MY GRANDDAUGHTERS MODERN QUILT

I finally got the camera going and took a picture of my granddaughters quilt all done....it has been a year in the making...i kept putting it aside for other projects through the year and last month i made up my mind to get it done...here it is....

but you know there is always something right behind it ready to be done and i have quite a selection to pick from lol...

its a toss up between the color study quilt i call 'MAZE TO NOWHERE'...cant remember now if it is no. 1 or 2....this one has a green border...the other one that is done has a blue border (in the first pic)....both are pictured below...they are alike except for the borders....a case of making too many blocks lol...

this is my own block that i designed and it is a very easy block to sew ...the seams dont meet so you dont have to deal with bulk there and it goes fast ...it does take a lot of variety of colors though...it took me a long time before i got what i wanted to use gathered up but it gave me time to figure out just what kind of block i was going to make...

and the other quilt to be quilted is this one...

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i would like to get it done too...i have the back for it that i want to use but dragging my feet on what to quilt in the light space....i love feathers and i think i have a stencil that will work....i will hand quilt i think as i am not good enough to do feathers on machine and i would like to give this one away as a gift later....more on my dilemma later lol

for right now i am nursing a back ache...i aggrivated an old injury last week carrying something i shouldn't have and now i suffer for it....and believe me winter weather isn't helping...but our weather could be worse and i am glad so far that the snow is north of us but soon i think we will have some....then i will have plenty of time to sew just hope my back settles down by then...

well lunch is coming  later this morning so i dont have to cook.... i better get dressed and i could use more coffee to get woke up...happy sewing....more later....

GRAND D. QUILT AND HAND QUILTING THOUGHTS

This is my granddaughters quilt i am working on right now...i took it out of the frame to relax it a bit so it wouldn't get those ring marks on it and i wanted to see how the stencil is working that i am using to hand quilt it....

This quilt is inching along ok without mishaps so far...i hope i dont jinx it by mentioning that lol....my hands started cramping last night while quilting but i have been working on it now 3 days straight so i think they need a rest...

Here is a closeup of the detail of the quilting in the inner border...it is working just fine....when planning a quilted border i usually pick something that doesn't fit lol...but this one popped out at me when i began to think about quilting it....i didn't want a lot of 'fru-fru' for this one as it is very contempory...i was even thinking of drawing boxes here and there freehand but didn't think i could be consistent enough....

THOUGHTS ON HAND QUILTING

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When i was first beginning this adventure of quilting was back in the 60's when i was accumulating lots of fabrics from sewing for my 2 girls....i had a huge box of scrap...my neighbor, an avid sewer encouraged me to make a quilt...so with her guidance i ventured into this world....i bet i picked her brain at least twice a week after that...lol

I learned a lot from her and from what i am told it was bred into me, as my grandmother was next to being a pro at quilting selling her quilts thoughout the county...she passed on when i was 5 so didn't get to know her long....i do have a big box of her quilting things though my aunt and mother passed onto me that i get out and go through now and then...

one of my early thoughts of hand quilting as you had to make sure the design was continueous without breaks all around the quilt...and another thought back then was no line shal cross another....so that played a role in getting me started...i was afraid i would make a mistake and they wouldn't fit right....now i am not afraid to be adventurous...lol...those thoughts came about from the older ladies at the time...when rules were strict and rigid about sewing...boy am i glad that changed lol....it has opened the door for  many new products and ideas for the sewer and quilter....

I will never be an expert quilter but i can do 18 stitches to an inch...now that is counting the top and bottom stitches...i am told that is how you count them...most of the time i average about 15....which i think it still ok...at least they dont look galloping along lol...

i have been teaching myself to machine quilt...not really good at it so i will stick to a lot of hand quilting along with learning new things so i am sure i will be adding little thoughts on hand quilting as i go along.....more later....

MUG RUGS & SMALL BAG DONE

here is a small bag i made this week...i need to make more of them to keep on hand for gifts...so easy to make and quick to add alittle bit of money or something to give as gifts when one is needed, dont want to wait till last minute to make them either....more on this later....

i also got all those mug rugs done

 and ready for my daughter to get hers and there will be some left in case that gal comes to check out what i have been doing....i need 1 each of lavender/purple ones and 1 browns/oranges and i would have a set of each to have on hand too....

this is the week i am to work on my granddaughters quilt too...i did quilt on it last night and now today my fingers are sore....i love the fabrics by Hoffman but they are harder to hand quilt because they are so dense and i put a hoffman batik on the back so makes it doubly hard to get a needle through it...when i get to the inner border it has a softer fabric for the top so will be easier...good thing as i have a 4 line border stencil to work on then....using 4 needles at a time....cant wait to get that far....almost there...maybe after tonight if i can work on it more....

got 2 of the 3 pkgs ready for mailing today....grrrr left out the note i wrote that went in one of them...so i will write a letter and send seperate....i am not going to tear open the package....used too much packing tape on it....lol... will mail them out Thursday when i go to town for a haircut that i desperately need....

well got to  check the cabinets and see if i can make a meal without going to the store...only need a light supper but that is what i lack is stuff to make something light but i could cook a 6 course full supper if i wanted lol....dont want to do that much work lol......more later......

GRANDMOTHERS FLOWER GARDEN TIP

i learned something about adding blocks on the ends of rows of the gfg quilt on the left today....it is hard to know where you are with the blocks unless you lay it out and pin where you want the block....if i hadn't double checked myself today i would have sewn at least2 blocks in the wrong places and would have had to rip out...

i have been working on these quilts this week...in various stages...cutting more white hexes, yes again....cutting a couple more flowered print hexes and sewing hexes into flowers and finally working on the rows sewing posies into place....i sure spent the hours working on these quilts....

when i wasn't doing that i was string block making....i found out from my youngest daughter that she likes quilts of a lot of colors, no matter the pattern....i didn't realize this but i should have being she likes primitive furniture...no wonder she grabbed the old 4 patch quilt i made a long long time ago i was going to trash...all made from scraps from the clothes sewing i did for the girls back in the 60's....i thought it got threw out lol....i am sure she will like the string quilt when it gets that far.....my other daughter said she wasn't too crazy about string blocks...talk about 2 girls and different personalities lol

i am still waiting for the thread order before i can work on the mug rugs and i have been getting the boxes ready that i am sending to friends in Texas and i hope to send one to Georgia also if i can find the right thing....and i have one to send right here in Il too...the dining table is a mess of boxes and rug mugs and no room to sew...ugh....that isn't good lol....

and to top it off i wasn't feeling good today for some reason....i had planned on going grocery shopping and looking around today but didn't trust my body to co operate....going to eat light for supper so maybe things will settle down...its the wrong time to be sick for sure with Thanksgiving just 2 days away lol....

well not a lot to talk about tonight....just sewing when i feel like it....going to lay down for a bit and watch the evening news...sure hope there is some good news for a change.....more later...

SMALL QUILT DONE

the sun is out today but i am sure its deceiving as the temp is just above freezing....i was suprised this morning when i looked out the kitchen window to see ice in the corners of the window....i dont think there should have been....maybe the window isn't tight anymore...will have to look into that i think....

saturday i walked by this quilt laying on the table ready for quilting and i said to myself several times during the morning 'i better quilt that today' and the last time i thought why not just sit down and do it now...lol....

so i did....got it all done including the binding before the day was through....hopefully these are the last of the pastel patches i cut out years ago....they have to be at least 20 years old lol....i had a habit of cutting way too many squares for things back then....but then i was making a lot of baby blankets for kids so i guess i thought i was ahead of the game....well they all grew up and now their kids are having kids and i am back making baby things again for great neices and nephews ...not as many though....

i wanted to make a quilt top for my good friend who is very sick with diabetes and other health problems but after figuring, i couldn't use the fabric for that particular pattern... i didn't have enough so now i am looking for another pattern to use....

Not sure what the rest of the day will bring....this morning i worked on sewing the posies to the main part of one of the gfg quilts...i think this week i will work on that then by Thanksgiving day i will need to baste more white hexes again so that will be my sewing while i am visiting and eating thanksgiving day lol....

but for now i am just going to get another cup of coffee and ponder my next move.....more later.....

SHERBET COLORS QUILT

i made this quilt a few years ago for my grand niece when she was expecting a baby....i have liked it really well and almost kept it as i ran out of a lot of the colors especially the blue border which i think is very striking and i wasn't sure i could ever make another close to the same colors again....

its a basic hour glass block with all colors combos without matching when its put together hence the prism effect....the picture shows them pretty good but the colors are more striking in person as i remember....cut two strips at least 1-1/2 inches, i think i used 2 inch strips...use triangle to cut and use both sides of the fabric making a positive and negitive and use both in the quilt for contrast....

well while i was ironing my new fabric yesterday i thought about this quilt and wondered if i had enough pastels to make another to put in my cabinet for my future GGChildren if they come to be....i looked up the picture again in my photo album i keep and again on line to see if i still had a record of it....

i recently found a blue that is almost the color though it has a hint of purple here and there in the fabric but i think it will be ok....i would like to be as bold as the one in the picture....i have yet to round up all the pastel solids or blends to make it ....i am sure it will be different from the picture because some of the blends i liked are no longer available...i already tried  reordering those lol....Hoffman watercolors really stood out in the quilt but they have discontinued several of them i used....but i will keep looking because one day soon i will be making another one similar to the sherbet colors above and i think bigger....it was so much fun to make!.....more later.....

CUTTING HEXES TODAY

THIS IS WHAT I AM DOING TODAY

I am doing hexes again....i am running low on white ones after adding them to several blocks recently...while in the sewing room marking and cutting more hexes i decided to cut a couple batches of prints to add to my box for future ones....i also basted a whole block (lavender/ lavender print in pic) ready to start sewing together and to the right of those in the pic is  some of  the posies i have sewn the white half way around ready for adding to the row....

I know it doesn't look like a lot but it is a lot of patience sewing....that is the hardest thing about this grandmothers flower garden quilt...it seems if i dont work on it when i first get up and have my coffee the day gets by me and i cant seem to get to the hexes....

today is no different either....i got that much sewing done on them but i have laundry to do and i think i will throw in a larger yardage piece of fabric to do up for the cabinet...i hate doing the bigger ones as i really dont like to do ironing of anything....that is one of the memories of my childhood...mom thought she had to have everything ironed back then...ugh!....i was so glad when wash and wear came along when my kids were growing up so i didn't have to iron much....lol

dishes are in the sink soaking right now...need to do those up....i was thinking when i was drawing water ....'how does one person dirty so many dishes?' lol....but then it isn't just one day of dishes either lol....

well off i go to the kitchen...more coffee, maybe some toast ...it might be a long time to supper if i get busy and one good thing...i cooked yesterday so supper is in a casserole dish for me tonight ..yay! lol.....more later....

ELONGATED BLOCK QUILT

I was looking back through my sewing pics and i came across a quilt pic i took in 2007...boy how time flies...i didn't think it had been that long since i made this quilt....

suprisingly i remember how much i liked it then and would like to make another one in different colors...that much i know...the colors?....no idea as of yet but now that i have it fresh in my mind i am sure i will think of color combos that might look good...the picture should have been taken the other way around to show off the colors better as the long boxes should be up and down....

I also noticed that lately i have been making blocks with sashes around them.... i wonder what the deal is with that....do i go with an idea till i wear it out???....hmmmm i will ponder that one!....lol...

my sister called last week and in the conversation she mentioned that she cant go anywhere without her walker now...and that got me thinking that she needs a walker caddy....so i have been 'scouting' my stash cabinet for a good print to quilt to make her one....i got called away so i think i will go back in and start looking again....i wanted to make her a tv remote chair caddy so i think i will just start a box and fill it and send...i was reminded that the postage will go up again in Jan '13 so it would be good to beat that if i could....wont she be suprised lol.....

i have a gazillion notes and figures sticking out of the box i keep my rulers standing up at the head of my table in the sewing room....some have written on them which of the items they were for and others dont....i found a notebook that i am starting to take them and transfer the notes to the notebook for safe keeping in case i want to go back and make another....some of them would be for quilts that have found a new home and i wouldn't have the dimensions otherwise...i should have done this a long time ago....sigh!

i made it to the store yesterday and got my chicken dinner for my supper and took advantage of the sales they had and by the time i carried my grocery bags to the house from the garage i was beat so i didn't make it to $general to look around....maybe today i might...my daughter informed me she was stopping by after she gets off work so i need to be here then....time has a way of getting away from me before i do what i say so we shall see lol....more later....

BAG IS FINISHED

well here it is the week end again....i swear some of the week days get overlooked and the week end rolls around too quick, making the weeks just fly by....being busy makes them go by so fast too....

i got up in time today to see my saturday sewing shows on public tv....a regular sewing show which had a lot to do with quilting this week, Fons & Porter show about quilting, showing a new block and a Quilting Arts program....while watching them i put together another posie together for my Grandmothers Flower Garden quilt....

yesterday i worked on my bag i have started and finished it...and it all started because i didn't want to throw away a scrap of floral fabric...isn't it funny what peaks our creativity?....i got side tracked because i was waiting on a thread order to quilt it then got busy with other projects but now its all done....

i had quilted this before i lost my confidence in machine quilting and had very good luck with it at the time....i think this bag looks tropic for some reason , maybe the colors...here is a back view...wish i had, had enough floral fabric for the back...

i only have a scrap left of the green used for the bag...it was just the right color...this bag was truely built from scrap lol and it will make a great contribution to make my sewing portable...

i will be going to my grandsons birthday party later today so i will pack my bag with the mug rugs i made this week and finish them by sewing the binding down on them...right now its foggy and not very nice looking outside so i hope the sun comes out to burn off the fog so the wiener roast goes off without a hitch....

and for me i need to get around....have fabric in washer at the moment ready for dryer, need to take care of that and work in the kitchen so no major sewing today unless i do some when i get back home if i am not too full of hot dogs and marshmallows lol....more later....

TV REMOTE HOLDER

today was a productive day...though i did not know it until i went in the sewing room....when i saw some of the prequilted fabric i have been working with trying to use up i happen to think about my friend Mary....she has been after me to make her a new holder for her tv remote for her chair arm....i made her one years ago and she had worn it to threads...it had several pockets in it...for the life of me i could not remember when she was telling me about it just what it looked like...today i drafted instructions on a new one for her....i do remember the old one was small so i vowed to make this one bigger....

this time i wrote down instructions and measures , i didn't do that before...this one didn't have as many pockets but bigger pockets...i did use some of the prequilted fabric of which i quilted over it with a fabric back...added pockets in a co ordinating fabric and divided them into seperate ones....and added binding all around...the picture really doesn't do it justice but at least you can tell

...the pink fabric isn't showing up very good...the darker  part hangs over the center of chair arm and you have pockets (the pink) for a mag and tv remote in one pocket and a mag in the other one on the outside and a couple deep pockets that tuck down in the chair cushion to hold it in place...those pockets can hold maybe kleenex or smaller mags or puzzle books, what have you....

i dont mind telling you she was very happy when she found out what i brought her this afternoon and we had a good visit...she also showed me the old one and it was in shreds lol....i am going to make myself one sometimes this week i think...maybe that will keep the remote from falling off the chair arm all the time....

if you have been following this blog you know i have been in the middle of a block challenge and i got part 2 done last night and i love it....it was a big block to begin with and with adding a border and the flying geese to it make it the size of a table topper....i will  show it when our host posts all the pictures.....

my daughter was here yesterday afternoon and during our conversations she suggested that i offer some of my things on line for sale....i have thought about it but still undecided....not sure there would be much interest....more on this at another time....

today when i went to the store as i was paying the checker i noticed that one of my rings were missing...it was one that was given to me ...more sentimental than worth anything but mine just the same....that made me pretty sad as i thought it was gone forever....but when i got a glass of ice tea later i found it in the ice bin...literally on ice lol....boy that sure did change my mood in a hurry...my fingers must be getting skinny so i suppose i should stop wearing my rings so wont lose them forever....

well its too late to start anything sewing wise tonight or i wont sleep so i guess i will check out the blogs i follow and call it a night....more later....

BAGS, BAGS, BAGS

yup you could say i was the bag lady this past weekend...i made 3 of them to put quilts in for a gift.....now i know it would have been less time consuming to go buy a gift bag and cheaper too but this did 2 things....got rid of more fabric out of my cabinet and made a nicer gift....

i think i mentioned somewhere that i had fabric that was prequilted with a lightweight batt backing to use up....well i got the brainy idea to quilt a cotton back to it with a heavier batt...now that makes it more durable and double quilted...i was afraid when i started it that it might make the fabric look tacky but they came out wonderful....the blue and yellow one is the double quilted fabric on the outside and the pink one i reversed and put the cotton back on the outside to look more baby like....

i am happy that i did this now maybe i can do more with that fabric and get it out of the box in my sewing room...i had about given up on finding a use for it....it was leftover from making doll sleeping bags years ago when i was dressing dolls....

my daughter was here yesterday evening for a bit, checking on me i think....i halfway expected her...kept looking for her to pop in while i was machine quilting and had just finished when she came....i had to clear off the couch to make room for her to sit....its been loaded with the things i have been making for the past few months....i have got to find a nice place to store my things so they are all in one place....

i have been using one of my chairs in the family room as a design space lol....i put a piece of batt down the back of the chair and placed my blocks on it to see how they look..i can see them from my chair and  glance at them now and then to see if i want to make changes....makes a good temporary design wall lol...my sewing room isn't big enough for one though i wish it was....

inbetween working on the smaller projects i got some time in to work on the gfg quilt too but my granddaughters quilt took a back seat for the time being...so this week i better put some time in on that one or i will  never get done....

i have 1 runner, and a small baby quilt to machine quilt this week sometime and a pink posied piece of fabric that will make a nice lap quilt for nursing home i would like to get done too....more on this one later....

well i need some more coffee then get out of here to deliver my things and run errands...looks like a busy day today....more later....

HEXES AND HOUR GLASS

this morning i am having trouble getting started with my day....when i loaded a bobbin in my machine i noticed my bobbin box had a lot of bobbins that only had a few feet on them....so that told me to get out the hexes and use those few feet of thread for basting my hexes for the gfg quilt

i need to start adding the white ones around more blocks like the picture so i can add them to make a row and it will take a lot of white ones....i seem to be always running low on those....if i start working on this quilt again i wont be able to put it down....and i have a lot more things i need to work on too....

i quit and now not feeling very well...not sure why but i am going to try to sew and forget my 'ails'...my back is also bothering me so that could stop my sewing cause it probably hurts from all the sewing i have done lately....

 

more later....

2 QUILTS FINISHED

It's been a busy week here at home...this new sewing streak has me moving from one thing to another all day long but i am getting things done...

In the last 2 weeks i have made a little girls quilt with butterflies from irish chain pattern...hard to see the butterflies in the picture...

i have had the print fabric i know for at least 14 years...i remember where i bought it ...i am very suprised i haven't used it before this..the fabric is very pretty in person...the quilt is one width by about 45 inches....then while i was working on it and during the time when i got bored with it i started another quilt i mentioned in previous post...the red/blue hole in barn door quilt....well i am finished with it now...got it done this morning...

its the little boys quilt i decided to make when i found this combo staring at me when i opened the cabinet...i have just a scrap left of the very busy blue print....the color works in this quilt but i passed over it lots of times wondering what to do with it , it always seemed to busy to work in anything up till now and this time it seemed to be just right...

After all this sewing i been doing i have a stack of small pieces of batt ....i already has some stuffed in here and there in a shelf but now there is a whole lot more...looks like all those string  blocks i made will be made into bigger blocks and used for potholders....

 

this is just the smaller stack of small pieces of batt...the other one sits on the floor in family room behind the chair for now...this stack i will work on first i think it has the smallest pieces in it....the other stack has bigger pieces that maybe i can piece together for runners...without making too many seams...

got to take a break from sewing later today and buy some groceries....i think i will make out menus for this next week with things that i can make ahead so i dont have to stop sewing for long...good thing i like leftovers lol...

it is such a pretty day this friday that i should take advantage of it and go do a little other shopping....fall is really showing up now....hard to keep the house warm at night but i am going to be frugal and not heat the house i hope till late october or november....more later about that lol....

well its back to sewing after lunch....i have a table runner all pinned ready to machine quilt....i have been lagging in that department for awhile while hand quilting those quilts....so now its back to  practicing again....i also want to machine quilt that hexagon table topper i posted earlier for my daughter so most likely that will get done sometime over the week end...so for now its ta-ta....more later ....

BLOCKS FOR GFG QUILT READY FOR ROW

I woke today with a little ambition...sure hope it lasts through the day....i would like to quilt the rest of the borders on the 'patches and points quilt' that is lying on the table....

i dont know why i am procrastinating about it....its an easy quilt....i have another one in mind to set up when this one is done....dragging my feet why i do this....this is one bad habit i need to break i sure would get more done...

i also have lots of grandmothers flower garden blocks ready for a row to add to the smaller quilt, that will make row 5....i have been trying to make more blocks....i average about 1 whole block including half of the white hexies a day but need to get going and see if i can do 2 a day...

i cut more white hexies last night 64 to be exact but they wont last long, these take 8 per block so you see it takes a lot of  your background fabric....i also used up some one of kind prints into hexies too and put them in my box for future blocks.....after finding that box of scrap other day i think i better look other places to see if i tucked more scraps somewhere....

i saw a quilt made of larger hexies while scanning blogs recently and that has been on my mind....i will keep that idea on hold for the time being and keep looking for other ways to do it too....boy these hexies are so addicting you just keep wanting to make more and more lol...

i have to get some groceries later today....we have a family reunion sunday and i need to make a couple dishes to take by then...not sure what i will make, no ideas so far...i guess my mind is on sewing too much lol....i made a fresh salad with cauliflower, tomatoes, g. peppers, onions, garlic, salt and pepper, and italian dressing this week that was good and refreshing, maybe i should make it and cookies....kids always like cookies....

well time to get busy, going to be another hot day here and Issac will bring rain Saturday and Sunday they say....more later....

FLOWER GARDEN QUILT ASSEMBLY

The last post showed how i put my grandmothers flower garden quilt in rows by doing it a block at a time instead of making a row and adding it all the way across the quilt....

as i have stated i am making 2 of these quilts at a time...here is where i stand with both today...on the left it needs more blocks on the end and the quilt on the right needs more block across before i have them with even  amount of rows...

i will be trying to keep it fairly even working on these because i know me and i dont think when i would get done with one i would like going back and picking up another half done quilt and have to do it again...so this way when i go through each step i wont be going back again....that is my logic anyway....lol....ok now on to the next....

while working on the first quilt i noticed that  the side scollops were different shape than the up and down scollops so i had to stop and figure out just how i was going to finish the quilt...i have seen many ways and being i have no instructions on this i set out to see what i could do and this is what i decided...first i had to turn around my quilt so the prettier scollops would be on the side...that leaves me the option of letting them hang over the side of the quilt in case it is coverlet size when done otherwise i may fill in with triangles of white to even it out  for a straight edge....

this photo shows a fill in block on the up and down ends of the quilt...as you can tell i have more white hexies to add then i can sew this half block in to continue finishing off the end....

if you look at the picture of both quilts you will see that the rows are staggered so that leaves ends to fill in or you could just leave them as is...but i think i would want mine filled in at the top and bottom so that is what i am doing....

here is a pic with the layout of the blocks at the corner to give you an idea of the difference in the scollops you deal with when finishing the quilt....

this is where i have to end how i am making my quilt as i have not finished them yet lol....but i will keep this blog updated on how i am proceeding...unless i change my mind i think i have explained what will happen when i get 10 rows up and down and 11 rows  across each quilt....then i can finish them both....

i have given you the basic way i am working on these quilts and like i said it isn't hard to make one...it is just time consuming and lots of hand sewing...so if you are willing to devote your time you will end up with a beautiful quilt that you and everyone that sees it will admire....happy sewing.....more later

FLOWER GARDEN ASSEMBLY PT. 2

In the last post i wrote how i started out my quilt...in this phase doing it this way it is important to try to be as precise as possible because there is no paper piecing involved....that is why i mark my fabric then cut out the hexies making sure i cut off the marking lines.....

now you baste to the wrong side of the hexie using 1/4 inch...that first side is how i guage all the way around so i try to be right because i eyeball this....after a few you will find you are consistent..

moving on--start putting your flower together...however you decide...there are many ways to layout this block even diamond shape...i chose the traditional way...

as you can see here this one is complete....i finally found a way for me to almost complete the block before setting in a row....now most instructions tell you do a row at a time...i prefer to add a block at a time as i can contol the color of my quilt better....i may have just one block of a certain kind or i might have 6 blocks on one kind so by looking at the quilt before i add another i can space my blocks out better....

i use the same whip stitch in sewing the blocks to the main quilt using the same color thread as the fabric which in this case would be white for this row (for the posies you use co-ordinating thread for the colors)...and then move on to the next block till there is a row complete....

when adding your blocks to each other this is where being percise helps in the early steps....some days i for one can be tense when working on this and can sew tighter than maybe the day before so there may be a little variance in matching up block seams (basting may vary)...you may have to ease in a little here and there or even take basting out and add or subtract just a bit...hopefully not very often but it does happen...and after you do that you wont notice it if it isn't too drastic....

i am sure i will get some frowns on the last paragraph but we are all human....no one should be afraid of making a quilt like this as it isn't as hard as it looks but you need a lot of patience...if you try to hurry then i am sure mistakes will happen more.... more on gfg quilt next time.....

4 SQUARE 4 PATCH BLOCKS

I got a good start to my day today....up early with shower and couple cups of coffee and i was in sewing on those 4-4-patch blocks..i had co ordinating sashing lined up for some of them so i had something to show for my time quick.....

i didn't count the ones that are done but i must have 16 done so far....yesterday when i was looking through bags i found some like these that i had already done...so this idea has been in my head for quite a while i think...that added 10 more blocks than i had planned on...this quilt i think is going to be bigger than i thought....but i dont want to seperate it into 2 and i would like to use up the 4 patches and get them out of my basket....

 

just finished this one while back...with the 16 little patches...and i found more 16 patch blocks other day and have worked them up into a small quilt....more on that one later....not making anymore of those little things....

time to get back to work....maybe i can get the sashing all done today and see what i have....i think i might have to make 1-2 more blocks if i counted right this time....more later......

AN EVENTFUL DAY

Yesterday was an eventful day for me...i got to meet one of the ladies that i have visited with on the internet for the past 3 years....i have a group elsewhere on the internet, carry over from the msn days with friends some back as far as when i first got on the web....

Raz came by the way of another group we both belong to and she loves playing word games in my group along with me and the other ladies who belong....she is from Australia so when i heard they were going travelling around the US i got curious to see if she was going to be close to me....and guess what she wasn't going to be too far so we set out to meet...and we did....

i am on the left and raz is on the right....we only had 1 hour to visit but we didn't wait a minute...and found we had a few things in common....i wish we could have visited longer but she vowed next time to allow more time so we could get to know each other more....now that we have met in person i am sure we will be more interested in our visits on the internet...what a wonderful day even though the skies opened up and just poured on our meeting....

I had planned to go to either the small quilt shop or joanns fabric store after our meeting but with the rain pouring down i decided i didn't want to walk from the parking lot in the rain...i would have been drenched to the bone as slow as i walk....no more running for me...though i wish i could...

i came home and made more hexies for my quilt....later i looked up and the sun was back out so i probably could have outlasted the rain...bummer!....oh well it will give me an excuse to get out and go another day...more later....

THINKING ABOUT CHRISTMAS SEWING

I guess the cooler weather we have at the moment got me thinking about Christmas sewing...its been on my mind all this week....last year i got the brainy idea of making A christmas quilt to use some of my christmas stash...well as time went on i found i was doing ok and decided tomake 2 of them...and that in turn developed into 4 quilts...about 40x55, one each for my 2 daughters, sons gf and my granddaughter....

they are all shown here with the finished quilts....i started them back in late August 2011 and had good luck with all ...granted they weren't hard as they were simple 4 and 9 patches...i wanted them similar but not exactly alike and that was achieved....i am just happy i got them done in time to present them at Thanksgiving dinner for 4 suprised girls...and it was the biggest undertaking i had done all at one time....

as i mentioned in one of the last posts i have some Christmas place mats to finish...but now i am looking for more patterns of things to make.... years ago i got another brainy idea but didn't follow through with it....i wanted to dress old  world santas....i gathered some vintage items and went so far as making a clay head for one that would fit the hole in the top of an empty soda bottle to use as a base....ha! my clay head looks more like Freddie Krueger of nightmare on elm street so my daughter says....but with some white for a beard and a little white hair and eyebrows i think he would work....i have dressed dolls in the past and dressing santas wouldn't be that much of a difference for me...i might look into that again and see if i can make it work this time....more on this later....

I  want to make a couple fall table runners...in the past i have been gathering fall fabrics, oranges, browns, rusts and now i am lacking a few neutral tans....i dont do much fall decorating but would like a nice runner for my table if and when its cleaned off and i can put it there with my candle sconces...which lately hasn't happened....

time for me to get going on my day....its noon lol and i am still sleepy but i have a lot to do today and hope i can get most of it out of my way before i quit for the day....happy sewing....more later....

GFG QUILT STILL IN PROGRESS

yes my grandmothers flower garden is still in progress....i have decided to make 2 at a time...i have 2 daughters and they both are drooling over the one i started so i just decided to start one more....the first one is at 6 rows wide and the second one is at 4 for the time being but i have enough blocks ready to set for 2 more rows....when they are even i will work on first one then other till i have 11 rows wide then worry about how to finish them...

today i have more white to wash and iron to use for more white hexies....it sure is taking a lot to make these quilts...i had no idea how much but i had ordered a bolt of white kona to use for quilts so i had it covered...

i also found more pastel print courthouse step blocks...i think the very last of them, i hope....i must have made a thousand of them cause i have made a lot of things with that pattern...this time i have enough for a medium size quilt or lap quilt i might donate to the nursing home...i have been trying to decide on the color for the background and back....hopefully i wil decide this week end....

i kind of got sidetracked this past week with things after a fall i did, badly bruised toes and right hand have slowed me down for the time being but slowly healing...i have had skid marks on my forehead, nose and chin  and glad to see that they are almost healed...i looked like i had been in a fight and i lost lol....well time to finish my last cup of coffee for the day so more later.....