Seasonal Temperature Quilt Top DONE!

 I am happy to report I have completed my Seasonal Temperature Quilt - it actually ended December 20 which was the last day of Fall.  This was a fun project,  but I must admit I am glad to see it done.  Now to get it quilted, which I will do a simple cross hatch on my machine.

Brimfield Quilt Top Done!

 

My completed Brimfield Quilt Top.  I have it hanging and it really is straight just got a soft fold while hanging.  This will now be a QIW (Quilt in waiting for hand quilting).  That waiting list is starting to grow, so I better get busy on the Lone Star that I am currently quilting and get it done.  The background is actually a dark green, not black.

Gail Pan Wish You Well quilt top

 Today I completed the Gail Pan Block of the Month, Wish You Well quilt top.  I have no idea how to quilt this , any suggestions?

Brimfield Blocks - Catching up

 The last time I posted any of my Brimfield blocks was on Sept.22 and then I posted blocks 11 and 12.  I need 20 blocks for my quilt and I have been working on these - completing Blocks 13 through 18 since September 22.  Hopefully within the next couple of weeks I will have all 20 blocks made.  So here are the six block I have completed since Sept 22.

Quilt As You Go Hexagons

 I recently came across a YouTube video by Missouri Star Company on using these templates to make "Quilt As YouGo 2 1/2" Hexagons."  I was so interested that I ordered the templates and tried it out - thinking I would do it all by hand.

I really do prefer handwork, but sometimes its just fun to have machine work as well.  I drew out a pattern on EQ and started to work on a table runner, as I wanted to do a small project at first.

I ended up piecing the blocks by machine, which was so much fun.  I used a 1 1/4" hexagon printed on freezer paper and then ironed to the block to do a quilting pattern on each block.  Here's close-ups of the front and back.  Each hexagon is handsewn to the next.

 I had a few left that I will use for coasters, and need to find more polka dots  to make more coasters.  This will brighten up my dining table in the Spring.  My next project will be an I-Spy (or is it EYE-Spy) quilt.

I also recently finished another Wish You Well block - this one for November:

Wish You Well October Block

 This morning I completed the October block in the Gail Pan Wish You Well block of the month.  I am happy to be caught up to date, since I started in August and had blocks January thru August to do when I joined.  But in a way, a little sad, as since I started as soon as I finished one block, I had another to work on.  These blocks are so much fun and now I have to wait for November to get the next one.

The tatted bookmark on the block was made by a dear friend, Mary Burn.  I asked her if she minded  if I used it in the quilt and she said that would be fine.  It will always remind me of Mary, Momma and my brother Michael.  All three did a lot of tatting, very beautiful work.

Castle Wall

 Today I worked on an English Paper Pieced block for our out-going guild President.  I wanted to do an EPP block, and guidelines for the block were had to be made with batiks and have an Hawaiian theme.  I picked colors that I thought were Hawaiian look, and embroidered a parrot in the center.  I looked up pictures of parrots to get an idea of the colors to use.  

Wish You Well blocks

I have been working on the Wish You Well block of the month trying to catch up and have completed the first nine blocks. I just joined this BOM by Gail Pan in August, so I had a lot of catching up to do. Since my last post, I have completed the following:

July

August

September

On the September block, there is a embroidery of a pear.  I was kind of curious about that image wondering if there was any significance to a pear, if it was a symbol of something.  I did do a little google search and found that in some cultures it signifies riches, mother and child, affection, comfort and/or peace.  I did post the question on the facebook page for those doing his BOM just to see if there was something more specific in Australia.

I have also been catching up on my work on the Cottage Grove quilt.  Here is what has been completed todate.  I have started working on the corner blocks that make a border around this section.

Wish You Well June block

This evening I completed the June block for the Wish You Well Gail Pan BOM.  This block came to me at just the right time.  I had been to see an oral surgeon to schedule some oral surgery to remove a tooth and bridge and was really feeling kind of glum.  I decided to do some stitching, and there was the block saying "Think Happy Thoughts."  So as I stitched it, that is exactly what I did and I did feel better by the time I finished this sweet little block.

I used the Hungarian Chain Stitch for the bow on the bouquet.  My first attempt at this stitch.

This J monogram came from an old hankie I found at an antique shop and just had to buy it since my last name begins with J.  It is actually embroidered and the little stitches in the roses are amazing.  I put the pink check behind it as the hankie was very fine and guazy.

A good thing to remember in these trying times.

Friday while Zooming with my friend Darlene, I completed Cottage 5 of the Cottage Grove  Quilt. This is the last cottage in the project and an enjoyable one to complete.

 

Temperature Quilt - Beginning of Fall

 It is so hard to believe that Fall is here, although the weather seems to be going from hot summer to cool Fall over night.  I got to add the Fall label to my Seasonal Temperature quilt  just in time, I only had one little summer piece left.

Here is the quilt to date:

Lone Rose Star quilt top DONE!

 Today I have my Lone Rose Star quilt top completed, ironed and taken to a long-arm quilter for basting the quilt sandwich.  I plan to hand quilt this one, but when its a queen size its always nice to have it basted by someone with a long arm machine.  Looking at the picture I can see where I should have interchanged a pink and a yellow Rose Star - but too late now.  Funny how these things always show up in a picture.

I also got a little work done on my Brimfield blocks - Completing Block 11 and 12 - that leaves 8 to go.

One more progress step in the right direction - my Wish You Well block number 5 for May.  I am having so much fun working on these blocks.  I do love this block, I think the embroidery in the bottom left corner is my favorite so far.

Cottage Grove, Cottage 4

 Making progress on my Cottage Grove quilt. My friend, Darlene, is also making one and we zoom on Fridays to keep each other going. We were meeting here at my house, but then she had to go into quarantine as she has her first grandbaby due to arrive next week.  

There are 5 cottages in the quilt and we just completed #4.  The pattern was meant for fusible applique, which I prefer needle turn.  Some of the applique is very small and detailed,so often the case with fusible.  Anyway, this block required a little blue bird on the chimney and a rather small birdhouse.  The houses have lots of pieces and the first two that we made, we machine pieced it all.  More recently I have been drawing the paper piecing foundation pieces in EQ and mine are coming out so much better, precise and way easier to make.  Darlene is enjoying the paper piecing as well.

I decided to embroider the top of the chimney and the little blue bird.  I do love blue birds and I may have to put one on top of the birdhouse too.  I may use my fabric pens to color in the bird and the chimney top - but then again I may not.

The bird house was a real challenge.  First I embroidered the whole house, and it was a disaster, just did not look right.  So then I decided to try applique.  I pressed the edges under and then used Roxanne's glue to hold them in place (house and pole) while I machine straight stitched them.  I could probably have done a better job if I had hand appliqued, but what can I say, I wanted to get 'er done. I had some baby rick rack in white that I colored brown with fabric pens and used that for the roof. 

Its rather primitive looking, but hey, if I tried to build it from wood it would probably look just like this.  I am satisfied with it, actually kind of like it.  Guess I should have removed the random threads before taking the picture.

Wish You Well - April Block

This is my April Block, just finished today.  As I mentioned in earlier posts, I got a late start on this BOM by Gail Pan, signing up in August.  I am loving the process and the pretty embroderies.  Even enjoying the yoyo's, which in Australia they call them Suffolk Puffs.  The pattern calls for appliqued circles, but I am using yoyos.

And here are my first four blocks:

Progress !

 This is an update on the list of on-going projects.  I am finding that knowing I need to report on my project progress kinda keeps me moving along.  So here is my list:

1 - Temperature Quilt - Got this one up-to-date last week, and now behind again :)

2 - Coronaville Quilt - Got this one up-to-date last week, and now behind again :)

3 - Brimfield - I completed the paper piecing of two more blocks, Block 9 and Block 10.  Block 9 is totally complete, but I still need to applique the Block 10 to the background.

4 - Hollyhock Quilt - Completed

5 - I Stitch Club - Wish You Well - Completed three blocks - January (shown in earlier post), February and March

6 - Baby Quilt - Whirligig - Completed

7 - Lone Star - All the Rose Stars are appliqued in place and I have designed a border of diamonds that I am in the process of making and appliqueing to the top.

8- Adeline's Quilt - I did not list this one before as I  forgot about it.  I had taken it to a long arm quilter for quilting.  I now have it back, need to make the binding and get it finished.  This will be my "Big Girl Quilt for my granddaughter, Adeline.

9- Cottage Grove - This is a quilt I started in 2011 along with a good friend of mine, Darlene.  We were each working on our own quilt and had them about 1/2 completed when for reason we set it aside.  We dug it out two weeks ago and are meeting once a week to get it done. We have the appliqued borders and blocks complete. There are 5 cottages in the quilt, we have completed 2 and for the last two weeks worked on number 3.  Cottage 3 is done - on to Number 4 next week :)  (Cottage 3 is my favorite - a Quilter's Cottage quilt shop.)

Momma's Blocks

 Completed this quilt.  The blocks were hand appliqued by my mother sometime before 2009, which is when she passed.  These were leftover blocks from quilts she had made.  I have the Hollyhock quilt, one of my favorites and she gave it to me several years before she died.  She hand appliqued and hand quilted the ones in my quilt, using a quilt as you go method.  The butterfly block was left from a quilt she made for my father based on a pattern given to her by my father's mother. I never knew my grandmother as she died when I was 9 months old.   My daughter now has the butterfly quilt.

This is the label I put on the quilt.  It will be a gift to my brother, Jack.