Quilty Doings

Once again we are expecting a mid-week snowstorm but we are hoping for a smaller amount of snow this time around. Felix had me photograph a giant icicle before he knocked it down so that it could not hurt anybody.

Our Sunshine Club met at the Alton, New Hampshire Senior Center with lots of fun. Mary was using the new Go cutter to cut out some applique bluebirds in zany colors.

Sue is still hand quilting her big black/red/white quilt and only has about five squares to go. Atta girl, Sue!

Sarah was piecing on her pretty little Featherweight and here you see her adjusting her bobbin thread.

Sarah's blocks are beautiful all in Civil War reproductions with tiny pieces.

Sarah is using the Missouri Star Quilt Company instructions but I think that Bonnie Hunter calls this block, "Scrap Crystals."

As for me, I used the ping pong table to layout my Arkansas Crossroads blocks.

For the "X" blocks, I'm using a creamy off white solid called Cotton Supreme Canvas color from Missouri Star.

With what I had all made up for blocks, a 6 by 9 block pattern seemed to make the most sense and looked really pretty.

Here's hoping we get the 1 to 3 inches of snow or less tomorrow! We want Spring to come and stay!

Happy quilting!

Happy St. Patrick's Day & National Quilting Day!

Happy St. Patrick's Day which is also National Quilting Day, yippee! I'm celebrating with socks!

Earlier this week we survived a big 19 inch snowstorm that took us a couple of days to get all plowed out and get the cars all swept off of the snow. Here are the before and after pictures.

Whew!

Last Friday the gals at the Golden Gese quilt shop had a really fun day sewing before the storm. Maureen's Florida friend made her a birthday mug rug.

The backing fabric is the Happy Birthday!

Maureen herself was working on small windmill pieces, look at these!

Maureen is also working on a knitted sweater for her granddaughter.

Beverly was working on her card tricks blocks and they look great!

Tammy was hand stitching a Baltimore Oriole project.

I had only stopped in for lunch with the gang but back at home I got some nice string blocks made.

These were the result of the box of strings that Julie K quilts had sent to me, thanks!

Happy quilting!

Keep Stitching!

When the weatherman predicted this 10 inches of snow, we got ready for it!

Knowing that I would not be able to get to my snowed in clothesline for quilty pictures, I used the clear sunny afternoon before the storm to take these pictures of my Log cabin.

This quilt is a nice 70 by 84 inches and you might be able to tell that I am still working on the hand hemming of the red binding.

The quilting looks beautiful in the sunlight!

Here is the backing.

I also want to show the binding up closer.

Julie, from Juliequilts sent the most amazing box chock-a-block full of new strings, wheee!

I definitely feel a new string quilt in my future, but right now I've been plugging along on that Arkansas Crossroads piecing project. Thank you, Julie! Enjoy that package of selvedges that I sent in return.

We have a new lady who has joined our Tuesday quilting group and her name is Sarah. Here she is helping me get my blocks pressed. Thank you, Sarah!

Sarah brought in the most fabulous tote filled with older panels that she'd rescued from a neighbor.

Look at this stack of free fabrics!

Thank you, Sarah!

Keep stitching and Happy quilting!

Quilted At Last!

In between small snowstorms I was able to get up to Laconia, New Hampshire to go to the quilting studio. Here is Ellen loading my quilt top onto the big machine.

This was the log cabin with the piano key borders that was rescheduled at least 3 times due to weather. It was good to get it quilted at last!

I chose an antique buff color for the quilting top thread and an ivory for the bottom was a very worthwhile suggestion from Ellen.

Large open spirals were in keeping with the scale of this log cabin and were fast to do.

Hope you can make out the outline of the quilting.

It only took a little over an hour to quilt this 70" by 84" scrappy log cabin.

Here's a peek at the backing fabric in an off white print.

Back at my house, I found a few units that might make a scrappy Jacob's Ladder quilt. Here's the first block.

After the rain cleared and the driveway was dry, I was able to spread out the quilt, trim, measure, and photograph it.

It looks great and I'm binding it in a medium red print.


Happy quilting!

March Forward

Well here it is March already and the snow banks keep melting away to show brown grass. Tuesday was great fun at the Alton Senior Center. An anonymous gentleman gave our director a cash gift to buy an Accuquilt Go die cutting machine for we quilters to use!

Meb and Roney unpacked it and were making bird applique pieces with it. Whee!

Mary was also using some custom applique patterns that she made using stencil plastic.

These are so cute!

Our group welcomed the vacationing school girls, too. They had fun making paper flower crafts.

Meb showed us some of her applique blocks and a nice spool block variation, too.

Here is her pieced split nine patch ready to be sandwiched and quilted.

When I was at home, I used my Companion angle ruler to make up some more quarter square hourglass blocks in reds and creams.

Here is what they look like when sewn and pressed.

I needed 60 of those to go with my variable star blocks.

Now I have enough to layout 11 blocks by 11 blocks for a big quilt.

I was also a very good girl and wound up a nice big bunch of bobbins for my spool rack!

And just for fun, I did a few lavender and rose petal stuffed sachets, too.

These were made with some scraps from the hourglass blocks that were cut from a piece of bargain fabric from Marden's way over in Sanford, Maine 3 years ago.

Three quarters of a yard remnant piece for sale price of $3.99 is surely a bargain! Wheee!

Happy quilting!