History Day - 2023 Edition

If it's the first Saturday in October then it must be History Day. Yes, once again I set up my quilting frame to demonstrate the lost art of hand quilting. I took a brand new quilt this year. On many previous occasions, I have taken the same quilt year after year. 

In 2020, the Frankfort Girls had a fun little project in which we made blocks assigned on a monthly basis by each member of the group. By the 7th month, we had 7 blocks - I believe they were 9" blocks - and  we could proceed with whatever we liked to finish. (That's my best summation of the project; it could have been more involved.)

 

In studying this pic from 2020, I think I must have made two of each block, and since one more block was needed to complete the top, I have three Ohio Star blocks and two of all the rest. The setting block was Stepping Stones, one of my faves. I just love how it creates chains through the quilt.

I decided that this would be the quilt for History Day 2023, so I prepared a backing a couple of weeks ago, then sandwiched the layers and loaded the Q-Snap. It is such a lightweight frame, and is so very easy to transport. I had my station set up in no time.

Since marking a quilt is not my favorite thing to do, and since I am notoriously slow about finishing these hand quilting projects, I decided to make things really simple, easy and straightforward. I would stitch diagonally in the stepping stones, outline each block, and outline each design in the pieced blocks (not the setting blocks). 

In the one day of quilting, I did quite a bit -7 needles' worth! - and by the time I'd finished that last needle, my fingers were growing tender and History Day festivities were winding down. Worked out perfectly.

Now that I'm back home, I set the frame up in front of the television with the hope that I would continue quilting. I haven't yet, but it's only been two days. I will do more this week. Promise.

Hope you all are having a great Monday!

Happy Quilting, Friends!

History Day

Since 2010, I have volunteered to demonstrate hand quilting for the Greenfield Historical Society's  annual History Day festivities. The big day is always the first Saturday in October, so guess where I will be tomorrow? I've only missed one since 2010, and that was due to strep throat.

I thought it'd be fun to take a look back at the quilts I have worked on for each of those previous History Days. The pink and brown quilt shown below was my project for both 2010 and 2011 - I hardly quilted on it at all in the year between one and the next, but I can say that it is now finished.

In 2012, I worked on Long Road Home. I loved quilting this quilt. Maybe because I love the quilt! It was fun to piece, and it was fun to quilt. I have shared it often here on the blog and on Instagram, and it always gets a lot of praise, which is appreciated because this was a lot of work!

And to prove it, I was still plugging away on Long Road Home the next year, 2013, and it hadn't been ignored like the previous quilt had. I worked on this a long, long time.

And, I'm almost embarrassed to show you the 2014 quilt - yes, it was still Long Road Home. It was a really, really long road, I guess! In my defense, I don't spend a lot of time throughout the year doing hand quilting.(Stating the obvious, duh!) I have a fun '14 picture of sisters who sat down to try their hand at quilting for a bit. Look at how they are concentrating!

In 2015, I worked on this star quilt. I hand pieced all of the star blocks and then hand pieced the top. So I decided that hand quilting was essential. Interestingly, the finished Long Road Home is draped over the chair in the background.

In 2016, I worked on two quilts - one in the big frame and one in a lap frame. I am glad I took two options. The marking tool I used on the big quilt smeared so terribly that I stopped almost immediately. I still have not finished it; I am in a quandary as to removing the graphite markings. Currently it is folded in the closet of my sewing room. The little quilt in the lap frame is finished.

History Day 2017 is the one I missed due to illness. As I have read back through the archived posts, I see that I called it upper respiratory infection, and not strep throat. I was pretty sick, either way.

For History Day 2018, I worked on a simple Thimbleberries quilt - I forget the name - and it will also be the quilt I work on tomorrow. I have done zero stitching on this quilt in this entire year. I am actually looking forward to getting back to it.

If you happen to find yourself near Greenfield, OH, tomorrow or are looking for a fun outing for a fall day, come on over for a visit! The Historical Society owns several buildings, and all will feature displays and activities. Good food will be available, too! Freshly roasted pork for sandwiches are featured every year. MMM-good!

Happy Quilting, Friends!

A Bit of Hand Quilting

With each History Day comes an opportunity for me to hand quilt, and for the 2018 History Day project, I pulled out a Thimbleberries lap quilt measuring 56"x65" - not too big and perfect for simple grid quilting.

I try not to overthink most aspects of my quilting, especially when the quilt will be used and laundered, and definitely  not pampered. The pieced blocks (with the gold centers) lend themselves to a simple 9-patch-style grid, so I extended those lines into the larger unpieced blocks. Easy-peasy.

During the five hours of History Day festivities, I did a fair amount of stitching - in between visiting with friends and acquaintances who passed by my corner of the Grain and Hay building.

To enhance my little corner, I displayed some quilts. The ones with the orange stars are hand quilted. Three of them have actually been projects for previous History Day efforts.

I am linking with Kathy's Slow Sunday Stitching, even though I admit that all this stitching was done on Saturday. Today, only reading and grading essays are on my agenda.

Happy Quilting, Friends!

History Day 2016

For seven years now, on the first Saturday of October, I have volunteered at History Day sponsored by the Greenfield Historical Society.  It's a day to celebrate Greenfield's rich history and the public is invited, free of charge to view key pieces of the collection. Add in a 5K run, a rummage sale, a delicious midday meal of soup beans and corn bread or pork tenderloin sandwiches from a hog roasted on site, demonstrations and re-enactments, you can get a feel for what History Day is like.

Inside the building known as the Grain and Hay building, I set up my quilting frame, displayed a few hand-quilted quilts on the wall, and settled in for a day of quilting. Back in the corner, an artist who specializes in Prisma pencil drawings demonstrated her skill.

This view shows my little space more fully. I have my Antique Nine Patches in the frame; I have that paper-pieced lap quilt in the oval frame. The three quilts on the wall are Long Road Home, which I quilted for at least the two previous History Days, then Tag Sale, which I quilted about 15 years ago, and 6-Point Star, which I just finished a couple of months ago.

Another feature demonstration was the making of apple cider in an old-fashioned apple press. Guests could help themselves to free samples. 

Besides the Grain and Hay Building, the Historical Society has several other buildings, one of which is the oldest in town - The Travellers Rest, shown above. I spent a lot of time in this building when we were writing the books we published. Click the links to learn more about Images of America - Greenfield, an Arcadia series book, and the coffee table book honoring our high school's centennial - McClain High School A Century of Tradition.

The Depot, just up the street from the Grain and Hay, houses four massive tables of scale models of Greenfield over the years. One table was a scale model of the town in 1850; another was of 1920, and so on. One man is responsible for making these models. It is nothing short of spectacular when you think about the hours of research he's done, then the building of the models, much of which is quite intricate. These pictures are just a small representation of the entire display.

The white-haired man in black  made all of these models.

One of Greenfield's favorite sons is Edward Lee McClain, the benefactor who donated our high school. He made his fortune in horse collar pads - an invention which led to the formation of his company, The American Pad and Textile Company. The building no longer stands, but it looked like the model pictured above.

This pretty yellow house was McClain's home, which stood next to the factory. It, too, no longer stands.

A barn behind the Grain and Hay houses some very interesting vehicles, two of which are pictured above.

And then there's this old fire truck, which several gentlemen are working to restore. They'd like to get it to the point where it could be driven in parades.

Not much for quilting, but this post gives you a more complete picture of our History Day.

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Too Busy To Blog

Retirement is just not supposed to keep me this busy. Honestly, though, the calendar has been full these past few days. I have just enough time to post a picture of the quilt I am going to demonstrate hand quilting on at the annual History Day festivities tomorrow.

Pretty, isn't it? I came across it in my recent sewing room clean-out of the previous week. I will provide more complete details about it soon. Today I am off to the Nutter Center in Dayton for Ohio One Stop - a quilt show. Yes, I plan to take pics. Please pray that the spending bug stays away!

Happy Quilting, Friends!

My Other Hobby

Maybe you know; maybe you don't. I do have other interests besides quilting and today I will tell you about a project that makes me pretty darned excited.

For most of 2014, I worked with a committee at the Greenfield Historical Society to write a book about our local high school, Edward Lee McClain HS, which is celebrating its centennial this September.

Each member of our committee offered unique contributions to the project--some were researchers, others were organizers, and others were photographers. My only function was to write. Whew. It was work, but of the very most enjoyable kind. The book went to the publisher the first of January; we had a couple of opportunities through the winter to check proofs. On Thursday, June 11, it was delivered. That was quite an exciting day, let me tell you! The finished product is amazing, and most folks around town who have picked up their book are complimenting it. I think it will be successful, thankfully.

If you want to tour our beautiful school, come join us at our big Centennial Celebration on Labor Day weekend. The book will be on sale, too. Click here to access the Greenfield Historical Society website.

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Holiday Home Tour

One of the biggest fundraisers for the Greenfield Historical Society is the annual Holiday Home Tour. Our neighbors Dorothy and John were on this year's tour, and I was honored to have a few of my quilts and quilt tops displayed in their home. Here, have a look.

Eventide made with Roman Holiday fabric found a cozy spot on a shelf of the family room cabinet.

This quilt top looks perfect draped over a bench in the hallway. It's a Thimbleberries pattern called Hourglass.

The TV cabinet in John's office was a perfect spot to nestle my Stars and Stepping Stones in a basket perched on top. It is hand pieced.

Two quilts adorn the china cupboard in the dining room. Both patterns are by Thimbleberries; the one on top is September Stars made with some French General fabric; the one inside is Confetti Stars.

In a rocker in the master bedroom, my Jacob's Ladder found a place to show off. To this point, all the quilts are technically quilt tops. I didn't realize I had so many that were red and white until I pulled them all out of the closet. The next two are actually finished quilts.

And again, I have a Thimbleberries pattern. This is Carolina Lily; I machine pieced it and my grandmother hand quilted it. We draped it over a door between the family room and hallway.

This Churn Dash quilt was one I hand pieced and Grandma hand quilted. It is draped over the master bedroom door.

I think by now you get a sense of the age of Dorothy's house; it was built in 1853. I just love the woodwork around the doors and windows.

 Even more impressive than the door and window woodwork are the three fantastic fireplaces in the house. The one above is located in John's office.

This is the fireplace in the dining room.

I forgot to take a picture of the family room fireplace on the day of the tour, so I went back over and took this picture after some of the decorations had been moved. It actually shows the fantastic woodwork more clearly.

So now you have toured Dorothy and John's home. It was easily the prettiest home on the tour - but I might be a little bit biased. *wink*

Happy Quilting, Friends!

February's UFO

It's a good thing I put really small projects on my UFO list for our challenge. After two months, I feel like it's all I can do to finish!

This little pillow has a bit of a story. We live in an area where barn quilts are popular. Eight or ten years ago, the Greenfield Historical Society began a fundraising effort by making big wooden quilt panels to put on historic - and not-so-historic - barns in the area. Our neighbors had a very striking panel on their barn, and from the very beginning, I wanted to make that block in fabric.

After a couple of years, I decided that I would give it a try. I made up dimensions and hand-pieced a fabric version of the neighbors' quilt design. It ended up being smaller than I would have preferred, finishing out as a 9" panel. I pinned it to my design wall and there it's hung for over 5 years. 

At some point I got the idea that I'd turn that panel into a pillow and give it to my neighbors. Their barn panel is aging and I thought a pillow would be a good reminder of their barn quilt. That idea never took shape until this month, when I needed to finish it for our UFO challenge.

The panel finishes out as a 12" inch pillow. I did a modest amount of quilting on it; I didn't think it needed lots, so I made it easy on myself. I really like the finish, although I still wish it were bigger.

This post needs a picture of the barn quilt to go along with it. I think I have seen it on Pinterest; I should look it up. It will be added when retrieved!

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Greenfield Area Barn Quilts

I wrote a couple of days ago about the book project I worked on with the Greenfield Historical Society. I would be remiss if I did not tell all the quilters out there about the really wonderful project the GHS sponsored a few years ago.

The Historical Society put out a really nice brochure detailing each barn, its location, its owner and who painted it.

 It's called Paint Creek Patterns. The Greenfield area comprises the corners of three counties. I live in the Ross County corner, This map pinpoints the barns in my vicinity.


Here are a couple of examples.

The quilt barns have been a bit of an attraction in these parts. I think more than a few tourists have come to the area to look at the barns.

It's kinda' exciting to be a quilter who is also affiliated with the Greenfield Historical Society.