Next Step Done

The backing for the red and white quilt-a-long quilt is pieced and ready to go. Sorry about the picture...how do you all take such good pictures of large quilts? Anyway, I think it is visually interesting, but it doesn't distract from the city scene fabric. Time to press everything, trim threads and baste. Still haven't decided between hand and machine quilting. Can't linger over that decision too long. I need to keep moving on this one. My goal is to have the basting done tonight.

Like I don't have enough to do, I signed up for a log cabin challenge on Judy's blog. We're going to make log cabin blocks together. 2 every day...48 blocks in 24 days. Just have to make the blocks at this point. I have no idea what fabric...actually I have no idea what I was thinking, but I love log cabin blocks, so what could it hurt?

Stepping Up to the Plate

I'm just about back to my old self again. Thank goodness. I'm not any good when I'm sick, just ask any one around here who has dealt with me for the past few days. Haven't gotten as much done as I would have liked...too much basketball viewing. It was a good way to rest and recuperate. I did finish the Zig Zag quilt top. There are 3 red zigs and 2 blue ones. I'm pleased with it. I think the quilting will really enhance this one. I have some leftover colored squares so I'm going to piece those and combine those with something in my stash for the backing.
AmandaJean of Crazy Mom Quilts is making a quilt that has to be completed in 12 days. I mentioned on her blog that I should work along with her and challenge myself to finish my quilt-a-long quilt in that same 12 days. Remember this one?

She thought that was a great idea and so here I go. I agree with her that it helps to have a deadline. I've been letting this one linger in the closet because I just didn't know what to do for the backing. I have this panel city print that I want to use, but it isn't quite big enough for the quilt. So, yesterday I pulled out the quilt and the backing fabric and played a bit. There are 6 panel repeats. I ended up cutting the panel in two sections. I'm going to extend the width of each section on opposite sides with this Alexander Henry Kyoto Hollyhock fabric. I'm also going to put a band of the Kyoto Hollyhock fabric between the two panels that will extend the length. I played with it for awhile yesterday, and I think I'm satisfied. I'm going to try to get the back pieced tonight. Then on to the quilting. I'm probably going to get stuck at this point too. I do love this quilt, but I don't have a clue how to quilt it. I could hand quilt, but how? If I machine quilt it has to be something with straight lines only because that's all my machine can handle and all I know how to do. Ideas...thoughts?

Small Steps

Thanks for the well wishes...the spots remain...they've just switched locations. I did manage to sew a bit today. There's nothing like doing something you love to make you feel better. I have three of the zigs sewn together (or are they zags) and the fourth one ready to add once I'm done with this post. Then it's back to making more half square triangles. I can hear you all chanting a reminder "sew a quarter inch from the line". I can learn!

















The mailman helped make my day. You know it never fails, when you're in the dumps, something happens to pick you up. I received this card today. Here's what it says:

"All I can say is WOW! The quilt just blew me away. I honestly don't know how to begin to thank you for this precious keepsake. I love the fabric, the design - it's a work of art! Thank you for the time and heart you put into making it. When I get my act together, I'll send a picture of Sophie making good use of it. It was definitely worth the wait!"

It does a quilter's heart good to know that a quilt you've made is in a good home and the receiver feels about it just as you do. That note simply made my day!
Lastly, here's a preview. I've been thinking hard about a quilt I'm planning for a good friend's daughter's high school graduation present. Hannah is a gem. She's an artist, jewelry designer and maker, an actress as well as a great cook. She works in a coffeehouse and brings her homemade goodies to sell at work. Every time I'm at her house she's cooking or baking something. (Many times she's making it up as she goes along.) I want to make a special quilt for a special girl. Here what I'm thinking about. I love this Alexander Henry fabric. It has all sorts of fun cooking things, baskets of fruit, bottles of wine (or could be olive oil), a hen laying eggs, a teapot, a cake on a cakestand etc. Very graphic and fun. Maybe just a focus square or two of this and then I've chosen a couple of solids and a couple of prints. Can you see that green solid in there? What a lousy picture! I'm still not at the for sure point. Still playing with a design too. I want to keep it simple so I can get it finished in time for graduation. Time is slipping by.

Hope to finish the Zig Zag top tomorrow and then it's back to my quilt-a-long quilt. I want to have it finished before AmandaJean embarks on the next one. Have a great weekend everyone. And to those who stopped by "Sew Bee It" to welcome Jenn, thanks, you all are just great!

Still Want to Pay It Forward

Want to do something nice for someone today? Head on over to Jenn's blog, SEW BEE IT. (Isn't that a cute name!!!) She's a new blogger and a new blog friend. She signed up for the Pay It Forward Challenge on my blog. Way to jump in with both feet in the beginning! Because she's a new blogger, she's a bit nervous if she can carry on the challenge. Head on over and sign up or at the very least head over and say hello and welcome her to blog land. We all know what it's like to be new and wonder if anyone out there might be interested in reading what we have to write. Thanks in advance!

A Spotted Klutz

No, it's not a new animal species, but I would probably make an interesting exhibit at the zoo today. Picture walking up to the exhibit and there before you is a middle aged woman perched precariously on one of these.
You look more closely. Interesting you say...(you are very kind). You notice the puffy eyes and swollen hands. Upon closer inspection you observe...what are those..yes, spots, definitely spots. Red spots. The children at your side giggle and point at the pink flannel coffee cup pajamas. You wonder silently...what happened to her?

It started this way. When I was cleaning out the car the other morning, my precious Carolina Tarheel spare tire cover was wedged in by the bent rear door. In my zeal to bring it home with me I tugged a bit too hard and went flying backwards right onto my backside onto rocks and a few well placed stumps. The garage attendant just stared lamely at me like I was some kind of a nut. I got up, embarrassed mostly, that is until later when I couldn't sit down or climb the stairs. The only comfortable position, well, that's where the swim ring comes in. That little baby takes the pressure off. Again, embarrassing, but it works. Oh no, it doesn't end there.

I woke up this morning, feeling a bit more limber. Thought I'd be feeling much better today, that is until I looked in the mirror. EEEEEEEEK! Who is that? My eyes were swollen and I had hives all over my face. I was itching everywhere...so I started looking...more hives...and more. Popped those benedryl as fast as I could. When I took my son to school I was still in my jammies and looking like a spotted owl. (It's hard to put on clothes in that condition.) So throughout the day I've been more or less spotted and itchy. Every once in awhile my throat likes to close up and make it hard to breathe.

I am sensitive to just about everything, so who knows what is causing this. I have been to doctors and had every allergy test in the book. My doctor calls me "chemically sensitive." I react to make-up, soap, perfume (even when it's on someone else) and just about any preservative or chemical some manufacturer thinks is a good thing to put in food. I never know when this is going to happen. It's never consistent or predictable. I've ended up in the hospital a couple of times. Usually, I just look so funny that it's just best to stay at home so as not to frighten young children.

The funny thing is when this happens I have the urge to clean. So, I washed just about everything in the house today. The sheets, the floors and on and on. I went over in my mind everything I ate, everything I touched. I have lots of theories. The most frustrating thing of all is not knowing. If I knew I could prevent it.

Needless to say I didn't get much sewing done. I'm not really good at sitting around. The drugs make me woosy and irritable at the same time. I just want to be back to my old self. Is that too much to ask? More drugs and to bed. Tomorrow is another day. It's got to be better.

Random Acts of Kindness

Well, now I've gone and done it. I'm ready to commit. Might someone else like or even want something I've made? Yikes...where is your confidence, girl? Who could have guessed a couple of months ago I would even think about doing something like this.

I signed up for the Pay It Forward Challenge on Jackie's blog, Canton Village Quilt Works. You probably all know how this works, but here it is:
The rules are that the first three people to join the challenge on my blog will receive a gift handmade by me. I will have 365 days to make and send your gift. It might take me just that long! Well, maybe not. You must then do a post on your blog inviting 3 more people to join in and receive a handmade gift from you.

If you would like to join, please specifically say so in your comment. Let's spread some random acts of kindness together.

ADDITION:
DON'T LET THOSE 3 COMMENTS SCARE YOU OFF...STILL NEED ONE MORE!

Half-Square Triangle Redo

So, my brain finally came out of the "I love this fabric" induced stupor and I was able to successfully sew a load of half-square triangles.














I've made 80 of these so far. Though I have more to make, I like to break up the process. Plus it's fun to start to see what a quilt might look like.
Here is what I have so far.














It started out to be a Streak of Lightning pattern, but then I found the Zig Zag quilt tutorial at Purl Bee. They both end up looking the same, but the Purl version is simpler. I haven't cut the white strips that will eventually go between each Zig Zag, but you get the idea.

There are a bunch of different fabric collections in these Zig Zags, Swell, Amy Butler dots, Olivia, Kona solids, Denyse Schmidt Katie Jump Rope...I'm wondering how it all looks together and whether the red and blue zig zags are the best combination. What do you all think? Maybe I should do two quilts...one of the red and one of the blue? Maybe I should combine them with different colors??? Would love to hear your opinions!


















As a side note...I had to go and clean out my car this morning...you know, collect my personal effects. My car was TOTALED, no chance for repair. It was the first time seeing the damage from the accident. I love that car even more now that I know how it protected Jon. I didn't bring the camera. I should have because that car has been my friend for many years. It had almost 200,000 miles on it and drove like a dream. It fit me like a glove and never gave me an ounce of trouble. We've been through a lot together, been a lot of places. OK, I know...this is getting silly. Bye RAVVY!

Thirty-Two Times

Thirty-two screwed up half square triangles. I can't believe I did this. Spent the last hour cutting and getting ready to start sewing this new Streak of Lightning pattern. I got everything cut and marked. I was so excited to get started I saw those lines I marked to make half-square triangles...you know the ones...those lines just called to me..."sew here Jacquie." So I did. Sewed right on that line 32 straight times. Just whizzing along like I knew what I was doing. So confident, so excited to see that new "Swell" fabric turn into something fabulous. Then I looked down and remembered...not ON the line...a 1/4 in on both sides of the line. It's not like I've never made a half-square triangle before. Oh DRAT! I'm going to veg out in front of the TV while I rip out the stitching on these blocks....32 times!!!! Tune in tomorrow, maybe I'll have my brain with me!

I Just Love to Look At It

Isn't it fun when you just love a quilt. It turns out...it is what you were imagining in your head or even better than you imagined...you learned something new making it. That's how I feel about this quilt. I hand sewed the hanging sleeve with matching fabric. Wanda at Exuberant Color shared a great idea about incorporating the sleeve into the binding. Reduces the amount of hand stitching. A great idea! I'll definitely do that next time. Thanks Wanda! Time to hang it and love it each time I walk up the stairs. I took more pictures just because I love to look at it. Thought you might want to see them too.






Thanks to everyone that let me know about color catcher sheets. I'm definitely going to use them from now on. Isn't the blog world just great. I appreciate all of you!!!



























Jon is 17and GLOWING!!!!!

Vintage Windows Crazy Block Tutorial

Several folks have emailed and asked how I made the crazy blocks for the Vintage Windows quilt. A few suggested that I do a tutorial. Me? Well, I thought about it and decided it might be fun. So here goes.

I think traditional crazy quilts are made on a foundation fabric. I tried that method and found it restrictive. First, I’ll say I’m not an expert. I just experimented one day and this is what I came up with and what I learned.

A couple of things…
1. Use ¼ inch seams and trim edges straight with the rotary cutter before you sew.
2. Press the seams open. My blocks have some BIG lumpy areas because I pressed the seams to one side. Pressing the seams open is slower and a bit finicky, but your blocks will be much flatter in the end.
3. Be careful when joining small sections to make larger sections. Try to make the seams where you join pieces at irregular angles. If everything is joined with all vertical or all horizontal seams, your block won’t look crazy.
4. If you want to disguise where your sections are joined, try to line up similar fabrics or colors. This will help make the seams disappear. I tried to show this in the tutorial.
4. Don’t be afraid to cut sections apart. Cutting sections multiple times is a good way to get small pieces and interesting shapes.
5. When I made the block for the tutorial I started with a finished block size in mind. This block finished at 6.5 inches. It helps to lay sections on your cutting mat as you work to do a quick measure and see where sections need to be added to get to your finished block size.
6. I used vintage fabric squares for both the Vintage Windows quilt and for the block in this tutorial. They were approximately 3” by 3” squares. This is a great project for your scraps. Variety in color and scale of prints will help the pieces pop.

Start with a good variety of fabric scraps. This is another $1.00 bag of vintage squares.














Start combining pieces of fabric. There are several ways to do this to give a variety of sections that will then be sewn together.

Make 2 or 4 patches and cut them apart in different ways. Offset the four patch (so the seams don’t line up purposely!) and this will provide more variety.














Cut individual pieces in a variety of ways.














Sew two pieces together. Press seam open. Trim a straight edge and attach another piece. Press seam open. Continue this process until you have a small section.














Continue adding individual pieces or pieced segments. Be sure to cut a straight edge with your rotary cutter for each addition. I like to make 10 to 15 different 3 to 5 piece sections with different fabrics so I have lots of choices as I make additions to the sections.














You should end up with small sections that look something like this. I think these should be joined together.













Trim a straight edge on each section. Sew and press the seam open.














Here is what it will look like. I would probably sew the next section at an angle on the upper right of this piece so that the two seams would be at differing angles.














Continue to make more sections and join them together.














Notice in these pictures that the magenta fabric will be partially lined up when these are joined together. This will help camouflage the seam. You don’t have to worry about this if you don’t want to. If you keep your sections small and don’t join with very long seams, they won’t be noticeable.

When your joined sections are large enough, use your rotary cutter to trim the block to your desired size. Oops, not quite big enough. I need to add one more piece!














Here is the finished block.














Guess what you do with these? These are the seeds for another block. Can you see your blocks sprouting? Be sure not to throw out small sections that are cut off when you cut to get straight edges. Many of those are large enough to add into a block. Have fun and get crazy! Any questions or instructions that aren’t clear, just email and I’ll try my best to explain. I'd love to see the blocks and/or the quilts you make using this tutorial. Be sure to let me know!

Lovely Thoughts...Lesson Learned

I just can't say how much I appreciate all of you who commented about Jon and his accident. Many of you have a "no-reply" email, so, for you, thank you. I am grateful for every word. We'll be celebrating his 17th birthday on Sunday. His new NOT favorite words...I'm OK. We had a great couple of days enjoying the country and seeing my mom and dad. Grandma Esther made chocolate pie. Pie heals everything!

I did just a bit of sewing in the evening while watching the basketball games. I finished the Vintage Windows quilt. Yippee!! I love this little quilt. I machine quilted it in a simple diamond crosshatch. I learned a valuable lesson about working with vintage fabrics. While I had soaked the striped squares and air dried them, when I washed the quilt, I didn't even think about the possibility that the colors in the windows would run. Well, did they ever. After the first wash there were spots of red, blue and brown. I almost cried. I didn't have a clue what to do. I didn't have much choice but to wash it again. I soaked it first and worked gently on the spots. I was so worried that I had ruined this quilt. Most of the dye came out. There are a few spots where, if you look close enough, you can see some shadows. At this point it will just have to add to the character of the quilt. I love it with all its imperfections. It will hang in the upstairs hall, just outside of my hubby's office. It was all about him in the first place.

I was able to continue the machine quilting on the Disappearing Nine Patch. Remember this one? I'm about 2/3 done with the machine quilting. I would have finished, but I ran out of thread. Bummer. I hope I can make a trip back out to my mom's and get it done next week. Using her Bernina is a joy!

Lastly, a quick question. I want to put a hanging sleeve on the Vintage Windows quilt. Should I just make it out of muslin...or do I using a coordinating fabric? Enjoy the weekend everyone!

The Beat Goes On

Just so you know...this is a long post. It helped to write about it.

The boys are on spring break this week, and since our job upset, our ski trip to Utah is canceled. Ever the look on the good side folks, we decided to head out to the country for a few days to enjoy the woods, the sunshine, and each other. Our youngest stayed in the city. He and some friends went to an afternoon movie. The plan was for him to arrive around 7 for dinner. The hubby and I went ahead to the country. Steve was out in the office doing some work and I was out in the yard raking out a few leaves and trimming some bushes. The sun was warm and those flower beds were calling. I was just itching to pull and uncover, but I knew it was still too early. It was a good day.

Steve appeared suddenly on the front porch with his phone in one hand and his keys in the other. His face looked odd, almost blank. I asked him what was up. Jon's been in an accident. The words just kind of stood there, floating. Jon's been in an accident. The words echoed and then pictures flashed, scenes, scenarios. In just a fraction of a second Steve said Jon's OK. I felt like I stood there for minutes, but I just found myself heading mindlessly to the car. As soon as my seatbelt was fastened I started peppering Steve with questions, what happened, where is he, are you sure he's alright. It was probably a good thing that Steve took the call, he is matter of fact and business like when it comes to a crisis. I just wanted Jon next to me. I wanted to see his face and look him in the eyes and know he was OK, I wanted to be there for him.

As we headed down the driveway I knew we were over an hour away from the city. The only thing Steve could tell me after the initial call was that Jon had said that everyone was OK and that Steve had told him to call 911. He also said that the accident was on Interstate 35. For those of you not in the Kansas City area, understand that I-35 is one of those mega busy, packed in rush hour highways. I instinctively looked at the clock. 5:15...rush hour. New pictures flashed through my mind...I wondered if he was still in the car. Did he get out of the car in rush hour? What lane was he in? How many cars were involved? Was he safe? Steve had told him to call back when the police arrived. As we drove, we talked with Jon, drove, talked, drove. I held back all of my questions. We reassured him, answered his questions, advised him what to do, where to find the registration and the insurance card, what information to get and give. I wanted to know that someone was there taking care of him like I would. We were still driving.

Every time we talked it was short. I could hardly hear him because of the noise at the side of the road. I was thinking of him, handling it on his own, advocating for himself, dealing with the hurt and the anger. I knew he was mad at himself. I still didn't know what had happened. When he said everyone was alright, I assumed that his friends were with him in the car. In one way it worried me, was he distracted? Another side of me was comforted knowing he wasn't alone. He had someone there with him, a friend to lean on. About the 3rd call I found out it was a multiple car accident and when he referred to "everyone" he meant all the drivers. He was alone in the car and dealing with the accident on his own.

As we reached the outskirts of the city, Steve turned on the radio. And then I heard it, the KMBZ traffic report. "Slow on northbound I-35, multiple car accident in the left lane at Johnson Drive." It was Jon. The traffic report sounds different when you know who is in one of those cars. How many times have I heard the traffic report or driven by accidents and sighed with relief knowing it wasn't one of mine. I always think, where are my boys or when I drive by an accident, I always look at the color or make of the car. I silently say, good, it's not a white car. If I'm not sure, I call to find out where they are. This time I didn't have to call and I knew when I got there that the color would be right, and the make and model would be a match.

As we neared the accident site I was looking, but trying not to look. I saw a tow truck with a small blue sports car. Smushed. Oh God, I whispered quietly under my breath. At that moment, Jon called and said the highway patrol was dropping him off at a nearby shopping center. I was only minutes away. As we drove up, there he was standing on the sidewalk carrying the accident report in one hand and his laptop in the other. He got into the car and said I'm OK.

Good to hear, but I didn't believe him. He looked pale, stressed, and yet relieved. We didn't hug until we got back home. He held on a bit longer than usual. I have a few more details now though I tried not to bombard him with questions and make him explain it all. We fed him and he packed a bag and we all got in the car together and headed back out to the country.

He shared about the experience during the hour drive. He had the presence of mind to take pictures with his camera phone at the accident site. He showed us the pictures. Turns out that that the car in front of him hit a car, slammed on the brakes, Jon slammed on his brakes and bumped her. There was no damage to her car and only a scratch on the front of our car. The car behind Jon was going really fast (Jon says 80 mph) and slammed his little blue sports car into the back of Jon's car. There is not much left of that little blue car. The back of Jon's car (I should say my car) is really messed up. It was towed away. We'll deal with that tomorrow. Jon said the only time he lost it a bit was when he couldn't find his glasses. He can't see much without those glasses. They flew off at impact along with his cell phone and laptop which were both sitting in the passenger seat. The miracle is that no one was hurt.

He handled himself beautifully, stayed calm. He's still angry with himself, (even angrier with the driver of the blue car.) He told me quietly as we went down to see his grandma and grandpa, "Mom, I am still violation free, just not accident free." I'm proud of him.

He's hurting. His head, neck and back are sore. I think he'll be hurting more in the morning. I didn't tell him, but I took him down to see his grandparents because my mom is a nurse. I wanted her to take a peek at him We'll see if he needs to go to the doctor tomorrow. His head hit the steering wheel pretty hard. As I write he's downstairs playing the piano, writing a song for a friend. He's doing what he loves to do. I'm listening as he plays. Relieved to know he really is OK.

Our Jon in a silly moment with his new Christmas hat! Give your kids an extra hug tonight. I'm counting my blessings.

Quilting With Judy...Quiltathon Progress

Today is Judy's Quiltathon day. I started at 9:30 a.m. This is my first two hour check in. I have put together pillow #1 and I am 3/4 of the way done with the machine quilting. Slowed down by a broken needle, broken thread and I had to rip out twice, but now I'm on a roll. Next check at 1:30 p.m. Pictures at the end of the day....don't want to spend time blogging! Back too it.

1:30 Report:
Finished the first pillow. I've put together the front of the second one and it is basted and ready to quilt. Back to it! See you at 3:30

3:30 Report:
Finished the second pillow. It was larger and was a bit harder for my little machine to handle. I have to take a break...run some quick errands and then back to it. I still want to pin baste one quilt and get a backing pieced for my quilt-a-long quilt. Later!

5:30 Report:
One more thing checked off the list. I marked and pin basted the Vintage Windows quilt. I'm sitting here wondering if I should try machine quilting it on my machine, or wait and go to my mom's and use her Bernina. I REALLY don't want to mess this one up because I like it so much.
On to piecing the backing for the quilt-a-long quilt. I need some sustanance...I'm not sure I've ever done marathon quilting like this before. I'm getting tired. One more report later this evening!

8:30 Report:
I decided to start quilting on the Vintage Windows quilt. It looked terrible, so guess what...time to rip it all out. I'm going to start fresh on it in the morning. Here are a couple of pictures from today. The pillows are two of the reject blocks from the Quilt-A-Long at Crazy Mom Quilts. They didn't go together very well, so I put them aside. They've been in the closet since January. I think they make really cute pillows with the additional borders and the backs are cute too. I quilted the fronts which I think makes them look great. This quilt is all marked and basted, but now it's back to the drawing board with this one. Oh well, it was still a great day of sewing. I didn't think my little Singer could handle any machine quilting, but it did those pillows pretty well. I'm not sure I can do anything much bigger on it, but I'm glad I gave it a try. Thanks to Judy for setting up the quilt-a-thon. Having a day set aside and setting a few goals helped me get a project finished. Yippee!

March Madness aka Tarheel Mania

I'm a tarheel (not born and bred) but indoctrinated. I went to high school in North Carolina and went to college at the University of North Carolina (Chapel Hill of course). A few days after I met my husband he asked me where I went to college. I said, proudly, "Carolina." He said, "which one?" BIG MISTAKE! I answered calmly, "there is only one." From the very first day I stepped on campus I was told, taught, and reminded that UNC was number 1. I think they played the fight song while we slept in the dorms so that we would never forget it. Before we could get our class schedules we had to memorize the fight song, sing it with gusto and know the words to multiple cheers and cheesy sayings, kinda like a "you're going to be a fan for life" boot camp. That was 33 years ago, and to this day...

I drink my morning coffee from this cup.










My mousepad sports a Carolina logo.









This adorns the spare tire on the back of my car.


I have a snowglobe with the Carolina mascot, with Carolina blue snow (people think it's sky blue, but I know better) that plays the Carolina fight song. It sits in my office all year long.

As I sing along...in case you didn't know...Tarheels are the number 1 seed of the number 1 seeds in the NCAA basketball tournament! GO TARHEELS!

Drumroll Please...

Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone! I'm not a bit Irish, and green is not even close to my favorite color, but who can turn down a chance to celebrate. So, the luck of the Irish to you. Maybe you'll win the quilt that Dana is giving away!
It's a terribly dreary day here...not a stitch of sun (ooh I crack myself up!)...steady, cold, rain. Needless to say, not the best day to take pictures, but here goes....drumroll please.....TA DA...
The scrappy cabin blocks.
I know the picture is bad, but it's the best I could do. I made 6 of them...well, actually seven, but the 7th one ended up in the trash...only temporarily. More on that later. They aren't all the same size...but I can fix that later if need be. It might be fun to have them different sizes in the final quilt. I think they are WILD and fun. Is it possible for your scrap box to GROW when making blocks like this? Mine did. I think I had squished it down so many times that when I started digging it just exploded. It was like reaching into the magician's hat and continuing to pull out scarf after scarf. I had to spend some time cleaning and organizing this morning. ...fabric was everywhere...walls, floor, any horizontal surface...
So, what happened to the 7th block. Well, the center square just didn't work for me. It was that lovely graphic Alexander Henry fabric in the pinwheel quilt. But in this block it just threw everything off. It simply refused to play nicely so it ended up in the trash. This morning I tried to remove the center...and replace it. Not a good idea. So, I cut it up and started practicing some machine quilting. Just straight line...playing a bit. Then I cut off a square I liked. I thought I'd just pin it on the design wall. The edges aren't finished; it is just a happy little square. I have this pile of cheap frames (don't even remember where they came from) so I took one and framed this little block. From the trashcan to "art" all in one day! It's now hanging in the guest bath. As Christian would say, "fierce!"

Play Together Nicely

Tennis anyone? Oooh, I'm longing for some outside time. This was in Vegas last fall. Cute boys...right? And playing nicely, together. (Their Grandma and niece were beating them handily in case you're wondering.) Just a fun picture to establish the theme of this post. Can't have a post without pictures. Too boring.
Are you sick of reading about pinwheels...I'm a bit tired of them too, so, let's put them aside for awhile and move on to something else. How about a new project? Since I made the Square Motion quilt, I've been itching to do another quilt with log cabin blocks. I sat here musing...
"what should I do?" No fabric purchases allowed these days. Arrrg....such punishment. (A long story...suffice it to say working for a non profit has its ups and downs. These days it's a HUGE downer. Hubby has no money coming in, and I quit my job last November. What was I thinking? Needless to say, the job search is on.) Don't want to think about that for one minute more than I have to...count my blessings and back to the fun stuff.

A few months ago I read about the Scrappy Cabin Challenge on Melly and Me's blog. At the time I really didn't have any scraps, so it was hard to participate. The quilts they are making are simply fabulous...those girls have some GOOD scraps! The challenge has been extended for 2008...another whole year to get in on the fun. The challenge is that the blocks need to be made completely from scraps rather than new fabric. The goal is to have a queen sized scrappy log cabin quilt by the end of the year. They have a tutorial, but I'm going to do mine in my own way. My scrap basket still isn't that big, and to be frank...much of it is from failed quilting experiments, but it's big enough to get started.
So the challenge for this weekend was to get this pile of scraps to play nicely together. When I started I really didn't have a finished block size in mind. I just dumped the scrap box on the floor and started pulling. Only a couple of miscues...Alas,I always have those. I really tried not to analyze too much and let the scraps speak for themselves. There are combinations in these blocks that I would never...in my right mind put together. I'm amazed what fabrics will play nicely together. Even that dull icky green contributes to its block.
The other thing that is so fun about this challenge is that the quilts that I've given away have a chance to live on. As I look at the fabric I know which disaster, which quilt, which project the fabric came from. It was a great way to clear my mind and focus on something positive. Want to see what I made? I tried to get a picture, but it's late and dark and my hand is wobbling (must be the stress). So, something to look forward to. Here's a hint...these are some WILD scrappy cabins. So...got some scraps? Up for a challenge? Tune in tomorrow to see more. Hope you had a great weekend!

Handkerchief Garden

Sometimes it takes just a small thing to set the day right. 70 degrees today. That means...open windows...a refreshing breeze fluttering through the house...an extended walk with Fudge...lingering over the mail on the front porch...grilling dinner on the back porch. Even if it is just for a day...I'm making the most of it.
Thought I'd share what I've been collecting.
Most of them are from thrift stores or flea markets. I think I have 20 or so. They are all florals of some kind. A few have scalloped edges or are edged with delicate handwork. I think they are beautiful. I hope to use these in a quilt. I'm thinking of how to take something vintage and fragile looking and integrate it into something more modern and utilitarian.

This is one of my favorites.








I have been sewing just a bit. Continuing to add to the collection of pinwheels. Many more to go if this is going to be a quilt for my bed.
I showed my hubby the floral fabric....not a good reaction. He's so NOT a flower guy. I've been resigned to that over the years, but I thought I could sneak these in. Maybe not.













More pinwheel construction tonight. Hope the sun is shining where you are!

It Has to Start Somewhere!

Could this be a quilt someday? It started with this one pinwheel block that I made during Sew Mama Sew's quilting month. I've had this fun Alexander Henry fabric sitting around forever, and I was just itching to make something from it. Of course, you know me....no plan in mind. So I pulled out some more fabric...some Alexander Henry and some Katie Jump rope and made a few more blocks. Then I thought the brown background was a bit too dark and depressing. It needed something to brighten it up a bit. I made the small pinwheels this weekend. The background is Kona mint. Love that fabric...my very favorite color...a light almost icy aqua. It was on a stack for another idea...so goes that one. My original thought was to integrate the large pinwheels with panels of this great floral fabric. (Pinwheels in the garden is what I was imagining...) Now I've got the big pinwheels, the little pinwheels and this fabric. I'm considering how they might all fit together. I have more pinwheels to make and then we'll see what happens. I love all of these colors. I would love this to be a quilt for our bedroom. But king sized...yikes. That's a lot of pinwheels.
I also made a bit of progress on the Cathedral windows. I've done 9 squares (12 windows) and already this baby is heavy. Those large quilts must weigh a ton! I think a pillow may be in order. Though I don't have a clue how to proceed with that! I think I will put in the triangle windows around the edge...it has a bit too much white for me. It's been fun and I've learned a bunch, but it's enough for me. I think it's cute too!