedure put his heart into normal rhythm and it has stayed that way for about 2 weeks now. He hasn't had a normal heart rhythm for years, but it went dramatically wrong when he suffered a very serious bout of E. coli poisoning. That is what triggered the need for all of these procedures. His advice to everyone is that you never eat a hamburger that isn't cooked completely through!




I do have another project near completion, but it is for my last swap of the year, so I cannot show you the whole thing. Here is a very small teaser. Hopefully I will have it quilted and mailed by next week, and then I can share it.






I will end with photos of our evening sky on November 1st (it has been a while since I posted). It was a colorful evening. This is the view at sunset looking east (not the actual sunset).

And now for the actual sunset in the west.

I was quite a sight, running back and forth from the front of the house to the back, to see which side had the brightest color at any given moment. :)

I have a major birthday coming up later this month. You know, one of the kind that ends with a zero. Don't know for sure exactly how I am going to celebrate (other than eating turkey, because it is on Thanksgiving this year), but there is usually something that takes place on the blog around that time. Stay tuned.

Until next time,
Janet O.

Marvelous Mini Flimsy and some sundry things

I have stolen sewing moments here and there and put together my Temecula Marvelous Mini Monday SAL blocks. I made my own setting, as you will recognize if you follow Temecula's blog. I really like the blocks on point.

I had to make 2 extra of the "easy block", one extra sampler block(I made a friendship star), and another one of those supposed-to-be-36-patches-but-mine-are-49-patches blocks. I toyed with bordering it, but so far it will stay as shown. 

While in the sewing room, I also finally finished stitching the two blocks that I had partially assembled in my Midnight Flight class with Bonnie Hunter a couple of months ago.

I am liking these blocks more than I thought I would, but there are so many ways they can go wrong, and I have tried a few of them already.
This layout takes more brain power than I possess at the odd hours I usually find time to sew. I hope I can eventually at least make a lap quilt or throw from this pattern.

This is a Buttermilk Basin Banner that I started quilting near the end of last year. Then Dad passed away and this hasn't seen the light of day until this week. Seemed to be the right time of year to finish it off.
Finally sewed the machine side of the binding on. It is pinned to the other side awaiting some hand stitching time. That is why the edges look wavy, and the corners appear to be curling in on themselves.
 

















You can see the quilting best on the left. What do you quilt on a pumpkin banner border? Pumpkin seeds, of course!

You may recall the little quiltlets I made for my daughters from the leftover bits of my Mom's last quilt. (you can see her quilt in this post.) Mom had named it her Happy Quilt.

After the difficult summer my brother has had, with three heart procedures, I figured he could use some "happy".

I am out of the yellow fabric that formed the setting triangles, but I can make the center section using bits that were still left after I also made a quiltlet for me last year. So this will be handwork to keep me busy for a little while.


When I get the hexie flower finished and appliqued, I will audition other fabrics from the quilt to see if  something else works to set it on point, or if it will stay a small, straight-set square. Then I will hand quilt it, as I did the others.



My prayers are with those who have been devastated by storms in the south, or are anticipating them, as well as those dealing with the fires in the west.
We are looking forward to the arrival of DD#1 and her daughter tomorrow, as they escape the smoky Pacific Northwest. We are smoky, too, but not quite as bad.  Angie and Maggie will be here the rest of the month, so I may be playing more than I am blogging. But I will be back. :)
Until then,
Janet O.

All Caught Up (kind of)

The Buttermilk Basin Mystery blocks that have been revealed so far are all stitched. Here we have July. I know the pattern had a butterfly, but mine was begging for a flag--so it got one.

 

These are May and June's blocks (or June and May, since blogger reversed them).

I've decided my signature mark on each block will be a little round button somewhere--sometimes more than one. I even went back and put them on the older blocks.

But I'm not sure about those buttons on the purple background. They seemed to be a good match in the quilt shop, but in every lighting I have tried them under since, I don't care for the combo. I may have to switch those out.

Here is a shot of all of the blocks so far. I have continued to add little touches as I look back at them. They may forever just be works in progress. : )

The other project that needed catching up is the Attic Heirlooms Ornaments. Mine are little quilt blocks rather than ornaments. I'm cutting the blocks 5" for now, but will trim them down before assembly. It will be a small quilt in the end. I have the first four blocks finished and you have seen them before.

The next three are only fused, and it will take a bit of stitching to bring them to life. That is the "sort of" in my All Caught Up title.

The white and yellow blobs will magically turn into a cute snow angel with a garland. The others are self-explanatory, and they involve some beadwork, too. I don't have tiny beads--this will require some shopping.

These blocks are going to a friend who is making a quilt for a friend. The large ones are 12" and the small ones are 6".

Do you have any idea how long it has been since I made a 12" block? I don't either! : )

But look what those huge blocks gave me in return.

Lots of little bonus HSTs! I trimmed these to 1 3/8", which was easier than it sounds, with my Itty Bitty Eights rulers! They will finish at 7/8", or close to it, depending on how accurate I try to be.

Parting shot--my 85 year-old Mom with her final quilt! I mentioned before that she named this her Happy Quilt. It is machine pieced and hand quilted--all of Mom's quilts are hand quilted!

She says she has no regrets and will not miss quilting. She has loved it, but she is finished! In case you doubt the finality of this, she has given away her quilt books, fabric, and tools. The end of an era that has lasted decades! She was my first quilting mentor.

Until next time,
Janet O.

The Year of the Sheep

I don't want to get embroiled in the controversy as to whether it is really the year of the sheep or the  goat. I'm just going to roll with the sheep! Here is the latest "Lamb for All Seasons".

 Can you tell that my Leprechaun lamb is step dancing? Makes me laugh. : )
I still may put a gold buckle on the hat.

 The Spring lambie needs something more. I may add some French knots in the feather stitching (which looked like chicken scratches to me).

Eight seasonal/holiday 12" lamb quilts have been created so far from Lisa Bongean's "Old Glory Gatherings" free pattern here.

Winter through Spring are just flimsies. Fourth of July through Christmas are finished.

The second block now joins the first for Buttermilk Basin's Mystery BOM.

More Buttermilk Basin stuff--I finally got up the courage to feather stitch around my mat from the  workshop with Miss Stacy. 

This is the last of the sheep in this post. : )

My heart pillow from the workshop is ready to assemble.

I redid some of the decorative stitching and trims and now I am happier with it. Probably no one else can tell the difference, but I can.

 This is my Mom quilting on what she says is the last quilt she will make.

 She has named it "My Happy Quilt," because the colors and design make her happy.

She hand quilts all of her quilts and her stitches are tiny.

You can barely see some of the piano key border on the left side above.

As always, she gave me the leftover parts and scraps and I used them to make some little quilts for my two daughters. The hexie flowers were made by Mom, as were the HSTs in the corners. The colored borders were made from the trimmings on her piano key border.

The backing, bindings, even the batting are from the leftovers of Mom's quilt. I also tried to replicate the quilting motifs Mom has used in her own quilt--and I hand quilted them. Now my daughters will have a little memory quilt of their grandma's Happy Quilt, and I have enough pieces to make one for myself.

Keeping family and friends that are in the deep freeze in my prayers!
Until next time,
Janet O.