Box Number 3

I have been feeling really good about making a quilt out of the fabrics in box number 2, getting the binding made and the backing fabric picked out and washed, and hanging all of them on a hanger waiting to go to a longarm quilter for basting.

With that machine work done I went back to hand quilting on my 4 patch quilt from box number 1. That quilt is now over half quilted.

Since I am on such a roll I decided to see what else I could find in the basement. This time I came up with a box that contained twenty-two 6" squares from the Lasting Beauty Collection of fabrics by Classic Cottons. A few years back I sent some money in and, as I recall, about every three months I was send a packet from Classic Cottons that contained 6" fabric swatches from one of their new collections, plus a pattern for turning the blocks into a quilt. Well, their pattern made a quilt 37 x 41 inches. That would be way too small a quilt for me to make so I played on my EQ6 and came up with a design that would finish at 58 x 81 inches. Much more my size! I had also pulled 4 fabrics to use in the blocks.

It will be interesting to see how closely I follow my own design or if I end up making changes.

Scraps From Under the Cutting Table - And Now They Are Neat

All done! Note the empty basket.

I think I stated before that I like squares much better than strips so most of the fabric was cut into squares of various sizes. I did cut some short strips (approx. 7") that I use to make 9-patch blocks. And I cut some long strips because someday I am going to make another strip pieced quilt.

The odd scraps in the lower left corner will be made into hexagons and will go into a shoe box with other basted hexagons that will (someday) be turned into another scrappy hex quilt.

The rest of the day was spent quilting and starting a new project from a box in the basement.

Scraps From Under the Cutting Table

The last thing that anyone who knows me can call me, is organized. But I keep trying to keep chaos under control. To this end, I keep a small basket under my cutting table to keep project leftovers in, you know, the pieces too small to go back into my fabric cupboards.

That little basket has been full to over flowing for a few months, so yesterday I decided to dump it and begin cutting. Please note: this is not one of my favorite things to do. I get bored with it and being the old lady that I am, my knees start to ache from standing. But start I did. No, I didn't get very far but I left it on the cutting table so I will get back to it today. I spent most of yesterday avoiding it by quilting a bit and working on the computer. Well, yes, I did do a lot of eating, also, especially the leftover Christmas cookies.

Old Projects

One box from the basement totally empty. Do I feel good or what! Yesterday I finished up the doll quilt and have it nicely folded and tucked away for next Christmas season. It is a 24" square with flannel on the back.

Yes, you that know me well know that I do not like applique very much but I used the Quiltsmart preprint interfacing for the hearts. On the doll quilt, I machine sewed them on with a small zigzag. That's the way the Quiltsmart people do it and it worked really well, plus I even like the look. I had better watch out or I may end up liking applique after all.

And here is a picture of the finished quilt top. It is 53" x 79". I will probably take it to a long-armer to machine baste for me, then I will set it aside until that "someday" when I have time to quilt it.

Don's ask me why but I just had to put a flower in the lower right corner. It will get a button in it's center after it's quilted.

Sometimes I wonder just what kind of a quilter I am? If anyone out there has a clue, let me know.

I am having so much fun with my latest project. I was getting bored with making the log cabin blocks out of the shop fabrics that are on sale, so I sat that project aside and went to the basement to find something new to work on.

What I brought upstairs was a plastic container with 2 yards of a dark (blue) green fabric. A couple of hunks of red with spriggy leaves and some fabric that was red and green preprint log cabin blocks. The log cabin fabric had been cut into 17 squares matching the design with each square having 4 log cabin blocks. Each equaled 11 inches square. Well, I would like to say they were square but they were lopsided, of course, just like any preprinted fabric, it had been stretched funny in the printing.

I should have taken a picture at this point but I didn't.

Now, I will let the pictures I did take, speak for themselves.

But it wasn't long enough! I had a strip of blocks that had been next to the salvage. So new top and bottom borders were born!

Next came the applique, something needed to be put on those BIG RED SQUARES! I'm working on that part right now.  Besides the hearts in the blocks I am going to add them in the corners of the quilt. Something to help fill up the corners.

And here is what the log cabin blocks look like close up. It really makes you wonder when and why I bought this fabric. It must have been years ago, my taste in fabric has changed.

So that brings me back to the question of what kind of a quilter am I?

I have had so much fun making something out of a little bit of nothing. Like seeing if I can make a "silk purse out of a sow's ear". No, the quilt definitely is not any kind of silk purse/show winner, but it has been a fun journey to make something that is sorta' pretty and very useful.



View from my window.

This was my view, out the front window of the shop, of the snow we received yesterday (12/11/2010). We had big, beautiful snowflakes in the afternoon.

It is so much fun to sit by the front window of the shop and sew when it is snowing out! More later on the quilt I was working on.

Please note: This is not a black and white picture. It was really that gray outside!

Good morning, good afternoon, good evening, good night!
It's up to you to pick the response that best suits the occasion!

I'm in a happy mood. Buying new fabric seems to do that to me.

I got a good deal so I am passing it on to you.

The following fabrics should be arriving in approximately a week to 10 days,

and they will be priced at $6.99 per yard.

I'm having fun thinking about how I can use these fabrics. As the main fabric and/or borders for a new quilt. Or as the inspiration to pull colors for a new scrap quilt.

Or, to use as the backing for one of my pieced tops.

Put your mind to work and I bet you can figure out a good use for them, too.