Quilting along! and Plaids truly are the best thing ever devised by mankind!! or close...

www.humblequilts.blogspot.com

I am catching up Lori's quilt along! It was a whim that started this, and a whirlwind that finished the center.  I am so delighted with it!!!  I truly enjoy working with plaids...part Scottish, ye understand!  Plaids from a friend made this all the sweeter.

I changed the house block.  The original one had templates and set in pieces, and I decided to sew a bit simpler one.  I also changed the bottom left block.  I sewed this mostly in the middle of the night, and could not get in the quilt closet for fabrics, (did not want to wake anyone!), so I used strips and pieces that I had already cut.  It was fun to make do with what I had on hand.

It feels so great to so engaged in a project!

I would like to donate this to the hospice unit, but then got to thinking...would this be OK to give to them for our waiting room?  Does anyone really feel welcome in that unit?  Or it just a sad part of life to get through for these visitors?  Or should it be more professional and less scrappy than this?

Anyway...

On to the borders!
 

Welcome quilt quiltalong!

Good morning to all!!  Lori is having a quilt along; rather, she has been having it!  It is coming to an end, so I have to catch up.  Above is the pattern.  So cute!

www.humblequilts.blogspot.com  (Lori)

Of course, I had to make all the letter blocks first.  

I love all the scrappy plaids!  Plaids just make me so happy, and I do not know why.

A beginning, anyway!!

 These are my dark blue bowties.  I love these little blocks.

Hope you are having a joyful day!

Julie

A day off from the hospital.

I found this border for my quilt of valor in my stash.  Yahoo!

 I sewed the orange bowties.  Now on to blue!

This was a fast crocheted prayer shawl.  First person who needs it, gets it at my work.

Have you seen these primitive kitties?  They are so cute when they have faces on them!

Hope each of you is doing fantastic!

Julie
 

Just a bit of progress!

Good morning!  I have made a tiny bit of progress on my modern quilt.  I love the pops of color!!

 A few green bowties showed up!!  I am trying to finish at least one rainbow quilt for the year.

Hope you are doing great!  Can anyone help me get blog comments to go to my email again?  Sigh....not working.

Julie

Disappearing four patch, and a mysterious quilt.

I am making progress on my disappearing four patch. Plaids!  What can be better?

Oops!  I see some misplaced blocks.  I will have to be very careful with this one.

This quilt is a whole cloth quilt, hand embroidered.  

It is yellowed and the top edge is frayed, from someone pulling the quilt up to their chin, I imagine.

 See the fraying?  It has some small bulges in the very thin batting, which I believe are cotton seeds.  The quilting is absolutely amazing.  The tiniest quilting stiches are throughout and the edge was turned to face and stitched together.

Any idea of the age or provenance?

Have a great day!

Julie

Good afternoon!!

Hello to all!!  I have been busily hand quilting on this quilt.  I have nearly all of the border done!  I have quilted around each square, on both sides of the tiny green sashing.  Hand quilting is addicting!!  So, the whole thing is stabilized, enough that I could apply the binding.  By the way, I used 2 inch strips for the binding on this one.  It turned quite well. Very tight and full, just like the quilt judges told me I needed to work on.  So, maybe I will use that width of binding strip from now on. What do you use, pray tell?   Such a lot of stitches! I wonder how many stitches are in a hand quilted piece!

I finished the above binding as well.  Dear Janet sent out some tumblers, and what fun they are!!  Thank you, Janet! I love the pink tumblers best.  This one is hand quilted, and the binding done.  Hurrah!!!  It even has a label.  Gasp!

Bonnie Hunter has a quilt along going on, as a leader and ender.  I made a different kind of quilt.  This one will be a quilt of valor.  Good progress on this one.  But borders are needed!

 I finished hand quilting this mini, too.  It lacks binding, so I will get on that job.  I added some spiral embroidery to a couple of the circles.  Just a thing to add some interest!

Please see Wendy, here, to take a peek at all the lovely mini quilts in the works!!

The Constant Quilter

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

Have any of you had a loved one with dementia?  I find this frequently, dealing with my patients as a nurse, but I am wondering about family dynamics and how it affects your world.  Just exploring how to help my patients best.

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

Have a lovely day!  Big thanks to Kathy and Cindy for checking up on me.  I did not mean to be absent so

 long from the blog!

Julie

Progress!

Good afternoon!  I sewed a border on this quilt.  Hurrah!!  All from my stash, which feels great.  

Scrappy blocks rule!!  LOL!

I found this little block in the quilt closet and wondered why I did not do anything with it?  Hmmmm!!!

I found a purse pattern and made it.  It is a really good pattern!  Here it is:

Sweet Jane's Quilting: Quilting Tutorial to make a Library Tote from scraps! (sweetjanesquilting.blogspot.com)

Honestly, it is purse sized, not library tote sized.  I guess I check out too many books!  It is not quite big enough for that purpose, for me, but the PERFECT purse size, and I love it!!

I am making more of these blocks.  They are so fast, honestly!

 Here is the block.  Nice and graphic when put together.

Hope you are having a lovely day!

Julie K

Scrappy goodness!!

Good morning to all!!!  I have been enjoying working on whittling down my 2.5-inch-wide strip bin.  I selected some strips, kitted up these blocks, and here is where I am.  I did have a humility block in the middle of the quilt, where a black piece was turned around, but I correct that.  Now I see another one!  It is staying!  It seems that the black nine patches make the brighter colors that much more vivid. 

I tried to put the bright blocks in the center, and the duller, darker colors toward the outside of the quilt.  Now I am faced with the border dilemma, as usual!  I am not sure what to do for a border!

This is my mini of the month for September.  It is displayed under a small collection of Halloween goodies.  Great fun!

 I bought a couple of mums from Home Depot and will decorate my front porch with these things.  I love fall time!

How are you doing, each of you??

Julie

Gratitude!

I have the day off work today!!!  Hurrah!  I am working on my disappearing nine patch quilt.  PLAIDS!!  Rule the roost!

(And I am cleaning, honestly, I am)

So, may I ask your opinion?  Is this light-colored plaid an outlier?  Does it look funny in the quilt!  Should I take it out?

Thank you for your discussion and wisdom!

 Here are all my blocks on the cookies sheet...all cut out and ready to sew.

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

I am so very grateful for you, my friends.  I have been so stressed the past while, trying as I might to make an awful situation winnable.  Sometimes, to win, you have to let go.  I am grateful for that lesson!  I just love my new unit...great team, and all seem to be on the same page...PATIENTS first!!!

Thank you for your support!!

Julie

My green string quilt is actually quilted, at long last!  Hurrah!  

I used a scrappy binding, of all different green; pieces I have saved for years.

I bound it on the machine!!  To save time, and to get it in the hands of someone who needs it...I applied the binding on the back, brought it around to the front, and sewing carefully, topstitching along the inner edge of the binding.  Turned out very well, to my delight!!

Here is my binding pile to start with.

I used this tool to roll it up neatly, and wow!  It rolled off so easily and nicely.  

 I liked this tool!!

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

Well, here is my big news.  After 27 years in one hospital, all in cardiac, and 6 years in another...a mixed bag, but mostly cardiac.... I am quitting my job.  Rather, I am moving to another unit in the attached hospital.  I am going from open heart surgery recovery to hospice.  They are also orienting me to oncology, as well, because I am sure to float there at time.  Why such a drastic change????

Well!!  About 5 years ago, a new nurse came here from Houston.  She was a very loud, outspoken person, a true bully, and she just thought she knew everything there is to know about nursing. And doctoring...she regularly corrects the doctors. (they laugh at her).   She has banded together a band of followers self-called the "Bad Ass Bitches."  They are gossipers, backbiters, and just atrocious.  They have run off three other nurses...and guess what?  They ran me off too!  Every single day, I am run down, maligned, talked about, reported to my boss...for nothing.  Now understand that I am an excellent nurse...certified in my specialty, nearly completed with my master's degree, and have excellent rapport with all the docs and my patients. Moreover, I love my patients!  I am qualified in Impella, Balloon pump, Dialysis, open heart recovery, TAVR recovery, Vent support...and I am the charge nurse.  I don't call in and I don't be lazy at work.  

I just made up my mind that I am not going to put up with that anymore.  She runs the show there...and runs people off for fun and giggles with her group.

So, I decided I can fight her...administration did nothing...or I could leave.  So?  I left!!  Funny how the bosses begged me to stay, after allowing all of this torture to all of us go on forever! 

 And I am very excited about being the very best hospice nurse I can!  I also am keeping my toe in the water with ICU care...going to float to ICU and CCU sometimes, to keep my skills up.  I am delighted to be starting a new nursing adventure!  I had hoped to retire from my unit, but it became so toxic, I just could not cry another tear, or try and be friends another minute, or fight anymore.  I am a gentle person, and I think I am following God's path for me, right to Hospice.

So, I appreciate you all bearing with me.  I have been so stressed for months as I struggled with what to do, and I am so behind in answering any comments and correspondence.  Forgive me...I will do better now that this burden has been lifted from me. I have already worked through my month notice...I was only required to give two weeks, but I gave my boss an entire month.  I have already started my new job!

That is my big news!!!

Hope you have a lovely day!

Julie

Progress on the fishy quilt!

Good morning to you!!  I am just loving this scrappy quilt.  Thank you, Bonnie Hunter, for the leader and ender idea!!

 The quilting is very dense and I adore it!!

Hope you are having a really good day!!

Churn dashing again!

Good morning!  Can you see the fun nurses in the centers of these blocks?  I fussy cut them out of panels, and just love them.  The blocks finish at 12 inches. Churn dashing along!

 I have been going through small quilts for gifting and came across this one I had made a couple of years ago.   I just love the colors, made of 1/2-inch strips.  Tiny!!!

Hope each of you is doing well.  I have some big news coming up soon, about my work, so stay tuned.

Seems like Sunday is my day for updates!

Good afternoon!  I put a label on this quilt that I made some time ago, and hand quilted it.  Just a funky little flower for you!

I made a few more disappearing four patch blocks.  I love these!

 I made a tiny little runner from the cut off pieces from the four-patch block cutting party.  Word to the wise!  I used the ultra-washable red Crayola markers to mark my quilting.  I had a devil of a time getting the marks out...three washings and spot remover were needed.  Don't use the red if you want it to wash out!  I did use blue, and it was OK.

Julie

A new squirrel!

Good morning!  Have you heard of the disappearing block quilts?  Probably so!!  This is my disappearing four patch.  PLAIDS!!!!!  Is there anything better?  I think not!!!  Except scrappy plaids.

You can find the pattern here:  Free!

Disappearing 4 Patch Quilt Block Tutorial - YouTube

 I have been hand quilting in the evenings, while my hubby watches the news.  I am done with this quilt!! YAHOO!

On to the next hand quilting project...seems like I never run out of these.

Have you made a disappearing four patch quilt?

Julie

Churn dash along and my monthly mini

I finished my churn dash quilt...this is an update for Chooky.

I made a few mini quilts this month.  I machine stippled them, and that was fun and fast!

 Zander's Quilt is looking different...not sure if I will keep the outside border or not.  I am trying to use what I have; you know???  I absolutely want to showcase those half square triangles.

Hope each of you is doing great!