Monthly mini May

A Tisket a tasket

A mini May Basket!

Had this little leftover block from my Humble Quilt doll quilt swap and decided to make it into a mini. I have always loved this sweet fabric from Judie Rothermel’s Civil War Dressing Gown fabric line. It seemed to fit the project perfectly. 

Click on my fellow bloggers to see their May creations. I am in hopes that when we post our June minis, we will begin to see light at the end of this dark tunnel!

Quilting Babcia (AmityQuilter)

Randy (Barrister’s Block)

Cathy (Big Lake Quilter)

Barb (Fun with Barb)

Julie (Julie K Quilts)

Kathy (Kathy’s Quilts)

Katy (Katy Quilts)

Sandy (My Material Creations)

Barbara (Quilts, Gravestonesand Elusive Ancestors)

Janet (Rogue Quilts)

Kyle (Timeless Reflections)

Cynthia (Wabi-Sabi Quilts)

Community Supper update

Oh wow! I am having a ball with all your wonderful orphan blocks! The count is 44 received with promises of at least 12 more. I must say, I haven’t seen one that I would consider a “reject”. Each one is truly wonderful!

I’ve started quilting a few. Here is my friend, Christina’s (Tina to me) block with fabulous Liberty prints. Yum!

And this one from Karen (Suzie Karen to me).

Both Tina and Karen are in my Seven Sistahs group. The other 4 (and of course me) have promised one as well. I’d be lost without these ladies!

I think I mentioned that the backs will be different “cheater” (printed patchwork) fabrics.

It seems fitting since we have all been “cheated” by having to keep our distance with friends and family. 

I wanted to find a binding fabric that would tie all these diverse blocks together and figured it would have to be black. I found this Jo Morton fabric that I adore but I had less than 2 yards. 

So, I started rummaging and found this “perfect” fabric designed by Judy Roche and Corienne Kramer. It really looks like it could be a virus!

Judy had given it to me a while back knowing how much I love the old neon prints. I knew that Cyndi had not carried this line so I did a search and found enough on Etsy to make all the bindings.

 Pot luck truly is the best!

Cassandra's Circle update

Catching up on posting my Cassandra’s Circle (Barbara Brackman’s Civil War blog) progress.

I know I posted the first block, but I don’t think I showed the back. This is one of my all time favorite fabrics (I know, I have a lot!). It is a very old Thimbleberries print.  My blocks are half size so this center block measures 18” and the rest are 9”. 

Number 2, “Mulberry Wreath for Mary Boykin Chestnut”. I took a lot of liberties with this one. 

Number 3, “Louisa Cheves McCord’s Palmetto” was a lot of fun to make. I’m calling it Moose Antlers. The fussy cut circles came from another of my favorite fabrics. 

Number 4, “Charlotte Wigfall’s Texas Star”. Hmmm, I took even more liberties with this one. As you can see the Texas Star is nowhere to be seen. What can I say? I like circles. 

Barbara posted number 5 today (here) so stay tuned.

I'm going to need a bigger table!

It is quite clear that my “Community Supper” is going to be huge! I am thrilled beyond words at the overwhelming response to my orphan block request. I opened 30 packages on Saturday alone. Don’t worry, if you are thinking of sending a block, I will make room for it. I figure if I get too many I can make two quilts – after all, the best part of any community supper is dessert! 

I have started to quilt a few. This is Audrey’s (Quilty Folk) block. I felt a bit guilty machine quilting such a fabulous hand appliqued block, but I like the result. I love the term “organic” when referring to machine quilting. This one is so organic, I could actually smell manure as I was sewing along. I am using “cheater” (aka printed patchwork) prints for the back of each block and this is one of my favorites by Mary Koval. 

back

The bindings will have to wait for a bit. I have chosen a Jo Morton black print, but I’m not sure I have enough. I should know by next week if I have to choose another print.

I thank everyone who is participating and all of you who are watching the quilt progress.

I hope you all had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend. We felt so very blessed to have been able to spend the weekend (in the house my husband’s grandfather was born in) with our children and grandchildren who are in our “circle of safety”. My heart goes out to those of you who have not been able to be with your family.

Our view to the west is of Popham Beach.

The state park is closed and people coming to their cottages from out of state are required to quarantine for 14 days. It was sad to see the beach so empty and even more distressing to come home on Monday to no parade. This makes the “community” quilt even more important to me.

Keep calm and quilt on!

Humble Quilts Doll Quilt Swap 2020

Time to link up with Lori’s (HumbleQuilts) wonderful Doll quilt swap for 2020. Normally we post the quilt we have received, but mine has not arrived yet likely due to shipping delays by overworked shippers! My hat is off to them. They are working extra hard these days.

Here is the little quilt I made for “Charli”. She posted on Instagram that she likes it so that makes me extra happy. 

Do check out Lori’s linky party (here) to see all the wonderful creations. It is always so much fun!

A Covid Request

We have all tried to find ways to get through these crazy times. I have seen many wonderful creations in the past few weeks made to commemorate our strength during this pandemic. 

Because we are all in this together and because I cherish my quilting friends, I want to make something that will remind me of our quilting community. I am going to make a potholder style quilt utilizing orphan blocks from my friends and call it “Community Supper”.

That’s where you come in. I would love to have a block from anyone who wants to participate. There are no rules for color, design or even size. My blocks will measure 10” after quilting and binding, but I can use any size you want to send. I will simply cut it down or add to it as necessary. In fact, I truly want your “reject” blocks. Blocks that for whatever reason didn’t make the grade. Ones that we can look at and say “There, take that you rotten virus”!

So… If you are up for the challenge, please send me:

An orphan block – any color, shape, design or size – and a fabric label (any fabric will do as long as I can read it) with your name, town you live in and any sentiment or message you would like to add. I will be putting your label on the back of your block (that is the beauty of the potholder method!). If you don’t have a permanent marker, simply write it on paper and I will make the label.

In return, I will send you an orphan block of mine (believe me, I have enough for everyone!) or, a little surprise gift if you prefer. Please include your e-mail address so that I can let you know that your block arrived and I can send you a photo of your quilted and bound block.

One block should be able to fit nicely into a regular envelope. But, I am also happy to send you a SASE as I know how hard it can be to get postage! Please do not hesitate to ask.

I would like to have all blocks by mid June. I’d like to be finished with this quilt by the time we get back to our “new normal”.

Address – Wendy Reed, 15 Mechanic St., Bath, ME 04530 and e-mail is gwreed15atcomcastdotnet.

I’m looking forward to this one! Thanks in advance to all who want to be a part of it.

Sew - what have you been doing?

My days have been filled with sewing and reflecting on life. In my search for inner peace and reflection I have stayed away from the news and even from my blog time. I hope this will change as the fog begins to lift.

O.k., no more philosophic blather. Here is what I have finished this week.

Barb (Fun with Barb), made me an off hand challenge to sew along with her on her blue and cheddar strippy project. You can see her marvelous creation (here). This is my “Blue Cheese”. I made it for a friend who is undergoing chemo at the moment. It is perfect for him as with its thick wool batting it is both lightweight and warm. Also, he has a kitty (that sticks really close to him) who is the exact color of the cheddar strips. Thanks for the inspiration Barb! 

I love this backing. It is an older Kay England print. Yum!

I finished my Cassandra’sCircle , "Texas Star" block (Civil War Quilts) for April and I love it! The red background has been a cheerful pick me up when things get gloomy. And, why is it called Texas Star, you ask? Well, because the pattern has been modified by someone who likes circles better, so my center is quite different. Thanks Barbara Brackman for your inspiration! 

The great thing about the potholder method is that the back of your quilt can be fun too. Here is the fabric I used on the back of this one. Love it! 

And, I sent off my "Solidarity" block (designed by the sweet Sue Watters) to Quiltmania.

They are making quilts for healthcare workers during this time of crisis. You can read about it (and make a block to send if you wish) (here). 

I hope to be a stronger blogger from now on. Stay safe and healthy and strong my friends!

April mini UPDATE and Blue Cheese

I have updated yesterday’s mini post (here) so please be sure to visit and see all that cuteness. I am amazed that so many could fit in a mini this month with all the maskmaking and other essential duties. Kudos to all!

And, oops, I did it again. I accepted an off hand challenge to “quilt-a-long” with Barb (Fun with Barb) to sew make a blue and cheddar strippy quilt. I think I will call it "Blue Cheese". Hers is coming along beautifully (here) and she is so right in that it is just what we all need right now – mindless sewing! Can’t wait to see how it turns out. Thanks for the inspiration Barb!