Warm days!

I received this sampler quilt back from the quilter, Paula, my buddy from childhood.  It is all trimmed and ready for binding.  Kitty cat has accepted it as his own.  

I have been playing with these pink string and scrap log cabin blocks.  I was wondering what to use for an alternate blocks and have been thinking about that.  I have 30 string blocks cut out.

This little heart was given to a cancer patient who came in, and she has decided not to pursue any treatment.  She says all of her family has passed from breast cancer, and she is going to have whatever life she has left, having fun and doing what she wants to....no chemo...no radiation...no surgery.  She weighs about 90 pounds, and is a spit fire.  I just fell in love with her, and we are going to meet for coffee later in the month.

More string blocks, log cabin style.  Don't they look different when they are laid out differently?

Sunflowers!!!  

 This is my little sampler out for Independence Day.  I just love it!

Aren't we so lucky to have this super fun quilting thing to do, to be absorbed in?  Aren't we blessed???

Julie

Hand quilting

Good morning to you!!!  My 4-H friend from years ago made a layer cake out of some of her fabrics and challenged me to make something.  This is how I am using her fabrics.  It seems like 1930's to me, so I am adding my 1930's prints to the mix.  It seems old fashioned and just soft and lovely to me.

I got a bug to make some blue blocks, and so I did.  These are 12 inches finished, so large ones for me.

I have taken this project out of the quilt vault (closet) and have actually added another row to it.  Hurrah!!  Super simple blocks, and kind of modern looking sampler.  

I have started to use up my browns with these blocks.  Someone on the blogs made a quilt like this!!  Please shout out if it was you, please, so I can credit you!!!

I made four so far.

I am so lucky to have good help, although Lucky the kitty seems to be nocturnal, and likes to party all night and sleep during the days.  His eyes are so lovely to me!!!

This is my hand quilting project...Wagon Wheel, a long-ago pieced top.  I made good progress on it, and enjoy the slow, contemplative movement of the needle pulling thread through the layers.  Just good fun!!!

Hope each of you is having a lovely quilting day, or a lovely time with whatever you are up to!!

Julie
 

progress

Good morning!!  I am working on the above quilt of valor for this year.  It is actually all together, and just needs to be sent off to Ray, for his quilt project for veterans.  I did have to discard a block made of red bandana fabric, as the fabric shrunk a lot with pressing.  Polyester, maybe?

I made a few simple blocks for rainbow quilts. Always great fun...and I still have to trim threads.

I have been sorting through old projects, and this one came to the light of day.  Just triangles...a lot of them.  LOTS!!  I put it back in the closet.

Red zig zags!  Before I knew it, I had cut out a whole quilt, using reds.  Bright, bright, bright!!! and so much fun to sew!!

A star block is fun!!

Kitty cat!!  Heaven's sakes, dear...

But mom!!!  I am helping!!!!

My big camera is not speaking to the computer, as the two of them have had a falling out.  I am using my cell phone until they sort out their differences.

Hope you are having a lovely day!

Julie
 

Where to start?

This month is pink month at Rainbow Quilts, by Angela.  Since pink is my favorite color, I have just loved seeing all the pink creations!!  Above are my pink blocks sewn so far.

These are current year blocks combined with orphan blocks from the past.  Since they are all 6 inches finished, they will combine nicely for a sampler quilt.  I will continue to add to them throughout this year. 

This quilt rack was given to me, and I am trading out quilts on it as the whim strikes me.  Great fun!!

I have been hand quilting my plaid string quilt, and I am happy to announce that the quilting is almost done!  Hurrah!  30 minutes a night does wonders in finishing it.  but.....

that has not happened lately!!! because...

We had some intruders in our little farm, squatters if you will.  The Sheriff and a trip there cleaned them all out, replaced all the broken windows and cleaned up all the mess.  wow!!  So that took a lot of time and energy.  Security measures are in place now!!  Electric fence, anyone?  

Then...I felt a warm spot in my kitchen floor.  This felt so nice on my feet for half a second, then I realized...we had a slab leak.  The pipe from the hot water heater had burst, spilling hot water under the house foundation.  This has expanded to replacing all the pipes in the whole house, after the plumbers gave us the bad news.  Let's just say I will be working overtime for quite some time paying for this little adventure!!!

So I am back to quilting, after laundry and cleaning today.  The house is still a disaster after the pipe replacement required all the closets, under sinks and garage area be totally emptied.  wow!!!  The second inspection will be soon, and then I can get things put away and back to semi-normal.

So that is my story!!  and I am sticking to it!!  How are you doing?

Happy Memorial Day to all!!

Julie

 

Sewing right along!

Hello!!  I made a few zipper bags for the guild sales table, to raise money for the guild scholarships.  I bought zippers on Amazon for pennies each!!

This is my quilt of valor for this year.  I have all the nine patches made, just working on the red blocks now.  Zipping along!!

Those scraps bins are just the best!!  I am making 6 inch star blocks, and they are so much fun to make!!  I just love scraps so much.

I have all the blocks sewn for the rail fence quilt.  Lucky the kitty very much enjoys helping with quilting as he can.  Ha!!

 I have had these blocks sewn for a long while, but recently sewed them all together.  Great fun!!

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

I have had a bit of a cold for a month.  Recently I took a trip to help my family during some medical stuff, and I came back dang sick.  Fever, sore throat, and so much junk in both my sinuses and lungs.  I just could not shake it and stopped wanting to eat.  I knew then I was pretty sick, Haha!  Turns out I had some flu.  Well, yuck!!! I do feel much better now, thank goodness, and just have the cough remaining. 

On we go, friends!!!

Julie  

How I magically used lots of scraps but ended up with even more!!!!

Well, I am making a simple rail fence, for a chemo quilt.  I ended up using a lot of my 2.5 inch scraps strips, and felt rather virtuous, but thought I did not have enough variety, so I cut more strips from my stash and WOW!!!  Now my 2.5 strip stash is even bigger.  I will just never use them all up at this rate, but I have variety...so there!!  I win!  By the way, scraps breed at night.  They really do!

Here are my cut pieces for the rail fence quilt.  Pretty, don't you think?

I have been working on hexagons!!  I had a recent plane trip to see my grand babies and help my DIL as she went through surgery.  I always get a right sided window seat, so I can stitch as I go.  I am just loving making these little hexagon blocks!

I hope each of you is having a good day today!!

Julie
 

Comments!

A large tree fell over with a mighty crash, half a block from our home.  We are all grateful that it fell toward the street!  If you can zoom in, you can see the little people on the left side of the picture. The homeowner is actually one of my heart patients, for years now.   We have had a lot of rain, which loosened the ground around the tree...and we saw very little root system supporting this gigantic oak.  

Lucky is helping me today, with dusting and playing with the chandelier.  He is so much fun!!  He is up on the dining room table, the stinker!!

The art...and the artist.  Hee!!!  He had such fun with my big stitch quilting thread!!

 And some quilting content!  I am sewing some of my 2.5 width pieces, for a simple rail fence quilt.  I find these old fabrics to be like old friends, coming around to visit.  I love them!!! The inspiration of this is a lady who presented to our local quilt guild.  I loved her on sight...just a sweet, darling lady!

Stash Bandit - Quilting Shenanigans

Here is her website.  She made a quilt like this, too, and I have made some in the past.  Time to sew another one, and it is so quick to complete!

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HEY!!  I think I fixed my comment problem!!  Would you be so very kind and honor me by commenting on this post, so I can see if the comments are coming to my email once more?  Thank you so much!!

Julie

A finish

Hi everyone!  I have been kind of obsessed about finishing this jacket.  I used a lot of scraps!!!  Above you can see the large, angled patch pocket. I used an old sweatshirt to make the garment longer, and some of the leftovers to make the pockets.   I bound the jacket much like a quilt, in one fabric.  

Here is the finished article.  It is pretty big on me.  I used a large men's sweatshirt to sew all the pieces to. Walmart has these on sale...end of the season.   I did have to cut off the sleeves a couple of inches, and the rest will shrink in the wash.  I machine quilted it on my Bernina.  I did cut off the neck stretchy material, and also the cuffs and bottom of the sweatshirt.  I cut the sleeves open to sew the patchwork to it, and then quilted them and sewed them back together.  

This is the binding material.  

Whew!!  OK, life can resume now....

Julie

 

Sweatshirt jacket

 

Good morning!!  This is the second sweatshirt jacket I have made.  I got a large sweatshirt, because the sweatshirt really shrinks a lot.  I sorted out every last blue scrap, put them in a basket, and I am randomly sewing them to the sweatshirt.  I cut the sweatshirt up the middle front, and also cut the sleeves and opened them for easier piecing.  It is a bit challenging to sew on the wiggly sweatshirt material, but I am having fun anyway.  Still, lots of work to go on this one.  

Here is Lucky, looking on.  He does not know what to think!!  HIs eyes are so pretty to look at...darling baby kitty!!  He is 8 months old now.  Good nutrition has made him grow so big and his fur is so soft and luxuriously thick.  I never thought I could be a kitty person, but I am a person who will help another being in need.  He is so sweet and just rips around, despite his permanently injured leg.  No victim here...just a kitty having a great time!!

Here is the first sweatshirt jacket I made.  I am making the blue one longer, and it is a bit bigger.  This was a man's small, and although it fits ok, I like my jackets a bit looser now.

I am enjoying a leisurely stroll through mystery quilt land.  This is Bonnie Hunter's Quiltville mystery.  Just two blocks a day...hey, any little game to get it to the finished line!

Hope each of you is doing well.  Please tell me how to get your comments to my email...they have disappeared again.  why??  I wish I had an in-house computer guru at my command!

Julie

Puffins!!

Hello to everyone!!!  Above is my Puffin quilt progress.  All the blocks are together, and an orange border has been added.  Hurrah!!  Now for something amazing for a border treatment.  Maybe a black checkerboard?

  I sewed a new coin purse.  Or maybe a tiny cosmetic purse.  I have a free shelf at my work, and I will put it on there to see who wants it!!

I have had these blocks cut out for a zillion years and so I sewed a few.  They are 6 inches finished.  I love them...no rhythm or reason to them.  Just scrappy!!!  

March was purple month at Rainbow quilts, so I have a few purple blocks made.  I love these, and the English paper piecing method used to achieve them.  

Easter was a low-key day.  Poor Lucky was just tuckered out from all the excitement!!!!

Hope your day was wonderful, too!

Julie
 

Puffins and purples!!

I was tempted by Puffins...a squirrelly breed!!  LOL!  This fabric was shared with me, and I have been loved these bright, candy corn colors, to accent the puffin fabric centers.  So much fun!  I am sewing the pieces in steps...one step at a time.

This quilt is a layer cake challenge.  Paula gave me a layer cake, that she had cut herself from yardage, and she said...make something!!  So I am!!!

Above are my purple blocks for March.  Great fun, and yes, my kitty encouraged more kitten blocks.

Here is my progress so far on Puffin blocks.  What fun!!

Hope you are having fun too!

Julie