New Goodies

 My friend Claire hosted a one-off Bargain Garden event at her home a couple weeks ago, and I came home with some excellent finds. This was a PVQA event (our guild), held in lieu of the Bargain Garden we were unable to have due to our Quilt Show being virtual this year. I did not take any pictures while I was there, but I can show you what I bought. 

 

I didn’t buy much, just a small stack, shown with the Color Catcher they were washed with. No doubt the red and/or the orange released a bit of color in the wash. 

This is a huge piece, almost four yards. This is what it looked like when I bought it, and what it looked like coming out of the dryer. Its cotton, but its one of those fabrics that doesn't soften up with washing. Color wise, I guess you would call it a "madder"?  I would have been happy with a half or quarter yard of this, but that's not how purchases work at the Bargain Garden. Maybe having this big of a piece of orange/madder will force I mean encourage me to get out of my "box" and experiment more. 

Here's a close-up, with the ID, such as it is, on the selvedge. 

 

Next up are a couple of Cranston Print Works fabrics, which I've always been attracted to and buy whenever I see them.

If you know me at all, you know I love brown. I especially love this "faded" looking one. Don't be surprised to see it appear in a doll quilt soon.
 

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Pretty Judie Rothermel print

 

 

  Looks like someone took a bite out of it.

 

 

 

Nice little contemporary looking print. I was surprised to see it was made by Thimbleberries. 

 

Not sure what to make of this one. Unusual, anyway. I'm not even sure what color I would file this under. May be good for borders or a binding. 

 

This looks like a repro to me, but ? I believe it definitely qualifies as "cheddar" which I have little to none in my stash. Its a fairly big piece, at least a yard. I'll get plenty of little color splashes, and a few bindings out of this.

This batik piece is about a yard and a half, big enough to back a lap quilt, which is no doubt what I'll use it for. What a great score on these pieces! I spent a whopping $18 for several yards of great fabric!

 

I’ve been itching to make some doll quilts lately, and also itching to dig into this fun stack of fabrics, so right away I gathered up some other Cranston and similar prints, and before you know it, I'd finished this little doll quilt.

Meanwhile that big piece of Cheddar was staring me in the face, so I got out some bonus triangles that were laying around and started playing, and next thing you know, I had this one. 

These were so fun to make! Wendy will be shocked ! I now have two minis, made from scratch (ie no cheating) for June, and its only the 6th! That's it for now, but I already have more ideas stewing. It feels good to be back in the "mini" groove.

 love, Sandy

Stash busting

No big news here, but I, like others, have too much fabric. Which actually, I don't know if I really believe that. What exactly is too much fabric? I've already gotten rid of everything I don't want, and I really can't bring myself to part with the rest of it. Unless of course, its sewn into quilts, and even then sometimes I'm hesitant, ha ha! 

So anyway, I've been busy cutting strips from nearly everything in my cabinet, in an effort to ease the crowdedness in there, and hopefully create a little space for something new. Which is what we all want, right?

I thought I'd make a few Log Cabins.  First, while cutting the strips I kept all the colors separate and put each color into its own zip bag. Then when I decided which colors I wanted to use, I sewed long "snakes" out of the strips. This made sewing the blocks so much faster, and without any waste.

 

I like how this one turned out, but it was a mistake. Notice how there's more blue than white? That's because I added an extra blue log to each block. The reason I did this is, my sister called me right as I was starting to sew so I put her on speaker phone and I was distracted, and began sewing my blocks with blue around the center instead of white. Which means they would end with white, and I really didn't want that look. So I added an extra round of blue logs. The resulting cabins are a little off-kilter, but that has the added effect of making the red centers "dance" across the quilt, giving it motion. Which I like. And an added benefit was making the blocks 6" instead of 5", which makes the  quilt the perfect size for the VA requirements. I'll call it serendipity.

I decided to use all the colors for the one above, but still used the snake method for each color. For some reason, maybe its the red and yellow centers, it reminds me of a circus. 

 

Here's the start of the latest one. Same method. You can see the effect of the scrappy pieced logs (via the snake method) more clearly in this picture. 

I took a break from stripping and sewing logs to finish this darling little mini my mother-in-law sent home to me when hubby visited her last month. I'm going to cheat again, and use this as my Montly Mini for May. Montly Mini's are hosted by Wendy, who you can find here, along with links to others who participate in this fun challenge.

 

I machine quilted all the ditches, then did some simple big-stitch quilting (which I'm finally getting the hang of) through the blocks and in the border. Its now hanging in my sewing room. 

Lela (my MIL) also made the one on the bottom right, which she gave to me when I saw her in September. I love it, and it goes perfectly with my own quilts.

OK back to the log cabins. Here's the brown one which I just now completed and put some borders on. 

I gave almost no thought to the placement of the blocks except to avoid two of the same fabric lying next to each other. I'm liking the quirkiness that true random placement sometimes creates. Not quilted yet, but I'm already auditioning dark brown for the binding. Also lap size like the blue one, destined for either the VA or someone else who just needs a quilt.

I now have a backlog of tops that need to be quilted. I better get busy! 

love,

Sandy

Exciting News!

 

My quilt guild, Pajaro Valley Quilt Association, is hosting a virtual Quilt Show starting Monday Feb. 22, and running through Sunday, Feb. 28. That's next week! You are all cordially invited to attend. The show is available to view all seven days, as many days as you want and long as you like. Its free, and you can view it in your pajamas!

Our featured artists are Joe Cunningham, and Margaret Fabrizio. We have a variety of wonderful quilts on display (of course) which this year includes a special exhibit of "Quilts from the 1930's".  Several of our usual vendors have signed on as well, available to sell their wares online. You can get all the details  here. There will be a link on the website when the show begins.

Above is this year's Opportunity Quilt, titled "Light Shines Through" made by PVQA members and designed by Sujata Shaw. Tickets will be available during the show, with the drawing in May. 

Meanwhile, take a look at Margaret Fabrizio's quilts. They're stunning! 

And Joe Cunningham is no slouch. You may remember he  collaborated with Gwen Marston in his early years as a quilter. Go here to see his more modern work.

Although I will sorely miss our live show this year, I am really excited about the virtual show. Members got a bit of a sneak peek a week or so ago, and I have to say I am really impressed! God bless the folks with the technological skills to put it all together. This is the first year in my 25 year history with the guild that I have not been involved in the Quilt Show (we used to call it a "Fair"). I loved every minute (mostly, ha ha) of whatever portion of the show I was involved with, but I admit I"m happy to let the newer members take over. Yay for the younger generation! 

OK, on to other things.

A long time ago, my friend Debbie asked me if I would make her a quilt. Let it be known: I feel really uncomfortable with "commission" quilts, even when they're free. Therefore I put her off for 15 years. I recently decided I needed to do this, but the quilt would have to be more or less my design, and from my existing stash. I gave her a couple of choices - traditional repro, or scrappy improv, like Berzzirkistan. Well, she showed me this:

Made by her Aunt Jackie, for her sister, Debbie's mom, who has now passed away. Unfortunately Debbie didn't inherit the quilt. 

I'm thinking, oh great. Red and black is about my least favorite color scheme. But ... it is an easy pattern. I told her I could not duplicate the quilt, but that I would "interpret" it, using a variety of fabrics from my stash, and it would be a throw, rather than bed size. She seems happy with that. 

Here's what I came up with:

 

The only fabric I had to buy was the border fabric, which I found pretty much immediately at Connecting Threads. I consider this extreme good luck! I could have searched for days and not found anything as fitting. I'm now in the process of stitching on the binding, and will hopefully get a chance to deliver it to her next week. It will feel good to get this off my list! 

Then we found out a couple days ago my husband's long-time friend Alan has been diagnosed with cancer. It sounds like he'll have a long battle including chemo, etc. Of course, I think he needs a quilt. I immediately dropped everything else and started on this:

The fabrics are mostly from a bundle of Tim Holtz Eclectic Elements I purchased as a "daily deal"  from Missouri Quilt Co. a while back. I also had some leftovers from another one like this I made a few years ago, plus a charm pack I picked up somewhere.

Below is the original one I made.

The story behind this one is, my client Tim came down with cancer and I wanted to make him a quilt. I knew he would not love my usual style (traditional repro's) so I struggled with how to come up with something that might be more appealing. Well, at some point previous someone had sent me a charm pack of these Tim Holtz fabrics. I thought what the heck am I going to do with these ugly things and almost threw them away. Fast forward, when I found them still untouched in my pre-cut bin, I gave them another look and thought, hmm ...  Luckily I was able to get a few yardage cuts plus another charm pack online, then filled in with a piece from my regular stash. Do you see that Civil War Presidents piece third row up? HA ha !!! I got a repro in there after all. 

Tim was over the moon when I gave him the quilt (not a reaction one always gets) and I was really happy  (although I wish I would have re-thought that black binding). I've been in love with Eclectic Elements ever since, seeing how effective the fabrics are when combined like this, and search them out at every opportunity, as they are a bit hard to find. 

Side note:  this is a really super easy and fast quilt to make, esp. when you have a large variety of curated fabrics. Anyway, the new one contains slightly different "Elements", but I hope it will please our friend. 

On another note, I have been totally uninspired in the mini-quilt department for the last few months (can you tell?) so nothing at all for this month. I still love looking at everyone else's though, and thank Wendy for continuing to host this fun monthly challenge! 

All for now ...

love, Sandy

Family Quilts and December Mini

 I'll start off with the mini, which is another cheat (ahem..)  as I made this in 1999. But it has a story, so that should gain me some points, right?

 The story behind this little quilt is, my mom had ordered the pattern from a magazine sometime in the 1950's, but never got around to making the quilt. 

Backing up a few decades ... my mom grew up on a farm in Saskatchewan, the youngest of eleven children.  Quilts were made, but who knows what ever happened to them. One was a Sunbonnet Sue, which my mom was particularly fond of, but could never track it down after her dad lost the farm and all her siblings had scattered. She talked about that quilt from time to time, always with sense of loss. 

At some point she decided to make her own Sunbonnet Sue quilt, but probably got sidetracked with raising four kids, and sewing clothes for us, plus the cousins, neighbors, and everybody else as well. Sometime in the late '90's I found the pattern while rummaging through her sewing room. She said at that point she had no interest in making it, but I thought maybe I could make it for her. I also brought home some fabrics she had squirreled away, apparently intended for quiltmaking. 

The pattern was for a much larger quilt, and I think Mom was a little disappointed when I presented her with a wall hanging. But as you know I am not fond of applique, and although the applique in these couldn't have been easier, after six blocks I figured I was done. Plus I had just enough of her fabric to complete this small quilt, so there you have it. 

 

 While digging around in the trunk, I found one my mom did make. This sweet old quilt was made for my baby brother, right around 1960. Its one of only two quilts that Mom made once she was married.

I'm not sure the origin of those fabrics, as I don't think they're scraps from any of our clothing. It looks like she even made a make-do block.

I brought this home with the intent to salvage the butterflies and make a new quilt, but my friend Carmel, who studies quilts, said I should preserve it as-is. Sadly, it lives in my trunk. I do treasure it though, because its  history. And it shows just what she had to work with as a young mother without a lot of discretionary income. Much of the quilt is made from old sheets, including the batting which is flannel sheet. 

Further digging in the trunk ... 

 

 

... revealed this one, made by  Mom's sister Milly, who was the only one in the family (that I know of) who seriously continued the quilt making tradition. She gave me this quilt when I was in my early 20's and just moved in to my first apartment. As you can see, it is well used and worn. And obviously not re-folded in a long time - shame on me.

And humble. Aunt Milly was not a purist when it came to fabric. The brown print is some kind of polyester double-knit, which she used shamelessly in many of her quilts.

 I love the wide binding, and the big stitches! 

These are now hanging outside, for a good air-out. 

I will post a link to Wendy's blog, once she publishes the Monthly Mini's for December. 

 

love, Sandy

Merry Christmas!

My sister made Christmas cookies and sent us a tin full.

Aren’t these adorable?

There are more, but they’re still in the tin, individually wrapped, and I don’t want to disturb them ... quite yet.  

Do you, or did you ever make these? (decorated, cookie cutter Christmas cookies)?  As kids, our mom baked the cookies and we kids decorated them. It was fun, and we got pretty elaborate with some of them. (remember those little silver balls that practically broke your teeth when you bit down on one?) Anyway, my sister (with her kids)  has carried on the Christmas cookie tradition for many years - minus the silver balls. 

I have been sewing a lot. I finished my bedspread top, which for me is huge. I’m so glad it’s done! Now I have to figure out how to get it quilted (ie: find the right machine quilter) because I don’t think I ccould handle it. I’ll wait to post a picture til it’s completely done and on the bed!

Meanwhile I decided to make more of these:

I still have lots of orphan blocks, partial blocks and various bits and pieces, along with several bags and bins of scraps to use up. Haha, as if that’s possible, right? This is a fun project to work on when I don’t feel like working on something else. I know some of these blocks look like they’re a lot of work, but the process is actually very freeing because they don’t have to be perfect. Don’t forget I did not start from scratch as most of these started with “something “ already made. 

I’ve also finallly moving forward on making a postage stamp quilt, which something that has been on my bucket list for a long time. I’ve been saving 1 1/2” squares forever and have recently started sewing pairs together as leader/enders. Once I finally figured out a method to sew them all together so they consistently nest at every stage, I made some blocks and laid them out on my wall. 

My method, if anyone is curious, is to start with four-patches, making sure the seams all “spin” in the same direction - let’s say, clockwise. Then sew the four-patches together into 16-patches, making sure the outside seams are still all going clockwise. Then combine those into 32-patches, and so on. This way I can work block by block, and I can turn each block any which way whenever I put them all together. 

Well that’s about it for me.

I hope you all are enjoying your holidays, whatever way you can. I highly recommend zoom get-togethers, if you cannot gather in person with friends and family. I believe 2021 will be another tough year, but the tide has turned and there’s light at the end of the tunnel. We just need to preserve through the rest of this dang tunnel! 

love,

Sandy

 

November

Hello! 

I hope you all had a decent thanksgiving holiday, in whatever form that might have taken. My husband and I got "Thanksgiving dinner for two" from our local grocery store. With the exeption of the green beans (which were like cardboard and went promplly into the compost bin), the rest of the meal was actually pretty good, plus we had enough left over for two more meals. All that for twentyy bucks! Then we zoomed with family, which was fun. 

Here is my mini for the month of November. Again, it is a bit of a cheat, as I made it several years ago as a gift for my mother-in-law.

Does it look familiar? That's because its a shameless copy of someone else's quilt. The original was made by Marion Edwards - though I didn't know it at the time, but who has recently and graciously given me permission to post mine on my blog today.

Below is Marion's original "Three Dolly Quilt", and the book that inspired her to make it.

You may remember Marion Edwards Dreamweaver blog, which has been inactive for several years, but you can still find her (and her adorable quilts) on instagram. 

So back to the story of my own three dolly quilt. I had initially machine quilted it, very sparsely and purposely wonky, as I was going for the "primitive" look. However instead, I think it ended up just looking sloppy. Every time I'd see it over at my MIL's house, it bugged the heck out of me. When we were there last month, I asked her if I could take it home and fix it, and she agreed. So I picked out all the sloppy quilting and proceeded to hand quilt it, IMO a huge improvement.  And ... it makes it fresh, so hopefully that means it qualifies for this month's Montly Mini? 😄

It is now ready to send back to Mom.

To see more November Monthly Mini's, please check out Wendy's blog, The Constant Quilter. Enjoy!

Meanwhile I finished my Madders quilt, which I'm now calling my Autumn Quilt. 

 

And I machine quilted my Log Cabin in the ditch around all the blocks, and now I'm considering hand quilting inside the blocks. Yes that's a lot of quilting for these poor hands, but I really like how it looks. That's DMC perle cotton, which so far handles pretty easily, and I think I'm finally getting the hang of the Big Stitch. This may take me forever.

So... still have several things to finish. I still haven't sewn together my blue 16-patch bedspread. The blocks are all done, but they need to be squared up first. I'm stalling. What I really want to do is start something new (of course!). I have several ideas brewing... stay tuned! 

love,                                                                                                           Sandy

Blessings

 Yesterday I helped out with my quilt guild’s quilt giveaway to families who lost their homes in the CZU lightening complex fires. There were hundreds of quilts sent from all over, and from our guild members. There were all sizes and styles, from the most basic utility quilts to the more elaborately made. There were even a few hand-quilted vintage quilts that were donated. 

Now I wish I’d taken some pictures of those stacks of quilts. It didn’t occur to me I would be blogging about this event, but it’s still so high in my consciousness, and I really didn’t have a heck of a lot else to say anyway. 

A month ago I gave one of my own quilts plus one a friend made, to a couple who lost their home. You remember Berzirkistan: 

The recipients were very grateful, and, amazingly, also very upbeat and positive about their future, in spite of losing everything. 

Yesterday I helped a woman who’s story was similar to my above mentioned friends: family compound in a remote location, homes they spent years building with their own hands, adult children who also had homes on the propery, also burned out. This lady was something less than upbeat. She looked ... lost. I helped her select some quilts, and talked with her a while. It was her image that I woke up with this morning. 

This whole circumstance, the fires, the loss, and the aftermath, is impossible for me to fully comprehend. Beyond that, I am truly at a loss for words.

I have to confess I’ve been going through a bit of a slump mood-wise, and I even feel guilty about that because what do I have to complain about? I need to start reminding myself of my blessings, and making a list (each day?) of things to be grateful for.

I’ve been sewing. No mini this month, but I did hang a few in my sewing room. 

I’m calling this my Indigo Corner. Please ignore the mess below. 

 

Wendy posts the Montly Minis here, if you want to take a look.

Meanwhile, I made this:

Which is my repro version of an antique quilt, and current sew-along with Temecula Quilt Co. 

I’m posting from my iPad, which apparently doesn’t let me resize my photos, but you may be able to get a better view by clicking on them. 

That’s it for now! 

Love, Sandy

Things to be grateful for:

my home

my husband 

my community 

my friends

quilting, which is truly keeping me sane