Gettin' Ready

Yessir - I am getting ready for the big Elite Eight game tonight that pits our Buckeyes against Wichita State. Go Bucks!!

My project for the game is to stitch the binding on my little doll quilt, Abundance.

I have a little box of bindings - leftovers, mistakes, whatever - I was hoping I'd find a suitable binding for the little quilt. And I did - just check this out.

It will be a perfect game-watching project.

I sure hope the Buckeyes play well tonight. I think they will; and once again, I predict a win!

Happy Quilting, Friends!

 

Gorgeous Landmark

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

 

I will be celebrating by watching more basketball! The Big 10 Tournament final is this afternoon at 3:30, when our Ohio State Buckeyes take on those pesky Badgers from Wisconsin. GO BUCKS!!

I have a hand-quilting project set up for game time. The small doll quilt called Abundance (above) I made earlier this year in a quilt-along with Humble Quilts is ready for stitching! (You can read more about that quilt-along here, fyi.)

Now to the main feature of this post, the gorgeous landmark. A week-plus ago, the Frankfort quilters and I went to Canal Winchester's Laughing Ewe to pick up Terry's Generals' Wives quilt. We enjoyed seeing a relatively new quilt shop, and the fellowship of the ride up and back. You can refresh your memory on that outing by clicking here.

Another thing we enjoyed was our lunch stop at Marketplace and Galleria in Circleville. Not only were the meals delicious, the building is an absolute gem! Historians in the Circleville area must be thrilled that such a beautiful old home has been so lovingly cared for over the years.

We were there on a particularly bright and sunny Friday in early March. Everything looks better in sunshine, right?

This closer shot affords a better view of the detail in the carvings and in the painting. Note that circular tower on the left. It goes from ground level to that spire on top. Can't you just imagine the care the builders and craftsmen took when constructing this dwelling? We didn't ask, but we guessed it to be from around circa 1890. And we weren't too far off - their website says it was built in 1880.

The most breathtaking feature for me was this fireplace located in the entry hall. It's magnificence is indescribable. Just look at the ornate carving and ample wood, floor to ceiling. Amazing. We don't see stuff like this in homes today, do we?

Further into the foyer is this impressive staircase which leads up to the antiques shop which comprises the second floor. The woodwork is incredible.

This shot looks down from the landing of those steps. That spectacular fireplace is visible, and just look at all the wood. Craftsmanship was something folks took pride in.

The restaurant and bar is located on the first floor, and this is the view from where we were seated. Remember the round tower on the left side of the house? This is how it looks like from inside. Crown molding and over-the-top window molding. The beauty of it - the whole house - is totally stunning. What would the family who had this home built have been like?

I guess I should mention that our meals were delicious. I had the Cuban Panini which was fantastic. One of the girls had a salad which looked yummy, and the other 3 all kept with their fish-on-Friday Lenten promise. They said that it was good, too. I had a hard time deciding, as their menu offers several interesting options. I definitely hope I get to go back.

Well, that little tour fulfills yet another promise I made; I said I would tell you about the Marketplace Galleria, but I didn't say how long it would take me to get around to it! *ha!*

So, enjoy your St. Patty's Day. Enjoy your basketball. And most of all, enjoy your quilting!

Happy Quilting, Lassies!

 

Abundance Is Pieced

Every year, Lori at Humble Quilts blog does a doll quilt-along with her followers. I have made Cheddar and Crackers, Starry Night, and Pink Lemonade with her. All those are still just quilt tops; I think I need to make quilting them a priority.

Now to join those 3, I have Abundance. It is 12.5 inches square, and was a fun quilt to make. It uses lot - I mean LOTS - of scraps, so that is how I approached this. I tried to keep the idea of pioneer mothers "making do" for little projects like this.

If I were to remake any  part of this, I would choose a different pink that forms the flying geese units on the brown geese.It is too dark, in my opinion. All the rest of the fabrics are quite pleasing to me. But, I'm not changing it; it will stay as is.

If you'd like to see more Abundance doll quilts, check out this link to Humble Quilts. There are dozens of them shown there made by people just like me who followed along with Lori's quilt-along.

What did I sew with, you ask? Miss Bernina was sent away to be fixed, so I have a loaner machine from Old Town Fabrics, and it works quite well!

 

Bernina 350, gently used, was traded in for a fancier, bigger model, I'm told. She is doing wonders for me.

Well, I'm going to get some sewing done today and I will tell you all about it in my next post.

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Sewing Room Update

Yes, the move that began before Christmas has been completed, nearly, and I am loving my new space. Thanks to DD Emma for suggesting it, and for being such a huge help in making it happen. Thanks to to DH Kevin who painted and cleaned carpets. While I am still deciding where to put things, and some things need to be consolidated, I am back at the sewing machine and attempting to get things done.

The room is like a double bedroom, and the closet is double in size, too. In the old room, my finished quilt tops were smooshed into the closet, making it impossible to get to any of them easily and equally difficult when adding a new one. This closet is s-p-a-c-i-o-u-s and I love it! These are my finished quilt tops since retiring (mostly). I have turned a few into completed quilts, and some have been gifted, but this is a pretty fair representation of my work since 2009.

I need to locate my camera to get some more pics to share. It must be in the sewing room (somewhere) so I need to get on about finding it.


I commend any of you who read all the way through my last post. I got a bit carried away with words! I try to keep a better balance of pictures to words. I needed to do a lot of catching up, more for myself than you readers, so thanks for bearing with me. And, I need to find that camera.

In other news, I notice that Lori at Humble Quilts is again doing a doll quilt to start the new year. I have made three with her, and this one looks very sweet, so I will probably make it, too. She's calling it Abundance. I need to dig through the stash to find the fabrics she suggests as she will begin giving directions tomorrow.

Finally, happy birthday to Sue, whose birthday was the 13th, and to Bonnie whose birthday is the 23rd. Both of these gals have blogs that I follow - well, of course you know Sue, my Lone Star companion, but I don't think I have mentioned Bonnie. She had a fun little quiltalong last month called Easy Street, and in the coming year is going to be featured in Quiltmaker magazine. Sue is getting ready to get into another quiltalong, believe it or not. I copied all the directions for Bonnie's Easy Street, and want begin working on it soon.

Well, look at me, once again, getting wordy and not offering you any pictures!

I will re-share this one, as it is currently at Terry's being quilted. It is called Thrifty, and I made it last September. It will be given to my mother as a Christmas gift. On Christmas, I put just the quilt top in a gift bag and promised to have it finished pronto. I was able to do next to no shopping for gifts this year, except for the on-line sort. My sciatic troubles prevented actual shopping. I would expect that Terry will have this finished very quickly and I will be binding it soon. Mom is great - she didn't mind waiting at all! Moms are like that, though, aren't they??

Happy quilting, Friends!