New Years Eve

Such a busy time is the 13th month.  With a shopping spree on Saturday to shops having sales I was able to increase my stash of limey greens and black and whites substantially for the mystery quilt as well as future needs for those fabrics.  I am now ready to do the sewing after catching up on cutting the 145 green 3.5 inch squares and the 2'by 3.5" b/w pieces from whenever.  I have 32 more double bricks to make and have finished 40 of the 60 gray and b/w four patches I had left to do for clue #1.

oh yes and the 17 squares cut into quarter triangles!!! Sew much fun!
Don't know if I will get the triangles made tonight. 

Our church was so pretty for Christmas.  Here are some pictures from Sunday.

I have a friend who says if you have to decorate your house in a hurry for Christmas just mass up Poinsettias.  It certainly works here.

Hope you have a wonderful New Year.
Cheerful Sewing
sally

guild party

Our guild had the December "Christmas Party" this year on the 27th to try to avoid the rush and bustle of getting stuff done before Christmas Day.  The decorations were beautiful, the food good and I think it was fun.  Now to look forward to what the next year can bring.
The clue #6 for today made me look at step 2 after BH said we were not using the rectangles from step 2 and I did not have b/w rectangles from step 2.  Now I will have to go back and cut those.
When she says if you want something else to do.. I kind of fade away because it is enough to make 64 or 128 of something. 
Am looking forward to the block and how the pattern evolves from all we have done. I am sure I don't have enough of the greens as I don't do green.  I guess this means more shopping.  If that is what I have to do ......

Here is a quilt I finished for my neighbor who is such a good friend and helps me out whenever I call upon him.  I will never repay him but hope he likes this quilt.  I had to put a picture of Cecil on the label because his girls' quilts have Cecil on the back. 

I really like this pattern.  Not so sure I like the lights in the 16 patches.  I do however adore the border fabric.  I would not have thought I would pick it out but it is so rich with the colors in the quilt.
The back is red with gold stars.

These are ornaments I made from Melanie's downsized  pattern for paperpiecing.  There is a pocket in the back for a mint.  We each made 15 for guild members for the Christmas Party.  It is fun and this is the third year we have made ornaments.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and will enjoy a safe and fun New Year's.  I know I will because I am looking for lime green and black and white fabrics!!!

Joyous Quilting.

Sally

Pointy things

Here are the 64 "pointy things" for clue #5.

Yes they are on my ironing board and I had to stand on a stool to take a picture of them all.
I liked the hint of sewing just a thread to the right of the diagonal line.
I think it is easier to do that than to sew on the line!!
Christmas eve sewing.
Sallyquiltville.blogspot.com/2012/12/mystery-monday-link-up-part-5.html

Stuffed Santa

Well when my bee from Wake county came last thursday we were on a mission to make a stuffed santa from a pattern by someone who does not give good directions.  Pat had been making one santa nearly every year until recently so she was the resident expert.  Hers turned out so pleasant looking and mine...... well you can see for your self.

Keep in mind I still have to stitch on the arms and a bell onto the hat. I did trim the beard a little.  His eyes are a little scary but I find I like him.  He now is placed on the hearth.  My tree looks drunk.  I finally got tired of glop;ping on glue and sticking on yarn for his hair, mustache and beard and I stitched across the ends of yarn pieces and glued the whole thing at one time.

Santa found himself outside and is not sure why.  You never know where he will show up.  I was just trying to get good light to take a picture.  The house in the door is just a reflection of the one across the street from me.
Now on to cutting more squares for Clue #5 in BH mystery quilt.
Merry Quilting
sally

I really do love these colors and with the rulers I can make better flying geese.  I made the 64 sets of purple and turquoise geese Saturday at Bee. 

I was playing catch up and still have more of these.

Again the rulers help keep these accurate.
 Merry Quilting
sally
Easy Street Monday Linky

How to get into trouble quickly....

I just do not know where November went.  And now December is nearly one-third gone.  With trying to get Christmas quilting done and shopping there just is not enough time in the day.

Members of our guild went to the Day of Sharing in Greenville today.  The ladies there are so gracious and the food and fellowship were superb.  Afterword we had to head to JoAnn;s as it is the closest one to a lot of our members.  No matter how many times you tell yourself that you don't care how cute that fabric is you don't need any you still walk out of there with more fabric.  I can't help that the fleece was on sale and in a beautiful Christmas pattern.  I got a yard to give to a friend who has an older lab named Sadie who is having hip problems.  I hope it will keep her warm. 
Not that you would need a blanket today in Eastern North Carolina.  Sometimes I just don't know what to wear if I am going to be gone all day.

Here is my cecil with his blue mouse mouse.  I have had to put mousemouse in pre-op so many times until he could have surgery.  Cecil doesn't tear up his toys but he loves to mash the squeaker and this wears holes in them.  This one is 5 or 6 years old.  Cecil is also in MY chair.

Here is where the trouble comes:

The first picture is of 130 four-patches for Bonnie Hunter's new mystery quilt.  I know- I still have 62 more to make!!!
Then came the flying geese.  I usually make them with a large square and smaller squares but as I had cut 2" strips and was dying to learn to use the companion ruler and angle ruler here I went.  Well they are all made and I have cut out everything for the 3rd step using purple, black and white and turquoise.  I have heard so much about BH quilts and wanted to try one.  Also the colors in this one are my favorites.  Maybe I will have enough sense left when I finish to drive to the quilters.
I have to do all the trimming of ears etc but at least I am on the way.
Merry quilting
Sally

projects getting finished

Well this aborted trip to Hatteras thanks to Hurricane Sandy and subsequent nor'easters has provided me time to get some projects completed and some others started.
I am still struggling with the stack and whack present blocks.  No two are the same size but I guess they could be trimmed.  Just hate to waste that pretty fabric.  I at least made the second set centered in the middle of the fat quarters.

The next project I worked on for two days was piecing a back for my general wives quilt top which is 100 by 100.  I had seven yards of a perfect fabric and leftovers from the BOM kits.  I thought I could make a 20 inch block with Log Cabin pattern using the leftovers.  Well of course my LC ruler was for 2 inch strips and I got tired and ran out of different strips so I thought and thought and came up with this design for a piece to go in between the two three yard pieces of backing.  I think it will look great.

In the back of the panel you can barely see some of the 12 paperpieced blocks for the borders of the Japanese Fan quilt I am also trying to work on.  I can only take so much of that.  It is beautiful when done but kind of boring.  Like quilt by numbers.

 I never leave C's house empty handed and after traipsing all over southern wake county I came home with fabric, wool, cookies and these.  Anyone besides C know what this is???

Finally, the guild in Goldsboro is having a silent auction at the meeting on Thursday night November 29 at 7pm at St. Stephen's Episcopal church on James street.  Entrance is in the back.  Come get some bargains.  You never know what you might find.
Thankful Quilting
sally

Presents from .........

I tried to do this stack and whack to make these blocks and I don't think I sewed a single seam correctly.  Well maybe the bottom ones.  Oh well.  And don't ask why it is not centered.  Just don't ask.  I know I cant do an exchange so I will have to keep them and make some more for a quilt.
Oh well.'
Bee tomorrow.  Don't know if anyone else will be there.  It is a busy time of year.
Thankful quilting
s

wool gatherings

I guess I just have too much time on my hands so I need something else to do.  I like the wool primitives that you can find at quilt shows and on line.  The first kit I got a year ago but somehow the pattern has divorced itself from the kit and I am waiting for a reconcilliation.  Meanwhile, (you don't see that word used much anymore.  I wonder why.  Maybe because in this time of instant gratification there is no meaning to meanwhile because people will not want to do something else or talk about something else while waiting for something to happen.) ( I got a bit off the track ....can you have two parentheses back to back in a paragraph?) I bought another kit because I had no wool and it is expensive.  This is a piece with acorns, a basket and a crow.  I liked it but don't know why.
Here it is.

I really like doing this because I can do it and watch tv.  I hope to make my stitches smaller and more uniform.  It is a challenge and somewhat like a puzzle.  Not sure why the crow is in the basket???

Will start on a snowman "winter" piece next.  I am still working on border pieces for the Japanese Fan.  I have done 11 but want to get different black for #12.  Then will work on center blocks.
Thankful Quilting
sally

UFO beginnings

Well this is how they begin.  I started the Japanese Fan Quilt with Lucille Amos at the Sew Original shop in Winston Salem last weekend and have not had time to do any more than 7 of these border pieces and one central piece of the top.  I loved her quilt with black, red and cream oriental fabrics and have used most of the same fabrics.  I am anxious to get back to it before I forget how to do this "s" curve.

This is the BOM for October for the guild charity quilts but in my fabrics as I am making one for the guild and one for my sampler quilt.  I just love these colors together. The block looks oriental and the blue is from Kasuri from moda the brick red is from little seasonal primitive gatherings and has little pumpkins on it. mmmm I do love strong contrast.

Another beginning is this lantern paper pieced block turned into an ornament for a small wall hanging that I started on Tues at Thistle Bee's new location on Center Street in Goldsboro.  It was so much fun to have so much room to spread out.  Quilting abhors a vaccuum and I covered my whole table.  I will make three more of the large blocks and three small blocks for the hanging.  Hopefully it will not remain a UFO for long.

And last but by no means least is the BOM pattern for November called "Another 9 patch star" which I just love.  It looks difficult but it is just half square triangles and squares.  It does not take as long as the drunkards path.  Again I have chosen the same brick red but another navy and a different cream.
I think someone has had a "red" influence on me??????

Well that is all for now.  Have to get something finished. 
Thankful  Quilting
Sally

 

So much going on.  Am finishing up some projects one is the table topper we did at retreat.  Love the Christmas fabrics I got locally and from my stash esp the border.

Thanks Judy for helping us.

Fall has been so beautiful and the bradford pears have really shown their colors.  Here is the tree at St. Stephens church.

 

 

Thanks to C for getting me two book cases for my fabric.  Now to refold all this fabric to stack nicely.  I need another room!!!

 

I am working on A Shakerwood wool piece with crow and pumpkins.  What a challenge for first time.  Oh well, live and learn.

 

Keep safe from Sandy's wrath and goblins.

Happy Quilting

Sally

Retreat doings

Our guild had our retreat in Raleigh last weekend and everyone worked hard on their own projects and'/or on the mini workshops that were offered: yoyos, english paper piecing, pocketbook making, and a tree tabletopper.  Some of us declined the yoyo class thinking we would not make a yoyo quilt.  When we did the tabletopper we realized we could make tiny yoyos to put at the top of our trees.  We had to take a remedial course in yoyos and someone picked up all the small yoyo makers at JoAnns.  We all learned a lot and had fun.

This is a Christmas book I made from fabric I got in Canada this summer.  It is Mary Englebret fabric.

This is an advent calendar I got the fabric for also in Canada and have put on all the pockets for treats for Cecil.  It is ready to quilt.

These are two blocks I painted for the Art "do" on Friday night at the art center.

Now I have to go pick up more raffle quilt tickets because they are really selling.
Happy Quilting.
sally

UFO"s

Finally cooler weather! With the problem of back muscles which have been misbehaving I stayed home most of last week trying not to do further injury.  Friday I was better and tried to finish up some of the 5 projects I had begun.  Saturday Pat T and I went to the Tobacco Farm Life Museum in Kenly NC to demonstrate quilting.  We took hand work to do and the raffle quilt with some of our quilts and projects.  Probably about 12-14 people came through.  We both got a lot done.  Pat was hand quilting and I was putting labels on charity quilts and finishing the binding on a baby quilt.  The director and assistant were very nice and provided lunch for us.

No competition for Kaffe but this is the outside of the museum.  It is really nice with many artifacts of tobacco farming from the area.

I really did do some work but the director wanted us both in the picture with the R Quilt so......

I had found most of these 9 patch squares already made and finished with the borders for this charity quilt..  Now to quilting it.  I made the sashing and corner stones the same size as in the blocks (2.5 inches) and I like the result.  Kind of a modified Irish chain.  There might be another name for it.

I finished the blocks for the quilt I am doing in J T's class at WCC and as I missed last week to above referenced misbehaving muscles I have done two long side Checkerboard border pieces.  Hope to finish the other two sides before class tonight.  If I don't get it done V will make fun of me for not having my homework done.

The last thing I have made progress on is to do the center block for the General Wives BOM quilt from ME's shop and have put them all together. I have not cut and attached the two borders yet.  I will need the side of a barn to hang it up to get a decent picture.  It is huge.

Better get to work on those checkerborders.
Happy quilting
s

ABC's

This is the top of a baby quilt for my college roommate's grandson.  The fabric was so cute.  I fussy cut the letters and then bordered them with a limey green with red and yellow dots and a tiger-like red and black stripe.  To fill in for the 30 blocks I cut 4 of the cute dragonfly antics squares.
I like the way it turned out and the back will be a stripe with all the colors in it.
Now to get it done. This is an extra block that can go on the back.  Isn't he cute???

Have been working on a quilt for my cousin who does so much for me and is really sweet.  It is a sampler block lap quilt and I am doing it in a class at WCC by Judy Trott.  I had to find some more blueberry crumb cake fabric for the background and I am waiting for it to come in.  I found it on quiltstores.com.  It is nice to have the class to work on it.  Maybe our guild can have a night bee next year from 6-9??? I will work on the borders next week.  Have to make a pot load of blue/cream         4- patches .

Happy quilting.

S

Sewing time

I do so hate to have something not finished so the scrappy quilt that I had planned to have around just to have something in a box to take to bees is .....finished and I have started another one.  The one just finished is a compilation of two inch squares in fou-rpatches and what I call pointey pieces which is 2 inch squares on the end of a rectangle. As I have much stash but few scraps I am indebted to Connie and Pat for their contributions of 2 inch and 3.5 inch pieces from their scrap stash.  Now it is like a "seek and find" quilt.  I love looking at the different fabrics that I would not have bought. There are cows, golf balls, airplanes and even Elvis.   Here is the result with a red inner border ( I wanted to slow down the action not stop it dead with black) and a blue border ( I know surprise...) with white stars to let the acrion creep out to the edge. Now to find backing I like.

The one I started next is from a you- tube linked to the connecting threads from CQG and I liked several of them.  The first block I made with "sashings" ( more pointey things) but when I counted up how many of them I needed I realized of course that I did not have enough material so off to ME's I go looking for whites and creams with dark blue bits (she calls it shirtings... who knew?) but I bought the rest of three bolts.  Don't get excited it was just over a yard...so now the sashings are scrappy also.
Here is the first one.  Love the contrast.

Now all I have to do is make 20 of the 16 patches, 49 of the pointey sashey things and 30 of the four- patches.
I will celebrate the coming cold snap with a trip to The Cinema (Rialto in Raleigh) to see a really strange movie.  Hopefully, I can wake up to 50 something degrees on Monday am.
Happy Quilting
sally

Up North

My friend Mary and I took a trip to Pennsylvania to see the other person who ignited my quilting fire and then to Canada to visit with my cousin and his wife who have a place on the Bay of Quinte on Lake Ontario.  Our friend lives in Doylestown Pa. and we had to visit a quilt shop but it was in New Jersey.  It was Pennington Fabric Works and they had lovely fabrics but more expensive than here.  However they were not as expensive as the quilt shop in Kingston Canada.  The fabrics there were 16 and 19 dollars a meter.  Ouch.  We had a great trip except for the drive from here on Sunday 19th when we could not see more than the flashers from the car in front because of the heavy downpour for about an hour and a half and could not travel more than 20 mph, the drive  from Canada to Pennsylvania was delayed by road work in up state New York and the flood in Roanoke Rapids on Saturday caused traffic to back up for hours in both directions.  When we finally got to our destinations we had a lovely time. 

Sunset from my cousin's floating dock( he has to pull it out each fall when he leaves because the bay freezes)

Picnic lunch outside one of the MANY small local winerys we visited

Taking it easy on the dock, enjoying the view and breeze. Wednesday morning was so calm Art took us in his boat around the bay to see some beautiful houses and the harbor of Picton.

Spider web found in the back yard this morning.  So pretty in the morning light.
Now to get to quilting..
Happy quilting
s

butterflies

A short post today as I need to get quilting!! Takes too long to play 6 wwf games, read, delete and reply to emails and get started sewing!!
I took this picture yesterday after I had discarded some watermelon rinds on the deck railing for the birds.  I forgot how the butterflies love melons.

Life is so good.
Now to quilt
S

Yard Sale

What a day.  Started with C waking me up before 6 to get coffee and get moving.  I have never seen so much stuff.  There were three of us having a yard sale.  Thank goodness for such a wonderful venue-C's front yard with u-shaped drive.  Don't know how many people came through.  Just know we were thankful for the trees.  Afterward we hauled the trailer full of leftovers to GoodWill.
You can tell how tired we were from the pictures.

We really had the hat thing going on.  A good time was had by all and the pizza was great.