What's on my bed, and on my wall, and in my hand, and under my needle, etc.!

On My Bed

"What's on your bed?" Bonnie asked (it's a linky party). And I had actually just stripped my bed that morning and was getting ready to put on a lighter quilt. I think I have shown this quilt once, almost a year ago. My Mom made it from a pattern by Mabeth Oxenreider that appeared on the cover of a quilt magazine years ago. As has happened before, I bought the magazine because I fell in love with the scrappy quilt on the cover, but it was my Mother who ended up making it before I could get around to it. It doesn't always work out that I end up with the finished quilt. I'm glad it did this time!
Mom only hand quilts her projects. Look at these stitches--this is where I learned to quilt!

Speaking of tiny, when I posted about this quilt of 5" finished baskets I commented that I thought once the parts were all sewn together the sashing pieces would be long enough that I wouldn't need cornerstones. Well, it is all sewn now, except the borders, and I do need something for the corners.

On My Wall

 Here's the tiny part--Carol (of Brown Quilts) suggested little baskets for the cornerstones. I laughed about it at first--they would have to finish at 2". But with Carol's encouragement, I took on the challenge. This is the first little cornerstone. The others are cut and ready to put together. I love it! Thanks, Carol!

In My Hand

I am almost finished quilting the largest project I have put under the needle of my new toy so far (how long do you own something before it is no longer considered new? Just wondering.)--and it is only a crib quilt. It was made using the Quick Strippy Quilt Pattern from Mary Johnson. I needed something to practice on using an all-over design. I'm using the loopy design with stars inserted (think March FMQ Challenge). I know you can't really see the quilting here, but I was more interested in sharing the pattern. Turns out there is a baby shower this Saturday for a relative having a baby boy. Perfect--if I can get it bound in time. As I have said before, I am the World's Slowest Binder!!

Under My Needle

I have completed a pile of practice sandwiches and a few table toppers and wall hangings, but this is the biggest project. I am beginning to see the wisdom of the "slider" products that make the surface on which you are pushing the quilt around a little less resistant. I can imagine it will make a big difference on a bed-size quilt. I will have to look into those.

Just Laying Around Somewhere

I got this book in the mail yesterday and I am very happy with it. After my trying experience with feathers in the February FMQ Challenge, I was intrigued when I saw a reference to this method somewhere.

The book does not disappoint. It is full of diagrams and ideas. I haven't tried the method yet--my machine is kinda busy, but I think it looks more doable than many other traditional ways of doing feathers. But the feathers still look traditional. And how cool is it that Sally Terry is coming to the Home Machine Quilting Show next month, being held only two hours away? Are any of you coming? I'm still trying to work out getting there, but it sounds wonderful!

Also in yesterday's mail was a squishy with fabrics from Grace. We did a little swap. She sent some lovely repro fabrics (especially purple--love it, Grace!!) and I sent batiks. Always fun to exchange with others.

Okay, when I started this post Randy hadn't yet posted her Sow-Along Bonus Block, so I need to hurry and get the last batch of blocks made in Christmas fabrics before I get too far behind. Once I start slipping behind on something I have a tendency to give up, and I don't want that to happen.

Until next time, 

Janet O.

Tryouts on the design wall, a winner, and many thanks!

This looks terrible when I look closely--threads hanging,
the inner plaid border strips are so crooked--I promise
it will look better when I sew it all together. 

The red border won hands down on the "two cents" poll for my little baskets. I auditioned it and found when it was all the way around the quilt it seemed to smother the baskets. I thought it had looked good, too, when it was just down the one side. I tried other options and the suggestion that came from my daughter's comment to use three borders ended up looking best to me. Thanks, Aimee, and thanks for everyone's input. I really feel like the brainstorming via blog is helpful to get a different perspective on something when you are stuck.
I tried colored cornerstones on those bare corners in the above photo, but didn't like that look for this quilt. I think when the center is all sewn together the quilt will end up small enough that these pieces will fit. I don't have enough of any of the other tan/gold fabrics, so I will "make do."

I did have enough HSTs left from this little quilt to make a very small piece. I adapted the idea from the Baby Basket quilt Kathie linked us to recently. I had to "make do" even more on this one--the basket is not the one in the pattern (though it is the same size), and I had to do the borders a little differently, but I wouldn't have thought of this without that pattern. Thanks, Kathie!

Another little basket quilt got a border tryout on the design wall. Of my four Temecula Blessings Baskets mini quilts, this is the only one that is all assembled--except for the borders, which are just stuck to the wall. I decided I needed a border on it that would link the center basket, since it was brighter than everything else (and more wonky, too, if you want to get technical. I lost so many points on these baskets, as others have done before me, I should name this one "Pointless"). The light border is the same fabric as the center basket, but it appears darker to me in the border strips. I think I am going to use it, unless someone has a better idea.

Finally, I did get the plaid set of the latest "Barrister's Blocks" made. I'll have to do some catching up on my Christmas set. Thanks to Randy for all the work she puts in to this!

I think I am liking the blue/green one best of this group. I just got that teal colored shirt last week. Speaking of which, have you seen Bonnie's video of taking a shirt apart. I thought I knew how to do that but I admit, she has some slick tricks to make it go even faster. It was kind of fun to watch. Thanks, Bonnie!

The winner of the pattern giveaway is Mavis, a very creative quilter. She has been contacted by email. Thanks to all who participated. We'll have to do it again sometime. 

I finally got my herbal soap made this week, so maybe I will be throwing some of it in with my next giveaway. I will have been blogging for one year come the middle of May, so there should be some kind of hoopla involved (definition of hoopla; unnecessary fuss. That sums it up.)!

Okay, enough already! Until next time,
Janet O.

A Few Feathers, Some Baskets and A Little Giveaway

I'm up in the wee hours getting ready for my 3rd and final "Feathered Star" class and I'm realizing I don't understand what to do next, so I will have to go to class without everything prepared to put together.

I have all of these parts pinned to my design wall, but I can't see anywhere in the directions that there is a size listed for the setting triangles. My brain is too tired to figure it out, so I'd better quit before I mess it up. This class has used the perforated paper piecing technique to make the feathers and the mini-mariner's compass. The instructor is the same one that taught the perforated paper piecing for the large mariner's compass in the class I took last year. I did a tutorial for this method here.

We've also used the stack 'n whack method for the "arms" of the star and the tips, and the four patch blocks that will go in the border. I've never used this method before--very clever. I would like to know who thinks up these things?

As I've worked on this I have continued to use the Spring Baskets as my leader/enders. Just two more baskets to go and I will be assembling this little quilt. I am currently auditioning borders on the wall.

 (I still haven't corrected the error in the top of one basket.) These baskets were made with bonus triangles Mom gave me from a quilt she made last year. I'm trying to use only those and the leftover fabric pieces from her quilt to make this little one, so I am limited in my border options. I want it to really be a "make-do" quilt. It is in pretty rough form right now, but I think I like the black edge on the setting triangles. Let me hear your two-cents worth on the border.

                            

                                                                                                                                                                        

I finally got to my "Ramblin' Rose Meets Jamestown" March block. It is the one in the center. I chose some of the lighter valued prints in my "rose" fabric box for this one.

Last week I kept seeing bloggers talk about having preordered "Civil War Legacies" by Carol Hopkins, and how excited they were that it had arrived. I also preordered, but apparently my copy had a harder time getting up the Amazon. It arrived today. What a wonderful book--15 small quilts designed especially to be made using wonderful Civil War reproduction fabrics, for a great vintage look. Well-photographed quilts, clear directions (even arrows for seam pressing--I love that!) and great looking designs make this a book I highly recommend for lovers of small quilts, or vintage quilts.

Finally, how would you like to win the pattern for this quilt?
Just leave a comment on this post. I'll pick a winner on Saturday, around 6 p.m. MDT.
When Julie at Me and My Stitches posted the photo of this from her recent road trip I knew I "needed" the pattern. She took this picture in JJ Stitches in Sun Prairie, WI. I called the store and they said the pattern (which was from a discontinued book and they had permission to reprint the pattern and sell it) was available individually or in a kit. I ordered 1 copy of the pattern and the folks there told me that they preferred I send a check. They put my pattern in the mail even before they received my check. Once they received my check someone sent the pattern again. I called and informed them of the double delivery and they said, "Just keep it." I told them I would share it with my friends on my blog. If you like the colorway in the sample, you may want to print this photo because below you see the colorway on the pattern and at first I didn't recognize it as the same quilt.



Remember to comment if you'd like to be in the drawing for the pattern!
That is all for now. Until next time, Janet O.

                

Picnic time again!

My second rendition of the Primitive Gatherings Picnic Quilt is a flimsy now. I need to get the backing sewn together and get it to my LAQ next week. I know, I just got a midarm machine and am going to do my own quilting now, but this is a gift quilt and my skills are not up to snuff on full size quilts.

As this has been coming together I have been making more Spring Baskets as leader/enders. I will have 10 when I am finished. I've made mine a little smaller than the pattern.

Yes, I see the error in the top, middle basket. I have more trouble with
baskets than anything else!

 I think 9 of them will go in the above setting and the tenth may find its way into a little quilt that Kathie posted the link to earlier. You can download the free pattern for Baby Basket here.

Many of you are aware that Temecula Quilt Co. posted basket number five and the setting for their Blessings Baskets sew-along on Thursday. I was very anxious to get all of the fifth baskets made for my four versions and get them set, but time has not allowed. I did make the last basket for the batik set and cut the pieces for the setting. Here it is on the design wall. Can't wait to sew it up and get the others made.

As I said in a previous post, the sashing fabric was just a scrap. I had to cut the sashing strips 1/4" narrower than the pattern indicated and then piece the last two strips together lengthwise in order to make it work. It is a busy enough print that I don't think it shows. I'm really happy with how this little quilt is coming together, but I have no clue as to what I will do with it.

 I've been sewing like a madwoman to try and catch up on the Barrister's Block Sow-Along. I was behind by several blocks on the Christmas set. Now I am all caught up there--until Wednesday.


                                                                                     

These three are the latest two bonus blocks Randy has gifted to us (on either end) and the center block is one I had made incorrectly the first time around. I had totally missed the fact that there were double 4-patch blocks. I'm still going to use the first one I made--so I guess that means these are all bonus blocks! : )
Look how fun these plaids and stripes are when they all come together!

 I should never have signed on to the SewCalGal Free Motion Quilting Challenge. I am always squeaking in under the wire with my link. And I don't have a very good photo of my quilting. Everything turned out either blurry, washed out, or the quilting didn't show up. I haven't wanted to try out March's challenge on something I liked, so I postponed it as long as possible. Last night I was flipping through this book when I came across this design and it made me think of a table runner I had made years ago and never finished because I wasn't crazy about it.

So I pulled out the runner, bought some greyish purple thread today and started stitching these little tulips with some loops thrown in for good measure. It is really hard to see the stitching. I made lots of mistakes, but I am not extremely unhappy with it. I might even use it. 

Finally (sorry this is so long--I only seem to get around to posting once a week and then there is so much to share), I got my fabric winnings from Doniene's 15th Fabric Giveaway. She is posting a giveaway of a small bundle of fabric the 15th of each month throughout the year. If you link to follow her blog you won't miss any of them.
I'd better save the rest for later. I need to get this linked to the FMQ challenge before I turn into a pumpkin.
Until next time,
Janet O.

p.s. Happy April Fool's Day, and happy birthday, Chris! I actually have the pattern and fabric gathered for your gift! : )

Here we go again!

More baskets! I couldn't help it. Temecula Blessings Basket #4 was posted on Thursday and as you probably already know, I am making 4 different sets. So far this has been my favorite, in spite of the fact that I have had to unpick and reassemble two of the blocks due to sewing machine operator error!

I chose the colors based on that strip of batik to the side. That piece, along with a considerable length of binding, were in the scrap basket I used to raid regularly at a now closed LQS. I will be binding it with this.
Then there is the set that makes me think of the color blindness test photos that used to fascinate me in the World Book Encyclopedia. Does anyone know of what I speak?

Next there is the set in a variety of CW scraps. It has been fun to choose random scraps to put these together. I just had to work a purple basket in, though. That was not random!

And finally, the set that I started out to make before things ran amuck--CW scraps in blues and browns.

I am curious to see what the setting is for these blocks--and even more curious to see if I follow it.
We aren't finished with baskets yet--sorry! Recently I had downloaded the pattern for this Spring Baskets quilt from the All People Quilt website. You can find the pattern here.

As I was preparing to put it away last week I had a thought. My Mom gives me all of the scraps, leftover pieces and yardage whenever she finishes a quilt. The one she just finished hand quilting produced a considerable number of bonus triangles, which she would be inclined to throw away, but she knows to save them for me. I wondered if they could be trimmed to make this basket design, though they would have to be smaller than the pattern indicates. Most of the the triangles are not very large.
This design board shows the jumble of squares with which I begin and then the finished Spring Baskets block that is the end result.

These baskets are finishing at 5 1/2" and I have enough triangles to make 5 or 6 blocks.
And last, but not least, Randy posted more Barrister's Sow-Along blocks and I needed to catch up. And wouldn't you know it--there is a basket block among this group. I am making a second set of these blocks in Christmas fabrics, but I haven't made it that far yet. Here are the plaid versions for what I am thinking I may call "Barrister's Day Off".

The block in the upper left corner was assembled using bonus triangles from my Rocky Mountain Christmas quilt, so I didn't follow the color layout--just used what I had. Not sure that was a good choice, but I am going to live with it. 

Primitive Gatherings Picnic Quilt is nearly ready to assemble into flimsy stage.  I think this would be a fun quilt in red/white/blue. I think I will eventually have to make another one of these! (You may be wondering what this quilt has to do with baskets. Picnic quilt--basket--picnic basket--get it? I know, that was pretty weak.)

So that is enough of baskets for now. (*Huge sigh of relief!*)
I'll leave you with this shot that I caught (with the less than stellar zoom on my point-and-shoot camera) from my kitchen window a couple of days ago.

Happy Spring!!

Janet O.