Sewing Day

I went to a one-day sewing event with friends. The day went really fast. It was hard to gauge how much I might get done and therefore hard to guess how many projects I should take with me. I took extras, but that's OK. It's always a guessing game.

I got this top sewn together (the blocks were already sewn into rows). It is for Quilts Beyond Borders.

I finished the fourth of four doll blankies:

I worked on sewing down some applique on this top. I'm over half done now!

I started cutting for another pattern I'm hoping to get done soon. And I made this little block for a person in my guild who has cancer. Her sister is putting the quilt together. I happened to have my selvedges with me, so I searched for words that seemed soothing such as "serenity" and "sun-kissed." Then I added 100% cotton, because that indicates wonderfulness. And the pretty fall leaves as they are always something spectacular. And the best was finding "Giggles by Me & My Sister" ; the sister putting the quilt together loved that, and I scored a hug for that find.

(This is only a 5.5" block.)

All too soon, the day was done. I came home and vegged out in front of the TV. On Saturday's agenda: visit MIL in hospital.

Emerging From Under the Scraps Pile

I'm still going through boxes and bags of scraps that were donated. I didn't realize these would never end. I keep thinking I've made progress, and then I find more to sort through. However, I think I'm finally making progress.

I have finished making NINE pet beds using scraps! (Scraps go inside, as stuffing.) That is a LOT of scraps. The person who donated these scraps said she still has lots more at home to bring to me. Eeek! (It's kind of a blessing and a curse all in one.)

This is the nine pet beds, and I was very happy that I moved them around to re-order them and photograph them, because behind them I found hiding my smaller, newer camera!!! I was sooo happy! I knew it was in the house somewhere, but had no idea where. Voila! It has been found.

This is what is currently on my design wall #1:

The brownish strips will eventually be a quilt top (the strips will be horizontal); it is also made from donated scraps. And the hearts are also donated; this will be a doll blanket.

This is currently on my design wall #2:

blocks made by members of my guild. I am working on getting this sewn together and hopefully will get it quilted in the next couple of days. I'm looking forward to working with our next block, for 2015, which is a 9.5" nine-patch. I'm tired of this slanty one. It's a cool block, but I'm ready for a change.

We had a quiet Christmas, which you know from my previous posts, but I do have a few photos to share with you in a future post. Watch for it! (Can you stand the excitement??)

Weekend Projects

I did a lot of sewing this weekend. Fun!

I put together another quilt top made from my guild's community service blocks. Then I cut a backing fabric for it, feeling enthused to quilt it immediately. Well, I kept adding fabric strips to the wrong end. The backing kept getting longer, but not wider, as I needed it. So I gave up on quilting. That long, narrow back will probably fit some other top, so at least it wasn't a waste of time.

I made some blocks for the block Lotto game at Sunshine. Actually I never play the Lotto, but I make blocks for the Lotto Lady to keep and make Sunshine quilts. I didn't make any November blocks, so I guess these will be for December - theme is "pot luck."

I made a few more community service blocks.

I did some quilting on a wall hanging, but didn't finish it (no picture), and I worked on some home-made Christmas gifts but also didn't finish (no picture).

Throughout the weekend I had been tossing scraps into a big pile, and today I used about 2/3 of them to make this doll blankie. It measures 23" x 28". It's not curved on the right side like it shows; that's just a function of the camera angle. My tiny scraps filled up another doggie bed.

A productive weekend, I'd say! Plus, while I sewed, the Minnesota Vikings managed to win their game today. Hooray!

For the Dollies

I have made a few doll blankets this year. I meant to keep up with scraps and make doll blankets as I go, but that didn't last long. The most recent one I made is from some pre-cut blocks I found recently and didn't even know I had. I don't know where they came from.

The backing on that one is a super cute flannel with teddy bears on it.

My dolly wanted to pose today, because she really likes all these blankies. She wanted to pose with the newest one alone, because the flannel back is so warm and soft.

These blankets are going to our neighborhood agency that serves families in need. Doll blankets for Christmas! I enjoy making them for that purpose.

A Couple of Auctions, a Few Quilts

Last year I did an impromptu silent auction at work. I set out a couple items, people bid on them, and they sold. The money went to a food shelf.

This year I decided to do it again, but in a more organized way. I asked co-workers who would like to participate, where the money should go, etc... and it got scheduled. About eight people said they would donate items. The auction went live this week on Monday. Turns out some people forgot or just decided not to donate anything. At first when I set it all up on Monday, I thought it was going to be the Carol Silent Auction - items just from me. But three or four other things arrived, and the auction was on. When I left work on Monday, no one had bid yet. I sure hope they do, because there are some nice things there, and I don't want them going for a pittance. I'll be back in pretty soon and can check the progress.

I took a picture of the auction set-up, then left my camera at work. Here's one of my donated items. Remember giving me advice on my finishing options? I went with those who told me just to finish it up and bind it and not go to extra effort of extending the HSTs into the border area. Glad I did it that way.. once I hadn't seen it for a few days, I realized I was content without doing that extra work.

If this doesn't get very high bids, I'm not going to let it go for a pittance. Some of the other stuff I might be willing to let go for a song, but not this quilt that took many hours of work. Below are two other items I put in the auction:

I also made a couple pot holders, and some dyed baby onesies.

Here is a quilt that I finished this week. I just love the colors in this. This quilt is for Wrap a Smile, not for the auction.

And here's one more auction item, but it's a different auction. It's a fundraiser to help a family adopt a child from China. Check out the auction at Facebook, here.

I donated this doll blanket for that auction.

I am crossing my fingers for some high bids in these auctions!

Learning to Machine Quilt, as Always

Here is what I have done so far this weekend: I made a doll blanket out of some very skinny strips. My sister saves all her scraps, no matter how skinny. Then she gives them to me. I put some of them into a pooch bag (it will be a bed for a dog or cat in a shelter), and some I decided to use in a small quilt. This will be donated to a child at Christmas time, along with a small doll.

Now I am going to focus on one quilt and will provide details of how it came together. First, I was given some free fabric that was purchased in Nigeria! (The buyer gave the fabric to Wrap-a-Smile for use in quilts for kids.) That is the fabric with the orange and green circles on it. I am afraid I did not succeed in my quest to use and show off this fabric at its best. Happily, it's not a failure, either. It was a learning experience, however.

The inner part, made from HSTs, came from the scrap bag from my sister. I got those put together and then decided I wanted to make curved pieces around it. That was a fun challenge (I used the "how-to's" from Debbie Bowles' book, Cutting Curves From Straight Pieces.) The mistake I made here was not enough contrast between the two sides of the curved piece. Shucks!

In my attempt to emphasize the curves so that they are actually visible, I zig-zagged on them with white thread and then did that again during the quilting process. It worked out OK, but starting out with better contrast would have been better.

Next I made the nine-patches. They looked so nice set around the corners, but then I put more circle fabric in the middles, and the whole design got lost.

See? Before...

After...

I decided it wasn't that serious. Sad, but not enough to undo and re-do the borders. No, thanks.

Today I quilted the top. I'm proud of myself, because I'm trying to force myself to quilt some of my own tops instead of sending them on to others to do my work for me. In recent weeks I have quilted three Wrap-a-Smile tops so far, plus a couple guild projects. It's a bit of a chore for me, but once I get it done, I'm usually happy I did it. So.. maybe I'll get comfortable with machine quilting one of these years. Sure would be nice!

Right now my machine is on the old side, and has a few problems: it has a short, and it sometimes hiccups during sewing, which can be a challenge when trying to free-motion smoothly. Also my darning foot is held on by a screw, which I lost, so it just sits there loosely and can fall off if I don't watch it carefully. And my machine tends to skip while free motion quilting, so I have to watch that, too. All that plus the regular challenge of trying to machine quilt beautifully... it's a lot to ask!

So I quilted this today and mostly did stitch-in-the-ditch. I also, as I said, zig-zagged along the curves, attempting to emphasize the curves. Then I did a small amount of free-motion on some of the circles:

and then decided to do some circles in the center, to pull it all together. Can you see them?

Then I decided I was done! And thrilled to have completed another quilting job by myself! This goes into the box to be sent to Wrap-a-Smile. I think there is room for one more quilt. And I still have some of that fabric from Nigeria and will make another quilt with it!

Now I have run out of batting and run out of basting spray, so a trip to Hancocks is in order. What do you use for basting quilts? Pins? Basting spray? Some day I'll show you pictures of my new (to me) technique.

I Love Quilts!

Newsflash: I love quilts! Surprised?

These first two are my Hands2Help Challenge donations this year. I have decided that this first one, which is completed, will go to Quilts of Compassion. It is 39" x 54".

This next quilt, which is not yet completed, will go to Happy Chemo. It is about 56" x 80". This quilt is made from a block I made up. I call it Minnesota Nice. I don't know if it really is a new block design; it's very similar to existing blocks, and is made of traditional block pieces, but I like to pretend it's my own invention. I got borders on it today, and a friend has volunteered to machine quilt it for me. (She herself is a cancer survivor so felt moved to do this as a donation to Happy Chemo.) It won't be done until close to the deadline, June 1st. (I'll definitely post it again when it is done.)

Here are more quilts!

It looks fancy, but it's a pre-printed panel. I just added the checkerboard top and bottom borders.

This is a doll quilt made in the Quilt As You Go method, which I did not enjoy enough to repeat.

...a doll blankie that I knit, and another doll quilt, front and back.

... not a quilt, but it was a fun idea I learned from another Carol. It's "get well soon prayer flags." I sent this to a former co-worker who is in the hospital with two brain aneurysms! I sent it in that home-made envelope.

This is a quilt I made for my newest great-niece, now 2.5 months old. I'm hoping to get a picture of her with this quilt.

I made a pie from scratch, using my new book, Ms. American Pie by Beth Howard. This pie is delish!

Go here and scroll down past the tutorial to see more quilts (in progress and/or finished) being made for the H2H Challenge.

Friday Books: Another Week

This is another week without a Friday Books report (not to mention that I am posting this on Saturday). I couldn't find my Kindle for the longest time, and I wasn't inspired by any of my hard copy books. Sometimes I get in reading slumps. A couple of days ago I did finally start a book, and then (hooray!) I found my Kindle! I should be back in the game soon.

Meanwhile I'll show you this little doll quilt I made this weekend. After Thanksgiving I have taken time to sew, and I'm having a blast. First, I splurged and bought a Christmas outfit for one of my dolls. She wears size Preemie.

And the other doll, who loves pink, models the pink doll blankie.

Keep on reading!

I Can Hardly Wait to be Creative!

I really really feel like sewing now! I made a few (ugly) Christmas ornaments for our church bazaar, and it got me into the sewing mood. Now I am busy for the next few days, and I can't fit in much sewing. I am so looking forward to having some time to just create whatever I want!

I did manage to make a few things for our church bazaar.. I already showed you the "traveling Barbie bed" (previous post), which sold before it even hit the display table.

Then I ice-dyed some onesies and socks.

Over the past year I also have been making doll blankets, and I had those for sale as well as a few miscellaneous hats and scarves:

The bazaar took place tonight during our annual turkey dinner and seems to have been a success. We'll try to sell leftovers after church on Sunday, and then I can start creating whatever I want again... just for fun, and to prepare for next year's bazaar.