Head Down, Chin Up...

I did it! I kept my word and did lots of sewing. I just kept thinking about all of you and showing you what I was doing. It helped in moments of feeling very small. I hope your week has been very creative and productive, too.  Planning counts, too!

I want to show you a photo of the twins, Callum and Leyla, for whom I have made the quilt that follows.  They were born on January 25th to my niece and her husband. Both were just under 4 1/2 pounds. I have to say I never saw any of my own children when they were this small.  Mine were the bruiser variety!

And here is the quilt top that is for them. It will go to the quilter later this week.  

The pattern, "Sweet Tweets", is from the book, Animal Parade 2, by Cheri Leffler. I made a few changes to it, but it is definitely her pattern!!! This is a great book with delightful patterns for adorable quilts!

Here are a few close-ups. I used Special Effects ribbons for the branches, hand-dyed leaves, Thread Gatherer 4 mm silk ribbon for the feet and crest, wool for the beaks, and Thread Gatherer Silken Pearl for the eyes (a bullion stitch). The top measures about 44 by 56 inches.

I have also been having a lot of fun with my papercut block. I have to admit to getting rather obsessive about these!!! I want to see how it is going to look finished! This block is in progress. Both of these sections will then be appliquéd to a taupe background. You'll see next week! (Optimism!)

My son, Harold, drew the outer frame design for me years ago. I finally figured out how I want to use it.  There are three more. These will be the four blocks surrounding the center block of a large quilt. 

My son, Harold, was also here yesterday. He painted some lace for me. And he did a fabulous job!!! You will see these pieces soon in something I make!

I wanted to have my Challenge blocks finished for the 365 blocks, but I don't. Tomorrow afternoon is slated for catch up on those blocks! I have been collecting a few more fabrics in the lights and darks of the color way I am using. Making those little blocks made me realize how many fabrics I HAVE TO HAVE!!!!

I hope you enjoy what I have been up to. More next week.

Happy Quilting!

cynthia

It only took me 40 years to get cowboy boots!!!

Resurfacing...

Oh, I have been very bad. I really went underground. Nothing major, just turned a much bigger number than I ever intended or thought possible. Can I be that OLD???? YES. And several other real life occurrences that all happened at once. I dug a trench and hid my head. It's a bad habit I have. Why deal with all those horrors when one can hide?  Well, because they don't go away and sooner or later, one does have to face them all.  So, I am back with the living and have decided that big birthdays or not, I am still fine. I will just have to buy myself more presents during the year!

And worst than any of that, I haven't been doing much sewing.  Now that is really shameful!!! I promise to do much better. Working from the present back just a few weeks (we'll ignore a lot of those other weeks!), here is what I have been doing.

I am having fun with the 365 Block Challenge. One makes a 3-inch block each day, and, at the end of the year, each person will have a 90-inch quilt to assemble. My dear friend, Teresa W., in the UK, is also doing it, so it is making it more fun for me. The last numbers I saw were about 11, 500 people making the blocks worldwide.  Here are my 30 January blocks. Tomorrow will make 31.

They aren't in the original order, because it was windy outside and they blew off my board. I got them back on and just hoped for a photo before it happened again. 

Here is a drawing of the quilt we are heading toward...

As you can see, we are working on the dark colored blocks right now. If you want to join in the fun, I would think you could catch up at this point in the year, but don't wait too much longer! Google 365 Block Challenge and you should find the website. There is also a page on Facebook.

I also finished this piece for my husband. It will go to my quilter very soon. Yay!!!

The base is a log cabin and I added a wreath with antique lace. On top of the lace are embroidered birds, hand painted and woolen leaves, and beads. 

The birds are not ornithologically correct. I just had delightful fun with bird shapes. My husband is a birder, and he was a bit confused. I claimed artistic license!

Right now I am working on several things. One is my NY Beauty quilt which I started a while ago, but for whatever reasons set aside. Here is the center block as last photographed, although it is farther along than this now.

I have also started a second "fan". Here is the beginning of it.

I am excited to be working again!And to be writing and sharing!!!

My niece had twins last Monday: a boy and a girl! I am making two little quilts for Callum and Leyla! I will show you those next week... 

So sorry I have been missing for so long!!! I will keep my chin up and the work coming!

Hope your world is bright and sunny,

cynthia

Forging Ahead...

Still finishing those projects that have been stacking up! Here are two pieced twin-size tops that went to my quilter last Monday along with my other finished tops (Floral Bouquet and EPP Stars).

They are the same design and use the same fabrics, but the placement varies. This is as close as I can come to making two of the same!!! And I had to take a two-year break in between the two!  The pattern for the top is in Simple Shapes Spectacular Quilts, by Kaffe Fassett. It is called "Yellow Potpourri" in the book.

I especially like the architectural details on some of the fabrics, and then blue is always good!

I am hoping those quilts will layer nicely with plain dark blue quilts underneath them, and an ivory dust ruffle. I am trying to dress up a boys' room! Not an easy task!!! I have learned to stop asking what they want, and just do what I want though...

The next quilt I am having a blast with is "Sutton Grange", by Di Ford. I started this last spring, but didn't get very far. I think I must have been very tired indeed! I have gotten it back out, and we are liking each other a lot!  Here is Di Ford's version and pattern.

My version is slightly different. (Did I hear someone say, "Uh, DUH!!!")  The beauty of these patterns is a gorgeous design one can customize! The pieces are just laid out, not sewn, and that top intertwining border isn't sewn yet!!! Proceeding in fits and starts...

My center is lacey and has a few buttons, so far. I have several ideas of what is going to happen to this block over the next few weeks...

For the second border, Di Ford was very lucky and used a fabric which she fussy cut and appliquéd by broderie perse. I didn't have a fabric I thought worked in that way, so I used lace and some trim.  I plan to continue to use lace in the other borders where Di Ford repeated the fabric, but each will be different. The intertwining appliqués are directly from her pattern. I love how they turn out.

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I will add the lace corners after the yo-yo border is in place. I just know I am not the dedicated piecer that Di Ford is, so I substituted yo-yo's and embroidery for all the pieced quarter circles. I am having tons of fun, and that is definitely part of my agenda!

I apologize this entry is a little later than I planned. I could not get the software to work last Friday when I started this entry.  Here it is!  All good... back to hand embroidery... YAY!

Keep your quilts happy,

cynthia

Back In Finishing Mode!

Remember that list of projects I wrote up a few months ago to finish before I started anything new??? Luckily, you don't have to; only I do!!! I can check a few things off!!! What a good feeling! It's very tempting to say, ok, enough of this, on to something new, but I have held off and will keep with the program...

Here is the first quilt I have finished and will deliver to its recipient very soon. The future owner is a dear friend and member of a small quilting group several of us have here in Houston. We have lots of fun when we get together, and I hope that shows in the quilt.

This quilt is for Ida, and she is the dark-haired beauty! We are all quilting fairies!!! We work magic with quilts! At least that is what we tell ourselves on a good day... I just hope Ida loves the quilt and enjoys it when she looks at it!!!

The next piece that is ready for my quilter, a quilting fairy in her own right, is my EPP stars. I added just a little embellishment to the top and a row of colonial knots between the stars and the border. I am happy with it as a first effort.  I am looking forward to making other EPP quilts, lots of others!

The last photo is the fabric for the backing, which I really like.  It is in the stars on the front; I like the lacey design and the soft color.  I am looking forward to seeing this top quilted. It is a throw size.

And one more! Yes, I said I was in finishing mode!!! Now, I only laid the laces on the border to show you what I am going to sew down today. So, to be fair, I photographed the top without the lace in the border and with it.  You can see which you prefer. This is a pattern by Yoko Saito. My book is in Japanese, but I think the name of the quilt is "Floral Bouquet Quilt".  The book is now available in English. As you will see I changed a lot of the details, but the layout remains the same.  I really think this is fine. A pattern is a guide. Use it as you wish.  That is my philosophy.

There are lots of details in this quilt, and there are still some I have to add that go between the blocks. It has been great fun to use lots of different techniques and fibers and fabrics. Color is my one constraint. Other than that, pretty much anything goes.

I want to mention a book I received in the mail yesterday. It's Country Style Quilting, by Lynette Anderson. Fabulous!!! Delightful!!! I think you really need it!!!

Fall is in the air here in Houston and that only means one thing:  Quilt Festival!!!! Hope you are coming!!!!

cynthia