Getting Ready for Las Vegas

Less than two weeks before I leave for Southern California.  My grandchildren from Sweden will be there, along with my grandson from San Francisco.  I will be visiting for a week with them and then Robin and I will drive to our yearly retreat in Las Vegas.

One of the projects we will be working on in Las Vegas is a Hidden Wells quilt.  Robin and I made them many years ago.  We used the same fabrics but they turned out very different.  Here is a brief look at mine from back then.

The supply list calls for four each of two color families.  Since I am trying to use my stash, I found an old kit to make a Weaver Fever quilt.  It had three each of purple and lime green.  I found one more of each color and I think I am set.

I also worked on cutting the rest of my fabric for my Smokey Mountain Stars quilt.  Here is the box full of parts so far.

I am continuing to use these as leaders/enders and I get a lot done when working on something else.

Melinda

Grandmothers Flower Garden

I haven’t been talking about my GFG but I am still slowly working on it.  I have this stack of flowers ready, 17 blocks sewn together and 6 more baggies of flower parts ready to be put together.  I have been sewing together at least one flower each night.  I need to get them finished so I can lay out the quilt and decide how to put it together.

Melinda

Design Wall Monday–June 25, 2012

I finished two quilts last week.  I already posted them but here is another look.  First is my new sample for Beginning Machine Piecing.

And then Pumpkin Gang – a Halloween quilt.

Here is what is currently on my design wall – it will be a Christmas quilt when it grows up.

There is one more type of block to make before I can put it together.  This is the new Christmas line by Kate Spain called Joy.

For more design walls, go to Patchwork Times and check out all the wonderful projects on walls.

Melinda

Stash Report–Week 26, 2012

There has been a little movement on my stash – not necessarily in the desired direction.  I brought in 6 3/4 yards of fabric for a Halloween quilt plus 3 1/2 for backing.  The good news is the quilt is finished and in the shop so the same is in the out column also.  I also used 1/2 yard to bind the new sampler quilt.

I brought home fabric to make a Christmas Sample which is 6 1/4 yards plus 4 1/2 for backing.  Still working on this quilt and will show progress tomorrow.  I also used about  1 1/2 yards for the Piecemaker bag project and then gave Stella about 2 yards for backing for a QOV she is quilting for the guild.

Here are the totals.

Used this Week:  14.25 yards
Used year to Date: 200.75 yards
Added this Week: 21 yards
Added Year to Date: 212.75 yards
Net Used for 2012: –12 yards

More sewing scheduled this week.

For more stash reports, go to Patchwork Times.

Melinda

Christmas in July Preview

OK – so it isn’t a Christmas quilt.  At Christmas in July, we always feature Halloween quilts also.  This is a cute quilt made from a panel that is cut up, bordered and trimmed into blocks.

The fabric is called Pumpkin Gang.  Cute, isn’t it.

Melinda

Working on Another Halloween Quilt

I am binding a second Halloween quilt and hope to finish it later today – photos to follow.

It is made with a preprinted panel that is cut up – very cute.

Melinda

Scrappy Trips Quilt

I have been playing with designing a pieced border for the Scrappy Trips quilt but decided if I could find a great multi-colored batik, I would go with a single fabric border.

Here are the blocks I have made so far.

Here is the fabric I found for the borders.

I am happy!

Melinda

Sampler Finished

I finished the binding on my new sampler for the beginning machine piecing class last night and took a few photos of it this morning.

You can see the block on the bottom right – it is finally turned correctly.  I think this will be a great teaching quilt with a row each week.  The blocks are 6 inch blocks and start with a row of rail fence blocks.  The next row is nine patches, followed by friendship stars.  Next is double nine patches with the center blocks being what Alex Anderson calls square dance.  The fifth row is log cabin blocks with a courtyard steps in the center.  Of course the last row is flying geese.

The pattern calls for three colors with four of each color, plus the sashing and border.  I think it will be fun to teach and fun for the students to make and hopefully learn a lot.  One of the best things is that it still fits on one width of backing.  It turns out about 41 x 48.

Here are a few more photos.

Here is the backing – I really love the back.

Melinda

Bag Project from Piecemakers

I forgot to share that we made tote bags during our Piecemakers meeting.  Actually it is more correct to say we changed existing tote bags by adding a pocket, making them suitable for children.  They will be donated along with quilts to the Cobb County foster care system.

I had the cowboy fabric in my stash for some reason, was glad to use part of it.

The bags were leftover from a long ago quilt show – one of those ideas that sounds good at the time but there were lots of them leftover and it is good to see them used for such a good project.

Melinda

Piecemakers Exchange

We did the exchange and had a wonderful potluck lunch.  I made a cabbage chicken salad and it turned out great.  I had enough left over that I had it for dinner also.  When I went to the store to buy a chicken for the salad, I saw the blackberries so I also made a blackberry cobbler.  It was yummy and it got completely eaten – no leftovers.

Here are the blocks I received in the exchange.

Jan and I made extra blocks but forgot we had done them.  We had a set leftover and it took until this afternoon to realize that those were the ones we were supposed to split.  That means that I have 8 more coming next time I see Jan, which should be Friday at the quilt show meeting.

Now the next challenge will be to complete a quilt using these blocks by our Christmas meeting.  I have a couple of ideas but will wait until I see all the blocks together before I decide.

Melinda

Design Wall Monday–June 18, 2012

My design wall has changed a little.  I am stacking up the leader/ender pieces of Smokey Mountain Stars until I get them all made.  It is too big for the design wall at this point.  I will have to lay it out on a flannel backed tablecloth – a big one!

What is on my design wall is six blocks for my scrappy trips around the world.  There will be 36 blocks in total and I would like to have at least half made before we go to Las Vegas.  I need to have several in process as teaching aids so can’t get them all done.  I have been trying to design a border for it but am struggling.  I may try to find a multi-colored batik and call it done.  The major problem is that for the design to look good, it needs to be even number of rows and blocks.  The center of the quilt will turn out to be 72 inches square so the border can’t be too big or it will be too big for my bed.

Here it is right now.

For more design walls, go to Patchwork Times.  I love to look at all of the inspiration on Mondays.

Melinda

Stash Report–Week 25, 2012

Not a lot going on with my stash this week.  I completed the sampler and it is ready to quilt.  Here is a photo of it.  Notice the upside down block on the lower right?  It is fixed now but not without a challenge.  I took it out, and promptly sewed it back together wrong.  I then took it out again and it is now right.

I really like it and think it will be a great quilt for new students to learn with.  It has lots of different types of blocks to practice with.  I used 4.5 yards for the sampler and have 2 yards for the backing.

I also traded with Carolyn.  She gave me some batik strips for my scrappy trips quilt and I have her a bunch of 30’s strips and extra fabric.  I figure I gave her about 4 more yards than she gave me.  Good trade!

In was the monthly Kaffe fabric for 3 yards.

and a fabric I just couldn’t resist – 3 yards.

Here are my totals for the week.

Used this Week:  10.5 yards
Used year to Date: 186.5 yards
Added this Week: 6 yards
Added Year to Date: 191.75 yards
Net Used for 2012: –5.25 yards

For more design walls, go to Patchwork Times.

Melinda

Customer Quilt

I finished up a customer quilt and delivered it yesterday.  It is going to be a wedding quilt and is going to be given to the bride at a shower next month.  It is beautiful.

 

It is made from Sweetwater’s Hometown line and from their book.  It is a wonderful modern quilt.

Melinda

Ready for Piecemakers Annual Swap

On Monday we are having our monthly bee meeting and it is time to swap this years blocks – spool blocks.

I made my 17 a few weeks ago – here they are if you want to know what they look like.

The black ones are for the swap and the extra 4 selvage blocks are for a side swap we have arranged.  One of the members of the group dropped out a couple of weeks ago so Jan and I decided each of us will make an additional 8 blocks and will use these to fill out the swap and split them since each of us wants to to make more anyway.

Here are the eight extra I made last night.

We will be swapping them on Monday, along with a potluck lunch – can’t wait.

Melinda

Allatoona Guild Auction Purchases

I did buy a few things at the auction last week.  I spent a total of $18 and brought a couple of bags home full of things I didn’t need – in fact I really don’t need anything related to sewing/quilting.

First I rescued two quilt tops.  I paid $1 for one of the and $3 for the second.  I don’t remember which is which.  Here is the red and white quit top.

It is very simple but the piecing is much more complex than I would do.  Look at the intersections of the white.

Next is a blue and white stripped quilt top.  I didn’t realize it was such large interesting blocks. 

Look at the random way the stripped and plain fabric is used.  Interesting!  It will be fun to quilt these – of course I already have lots of my own quilt tops that need to be quilted and don’t need to buy more to put in the stack.

Our friend Ruth passed away about three years ago and many of her things were donated and in the auction.  I bought two bundles of old linens – I am a sucker for old linens.

Melinda

Fabric In and Sampler Progress

I reported last week that I received the latest solid package in the mail.  It is shades of gray from almost white to dark charcoal. They look kind of brown in the photo but they are really gray.

Next, I worked a little on my new Sampler.  Here is what it looked like this morning – I have added one additional block since then.

I have also been working on the Smokey Mountain Stars as leaders/enders and instead of having them on the crowded design wall, they are in stacks.

I am cutting and sewing and pinning them together in stacks of 10 and am making a lot of progress.

I taught a Lattice Patch class this morning and will have another one this evening – photos tomorrow.

Melinda

Ice Cream

Since it is now summer, thoughts turn to ice cream – homemade ice cream.  We have a ice cream maker that is like the old-fashioned ones using ice and salt.  I decided we needed to get a smaller one, that you put the container in the freezer and make it that way.  The large one is fun, but quite a production and we always make far to much for the two of us.

Here is the first batch out of the new ice cream freezer.

We used the recipe that came with the freezer.  I have always used a custard type with eggs but this one used cream and milk (and sugar, of course) instead.  I don’t think it was quite as good.  I found an Alton Brown recipe that I think I will use next.

I got started on the third row of the beginning sampler last night.  It was too stormy to quilt.  I hope to finish it later today and will post an updated photo then.

Melinda

Design Wall Monday–June 11, 2012

My design wall has my Smokey Mountain Stars with the new black centers on it.  Also at the top of the photo is the start of a Scrappy Trips Around the World.

After taking this photo, I took the star bits down and started my new class sample for Beginning Machine Piecing.  I have been using Alex Anderson's book and decided to design my own.  It is going to be a row quilt and I have the first two rows done.  There will be six rows in total.

The next row will be friendship stars.

Lastly, here is the progress on my hexie quilt.

I now have 17 flowers sewn together and many more to go.

For more design walls and inspiration, go to Patchwork Times.

Melinda

Stash Report–Week 24, 2012

Not much went out this week and quite a lot came in.  I need to get busy sewing.

The monthly solids came in so that is 4 yards.  Beautiful greys!  I decided to make a new class sample for the beginning class so have 8 yards for that as well as another shop sample for Halloween at 5.25 yards.

Out is .5 yards for binding on the last Halloween quilt.  I also donated two quilts for community service at guild but they were completed long ago.

Used this Week: .5 yards
Used year to Date: 176 yards
Added this Week: 17.25 yards
Added Year to Date: 185.75 yards
Net Used for 2012: –9.75 yards

For more stash reports, go to Patchwork Times.

Melinda

Cotton Robin and Bee Block

First the bee block.

This is number 8 of 11.

I also received my quilt from the Cotton Robin.  I love it. 

Isn’t it wonderful?  I love it.

Melinda

On the Needles–June 8, 2012

Judy at Patchwork times who sponsors the Stash Report and Design Wall Monday is starting One the Needles to keep track of knitting/yarn projects.  I know I won’t be reporting weekly because watching my progress on any knitting project is somewhat like watching paint dry.

Here is what I am working on right now.  The pattern is called Color Affection and I found it on Revelry.  Lynda and I went to Stitches South a couple of months ago and we both bought yarn for this project.  I love how it is turning out but I am a very slow knitter and have several other projects to work on.

It is beautiful and I am eager to be able to use it.

To see more yarn projects, go to Patchwork Times.

Melinda

Halloween Quilt Finished.

I completed the Halloween quilt this morning.  I quilted it yesterday and then finished binding it this morning.  Here it is quilted but not yet bound.

Here is is in the front yard after binding.

Here is the back.

I like how it turned out.

Melinda

Quilt Progress Report

I have been playing with my Smokey Mountain Stars blocks.  Here is what I posted on Design Wall Monday.

After looking at the design wall for a day or so, I decided I wanted to try something different in the center of the stars.  I cut a few black centers and this is what it looks like now.

I am really interested in opinions.  What do you think?

While pondering this, I decided that I need to get started on my Scrappy Trips Around the World that  I am going to teach in Las Vegas next month.  Here is the first block.  I am using lots and lots of batiks.  I can’t wait to get a few more blocks done.

Melinda

Silent Auction

Today was the June meeting of the Allatoona Quilters’ Guild and we had a silent auction.  Items were collected for several months that were donated by members of the guild.  Over 500 things to bid on and I bid on a few.

I will confess about how much came home with me tomorrow.

Melinda

Design Wall Monday–June 4, 2012

I finished the Halloween quilt and it is next to be quilted.  First I need to finish the Urban Cowgirl jelly roll quilt.  I was going to do a quick overall on it but once it got on the machine it demanded feathers so I only got about half done last night.  Will finish up this afternoon.

On my actual design wall is the start of a Bonnie Hunter quilt – Smokey Mountain Stars as well as the progress on the GFG.  Last time I showed it I had seven flowers sewn together and now there are thirteen.  Lots more to go.

At the Allatoona guild, members have been exchanging civil war fabrics to make Smokey Mountain Stars.  If you have read my blog at all you know the chances of me making a civil war quilt are less than me winning the Lotto.  Since I never buy tickets, that is impossible.  A civil war quilt is even more impossible coming out of my sewing room.

I do have a bit (whole big bunch) of black and white and bright colors in my stash so that is what I am going to use.  Also, the pattern is a good sized lap quilt and I enlarged it in EQ7 to a queen-size.  You would think I would learn better.  I have been cutting squares of both black and white and bright and started making a few squares.  Here is the start of the quilt.  I am planning on using these as leaders/enders.

For more design walls, go to Judy’s Patchwork Times.  Lots of fun there.

Melinda

Stash Report–Week 23, 2012

The above photo has nothing to do with my stash report but it is pretty exciting.  There are 280 5-inch squares in each stack.  This is the result of the bright color swap I was lucky enough to be part of.  I see a lot of bright hexies in my future.  I had already counted the fabric in when I bought my share for the swap so don’t need to count any new fabric in.

This week I bought 16 fat quarters (4 yards) at the memorial day 1/2 price sale).  They were evenly divided between batiks for the scrappy trips and of course dots.  I also bought the end of the bolt of another dot for 1/2 yard.  Lastly was a yard of striped fabric to play with for a possible hidden wells quilt.

For fabric out, I finished the jelly roll quilt at 6 yards plus 4.5 yards of backing.  I gave Sue 4 yards to back her Mexican Star quilt.  I also finished another layer cake quilt plus the backing which was a total of 6.75 yards.

Used this Week: 21.25 yards
Used year to Date: 175.5 yards
Added this Week: 5.5 yards
Added Year to Date: 168.5 yards
Net Used for 2012: 7 yards

Yea! – I am back using more than I bought.  I hope I can keep it up.  For more stash reports, go to Patchwork Times.

Melinda

Another Bee Block

Here is block number seven from Ann.  Another great block to add to my quilt.

It is really going to be fun to put this quilt together.  Only four more blocks to arrive.

Melinda