Three Dudes Quilt

 My mom and I had very different tastes in a lot of things

and especially quilting.

 

I'd make one of my Kaffe quilts or bright batik quilts

and she would say

"That's really nice, but please don't make me one like that."

Then we'd laugh and tease each other about our differences.

 

 

 

 

I started making this Three Dudes quilt and she saw it

when she was at my house one day.

She asked if I had anyone in mind for this quilt.

When I said no, she said she would like to have it.

Mom was moving into a new apartment and was getting

some new furniture. She thought this quilt would look nice

with her new furniture.

I told her I'd be happy to give it to her for her new home.

 

Mom moved into her new apartment and three weeks later she died.

 

The quilt sat unfinished. 

I'd move it from spot to spot,

telling myself I needed to finish it,

but did not have the motivation.

 

Finally, a few weeks ago I said it was time.

I sent it to Jennifer at Peaceful Hill Quilting and she quilted

a simple hexagon pattern into the quilt.

 

 

 

 

The quilt is now finished.

I won't keep it, but will find a new home for this one.

I love the design and the colors,

but it isn't mine.

 

 

 

 

 

My mom died in October, 2021

and I miss her every day.

 

 

 

 

Busy June

 This month has been a month of completions for me.

It feels good to have these few things finished

and checked off of my list.

First up...

the patriotic table topper for me!

 

 

 

These are the table runners I made for my siblings.

I had four stars left and decided to make a table topper for myself.

 

 

 

 

These are big stars, so this is a good size topper.

 

 

 

 

I had fun quilting this one, but don't look too closely.

:)

 

 

 

Next finish is the Disappearing Rail block quilt

that I saved from being tossed in the trash.

 

If you remember, this is what it started out as...

UGLY!

 

 

 

 

After some slicing and dicing and more sewing,

this is what it became..

 

 

 

 

Soooo much nicer to look at!

 

 

 

There are more of these blocks,

so another baby quilt may be made in the future.

 

 

Next up is a top that I made from a gifted batik jelly roll.

 

 

 

 

 

This design went together so quickly.

I had planned on making something else with

the jelly roll, but I really like the simplicity of this block.

 

 

 

 Once this one is quilted, I'll donate it to the group that

gives quilts to our Veterans hospital.

There is one more finish,

but this finish needs a post of its' own.

 

Happy Quilting!

Escher Connected Finish

 Those who have been following me for a while

know how much I love these Escher quilt patterns.

I order the kits and then usually switch fabrics out for fabrics

I like better and to make it more my own.

This kit was beautiful just as it was!

 

 

 

 

This pattern is called "Escher Connected".

Boy, did it require some organization and paying attention

to assemble.

(And as I am reviewing this post, I see a mistake I made in

the placement of a block.  OH well... too late to fix that one!)

 

 

 

 

 

I had a LOT of baggies, labeled and placed on trays to keep

the parts together and in order.

It is so fun to watch the design come together as I'm going along.

 

 

 

 

 

Rebecca Grace  did a beautiful job quilting it, as usual.

I was afraid this one would give her fits, because, for some reason, it wasn't as flat

as I like my quilts to be.

 

 

 

This backing fabric makes the quilt so soft and cuddly.

 

 

There are a couple of more Escher patterns I have not made,

but I'm going to wait for a bit before I make another one.

 

I'm linking to Design Wall Monday today.

(edit)

 

Happy Quilting!

Disappearing Rail Block

 A while ago I found a pile of 2 1/2" strips of primary colored print

fabrics and wanted to use them in a baby quilt.

I thought if I added primary solid fabrics to these strips and made

some rail blocks they would make a nice baby quilt.

WRONG!!!

This is so ugly!

I tried rearranging the blocks, adding sashing,

putting them all in the same direction and they were all ugly.

Great!  Now what do I do with them?

Well, over the years I've made a number of Disappearing Four Patch Quilt.

What if I cut these blocks up and put them back together?

Would that be more pleasing to the eye?

 

Here is the creation of the Disappearing Rail Block.

(Is this already a thing? I can't find anything like it online.)

 

 

 

 

 

I took two coordinating blocks,

 

 

 

 

Cut them diagonally in both directions...

 

 

 

Switched two pieces with each other...

 

 

 

 

 

Stitched them back together...

 

 

 

 

Trimmed the block down to 5 3/4" blocks...

(It was the largest size I could make.)

 

 

 

and this is what I have!

I kind of like these!

 

 

 

 

I took this stack of blocks (well part of it),

added some fun polka dot sashing and cornerstones

and this is what I have!

 

 

 

 

 

Oh.... this is MUCH better!

 

 

 

 

There are a lot more blocks to use, so we shall see where else they end up.

 

 

Happy Quilting!

2023 Patriotic Table Runners

 For the past I don't know how many years

I've made a patriotic table runner or topper for

my siblings in memory of our dad.

He was one of the most patriotic people I know.

Usually I make them and gift them around July 4,

but this year we were all together this past weekend

and I'm not sure when we will be together again until fall.

I had time to get them done and decided they could use them

for Memorial Day this year.

A while ago I saw this design on Shabby Fabrics,

but didn't like the muted fabrics they used.

Out came my stash and the cutting began.

 

 

 

These went together very quickly!

When I had all of the blocks finished and on

my design wall, I thought about making

a big quilt with all of the stars,

but decided I needed to get these finished.

That may be a project for a later date!

 

 

 

 

 

I didn't measure the size of these, but they are big.

If I were make them again, I'd use 2" squares instead of 2 1/2" squares.

 

 

 

 

The one I'm making for myself isn't finished yet.

It's going to be a four star table topper.

 

 

The Gridster Queen Bee for May asked for this block

from the Whirligig pattern by Emma Jean Jansen.

Emma Jean graciously gave permission for the block to

be used for the bee block.

 

I chose yellow for my block and it sure put a happy smile on my face!

Happy Quilting!

Wedding Quilt Finish

 On my husband's side of the family

we have one niece,

who is getting married in the beginning of June.

My usual wedding gift is a quilted Christmas tree skirt,

but this niece is Jewish, so that would not be appropriate.

Since she is the only cousin on my husbands' side,

and there are 11 cousins on my side,

I decided to make the bride and groom a quilt for their bed. 

After consulting with them on colors, design preference, etc.,

I designed a quilt on EQ8 (my first one!!)

and began making blocks. 

 

 

 

The floral fabric in the HST's was the focal fabric.

All of the other colors came off of that piece.

 

 

 

 

It was so much fun to come up with different blocks

to make for each round.

I started to get a bit carried away and reigned myself in before

it got out of control.  :D

 

 

 

 

The quilting was done by Jennifer at Peaceful Hill Quilting

and it's beautiful. 

 

 

The binding and label were finished last night,

so it can be wrapped and delivered.

 

 

 

I chose this backing fabric because my niece is a history professor.

She loves words!

 

 

Happy Quilting!

Pineapple Quilt is Finished!

 After working on this quilt on and off for over 2 years,

the quilt my husband made me make is finally finished!

The reason I call the quilt this is because when I started making 

the pineapple blocks, I had only planned on making enough

for a wall hanging.

My husband came into my hidey hole and saw it hanging on my

design wall and said it would make a really nice quilt for our bed.

At that point I started teasing him and telling people

he made me make the quilt.

I am not sorry at all!!

 

 

 

I started out with a jelly roll of batiks and quickly

realized that I would need more fabric...

a LOT more fabric!

 

 

 

 

The collection of blue and green batiks began

and blocks were slowly made.

 

 

 

 

 

Throw in a move for us, two moves for my daughter,

two moves for my mom and other things

and progress halted for a while.

I decided this would be my quilt camp project

for last fall and the rest of the blocks were made.

 

 

 

I used the Pineapple block ruler from Creative Grids

and really liked the precision that gave me.

 

 

 

 

 

I sent it off to Rebecca Grace at

Rebecca Grace Quilting and she worked her

beautiful magic on it.

The binding was the perfect finish for this quilt.

 

It isn't on our bed yet because we are having our bathroom

redone and things are a MESS.

Hopefully it will be on the bed soon.

Then I will need to decide what to do about pillows.

 

I am linking to Design Wall Monday.

Happy Quilting!

 

 

Escher and Kaffe

 I can't get enough of these Escher patterns made with Kaffe fabrics.

Kits can be found at Quilt-agious quilt shop,

but I'm not sure that they sell just the patterns.

Usually I order a kit and switch out some of the fabrics,

but this time I loved them all.

 

 

 

One needs to be very organized to make these patterns.

A lot of baggies, pins and clips were used in the construction.

Once the backing fabric arrives,

it will be ready to send off to Rebecca Grace

for her to work her magic on quilting it.

Escher and Kaffe..... it doesn't get any better!!

Happy Quilting!

 

The Wedding Quilt

 This past weekend I FINALLY ironed and prepared the backing

for the wedding quilt for my niece.

She is getting married in the beginning of June and

time is running out!

 

 

 

 

 

This is a queen size quilt made a little larger

so it has a nice overhang.

(We are having some work done in our house

and there is dust everywhere.

Therefore, I didn't want to put it on the floor!)

 

 

 

This is my own design, done on EQ8.

It's the first time I've really worked with EQ8 and

I really enjoyed the process.

 

 

This quilt is going to the quilter tomorrow,

giving me time to get it bound and ready to

deliver in June.

Happy Quilting!

This, That and Tula

 For the past week or so time spent in my Hidey Hole

has been hit and miss.

I had a couple of small things to make,

so was able to get those done.

The first of these were a couple of clothing items

for my littles.

My daughter asked me to make little Miss O

a strawberry dress.

Twist my arm!!

 

 

Once the dress was made,

my son in law asked if I could make Mister M

a matching shirt.

I didn't have a pattern for a boys shirt

and OH. MY. GOODNESS!!!!

It has been a long while since I have bought a pattern

and the cost is ridiculous!! 

I could have bought 2 shirts for the price of the pattern.

I did find a reasonably priced pattern and got his shirt made.

Next on the agenda was to make the April blocks

for my Gridster Bee Mate.

She asked for wonky stars with a black background.

 

 I'm telling you... wonky is not my thing,

but I forged ahead and am happy with the results.

They will go in the mail soon.

 

 

Next up was to get the Tula HST quilt finished.

 

 

This is the first time I've used Tula's fabrics

and may be my last.

 

 

 

 

While I'm pleased with the results of the quilt,

I had to work hard to get it to come together. 

 

 

 

This will be donated and will brighten someone's day.

 

Happy Quilting!