Preparing for Fall Shows

     We are rapidly hurtling towards autumn around here. It sure doesn't feel like it if you go outside in the afternoon, but the calendar tells me so. Since I have 4 fall shows coming up in the next 3 weeks, I thought it might be a good idea to make a few new sets of pillowcases and potholders to add to my small items. 
 

     I just enjoy choosing the fabric groupings for the pillowcases, and the improvisational piecing on the potholders is so much fun!

     I also finished putting the rest of my Van Gogh economy blocks up on the wall. I will study them for a couple of weeks to make sure I like the layout.

     I sewed with my friend Eleanor last week, and she has started another beautiful quilt, from one of my drawings. I just love the fabrics she chose this time!
 

     So that is what I have been up to this week. Thanks for stopping by! I will link up with:  Design Wall Monday
          Main Crush Monday 
          Moving it Forward Monday 
          Oh Scrap!

Economy Block Quilt Finally on the Design Wall

     So I am finally beginning to put my economy blocks up on the design wall.

     I have been working on these blocks for years, but they are finally all completed. It has been handy to have this easy project to carry around with me on trips, and visits and such. The best part is that all of the fabric for this quilt came from my stash and scrap bins.

     I want to finish it to show in a class I will be teaching for the Lake and Mountain Quilters in Seneca SC this November called My Water Lilies. I got the color way for this quilt from this painting from Vincent Van Gogh. I always like to show class participants several different ways to use any idea iof I can.

     The My Water Lilies class is about using paintings as a reference for your quilts.  

     I am so excited to see it finally going up on the design wall. I think there will be a fair amount of rearranging before I am satisfied with the layout, and can start sewing these blocks together. 

I am linking up with: Design Wall Monday
                            Moving it Forward Monday
                            Monday Making 
                            Oh Scrap! 
                            Main Crush Monday
                               
     That is what I have been up to! I hope you have something you feel you are making good progress on. Thanks for stopping by!

On the Road Again

     Since I have been on the road the last week, first doing a guild program, then visiting friends and family, I have been working on some portable projects. 

At long last, I have gotten all of the blocks for my Van Gogh/economy block quilt pressed, trimmed, and ready to go up on the design wall.

      I am using this painting by Vincent Van Gogh as a color reference for this quilt. 

     I can't wait to see what the blocks look like up on the design wall. It feels like I have been working on them for ages!

     I have also been working on a newer project. I have been cutting, and pairing pieces to make another Jacob's Ladder quilt. Here is the drawing.

     I cut and paired the HST while I was at home, and I have been cutting pieces from strips, for the 4 patches, while traveling. After dinner tonight, I will begin pairing these pieces to make 4 patches. Once I get home I will just set all of these prepared units near the sewing machine, where they will be ready for easy sewing.

      So that is what I have been up to this week. I hope your projects are going well. I will link up with Moving It Forward Monday

                         Design Wall Monday

                         Love Laugh Quilt

                         Oh Scrap!

                                                 

     Check them out to see lots of other quilt projects in progress. Thanks for stopping by!

Moving Right Along

     It has been so hot and wet around here, all I want to do is hide in the house, and sew, of course. 

     I worked on joining the blocks for my red Sonja's Windows quilt. All I have let to do is add the last border, make the back, and this one is ready to go to the quilter. 😊
 

     Since I planned this quilt, I added the narrow, solid red sashing, and an additional row of sashing and stepping stone around the outside of the center. Suddenly, my quilt was 8" larger in both directions than originally planned. This might have been fine, even beneficial for a quilt that was going to live on a bed at home, but I made this quilt to add to my trunk show, and to bring to my Sonja's Windows classes, so I was trying to keep the size down to a full. I made the somewhat painful decision to pull off a column and a row of blocks.  OUCH! But, the pain is behind me now. 

     I will save adding the last border and making the back until I get home from presenting a program to The Sea Island Quilters in Beaufort, South Carolina, and The All Star Quilter's Guild in Jacksonville, Florida, later this month. In between SC and FL, I will teach a Let's Polka workshop for The Chatahoochee Evening Star Quilters in Alpharetta GA.

     In the mean time I am working on getting the sewing finished on as many of my economy blocks as possible, so I can press them and trim them while traveling.

      I am also trying to add a couple of rows to this quilt everyday. This is an A Maze Zing quilt to replace one I sold earlier in the year. I want the colors in this quilt to remind you of the sunset. I want this quilt to get to 75" long or so. Right now it's at 63", so I have only 4 rows to go.

       One more thing. I wanted to share the amazing pincushions 2 of my extremely talented friends made for my birthday last week. 

      Aren't they wonderful! Eleanor found that metal bird at a thrift store. I think it was supposed to be a planter. She added a wool pillow, and those lovely hand embroidered wool feathers. Notice the scissor tale feathers. 

     Mary Beth is a wonderful potter and felt artist. She made that puppy out of clay, and added a needle felted wool ball to the back. The puppy reminds me of Gidget from The Secret Life of Pets. 

     I will cherish them both!

     That is what I have been up to. I hope things are going well with all of your projects. Thanks for stopping by!

I am linking with Moving it Forward Monday
                          Design Wall Monday 
                          Monday Making
                          Oh Scrap! 
                          Main Crush Monday 

Check them out to see loads of other inspiring Projects! 

Strips

     I have been busy, doing so many things lately, that I have had a difficult time getting much time to sew. I have a rug due tomorrow, so I have been weaving that. This can be dangerous. I was at the loom today, when suddenly, I got an idea for a whole other quilt. I know you have been thinking: "What this girl really needs is to start another quilt." I chose fabrics from my Hancock's of Paducah catalog, and would have put an order in on the spot, but I was saved by the bell. Since it was after 6, I figured it was too late to put an order in today; I won't be able to tomorrow since I won't be home. It will be interesting to see if the drive for this idea stays with me till Friday.

      My friend Dori, and I cleaned out our town's library. (There is no heat in it so it stays closed in the winter) It needed sweeping, and dusting, and the books that have been donated through out the winter needed sorting and shelving. I decided our town needed a newsletter, so I have been working on our 1st newsletter issue. I have it just about finished, but I have to make about 800 copies. Since it is getting pretty spring like around here, the community garden is also gearing up. I just sent A Scarlet Thread several class proposals to choose from for the fall. I am looking forward to see if they like any of them, and if so, which.

     I belong to a sewing group that meets twice a month, and we each take turns hosting it at our houses. That person cooks dinner for the group that night. You guessed it. Last night it was at my house. After dinner, we all pull our our various projects. I cut some squares and triangles from strips that I had previously cut, for this quilt.

     I finished this quilt, and got it to my quilter's. Now I have to finish writing the directions for the pattern, since it is going to be sold as a kit at honeybegood.com

     I got this quilt back from my quilter, Regina, and I still need to trim it, and put the binding on it.

          I am trying to spend a little time everyday, sewing strip sets for this quilt. I have not put any more blocks up on the design wall, since I want to get the rest of my strip sets done before I pair them together.

     Help is on the way! I have a quilt retreat coming up soon. 3 days of uninterrupted sewing. I can't wait! I am planning to take the above quilt, and my big, pieced hexagon quilt. I also have several quilts that have all of the blocks done, and just need to be laid out. I was thinking it would be good to get one of them arranged on the design wall, so I could get numbers pinned onto the blocks, and sew it together, while on retreat.

     I don't get to see this group of friends very often, so I am really looking forward to this. In fact, one of them, I haven't seen in years since she moved away several years ago, but is coming for a visit, and going on retreat with us.
     
     It's time for me to hit the sack, I have to deliver the rug to Atlanta tomorrow. It is supposed to be a rainy day. Hope your week is going well, and you are getting lots done. Thanks for stopping by!

New Projects

     Whew this week went by fast!

     Have you ever had this experience? You have a plan for what you want to accomplish, then all of a sudden, some other project comes to the forefront and just demands attention. You can't get it out of your head-you just have to start it right now! That is what happened to me this week. I was planning to work on a couple of quilt backs, finish my solid quilt, and continue working on my pieced hexagons. Then I suddenly just HAD to start this other quilt. I think part of the problem was I was thinking that right now I don't really have a good project for chain piecing, and I don't have a project that lends itself well to portability, and carrying to the houses of friends. The solid quilt used to be good for that, but it is past that stage.

     So, I spent most of my sewing time this week cutting and sorting strips.

     I went through all of the strips I sorted last year, and pulled out ones I thought would be the colors that I needed. Then in the middle of this process I realized that I was pulling together colors that I wanted to use for another quilt, so I thought I should cut some strips for both quilts, since the other quilt needs the some of the same colors, but different size strips.

     I took this photo early last year. These units all went into the Missing Monkeys quilt that I recently finished. When I had all of these on the design wall, I thought I would like to make a quilt where these Economy Patch units played a more important role. When I played with it a bit on EQ, I used blues and greens. I want the blocks to be just a bit larger though.

     Here is my test block. I don't yet have a test block to show you my other idea. That will have to wait a few more days.
     

















      Also this week, I took a class from Flavin Glover on Innovative Court House Steps. I had always wanted to make a Court House Step quilt using solid fabrics, Here are a few blocks I got done in class. I don't know when I will start working on this quilt in earnest; there are a few ahead of it.

     I also taught a class at A Scarlet Thread this week. It is a 2 session class, and we had the 1st session Friday night. This is the quilt we are working on. It is so much fun to see all the variations that students bring to an idea. I can't wait to see what they bring to class next Friday!

    
     I am doing a lunchtime program at my guild's quilt show at Art Station in Stone Mountain, this Monday, so I have been gathering quilts, and other items to show for that today.

     I still have a couple of other colors of strips to cut, so back to the cutting table I go!
Hope your week went well. Thanks for stopping by!