Monthly mini January

“A Little More Light” - a simple start to the new year’s monthly mini quilts! I had planned on finishing a sweet little applique quilt for this month, but alas, it has turned into my “possible” February mini and this simple little quilt made with vintage feedsacks will have to suffice. It represents our trek toward Spring with later sunsets and just a bit more light each day!

I love some of these novelty prints. 

Feel free to jump in any time during my 2020 mini quilt making venture. Katy (Katy Quilts) is not one of our regular followers on this mini march, but she made many fabulous minis last year that are too good not to share (here). I follow Katy regularly and she is a very prolific quilter. 

I'm not sure how many crazy people will continue this mini madness, but check out January's gems. Thanks for strolling along together! They are all winners this month!

Barbara - (Quilts, Gravestones & Elusive Ancestors)
Cynthia - (Wabi-Sabi Quilts) and be sure to check out Cynthia's posts of the Tokyo International Quilt Show - Fantastic quilts!
Randy (Barrister's Block)
Janet (Rogue Quilter) 
Sandy (My Material Creations)
Kyle (Timeless Reflections)
Cathy (Big Lake Quilter) 
Shasta (High Road Quilter) has a super early finish!
Kathy (Kathy's Quilts) 
Quilting Babcia - Amity Quilter

Beautiful weekend!

I had planned to sequester myself in my sewing room for a full weekend of stitching after a quick visit with Cyndi at my favorite, “Busy Thimble” quilt shop. As it happens (to all of us), the weekend did not go as planned. 

 I was able to put a few baby stars (sewing along with Cecile at Patchwork Inspirations) through my machine before I got a call from a dear friend saying that her husband was feeling pretty good today and this would be a great day for a visit. He has been battling cancer and begins round 3 of chemo this week so we jumped at the chance to visit while he was feeling up to it. We had a fantastic time together!

Sunday morning I got a message from another dear friend’s son saying his mom had broken her hip (she is 95). Off to the hospital for a quick visit. She was so weak we couldn’t really talk but she squeezed my hand and gave me a big smile when I told her again tomorrow.

I ran a few more stars through the machine when my daughter texted and said they were going down to our summer house for a quick walk and asked if we would like to come.

It was a beautiful day and it was our third grandson’s first time (26 days old) at the “Point” so of course we said “sure”. Our 2 year old grandson was disappointed that there was no snow for his loader! We still have 6” of snow at home, but just 12 miles down the river it is all brown! 

So… even though my sewing plans and visit with Cyndi were cut short, it was a beautiful weekend and I am thankful for friends and family and pray all will continue to enjoy good health and much happiness!

Quilting with the Stars!

A few more "Cecile" (Patchwork Inspirations) stars to add to the pile. I am loving these little guys. They are so much fun to make.

We all have our favorite way to make the Flying Geese units for these stars. My favorite way is to piece a square in a square block and trim down to the perfect size.

There is a bit of math involved in the beginning and a tad more waste, but it works for me. I am paying no attention to the direction of fabrics. I want the wonky look (and, yes it makes piecing easier!)

The signup is now closed, but do visit Cecile’s blog (here) or the Facebook page (here) to see all the fabulous stars! 

I also want to share a recent acquisition. This beautiful fraktur was hand painted (including the frame) by a Facebook quilting friend, Mark Lauer.

I adore it and it fits perfectly on my wall of miniatures.

Thanks Mark! You cane see and purchase Mark's work on his Facebook page (here).

Tree blocks for fire victims

Just last year many of us sent quilts and supplies to victims of the California fires. Thanks to Barb (Fun with Barb) I found out where I could send “tree” blocks to help out the victims of the Australian bush fires.

I hand appliqued this simple tree.

These 2 blocks were pieced willy nilly with no template or measurement just whack and stitch, then I added borders to bring them to 12 ½”. They went together very quickly. I thought the Di Ford fabrics would be appropriate (not to mention beautiful!).  

 

As I was working on these blocks, I thought about what it would be like to lose everything in a fire. My father was the baby of a large family in rural Maine. He rarely talked about tough times, but I remember one story that broke my heart. When he was very young (5 or 6) they had a house fire and they had to move. Dad had a pet pig named Inkwink. They could not move all of the livestock to the new house so Inkwink came home by way of the slaughterhouse. Of course when telling the story, my Dad in his own comic way painted a picture of 9 children sitting around the dinner table refusing to eat my Dad's pet pig! So, although I cannot imagine the thought of losing everything, I feel their pain and I wish I could do more to help.

Click (here) to find out how you can help. Thanks Barb for letting us know!

Stars on Parade

Once again, I am participating in Cecile’s (Patchwork Inspirations) annual sew-a-long. This year the theme is stars. Who doesn’t like stars?? I love Cecile’s sew-a-longs as the rules are simple and she is always so sweet! We have to make at least 16 blocks and complete the quilt by May 31.

These little guys finish at 3” square. I am using my favorite Pennsylvania colors. My self imposed rule is that I must use fabrics from my scrap bins. No running to the stacks! I think I would have to make 1,000 blocks to make a dent!

There is still time to join in. The cutoff date is January 15. Visit Cecile’s blog (here) or the Facebook page (here). 

My C1880 top is finally complete!

I should have titled this post “What I did on my Christmas vacation”! I had a few days of “pieceful” bliss as I stitched this fun quilt together. (I apologize for the bad photo but it was the best I could do until I can take it outside)

I was thrilled when Pam Buda (HeartspunQuilts) asked Cyndi and I if we would like to participate in her new venture of making this sensational c1880 quilt. I started swapping blocks with Pam, Cyndi (Busy Thimble) and Janet (Rogue Quilter) nearly 2 years ago!

I have loved making every one of these little blocks and have really enjoyed swapping with Pam, Janet and Cyndi. 

The antique muslin that everyone is using for their background is sensational and I plan to use it for something fun in the near future, but when I saw this chrome yellow bolt, I fell in love!

Pam’s directions for piecing are wonderful, but because the print is unidirectional, I had to make a decision. I could piece it the way the pattern calls for and fussy cut the triangles or I could simplify the process by simply placing the blocks on point and stitching diagonal rows. You guessed it - I went for the simple solution!

The center of mine is also unique thanks to Janet! She sent me 5 amazing “Rogue” blocks and I decided to feature them in the center of the quilt. Just imagine – the center of these little gems measures 1” (yes – 1”) finished! She used the selvage of one of Pam’s fabrics one of the blocks and I thought it would be a fitting tribute to use it smack in the center. 

I’m sure I would never have tackled this project without the gentle nudge from Pam. I have Cyndi to thank for ALL of the fabrics I used in my blocks. My nearest guess is around 1,200 different fabrics in all.

I also have labels from Pam, Cyndi and Janet that I will add to the back after my friend Kathy Boudreau does her longarm magic on it! 

I want to thank Pam for creating this beautiful and truly fun project. Don’t be intimidated by the size of the blocks. Pam’s easy to follow directions make them a cinch to piece. Please visit the Facebook page (here) to see all the wonderful creations and to find out how to join the club!

A winner and a winner!

My apologies for posting my December monthly mini on January first. I was a bit preoccupied by the birth (10 days early) of our third grandson. As my son was turning 40 (yes, born on New Year’s Eve 1979), my daughter was busy delivering a healthy little boy. They decided to honor the shared birthdays with his middle name, Sidney Nicholas Shipley. All are happy and well!

As I am winner #1 let’s go on to the winner of the book. The random generator (my husband) picked a number and the winner is Shirley Farnsworth! I am thrilled! I know Shirley and she is a wonderful quilter and very kind soul. I don’t think I have ever seen her when she wasn’t smiling!

Thanks to all of you who left comments. Now on to a New Year’s Day of stitching (and maybe a hike to shake off some of the holiday treats!)

Happy Stitching to all and to all a great year!

December mini(s) 2019 finale

After making all 12 projects (cut from forty 10” squares) from Pam Buda’s, “Vintage Patchwork”, I found that I still had quite a few scraps leftover. So… I gathered up some extra background pieces and made this little quilt. 

After a bit of late night stitching, I had to do a little “unstitching”!

It finally came together and sent it off to Pam as a thank you for writing such a fun book.

But… I still had some pesky little pieces that begged to be stitched together, so… I whipped up 2 little mug rugs.

One went to Janet (Rogue Quilter) who has made many fabulous quilts from Pam’s patterns and the other went to Randy (Barrister’s Block) who joined me in making many of the quilts from the book.

And now… this is all that is left of those forty 10” squares! 

I want to thank all of you who followed along with us this year in our merry mini making!

Kyle (Timeless Traditions)

Janet (Rogue Quilter)

Barbara (Quilts, Gravestonesand Other Elusive Ancestors)

Sandy (My Material Creations)

Quilting Babcia (AmityQuilter)

And, to those mini makers - past and present - who have made a few fabulous minis this year as well: 
Pat (Thoughts From Taylors Outback)

Barb (Fun with Barb)
Randy (Barrister’s Block)

Shasta (High Road Quilter)

Pablo Picasso says, “The meaning of life is to find your gift. The purpose of life is to give it away”.

I have donated or gifted so many of the minis I have made in the past 2 years that I am going to continue this monthly mini quilt craziness for another year. I love having a stockpile of mini quilts in reserve for that special “gift” occasion or for an organization in need of a small auction item.

All are welcome to join in at any time.