Sharon's Birthday Quilt and a Kites Update

 In July, we celebrated Sharon's birthday, and for us a standard gift is quilt fabric. I found a gorgeous jelly roll of French General fabric that I just knew she would love, so that and a bottle of wine (another standard!) and a gift took shape.

Can you believe that Sharon has already sewn that quilt top together?!? By mid-September this was finished. (That's how late I am in sharing it here.) She calls it The Birthday Quilt, and it is a beauty. She has a penchant for red and white quilts, as well as a particular fondness for French General fabrics, so this was destined to be a winner on many fronts.

We saw a picture on Facebook of a quilt we both really liked. Sharon figured out a pattern and away she went. Simple piecing and massive impact - a great combination. At one point we had a name for this pattern, but neither of us can remember it, so help us out if you know it. Here is the inspiration picture that I screenshot from FB.

When we sewed together this past Tuesday, Sharon made fantastic progress on her Kites quilt. It is going to be such a gorgeous quilt. Here are a couple of pics of it draped over the ironing board.

Slowly, I am catching up! The fall semester is coming in to the homestretch - only about 5 weeks to go. The kitchen remodel has been at a standstill for a couple of weeks. I am making calls today to see if we can't get the last bits of this job done. I want my house back!

We had over 2.5 inches of rain yesterday. What gloom! It was dreary and cold and miserable. The good thing: I sewed all day, and I listened to an audio book. That is how I brighten a dreary day!

Come on back tomorrow! I promise I am going to get back to more regular posting! 

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Sharon's Kites are Taking Shape!

 We had such a good day of sewing on Tuesday. I showed you my Meadow Lily (complete with the late-discovered wonky block - see this post). Now I will show you the progress Sharon made on her Kites quilt.

Sharon laid out all her blocks a couple of weeks ago; you read about that in this post. She labeled each row as she picked it up. Check out the numbered sticky note, below. With everything properly organized, she was quite the efficient stitcher on Tuesday. Row after row, those strips were formed.

She systematically worked her way across the quilt. It is set on point, so the first 13 or 14 got progressively longer, but of course, once she reached that long middle row they grew shorter, and then finishing each row became faster and faster. I believe she will have about 27 diagonal rows; it'll be a big quilt.

By the end of the day, she had moved into flimsy construction, and just take a look at this beauty taking shape. It is so very playful. Talk about a quilt that exudes FUN! I cannot wait to see it completed. I know Sharon is stoked about finishing, too, so we should soon have a happy quilt to share here!

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Sharon's Fun, Dotty Project

The word of the day today is FUN.

Long time readers know that my dear friend Sharon comes almost every week to sew here for the day. We get a lot accomplished when we have these days, but I all too often fail to share her finishes.

In an effort to do better, I recently snapped this photo of fabrics draped over Sharon's table across the room. Those strips - 2", I think - of dotted fabrics are headed toward a really fun quilt. Both of us have a love for Kaffe Fassett fabrics, and since May Sharon has been playing with a quilt that she says is is long-term project.

Let it be known that she is playing, not working.

The inspiration quilt is from one of KF's books, Quilts in America.

When a quilter will end up with a finish that is this FUN, then of course the making must be play. She says that at home she keeps a bowl of these fabrics on her dining table, and whenever she has a spare moment, she will just stop and make a block. Impromptu sewing like this usually results in faster finishes than one realizes. Kites is just as lively, bright, and playful as can be.

Here are some of Sharon's finished blocks. These are just a few; she has a goodly sum stacking up.

I will keep you updated periodically on Sharon's version of Kites. Seeing it all come together will be fun to follow.

Remember, the word of the day is FUN! Hope you are having some!

Happy Quilting, Friends!