Some Very Old Stuff

It's been a few days since I've shared anything from Grandma's closet; I will remedy that now.

The closet housed a lot of the projects Grandma was working on - which means they were current. While she was using scraps, none of them were antique fabrics, just dated a bit - say a decade or so. Well, there were some things in that closet which were quite a bit older than that. I felt like an archaeologist on a dig for ancient treasure. Today's post will feature some of the older finds.

This advertisement was tucked in with a box of cardboard templates. I never knew Grandma to be interested in textile painting, so I cannot imagine why this was saved. Maybe there was something inside or on the back that was of interest. I need to check again.

Here are some of the cardboard templates. Untold quilts have been made with these. The penciled-on labels are fading; some of it is Grandma's handwriting.

One box had a shoebox in it that was filled with bias tape and rick rack, many unopened. I asked Grandma why she had so much of this (because I also remember there being a lot of bias tape and rick rack in that sewing kit I got awhile back). She said that she made a lot of aprons, and these were helpful in her construction. I suppose the bias tape would bind pockets, or maybe become apron strings (?). Of course, rich rack makes a nice embellishment on aprons, so that makes sense. Anyway, take a look at the price on this random one I pulled out. Gracious!!

There were many embroidered pillow cases and table cloths that I remember from my childhood days spent at Grandma's house. Here is an ancient pattern transfer that Grandma must have liked.

The oldest items of all reside in this shabby brown box.

This is a project of Grandma's sister, Leota. The pieces are cut and sorted, the pattern is in the envelop in which it came, and a block is partially completed.

I do not remember my great aunt Leota, and I should. We just didn't see these relatives very often. She was an older sibling of my grandmother's. Of the 9 surviving children, Leota was 5th and Grandma was 7th. Leota was born in 1913 and died in 2000. Grandma was born in 1916.

Well, there you have it - some very old things from Grandma's closet. I can see doing one more post about that closet, and then we'll close that subject for awhile. If you missed the previous posts about the closet, here are the links: first, second, third.

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Fun Stuff by Terry

I've been sorting through pictures and came across one that keeps catching my eye. I believe it is a creation of Terry's for our UFO challenge. She is one of our front runners in this little challenge; she's getting things finished left and right. (I am not.) So let's take a quick look at two things that Terry has recently been working on.

 This past Friday the Frankfort girls met here at my house, and Terry worked on this Ohio flag project. She embroidered our state name on it. It'll be a very pretty banner when completed.

This little beauty is what I keep stopping to study every time I sift through my pictures. What a gorgeous table topper. I love all the scrappiness and simplicity. I really think I need to make one of these for myself.

I have made a few more pillows for both the front room and the family room. I do like the fresh pops of color they are providing. We've been doing some deep cleaning around here lately for a big fraternity reunion my husband is hosting this weekend. We have over 75 reservations! Most of the festivities will be outdoors, but still one needs a clean house, right?

Happy Quilting, Friends!

More Catching Up

Steadily, I am getting caught up on that big ol' list of things I needed to work on. Last week while at Terry's sewing, I managed to get both June and July blocks done in the Wishes Quilt Along sponsored by Fat Quarter Shop.

Needs a good pressing, but I sure am liking how these Fig Tree fabrics are looking in this project. This is the June block.

The July block turned out great, too. This is the first of the 7 blocks in which I've not used the yellow.

That's all for today, Peeps!
Happy Quilting, Friends!

A UFO Bites the Dust

Feeling pretty good about getting to check another UFO off the list, I must say. I am not making near the headway on my UFOs that some of my stitching friends are, but making any progress at all is still progress.

This table runner was one I made at Mary's Barn over a year ago. It was fun and easy, but I just never made it a priority to finish. I blogged about that day at the barn.

I  am so glad it is now completed - isn't it pretty? My method went like this: I machine quilted the baskets using the stitch-in-the-ditch method. In the two side triangles and the four corner triangles, I traced a quilting design on and hand quilted them. I used a French General backing and binding.


Happy Quilting, Friends!

Seeing Stars

Old news, but still worth sharing: I made some significant progress on all those Ohio stars needed for my Eventide quilt. This past Monday when Sharon P. was here, I really doubled down and got over 30 of them sewn together. They are all gorgeous, but some are definitely prettier than others. I will show you a random few from my stack.

This stack is unpressed, obviously, but I just couldn't wait to take pictures.

 

I am loving this Roman Holiday! I've had it for so long, and waited so long for just the right quilt to use it in, and I think I am going to be very pleased with this match.

I've not done much on this quilt since Monday, sadly. I will get back to it asap!

Happy Quilting, Friends!

 

New Pillows

Both my family room and front room needed some pizzazz. They had become dull and tired looking to me. So I pulled out some fat quarters and made some new pillows.

Backs.

Fronts. All French General fabrics.

Fronts. The red is French General; the black/cream unknown.

I am so pleased with these that I think I will make more. I've run out of pillow forms, but that can be easily remedied.

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Grandma's Split 9-Patch

One real quick post from Grandma's closet today, peeps. I missed yesterday, darn it. I was trying to go for one post each day for the month of July. Oh well...

I think Grandma referred to this block as the Split 9-Patch, but perhaps it's known by other names. She made one quilt using this block and the way they are arranged makes for some very interesting secondary patterns. She really enjoyed making that first one and began a second. I recall that she asked me for some dark scraps to add variety, and I see many bits of fabrics in the photo above that came from my stash.

This is yet another of Grandma's UFOs that I will enjoy finishing.

You know, she acts like she doesn't care a bit about quilting anymore, but I bet if I were to pull this one out and work on it, she'd be thrilled to see the progress. I might just schedule an afternoon to visit her, and take this as handwork to do while we chat - that would really tickle her. *wink*

I just might do it.

Oh, and another thing, if you click that tab under my header where it says Grandma's Quilts, you can take a little tour of some of her many creations.

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Grandma's Blocks

On Friday I shared the first of several posts I will be doing on the contents of Grandma's quilting closet. Those two completed quilt tops were real surprises to me, for sure.

Today I will show you a few of the various completed blocks nestled away in these boxes and tubs. It was typical for Grandma to make a practice block when beginning a quilt - especially if the design was one she had never made before. I uncovered a lot of single blocks amongst all this stuff, and I expect that at some point I will be putting them together as a sampler quilt. Perhaps two, depending on how many I find and how large the blocks are. She quilted for 60-70 years, so there are many, many of these test blocks.

 I haven't photographed every single block, but I think you can tell that there are several underneath this pretty red and blue star.Grandma loved making patriotic quilts, so I have to imagine that this was what she had in mind when she made this particular block.

Grandma's favorite color is blue, so many of her quilts reflect that love of anything blue. Here is another star, with a somewhat different method of construction (HSTs for the star points as opposed to flying geese units). And that Monkey Wrench block is typical of what she was making just before she stopped quilting altogether.

This Maple Leaf block is from a quilt I remember her finishing. She used all fall colors and it turned out so pretty. I imagine that someone in the family has this quilt, as I've not seen it at her house, and she frequently gave her finished quilts to her children and grandchildren.

 Ahh, the Lemoyne Star - it was Grandma's standard block. If we searched the family, I bet we could easily find over 20 quilts made with this star. I got mine when I went to college. You can see from this picture that the box holds several more blocks and underneath there are baggies of blocks parts. I can't even begin to guess at how far back these go.

Another of Grandma's favorite blocks were the Sunbonnet Sue and Overall Bill. Here is a completed Sue, and a whole pile of overalls cut out. Always planning ahead for the next baby to be born! Lots of the great-grandchildren have pillows or wall hangings of these.

In all the years Grandma and I shared our quilting hobby, I never saw her make a Drunkard's Path, yet here in this box are all the parts necessary for just that. Several blocks are finished; I just don't have a photo of them.

I probably bought these fabrics for her. As her interest in quilting diminished, and she was less and less likely to agree to join me on a trip to a fabric store, I often would pick up a few fat quarters in colors I knew she would find appealing and take them to her at random intervals.I wanted to keep her interested in quilting for as long as possible. It worked for awhile. She cut into these fat quarters and made several quilts - often stars. This box represents some of that work. On the bottom are 6 or 8 finished blocks, with the makings of more on top. Do you see what is peeking at me from the top? Her scissors and thimble are tucked in with the project.

And, the pattern she was using is here, too. Such an organized lady! She still is, too! Many a time I have been over there to help her do little things, and by gosh, it better be done by her specifications! She is a stickler for detail! And everything has its place, to be sure. I wish some of her fastidiousness had been a trait I inherited!

This box is chocked full of 9-patch blocks. Maybe my affinity for the 9-patch is what I inherited!

 I removed the completed 9-patches and found the above "ingredients" for making more. Have you noticed that Grandma never used a rotary cutter and mat? All the quilts she made were cut out with templates and hand pieced. No strip piecing for her! She is of another generation.

I just had to know how many of these blocks she'd completed, and why they were stacked just so. Well, one stack  has 55 completed blocks, and the other has 50. She was well on her way to making more than one quilt, wouldn't you agree?

This picture and the two that follow are of another box containing a nearly-finished quilt. At least most of the blocks are finished, anyway. We are looking in particular at that red and blue pinwheel with a creamy background.

 Isn't this a pretty block? I remember Grandma working on this quilt. She was rather excited to see how nicely it was coming together. I wonder what made her stop? Probably a combination of things: eyesight, unsteadiness in her hands, inability to sit still. In her 90s, lots of little aches and pains probably add up to a lot of frustration.

There are a few sub-units ready to be sewn into a full blocks. And the leftover fabric is here, too, for finishing up borders. What great stuff.

I  have a good bit to look forward to, don't I? Finishing these quilts that Grandma started will be a pleasure for me. I don't know when I will do them, but I most assuredly will.

I've tried to show Grandma this blog, especially some of the posts that have been about her. I don't think she fully grasps this whole internet thing. It's just something that she knows exists, but she's uninterested in trying to understand it. That's okay, too.

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Another Wedding

This afternoon we will head up to Columbus for the wedding of Pam's daughter Carly. You recall, I'm sure, the Frienzie bridal shower we had last month at which time we gave Carly her red and white quilt. You can click here to see it.

Well, I've been remiss in posting pictures of several pillows made to match this quilt. We had a few leftovers of Carly's fabric, so we began stitching. I was there when the top one was made; I'm not sure who all was involved in the remaining ones. Regardless, these will look great on their new quilt.

Happy Wedding Day, Carly and Jimmy!

And Happy Quilting, Friends!