Stitching and Life

I've been stitching, and I even have a finish.  Woohoo! 

I made a baby quilt for a couple at church. 

front of quilt

orange Minkee on the back

This was a quick quilt to make.  I did wavy line quilting on it.  I won the Henry Glass fabrics in March 2017, but didn't know what I wanted to do with them.  I had a picture of a quilt, with this basic design, and drew it up (I think someone said that it was a free pattern from Moda?).  I used a little more than half of the jelly roll.  I still have lots of fabrics left, from this group that I won.  The Minkee I picked up at a thrift store last month, while traveling to Texas. 

I also got all the circle blocks from last weeks post, stitched together. 

almost a top...

This needs to be a bit bigger, to fit a twin size bed (with enough drop on the sides).  I have a couple more of these blocks to put in the corners, and I bought some brown flannel at Joann's last week, for the borders (I love it when the fabric is 50% off).  Not sure when I'll get the borders cut, since my sewing room is a total mess, and I can't get to all of the cutting table at the moment. 

I've done some stitching on my Be Attitudes quilt blocks, but, I don't have a picture.  I finished the 6th block on the way to Alaska, in Feb, and started the 7th block on the way back home, in March.  I've done more stitching on the 7th block this past week.  I'm slow at blanket stitching.  I'm not rushing these.  I usually work on them once or twice a month. 

I'll be doing other things, besides stitching in the near future.  When we bought our house, over 14 years ago, it came with a TV in the kitchen.  The TV sat on the shelf of the closet, and the previous owner had cut out the drywall and the studs in the wall, and inserted the TV in the hole.  He'd put a 'frame' around the rough drywall, to make it look better. 

Well, the TV was 20 years old, and, if you tried to adjust the volume, it would change the channel half the time, instead.  Our oldest son bought us a flat screen TV for Christmas, to replace this one, but, since we have to repair the wall, we hadn't done anything until this weekend.  Hubby pulled the TV out, and took down the framing.  Here is what the wall in my kitchen looked like when the TV was taken out.

hole into the closet

You can see thru the closet, to the basement door. 

Hubby had to repair the studs before we can do anything else.  We can't mount the new flat screen TV without the studs in place.  Now the hole looks like a prison cell.

with studs repaired

A friend, who knows how to replace drywall is coming over Wednesday to help us fix our hole.  I'll have to paint before we can mount the new TV.  I don't really like painting, but, it has to be done.  I hope I can find a paint that matches.  I don't have the time or energy to paint the whole kitchen.  Ours is a 'walk thru' kitchen, so, I'd have to paint half of the downstairs.  Sometimes an 'open' floor plan is a pain. 

A Stitching Week

After quilt camp last weekend, I had several 'sewing' get together's this week.

On Wednesday, Marilyn and I went to Sewing, Etc, to stitch with the owner, Kelly.  First, I stitched the 'missing' sides onto the blocks from Clue #3, in Kevin's mystery.  This is 2 sets of scrappy blocks, finished.

2 finished sets of blocks

When those were done, I pulled out a jelly roll, that I'd won from Henry Glass fabrics, last March.  Wow, I'd forgotten that it was a full year ago when I won these. 

I'd seen a picture of a quilt, ages ago, and had drawn up the pattern to use with these strips.  No clue where I saw the quilt, or what the pattern name was, sorry.  Usually, I try to save the link to where I see something.  Sometimes I'm given a photo of a quilt, with no info included.  I think that was the case with this one. Here is the baby size pattern. 

graph paper pattern I drew up from a photo

A couple in our church had a baby last week, so, it was time to get this quilt made. I cut the strips out, and stitched them up.

all the strip sets, stitched

By the time these strip sets were stitched, it was time to drive to Ottawa, for the Camp Tuckabatchee quilter's group.  Mary was teaching us how to make a tote bag.  My tote bag didn't get finished Wednesday night, due to a stupid mistake on my part.  I was trying to rush (first mistake) and talking too much (second mistake), so, I stitched the lining to the wrong side of the outside of the bag.  Oh well.  I just put the messed up bag away, and 'frog stitched' (rip it, rip it) later in the week.

Saturday, my large quilt guild, Pride of the Prairie had a sew-in.  The first thing I worked on was finishing the tote bag. 

finished tote bag

lots of room in the tote bag

When the tote bag was done, I pulled out the pieces I'd cut for the baby quilt (the box blocks) and stitched them.

all the box blocks stitched

Well, silly me forgot to bring the sewn strip pieces, so, that project got put up.  I'll have to finish sewing all the parts together this week.

Since I couldn't finish the baby quilt top, I pulled out a bag of blocks that I'd bought at a thrift store last year.  The bag had 79 finished 9 inch flannel blocks, a couple of blocks that just need to be stitched, and some extra scraps of the fabrics.  The whole bag cost me a whopping $4. 

I laid out 77 of the blocks, and started stitching the rows together.

77 blocks laid out

My little quilt guild is trying to make 14 quilts for the boys and girls at the Naperville 360 group homes.  We'd made quilts for all the boys back in 2016, but, when the boys leave the home, they take all of their bedding with them, including the quilts.  We started making quilts for the girls this year, then found out that all the boys who we'd made quilts for have moved out, so, none of the new boys have quilts now.  We need twin size quilts for each bed (with lots of  hang over, since they will be the bedspreads for the boys and the girls). 

These blocks will be for one of these boys.  I got all 11 rows stitched, but, I still need to sew the rows together.  I will still need some flannel for the borders, since this isn't large enough yet.  I have enough extra circle blocks to use in the corners.  I hope I can find matching flannel to go with these blocks.

Not a bad stitching week.  I'm still trying to get back in the groove of things, after being out of town for so many weeks.  I'm trying to catch up on housework, and do some deep cleaning, too.  It all takes time.  At least I'm finally feeling better, after being sick for so long. 

I have another craft day next Saturday.  Hopefully I'll be sewing the binding onto that baby quilt by then. 

Quilt Camp Weekend

This has been a weird sewing year for me.  I've been gone for 33 out of 42 days.  I was only supposed to be gone for 15 of those days.  First, we extended our trip to Alaska by a week (couldn't miss the birth of our first grandchild).  The only stitching I got done for those 3 weeks was on the airplane, and a tiny bit in Alaska, for my daughter in law. 

Three days after we got back, I was setting up my booth for the Pride of the Prairie Quilt Show.  I only had time to stitch 3 sets of exchange blocks at the quilt show.  The day after the quilt show, I got really sick, and just did nothing for several days. 

Life happens, whether you are sick or well.  A few days after I got sick, I was traveling to Texas for a funeral.  Another 11 days gone from home.  When I finally got home, I saw the doctor.  I've had a sinus infection since January, and it had turned nasty after the quilt show.  Needless to say, feeling like I did, I still didn't get anything done for another week or more. 

Well, this weekend was the Camp Tuckabatchee quilt weekend.  I finally got myself moving, and went to camp on Friday afternoon.  Yipee!  My first stitching in a month.

I set up my hand crank as soon as I arrived.  I'm the hostess for 2 different Treadle On block exchanges, and my blocks were not all done.  I really needed to finish stitching those exchange blocks.  I finished the last 2 sets of Spring Basic 4 patch blocks, and also the last 2 sets of Chocolate 9 patch blocks, for the exchanges. 

Spring Basic 4 patch blocks

Spring Basic 4 patch blocks

Chocolate 9 patch blocks

Chocolate 9 patch blocks

All I need to do is sign my blocks.  I can do that later this week. 

On Saturday morning, I set up 'Betty Sue' my purple Featherweight.  Last June, Kevin started a Sapphire Star Mystery Quilt along, and I'd kept up for the first clue, but, things got in the way, and I hadn't worked on those quilts since.  Yes QUILTS.  As usual, I started more than one quilt.  I started THREE quilts.  Two of those quilts are scrappy, as Kevin suggested, but, I also decided that I'd try one quilt as a 'controlled' color quilt.  Just 7 fabrics, one for each 'color' that Kevin had chosen, instead of scrappy. 

Since the Sapphire Star Mystery ended October 1st, I had all the clues printed off.  I'd cut out several clues at the last quilt camp weekend.  I needed to finish cutting all the clues (I'm still short 2 clues for the 'controlled' quilt).  Now to get more stitching done.

Back in September, I'd sewn some of Clue #2 while having a booth at the Lyon's Farm Fall Festival. I'd only gotten half of Clue #2 stitched.  Lots of sewing left to do on that Clue#2 (times 3).

2 sets of scrappy Clue #2 finished

Clue #2 'controlled' is also finished

I cut out the pieces for Clue #3, for the controlled quilt.  They went together nicely.

Clue #3 'controlled' blocks are finished

Then I pulled out the pieces that I'd cut last fall, for the 2 scrappy Clue #3's, and started stitching them together.  Oops!  Somehow I got all the background pieces cut, but, only half of the dark blue side pieces cut out. 

Oops!  Missing half of the side pieces for these 2 sets of Clue #3

I didn't have any of the scrappy fabric with me at quilt camp, so, I'll have to cut out the rest of those missing side pieces this week.  I had thought that I had all the scrappy Clues cut out.  Oh well.  All those fabrics are still in a basket, until I finish all three quilt tops. 

It felt sew good to start sewing again.  I'm meeting up with friends, and going to sew at Sewing, Etc. on Wednesday.  I'm hoping to get more Clues sewn then.  Two of these quilts will be for Quilts of Valor, but, one will be a wedding present, and I need to have it finished before October.  Lots of deadlines coming up, and, with being gone so much, I'm WAY behind.