Wishing everyone a Blessed and Happy Easter.

First Day of Spring and St. Joseph's Feast Day

 

My friend from high school, Gale, gives me a basket of forced bulbs each winter. It's fun to watch the flowers change each day as they come alive. The hyacinths in this year's basket are already aromatic. What a treat.

Below is the basket from the day Gale gave it to me.

My sewing has been to complete small projects that have been piling up. 

One was a cover for a loose-leaf folder for the quilt club.

I used scraps from a previous project, and now
my folder looks pretty.

I also hemmed a slipcover I made last year.

It feels just a bit more like spring here. 

 I have taken quite a break from blogging, but I hope to return to posting regularly.  I didn't have the same enthusiasm in quilting that I used to have. But I have joined a quilt club, The Swansea Quilt Club, and it has helped me get over that block. Not only am I quilting and sewing again, but I have too many projects going at once, so I must be cured:) The dining room table is covered in fabric, sewing machines and notions. Can't stop now.

I made my nephew a golf quilt. It is a panel on the front and the back is pieced with golfing image fabric. 

This is a pumpkin table runner I began in 2022 and finished last autumn. 

I donated this quilt to our parish school for a fundraiser, but I wish I had kept it.  

I am definitely making another.

Moxie is fifteen. She's diabetic but is aging gracefully.

God bless everyone.  Be back soon.

Hands2Help Quilt

Simple Nine-Patch 2020

I made this scrappy quilt for this year's Hands2Help donation https://confessionsofafabricaddict.blogspot.com/.  I liked using up scraps and just sewing the patches; very relaxing.  All it needs is a label and a washing and it goes off.

  Massachusetts is now in the grips of the virus, but that means that we'll be on the down side of the curve very soon.  I have a feeling that sometime in May the stay at home advice will be lifted but we'll see.  Most people I see are wearing masks, but there are still some without.  I did grocery shopping this morning and the store was not counting heads going in and out like they did last week.  Maybe because it is a rainy day and a Monday.  For the most part people are careful and considerate. 

I hope we all stay healthy and safe, as well as our families.

Wishing you peace.

Heirloom Quilting Basket Quilt

The blocks for this quilt were begun in February, so it's nice to have them all sewn together in the same year:}  Heirloom Quilting has just finished another qal which I need to get started because it's a fall theme.  Then I think I'll be working on Christmas sewing.

I took a beautiful walk today; temps are cool, the leaves are skipping around and it's just a beautiful autumn.  Hope it lasts.

God Bless and happy quilting.

Happy Little Things Blocks

I caught up on Jacquelynne Steves qal Happy Little Things.  There will be 4 blocks in the quilt, so I'm embroidering images for the four seasons in my center piece.  

Block 2 Happy Little Things

 Block 2 is autumn and block 1 is summer. 

Block 1 Happy Little Things

The summer image is something from Primitive Quilts Fall 2018 issue and is by Deirdre Bond-Abel. I had to free hand draw my image so it's a poor copy of her design, but I like it.

I had to get a new laptop and can't get into my other laptop where all of the free downloads for some of the qal's I am in the middle of are filed.  I can buy the months I lost but after buying a new laptop, my spending power is a bit weaker.  So I might see if I can create similar blocks on my own and see how they come out.  I think that would be fun.

We are having the best weather right now, cool and sunny.  Hope it lasts.

God Bless!

An August Finish

I finally can say that the Frozen quilt I am making for my grandniece is finished.  The quilting was not going well, but it looks OK now that I have it bound.

I made a small doll blanket and a pillow. For some reason, I find making a case for a round pillow difficult. I'm not happy with the way it looks and may not gift it.  

Time to move on to something new.  

God Bless.  

Patches of Life by Eleanor Burns, QIAD

Disappearing Nine-Patch Quilt Top

The Crafty Quilter has a link up open for a few more days for this QAL.  I have finished the quilt top only, but that's enough for now.  I think I will save it in case I need a cute quilt at some time.

I really like it.  The pictures aren't doing justice to it, but the navy border and cream/tan background look great together. 

Thanks, Julie.  Although this is another UFO for me, I like this block.  I don't think I would have made it without your tutorial.

I am not doing well with my UFO's.  But they aren't going anywhere, so I know they are waiting for me.

We're in for a severe heat wave this weekend.  

Stay safe and God Bless Everyone! 

Mosaic Mystery Quilt - My Fabrics

I'm sewing along with Meadow Mist Designs' Mosaic Mystery QAL.  (I love all of the alliteration.)  I've had the A, B, C fabrics for a few years now, so it's their time to shine.  They are by Felicity Miller for Westminster Fabrics, Moon and Planet.  

I am making this quilt for Seana, my sister's youngest GD.  The fabric is Frozen which I've had for a year or two and decided I better use it before Seana hits college.  

I love the pattern; it's an Eleanor Burns quilt called Patches of Life.  The quilt is now on my sewing machine in the process of being quilted, but I've run into problems so I walked away for a few days and will resume later today.  

Hope you are all having a wonderful summer.

Enjoy and God Bless You.

I love hollyhocks

Hands2Help Square in a Square

This is the lap quilt I'm sending to Happy Chemo as part of Confessions of a Fabric Addict's Hands2Help event.  

It's a simple Square in a Square quilt.

I used a gray backing.

I'm glad that Sarah's event is so successful.  

Have a wonderful time at your sewing machine.  

God Bless.

UFO Finish for March

I almost missed a March finish.  I had pulled out my Swoon quilt, which was just a quilt top, with the intention of getting it quilted and finished. But it is just too big, and I really didn't make any headway on it.  Then I pulled out this little quilt which only needed the binding.  I had made a major mistake when making the waves on this Summer quilt designed by Julie Cefalu, The Crafty Quilter.  This is how it looked when I put it together this past summer.

I fixed the waves by using Applique Patchwork, 

which in this case meant sewing over my mistakes.

All better.  And the binding is on, so it's all done. Another UFO down.

And today's the last day for posting so I really just made it.

Will I have an April UFO finish?  Not looking good right now, but there's always hope.

Quilt Doodle Designs has a beautiful QAL going on, Garden Sunshine, and these are the March and April blocks. 

I'm also finishing the quilt top of the Heirloom Quilting QAL.  I love it, but nothing to show yet.  I'm working on the placement of the blocks.

Have a wonderful month.  It's warming up a bit here so that I can work outside most days and get the garden in some kind of shape.  I think I just like playing in the dirt.

God Bless!

A Finish for February

Cupcakes is a finish.  This is certainly one of my oldest UFO's begun in 2011.  

Cupcakes

It's soft and sweet so I'm keeping it to use as a summer coverlet.

If I made one of these every year I'd have much fewer scraps:)

The backing used up some bigger pieces of stray fabric.

I'll be linking up with The Crafty Quilter on Sunday for the UFO Challenge.  I think it's cool that I've already achieved two finishes this year.

I don't think I have any more easy UFO's, only big quilts that need borders and some that are just blocks that need to be put together.  Since March is a longer month I may choose a challenging project to try to finish.  

I've been making blocks for Heirloom Quilting's Mystery QAL.  I've used a bit of a mix of colors and prints and am hoping it all pulls together at the end.

Heirloom Quilting Mystery QAL

  Not the best of pictures but you get the idea.

Hope you are enjoying your time with needle and thread.

God Bless!

February's UFO Goal

I'm still in with The Crafty Quilter's UFO/WIP Challenge.  My project this month is this scrap quilt I began in 2011 which I'm calling the Cupcake Quilt because that is the common denominator of each block.  Aneela Hooey showed the making of these blocks and I joined in because it was so easy and used up scraps.  Now that I have the quilt top made I love this quilt.

It's at the "to be quilted and bound" phase, so I should be able to complete it by end of the month.

I'm also doing the 2019 BOM from Quilt Doodle Doodle called Garden Sunshine.

These are the January and February blocks.

February Variable Star

January Birds and Bird House

I hope this is not the only quilting I do this month.  We'll see.

God Bless and have fun.

A Finish for January

My first finish for 2019 is this one from 2016.  The quilt top was done, but needed to be sandwiched and quilted.  

This is my list of unfinished projects that I plan to work on this year. And now I can cross off #3.  Maggies' First Dance is a finish.  So happy.  If  Julie of The Crafty Quilter had not set up this community "quilt with a deadline" thing I wouldn't have worked on this quilt.  

It was the motivation I needed.  

I'm linking up with The Crafty Quilter; an amazing number of UFO's are hitting the dust this month.  

God Bless and have fun!

WIP Challenge

The Crafty Quilter has a WIP Challenge this year, beginning this month.  The goal is to finish at least one UFO each month.  My list has over 13 entries.  I knew I had quite a few UFO's, but not as many as I found.  Shame on me.  Anyway, I'm working on my first one, quilting the Maggie's First Dance quilt that I made about 2 years ago as a Jacquelynne Steves QAL.  It's a pretty quilt and not that big, so I know I will finish it this month.

I'm making good progress and hope to finish this week.  

I have a few new projects that I want to get going on.  (So I can have more WIP's:)

God Bless !

Day Late, Dollar Short

 This quilt was done before Halloween, but I haven't posted until after Thanksgiving.  

I love the way the long stitch quilting looks.  

Next week the Christmas decorations come out.

God Bless and take care.