Work in Progress

Here is a peek at one of the quilts I hope to finish this month.

It is a twin size nine patch that still needs the outer border.

This project and I have been "frenemies" for a very long time.

The quilt top actually started out looking like the above photo.

It was given to me over 25 years ago by my Grandmother.

She had made it for a family member as a wedding gift.

When she showed it to them, they did not like it.  

Then Grandma didn't have the heart to finish it, and gave it to me.

It  sat in a dresser drawer at my house for the next 25 years.

Every so often, I would pull it out and look at it, 

but I could never quite decide what to do with it.

Part of the dilema was that I didn't like the dark blue sashing either.

In my opinion it made the quilt feel somewhat oppressive.

Grandma also made this quilt late in life when her eyesight had begun to fail her.

Notice the uneven seams? 

As an inexperienced quilter, 

I could not figure how to quilt something with such uneven seams.

So...you guessed it. I tore the quilt totally apart, evened up

all the blocks, and purchased some additional fabric,.

Once all the blocks were laid out, I decided there were

enough blocks to make two twin size quilts.

Perfect for the guest room where the grandkids sleep over:)

Lighter sashing fabric was then added to blocks and 

two twin sized quilts were constructed.

Ahh! That's more like it. Bright and cheerful:)

Today I was able to purchase the fabric for the outer borders and

began auditioning various machine quilting patterns.

One of my personal goals for 2013 is to expand my machine quilting skills.

I have come the conclusion that it will not happen without practice.

Hopefully I will end up with two lovely quilts Grandma 

would be proud of, 

and the "frenemy" quilt will finally be loved:)

Linking up today with...

May you always Sew in Peace!

Simplicity

Found a new quilt pattern this weekend that somehow 

jumped to the head of my "to do" list.

It is just in the preliminary stages of becoming a quilt

but will hopefully be completed in a few days.

Simplicity is defined as "the state or quality of being simple".

That seems to sum things up pretty well.

May you always Sew in Peace!

Sneak Peak

I started this I Spy quilt ages ago and opted to go with straight line quilting.
Perhaps that was a mistake.

It always seems to take longer to quilt when I take this approach.

Hopefully it will be finished later this week.
At least that is the plan...


May you always Sew in Peace!
Sandra

Making Progress

Making progress. Yesiree!

I'm really loving the postage stamp concept

and the secondary pattern that appeared in the quilting.

Now I just need to find the time to bind it.

Hopefully soon:)

May you always Sew in Peace!

Sandra

Sneak Peak

Finally took a break from the busy schedule to sew.

 It's cheaper than therapy.

May you always Sew in Peace!

Sandra

One Flower Wednesday

Finally getting my photos posted for One Flower Wednesday.

I discovered some plaid fabric in my stash that I thought would

add interest to my Grandmother's Flower Garden quilt.

Yep. I'm liking it:)

I was able to complete two more flowers this week,

and am still on the lookout for fabric to use for the pathway.

This is block 3 for the Civil War quilt-along.

The pattern showed five point stars, but I felt that six point stars look better

and came up with a plan to create my own.

This is my first applique project,

so it will be interesting to see how it turns out.
Keep your fingers crossed!

May you always Sew in Peace:)

Sandra

Civil War Blocks

Back in January quilt historian Barbara Brackman started a Civil War quilt-along.

Each week a true story is shared from the diaries and letters of those who lived during the Civil War

along with the pattern for a new 8 " quilt block.
By making one block per week
participants learn about the Civil War and at the end of the year
will have a quilt of their own as a keepsake.

Even though I am a few blocks behind,
I've decided this looks like a worthwhile learning experience.
Here are my first two blocks.

Block 1 - Catch Me If You Can

Block 2 - North Star

There is also a Civil War Quilts flickr group
where you can view blocks and piecing tips that are posted by other partcipants.
Best of all there is no fee to join the quilt-along
and you can begin at any time your schedule allows.

May you always Sew in Peace:)
Sandra

One Flower Wednesday

For this week's One Flower Wednesday

I was able to finish three flowers for my

Grandmother's Flower Garden quilt.

Finally, I'm getting back in the groove of making these flowers

and here's the biggy...

I'm enjoying it!

I was also able to finish several blocks for the Quilting Bee at Margaret's Hope Chest.

A quilt will be made for Jordon with these blocks combining animal or car fabric

and yellow, red, orange, or blue solids.

These blocks were made with the Cluck Cluck Sew's Stack and Wack Block Tutorial.

If you decide to make this block, be warned that the instructions are somewhat off.

After several attempts, I believe the center block needs to be larger in order

to make the 7 1/2" block turn out correctly.

A quilt will be made for N'Tari with these blocks

using basketball or football fabric and white, black, or blue for the cross fabric.

These blocks were made with the That Girl That Quilts Cross Block Tutorial.

I really liked making this block, perhaps because the directions were easy to follow.

 May you always Sew in Peace:)

Sandra

I Spy / One Flower Wednesday

I was able to finish two flowers this week for my

 Grandmother's Flower Garden quilt.

At least progress is being made...

...and I was once again able to participate in One Flower Wednesday.

My pile is growing ever so slowly...sigh.

Here are the latest fabrics for the

I Spy Swap!

Fabrics received from Chiska.

Chiska also sent along a lovely charm square

and two chocolate bunnies! 

I was intrigued with the artisic wrapping on the bunnies.

So cute!

Thank your for your thoughtfulness Chiska!

However,

I'm afraid the bunnies did not survive until Easter:)

Fabrics received from Cindy.

Fabrics received from Frances.

Fabrics received from Jenny.

Fabric received from Sharon at Camp Granmma.

 Fabric received from Annie at Adventures in Oz.

Annie also sent along this cute little embroidery scissors as a gift.

 These will come in handy. Thank you Annie!

At this point we are waiting for the last four packages of fabric to arrive.

We should be on target to complete the swap by May 1st as planned!

                                                  All I Spy fabrics can be viewed on flickr by clicking

here.

                                

In other news,

Annie is hosting a Finish Your Project Challenge

so be sure to check out the details!

This is the perfect motivation to pull out those unfinished projects and get to work.

The winner will receive a $30.00 shopping spree at Crazy Quilt Girl Fabric Shop!

May you always Sew in Peace:)

Sandra