Some of This, Some of That Week 36

Not much destashed because of travels and heat.  I only used 3 yards for background for those baskets, a backing for a baby quilt, and some yardage for another charity quilt for  YTD total of 74.82 yards de-stashed.  In the order I worked on them:
 This quilt is for Baby Stella who was born a couple of weeks ago to DGS Frank's Nina, Markann"s DIL. The top was made by my DIL, Deanna.  Frank sandwiched it and I quilted it - a group effort.
 Here's the back. I FMQ around the stars, used a walking foot for the straight lines and a curvy line in the border. I only had about 6 hours in which to do all this, plus referee two grandsons before we had to deliver it. Phew. I used flannel in the back.
And here's the one we were going to give Stella at the start of the week.  Frank picked out the fabric, colored the four blocks and arranged the 6 1/2" squares.  I suggested the two diagonal rows, but the rest was his layout.  He did good!  It is now a top and will go to St. Anne's members to finish. My part is done.

Another one for St. Anne and coming off the design wall as well as the one above:
This was a 1980's cloth book panel I found in the donations from Deanna's mom.  Since I don't have anyone to give a cloth book to (and it was easier to make a top) I put this together as another one for St. Anne's.  I plan to sandwich it myself and quilt it.  The blocks are too big to just tie in the corners. They are 11 1/2 " square.

And now on my design wall are the rows for a scrappy charity quilt, also for St. Anne's.  I had all these leftover 5" squares, some 6 1/2" squares and 2" strips, that I decided to use them up for another top.  I'm calling it a squarish I Spy.  Of course I still have some scraps left, but the pile does look smaller.
I"m happy to report the temps tonight came down. Yeah!  It was only 91 at 6:30 PM - not like yesterday when it was that temp at 9:30 PM.

I'm linking to Julie's FMQ Mavericks, Sarah's Can I Get a Whoop, Whoop? and Judy's Patchwork Times. Lot of fun projects there. Take a look.

WIPs Be Gone Week 35

On my patio yesterday, it was 107.  Today, it is 108.  I'm very grateful that I have air for a second summer that is keeping the room I'm in a nice 82 degrees.  It feel like heaven compared to outside.

But I just feel so enervated. It's all I can do to type these few lines. No energy to take photos of the two baby charity quilt tops I made last week end. No energy period.

So let's link cooling photos of winter quilts
or refreshing waters. Something, anything to help us endure these temps.  I know my friends and family in the South are shaking their heads at me as they have high temps too and with their humidity - a heat index of 117 last week.  So who am I to complain?

Linky below.  Stay cool myfriends! I'm off to put on my cooling neckcloth, darken this room and take a nap.

Applique Tuesday Week 35

Not back to a normal schedule yet.  Found I have one more basket to make - I have no idea where the 8th background went.  I may have left it in Colorado. Sigh.  Working on that now. I may have some finishes for Friday. On my design wall is still my WIP #7 wall hanging:
Need to sandwich so I can start quilting it.  I'm going to use the facing method to bind this. Will measure about 20 square when done.

I mentioned the Rocky Mountain Quilt Festival and the Hoffman Challenge when I was vacationing.
Turns out this venue is the first place they are exhibited for the year, so we got to see them all. Way more than I realized.  Here are some I captured with my phone:
Believe this was the top winner. If it wasn't, it should have been.  Those camels seemed ready to walk right out of that quilt. Amazing!
 The challenge fabric was perfect for the tablecloths in this still life.
 Many had a Persian feel/theme to them.
 Lots of elephants in this year's offerings.
 Beautiful applique use of the challenge fabric.

Another glorious work with applique and piecing.  Wish I had had time to write down the winners and names, but I was trying to do the whole show and vendors in  a mere two and a half hours.

What are you up to?  Let me know with a comment and I"ll come by to see your goodies.
Blessings!

Winners and winnings on WIPs Be Gone Week 34

First, congratulations to Sally over at Q Bits .  She won the Edyta Sitar book from my giveaway last week.  Her link took me to her quilt show and it is amazing. Here's the photo she shared of some of her great quilts.  Well worth visiting.

And speaking of winners - I won!  I came home from Colorado to open a package from the UK that contained a beautiful thread landscape from Margaret at Lizzie Lenard Vintage Sewing .  Her work is amazing and the landscape came out gorgeous! I'm thrilled!!

As for me, I've had two of my DGS over for the week and no WIP work done at all, but we've had fun.  Last night (it's too hot during the day) we played miniature golf.  It was hilarious with those two. I'm so glad they are here and we can have fun together.


Budding Gamers both.
What are you up to? Would love to see it, whether finished or WIP progress or an old post, or even about what is going on in your life - not necessarily quilty. Share your goodness. Linky below ends Monday, midnight.  And I'm linking to Amanda's Finish it Up Friday, Richards Link A Finish Friday, Sarah's Can I get a Whoop, Whoop?, Lizzie Lenard's FMQ Mavericks because I did finish something (a baby quilt) and did some FMQ.  Here's the finish
and the back:
And here's the linky:


Applique Tuesday Week 34

Actually, no applique since I got home from CO. Did prep all 7 blocks there,  so now I can start adding the flowers - but no photos yet. I'm having the grandsons over this week - the last free one before school, so no time in the sewing room with a 11 and 13 year old around. Just got back from swimming at the neighbors. Stay cool!

WIPs Be Gone Week 33

Hello, friends - I'm still in Colorado. And to celebrate WIPs Be Gone, I'm heading to the Rocky Mountain Quilt Festival in Loveland, CO - just a bit down the road from Fort Collins.  It runs the 13-15th.  I'm excited because they have the entire traveling collection of the Hoffman 2015 Challenge before it is split into the 12 traveling exhibits.  I've only seen parts of it at other shows in different years. 
And if you'd like to learn how they pick the challenge fabric, go here.  I'm always amazed with what the entrants come up with for this challenge.  I'll try to take some photos if they're allowed.

I've been working on my baskets, but it's slow go with a 6 year old to interact with - LOL.  I've finished three of the 8 I brought with me so far.  Today we went to the Denver Zoo and I'm all tuckered out.
I can't believe how few people had hats on while visiting the zoo. There must have been only 1 out of every 25 people with a hat and it was in the middle of the day and hot. Thankfully there is quite a bit of shade along the paths, but still enough sun to warrant hats.

So while I recover,  DGS is watching a video that was part of my birthday gift to him. Then I'm making Chicken soup. And then back to the baskets.

What are you up to? I'd love to know whether WIPS or quilty news or vacation report as above -doesn't have to be a new post.  Linky below ends Monday, midnight.  And to thank you for linking, I'm giving away an Edyta Sitar book, Scrappy Fireworks Quilts.  You can see it here. Her's one of the quilts from it I'd like to make:



I'm linking to Amanda's Finish it Up Friday, Richards Link A Finish Friday, Sarah's Can I get a Whoop, Whoop? because I did finish two baskets, and on Monday with Lyn for BOMs Away because I worked and made blocks. Bye for now. Bye for now,  Angie in SoCal

Applique Tuesday Week 33

I prepped for applique this past week as I'm in Colorado this week and have no access to a machine. I needed a hand stitching project. It's WIP #13 I'm working on and I call it Hexie Baskets. I found the pattern for the blocks in an old Quilter's Newsletter magazine, issue 260 - March 1994 - way before I took up making hexagons or discovered Karen at Faeries and Fibres .  Stars in the Loft is the one that stunned me into the possiblities of hexies beyond Grandmother's Flower Garden.

So I pulled out the pattern and began assembling the hexagon flowers in 2012 after reading Karen's tutorials. I decided to only attempt a 9 block version.  The hexagons are 1/2" .  I brought with me 7 baskets and 7 handles to applique onto the 13" squares of muslim I cut.



When I get back from CO, I'll add the finished flowers  to the blocks, and they will look like this:
                                       
Then it will be time for more hand stitching, or maybe I'll do it with the machine - stitching around the flowers and leaves that is.

Bye for now,
Angie in SoCal

WIPS Be Gone Week 32!

Can you believe it - there are only 20 weeks left in 2015! Wow.

I finished a preemie quilt made out of some of those triangles I cut off units in making an early B3 quilt. With some leftover fabric I came up with this:
It measures 30" square.  I quilted it with straight lines following the seams. I wanted this one to stay soft.  Now this one I quilted differently:
There are diamonds in the outermost squares but you can't see them unless you spot them on the back.  Most of it you can see I just spaced straight lines on the whitest fabric. In the light blue I did some freezer paper work.
I cut out the leaves on the freezer paper that I had traced from the master. I then cut out part of each leaf to make the design continuous. I used a frixion pen to transfer the pattern to the actual fabric, and pulled off the paper to use it in the next space. I used a baby blue Superior So Fine thread with an 80/12 titanium needle.   Here's a closeup:
This is a B3 quilt whose free pattern is on my right side bar.  Looks modern to me. Here's the back:
On the WIP front, I now have a quilt top made out of #7.  I hoped to have it sandwiched, but I've been working a lot on trying to get WIP #13 - my hexie baskets - ready to take with me to CO as my hand stitching project.  I leave Sunday.
WIP #7
What are you up to? Would love to see it, whether finished or WIP progress or an old post, or even about what is going on in your life - not necessarily quilty. Share your goodness. Linky below ends Monday, midnight.
I'm linking to Amanda's Finish it Up Friday, Richards Link A Finish Friday, Sarah's Can I get a Whoop, Whoop?, Lizzie Lenard's FMQ Mavericks because I did finish something and did some FMQ, then Saturday with Pink Doxies and Monday with Lyn for BOMs Away. Bye for now. I'll try to post from CO when and if I can.

Applique Tuesday Week 31

Hey! I have some applique to share - it's machine applique, but that counts.  Here's my third block of that store hop from 2010:
This is a Dresden plate block but it sure looks like a square with triangles sticking out.  Think it is the fabric that makes it look like that.  The blades are all the same size.  ??

What are you up to?  I'm prepping some blocks to take with me for some hand stitching while I'm in Fort Collins next week. That's taking up all my sewing time these days. Leave me a comment and I'll come by and see your great quilties or life shots as I take breaks from starting to get ready to fly off to see my DS and DGS.

Blessings,

SAHRR Round 5 and 6

  Ready to show rounds 5 and 6. Actually, the prompt for 5 was make 4 of something. So I chose four patch, and actually since that made my q...