Rock-a-bye baby

Christmas is only a few days away.  I've been feeling pretty good that I didn't have any new projects that I started to give as gifts.  Very unstressful.
Well, that was until today.  I decided that I needed to make a doll bed quilt for a doll bed I was giving to a little two year old girl named Allayna for Christmas.  She loves her little baby dolls and is always  laying them down for naps.   Now she'll have a little bed to put them in.
The doll quilt is small, only 16" by 20" and really only took a couple hours to make.  In fact, the fabric I used was left over from a baby quilt that I made for Allayna a couple years ago when she was born.  So this project was fun and unstressful.

This is Allayna's quilt

A baby doll quilt that matches Allayna's quilt

The quilt fits snug in this little doll bed

What a wonderful way to use up those leftover scraps of fabric.  I know Allayna will have hours of fun covering up her baby doll.
I think I'll have to make some doll diapers with velcro closures for her, but not for Christmas.  She has a birthday in January.  Time to measure up her doll.

Got Squares?

A Stash Pot Pie quilt called Pie Chart - Got Squares?  This was a very quick and simple constructed quilt.  The 2 " blocks were randomly assembled.   Contrast from the assorted colored 2" blocks and the white makes this a stunner.

The quilting design I used was inspired by one of the fabric patterns - a three leaf-type flower with a little hook.

The inspirational fabric design is from the turquoise block
in the top left.

Welcome Ruby

A little girl named Ruby was born this past summer to my son's good friend. So of course it was time to make another baby quilt.  
My son delivered this quilt to Ruby a few weeks ago when he was visiting his friend.  I was sure I took a picture of the full quilt, but I have been unable to find it.  I either didn't take the picture or I deleted it before I posted this blog.  Luckily my son snapped this photo for me so I could see this little bundle of joy.

Falling autumn leaves

Grayling has a wonderful living history museum complex called Wellington Farm Park.  This 60 acre park offers an unique look at rural life in a midwestern farming community during the Great Depression - 1930s.
The farming community of  Wellington actually existed in Crawford County and had an operating post office from 1884 - 1916.  Today Wellington still exists but is part of Beaver Creek Township.
Being a non-profit park there are community members who volunteer to keep the park running,  In 2003 the ladies from the Friends of Wellington made a beautiful quilt and sold raffle tickets for a fundraiser.
The quilt is a large, full bed-size, with blocks that are hand appliquéd leaves in stunning fall colors.  The design honors the farms history by taking leaf patterns from the actual trees that grow on the farm.  The quilt was also hand quilted.
When visiting the park with my kids that fall I purchased raffle tickets in their names.  To our surprise my daughter was the proud winner.  We feel blessed to have received such a keepsake.
This quilt has had lots of cuddle time and it still looks great.

A different four-patch

This four-patch quilt was one of the Stash Pot Pies challenges.  I know the group name - Stash Pot Pie is a little unusual, but most patterns included a great recipe for pies.  This pattern included the recipe for Cranberry Chiffon Pie.

This quilt is called American Pie "a different four patch" - a geometric design was formed through color placement.

This quilt looks busy, but was pretty easy to construct

Extra fabric? No problem - just make a matching pillowcase

I started this quilt with an older Viking sewing machine and about three-quarters of the way through I purchased a new Husqvarna Sapphire computerized sewing machine. So of course, I finished the last blocks with my new machine.  To my disappointment the seam allowance was different, even though both machines used the same pressure feet.  The last quarter of the blocks I made were the wrong size and could not be assembled.  So I had to unsew the newly made blocks and resew them on my older Viking machine.  The blocks then went together perfectly.  A lesson learned to measure for accuracy from machine to machine.

Let it snow

During 2010 and 2011 I belonged to a group of quilters called Stash Pot Pie.  We met every other month and would receive two quilt patterns to work on and share our projects at our next meeting.   The variety of patterns made it a great skill builder.  

One of the challenges was the Dresden plate.  Since I already made a traditional Dresden plate quilt I decided to try a different spin and make a deconstructed version.

Making the Dresden plate in the center of the block and adding quarter Dresden plates around the corners gave the look of large snowflakes.  So let it snow

The contrast of white and royal blue make these snowflakes pop.

This close up shows the quarter squares surrounding the full Dresden plate.
Although the square above doesn't look square - it is just how the fabric
was draped when the photo was taken.  It is square

Practice, practice, practice

In the beginning learning to quilt my projects was always intimidating.  One great practice piece I did was to quilt a design by following the fabrics printed pattern.  I purchased this yellow and blue fabric that matched my kitchen/dining room colors and just followed around the floral design.

Being a table runner made the size manageable and  easy to maneuver on my sewing machine.  Since I just followed around the designs it was fun.  I just decided how detailed I wanted to get with my quilting.  In fact, after I got the hang of it I went back to where I started and quilted in more details. This practice piece did wonders for learning to move in all directions.  It also had points, curves and circles to move around.  With only a couple dollars investment if it didn't work I wasn't out of a lot of money.
Since quilting this table runner on my sewing machine I have purchased a long arm quilter. I feel that this type of practice  to move around on your quilt has helped me with my overall quilting.  I can draw pretty good curves, circles and points on my longarm.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

Fall and Christmas are the holidays I do the most decorating for.
This ten minute table runner showcases again.  I made this runner a little longer and wider,  but did not add batting or quilt it like the fall runner.  For the embellishment I made small yo-yos to look like berries and made small leaves.
The possibilities are endless and fun.

One of my favorite runners is the pattern Majestic Mountains.  Last year one of my quilting friends saw a picture of this runner on line.  We searched high and low to find the runner to purchase the pattern, but we could not find it.  The picture that she had found was for selling these pre-made runners and they were no longer available.
I started drawing with pencil and paper to figure out sizes to make the size runner that would work for us.
I made three different fabric strip size patterns to accommodate different lengths and widths.  This is my version of the Majestic Mountains table runner.   My friend's runner did not have the pointed ends like mine, but ended straight.  She is already making more for gifts this year.  I think this is a stunning table runner.

This runner looks great on my dining table and I will leave it out most of the winter.

Pumpkin seeds

One of my quilting groups - Stash Pot Pie - did a fall table topper. The blocks look like pumpkin seed blocks, but is actually called cathedral windows. The technique was to fold the fabric and curl it over to make the oval shapes and top-stitch it in place instead of appliquéd.
The instructor had black cats and pumpkins in the adjacent blocks.  Since I already had a halloween runner I decided that I would stick with the fall idea. I used a paisley fabric in fall colors and cut paisleys from the coordinated fabric and machine appliquéd them to the blank squares.  This table topper works great through Thanksgiving.

Here is a close up of the stitched cathedral window block.

It's pumpkin time!

As I was packing away my fall table runners I thought it was a good time to share my projects.
Fall, of course, brings out pumpkins, apples and changing colors of browns, oranges, reds and yellows.
Pumpkins are native to North America and one of the oldest domesticated plants.
When I was a kid I didn't care for pumpkin - except for carving.  One afternoon after school Mrs. Sartori changed that.
I went home with one of my friends from school and his mother, Mrs. Sartori, was busy cooking fresh pumpkins and making them into pumpkin pies.  While sitting around the kitchen table chatting with Mrs. Sartori she place a piece of pumpkin pie in front of each of us.  Trying to be polite I told her no thank you, I don't like pumpkin pie.  Well, she replied back, you haven't tasted Mrs. Sartori's pumpkin pie - you'll love it.  She handed me a fork.  I looked at that piece of pie and decided that to be polite I had to take a bite.  I took a deep breath and took a bite.  Mrs. Sartori was standing over me with a huge smile on her face.  OMG she was right - I hadn't tasted Mrs. Sartori's pumpkin pie.  I ate ever last bite.
Mrs. Sartori shared her secret recipe with me and I have made it for the last 40 plus years.   Everyone that has tasted this pie has agreed that it's the best.  I still don't like store bought pumpkin pie, but look forward to every fall for the pumpkin harvest for fresh pumpkin pie.
Decorating for fall is always fun.  Table runners are great quick projects.  A nice way to try a new technique without committing a whole quilt.  After making a few table runners for fall and Halloween there just isn't room for more, so I decided to convert a table runner pattern into a lap quilt.
One of my favorites I call Pumpkin Patch.  This quilt is actually a table runner pattern that I converted into a lap quilt by adding blocks around the runner.  The pattern is called "Gathering Pumpkins" by Margot Languedoc from The Pattern Basket.

I tried a new technique called couching to add vines.  Couching is zig-zagging over a heavy thread or yarn to secure it to the surface.  It was easy to twist and turn around just like the vines on a pumpkin.   The leaves are machine appliquéd

Of course, fall includes Halloween with the typical Jack O Lanterns.  This table runner was machine appliquéd.

Have you ever made the Ten Minute Table Runner?  I've made a few for many holidays and gifts.

My fall version I actually decided to add batting and quilt the middle.  

It is embellished with  yo-yos on each end to resemble sunflowers with large black buttons for the centers.  I also added a band of orange 1/2" wide piping, so I guess this took a little longer than ten minutes, but it was fun jazzing it up.  The skies the limit.

If you haven't made a ten minute table runner yet you should give it a try.  It's addicting and makes great gifts.

Teach an ole dog new tricks

As I was traveling through the internet I came across a fantastic YouTube method to bury threads on your quilts.  All it takes is a regular needle and a piece of thread.  The process goes so quick and easy it takes the hassle out of burying those threads.  Here's the link:
https://youtu.be/n34ggPYamjc

Honoring those who served our country

As Veterans Day came to an end my email box was full of messages stating that the Veterans Day sales were coming to an end.  It's great that there is an opportunity to save money, but the true purpose of Veterans Day is more than great sales or for some people a paid holiday.
Television has had many programs reviewing the wars we have fought over the years.  It's hard to know what our brave soldiers have been through.  Many don't talk about it.
I'm part of a military family.  My husband served in the Marines and than in the Michigan National Guard, from which he has recently retired.  During his carer he was deployed to Iraq for 18 months and had been out of state to several six month schoolings leaving me and our three children home.  Although our family didn't like when dad was away we never complained and always tried to make the best of our situations.  I can luckily say that he was not in combat.  His father was in the Army and fought in Korean War and afterwards joined the Michigan National Guard in which he retired from.
I live northern Michigan - in fact in a town that functions around the military, the Michigan National Guard Camp Grayling Training Center.  It is an active military installation currently used as a regional National Guard training center for National Guard units from Indiana, Illinois, Michigan and Ohio, was well as regular Army and Reserve units.  These facilities also include the nearby Grayling Army Airfield.
A little history about Camp Grayling - It was established in 1913 on a land grant from Grayling lumber baron Rasmus Hanson to the State of Michigan for military training.  The post encompasses some 147,000 acres in three counties - Crawford County, Kalkaska County and Otsego County.  During World War I the camp was used as a mobilization center and during World War II it was used as an infantry training center.  To date it remains an active National Guard training camp.
I guess to say that it is the biggest employer in Crawford County.

The entrance to the Camp Grayling post has a statue of a minute man

I have participated in numerous military activities over the years, but one that I'm very proud of  participating in was a fundraiser for a new Memorial Park on the Camp Grayling base.
My quilting friends and I volunteered to make two quilts as part of the Memorial Park fundraiser raffle that was held in 2012 and 2013.  The funds raised help establish and pay for the concrete forms for individual military units memorial monuments at the newly built park.  The unveiling of the park took place during the Camp Grayling Centennial Celebration in July of 2013.

The fundraiser was a success and the Memorial Park is beautiful

Here is the Camp Grayling monument.  It has black and white photos from the early
1900s of the Michigan National Guard training on horseback and in tents.

So I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our veterans for serving our country.  I am proud of all of you.

It's been a long time

I've spent the summer on outdoor activities.  Mother bear and her cubs have made regular visits to my yard, which I'm always on the lookout to see if they are around.  Other regular visitors include deer, turkeys, a fox, and the usual squirrels, chipmunks, and birds.  I enjoy the variety of birds that live/visit in our area - especially the hummingbirds.  But now the weather has changed from a quick fall season to winter.  It started snowing in my neck of the woods towards the end of October.   I'll miss some our seasonal guests, but it's time to head indoors.
As much as I'm missing the warmer weather my sewing space is welcoming me back.  It's been almost four months since I was busy working on my sewing projects and it feels great to start sewing again.
The first week of November our quilting group had our annual quilting retreat at WaWaSum.  I'm embarrassed to say I'm still working on the same quilt I was working on at the 2018 WaWaSum retreat.  Hmmmmm - but I do have to say that I am seeing light at the end of the tunnel.  I did double the amount of blocks from the original pattern.  My perfect plan is to have it finished and quilted before the end of the year.
Hopefully I'll also have time to quilt a couple other quilts that have been sitting with my UFOs.  It would be great to start the new year without anymore carryover, but unfortunately life happens and I still have some catching up to do.
So enough chatting and time for me to get sewing.

What's a picnic without watermelon?

As the month of May slipped away, it was a busy month.  My gardens are ready and waiting summer fun - if I can keep the wildlife away.

Speaking of wildlife - this early afternoon, while I was working in my herb garden, I started to get up from the ground to get some top soil from my veggie garden to refresh my plants.  As I turned and started to rise about 20 feet behind me was mother bear watching me.  She stood on her hind legs and snorted at me.  OMG!  I never heard her come up on me and where are those cubs.   My heart started racing.  In a panic I turned towards the house, trying to get off the ground as quickly as possible, I tripped and fell.  I scrambled to my feet and ran into the house.  My husband saw me running across the backyard and thought I was getting stung by bees.  When I told him about the bear we both looked out of the house window and there was mom with her three little cubs.  The cubs are still very small, but about twice the size they were when I saw them a couple weeks ago.  The cubs were busy climbing around on logs.  They are so darn cute.   Mom wasted no time to lead them into the woods.  It took a bitter me  to calm down.  Now working outside I'll have to be on the lookout for sneaky bears.  Bears and picnic baskets - hmmmm.  Time to share my next quilt.

My very first log cabin quilt was this cute watermelon tablecloth.  I purchased this pattern during a quilt shop hop several years ago.  The pattern was for a lap quilt or wallhanging which I wasn't interested in.  But I loved the design so I decided to purchase it to only use the pattern for the block design.  I figured out the amount of blocks that were needed to fit over my picnic table and went from there.   I did quilt this tablecloth with batting and the weight is great - the wind doesn't blow it off our table.

Unlike the second log cabin pattern I made several years later in 2014, which required me to trim the strips as they were sewn - this pattern had me cut the strips to the length for what was needed for each row before sewing.  Although precutting the fabric strips took longer, sewing it together was quick and easy.  The watermelon seeds were topstitch appliquéd before it was quilted.

This quilt is so bright and colorful it's the perfect compliment for an outside summer picnic.   I love when we have family and friends over for dinner and I can use this tablecloth.  However, I always hope that whatever gets spilled or dropped on it will easily wash off.  And hopefully that bear doesn't decide to come to my picnic.

I don't always want a lap or bed quilt that patterns are usually designed for, so I'm quick to repurpose their design to fit my ideas and uses - as I did with this watermelon tablecloth.  So welcome June - the beginning to outdoor fun.

A glance at baby quilts from the past

The numbers keep piling up as I reminisce the baby quilts I've given as gifts.  Because I design as I go when making a quilt I always end up with more than enough fabric.  Looking through these photos I can see one quilt morphing into the next.

This first quilt was made for Sebastian in 2016.  Sebastian is almost three years old now and has become my little buddy.  He comes over often for play days.  We have a blast.

Next with leftover fabric from the Sebastian quilt another baby quit was made for a new arrival in 2016.  It was a boy. The parents are a cute young couple that owned an independent coffee shop and record shop downtown Grayling.  My kids went to school with this young couple.

This couple also had a son in elementary school.  I figured since this new baby would be getting all the attention that I would make a quilt for him too.  I had leftover "Cycles of Life" fabric from a previous baby quilt that worked great.  The mom has told me that her boys love those quilts and they really come in handy on those cold winter days and nights.

Another school friend of my children, and also a neighbor, was the proud father of a little girl, Riley.  I love the ruffle on this quilt.  There is enough leftover fabric that I'm now making a baby quilt for another little girl due to enter this world at the end of this year.

Got the World on a String

Our quilting group does a weekend retreat the first week of November at a rustic log cabin lodge called Wa Wa Sum located on the banks of the AuSable River Main Stream in Grayling, Michigan.

Writing this post I decided to look up what exactly Wa Wa Sum means.  Through my search I found that it means "Plain View" in the Ojibwa language.  Evidently back in 1905 Chief David Shoppenagon, who was an AuSable River guide and woodsman, gave this hunting cabin its name.  In 1880 Chief David Shoppenagon built the first building on this property which is now the dining room. In 1897, Rubin Rabbit, an AuSable woodsman, built the second structure which is now the administration building. These first two buildings were constructed of red pine and tamarack logs and used as a fishing camp for a group of Toledo businessmen.  Other buildings were constructed over the years.   Back in the early 1900 the trees in this area were heavily harvested for its wood and you could see for miles making the name in plain view appropriate.  Today the area is heavily wooded again and the lodge is hidden up on the high banks of the river in the woods.  This lodge is now a Michigan State University research conference facility located six miles east of Grayling.

An old postcard picture of Wa Wa Sum lodge

In 2017 one of our group members came up with a retreat challenge - string quilts.  It ended up that none of us had attempted string quilts before so this was a great challenge.  Before our retreat weekend I cruised through the internet to get an idea exactly what a string quilt was and I became hooked.   One idea I saw was a block called "Snow on Cedars" that caught my eye.

It was exciting to work on a quilt that was going to bust through some of my stash fabrics.   Looking through my fabrics I realized that I had tons of green fabrics.  The light bulb went on - I would make a dent in my green stash and make a quilt with blocks similar to "Snow on Cedars".  I live in northern Michigan amongst thousand of trees including lots of pines and cedars.  There was no pattern for this quilt just a picture so I would wing it.  This is my rendition of "Snow on Cedars" that grew to be queen size.

Snow on Pines

Sewing these green strips together was a blast.   Not knowing the finished size of the quilt or the amount of blocks it would take I just cut and sewed every single piece of green fabric I had in my stash.  I was determined to use up all this green fabric.  Since there weren't enough days at the retreat weekend to sew all these random strips, over the next couple months I worked on my squares.  When I finally had all my blocks ready to assemble I still had a ton of green stringed sewn fabric left over - another quilt is on the drawing board.

As I finished this quilt and decided on a quilting design I named my quilt "Snow on Pines".  My quilting design looks like pine needles and not cedar.

After quilting I was burying my threads, and of course one of my cats decided he needed to get involved - quality control.  Who know where cats are until you start to sew something and then they magically appear ready to help.

That pile of unused green string blocks already are becoming a different quilt. This technique is a great way to use up your stash.   I'm loving the string quilt blocks and there will be more string quilts in the future - I have a lot more stash in other colors to break on through. Now finished with UFO #14.

Earth Day - April 22

It's nice to have a designated day to remind us of our imprint on the Earth.  Today people are more aware of caring for our surroundings than when I was a child.  With the creation of Earth Day in 1970 it has educated us to be better stewards.  But not just on Earth Day, we are reminded daily to recycle,  reuse and repurpose.

With recycle, reuse and repurpose in mind I have been aware to do my part.  I have made numerous blue jean quilts over the past 20 years.   I've lost count on how many blue jean quilts I have made for friends and family members.  Since friends and family know I recycle their cast off blue jeans into quilts I have gladly become the dumping ground for blue jeans that would have been tossed in the garbage.  Presently I have a couple large garbage bags full waiting for their new life.

Mostly I have made rag blue jean quilts, which are pretty simple to make.  It's a good beginner quilt project - denim squares and flannel squares sewn together and no is batting necessary.  Snipping the ends to help the denim to fray is time consuming, but to save time and to keep from getting "blisters on my fingers"  I've learned to snip the ends as they are sewn together.

Here is my first blue jean quilt made over 20 years ago.  It has been well used and broken in perfectly.  It's still a favorite.

I've made these quilts in several variations - single layer and double layer flannel backing, quilting each individual square, and cut out designs on some of the squares.  I pick a theme with the flannel backing to match the person receiving the quilt.   I've made a couple of these quilts with orange flannel backing for the Detroit Tigers fans.  My brother-in-law is a huge Michigan fan so of course his quilt was made in maize and blue.  I even went one step further and cut out "M"s throughout the front of the quilt.  When doing cutouts I sew around the area that I cut out.  Experimenting with cutouts on denim quilts I realized I needed an extra piece of denim behind where the flannel is exposed - otherwise it is very thin in the cutout area and can wear through the quilt quickly.

My first blue jean quilt with cutout squares showing the same flannel as the backing.  In the cutout square there is an extra piece of flannel facing the front.   If you sandwich a pice of denim between the flannel it keeps this area from being too thin.

My youngest son was into Guitar Hero, so when I found flannel that had skulls and guitars I knew it was  perfect for him.  The possibilities are unlimited.

This quilt I sewed and "X" through all the layers.  Adding an extra piece of flannel to each square adds more color in the frayed areas and makes it a little more puffy.

Everyone who has received one of these blue jean quilts loves the weight - they drape nicely over your body/lap and are nice and warm.  Unfortunately, I only have a couple pictures of blue jean quilts to share, but you can certainly get the main idea of how they have evolved.

Speaking of recycling blue jeans - in an earlier post I made beautiful denim pillows from old blue jeans.  I have other ideas for repurposing these jeans, but for now those garbage bags of jeans are part of my stash.

I love the quality of denim from blue jeans.  I've purchased some beautiful woven rugs from an elder couple who live in a nearby town.  This couple owns a wooden antique weaving loom that is over 100 years old to make these rugs.  I don't think you can ever wear these rugs out.    I love these rugs. I've done weaving before, possibly I'll start weaving my own blue jean rugs.  I'll jot this down on my to-do-list :)

Spring babies

Now that spring is finally here we will begin to see those darling little spotted fawns with their mothers and turkeys with their flock of chicks.  In fact, all around us we will see natures birth, from the trees and flowers to the animals and birds.  As wonderful as this season is the danger of wild animals and their offspring keep me on alert.   Just outside my family room window we have a mother and her three cubs eating our bird seed.  Those cubs are darling running around and wrestling, but the bird feeder will have to come down to discourage mom's return.

I was thinking back to all the baby quilts that I made and gave to welcome a new child.  My first baby quilt I made was in 1982 while waiting for the birth of my first child - David Michael Golnick.  He was born on February 9, 1983. Not knowing if I was having a boy or girl, I sewed away using colored fabric that could go either way.

The puppy dog pattern for this quilt came in a Better Homes and Gardens magazine. That magazine always had great ideas and patterns for the do-it-yourselfer.  This was my first attempt at hand appliqué and took many months to finish before the baby was born.

This baby quilt fit perfectly on the crib

The quilt is still in good shape - no holes  or worn spots.  I'm hoping someday that David will be a father and I will hand this quilt over to his new family.

So some time went by until I made a gifted baby quilt.  In fact, over 20 years.

I was given many beautiful afghans and quilts with the birth of each of my children.  They stayed in pretty good shape because they were small and outgrown early.  When it came time for me to make a baby quilt, I decided that I wanted them to be big enough so that it could be dragged around and worn out by that child.  So begins my so called "baby quilts".  The ladies in my quilting guild laugh when they see I'm making another baby quilt - they are more like twin bed size.

As my children grew and graduated from high school and went off to college, their close friends started getting married and having babies.  Since I know their friends I decided that I would make a baby quilt for their first born.

Sarah's friend Cassie was the first to have a baby in 2013.  I bought a panel printed fabric with a tree and an owl designed by Sandy Gervais  (my mother's maiden last name is Gervais and I wonder if she is any relation).  I framed the panel with a coordinating stripe fabric and quilted it on my regular sewing machine making a leaf pattern on the tree and outlining the figures.  It came out cute.  Cassie had a boy, Hayzen Ross.  She loved the quilt so much that it was used as a wall hanging in the baby's bedroom.   She also had his first pictures taken with that quilt.   I forgot to take a photo of the quilt before I gave it to her, so here is the quilt in the photo of Hayzen.  Unfortunately, not all the quilt is in the picture, but this photo was taken of Hayden not my quilt :)

I have more baby quilts to share, but I'll include them in a future post.

Block of the Month

Lucky 13?  Well completing this UFO Block of the Month quilt, or in quilting lingo - BOM, had a challenge with every block.
A  few years back a local quilt shop offered this quilt as a kit.  Each month I received directions and the fabric to make two blocks.  I must say that they did a great job with the fabric coordination.  There are fabrics I would never have picked to coordinate with these blocks, but their selection blended beautifully.  I love the nice rich tones.
Some of the techniques for assembling these blocks were very different.  I remember one square called loosey goosey.   It was a technique for making a flying geese by folding fabric.  With crazy names like loosey goosey it made it even more fun.  I added the dark brown border to the quilt after it was done.  Remember I like my quilts bigger.
This week as I quilted this quilt I found that these folded fabrics were extremely hard to sew over without catching the fabric and curling it over.  I ended up using scotch tape to lay over the open folds of  fabric and my machine glided right over.  Afterward it was very easy just to pull the tape off.

Do you put your name on your quilts?  With all the great stitches that our sewing machines offer these days, mine also sew alphabet letters.   I do not have an embroidery machine, but I do have a few basic fonts.  I decided that it would be good to add my name to my quilts using these fonts.  If I know the exact year it was made I also include the year.   

Once I prepare my binding and iron it in half,  I sew my name on the binding before it is attached to the quilt.  I keep the sewn name side to the back of my quilts.  I guess I could also sew my name to the backing, but it is a little harder to figure out where to place it before it is quilted and once its quilted it's too late to add.

Now I just have to remember to sew my name on the binding before attaching it.

This time when I attached the binding on this quilt I used my walking foot.  I've owned a walking foot for years and with each of my three sewing machines ago, but only used it when I was machine quilting - which wasn't very often.  After reading so much about the "walking foot" I decided to give it a try with the binding.  Wow, what a difference that foot made.  I've always pinned my binding to the quilt first and than would sew it on.  Needless to say I would always end up with a good five inches more binding than what I originally pinned on.  With the walking foot the top binding fabric didn't move and my binding was exactly how I pinned it.

Walking feet are a little pricey, but I think it's a great investment.  You get nickel dimed with all these sewing gadgets and sometimes not even use what you bought.  However, I think you'll get your monies worth with this foot.  For now on, I will always use my walking foot to attach and sew on my bindings.

Spring has sprung?

Easter is a week away.  Today I was filling Easter baskets, planting seeds indoors and decorating the house with some spring touches.   I no sooner got done and look what Mother Nature has tossed my way.  It's almost a white out.  Just a few minutes ago there was no snow.   Will spring ever make its way to my neck of the woods?

While unpacking some of my spring decor I decided to put this nice bright runner on my table.  I made this runner a few years back.  I especially love the prairie points running along the sides.  It was my first attempt to make prairie points and it was very easy.  You space the prairie points as close or far apart as you would like to fill in the space.  

Making table runners is a quick and easy way to learn a new technique without committing to a whole quilt.  Table runners are also a good way to practice and learn how to quilt your own quilts.  This was the first time I attempted to quilt straight (well sort of straight) lines. 

None of your beeswax

Well, the post really doesn't have much to do about "none of your beeswax".
I was using up more scrap fabric making beeswax wraps for food.  I chuckled while making these wraps "none of your beeswax" came to mind.
I remember as a kid in the 50s and 60s hearing "none of your beeswax".  I don't remember who I heard it from, if it was from my parents, grandparents, teachers, babysitters, friends or all of the above.  But I did know that it meant, mind your own business.
Where did such a strange saying come from?  Well,  thankfully the internet has a wealth of information including the definition of "none of your beeswax", well sorta.
 According to Wikipedia: In the 1930s, a slang version rendered the saying as "Mind your own beeswax".  It is meant to soften the force of the retort.  Folk etymology has it that this idiom was used in the colonial period when women would sit by the fireplace making candles together, though there are many other theories.
Now back to business. Making beeswax wraps replaces the use of plastic wrap and bags.  Also, beeswax is a natural antibacterial product.  What a great way to wrap up your lunch.  As an avid recycler I think these are a grand idea.
I searched the internet and found an easy technique to make these wraps.  I preferred the brush the melted wax on the fabric technique verses melting the wax in the oven and dipping the fabric.  With just three ingredients melted together: 1cup natural beeswax, 1/4 cup tree resin and 2 tablespoons of jojoba oil, I was whipping up these wraps in no time.
I've made a few wraps for each of my kids to include in their Easter baskets.  They'll be the final judges if these wraps are such a grand idea.

Beeswax food wraps

More hearts

In January 2018 I posted the matching heart quilt (Don't you want somebody to love).  Well today I am expanding on this quilt post with the finish of UFO number 12.  What would you do with leftover blocks?  Well more heart blocks can make great matching pillows.
As you can see, I had quite a few extra heart blocks to create two ruffled pillow shams and a 20 inch square double sided throw pillow.  The pillow shams have a fold-over back to easily insert bed-size pillows.  The throw pillow has a zipper on the bottom to insert a pillow form.  Having an opening for the throw pillow will make it easier for washing.

I can visualize these pillows with the heart quilt in an adorable girls room.

My UFOs are dwindling down, but still more to go.  As I moved my sewing stuff from totes in the basement to my upstairs studio I purposely didn't leave a space for UFOs - after all, they are all going to be completed.  Right? My mission - No UFOs!  Once I get caught up finishing these quilts my plan is to finish each quilt completely - no more UFO piles.  So far my plan is working wonderfully. I have  the time, tools and confidence for this mission.  I'm feeling good and a great weight is being lifted off my shoulders as I'm working my way down the pile of quilts.  Most of these quilts even have the backing material folded with them making no excuse not to finish them up.
Still not counting how many more quilts are in the pile - it's time to load another quilt on my long arm.  I do think I should count how many I have completed from this pile.

The Dresden plate

The Dresden plate block is a beauty.  Creating this quilt was a great challenge - piecing and appliquéing - lots of corners to sew around.  The appliquéing was done with the blanket stitch by machine, but the edges were turned with a 1/4 inch seam allowance.  Unless my appliqué is a wall hanging I prefer to turn the edges to avoid raveling with the wear and washing of quilts.
Quilting it was a challenge too.  Feeling more confident to try different designs on my long arm quilting machine I decided to quilt a separate design in the borders of the Dresden plates and the outside border. I watched a Utube with Angela Walters demonstrating how to quilt a continuous leaf design - this worked good for me to apply to the borders.  I am very pleased with the final result and will use this design in the future and I've just completed UFO number 11.

Dresden plate block

No scrap left behind

Pulling this quilt from my UFO pile made me chuckle.  I'm a big recycler, repurposer and composter - this definitely applies to my quilting too.  I hate throwing things away or wasting things.  I even find great pleasure in being able to use a pencil or a pen until it doesn't write anymore - which doesn't happen often.  This flannel quilt is a perfect example.  This quilt is made up of left over blocks and fabrics from a previous flannel quilt that I made as a Christmas present for my older son a few years back called The Fireside Flannel Quilt.
I don't follow quilt patterns to the tee, I expand the design to fit my purpose.  Of course during this process I end up making more blocks than what I need.  Since I'm not sure how big the finish quilt will be I end up purchasing more fabric than what is called for.   Fabric buying is all a guesstimate.  Most of the time I purchase too much fabric, but sometimes I desperately try to find more of a certain fabric to finish a quilt.  Looking through my quilts you will see the same fabric in two or three different quilts - sometimes a lot of a fabric or other times just a few squares.
Although the outside blocks are the same as the original quilt - the center is very different.  In fact, when I unfolded this quilt I forgot how I inserted the middle block with no seams in the background fabric - which would be a traditional way to sew this.  Looking on the back of this quilt it looks like I folded the background fabric in fours to find the center and the four corners to insert the square block.  I then drew a square the same size as the block to be inserted in this area and measured a 1/4 inch seam allow inside the square and cut it out.  I preceded to sew the square in this hole leaving the 1/4 inch seam allowance at each corner so I could easily turn the corners.  It lays nice and flat so my method worked.
So now number 10 is completed from my UFO pile.

This quilt was made from the leftover fabric of the quilt below.
I love the buffalo check flannel fabric in the center of this quilt.  This is a nice cozy quilt.

Here is the original Fireside Flannel Quilt

Fireside Flannel Quilt closeup