Quilts/blocks/ animals

With all the cold weather - the quilts have been working overtime. Better the quilts than the furnace I say. Here's handsome hubby and Moose enjoying Hubby's quilt.



This quilt must be real comfy. Here's hubby and Nancy watching the boob tube.





I have the first row of Aunt Kathy's quilt done. I love the little embroidered animals holding ribbons. I also have embroidered hearts to alternate with the 9 patches. I still need to embroider 20 or so more blocks. Thank goodness for my little brother machine *VBS*



When I mad ethe lazy/shooting star Breast Cancer quilts I had a million bonus hsts. I started making these blocks months ago and put them away. Last night looking for a pattern in an old Quilters Newletter magazine I was that they called it Split Rails. I've also seen it called Sawtooth Rails. I have these blocks going in non pink and whites - just random lights and darks.



I've been missing most of the week because Monday I was going to a quilt show meeting for the guild and managed to get into a car accident with a teen about DD's age. Poor guy was pretty shaken up. Only damage to both vehicles was his license plate wrapped around the hitch to my truck-lol. I pulled it off and stepped onto the sidewalk and some ding dong - talking on her cell phone hit his car which hit my truck again! Still no damage to my truck- but the poor kid lost a bumper. They really make cars like tin cans these days-imho. Next day I was so sore. Whiplash I'm sure but by Wednesday I had xrays to make sure nothing was seriosly wrong. there wasn't :)
but put a big damper on sewing this week.
Lots of people needing blocks for love quilts. I've done 2 of 3 requests. Need to mail them Monday. I want to finish the last request and mail all at once.

Tomorrow I clear off the table and pin baste Buffalo Troubles for hand quilting. And baste the Feathered Star for my friend's bday on Thursday. Wish me luck :)

Sunday Sewing

Nancy is a little jealous that Moose has become the blog star. I mean she is my cat and Moose owns the men of the house. So I snapped a pic of sleepy Nancy last night.




My mother in law called yesterday with some bad news. Our aunt was diagnosed with breast cancer. They think in very early stages as she goes every 6 months for a mamo. Ok that part is great news- but again a friend/family member with this fucking horrible(excuse my French but it's my blog) disease and I'm so upset.I mean I've lost a good friend and a woman that was like an aunt to me in the last 3 months, had another friend diagnosed in October and now this? So what do I do? I start a love quilt of course. A few years ago we made a quilt for another friend of hearets and 9 patches. Perfect I have a ton of strips and instead of all hearts I'm using Stitchitcheap's breast cancer bears and hearts as alternating blocks. I'm half done with the 9 patch blocks and only have 10 of 35 bear/heart blocks. I keep forgetting to change the fabric in the hoop and restart the embroidery machine.


So after the congregation meeting at church I came home and brought all the pinks and whatever I had left from the jellyroll of Quilt for a Cure. I'm getting tired of pink and white/cream quilts not being made for little girls, if you know what I mean.




Some more blocks. Not too bad for an afternoon/evening's work.




Of course as I was editing pics for the blog I came across this one:

I didn't take it, it's one of those famous self portrait's of DD's.
At least she made me laugh today :)

Almost done :)

Mr Juki working overtime :) I finished the in the ditch quilting on Ohio Stars and need to make and attach binding tomorrow. Yeah!



Now if I can get it finished by Sunday I'll have 2 quilts in a week finished. Woo Hoo! I forgot what a pain in the shoulder and wrist quilting like this is :( But I can see a finish in my near future and since it's late for the bday I want it done this weekend.
Especially since i need to do 5 charity quilts for guild to bring to the quilt show meeting Monday night ....

Ohio Stars

For the last week or so I've been trying to make blocks and hide them to make a quilt for hubby. Yeah he gets Buffalo Troubles but I wanted something that said "Dave" so I've been making Ohio Stars and putting the Masonic Square and Compass in the centers. I really didn't think this through ( as usual) or the centers would be darker blue. The design still would have shown up. Any how I finally finished piecing the top and wouldn't you know hubby came home early and saw it :(



I did manage to make the darker squares with quilting lines for the Ohio Star and pinned it. Since we're following the stitching lines I can't use the juki and the frame. SO we're looking for the juki's reg foot pedal and I will attempt to quilt it on the dining room table over the weekend and get it done by Monday morning

One block :

Swiffer Duster Refills

I've been trying to get the kids to dust their rooms. And when ever they see dust in the house. How writting dust me doesn't help they need to do something constructive about it. Problem is they go through those swiffer duster refills like I have a tree growing them in the back yard :(
So I decided to try and figure out how to make them out of fleece. I mean there are a million links for making the mopping pads for the swiffer wet jet and all kinds of crocheted and knitted knitting refills, but it was all too much detail for something so simple .
I made 3 of these this afternoon in less than 30 minutes and quickly dusted with one and threw it in the load of laundry going in. It washed great. I would probably hang them to dry from the wire shelving about the w/d instead of drying them with the clothes and fabric softener sheets. Or drying with the towels ( no dryer sheets - not good for the nap- did you now that?) Are you ready to try???? Here's what I did:



Take 4 or more 6" squares of polar fleece. Draw a line down the center of one of the squares. Then draw another line on both sides of center line 3/4" apart.Stack all squares one on top of each other neatly. Sew from top to bottom on all 3 lines.



Insert the wand thingy and clip amost to sewn seams every 1/2"


It works great! Yippee!!!!!

Another Finish

We had a heat wave in NJ today! 36* Yippee! I was able to finally get the NYE mystery finished and off the frame. Now to finish a top for hubby's bday that's tomorrow. Silly man thinks that Buffalo Troubles is his BDay present. He's in for a surprise. Can't say anymore till he gets the finished product. He'll be surprised I'm sure is all I'm going to say. It's been cold and they had whiteout conditions according to the news yesterday...lovely. We got another inch or so with light snow showers . It's very pretty outside.
I was trying to cross my pattio to go talk to the next door neighbors and almost fell on my butt on the ice and stairs. Could have been very bad fall 3 cement steps but as DD says I'm like a cat and normally land on my feet *VBG*
Speaking of DD she FINALLY got a good job in a salon. Just needs to take a week off of school and be trained. Now to get her to save most of the money from now till we leave in August so we know she'll be ok......fingers crossed!



Moose heard a rumor of a nice warm from the dryer, new quilt on the boy's bed and felt he must test for quality control purposes.

More flimsys for the quilting que

I did manage to get Buffalo Troubles into a flimsy stage! Yippee! I also have enough blocks to piece a lazy star top for one of the love quilts and almost enough for a different pattern for one of the other ones. All of the small triangles in Buffalo Troubles are bonus hsts from the lazy star blocks! Can you imagine? And I have to make another 100 small bocks for the third quilt. What will I do with all those bonus triangles this time? The key is to trim about every 10 blocks or 20 bonus triangles or I get discouraged - overwhelmed with all the trimming. But the top is in que for some warmer quilting weather.




And well Moose was in a playful mood this morning. I love the crossed paws- such good manners-lol!



After I piece 2 more rows for the lazy star quilts I need to seriously clean up the sewing area. DD and my best friend's son are cooking dinner for 6 of us tomorrow - how cool is that? So the table needs to be totally cleared. That hasn't happened since New Years Eve-lol

Oh and I need to make the qst for an ohio star quilt for a bday present

Making Progress

I've managed to get 12 of the 20 blocks I need for the Kansas Troubles or as I'm going to call it Buffalo Troubles *wink* top.
The closer hubby gets to moving the more grief I'm getting from the teens. This too shall pass ( I hope)


I need 8 more of these blocks and I can piece the top....


Let's not forget the insane project I started last year. This poor top keeps getting pushed aside for other hand sewing. Bindings,hanging sleeves- soon english paper piecing.


My brain dead son stepped on the Marti Mitchell template I was using to cut and mark all the little pieces. After a few emails I am getting a replacement template from Marti Mitchell w/o buying a whole set...yeah!

Log Cabin Wall Hanging DONE!

This was the BOM for my guild. I made all of these and 5 more.
At the day meeting that I run, there were 19 blocks up to win. Think about it 19 -I made 5 that's more than 20% of the blocks. Did I win them ?? Nope! That's why when I decided we wanted a wall hanging of them...I made sure I made enough to make it w/o any from guild.

Valentine Heart Blocks

Oh you have to see the cute blocks Shanna is making over on her blog, Quilts by Design. I'm thinking once I get these blocks done and started into tops I may have to make some for a Valentine's Day wall hanging.
I have tons of reds and pinks that would be great for one....thanks for sharing Shanna.

Weekend Project

I was bored Sat night and yesterday. So I started a bday present for my best friend of 40+ years.



She works as an exporter for a WA state winery. The background fabric is from the Napa Valley line.
Almost done quilting the log cabin wall hanging and started another top for another bday present. That one is a secret till given....

My Friend, Kim

Remember back in Oct when I wrote this post ?
Today in our local country paper she had a wonderful write up.
You can read it here .


And because pictures make blogs way more interesting,
Here's her quilt pic again :)

Another Flimsy

Yesterday morning I pieced the top together and there it hangs next to the sewing area. I'm going to bind it in red *VBS*.



I have the correct size batting to finish it. I need to hunt for some backing. My friend Katie gave me a ton of a multi colored fabric that I want to make a pineapple blossom quilt with for one of Robin's daughters. Possibly both the younger ones but I need more whites first. Both are not getting PB's one is and the rest of the fabric, I'll make a different design I have so much of it.

I realized yesterday that my bestest friend's bday is a few weeks away and I've had this Napa Valley fabric for a couple years and a dark purple,merlot colored marble too. So I decided to make her a feathered star wall hanging just like my icon. And to to add a bonus I found wine cork fabric too! I may just have to make one for myself-lol. While looking for these fabric I became completely over whelmed with the thought of moving all this fabric, books and patterns. Not to mention the 7 machines and frame. Then after guild I was talking to my friend, Barb, who said it took months-lots of months to get her sewing area just so after her move here *sob*

Maybe tonight or tomorrow I'll have a flimsy of the feathered star.

Floor Tile Quilts

Ok, I was trying to explain to a fellow guild member my next insane project. Last year when we were in Atlantic City with the Masons for their convention. We went to an Irish Pub one night really late ( like after 1AM-lol) and they had a great tile floor with this design in it. Of course I took a pic and redrew it in EQ. It will be a small wall hanging. I'm using 3/4" hexagons.



Last time I saw a great floor pattern we were in the Grand Lodge of Philley and I saw this:



and made this :


Now finally for some eye candy. Our guild is reproducing quilts from this book:
New Jersey Quilts, 1777 to 1950: Contributions to an American Tradition.
Isn't this one a great scrappy one?

Quilty Pranks

A few years ago a group I belong to went on a quilt retreat with Marge of Delaware Quilts to Bird in Hand,PA. While sewing in the conference room after a big day shopping we were talking about UFO's and the fact that I hade NONE! Yep none. Well my friend gave me parts to these lovelies. Circa 1980's - look at the gold metallic on the fabric. And she challenged me to finish them for her. And I went home and did a few every month. I was so proud of myself and I started adding sashing and borders. Then she finds more *gasp* and send them to me. Now I don't have anymore of the sashing or border fabrics and I continue to applique ( not very well) the rest of the Sues. Now I need to rip apart the top ( in progress) to reassemble the top and quilt it for her. She doesn't want them back as she has a dislike to how pregnant Sue looks (???)
and we've had great fun in the last few years sending "stuff" back and forth.


When I finished this top this year she raved over the colors. How they reminder her of the Florida Keys :)





We belong to a group that gets together once a month or so and do a quilty frenzy. Prizes are donated and winners drawn every few hours.
I was the hostess in November and made sure that I was the one to send her a prize :) So with the spare parts of my ocean wave blocks I took some of the hand dyed fabric and embroidered her a SB Sue and Sam.

hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha I know I"m evil and going to hell in a hand basket *VBS*

Wednesday Happenings

I woke up to the two females fighting in our bedroom about 4 this morning. Just as I was going to go back to bed the phone rang. Delayed opening for school. An hour later it rang again - no school. Both teens are still sleeping and I've been up almost 6 hours already. Laundry's done, coffee cake and muffins are made.
The reason we had no school is this : Lots and Lots of ice



I love the look over iced over plants and objects. But's really slippery out there. Poor Cliff is sleeping in a chair with towels and a quilt. See a pattern here with the cats and quilts. Even the outside stray has a quilt.

Moose is Moose and could care less that there's almost 1/2" of ice outside. Why worry when you're INSIDE with my quilt!






This our house's favorite coffee cake recipe. Being there was no school today for the teens I made them breakfast :)

NY TIMES COFFEE CAKE :
Cake Batter:
2 c flour
3/4 c sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
2 eggs
1 c milk
1/3c oil
1 TBS vanilla

mix all dry ingredients together. I give it a good stir with a wisk.
Combine all wet ingredients in another bowl and add to dry
ingredients stirring until just combined. Batter will be thin and
pour into a greased 13x9 inch baking pan.

CRUMBS
2 1/4 sticks of butter ( I only use 2 - easier to remember)
3/4 c packed brown sugar
1/2c white sugar
3 c flour
Mix above to make BIG crumbs patting into cake batter


Bake at 375* for 40-45 minutes


powdered sugar for dusting cooled cake

I also add whatever else I like anywhere from 3/4c to 1c
of diced apples, berries, mini chocolate chips.

Totally yummy and like toll house cookies I can make w/o looking at a
recipe card.


Almost done with the log cabin blocks. Another possible layout.
Please no one comment that they look like swatikas- these layouts have been around way longer than Hilter was in power. Think pinwheels- think something nice.

Another New Blog in Bloggerville

My friend Lacey, has started her own blog Design With Golden Thyme -yeah Lacey!
She is also a talented pattern designer and teacher. So if your guild is looking for a great speaker/ teacher, send her an email.
This is her business website Golden Thyme Designs
lots of great patterns that I need to get working on the ones I have :) Like that shrug for chilly days in the winter. Or finish my 80 yoyos for the grape pattern. I think I'll do that this afternoon while watching a movie :)
Stop by and say hi, tell her Kim sent you *wink*

Another New Project

Our guild's BOM is a black/white and red log cabin . I love log cabins but I never seem to get a nice straight seam :( So I decided to make a paper piecing pattern in EQ yesterday. I made 4 for the lotto of blocks for Friday's meeting. But I need to switch out a couple of the wall hangings from Christmas to winter. Or something different. So I have 8 made and 8 more in progress....I started playing with layouts. We have this one:



Or maybe this way :



I really need to get them all finished to get the "full effect"

Christmas is all packed away except the Nativity and 2 wall hangings. Every year it seems like more and more work. I need to dig out some snowman patterns and make at least one of those soon too......

Tops and Cats

Here's our tired friend Moose taking a nap next to hubby . He thinks the couch quilt is his.....




And I finally finished my top. Now I can load it on the frame tomorrow. But I swear if that kid doesn't clean his room he's not getting the quilt. What is it with teenaged boys?

Happy 2009 !

Yesterday was the annual NYE Mystery on a lot of groups with Ann. She does the best beginner friendly mysteries. I only missed last NYE's one ( but I saved the pattern). I had the pleasure of testing the summer one this past year.

My son as long as I can remember has been a big Buffalo, NY sports fan. Bills and Sabres are his fav teams. And now that the Mets have a triple A team in Buffalo - he's in sports heaven. I found some Bills fabric on ebay and decided to to Ann's mystery in that. I managed to finish 5 of 7 rows yesterday and this morning. I need to make some more parts to the Bill's blocks and I can't find my kona I bought. So I ran to Joann's this afternoon and they only had the red- no royal :( . Somewhere are all the Kansas troubles parts and the extra blue is in that box. I'll look for it tomorrow. I have so much of the Bills fabric left over that I can make a matching pillowcase and with the extra blocks a wall hanging :) and probably finish the bottom tier of curtains. Now if you can imagine this room, painted in blue with red and white accents and all this Bills stuff and all the stuff hanging on the walls from the 2008 Winter Classic- you would think that this child would be thrilled that Daddy is relocating to Buffalo. But sadly no he's going to be a hard sale to make. I'm trying though- I have 8 months to change his mind and pack this house up- oh someone shoot me now,




I love to use the leader/ ender process that Bonnie taught us all. I managed to get 2 big 16" blocks done while I did the mystery yesterday :)



So what are your resolutions for the new year? Diets and exercise?
Cutting back on fabric buying? Finishing up some UFO's? Nanette wants to start her Christmas sewing early and having a Handmade Christmas in 2009. What a great idea! I think that her wall hangings and small quilts are just so wonderfull. I'm looking for fabric to make a spring one from one of her patterns.

I need to finish up some love quilts and a quilt for a Marine that's overseas and finish the quilt for Yogi ( hopefully before spring training starts)and finish a quilt of SB Sues from Hell for a friend that gifted me with her oldest UFO. I so think she needs to get them back for Christmas next year.

So all my quilty friends, I wish you health, love and lots of fabric to play with in the new year!