Kadrian's Quilt

 One of my niece's had a baby back in May.

I had started his baby quilt,

but then lost my quilting mojo.

Thankfully, it returned and it's now a finished quilt.

We had a family reunion this past weekend

and I was able to deliver it to them then.

 

 

 

 

 

This pattern is "Shortie" by Barbara Persing

and was machine appliqued.

Unfortunately, right before I was leaving

I realized I hadn't taken a photo.

There wasn't time to press the wrinkles out of the top,

but I did get its photo.

 

 

 

 

 

These two giraffes are so cute and were fun

to put together. 

 

 

This little quilt should keep him warm for years to come.

 

 

Happy Quilting! 

Annual Patriotic Table Runner

 For years I have been making my siblings a

Patriotic table runner or topper and giving them

on July 4th.

 

This year I went back and forth about what design to use...

started one design and immediately knew it would take

waaayyy too long to make it, so went back to the

drawing board. 

 

Then, I saw this block on The Colorful Fabriholic's blog. 

Jan calls it Scrappy Serendipity. 

This block was fun to make and came together quickly.

I was able to get the four runners done and quilted in no time.

 

 

 

 

 

I'm very pleased with how these turned out.

 

 

 

 

This block may have to be used to make a Veteran's quilt

in the not too distant future.

 

 

 

 

There is something about red, white and blue quilts

that just touches my heart.

 

 

Happy Birthday, America!! 

 

Happy July!

 Boy, I have really fallen off the blogging wagon this year!

In addition, I have NOT been in a sewing mood for a couple of months,

but I think the mood has returned.

I'd like to think I'll get more regular about blogging,

but we shall see.

I do post more on IG these days and my handle is

@monasuequilts.

 

There have been a couple of finishes in my Hidey Hole.

This little quilt was made from left over

HST's that had been in a bag for years

just waiting to be used.

All of the fabrics came from my stash.

WOOHOO!!

 

 

 

 

 

This little quilt will be donated.

 

 

This next one isn't a favorite, but it will keep someone warm.

I love the Kaffe shell fabric,

but it was difficult to find fabrics to coordinate with it.

This is one of those 3 yard quilt patterns

and went together very quickly.

 

 

 

 

 

This, too, will be donated.

 

 

The last little quilt was made from left-over blocks

from a baby quilt I made a couple of months ago.

I had planned on using one lay out and decided to

put the blocks on point, so didn't use them all.

 

 

 

 

 

I just love this plaid fabric I found for the narrow border.

It will be used for the backing, too.

 

 

 This bright and happy quilt is waiting to be quilted and

will then be donated, too.

 

 

Happy Quilting! 

Finished Marlowe Quilt

 This baby quilt for Marlowe has been

finished and patiently waiting it's delivery.

I still need to wash it, which will be done today.

 

 

 

 

 

I ended up quilting this in a grid pattern.

Nothing else was coming to me and it needed

to be finished!

 

 

 

 

There are so many fun little fabrics in here.

It's like a mini I-spy quilt.

 

 Marlowe's mom is an artist,

so I thought this backing fabric was fun.

I had to add a bit to make it big enough

and like the green with it.

 

This will be delivered this weekend

and I'll get to meet little Marlowe!

 

 

Happy Quilting! 

Baby Quilt for Marlowe

 Last December my mom's last sibling died.

My aunt was a beautiful quilter and stitcher.

 A few months before she died,

she found out she was going to be a great-grandmother.

Unfortunately,  she had leukemia and knew it was unlikely

she would live to see this new one born.

 

Before she died, she asked if I would make the baby a quilt.

She was too sick to even begin one herself.

You know I said "Of course!".

 

This baby's mama is very artistic and loves color.

Out came my box of 2 1/2" squares,

which had gotten quite full,

and this quilt was made.

 

 

 

 

 

I was inspired by the quilt "Pixel Paths" and had fun

sewing the colorful squares together.

 

 

 

 

 

This is a bit of an I-spy quilt

with mushrooms, hearts, birds, Snoopy, strawberries, fish, etc.

spread throughout the quilt.

 

 

 

 

I am making the backing today and will get this quilted.

It will be delivered in June when we go to Michigan for

my aunt's memorial service.

 

I really miss her.

 

Happy Quilting!

 

You Are My Sunshine is Finished

 A friend from church is going to be a

grandmother for the first time any day now.

I am meeting her for lunch tomorrow

and wanted to get this quilt finished

to give to her when we meet.

 

"You Are My Sunshine"

 

 

 

 

 

I took the advice of those who commented on my last post

and set these "Twirl" blocks on point and did not add sashing.

 

 

 

 

 

I love the pinwheels formed by the HST's in the corners of the blocks.

 

 

 

 

 

All of the yellows and oranges sure make for a cheerful quilt.

 

My friend doesn't know if her grandbaby will be a boy or girl,

so I thought this would be a good quilt for either.

 

 

Happy Quilting!

 

You Are My Sunshine

 It's been a minute or two since I have been here.

For two months or so, not much was going on in my

Hidey Hole for various reasons.

My days were busy with many other things

and I kind of lost my sewing mojo.

Also, I was helping a friend recover some outdoor cushions

and that took WAAAYYY longer than I anticipated.

I learned a valuable lesson, though...

I will NEVER reupholster things as a career.

 

A little over a week ago I did start playing with some

quilting fabric again.

A friend at church is becoming a grandmother for the first time

and she needs a baby quilt.

The gender is unknown, so I pulled out my yellows and oranges.

 

This quilt will be called
"You Are My Sunshine".

 

 

 

 

A couple of days were spent making HST's.  

 

 

 

Then the block construction began.

 

This block is called "Twirl"

by Fran Gulick

and can be found here. 

 

 

 

 

 

This first layout is with the oranges and yellows forming 

diamonds in each color. 

 

 

 

This layout alternates the direction of the orange and yellow fabrics.

 

 

This one has them set on point... obviously.

I am really leaning toward this layout, but I need

to find a fabric for the setting triangles.

I can make more blocks for the triangles,

but I'm not sure I want that.

It may be too busy.

I'm also debating on whether or not I need sashing.

If so, what color? 

 

It feels good to be back at it,

but things will be put on pause again.

There are dresses to be made for the littles!

 

Happy Quilting!

 

Brick Wall #2 Finish

 It's so nice when a pile of forgotten parts is found

and quickly become a new quilt.

Several years ago I made this Brick Wall quilt

and had bricks left over.

When I found the pile recently, I had to add a few

low volume bricks to complete this quilt top.

Now it is quilted and ready for donation.

 

 

 

 

 

This was quilted using a very quick and easy design.

I don't know what it's called,

but I'll call it Swirls on a String.

 

 

 

The sashing strips were cut at 1".

 

 

 

 

January started out slow for me since I had

Carpal Tunnel release surgery done,

but ended up being a good month with three finishes!

 

 

Happy Quilting!

 

Broad Strokes Veterans Quilt

I just finished my first Veterans quilt for 2025.

 

 

This quilt is not my normal color palette or my normal style of quilt,

but it went together very quickly and really shows off this

gorgeous Kaffe leaf fabric.

The pattern is called "Broad Strokes" from the book 

3-yard Quilts on the Double.

I bought the book a couple of years ago,

thinking it would be good for fast and easy donation quilts.

 

 

 

This leaf print had been in my stash for quite some time and I

really wanted to use it. 

The yellow polka dot and the green floral were also in my stash

and paired nicely with the leaf print.

 

 

 

This took no time to cut and was super easy to piece.

I think it makes a striking quilt!

 

The coloring is off in this photo. The yellow background is

the same yellow as the polka dot on the front.

I was happy to find this perfect background fabric

 in the clearance section at my local quilt shop.

 

This will be delivered to the group who makes and collects

quilts to donate to our local Veterans hospital.

It's a small token of thanks to those who have given so much.

 

 

Happy Quilting!

Another Canyon Dance

 There are certain patterns and quilt designs that I am really drawn to.

One of them is "Canyon Dance".

It's an old pattern and it looks like the designer is going out of business.

I bought a set of templates when I first made the pattern and

it made cutting the pieces so much easier.

 

One day I was looking at my stash and decided to pull some batiks

to make another one of these quilts.

 

 

Here is the result:

 

 

 

 

 

It is a wild and crazy quilt and I love it.

Sewing these curves is not difficult at all

and the blocks are trimmed at the end.

 

 

 

Hopefully, this one will be quilted soon and will be donated.

Mindless sewing at it's best!

Happy Quilting!

Sampler Quilt Finish

 I have to say,

I'm not a fan of making sampler quilts,

but for some reason I decided to use

a jelly roll and a fat quarter bundle

and make a bunch of sampler blocks 

at quilt camp in the fall of 2023.

Then the blocks sat... forgotten in my cabinet.

I pulled them out last fall and sewed them into a top.

Then this past week I quilted it and now have a finished quilt!

 

 

 

 

I don't remember what the fabric line of the jelly roll was,

but the fat quarter bundle was Tula Pinks dots and stripes. 

They played so nicely together!

 

 

 

After my carpal tunnel release a couple of weeks ago,

I had trouble cutting, but could sew.

I have been watching videos on quilting swirls

and practiced along the outside borders of the quilt.

I need more practice, but it's coming along!

 

 

I love the backing fabric I found on clearance

and there was just enough for this quilt!

It's ready to be donated.

Happy Quilting!

First UFO Challenge Top Finished

 In my last blog post,

I mentioned that I have joined the

UFO 2025 Challenge.

 

The first UFO I tackled is one that I started

years ago and put into time out when I realized

I had made a big cutting error.

I received a number of comments 

encouraging me to go ahead and finish the quilt.

As my husband and a few others said...

if one hasn't seen the pattern,

how will they know how it was supposed to look?

It will be my take on the pattern.

 

Well,

the top is finished and I love it!!

 

 

 

It still needs a good pressing,

but it's finished.

This is "Diamond Delight" from

Kaffe Fasset's book

"Quilts from Morocco"

with my own design twist.

:)

 

I am preparing the backing and will send it off to my

longarm quilter soon.

It's so exciting to have this quilt done and out of time out!

 

 

As I was going through some piles of parts,

I found this pile of Kaffe bricks I had used to make

this quilt a few years ago.

I had seen this quilt on Pinterest and loved it. 

  

 

There were enough of the colorful bricks in the pile

and I had to add a few of the low volume bricks to the mix.

After cutting the 1" sashing strips, it went together very easily and quickly.

It is now in the "to be quilted" pile.

 

Last week I had carpal tunnel release surgery on my left hand

and am very thankful to have cut several quilts before it was done.

I can sew, but cutting is a challenge.

Since the first UFO challenge is done,

I can decide which fun project will come out of the box next.

 

Happy Quilting!

New Year... Old Project

If you are on Instagram,

you may have seen that Jandi Dean is

hosting a UFO challenge for 2025.

 

While I am not one to usually start something and not

finish it, I do have projects and kits that I've purchased

and then let them sit.

And sit they can do!

 I jumped on board with Jandi for this challenge.

 

 

For my first UFO,

it is a true UFO.

I don't remember when I cut the parts and pieces

for this quilt, but it was years ago.

I moved it to this house almost 4 years ago

and think it was cut out several years before that.

 

This is a Kaffe Fasset quilt from his

"Quilts in Morocco" book and I loved the fabrics he used.

His shot cottons and stripes are so soft and comfy feeling. 

As soon as I cut the pieces out,

I realized I had made a huge mistake.

My striped fabrics were cut so the stripes were on an angle

instead of straight across.

GRRRRR!!!

 

 

 

This is a photo of the quilt from the book. 

I was so mad at myself and put the pieces and

fabrics away.... for years.

With this challenge,

I decided that done is better than nothing.

The quilt will still be soft and cuddly,

even though the stripes are all on angles.

So, the sewing has begun.

 

 

 

All of the big blocks have been made and one has been framed,

just so I could see how it will look.

It is a jumble of fabrics and designs,

but once it's done, it will keep someone warm.

Once all of the blocks are framed,

I will arrange them so the colors are

more evenly distributed.

 

 

 

 

 

Hopefully, this will be done by the end of the month

and I can move onto the next UFO on my list.

 

 

Happy Quilting!

Out with the Old, In with the New

As I look back on 2024 and what I was able to accomplish,

it was a very good year. 

 

A lot of time was spent in my Hidey Hole,

making baby quilts, big quilts, donation quilts,

Christmas decorations and other fun things.

 

 

 

As I look over all of these finishes,

I am very thankful for the desire and ability to create.

It feeds my soul.

While spending time in my Hidey Hole, in the car, sitting with my husband in the

evening while he watches sports, etc., I listen to books.

!

It was a record year for me!

My favorite book of the year was

"The Women" by Kristen Hannah.

Welcome 2025!

May you all have a blessed and joy-filled year

and may your bobbins never run out of thread!

Happy Quilting!