Slow Summer Days and Fall Foliage

The hot, hazy days of summer are upon us and I am here to talk about Fall Foliage. That doesn't make a lick of sense.

Not much blogging action here lately. The stitching I have been doing does not warrant writing about. Slow stitching has limited appeal. Day after day of hand quilting, repairing and hand binding is not the most scintillating content, don't you know. *wink*

I have been slowly binding Fall Foliage, and yes, I did repair that boo-boo with my backing.

I had plenty of backing to both make my binding and repair the corner needing attention.

The repair blends in wonderfully well, and we're none the wiser for this little snafu.

Details for Fall Foliage: she's not a huge quilt, measuring 54" x 62". I began it in 2010 after seeing a version of it made up in a local quilt shop (now defunct). Generally, I don't need or ask for help in finding fabrics, but I specifically recall that I did have help putting these five fabrics together. The pattern - in the Lynette Jensen/Thimbleberries book, September Morning (2001) - was fast and super-simple; I really ought to use this pattern more often; it'd be perfect for baby quilts. 

I let the quilt top wallow or age, call it what you will, until 2018 when I needed a quilt for demonstrating at History Day. And Fall Foliage has been on the frame ever since. Obviously, there was more wallowing/aging through these last five years. It gathered quite a lot of dust in the quilting room, and I was forever having to move it out of my way for this and that. 

At last this spring, I decided there had been enough procrastinating and gave myself a stern scolding. Quilts never get done if you don't work on them! With hot muggy days keeping me indoors, and Tour de France and MLB to watch on television, I thought I would certainly have enough time to finish Fall Foliage once and for all.

 One bonus with this particular quilt is that there is virtually nothing left over. I might have cut a dozen 2.5-inch squares from the remnants and that is it. All used up. Wonderful. 

I am itching to start something new, but I have several more UFOs that I ought to work on first. Wonder which direction I will go?

Happy Quilting, Friends!

 

Fall Foliage Quilted!

 It is with great satisfaction that I announce the finish of the hand quilting of Fall Foliage. Yes!!!

I turned the last corner of the border quilting a few days ago, and late Thursday night, I took the final stitches. Wow, what a journey.

And thank goodness that we choose to watch things on television that are long and involved - like the Tour de France, which runs 3+ weeks and 21 stages at 4-5 hours per stage. That's a lot of viewing time to watch as I stitch. We record everything, so we are never watching the stages on the days they occur; no worries as far as we are concerned! The beauty is that we can fast forward through the commercials, and rewind or pause for whatever reason. Hey, it works for us. *wink*

I waited until daylight to take these pics of the removal from the frame. You can sorta' see the gridlines of stitching, if you look closely. Once it's bound, I will take proper pics.

I've trimmed off the excess, and have plenty to work with for binding. I do have a bit of an issue on one corner that I intend to take care of. There must have been some shifting of layers as I put the quilt on the frame way back at the beginning of quilting (in 2018!). I have about 12" of white selvage showing on the back, and no backing the the outermost edge in that area. I will use some of the cut-away backing to correct and hide my error, which shouldn't take me too terribly long. I am motivated to have this done, so I won't allow any procrastination. 

Which I am prone to, you know. *wink*

My fingertips are quite calloused, and a bit tender with all this quilting, but I do not mind in the least! I am actually thinking of which quilt I will put on the frame next.Keep the toughened-up fingertips awhile longer. Looking ahead to October and History Day, I will need to have something to demonstrate, so why not get a little head start between now and then, right?

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Small Things

 Small things add up to big things, though,,, right? I found a pretty green stripe remnant while cleaning over the past few weeks and I thought it would make a perfect little dress for granddaughter Cate. I was right! Our little angel will look so sweet in this!

All that's left to be done now is handwork and buttonholes, so by the weekend we should have a finish. Well, a pair of bloomers needs to be stitched up, but those are easy-peasy, so no worries.

The other project I've spent some time on is the hand quilting on Fall Foliage. If you recall, I put it away around the holidays and have done nothing on it since. Now, we are spending a lot of time watching the Tour de France, so I decided that working on this while we watch would be a good use of my time. 

I remember that I was getting really close to having it done. The center portion has just the outer most edges remaining and then of course I have the borders to do. In order to more easily access borders for quilting, I use a technique I learned from Grandma - straps pinned taught around the bars. Works like a charm. For straps, I've used ends from bindings that I'd saved.

As I quilted yesterday, I realize that I am not exact straight in my markings and quilting. Oh well, I am going with the philosophy that finished is better than perfect. If any quilt police say anything about it, I will congratulate them on their fine eye. *wink*

Hope you are having a wonderful week! It's strange having a holiday on a Tuesday - I'm all jumbled up!

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Hand Quilting/Fall Foliage

Way back before Thanksgiving I had to put away the quilting frame to make way for holiday gatherings, festivities and decorations. This past week, I brought it all out again. Fall Foliage has languished far too long stowed away in the quilting room. 

It needs to be finished! 

Fall Foliage, a Thimbleberries quilt I made in 2010 (!) is a throw-size quilt that I am quilting with the most basic stitching. It is easy to do when we settle down of an evening to watch a movie or a ballgame. If it's out, I will do it. 

Funny how it works: things don't get done when they are stored away. Hmmmmm.....

I am nearing the border and a corner here, so I will likely be moving to a new section today or tomorrow. I will need to find my makeshift "bungee straps" to use while quilting the borders. 

I'm getting in a little late to Kathy's Slow Sunday Stitching party - I did stitch quite a lot yesterday! Promise! Click on that link to see what clever projects all the other gals are working on.

 Happy Quilting, Friends!

Hand Quilting

Can you believe it? I am still working on Fall Foliage! My History Day demonstration project hasn't yet been tucked away for yet another hibernation. YAY! (Read this post for an explanation of this quilt's long history.)

Thank goodness our Cleveland Guardians continue winning! These ballgames are fun to watch while I sit to quilt. We are definitely enjoying this October baseball.

My cobbled-together quilting space requires this cutting board being commandeered as a table for my light. The family room lighting is too dim for quilting, so this little solution works fine. 

This morning I pulled the quilt out to snap a "full frontal" of the quilt in the frame. I was curious to see if I'd quilted any more than just what I have there on the top. Nope. I really hadn't made any significant progress on this (especially when I know I put it in this frame in 2018!).

I like seeing this view, as it shows quite a bit. First, my Q-Snap frame is showing its age with all that yellowing. She's still in great shape, though, so she stays. Look at the difference in the joints; obviously made with different plastics.

Another thing I see is that with some "stick-to-it-iveness" I can have this lap quilt finished off in relatively short order. The center of the quilt is 5x6 blocks on point; 6-inch blocks. Add the borders, and voila, the quilting will be done. 

And another thing the photo shows me is how cool the quilting looks. By moving the frame out a bit closer to natural light, the grid-lines show up really well. And, I'm getting really close to moving the quilt to a new section!

I just need to stay with it.

My fingers are becoming adequately calloused, so I think while I've toughened them up, I ought to keep at it. Maybe the fine gals over at the Slow Sunday Stitching party will keep me motivated. I will join Kathy and the rest to see what everyone is working on.

Have a wonderful Sunday and...

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Hexies and Hand Quilting

In this post from just a few days back, I announced that I thought I'd stop working on these hexie flowers. 

Then I changed my mind. 

I needed something to keep my hands busy while on the road. With plenty of hexie cardboard templates at my disposal and, of course, fabric - these only take scraps! - I am picking them up and getting back to work. This little plastic container is perfectly portable.

I  made an entire flower and prepped a few additional hexies on this recent trip.

Having that snap-on lid is necessary for keeping all the little parts together - scissors, beeswax, thread, earbuds, templates and fabrics. Here is my little plastic basket of templates cut recently using friend Becky's die-cutter. I grab a handful to take along in the lidded container.

And so, it appears hexies will be another of my ongoing projects. (I do remember that I have Lake Effect waiting patiently for my attention!! )

Now back at home, I find time each evening to take a few stitches on Fall Foliage. It has been nice getting back into hand quilting, and, unlike previous years, I can see myself staying with this to a finish. Keeping it simple helps make the stitching go faster.

My agenda today has been getting ready to host an impromptu bonfire with some friends tomorrow night. Fall bonfires with good friends - what a great way to start the weekend!

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Welcome October!

October is here! What a pretty month it is, too, with fall color and crystal blue skies. I bemoan saying goodbye to summer, but October in Ohio is wonderful.

I'm a day late in welcoming the new month, but I have a good excuse. Yesterday was History Day in Greenfield, and after a 2-year hiatus (pandemic, ugh), I was back to demonstrate hand quilting.

I am embarrassed to admit this next part. The quilt I worked on is the same one I was working on in 2018! Yikes! I worked on it again in 2019 - here's that post - and it has collected dust in my sewing room ever since. I've not taken a single stitch on it since that first Saturday in October 2019. *shaking my head in shame*

The pattern is called Fall Foliage by Lynette Jensen of Thimbleberries; it is featured on the cover of her 2001 book September Morning. After extensive searching, I found that I made the quilt top in 2010. It is aging well, isn't it? *hah!*

Since I hand quilt so infrequently, I am often simply stitching in straight lines, and this quilt lends itself quite nicely to a gridded look. I used the outer surround of blocks with the gold centers as my guide to stitch straight lines diagonally across the quilt. I use the seams, tape or a lightly drawn line to keep lines as straight as possible. 

I am keeping this out in the family room for a week or two. I hope to make myself work on it in the evenings while we watch Guardians baseball - they are extending the 2022 campaign into post-season action be claiming the AL Central Division crown. We are sure hoping for a lot more baseball out of these young men!

I'm joining Kathy's Slow Sunday Stitching link-up today. It's not all hexagons! ha-ha! This is more than a one-pony show over here!

Coming up this week: the September collage; a foray into making a baby outfit; apple-picking; long arm quilting. Come on back and see what I get into!

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Prepped for History Day

In a previous post, I mentioned Greenfield's History Day, and that I was prepping a week ahead (unheard of for me!) to be sure I was ready. I so typically put these sorts of things off until the very last minute.

And it took quite awhile to do the prepping, so I am glad I did it early. I wouldn't be too far off in estimating that it took me a couple of hours to get two quilts into frames.

First, I had to decide on the quilts I would most like to work on. One has several matters to consider - is this quilt worthy of my hand-quilting time? Is it one that I will enjoy looking at up close and personal? Is the size manageable? Those are the questions for the bigger frame. For the lap frame, I looked for something that gave me incentive to finish. It would be small and quick. I think I found two winners.

On my Q-Snap frame that sits up like a table, I pulled out Fall Foliage, a throw-size quilt that I made quite awhile ago. I've tried to track down exactly when I made this quilt top to no avail. 

While digging for suitable backing fabric, I came across a remnant from the quilt, and further digging eventually resulted in finding a decent piece that matched the remnant. Happiness!! After stitching them together I turned my attention to batting. Since this is a throw quilt, I didn't want to cut into a brand new batt, so I pieced together 3 batting remnants and used them for my quilt sandwich. Whew! Such a lot of work! Piecing backings and battings are NOT on my list of most fun things to do. This was truly labor.

Then I turned my attention to preparing the smaller quilt for the lap-frame. Last December I made the HST quilt from some of the Roman Holiday remnants, and I thought it'd be so nice to have that finished in time to actually use this coming holiday season. Could I do it fast enough? Well, I think I can, because I plan to do "big-stitch" quilting on it. Perhaps in a Baptist Fan design? I'm leaning that direction.

Below is the backing I chose - an older red with a holiday vibe to it by Robin Pandolph. It's barely big enough, but I made it work.

I glue-basted the backing and batting (another remnant) together. Then I did the same with the top. On smaller projects, glue-basting is the way to go, in my opinion. This was fast and easy.

So now I'm set. I have all these items set aside in a spare bedroom, and have added necessaries like thread, needles, thimbles, scissors -- all the usual tools. I will take a folding tv tray/table, a cushion for my chair, and 3-4 finished quilts that I hand-quilted. I display these behind me as folks to like to see them, and I love for them to be seen! *grin*

I have prepared a special feature for History Day -- a slide show which I will run on a continuous loop on my laptop. I went back through all my picture files and pulled every quilt I could find that I'd made. I selected over 100 pictures, and created a show of about 98 slides. It was fun to do, and I hope folks enjoy watching it. 

It's been awhile since I've joined a linky party so why not go have a visit with Kelly at her weekly Needle and Thread Thursday party! Looks like fun!

I hope you are having an awesome Thursday!! I have essays to grade, and later tonight - cards with some girlfriends. Busy day for me!

Happy Quilting, Friends!

History Day - A Week Away

This time next week, I will be perched at my quilt frame all set up to demonstrate hand quilting at our annual History Day celebration in Greenfield. Because several good family friends are members of the Greenfield Historical Society board and officers, I was asked several years ago (maybe 8?) if I would do this, and I've been doing it ever since.* Other "old time" arts demonstrated are chair caning, wood carving, watercolor painting, apple cider making, and more. I enjoy the day, as I get to see so many folks from around the area. I also love it when an onlooker asks questions about quilting or begins telling a story of a grandmother's quilts or some such. (This post from '16 explains the basics of History Day.)

Today, the question before me is what quilt will I put in the frame to work on? I hate to admit that the quilt I took TWO YEARS ago is still in the frame, untouched (except to move it from one spot to another) since 2016. Shameful! I plan to take that one out, and put something else in.

I have a good excuse for my shameful behavior - a couple, actually. First, to explain that asterisk (*) above, I missed out on participating last year (2017) due to an upper respiratory infection. I hated having to cancel, but I was concerned about being infectious, and I didn't think I could maintain the stamina needed to sit and quilt for 6 hours. (Woe is me!)

2016 quilt - Antique Nine Patches (from book by Sue Abrey)

Second, I marked the quilt with a graphite pencil that smeared terribly, and I had a huge mess on both my quilt and my hand. Talk about being totally bummed out! Now that I am two years removed from the unfortunate mishap, I have finally come to a decision as to correcting the situation. I will remove the stitches - there weren't that many - and then gently scrub the smears off. Problem solved.

All this does not, however, solve the dilemma of what to quilt THIS year.

I don't think I want to take the time to prepare the quilt pictured above for a second go-round. I will just remove it from the frame, fold it and set it aside. I need to select a quilt top to layer with batting and backing. I have many from which to choose.

I pulled this lap quilt out of the closet because of the great fall colors, plus it is not a huge quilt and the chances of finishing are greater. It's a Thimbleberries pattern called Fall Foliage, and it measures 56x65 inches. I think I will do a Baptist Fan quilting design on it.

I also pulled an even smaller quilt - table topper or wall hanging - to put in a portable hoop. I stitched this HST quilt out of Roman Holiday remnants last December. I might do "freehand" quilting on this in the style of Lori Simpson. She uses "big-stitch" techniques along with "eye-balling" a design. I think I can do that.

Hope you are having a super Saturday! DH and I are going to learn to polka dance later this evening, and then we have a big ballgame to watch - Ohio State vs. Penn State. Go BUCKS!!!

Happy Quilting, Friends!