WIPs Not Forgotten

I have made progress on the next seven blocks of the WIP I'm working on, but nothing worth showing yet. Maybe Monday. I did finish quilting the neonatal quilt. Hoped to have finished Tuesday, but sick DGS needed me.

Here's another view:

And a close up of the corner so you can see the actual green plaid of the back.  I'm happy with my corners.  Those were free motion this time. Do them enough times and they get to be more even.  We had a speaker at Tuesday's guild meeting who spoke on free motion quilting on domestics.  She inspired me to get this done. It was a great session!

I'm linking to Sarah's Can I Get a Whoop Whoop?! and other in my linky party list. See tabs above; click on more.

Have a great weekend!

Next WIP

This is probably NOT the next one recommended to do on my challenge list. It might not even be On my challenge list.  But it was the first WIP I got my hands on yesterday and well, I'm just going to work on it.

Had 4 done, made 7 at retreat.  Just have 25 to go.  Linking to some of the linky parties in my tab.
Blessings,

Christmas WIPs Be Gone

Quilted:

Bound: 

My second Christmas WIP is ready for the season.

This Bonnie Hunter mystery, Carolina Christmas, is from 2009.  I've had the top done since 2010.  One more UFO done from my combined list for Judy's UFO challenge and the 17 UFOs in 2017 challenge.  It has so many pieces I decided to do wavy stitch in the ditch.  Both the back and front are so busy, one can hardly see the quilting.

I hope you get to quilt today.  In celebration of another finish, I'm giving away 105 one inch hexagons to a lucky commentator or linker or both (2 chances).  Link button below. Ends Thursday, midnight.

Good luck!

WIPs Be Gone

Finished that baby quilt!  My job is done with this top - now other St. Anne's members take over.

I found this nice photo of three of us (me, Mom and daughter Emily) at the retreat. Deanna was taking the photo. I hope I can find one of the four of us.

Isn't that a great quilt behind us?  Suits the area just right.  Temecula is known for its hot air balloons as well as the wine country.

Linking to some parties.  See tab under header. Click on more.  Blessings!

WIPs Be Gone

I used the wrong setting.  That orange border is a nice peachy color. Oh well.  This St. Anne's top came from the book Quilt for Joy  by Barbara Brandenburg and Teri Christopherson.  I just made a smaller version.

Finished at 36" square and is now being sandwiched by another St. Anne's member.

Climate change did a number on a couple of our fruit trees.  We have a wonderful Pomelo tree that usually gives us a crop in January - February. Don't know this citrus?  Go here.  Our tree, shown below, usually gives us a good crop.  I usually send packages to family and friends as a Happy New Year gift.  In fact in Southeast Asia if you eat some on New Year's Day you'll have good luck.  This year we had two fruits.  One fell prematurely from too much rain and burst.  The other we got to pick.

Compared to a 6 oz cup - you can see how big this is.

Then you peel it - you can see how thick the rind is.

Once you finish peeling it you have this luscious pink fruit.

And the tree?  It's loaded with another big crop but way out of sync - It usually blooms in June and the fruit is ready in middle of winter. Now we don't know.

We have a grafted pink pommelo and it is delicious.  It's work to get to the flesh, but worth it.  What does it taste like?  Just like a naturally sweet grapefruit with no astringency.  Yum.

Hope you get to sew today.  I'm linking to some parties - you can see the links under my tab above.

WIPs Are Going ....

... but slowly.  

NI #3 is quilted (terrible photo, but had to take it last night)

Here's part of the front - had fun following the pattern in the fabric

Made the units for 4 more blocks for the St Anne's quilt

Half way done with  the last border of my April UFO

Working on a bird for Lori's QAL

Quilting the Christmas quilt - just the grid work done so far.

Lastly - enjoying my amaryllis that are in bloom across from my kitchen door.

Tomorrow I'm taking mom to a quilt show for her birthday.  She turned 91 last Saturday.

Before I forget - last week's winner of a fat quarter is Karen Martin.  I've sent her an email.  Can't link this Friday - I'll be logging quite a few miles this coming week (200 this weekend).  I hope you have time to quilt in the next few days.  It would be nice to know what you're working on while I'm so busy with my other life.  Blessings!

WIPs Be Gone Almost

This Quilt Along WIP that was my April project for Judy's UFO challenge is almost done.  One more side to go.  I started this in 2014.  My "to be quilted pile" is getting a lot bigger!

One of the reasons it isn't all done is that I stopped to finish another Nearly Insane top. Can't seem to get enough of these.  Here's my fourth one:

In actual fact, it is the 9th one in the book of 98 blocks.  However those between 4 and 8 were too much the same and I wanted a few more pieces in the top, so that's why I made #9.  I call it my Lady Bug top - it will be a 30" quilt for the Neonatal unit.

We've had a return to cooler days - low 80s; upper 70s.  As a result, my one remain rose bush bloomed. Yippee!

Here's a close up of one of the lovelies

What are you up to?  I'd love to come by and see.  Link up and leave a comment.  I'll announce the winner of last week's book giveaway Sunday.  Want a fat quarter?  Link up and maybe you'll be the winner.  This giveaway ends next Thursday near midnight. Blessings!

WIPs Be Gone and a Giveaway

Here's the quilt I'm working on now for the two UFO challenges I'm participating in this year.  This is my rendition of Karen's Soupçon Quilt Along (second one down at her site). Was started in 2014. Have to add the last round which is paper pieced. I'm more confident about doing paper piecing after all the blocks done by that method in the Splendid Sampler.

One side done:

Center of the next baby quilt. Pattern from a book titled Quilting for Joy by Barbara Brandenburg and Teri Christopherson.  I'm hand stitching that applique block I was working on last Sunday.  Getting more done as I finished my ancient one from 1987 - yes, 30 years ago in Sept I started my 2nd quilt of the 280+ quilts I've made in that time span.

Made all the mistakes a beginning quilter makes - chose a queen size quilt, pattern had set in seams,  didn't know how to quilt, etc. I took a hand quilting class, but that was too slow, too.  I made the blocks in no time, but the hand quilting took forever. Then I discover big stitch hand quilting and really started to make considerable progress.  Back then, I bought seven spools of hand quilting thread having no clue how much I would need.  Turns out I had just a few inches left on the one spool I had to use.  Anybody want six spools of hand quilting thread - LOL.

I've always wanted a whole cloth quilt.  Here's the back and the closest I'll ever come to a WCQ:

She's bound and on my bed at last:

I chose to bind it in the light green leftover from the blocks and border.

Lastly, I made a large bag for our Riverside Area Rape Crisis Center.  They are given to victims when they report the crime.  Everything they have on is kept as evidence, so they need a lot of things, IE: sweat pantsuit, flip-flops, underwear, toiletries, socks, etc.

I lined it with the black of the print:







Think I'm caught up on sewing news.  Now for the giveaway!  Since it's been a while here's the scoop:   What have you been working on?  Link up and show me.  You can win a mystery book.  I'll be sending the winner a list of three titles from which to pick of her/his technique preference. So link up for one chance. Follow me for another chance.  Leave a comment for a third chance.  And for a fourth chance, visit Michele here.  Let me know which of her quilts you like best. And for a fifth chance - follow Michele, and let me know for a total of six chances to win! Remember if you don't have a blog, you can always post a photo from a photo stream.  Please be sure there is some way for me to contact you.  The linky is below.  I'll be linking to several parties - Tab above.

Blessings as we approach the end of the First Week of Eastertide - when Jesus walked among us. We rejoice in His Resurrection and 
remember the joy of the life to come because of our Lord.

Design Wall Monday

This is the first Monday of Eastertide - the 50 days after the Resurrection.  It is a joyful time! Hallelujah!

Today I'm celebrating Design Wall Monday. All that meditating produced a lot of sewing since housework was out, laundry was out, even cooking was low key. We did feast on Easter Sunday, but a friend had invited us over.

Coming off my wall is one of my UFOs for the 17 UFOs for 2017 - the top is done!  I had to redo 4 of them from the stack I won (think it was in 2009). Those four were very well made. Unfortunately, they were 1/2" too small.  Maybe I'll make a table runner from them.    It's now sandwiched and ready to quilt.

40"square

Also ready to quilt (a St. Anne's baby top) is my rolling nine-patch top. These are 15" square and are perfect to highlight a large print. I call it a rolling nine patch because that's the block I started with, but I changed it up a bit.  Actually, it is a 25 patch with a nine patch in the middle.  I've seen them as 6", 10", and 12" blocks.  But that was too many pieces for me, so I figured out how to have only nine. Did it by making flying geese instead of a square and two half square triangles. Much easier - you can see the pattern under my free patterns tab.  I used the triangles I cut off from stitch/flipping to make those flying geese in the border. No scraps left - yeah!

36" square

Next was a square for the Fall Festival QAL that Lori at Humble Quilts is hosting.  I'm not doing the one everyone else is doing - just a similar one that happens to be a WIP for me. They were suppose to make a house block.  Mine has a house block, too, so that's what I made.

12" square.

As I watched Father Brown, this evening, I did some hand stitching on an applique block, too. There's more, but I'll save those for another day.  Since we're celebrating Eastertide,  maybe I'll have a giveaway this Friday.

Linking up to some parties.  See the tab above.  Blessings, and thank you for walking with me during the past Holy Week.

Quilted, Bound, Delivered WIP

Here's Nearly Insane #1 at 30 1/2" square quilted, bound and on its way to the local Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at our county hospital.  The Nearly Insane blocks were designed as 5 1/2" finished blocks.

The walking foot was used for stitch in the ditch - all

the rest was FMQ - even the lines in the four outer rectangles.

Back of quilt

Go back to first photo for true colors.

What are you working on? Leave a comment or a link to let the readers and me know. I'm linking to some parties myself as found in my tab above and especially to Finished or Not Fridays. Someone gets a fat quarter.

Blessings,

Fourth WIPs Be Gone

Another Anna's Garden block finished being prepped.

My Anna's Garden is the WIP I'm working on for Judy's [Patchwork Times] challenge.  I won't get it near done but I'm several blocks further along now.

Many of you readers saw my DD's hexagons in my Three Kings post.  Well here is her finished wall hanging she's sent off to NZ for a swap.  I'm so proud of her.

What are you up to? Link up for a chance to win  105 (3/4"sides) hexagon  papers. Usual guidelines apply:   Leave me a comment for one chance.  Link your eye candy for another (link button below). Follow me and let me know for a third chance. Remember if you don't have a blog, you can always post a photo from a photo hosting service.  Please be sure there is some way for me to contact you. Ends next Thursday, midnight. Good luck.

Third WIPs Be Gone Post

Hey, I finally found my sampan!  It was tiny - only 3/4" square.  I use the Crafty Applique method to treat it and make it fray proof.  Then I cut it with very sharp scissors.  People and DH had suggested that I paint it on, but I was too afraid that if I messed up,  there went the quilt top.  Once cut I ironed it in place and then hand stitched it using a straight stitch.

When I gave it to my friend on Tuesday, she was amazed.  She'd forgotten all about it (was about 10 years ago she gave the center to me), but the minute she saw it, she remembered the class she took to make it.
  We're calling it: On the Yangtze River.

Measures @ 12 x 16

I quilted it with Superior Invisible thread, a 70/10 sharp needle using a straight stitch. I stitched right next to the folds - it made it look a bit like trapunto.  I also used a navy blue art pencil to color over some of the whip stitches that showed.  A second WIP gone in 2017.

I'm working on my third Anna's Garden block - my WIP for the month.  Here's how far I've gotten:

What are you up to?  Leave me a comment and I'll come by.  Blessings,

2ND WIPs Be Gone

One more leaf and another block of Anna's Garden is done!

  The color is a bit off because I had to take this photo at night.  These are going so much faster than before.  I've already copied the next pattern, numbered the pieces and cut them out.  On a roll.

2017's First WIPs Be Gone

See this bag:

 It was stuffed with fabric scraps from St. Anne's.  I brought it home and challenged myself to make quilt tops from it for our workshop.  I made three:

 The green monochromatic that I sewed on my treadle machine.

 The word quilt using letter squares from the June Parish Festival (colored by children).

And the really way out one with blocks that had been donated to us (the ones with the buildings).  It includes a Chinese garden, high rise apartments, urban forest, a Chinese restaurant inspired by the gardens, suburbs and aviation sightings in the sky. I started this last one Dec 27th, but just finished it  earlier in the week.  Below is what is left in the bag - not enough to make another top. But then maybe I can make a center and then add borders from some other bag - hmmm.

Three WIPs ready to be sandwiched, tied and donated.  What have you been up to?  Leave me a comment and I'll come by to see.