Reunion Weekend

Posted on August 4, 2018 | 1 comment

Such a fun, busy long weekend. First my youngest turned 19

I’m still not sure where the time went!

Then we got up at a ridiculous hour and flew to Oakland. We made a trip to San Francisco for lunch before heading to Phil’s hometown of Folsom.

Had lunch at House of Nanking which offers awesome gluten free options.

Saw turkeys wandering the neighborhood!

Great breakfasts on Sutter Street!

A serendipitous car show!

I love this picture of my guy!

Class if 1968!

Wonderful friends…. these guys have been friends for decades!

Met this cute mustached kitty during a visit in a lovely garden.

Family picture with the brothers and two nephews and the adorable grand niece held by Nancy (my sister-in-law and fellow crafter!)

And, of course, no travel is complete without a quilt shop stop! This sweet guy didn’t even try to bar the door….

We came back on Monday and I went right into work mode. But I have today off and it just happens to be the day of the quilters yard sale at Pioneer Quilts.

I got so much fun stuff! This post is so long, I think I’ll put my treasures in the next post.

Happy quilting!

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Christmas in July!

Posted on July 23, 2018 | 28 comments

OK, I love, love, love Christmas but ever since I started the second job in the candy store (on top of the full time job) I’m having more trouble getting everything I want to do done.  So, July is really the time for me to start!  But, even in the slow season, I’m working a whole lot so I needed a quick gift that I could craft in a small amount of time.  I’m also really big into practical gifts these days.  I mean, why not craft something that can be used and loved?  So, of course I jumped  in when Carol at Just Let Me Quilt offered a reason to push my Christmas crafts to the top of the to-do list!  I really, really appreciate everything that our blog hop coordinators due.  These blog hops often give me a chance to push being creative to the top of my otherwise too full to do list!

Now, I’m am a keeper of scraps.  If you can still sew a 1/4″ seam and have something left…I keep it (much to the dismay of Kathie and Jennifer who are helping me reorganize my space.)  So, I went diving in my “crumb bag” and came up with these…

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A handful of little red scraps

Which I crumb pieced together and trimmed to 4.5″ square.  I added 1.5″ background squares and stitched on the diagonal.  (If you don’t know crumb piecing, google Bonnie Hunter crumb piecing.)

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Then I stitched a 1.5×2″ rectangle to two 1.5″ squares to make a top for my ornament…ah ha…see, it is a Christmas something!

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Add some 1.5″ strips for background and…

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Add one layer of batting and back with the leftover pieces from recovering my ironing board…and quilt as desired (I did organic wavy lines a la Lorna at Sew Fresh Quilts.)

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I roll up my leftover bits of binding and keep them for small projects like this (and occasionally for larger projects with scrappy bindings.)

Now, just one potholder does not a gift make…so, I did a second one with my green crumbs…

I used my tri-recs ruler to cut this 5.5″ tree, added a small trunk and used the same backing and binding….

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And there they are!  One quick set of potholders that would be great tucked into a little gift bag with one of those “cookies in a jar” sets or some favorite cooking gadgets.  Or, you could spend a bit more time and make a matching apron.  I’m thinking I’d love to make some reusable gift bags for the holidays and I could see using these as a block for the front of a bag.  Now, my sewing helper had a totally different idea of how these work…

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I guess they are really flat kitty pillows!  Mr. Milo has been helping me a lot today

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He’s really good at holding fabric down!

There’s a great group of quilters to see today and I was hoping to share a super cute movie that my google photos generated with my pictures from the Sister’s Quilt Show but it doesn’t seem to be working.  I’ll try to get it going on my instagram and add a link if I do.  Thanks for dropping in and enjoy your day!

Beth

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Christmas in July Starts Today!

Posted on July 23, 2018 | 5 comments

Today kicks off the Christmas in July blog hop!  My day is tomorrow and (gasp!) my project is all ready to show!

Here’s the complete schedule…

July 23 – TODAY
July 24
July 25
July 26
July 27

 

If I can make it work, tomorrow I’ll also take you on a little trip to one of my favorite places!

Happy quilting!

Beth

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A Finish for the 4th

Posted on July 6, 2018 | 1 comment

I had the whole day off from both jobs on the 4th and boy did I need it! I spent a large part of the day sewing. As I fell on Monday and jammed my knee, I was pretty thankful that I can sew with either foot! So, I finished this quilt that is heading off to my brother in California. I’m hoping he’ll like it.

This is my first official UFO for the summer. I’m hoping to finish a few more while I’m off school. Next on my list is this one.

I had to do some changes to the blocks so there was less yellow and white and more purple. At this point, I’m pretty sure I’m going to have to make a second quilt to use up the other blocks that will be left over!

This morning, I added 16 more blocks to the approximately 100 I’ll need.

I’m hoping to lay the whole quilt out tomorrow and see how many more I need. I’ll post more tomorrow.

Happy quilting,

Beth

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WHERE FLOWERS BLOOM BLOG HOP!

Posted on June 11, 2018 | 30 comments

It’s here! And, I have to admit, sometimes I look at myself like this

When I wonder what I was thinking signing up for anything during the same week as this

Yes, our youngest one graduated yesterday and for the first time in more than 20 years, we have no kids in school. It is just weird.

Now, flowers…I love flowers… these are just a few recent pictures on my phone

I’ve been meaning to make some flower coasters for my mom who is in town for graduation.

Aren’t they so cute?

Anyway, I decided to use this tutorial and shrink it down to coaster size. When I make coasters, I make them about 4.5 inches. First I pieced my block (using 2″ squares and 1″ squares) then I added border strips of 1.5″. I used a scrap of batting and a scrap for the back… choose the back color so it works for the binding. I trimmed my front piece to 4.75″ before quilting it.

Layer and quilt then trim the batting even with the front… do not cut the backing fabric

I like to trim the backing to 5/8″ then double folded it to create a binding.

I prefer to hand stitch these down with an applique stitch but you could certainly use your machine.

And, voila, you have a flower coaster to hold your iced summer drink.

Or your coffee…flowers and coffee work, too!  Thanks for stopping in and please drop by and see Carla at Creatin’ in the Sticks...she’s got a great prize up for grabs!  Thanks,  Carla, for all the fun!

Here’s the rest of the schedule

Where Flowers Bloom Blog Hop Schedule

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Plan B

Posted on May 28, 2018 | 6 comments

My boss has a mug that says, “Life is all about how you handle pain B.” Sometimes quilting is, too.

My daughter wanted a version of this quilt

But she wanted purple, yellow and white. I tried a balanced approach

But it just wasn’t working for me. Too balanced, too predictable.

So, I stepped up the purples.

Instead of an equal approach, I added one yellow and one white to four purples. Now I really love it!

I’m still working the existing blocks into the design (waste not want not, etc.) but I’m loving it!

Just goes to show that plan B may just be what you wanted all along!

It’s Memorial Day in the States so to all our veterans and military families… thank you. We remember.

Happy quilting!

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Wish Upon a Star…Sawtooth Edition!

Posted on May 24, 2018 | 31 comments

 

It’s here and, if you read my last post, life’s been, well…a tad more lively lately.  The good news is that I’m out of the brace (unless I’m lifting something I shouldn’t) and the arm is healing nicely. The car, my daughter’s, is still in the shop but they’ve promised to text updates.

So, stars…I love stars!  My favorite all time star block happens to be the “poster child” for this hop…the Sawtooth Star!  I love it for a variety of reasons…

  1. It’s much more simple than it looks
  2. It’s fast
  3. It’s awesome for showing off conversation prints
  4. It’s awesome for adding contrast
  5. You can fill that center with other piecing
  6. It works up great in a variety of sizes.

You’re getting the point, right? In fact, I’ve shown this star a time or two on the blog

 

Sarah’s graduation from nursing school quilt…complete with her new initials and her grad date.
Made with inspiration fabric from guild and donated back to guild.
The Autograph Quilt, living up to the name.
And another thought in solids…this was for the Kona Blog Hop.
Dino-Stars for Chloe

The math (gasp, yes, I said the M word!) is very simple.  The center is twice the size of the ends.  So, if your center is a 6.5″ square, your geese are 3.5 x 6.5 unfinished.  If you want to go small a 3.5″ center will have 2×3.5″ unfinished geese.  Corner squares are the width of the geese.  Make your geese with any method you like…my favorite is to cut my strips the same width of the corner blocks and use a triangle ruler.  There’s tutorial for the 12″ block on the tutorials tab on this blog but it calls for 7/8″ measurements which I don’t use anymore.  I’ll try to get that updated soon!

So, here’s my latest Sawtooth project.  I was hoping to get it fully quilted but it’s still only 1/2-done.  I hope you’ll like it anyway.

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When I was looking at the tutorial, I realized these are the same blocks I was working on then…they’re more than a little dusty and well cat-haired.  With the three-day weekend ahead, I’m hoping to finish quilting this one and have a new top to show!

Thank you to Carol at Just Let Me Quilt for putting this all together!

Please stop and see my other friends…they are all “stars” to me!

May 25
Happy quilting!
Beth

 

 

 

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Are You Seeing Stars?

Posted on May 21, 2018 | 1 comment

It’s here and I’m quilting madly trying to get mine ready for the 25th!  So, here’s the Cliff’s Notes version of my life recently.

 

So there was new car, senior prom, first car accident, baby quilt for a co-worker, nasty tendonitis followed by an injection and a brace, Mother’s Day, helping a very sweet friend with an adorable Western-themed quilt, feeling like I just want to do a face plant, and this lovely thought I saw the other day, “Laugh until it all makes sense!”

And while I’m quilting madly away, be sure to check out all the other great star projects!

May 21
 
May 22 – Today
 
May 23
May 24
 
May 25
 
OK, I’m off to bed…it’s an early and long day tomorrow!
Happy Quilting!
Beth

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Camper Window!

Posted on April 24, 2018 | 27 comments

I was so excited when Carla at Creatin’ in the Sticks announced a blog hop using the blocks from her 30 Blocks in 30 Days Quilt! I was assigned the Camper Window block and, I’ll admit, I was kerflumoxed. I didn’t quite know where to start. I stared at the design a bit and then pulled out some thrift store finds I’d been excited about.

I scaled the block down so I could use my 2.5″ strips and put the leftovers back in my bins. First, I tried the block as designed.

I’ll admit it, I couldn’t get my eye to love it. So, I added a color. It was supposed to be a shadow but it was darker than I thought.

But I liked it so away I went.

And here’s the finished quilt.

I love, love, love this! The strong diagonal lines make my heart happy and the soft colors make me smile. Even better, this has to be one of the easiest blocks to piece and put together. There is minimal matching of seams but big impact!

I’d love to try this again with scrappy darks and lights. Hop over to Creatin’ in the Sticks for the tutorial. Thanks to Carla for such a fun block!

Happy quilting,

Beth

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Life in the Fast Lane

Posted on April 23, 2018 | Leave a comment

Remember the lyric that comes next? “Will slowly make you lose your mind? “…. that pretty much sums me up at the moment! Good stuff in my life but oh so busy! However, I did want to share a few highlights quickly…

My project for 30 blocks in 30 days is nearly done….4/25 is my day to share. You can see a list of all the days at https://createinthesticks.blogspot.com/2018/04/day-22-30-quilt-blocks-in-30-days-blog.html?m=1

This happened….

My youngest bought her first car (with her own money!)

And lettered in Cheer!

My little snuggle buddy kitty has been not coming to bed so we are trying to sleuth out his hiding place.

The ladies had a night out at Rick Springfield…. great fun!

Middle aged moms on the loose!

And both jobs continue to keep me busy. But there’s a couple of free evenings this week so sewing room here I come!

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