The truth and nothin' but the truth!!

This is the layout my dear husband has chosen...he measured the bed and mentioned that it would be really nice if it were a little bigger...how can I refuse his kind request, as nicely as he put it!! I will be making 28 more blocks, and then it will be done!! At least the top...
Now, dear gentle people...I have mentioned that I am the cutting queen! I cut out quilts when I can't sleep, and arrange them very neatly in kits, with the pattern and all the pieces and parts... for someday. Someday is here!!! I am working on these, my UFO's this coming year. I am naming these...and sadly, some have been cut out for so long, when I used to not put instructions in each bin, that I have forgotten what in the Sam Hill I was doing with that idea in the first place!! Don't bother to read this list below...it is really just to keep it all real, for me. I bet you recognize some of the kits and works in progress, though!!

1. Blue hospital gown star quilt
2. 1930's stars
3. Red Star-Pam
4. Jewel Box
5. ????? Sadly, I don't remember what this was to be....
6. Bright nine patches and connector squares quilt
7. Judy's fall leaf quilt
8. ?????????????????Don't remember this one either...I am releasing the fabric back to the stash
9. Large Flying Geese quilt
10. Pineapple-red and black variation
11. Current Quiltville Mystery (this one is first!)
12. Paper pieced pineapples
13. Scrappy quilt
14. Wedding signature quilt (must finish stat!)
15. Sandy's quilt as you go
16. Judy's bright star quilt
17. Rail fence
18. Pineapple wool table runner
19. Plaids stars (idea from the state fair)
20. 5 inch blue stars
21. Jewel box (why do I have two of these cut out?)
22. Bonnie scrap quilt
23. Sylvia's Bridal Sampler
24. 1930's nine patch
25. Patriotic strings
26. Peaches and cream quilt (Judy)
27. Quiltville mystery from last year( all blocks made, just need to set them together)
    

So there it is!! I also have a total of 25 quilt tops, altogether, done and ready to quilt, most with backings and bindings ready.

This may seem like a daunting task, but I can be proud to say...this has been an enormous lot of work, and one of great love for my family to have some quilts to pass on when I am gone. Most of the kits would be fine for anyone else to pick up and start sewing...so not a waste for a quilting group someday if I don't get it all done.
An example of a kitted quilt...all the parts cut out, a sample block, and extra fabric tucked in with the pattern, just in case.
I got another Christmas gift...from Lyn at Bluebird quilts....she made a fabulous handmade quilt and ornament, and apples (they smell terrific), and some fabric for the Dear Jane quilt!


OH YES!! The Dear Jane quilt is on the list too for this year!! I really want to make some real progress on this one!!




So....how is that for real...real enough for you?


Grins!!!


Have a great day,


Julie

Progress on a UFO!

HI all!! Remember these blocks?? I had one block made when I showed you before...well, I have made some big progress!! I have 80 of them made, enough for a big quilt for dear husband. They are 8 inches finished, so each piece is one inch finished (strips). This is one setting...
Or, I could set them like this. I don't know yet, dear husband will have the final call. Remember I have been talking about a new sewing machine for years? I have used a very inexpensive Brother machine from Walmart for many years. This year, in my stocking, I got an orange, some chocolate, some gum...and a Bernina. A BERNINA!!!
A dream machine!! Excuse the messy table and poor photo, but you get the idea...this machine (Bernadette is her name) is wow wonderful!! My son and his wife got me a new cutting board and I received two new rotary cutters...I am so blessed!!
Rosie the poodle in her elf outfit...Christmas is tough work for tiny poodles!!

Goals for the coming year for me include: Working on UFO's and finishing stuff up. My rules for me are that I may not start a new quilt until I have finished two UFO's. Hope this will work for me!!


Have a great day!!



Julie

Merry Christmas to all!!

I just want to say Merry Christmas to each one of you!! I have had the pleasure of getting to know so many of you wonderful quilters...you give so much each day to so many. Thank you for your gift of Friendship! I so appreciate your comments and concern, as of late, especially. Here is to a most wonderful New Year to each of you!!


Julie

Over stimulation!

How little is just too dang small? These squares are 1/2 inch finished, the tail ends of the log cabin mini quilt...and I tossed the rest of the scraps. A new mug mat for dear husband!!
Are you keeping up with Bonnie Hunter's Quiltville mystery? Step five, I think it is...is SIX HUNDRED half square triangles! Now that is a challenge! I happened to have saved a bunch of these squares, and pulled all the red ones out and squared them up. I only have....510 to go!!
This is the box I dumped out on the kitchen counter...all my saved 1/2 square bonus triangles from tons of old projects. What to do with all these!!?? I guess I will save them for just such an event as the mystery quilt!! Forgive the chocolate chip bag and etc. in the background...I made cookies for dear husband to take to work.






******************Nurse's notes*********************

A mystery for you! A few symptoms a certain patient had:

• Insomnia
• weight loss without trying, in fact eating like a heifer!
  
• irritability and restlessness
• high heart rate
• hair loss
• skin changes
• vision changes (double vision)
• fuzzy thinking, a little...
  

By the way...this patient is me!! Well...two days ago I just felt my heart beating so fast, it felt almost out of my chest! I have been not feeling well for some time...remember I had a bunch of medical testing this spring...and continuing. Well, I am a heart nurse, so got an EKG and my heart rate at rest was 135. Scary high, for lying down! I thought the problem was my heart, so went and saw the cardiologist, who did more testing...and guess what? If you nursing types guessed hyperthyroidism...you were right! My thyroid gland is secreting way too much hormone and overstimulating my entire system. That is the reason I cannot sleep and feel so lousy!! So, now I go to the endocrinologist and get scanned to see if this is caused by thyroid cancer, or just autoimmune thyroiditis. Either way...looks like I will be on some kind of med for the rest of my life. I am so glad to finally know what the heck was wrong with me...and I think I have had this for a long, long time.


Thanks for listening friends...I was quite upset about it yesterday, but time and prayer are great healers...I will just do whatever it is that I need to do, and troop right along!!!


Have a great day, all!!


Julie

And then there were two!!

HI all!! I have been out of town for a few days, so not much sewing time here! I made another pineapple block out of my 1.5 inch scraps...I like the scrappyness of these. Only 18 more to go...or more, if I decide to make this quilt bigger.
And with all this strip cutting, I had some strips that were 1 inch wide, which I would normally put in the string container. I decided to make a tiny log cabin quilt, with red centers for the heart (fire) of the cabin...each log finishes at 1/2 inch. I hand quilted this on the plane...which I just love to have a little project to take along.


********************Kentucky/Tennessee trip**************************

We had to go and do a pick up for my husband, so we decided to ask the kids to come along and have a weekend vacation! This was just great fun...we did so many things in such a short amount of time! Some highlights were:

• Flying on American airlines, without too many delays.
• Staying at a really nice place...comfy!
• Breakfasts at Cracker Barrel! Down home country cooking...gained a little around the middle there...
• A cruise down the Cumberland river, on the General Jackson boat, with a wonderful fiddle player and band for entertainment...raining, but we went out on deck anyway and enjoyed this huge river!
• We went to see the Rockettes at the Grand Ole Opry! My parents had talked about this place for years and years...what a treat to go and see them...all those legs! And every one of theme in perfect time!! And a beautiful live nativity, with real camels (my fave).
  
• We went to the Gaylord Texan and saw the ICE sculptures..."Santa Claus is Coming to Town!" And such a gorgeous nativity, all carved out of tons of ice!
• Then on to Mammoth Cave! By this time, it was snowing pretty hard and in the teens for temperatures, so our tour was cut a little short...but the cave was amazing! Lots of history there, and such a natural wonder...loved this!
• Then...we went to the Corvette Museum in Bowling Green Kentucky! My husband loved this a lot! It was such great fun
• Then back home, in a whirlwind! Pretty busy weekend, huh???

Have a great day, all!!

Julie

Experiments with Pineapples and log cabins

HI all!! I paper pieced! Pat, are you watching this...I did this pineapple block. This is very representational of my stash, which is dwindling! That is a good thing! When I can't make up my mind what to do, I cut out quilts...and I have cut a log cabin, a pineapple quilt, and the one below too, a log cabin variation. A secret? I have about 20 quilts all cut out...ready to piece. Shhhh, don't tell a soul! Aren't you supposed to just have one going at a time? Hmmmm...



Another log cabin/pineapple variation. 1.5 inch strips of red and neutrals, and the black pieces are 2.5 inches. They are supposed to be 2.64 inch black squares according to my math, but I can't cut those, so I changed it to 2.5, and they are working out just fine.
This is finish, an old, old UFO, for Finn's UFO challenge. This is finish number 3. It has been hanging around for a lot of years, and I just gave up on making it the huge quilt, and just made a pillow. Hand quilted...and the sawtooth border hand appliqued. Great fun!!
Here is the middle...many years ago, I made this. Not perfect, but I like it!!


I will have little time to sew in the next weeks...but will try to keep up with the mystery quilt and do a little here and there. I am proud to say that the packages are wrapped!! Yippee!! This is pretty early for me....


Everyone, best wishes for a wonderful week!!


Julie

What in the world? Great fun!

Hi everyone! I am off today...blessedly! I had a great weekend at work, just wonderful patients and families...and I am tired. I have cut a bunch of 1.5 inch strips, and have in mind two quilts: a log cabin (see above), and a pineapple quilt. (Thanks Subee for that wonderful idea!!) I am trying to use all my fabric stash up...and have made wonderful progress this year. I do not know the name of the block above...just a log cabin variation. The pieces are all 1 inch finished. I plan to make enough for a full sized quilt...8 inch blocks....hmmm, how many is that??
What in the world are we making with these? I am caught up....ready for the next step in Bonnie from Quiltville's mystery. Do you have any idea what we are making????



Hope each one of you have a wonderful day! I am sending out the Christmas cards and wrapping today....




Julie

Roll, roll cotton boll!

First of all, thank you all so very much for your comments from yesterday's post. I so appreciate your opinions!! I have decided to cut down the applique pieces as suggested by many of you...please stay tuned, I will be enjoying working on this! Also, thank you for your understanding of my patient situation...I just tried so hard to please them, but they were not to be pleased...and I guess that is OK...my heart is much lighter now that I got it out! I agree...they need prayer, thank you for that comment!


Tada!! I am almost finished with part 3 of the Bonnie Hunter Mystery from Quiltville! How DID I do it, you may ask? Serendipity!! This step calls for 60 neutral string pieced blocks...remember this spring?? I made a ton of neutral, string pieced blocks!! Cool, huh?? And they are the right size!! I am immediately stopping the embellishment of these with lace and stuff...and using them in the mystery! Is that not so cool? I do have a few to still make, though...but I think I am the first in the world to have so many done. I am just so tickled!!



Off to work for me....


Everyone, have a great day!

Julie

May I ask your opinion?

Hi all! I have been playing around in the nine patch blocks we exchanged...and I just love the Honeybee block. I think this block will showcase the nine patches. I think I made the applique too overwhelming in this version...please tell what you think? I have made templates for smaller applique pieces... I have the rest of the blocks cut for 12 of the nine patches, making them finish at 12 inches.



********************Nurse's notes*****************



I recently had a tough day at my nursing work. I had a family that insisted on writing down every move I made, and every thing I said was recorded on this ladies I-phone. It got really old, really fast...they were just very hard to deal with, to say the least. They all were so rude to me! There is just so much I can take...why be mean to me when you don't even know me?? The patient, however...was a real doll!! I really think that 99% of people really try their best at all times...please, give me a chance, dear lady!! (Sorry dear blog diary...I just had to get this out, it has been just eating at me all day!)



***************************************************


Have a great day!

Julie

How a dog quilt is made...

Hi all!! Above...sigh...is a project, a UFO about ten years old. It is circles, hand cut by me, then machine stitched onto backgrounds. Think raggedy quilt! The edges are raw, so when it is washed, it will fray just so nicely. I can't imagine where I got these fabrics...I must have used most of them up, because they are not in my general stash anymore. I finished the last 20 blocks today...ZOOMM!! It was great fun to sew circles onto the backgrounds... (wonder why I used 3 different backgrounds? ) Probably did not have enough of one fabric, that is the usual story. To make things more a mystery...I made three different sizes of blocks! why??
Then after a good press with a shot of steam...cut them into fourths. Then let the playing begin! I made bulls eyes...and wiggly lines...and just had a general good time messing with the blocks. I have a ton of blocks! At least two big quilts worth...wonder what I was thinking, cutting out all those circles...with scissors!
Wiggles....Too much open space for me...hmmmmmm
Anyway, I had only 20 of the littlest blocks, so Rosie asked me to make her a doggy quilt. And I did...machine quilting it myself! I am such a terrible machine quilter, but this is better than some I have done.
Washed and puckered up! This little quilt ended up in Rosie the poodle's bed for her to snuggle with.
A finish! A mug mat...I have been admiring all yours all over blog land, so made one out of scraps from cutting step two of Bonnie's mystery. And machine quilted it too!! amazing.... I did finish step two of the mystery quilt from Quiltville...how are you doing??
Finish number two! This will be going in the mail soon...an angel to watch over a dear friend! This one is hand quilted and hand appliqued.
And finish number 3! A big hot pad, made of strings..little ones, trimmings really, sprayed with starch, pressed down and quilted over...makes the best hot pad!




Have a great day, all!!!

Julie

Happy Thanksgiving! the day after...

Sawtooth borders have appearing on the Friendship Plaids quilt...no corner is alike due to lack of planning (serendipity?). I would have liked them to match...but hey, original is good too. Big stitch quilting for this one!! It is just lap sized...dear husband mentioned he would like it bed sized, but I already had the borders on at that point. Every fabric is a plaid in this quilt, except the background. I would like more plaid backgrounds, but I can never find any...
The apple pie...with enough apples for two! Really, all these will cook down and it will be just right. This was made at 3 AM...an insomnia pie! Yum!!! Does this insomnia thing end when perimenopause ends?? Just curious, you ladies who have been down this path. The kids are coming today, to celebrate...I can't wait to see them and the grand-dogs!!


I hope everyone has a fun and relaxing, wonderful day!

Julie

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Hi all!! I just wanted to wish each of you a most wonderful Thanksgiving! I am cooking mostly on Friday...I have done a bit today, to get ready. As I am a nurse, health care goes on 24/7...so I work tomorrow. That is just fine! We will be thankful for my job...and celebrate Friday. Above is a gift for a friend, hand appliqued and hand quilted. I just need to finish the binding, and I can call it a UFO finish!
And, I have been making a few pincushions out of a few nine patches. I put a button in the middle...old, old buttons from my mother's button tin. I like them!
One of the pies I make today...the crust kind of looks yucky...but tastes just fine!


I pray each of you has such a wonderful Thanksgiving!! Mine will be spent in CVICU...I hope I have a great connection with some patients tomorrow, who will also be spending the holiday in the hospital.


Julie

An unexpected day off leads to....

Hi Y'all! I was supposed to work today, but we only had 8 patients in the whole unit, and ten nurses scheduled, so I was called off at 5 AM this morning. An unexpected day off! I have been cleaning and scrubbing and baking...all the usual stuff. But! I am supposed to be finishing UFO's too. So, I worked on the Plaid Pineapple Friendship quilt! So named because every piece of fabric in this...I mean all the plaids...came from other people! Joyce in Arizona! (no blog) I know you will recognize some of these...and Crystal (no blog) in Canada! I know you will see some you sent...and Sylvia!! do you see yours? And Amy!! And Annett! Do you see your bright turquoise cornerstones? Just click on these ladies names to go and admire their blogs!
OK, after all you helped me decide...I decided to finish with a very simple border...frankly, that is all the fabric I had left, and I did not want to bury the checkerboard border...which I love to pieces...under another border. so! this is it!!! Please, no applause for the model...she is truly on everything I work on!




*************************Nurse's Notes*************************


The weekend (not telling which one)! ( Remember, lots of details are omitted for privacy issues...but the story is true.

I was a "customer service recovery expert". I had a little old man who had fallen several times on the general floor...very confused...broken arm, concussion...really bad falls! So, the doctor sent him to Critical care so we could watch him...and I hardly left the room. He was so precious, so sweet...and so very, very confused! Many times he was trying to get out of bed and nearly falling...quick little fella!! I am so elated that by the end of the weekend, he was lucid for the most part, and still having a few mild visual hallucinations (bats on the walls?), but knew my name and that I was there to help him. Such a sweet little old fellow...polite and always a please and thank you...even when he was absolutely nuts! Much, much better by today! I am so thankful...what a darling person. I hope he is all better so soon...it was such a pleasure to care for him, even though very, very labor intensive!!


**********************************************************


Hope everyone is having a wonderful day!!

Julie

This is the sum total of my day!! Above is the first step completed of Bonnie Hunter's Quiltville mystery, "Cotton Boll". I had a ton of pink strips cut for another project, which I can't remember what in the world I had in mind...and they worked perfectly in this project. I found myself picking out the loudest, brightest fuchsia pinks...that color is one of my favorites. Please tell me if you are doing this mystery too!!


I went to two grocery stores getting the Thanksgiving day meal groceries together...free turkey from one! I liked that part....cleaned all afternoon, made a meal, and now I work from now until Turkey day, almost...and Turkey day too! so the day after Thanksgiving will be my day to cook for my family. We can be (and are) thankful any day!!!


The last post....I have been working non stop, so I just pulled the winner...drum roll please! Kami, will you please send me your snail mail address? Thank you...and I hope you like your goodies!!


OK, off to put dishes in the dishwasher.....and laundry in the dryer!!!

Have a super great day!

Julie

Giveaway revisited! and winners from yesterday!

Hi Y'all!


First of all, thank you, each one of you, for telling me about your cleaning tips!! I really appreciate your time...and have taken many of them and incorporated them into my plan of housekeeping. This many seem a little silly, but my mom passed away when I was very young and I had a houseful of nothing but guys, so I really never learned all those secrets a mom could tell her daughter about housekeeping...so thank you so much from my heart to yours!! I have been doing pretty good all these years, but it is heartwarming for me to hear how you do your housework!



I am so happy to announce the winners from yesterday's impromptu giveaway! Loris and Mary from Quilt Hollow! You were chosen by Rosie the poodle, who has her nose in every quilting business there is around here...she pulled out some slips from the bowl I had them all cut up into and ran away with the slips! So, I had to chase her down and dig them out of her mouth...all good fun for her! Please let me know your snail mail addresses and I will send your your gifts. Above are some blocks I am playing with...I like them! I bought the fabric for the setting squares when I visited Karen Diane in Florida, a lotta moons back. Only takes me a few years to get stuff done!!
Now, I am having another giveaway!! You might giggle at this one...but I think if I can't finish something, maybe it is time to give it away. I would like to thank Konda at Moosequilts for making this wonderful pattern, and...that's right...I am giving away a UFO!!! You will recognize this as the lovely Jelly Roll sampler...so the first person who responds that they want this, can have it to finish, along with the rest of the Jelly Roll. The patterns are still available at her website, last time I checked. I have four blocks done of the twelve block quilt. I love the pattern, and I love the work and love that went into doing this for all of us in quilting blogland...and I also know that I am up to my tootie in alligators and projects and will not finish this anytime soon. It is kind of bad for me to just keep this when someone will finish it quickly and enjoy it. So, if this person is you...just say the word and I will send it to you! Is it cheating to give away a UFO?? Hee!!!
I am cleaning, can't you tell? This is a jacket pattern, and the two muslin foundation pieced stars are to be given away to someone drawn tomorrow at 3 PM. so another quick giveaway, if anyone if interested. These are kind of dated colors, but still nice foundation piecing if you are into that.


My quilting books are next...a ton of them and just ridiculous, how can I ever get around to that many projects? Even for inspiration, I have too many...stay tuned for them! Especially when you bloggers out there have so many gorgeous projects for me to drool over...




Have a great day!!

Julie

Autumnal happenings

HI Y'all! I have been working on how to put the Soot and Ashes quilt together...and here is what I came up with so far. I think the yellow is like the Aspen leaves of my youth in Colorado...I love that golden yellow color of fall. I am going to put a flying geese border around the whole thing...the geese flying south in the fall for warmer climes. Symbology! I think we use it a lot in our quilts.
I am giving away this book...I love the quilt...but I will never do it, and I think someone may be able to use it now! So if you are interested, please leave a comment on your best housecleaning tip for me!! Hee...making you work for a chance...thank you in advance for your best tip!
I also went through all the patterns I had and this is about 1/2 of them...I am giving them away too. Same thing applies as above, just leave me your tip!I just need to downsize a little bit...things that will be useful to others, I really need to pass on. I am cleaning for the holidays...are you? One pattern was a gift, that one I kept, so I am passing on the other one. This is a quick giveaway...I am choosing a winner tomorrow at 3 PM, by random drawing.


Have a wonderful day!


Julie

Housekeeping!!

Pieced borders are on!! This was quite a bit of piecing...made much easier due to the 1.5 inch squares already being cut and ready to assemble. I just love this quilt so much better with this border on. It seems to have squared it up and made it more "solid"...lots of seams to give it some bulk. There is another border to add, just a plain one...another piecing day. I just want to admire all those little bitty squares for a little while. Or do you think it could go without the outside border?
I know lots of you remember the Soot and Ashes blocks by Cheryl...I fell in love with them! and decided to experiment with the setting...how about this?? Maybe something in the setting with flying geese...they are flying over our home, going south. I love to hear their honking, calling to friends and loved ones in the great triangles in the sky.


************************Housekeeping*************************


I would love to have some knowledge from you about this subject. On Mondays, I vacuum, sweep and mop, empty trash, clean mirrors, purge magazines, dust, and change all the sheets. I spend lots of time each day cleaning house, it seems...chores, chores, chores! Which I do not mind in the least, my family deserves a clean and tidy home...but I never say a tombstone that read "Ethel, remembered for being a great housekeeper"! Hmmmm...what do you think about this, and how do you do it? How do you keep up??? Please give me some thoughts, if you please!!

I am sitting here typing this, and Rosie the tiny poodle is on my lap. I can feel her little heart beating against my lap...she is a warm bundle of love, so alive and vibrant.


Have a great day!

Julie

Delighted!!

TADA!! The trees have closed in, and are a forest now. This is the center, all hemmed in by a brown inner border...just one billion little squares in the outer border, and it will be done! This is Bonnie Hunter's pattern Crabapples from her book Leaders and Enders.
The Yankee Quilter sent these wonderful leftovers from her quilt of the same pattern...I love them! I have already trimmed them up and have started the border with these lovely fabrics...thank you so much!!
Finn sent me some of her precious 1.5 inch squares, and I was able to piece 4 tree blocks from them, with a lot left over for the border. Subee and I swapped some fabric for some of her squares too..they are all in there! Why is this underlined all of the sudden?? Hmmmm...gremlins??
Peg from Australia sent the most wonderful surprise! She hand stitched this gorgeous table runner...wow, it is absolutely perfect and just so gorgeous in every way! Thank you so much, Peg, I love it!!
Can you see all that gorgeous stitching? It is just wonderful!



***********************Other happenings******************

I got to meet a blogger in real life! Debi and I met at a local quilt shop...she is just as precious in real life as on her blog...and I got to explore the quilt shop! Too many ideas...I am in overload! How about you? I loved getting to meet Debi!!


************************Good news!!*******************************


I want some good news for a change...no politics, bad economy, wars, crime...I want a good news channel! Here is a little positive news for you!

Julie S...a nine patch swapper...is just the most wonderful person! I received her 3 inch blocks early in the nine patch swap...but the package had been opened and was empty (by intent or by mistake, we do not know.) I contacted Julie with a heavy heart...can you imagine how angry you might be if all your hard work was just gone? She was just the most gracious you can imagine, and I told her I would remake them...and to my great surprise and delight...she remade the nine patches and sent them again!! Wow...what a wonderful lady...so there is so much good in the world too, and she is one of the good 'uns!!!



**********************Nurse's notes************************

We as nurses have all been informed by the state boards that we may not discuss patients on social media...so I will not...but just have to share a story. Details are changed, times are changed...so privacy is protected at all costs. But this is MY diary...and I want to remember this one! A man underwent a huge surgery...and the first thing he said to me was "please help me get better soon, so I can go home and take care of my wife...she has ovarian cancer." This was the first night they had spent apart in 50 years! You bet...I will do everything in my power to make you well, sir!!!



Everyone, have a great day!

Julie