With a little extra time, I decided to tackle a slightly larger project this time. I had ten Dr. Suess book images and asked my dear friend, Jennifer, for the use of two of hers. My finished quilt is about 40×60 making it a nice toddler size. My husband always said I should work ahead of the need and make baby quilts to have at the ready. I wonder where this one will end up?
As usual, the quilting of this was well supervised.
We had a rotation of fur staff in evidence. Gizmo and Milo even teamed up at one point! I loved working with these fun, bright and vibrant colors. Tomorrow, I’ll try to post a better picture.
As usual, I’m so grateful for the work that goes into Project Quilting. I love this annual incentive to stretch myself creatively. Tomorrow, I’m back to mask making. Check out #makeamillionmasksaday for more info.
Joan at Moosestash Quilting is hosting the Make Us Laugh Blog Hop. The goal was to make something to make us smile and, after much thought, it became apparent that my process and my helpers are about the funniest thing about my quilting.
So, I thought I’d share my “Quilt Tail” about my helpers.
The quilt I decided to finish for the hop was a string quilt designed to evoke, if not laughter, certainly smiles and a sense of being loved for a friend battling cancer. Simple string blocks and allover quilting. Piece of cake, right?
Sounds like it but let me tell you how it went.
Me: I have tonight off. I can baste this quilt.
Gizmo: Let me help!
Me: Ummmm…. that doesn’t actually help.
Gizmo: Purr, purr.
Me: Pets cat until bedtime when cat hops up and saunters to bed.
Me another night: Uses stealth skills and gets quilt basted with only minor adorable interruption.
Me: Tonight, I’ll get this quilted.
Milo: I’ll throw myself in front of the machine and protect the quilt from incessant needling!
Me: Milo, you’ll have to move.
Milo: No move.
Me: Sigh.
Next attempt… distraction.
Daughter is convinced to hold cat…. about 5 minutes of quilting accomplished. However, daughter must work. Open window and sunshine…. nearly 30 minutes… hallelujah!
I’m convinced this is a solution until this happens.
Milo is back with Griffie for reinforcement.
Then Jack decides to join in. Notice he is laying on my hand!
Despite their “help,” I continue to quilt in fits and starts. Sometimes I can get the cat arranged just right… sometimes not.
And, finally, we’re done quilting, trimming and can see how it’s looking.
I believe it passed inspection! Tomorrow, we bind, wash and get in the mail.
So, my project isn’t funny but my helpers sure are! I hope you enjoyed them and I hope we made you smile. It’s a scary time, my friends but I hope you are safe and keeping your chin up. Virtual hugs…. cause that’s the safe kind!
Be sure to hop on over and see the smiles in store for you at these awesome blogs!
This weeks project prompt was “give it away.” Realistically, about 90% of my quilting is in this category. Gifts, donations, or raffle quilts. I was having a tough time coming up with something quick to do and my daughter suggested a make a set of coasters like the ones I had made for my mom. Tulips, she said. With batiks for the flowers but the borders didn’t have to be batik. I quickly realized that I had not only a project but someone to gift them to. I used a foundation to piece my 2.5″ tulip blocks, machine quilted them and then pulled the back around and hand-stitched it down to create the binding. Two of the four are finished. I’ve toyed with the idea of more sets to go in our school bazaar next year. We’ll have to see. They are the perfect size for hand-stitching during my breaks and lunches at Job 2 at the candy store.
Thanks, as always, to Kim at Persimmon Dreams for all the fun and inspiration!
This week’s prompt was the Birds in the Air block. I took a little poetic license and made butterflies instead.
I intended to use all the piecing lines but, being short on time, only did this one block with the correct configuration of triangles.
If you look very carefully, you can see the pairs of background triangles pieced together. I did take a liberty and rotate a triangle, too. I’m quite pleased with my little piece which finished about 18×18.
It’s time for the Color it Red Blog hop courtesy of Carol over at Just Let Me Quilt. As you may have heard me say before, I’m trying to revitalize my attempt to finish some UFO’s and I had the PERFECT one languishing in a cupboard for this one.
I had the blocks made already so the hardest part of all of this was finding the directions for the setting plan on my computer. This is from the wonderful Carol Doak and this ran as a mystery quilt for her online group in….wait for it….2012/13! Ok, and if you are wondering, nope, it doesn’t even come close to being my oldest UFO. (Not by a long shot…just sayin’.)
So, shout outs to two wonderful Carol’s…one who inspired me to make these blocks and one who inspired me to finish the top!
Now, I seem to be in a red and white theme here with my first three Project Quilting Challenges being red and white, too. But, tomorrow and Thursday I’m making my Project Quilting 11.4 project and I have a whole new color theme in mind…stay tuned. And, while you’re at it, check out these other fabulous bloggers….I really am excited to be in the company of such talented people!
This week’s theme is “Put a heart on it.” And, well, my heart isn’t a pretty landscape right now. All the loss, all the grief…. well, it’s just a lot and I wasn’t feeling very heart-y. But I remembered something that Mr. Domestic said at a guild meeting I attended with my quilt class and decided to play with that. I knew this, but it was a timely jiggle to my memory. If you take any piece of fabric, cut it and insert a 1″ strip, the piece remains the same size.
So I decided to make a windowpane heart. I made my block and started cutting randomly vertically. After reassembling it, I cut it horizontally and added more strips.
And here’s my finished heart. It’s a bit of a self- portrait. A shattered heat being held together by the love and kindness that had been shown to us and continues to hold us up. A heart that I’m slowly stitching back together.
Whew! I had a moment of panic this morning thinking I’d missed the deadline! But I’m in under the wire. Again.
So the theme this week was Team Colors and I was drawing a blank. I don’t really follow sports. My husband was a big sports fan and I wasn’t really ready to do anything sports related. But both of my girls had red and white as their school colors.
So, I mulled and I planned and discarded plans and made new plans until, finally, on Friday, I had an idea. I dumped over a bag of scraps and grabbed the red ones.
Then I sewed the strips and scraps together and cut them into 2″ strips.
Then I grabbed a random white square and started executing my labyrinth- inspired quilt.
After I had grown my square to the size I wanted, I quilted it in free motion lines similar to the piecing.
I have a lot of small quilts around so I decided this one should be a pillow. I added a zippered back and, voila! One team-color-inspired pillow which will fit nicely in my sister’s red and white living room!
My Scrap Labrynth measured 19×19″ before it became a pillow. I have to admit I kinda love this idea and would like to try it in a bigger size.
In other household news, the “imaginary ” cat went to the vet (she’s OK, thanks) but I used the occasion to get a photo. She was NOT amused
And the Puma aka Bart (the recent addition that came with my older daughter moving home to help me out) was caught in this rare peaceful moment with Milo.
And, speaking of caught, here’s how it looks when a moose hangs out under the coffee table.
Not a lot of clearance for our chunky boy!
I’m out to the borders on quilting a project I hope to finish this week. (We’re won’t talk about how I hoped to finish it last week.) My class resumes on Tuesday and I can’t wait to see everyone’s progress!
Numbers….I actually love numbers. I love the way they fit together and the steadfastness of them. But the number challenge was a bit of a puzzle. I had a bunch of ideas (some I may revisit later) but ended up with this little heart pincushion after thinking of the song, “One.”
I decided to play with the quilting a little and used jagged lines. A self portrait of sorts as my heart feels a bit like a minefield of shattered bits. Widowing is tough.
But, I did make progress on the house this week (while I should have quilting… which is so wrong.) My daughter and I decluttered the living room. Four full boxes of books and miscellaneous bits left the scene leaving us with a lovely place to relax.
So, here’s to the number 1, the starting point. I’m looking forward to the next challenge and hope to have a finish to show you before then!
Project Quilting can be found here. Check out all the fun and maybe think about playing along!
Well, I made it across the great divide into the twenties (definitely with more tears than cheers) but here we are. And New Year’s calls for resolutions so here they are. I’m totally copying another blogger with 20 for ’20 but I can’t remember where I read it so my apologies. Here’s my 20:
1. UFO’S I have a bunch, like triple digits a bunch. This year, I want to finish a bunch. Maybe 20, maybe not but any finishes will help!
2. YOGA – more yoga. Twice a week is the goal but more would be better.
3. BLOGGING – weekly, at least. More if there’s fun stuff to share.
4. Weight – ok, there’s a reason that’s not all caps and that’s because my goal is to exercise more and eat more healthfully. I am hoping to shed at least 20 pounds this year.
5. FOCUS – I’d like to pursue activities that help increase my focus this year… at work, at home, in my quilting. I don’t know what yet but time will tell.
6. SLEEP – I’m just like any toddler about going to bed…I procrastinate, need one more drink of water and it’s only gotten worse since losing my husband. This year’s goal is to go to bed by 11…most nights.
7. DECLUTTER – lots to do in this department. Thankfully, my daughters are willing to help. Five boxes and bags are ready to donate tomorrow with more to follow (and that’s just my stuff. )
8. OUTINGS – I work so much that it’s easy to just want to stay home but I need to get out a little more and enjoy time with friends. An occasional walk or movie, e.t.c. I’m thinking about 20 but maybe 12 is more realistic.
9. ORGANIZE – in both my work and home life, I’ve got lots of room to improve here.
10. SELF-CARE – it’s easy to get too busy to pursue these little things that help us feel better. I want to take a little time each month to do something…a hot bath, a swim, doing my nails at home, e.t.c.
11 – 20 STOP OVERGOALING – like many perfectionists, I can goal myself into a complete rabbit-in-the-headlamps stop. As I wrote these first 10, I found myself stressing about getting to 20. There’s no magic number for making an effort to improve your life. If I can manage my 10, then my 2020 will be a more productive, healthier year.
That all being said, today, I went on a walk, played with fabric, and started Whole 30 with my daughters.
“Keep your eyes on the road.” “Watch where you’re going. ” “Don’t look back. ” I remember teaching my daughter to ride a bike and teaching her to keep her eyes on where she was going, not on the tires or the handlebars but that spot you’re heading for. I’m trying to hold onto that wisdom now.
In the hospital, there was this big window at the end of the hall and I would stop there and gaze out at the trees on the hill, the cars going by, the world that wasn’t aware that my heart was shattering and my world collapsing. I could see my face in the reflection…a sad, tired woman. I knew that I couldn’t freeze time and I couldn’t get back to before and that I didn’t want to have to step into after. But after came and I’m doing my best with it each day. Except today. I’m usually a big fan of New Year’s. I’m usually chock full of resolutions, certain that this is the year I’ll pull them off. Not this year. This year, I feel like I’m back at that window watching a world that welcomes 2020 with open arms… while I feel devastated that this new year, decade, will not hold any piece of my husband or my mom. No new memories, no new laughter with them. Life will go on, as it does, and as it should but this change of the year feels like another loss. Another separation. Another after when all I really want is my before.
So, for tonight, while the fireworks burst in our neighborhood, I’m putting the final pieced border on a project for someone very special to me. (It’s a surprise so no photos. ) Then, I’m headed for bed with a good book. Tomorrow, I’ll make peace with this new year and find it in my heart to make some resolutions to greet it with. I’ll turn to face the future while holding the love from my past close to my heart. I’ll turn my eyes forward even as my heart looks back.
May the coming year bless you with joys large and small and may your quilting bring you piece and joy.
