Mini for Quilt Con

Going to Quilt Con (Modern Quilting Convention) in Nashville in a few weeks and participating in the SWAP of a mini with my assigned partner. I love swaps and always enjoy the thrill of meeting the new person and just getting a mini to put on my wall. I love making a mini for several reasons like getting to finish a piece and not struggle with a lot of quilt under the needle when quilting it. Like using smaller pieces and enjoying the colors in a smaller piece. Like making up what it will look like and challenging myself to do my own thing. The piece is of course "secret" till exchanged but a sneak peek of one of the letters.....

1.5" paper pieced  and there are half square triangles too

Perfect UFO from UFO "steal exchange"

I participated in the exchange of UFOs in our Midcities Modern Quilt Guild and came home with a lot of blocks that were sown together in all sort of pieces. I "stole" them from someone in our exchange  because I saw a lot of blocks already finished that could make a great Lutheran World Relief Quilt for our quilt group at Calvary Lutheran and I was so right. After putting on the design board it turned out they fit together perfectly to produce the perfect 60x80 size for the LWR quilt.  I look forward to taking it next month and getting it "tied quilted" together and ready for the world somewhere and a person somewhere. It is serendipitous in a good way. Thank you whoever put these in the exchange.

NEW YEAR NEW WORD

New Year New Word

I have struggled with a word to bring into the New Year. HOW from last year was nice but how to pick this year's word has not come easy. I feel a bit like Little Red Riding Hood finding the porridge  *some words were too wimpy *some words were to strong *some words were too inactive and *some words I had no feeling about. Looking for the word that is just right so I can  nibble on it all year long brought me to a word I seldom use but maybe it is time to step in...so I have chosen  ABOUND. 

Abound (verb): to exist in abundance 

Like: I abound in love from so many and it makes me abound in gratitude for all I have.  

So off to a new year and a new word.  Best of 2019 to one and all

Stuffed for Christmas

Christmas sewing was very minimal this year and yet I had fun making a small gift for my great grand daughter.  It was a Moda panel of 4 animal stuffed toys with babies for each. Pig, Cow, Lamb and Chicken. Not a lot of work (stuffing the things is always the most work). So while I did not do a lot of sewing or knitting this year, Christmas was wonderful for our whole family. Merry Christmas 

How To Get Ready for Valentines

Guess this will not happen for Christmas, will shoot for Valentines...💗

HOW? Dropped Stitch?

HOW in the world did I drop a stitch on these socks I am knitting.  I do not remember dropping a stitch, HOW? When I pick it up then I have one too many stitches, HOW did I add a stitch on these socks I am knitting? Good News they are just socks and one stitch that I will make disappear with knit two together will  be no big deal when it is on the foot in a boot.  Knitting can be forgiving.

HOW I Can Make a Difference

It is that time of year where we are preparing to leave on our 4 month RVing trip. It is overdrive time to get my charity sewing rounded up and ready to move out the door. So today I did that and ended up with:

Lutheran World Relief School Bags -- 22 of them just need to get the "rope" to make the ties

10 small pillow cases for Cook Children's Hospital to take to Mid Cities Modern Quilt Guild for charity project

14 Three Yard Cuts for Lutheran World Relief Fabic Kits. Each kit has 2 3 yrd cuts and 2 spools of thread.

It is the icing on the cake that all of the items here were from my stash. Yes, all those 3 yrd cuts were from fabric over time I had bought on sale that I had imagined may be used as backs, but when they just sit it is time to move them to where they can do the most good. There will always be more sale fabric for backs. I can imagine a woman learning to sew and maybe start a business that would help to give her independence and income rather than sitting in my stash.  The is HOW I know I can make a difference.
Check this off the pre RVing trip list.

Scraps and Small Work Together

Design is all about being flexible and going with change as it presents itself. Vision can make one do a little sewing that is little parts. Working on a secret round robin project has me now doing 2"squares with 1" snowball corners. Originally I envisioned these would be 4.5" squares with 2.5" corners but as things progressed I could see that just did not look great and so this is now it...but could it all change again? NO, well maybe.

These are one inch and cut from scraps that luckily I will have just enough to eeeek out what I need.

All for these XandO cuties but still working on design of the entire concept - it could all change again?

 

 

 

 

 

 I love doing this kind of quilting where you have to dig deep about what you know about a person and how you want to show love to them through your work. It is challenging and fun. FUN

Weekend Sew

My BFF and I had a weekend together and we of course decided to get her Dog in Sweater quilt by Elizabeth Hartman done. (My DH was off motorcycle tripping with oldest son). My BFF did not want to tackle this quilt by herself as she has not been quilting very long and had not even opened her machine for a year. We studied the pattern, went to two quilt shops and brought fabric then set our plan in motion. The pattern is "easy" from a construction point but detailed and not to be cut without identifying each and every piece A through like DD (that is the alphabet and then alphabet again.) A lot of pieces, a lot of sticky notes. She chose the small quilt that has 4 Dogs in Sweaters size about 45x50 (don't have the pattern here so just my memory of size). The real point is the four dogs are the focal and there are a lot of snowball corners A LOT OF THEM...1" snowballs (letter R) did get us talking like a pirate ARRRR. A couple of  days cutting and sewing about 6 or 7 hours each day got her done (a few breaks for eating and drinking in this). Yes, the cutting took a while and wine afterwards to reward ourselves. But the finish was great and it is a fun pattern to do with a BFF.

AND two of her four dachshunds were there to make sure it met their approval.

Our entertainment on the TV was the French Open. Love tennis and the FO was a perfect backdrop for our project.

HOW nice is nature

Taking a break and found this lovely plant in my driveway as I was walking to The Rectangle to get ready for our trip a few weeks ago. It is a lovely white/green shade and delicate. A weed I guess but too beautiful to be left unnoticed.
HOW wonderful nature is with color, form and beauty.