Robert B. Parker

Today was my day off, so I read Night and Day by Robert B. Parker.  It was a quick read and I enjoyed it very much.  I have read a lot of Parker's books with the Spenser character, but this was my first with Jesse Stone.


In the quilting department, I have another small finished project to share (22" x 22").  This selvage table-topper was pieced about a year ago.  Yesterday I machine quilted it and last night I finished the binding.

I started piecing the green/yellow/brown "Windmills" quilt top too.  First, there were a lot of strips to sew together ....

Cobweb Progress

The blocks are together!  I didn't have enough feed sack scraps to make any more than this.  So, here it is, hanging up on the wall.


Here is the back ...

And here is a close-up of one of those 12 seam intersections that I was whining about earlier.

After I finish pulling the rest of the paper off, I have a solid red that I am thinking about using as a border and also a WHOLE feed sack that is a white, blue, and red print that would be nice for an outer border.


I'm continuing to hand quilt the four-patch kaleidoscope quilt.  I'm using masking tape to mark the straight lines criss-crossing each four-patch block.  The little yellow blocks each have a simple four petal stencil design that will barely show up in the long run.

What else?  I sold my store sample of the Windmills quilt (Cotton Fields original pattern), so this week I cut out another one.  This is the original sample, the new one is bright yellow, green and brown.

It's a simple design, so I can probably get it put together over the weekend.  I also just machine quilted a selvage table topper (another something-or-other that had been waiting around for a while).  As soon as it's binding is finished, it will be ready to show off, too.   

Feed Sack Cobwebs

Here's what things looked like when I was finished with the string piecing on the feed sack parts of the cobweb blocks .  Cassie was exhausted by the process!  Next I added the solid side pieces.  After the solid fabric auditions the other day, I ended up choosing a green just because I had enough of it.  


BUT ... as it turned out, I didn't have enough.  I was six strips short!  And I didn't discover it until I was almost finished with the blocks.  I was determined to use solids from my stash and decided that I could add one different strip to each block and arrange them symmetrically when I put the top together.  I told myself that that's what our pioneering grandmothers would do!


Anyway, I've put together the first block and it has too many seams!  It's lumpy and thick in the center and I'm not very happy with it.  I'm already thinking about using some vintage buttons to hide the intersections when I am finishing.  I am glad I'm only making six blocks and it is a small project.  Maybe we can't hit a home run every time?  

And, maybe things will all work out in the end.

Happy Birthday, MOM!

Today is my mother's birthday.  I don't know if she wants me to tell how old she is or not, so I'd better not.  Here is what I sent to her as a gift.  

She has some OLD, OLD, OLD place mats that I made at least 10 years ago.  Hope she likes the replacements.  (I used an instruction sheet by Karen Montgomery of The Quilt Company to make these.)


In other news, the DEAR JANE quilt top is finished, the final borders sewn on yesterday.  Hooray!!!  I'll get to work hand quilting it, right after I finish the current hand quilting project.

Auditions

It's not unusual for me to work on two or three projects in one day.  This will be one of those days!


The first thing this morning, I was working on my mother's birthday gift.  No pictures of that, because it's going to be a surprise.  


Next, I've got to think about the fabric that will go with my "Cobweb" quilt blocks.  They are all strip pieced, using authentic feed sack fabric.  Only a solid will do.  Here's what I'm considering ...

I do have an old flour sack, but I think that would be too blah.  I have lots of other solids, but these are large enough that I'll have enough to make all of the side triangle pieces the same color.  I think that's in the spririt of the quilt - using the fabric that I know I have enough of!  I'll probably make my decision and finish these blocks today.


Hand quilting has begun on the "Kaleidoscopes" quilt top ... about 1/4 of the blocks are quilted, so I'll be showing that off soon.


Last, but not least, it's a progress report on DEAR JANE!  The rows are together and all that remains to be done is sewing on the final borders.  I'm planning a 1/2" inner red border and a 3" green outer border.  

Change of Pace

Still working on DEAR JANE ... just a few rows left to attach, then borders.  This part of the job is kind of tedious, so I had to take time out to ....

BASTE ANOTHER QUILT!

This is my "Four-Patch Kaleidoscopes" quilt top.  I have patterns printed and some kits put together, so it just might be nice to have a finished sample, right?  Cassie is keeping a close eye on the process. 

So Many Little Pieces!

I'm back to working on Dear Jane.  While I really, really enjoyed working on the little blocks, putting it all together is not so much fun.  Sashing strips are cut 1" x 5" and cornerstones are cut 1" x 1" and there are a million of them (seems like).  I've got to be careful!  Here's what it looks like so far.  The three middle rows are sewn together.

After spending all morning on Jane, I switched gears and sewed the binding on a little strip pieced table topper.  I made the top way back in July while doing a demo for a class and was tired of it laying around.  Another quick machine quilting job and another UFO is finished.  Yay!!

Here's a close-up.

The blocks for the cobweb quilt are just about finished.  The strips are sewn; I just need to figure out what I want for the contrast.  I have some real flour sacks, if I want to keep it all vintage, or I might just choose a solid.  More on that soon.