Quilting With Friends

It has been ages since I last shared the quilts my quilting friends have made. Let's take care of that right now!

First, the most egregious oversight of all is the quilt that Sharon made for Reagan. Oh my goodness, this is such a darling quilt!

Back in August, when a group of us sewed at retreat, Sharon was very sneaky when she purchased a kit. I had no idea what she intended as I was obliviously wrapped up in my own little quilting world. Very soon, though, I found out that she had bought and stitched an entire quilt for Reagan!

It is the perfect size for a baby quilt, and the colors are so cheerful. Sharon and I both have become overly fond of the beauty and simplicity of 9-patch quilts, and this is one is perfectly executed.

Baby Reagan will grow into this quilt, to be sure! I hope I see it being used - and loved! - a lot as she grows up.

The Frankfort Girls were here at my house last week, and two of the ladies had quilts for show and tell.

Becky, our resident applique queen, just got this beauty back from the quilter. Isn't it spectacular? She said it was her very first experience with applique. I am just in awe of such intricate work. Certainly another masterpiece from her talented hands.

Helen had two quilts to share. This first one was a kit given to her by Terry just a few weeks ago. Once again, here's proof that the simple 9-patch block can result in a gorgeous quilt! The border fabric is by Betsy Chutchian, and the chevron border adds impact, but those 9-patches on point sure do capture my fancy!

The other quilt that Helen shared was a UFO that (I think!) her sister had handed off to her. She was unsure about how to finish it herself, as directions were either unavailable or unclear. Anyway, she took what she could use and "created" a finish that she felt she would be able to use.

These quilting friends continue to inspire me to keep up my own efforts in the sewing room. I have been way off my game this year, and when I see these beautiful creations, I find myself 'itching' to get back to it.

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Jayne

Hello December!

Do you remember this crazy gag from way back when - the 'Round Tuit'? Eventually, I do get around to it - getting things done, that is. 

So without further ado, let me officially welcome December here at JQR. Nothing like a good dose of better late than never, right?

As I do with the beginning of each month, I like to do a little collage of the previous month's highlights. 

Similar to nearly every month this entire year, the amount of sewing and quilting continues to dwindle. It seems that other endeavors win out over sewing time, and I am not sad about it. While I know that I will once again get back to more regular sewing and quilting, my time these past few months has been better spent with family and friends. 

TOP ROW: All eight Frienzies were together early last month to celebrate Kay's birthday. I cannot even recall the last time we were all together. With Kay in a long-term care facility, our together time has been diminished. Both daughters and their families came here for an early Thanksgiving feast. It was a wonderful opportunity to grab some pictures of the dear granddaughters. Cate is 2 years; Reagan is 2 months. And we grandparents traded in our beloved CRV for a minivan! Yes, the anticipation of car seats and long road trips forced the change; we got a used Odyssey with much lower mileage.

MIDDLE ROW: A bit of hand sewing found me making a hexie flower. The fabrics were from my aunt's collection that I inherited; seemed like a nice way of honoring her. In the center, another group of great ladies - my card club - met for a holiday dinner at a local woman's primitive cabin. We ate well! And the cozy ambiance was perfect for a festive feast. Finally, a finish - the blue Ohio Stars, from that same aunt, came together in a pretty quilt top.

BOTTOM ROW: Thanksgiving Day found us among a huge gathering at my sister's. They live on a farm and the goats were having babies! Emma's step-daughter Parker got to pet day-old baby goats! Great-grandma Jeannie (my mom) got to finally meet her newest grandbaby - Reagan Jayne. She now has (to my best calculations) 18 great grandchildren. My final pic is of daughter Erin's beloved Rocky, asleep on DH's foot. Sadly, this is the last pic we have of Rocky, as he crossed the rainbow bridge on Monday. He was 18 years old, and was so very fragile and frail. We helped him get through the Thanksgiving weekend, and then Erin made the tough call. He was such a good kitty; a faithful companion and a furry friend with mega-personality.

                               

Goodbye, Sweet Boy! We sure did love you!

As I look to what I will attempt to accomplish in December, I need to tackle the long arm machine - for at least a month, I've ignored the thread-breaking issue I encountered while finishing a baby quilt for Reagan. That is first on my to-do list. Additionally, I have some UFOs that could easily be finished off. One is for a gift, and 2 more could be gifts if I just get busy. 

Then, preparing a little group of projects for Florida is necessary. We will be heading out in early January and that will be here before we know it. 

I will be hosting the family for Christmas, so decorating and cooking will factor in, of course. December is always so busy; I am definitely going to prioritize enjoying all the festivities as opposed to stressing about all there is to do.

Have a great month!

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Jayne

Slow Sunday Stitching

The current timeline on my 10-year-project, Lake Effect, finds me nearing the end of year seven. Begun in the spring of 2017, I could conceivably finish early. Of course, if I don't work on it, nothing gets done. And I have spent way too much time NOT working on it.

Trying to force myself to remain diligent, I made a goal for this year to have all the outer borders attached. I have been doing exactly that stitching in the last month or so. The very bottom 10 inches of that right border need to be stitched, then I will be halfway done with that goal. 

The stitching goes rather quickly, actually. I dilly-dally too much fiddling with removing paper templates, but when I stay really focused, I whip right down that seam.

After the outer borders are attached, I will have the job of fine-tuning the corners of the appliqued borders. I really am such a newbie with applique, I know I am going to end up being rather, shall we say "creative," with finishing them. It has come to the point that the way my quilt looks in comparison to the pattern is all rather a "suggestion" of similarity.

Interestingly, I still like this quilt. I have not found myself growing weary of it, nor have I regretted starting it. I will be very pleased to have it finished. All good things, in my book. 

A few days ago, I shared that I dropped everything to make a Grandmother's Flower Garden flower, and pondered the possibilities of how I will sew my little flowers together. I don't dare even think about making any huge commitments to that quilt until this quilt is finished. I am notorious for allowing projects to overlap, but having two huge EPP projects overlap would be absolutely insane. I will not go there!

I've not linked up with Kathy's Quilts in awhile for her Slow Sunday Stitching, so let's hop on over there to see what all the gals are working on. I see one Grandmother's Flower Garden represented. I will definitely be checking that out. And that cross stitch project that says "Just Fudge It And Carry On" sure sounds like what I've been doing with Lake Effect! *ha!*

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Jayne

Having Fun With Kaffe Scraps

Yesterday I worked for a time on some secret Christmas sewing. Since I cannot show that just yet, I will show you what I worked on after the secret stuff.

Initially, I was simply attempting to tidy up around my sewing machine and work table. Believe it or not, I'd allowed little stacks of things to clutter up the space. I know! Hard to believe, right?? (ha!) I thought maybe I'd try being proactive for a change. Deal with the little bits before it all became massive, overwhelming, unmanageable bits. 

I certainly did not have any plan whatsoever to actually sew any of it. Honest.

One of the bits needing put away was a small stack of 2.5-inch Kaffe Fassett scraps - maybe a dozen or so squares. I would add these to the larger collection of 2.5-inch squares. Even after all the sewing I did last winter in Florida, I still have a large tub of 2.5-inch scraps, within which all the KF fabrics are separated and grouped. 

Rather than put the little stack away, I instead pulled those KF scraps and began making 4-patch blocks. I ended up having a lot more KF squares than I expected. I did not need a plan; just make 4-patches. This was such an impromptu decision, I cannot even explain what brought it on. Maybe I just felt like seeing what I could make out of these gorgeous scraps.

You know, those tubs of carefully organized scraps are set aside for "someday" sewing. Perhaps I just had an incredible urge to have yesterday afternoon be that "someday."

Whatever it was, it was great.

I had such a grand time mindlessly creating 4-patch blocks out of these scraps. It was about as much fun as one could have in the sewing room. Makes working so hard to save, cut, separate, and organize all those scraps worth the time and effort.

I have only just begun whittling down this pile of KF squares. I will make as many as I can from what you see here, and then stash them until inspiration tells me what comes next. I have a couple of different ideas, and since this was such fun, I do think I will be returning to them ASAP.

Hope you are having fun in your sewing room. I highly recommend it!

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Jayne

A Quick Trip Through the Garden

It is just the easiest thing to get side-tracked over here. Let me just tell you, if I don't go off on a tangent every day or two, then something surely must be wrong. 

In all my sorting, purging, and organizing, I came across three fabrics clustered together in Aunt Margaret's belongings. They were small pieces - like fat quarters or less - and they were so pretty together. Instantly, I thought they'd make a super-cute Grandmother's Flower Garden flower.

Now, thinking it and actually accomplishing it were two entirely different stories, let me tell you. I had the idea straight away, but heavens! Finding the EPP templates for making it was a big mystery. Seems all this "organizing" hasn't done me a daggone bit of good - I can't find anything in all the new places I've put stuff! 

I eventually found the tub of EPP supplies that I was looking for and got down to business cutting out parts for one flower.

Stitching for just a bit each evening or while listening to an audiobook, I have whipped this up just as quick as can be.

And now I will add it into the tub with the growing stack of flowers made a year or two ago, when I was working on these with more focus. This flower becomes #57 of the little garden I've stitched up.

In the months since I last made any of these flowers, I haven't given them much thought. Now, though, I am considering options for finishing. An easy way would be to applique them onto plain blocks which I would sew together by machine. A more involved finish would include making several gazillion more hexies to join these flowers all together. Green is a commonly used color because it mimics a garden path. Any solid color would work so that the flowers are the focus. Click here to see one with green paths. This one with leaf clusters is also interesting.

I will have to think on this.

Finished with my little flower garden tangent, I return my focus to the sorting. My attitude is that it is drudgery, but I ought to change my mindset - this effort is akin to an archaeological dig - I am always surprised at the next find.

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Jayne

Bits and Pieces - Vintage Bark Cloth

I've gone through lots of boxes in recent weeks, and I truly thought I'd been through all these boxes before. Apparently, I'd only given them a cursory glances. With more focused exploring, I have come across a genuine vintage find that I somehow had overlooked.

I have been dreamy-eyed over bark cloth ever since first seeing it made into a zipper bag back in 2018. (here's the post) After understanding what it is and realizing how much a part of my parents' and grandparents' homes it was when I was a child made me very interested in finding some. These fabrics symbolize the warmth of hearth and home for me. Curtains, upholstery, pillows - all the simple comforts.

Bark cloth! It is hot-hot-hot in the collectors' world. Do an Ebay search of bark cloth and see the asking prices on various cuts of this stuff. I see it occasionally in antique malls and the prices are astronomical.

So buried in a box with random other quilting stuff was this gray bit of bark cloth - 2.5 yards and 36" wide. It looks pristine. Never used. I might even recognize it. Maybe this is leftover from a pillow on Grandma's sofa? Or curtains in the family room? Or upholstery on a small chair? Memories from so far back are fuzzy, but I do think I 'know' this fabric. 

You can bet, as I go through any old photos, I will be checking out all the couch cushions! I betcha' I will find this fabric. *wink*

So, this is not the most flamboyant of bark cloths ever produced; it's gray and tame and solidly Midwest farmer's wife style.

And I haven't a clue what I'll do with it. Honest! I could use it, but how? I could sell it, but do I really want to? For now it is back in the box, tucked away in the closet with a few other gems found in Grandma's boxes of sewing goodies.  

Stay tuned for more Bits and Pieces yet to be revealed. I plan to have several more. 

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Jayne

Blue and White Ohio Stars

Early last month, my cousin Sam was finishing up dispersing the remaining bits of his parents' estate. Uncle Nick and Aunt Margaret (Maggie) were such fun, and we all loved spending time with them and Sam - which didn't happen nearly enough, as Uncle Nick's job required lots of traveling all around the US. They lived in far-off places: Alaska, New Mexico, Kansas, Tennessee, Maryland. Too far from family here in southern Ohio.

Over the years, Aunt Margaret took up quilting as a hobby and - yes, you guessed it - Sam handed off her quilting tubs to me. In the midst of all my purging, I took those tubs and sifted through - very selectively, I will say - for fabrics and UFOs I thought I would use and finish.

I am pleased to report that one of Maggie's UFOs has now been finished. In the depths of her tubs, I found a stack of hand-pieced Ohio Star blocks, all in blues with a white-on-white background. Stored right there, too, was her remaining yardage of background fabric and the remaining blues used in the stars. 

Having no idea what plan she had for completing this quilt, I decided to make setting blocks in the Stepping Stones pattern. This was her mother's (my grandma) go-to setting, so it made sense to connect the three generations with this common element. 

Finishing this was so enjoyable. It gave me hours of time to think about Aunt Maggie and all the great memories of her. As my mom's younger sister, there were plenty of stories told about her. From her love of kittens to barefoot antics on the farm to her being 'daddy's little girl,' she was the life of any party when she was home for a visit.

So far, all fabric used has been Aunt Maggie's, but for borders I am going to dive into my stash. I am sure I have some suitable options in my blue stash that will work for borders. I am thinking a narrow dark blue first, then a floral outer border. I will be auditioning options this next week.

It's pretty sweet to have finished this quilt. I have to think that Aunt Maggie would wholeheartedly approve of my choice of using the Stepping Stone blocks with her stars. It really makes such a pretty quilt.

I'm off today to visit with the Frankfort Girls! Our bi-weekly Friday morning session will be at Sharon O's house. I will stitch on Lake Effect - yes, I am still plugging away on it.

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Jayne