While Maggie slept...

...and her Mom was at lunch with her sister and a mutual friend a couple of days ago, I finally tackled clues 1, 2, and 3 of Humble Quilts' Palmateer Point Quiltalong. I knew I needed to get them completed before the final clue is released Monday, or I might never do it at all.

Since time was very limited, I decided that the only way I would accomplish my task was to use some pre-made pieces. The HSTs were from a large bag of bonus triangles a friend had given me a couple of years ago. They had served as my leader/enders at one time, so they were all stitched together, and just needed trimming. I have used them in several small quilts already and was glad there were enough blue ones left to be used here. But the pattern called for 3" finished HSTs. Based on the size of these bonus triangles, I had to cut mine to be 1" finished.

For my 4-patches, I used a bunch of extras I had from Lori's last QAL, Quilters Madder. I only had to make six more.


My 4-patches would have been large enough for Lori's original instructions, but I needed to trim them way down to match the size of the HSTs. Feels good to be caught up on this!









Today is my younger sister's birthday, so I have spent a few late hours recently, putting together ornaments for her from my Dad's two favorite blue plaid shirts. Now my Mom and all of my siblings have their ornaments, along with my two daughters. That just leaves my sons and myself to make them for before Christmas.



 

A shout of thanks to my good friend, Victoria, for this lovely bundle of Judie Rothermel Miniatures that came to my home not long ago. They are almost too lovely to cut, and yet that is just what I plan to do! Many of them will be going into an upcoming project that may remain secret for a couple of months. I will share it when I can.

With my daughter and granddaughter using the guest room and family room for their beds this month, my sewing room has been called upon to do duty as another guest room when other family members have joined us on weekends. This means that my sewing room is cleaner than it has been in a long time. It was a bedroom in a former life, and isn't a large room. That means it will never be tidy, but this is where I feel my creative energy.

The west wall, broken up by the closet. Also contains the window that overlooks the pasture and the mountains that I often share in photos here.

My 7 1/2' x 8' design wall is on the south side of the room. It currently holds several reminders of how I need to get quilting those little quilts again!

The north wall is the "sewing" side of the room. My HQ Sweet Sixteen is joined by my Featherweight, and my Mom's old Bernina--the machine on which I first learned to sew.

The east wall is the home of my cutting table, and my wall of quilts from friends (except the one under the clock). Other quilts from friends are displayed throughout the house. I change the quilts around as the mood strikes me.

I am sorry for all of the blogs I haven't been able to keep up with lately. I am just trying to keep up with this little lady, and that is a full time job! She goes home with her mama in 3 days, so I am going to enjoy every last minute!

 

Until next time, 

Janet O.

Irresistible!

I am having way too much fun with these little Dresdens. I had said I could see a little Dresden quilt in my future--welcome to the future. I can't stay away from them!
The plates are just pinned to the blocks, awaiting my half-hearted applique efforts.

I had some "Wild Orchid" yardage and thought it might make sweet little Dresdens, but decided I wanted more variety. Luckily, a LQS had some mini charm packs and I was able to get two "plates" cut from each mini charm. 
Just playing with possibilities here. I'm pretty sure I want to use that plaid for sashing. I haven't used any of the black fabrics, and was wondering if it would be too glaring to use it as the cornerstones and Dresden centers. What do you think?

Speaking of the centers, when I posted about my fear of appliqueing the circles, and chickening out and using wool, Sue mentioned that I might want to give these a try. So I ordered them, and will attempt "real" appliqued centers on this mini quilt.
Thanks, Sue--I think. : )  (I'll let you know for sure after trying them.)


Had another swap in May. This is what I sent to Barb. I actually didn't start out making it for her--just making it to make it. But as I worked on it, I kept feeling like it belonged at her house--if you follow Barb's blog, you know why. 
I named this one "Honoring Abraham".





It looked really good at my house, but it will look even better at Barb's.
I haven't received her little quilt yet, but when it arrives (we think it is taking the Priority Mail scenic route across the country), you know you will see it here!













I was behind on the little ornaments I am making from Dad's favorite blue plaid shirts. I missed the May birthdays of my oldest sister and DD#2. Got all 4 ornaments made and delivered this week, but only remembered to get a photo of these two.


For this year's family reunion auction I decided I would make this Buttermilk Basin free pattern, Spirit of America, from the Henry Glass website. I linked to this and a little pieced quilt pattern in my last post.
(My friend, Gayle, has already pieced the other little design--you can see it here. I love it. She used one of my favorite color combos!)


Haven't started stitching this down yet, but it is all fused.  The buttons are not attached. This was their audition moment.

Real Life Update (I don't usually do this, I know).
Today I spent 5 hours in my gardens, and my body is talking to me! The gardens were such a mess! Due to the shoulder issues I had all last year, they have been sorely neglected, and now I am paying for it. I should have taken "before" and "after" photos. I can hardly believe the difference. And I still have the largest bed to clean up and plant, but it will have to wait until next week sometime--preferably on a day that isn't in the 90s!
May has been quite a medical month in my family. I've been on another course of steroids, for hearing loss again. My sister and I have been going to physical therapy together (for different body parts), my Mom had a mini stroke, and my brother was admitted to the ICU for heart issues. He will be getting a pacemaker next week. I am hoping June is a little kinder!
Until next time, 
Janet O.

A Few Finishes and a Work In Progress

Finally got the binding on Quilters Madder. Love this SAL quilt from Lori at Humble Quilts blog.

Mine finished at 17 1/2" x 14 1/2".

Mom's birthday gift of ornaments made from Dad's shirts were completed and delivered this week.

She was thrilled with them. As usual, they finished at 2 1/2".

When I received a pincushion from Randy at Barristers Block blog back in October she had wrapped it in 5 strips of fabric.  
I immediately sewed 2 of the strips together and used them to make 4-patches as leader/enders. I knew I wanted to use the 4-patches for a little Valentine quilt, so when I needed a quick project this week for therapy, I grabbed the 4-patches and this quilt was born. I think I may call it "Sprinkled with Love." Inspired by the recent Temecula "Box of Chocolates". Finished at 7"x 9".






Progress on the little lovebird block by Karen at Log Cabin Quilter blog. I machine quilted around the block and then around the HST border.







Now I am working on hand quilting around the applique, and a cross-hatch pattern on the background.
 
Don't know that these little lovebirds will be ready for Valentine's Day, but it will be close. I need to set them aside for now and focus on polishing up my Sunday School lesson. : )

Our little farming community has been ravaged by severe winds and flooding this week. Prayers are with all my neighbors that are trying to stay above water, and pick up the pieces from the wind damage!

Until next time,
Janet O.

Feelin' the Love

It is in the air, and in the sewing room.
Made TWO of Temecula's little Box of Chocolates quilt. I haven't made anything from Temecula's blog for a long time, because I have a tendency to have to make multiples--up to four of one pattern! So I have avoided them for years, but I couldn't avoid this one.

The binding on the bottom one is just pinned on, so it is wavy.

Most all of the fabrics in these little quilts were given to me by a dear friend that has since passed away. I am going to send one of them to her husband as a little Valentine from her.

I am also feeling the love with these two little lovebirds. This was one of three applique blocks sent my way from Karen (logcabinquilter blog). I had plans for bordering and quilting all three, to make little seasonal quilts--one for Christmas, one for January, and this one for February, but with Dad's passing, the others haven't been touched.

Papers are still on the back of the borders, so it is not laying flat.
The pattern was from a BOM set by Bunny Hill called "A Tisket A Tasket"

This will probably be finished with a mix of hand and machine quilting. If I can get that done and then find anything that matches the shade of the light pink heart, I may have it bound by Valentine's Day. I have more to say on this one in a minute.

Finally, I am feeling Dad's love as I use his plaid shirts to make these little ornaments for my Mom's birthday gift. I had them to this stage for her birthday, but they still need stuffing.

I will also be making her a simple memory quilt from the shirts, but I wanted to have these to give her on her birthday. I will make a couple of ornaments for each of my siblings as their birthdays come along, too. If you can't tell, Dad gravitated to blue plaid shirts. These are only a few of the many, but I tried to use the smallest plaids in these. The ornaments finish at 2 1/2".

Okay, back to the lovebirds. I've seen some bloggers' frustration lately trying to make small HST borders on little quilts come out the correct size. When I use little HSTs (1/2"-1/4") like these to border a quilt I find that piecing individual HSTs and then sewing them together into a strip is often going to give you an inaccurate length border, unless you are insanely precise in your 1/4" seam (and if you are, may I please have your autograph?). When working this small, every thread you may be off is crucial to the finished product.
Even foundation piecing may not be enough if you use any of the methods that have you creating the HSTs in a grid and then cutting them apart, pressing open, trimming, and sewing them back together in a strip, such as Triangulations, shown to the right  (which, BTW, I love for other projects where I just need a bunch of HSTs to sew into blocks, and NOT into a long strip).

It really isn't wonky. It is just how it is hanging.

I used this method when I made my version of Lisa Bongean's Little Buds, and I ended up with one more HST on the top border than on the bottom. These HSTs finish at 1/2".

                       My first introduction to my preferred method was when I made this little feathered star.
The foundation pieced pattern used a long strip of HSTs, kind of "piece-as-you-go". I can't find the pattern right now, but it was something like the ones shown below. They finish at 1/4"

   You piece the HSTs in a strip, so the size is  assured.

Front, before trimming

Back, before trimming

On the photo of the back of the strip you can see the dotted lines marked 1/4" from the finished size. Those are the trimming lines.


When I need a length or size that I can't find in a pattern, I grab a ruler, fine point marker and graph paper and create my own. Then I photocopy it onto newsprint, which tears away easily when foundation piecing. 
Hope this may be helpful to someone.


Until Next time,
Janet O.

From My Mother's Scraps--Part One

As I put the last stitches in the binding of this basket quilt I began to wonder just how many projects I have made using the scraps from my Mother's quilts. This creation was a product of the scraps from...

...this quilt my Mom made. (Sorry about the quality of the photos of my Mom's quilts. Most of them are photos of photos.)

She always gives me random pieces of leftover fabrics, but sometimes there are orphan parts leftover from making the quilt, too. There were lots of "bonus" triangles with the scraps she gave me from this, so I sewed them together and created the basket quilt above.

I've had a few inquiries about this basket-within-a-basket block. The basket pattern can be found free on the APQ website here. I reduced my block size to accommodate the size of scraps I had.

I had one basket block leftover and I made this little quilt with it. This was hand quilted and then it was gifted.
My memory isn't serving me well on this and I'm not sure who received this quilt. I should keep records. I know to whom I have given things, but I can't always recall what went where (pathetic, I know). If this is in your possession would you let me know?

Mom made this Kim Diehl pattern to hang above their sofa. Can you see the close hand quilted lines in the border?

I made this table topper with the leftover 9-patches and scraps. It sits on the dining table that is near the sofa where Mom's quilt hangs.
Can you see the machine quilted feathers in the border? To each his (or her) own!
The colors in these two quilts really do match, it is just the lighting differences from picture to picture that make them appear not to be the same.





Another 9-patch quilt by Mom. I love how the 9-patch blocks are appliqued in the border as flowers on a vine.

 

Mom gave me a stack of little leftover 9-patch blocks from this one and I made this little quilt. I just finished this earlier this year.








Mom's last quilt (made last year--2015). You may remember seeing it, since I posted this picture when she completed it.

 

She had 2 flower blocks completed in her scraps, and lots of trimmings from her piano key border, but only 8 or 10 HST units from the sashing.  From those leftovers I made these two little quiltlets for my two daughters--pieces of their grandma's last quilt. In homage to Mom's feeling that it isn't a quilt unless it is hand quilted, I hand quilted both of them using the same motifs Mom had used on her quilt. I have enough pieces to make one for me, as well, when I get around to it. 

Just in case you are wondering, Mom does still love me, even though I machine quilt most of my creations now.     

If you have followed me for a while, you may have seen this batch of Pineapple ornaments I made for my Mom's birthday in 2013. This shows them displayed on her piano music holder.

When she would give me scraps from a quilt, I would keep them together so that each quilt's scraps are separate from each other. So I made a pineapple ornament from each of the scrap bags I have of her leftovers. In looking at each ornament, she can tell which quilt it represents.   

 

I took them to her on a tiny Christmas tree covered with a drape. She had to close her eyes while I uncovered it and then I let her open them. I loved her reaction.

When a niece of mine, that was especially close to my Mom, got married a couple of years ago, I made her these ornaments from some of Mom's leftovers, for a shower gift.

That is all of the finished projects I have from Mom's scraps. There are 3 or 4 other WIP that I will save for another post.

Until next time,
Janet O.

P.S.--I get to spend today in a wool class taught by Stacy West (Buttermilk Basin), and then a trunk show tonight. I am looking forward to the fun!