Weekend Sewing--Design Wall Monday

See more Design Walls on Judy's Small Quilts and Doll Quilts blog. 

It's been a quiet Memorial Day, I spent most of it in the sewing room doing a lot of cleanup.  The scrap drawers saw a lot of activity this past week when I was cutting for a Plaidish Quilt. 

The pattern is free on the Kitchen Table Quilting blog by Erica Jackman, with a tutorial here.    It uses more medium value fabrics than dark or light, which suits my stash well. She has introduced a second Plaidish 2  quilt just recently which utilizes a lot more light fabrics.  Lights seem to be hard to keep stocked in my sewing room!  I'm making a 6x8 version of her pattern, which is block-based so you can make it whatever size you like.  I'm looking forward to a lot of plaid piecing in my future.  

Meanwhile, in between Telehealth visits last week I assembled all the rows to the Cross My Heart tablerunner for my brother. The full size quilt is in Kim Brackett's Scrap Basket Beauties book.  

I got a lot of exercise picking up and sewing all the rows and setting triangles.  Another task crossed off the list today was choosing backing fabrics for the runner. 

The cutting table got cleared of all the assorted scraps and strips that get thrown in a basket as I cut, fat quarters and larger scraps went to their drawers, and I stuffed more yardage in the groaning tubs under the table.  Good thing the only fabric related purchases I made recently had specific projects attached to them :)

Our son and daughter-in-law came over Saturday for a socially distant lunch they picked up; we sat at opposite ends of the 6 foot patio table, lol.  Our future grandson is poking out a bit more, only 3 months to go.  They had a virtual baby shower and DIL Ashley was very excited for a particular item we purchased from her registry--a baby-wipe warmer.  I wish such a thing had existed when our kids were babies! 

A friend gave her a nice rocking chair, which she repainted, but the cushion covers were quite worn and she asked me to make some new ones--the old ones are pictured on the table.  We are getting very excited about having a new baby in the family again.  Meanwhile, there was great progress on the Dreamweaver quilt I started for them a year ago when they got married (pattern by Jen Kingwell Designs).

I was finally able to pick up my Superbuzzy fabric order on Friday, after a week's wait, and made the bias tape from a 3/4 yd cut of Kona Jade fabric.  I only needed to make one join for the medallion.  After I took this pic I looked at the pattern again and realized the streamers were too wide and needed to be adjusted to 1/2" wide.  My version of the quilt is much larger than the original and I changed the disappearing 9 patch background to simple patchwork.  Many prepared applique leaves and circles will be fused and stitched along the streamers.  Lots more time needed to cross this off the list!

Humble Quilts 2020 Doll Quilt Swap-Linky Party

Lori of Humble Quilts blog has been having a wonderful doll quilt exchange for a number of years, and I have participated frequently.  I previously showed the quilt I made for my swap partner in Canada--who has yet to email that the little quilt was received, fingers crossed it was! Now we are sharing the quilt we received from our partner.  I have shared on Lori's FB Humble Quilts group page already the lovely work of Dana Wild,  which received a lot of attention, as it should!

 Mini closely inspected the little quilt, and definitely appurroved the sweet tiny prints in the Churn Dash blocks, hand quilting, and the coffee staining.  I'm a lucky swapper!

Linking up with Humble Quilts blog Exchange post--lots of wonderful little quilts to enjoy there. 

It's Design Wall Monday in May--see more design walls on Judy's Small Quilts and Doll Quilts blog.

Off my design wall--and finished!  This is a charm pack Moda Love quilt--a free pattern, here.

Mostly Vintage Picnic charm pack fabrics.  I auditioned a number of choices but settled on this green print from stash for the binding.  Backing was pieced from stash too.

Last week was a hard one for this hunker-downer.  The pressure at work with telemedicine patients, new technology, crowded internet, training sessions/learning a new EHR, not being able to see my family or go anywhere--really got to me.  Shhh, don't tell, but...

I got a home manicure from my friend (we both wore masks the whole time). I had been wearing bandaids on two fingernails that continuously split for weeks and superglue before that.  I gave my friend the Love quilt...she was thrilled, loved the red in the center, her fave color.  The first Love quilt I made was for her daughter a few years ago.  My friend told me that she sees that quilt every time she Facetimes with her daughter living out of state, as it is always on her daughter's bed.  That makes me happy!

Over the weekend a lot more time was spent sewing on all the borders to the Summer Breeze quilt I showed earlier this month.  I tend to make borderless quilts but really liked the design for this one.

Pattern by Kim Brackett from her Scrap Basket Surprises book--she made hers of Robyn Pandolph prints.  It's a nice throw size and just the bit of cheerfulness I needed to finish up the weekend.   More quilts are being released from their boxes and totes.  I'm trying really hard not to start anything else new!

Tuesday's Orts--Cinco de Mayo

Tuesday's Orts--bits and pieces and events that land here occasionally...

• I've continued working Guild projects, though my primary problem is obtaining batting! I think I have enough large cutoffs to piece for this little playmat for giving to a Mom and Baby class. 

These pieces were leftover from a baby quilt I made 7 years ago and the cute Riley Blake prints needed to get out of the stash drawers. 

 

Poor piggy is looking down at his cut off tail--I needed a few more smaller squares! I have a couple more pieces of the fruit print and will pull something from stash to piece a backing.  

 

Another baby quilt sandwich that needs a binding made and attached.  These were lotto blocks I won at guild.  Simple in the ditch quilting and a backing made from cutoffs of another backing.

•  Our neighbors are organizing a Cinco de Mayo Social Distancing Driveway party tonight.  We've placed our order with our favorite Baja-style fish taco place.  All the neighborhood kids have been having bike rodeos in the evenings on our cul de sac. 

• We did another social distancing visit with our daughter's family.  I gave the boys some bubble wands and a refill of bubble soap.  The kids had spent all day playing in the backyard.  Mama has even gotten out the Teepee I made Cove for his first birthday--it makes a great shad shelter in the backyard--where they have been spending many hours a day since they can't go to daycare, the gym, school, work....  A neighbor was getting a drive by birthday party that evening too, lots of honking and waving, several trips around the cul de sac :)
•  Our son and his wife have their first wedding anniversary this month and I am working on their quilt--though my son always calls it "Ashley's quilt"--Dreamweaver by Jen Kingwell Designs.  I had expanded the pattern size and getting things to fit together has been problematic.  There was sacrifice of the design to attach the center ring to the outer ring applique style, with overlap of more than an inch, but c'est la vie', it is done.

• Um--it turns out my template plastic was NOT heat resistant!  I used a tiny buttonhole stitch to attach the center and inner ring to the outer ring.  The next step is bias tape to finish the circle edges and the spokes of the dreamweaver.  I have to buy more of the solid turquoise that Ashley wants.  I mocked up the size bias tape I wanted with a leftover binding strip from something else.

I like the pink with the prints of the background and center as well.  This will be 3/4" single fold binding and I'll machine stitch it down too. 

• Traffic rant:  Despite far fewer cars on the road, the tailgaters are worse than ever!  Seems that less patience for delays is available during social distancing.

• Someone really wanted me to get up out of bed the other morning...hi Mini

May Day Play

Happy May Day!  I was very happy to see the hind end of April--what a month of upheaval and angst!  There was a lot of quarantine stitching done and I finished up the month with a WIP/UFO of 30's fabrics. The pieces have been safely in their box since May 2017 and were happy to get some fresh air after all this time.  I chose another Kim Brackett design, Summer Breeze from Scrap Basket Surprises for these prints  First order of business was to get HSTs made into pinwheels, then borders around the blocks. 

A lot more cutting was needed for the outer border pieces and alternate setting blocks and then a whole lot of pairing and switcheroo before and after sewing.  I mocked up a layout on the cutting table with a few finished blocks.

Such cheerful colors and prints.  Next was layout and more switcheroo...

Mini is always ready to hold a block in place. 

Two days of moving blocks resulted in the final layout. Rows are stacked and ready to sew. The border pieces will be added after the center is assembled. There is binding fabric in the project box too.  I'm glad this happy quilt is occupying the downtime at home.  

I am working a bit more now as another technological method can now connect me to the doctor's telephone visit when a patient does not have a smartphone or laptop/tablet, or the internet connections don't line up for a video visit.  This makes the doc very happy--as he then has me to scribe the visit as usual and can just review later and sign.  The practice is also changing electronic health programs and now we have an hour of training assigned each day online.  Sigh. 

Happy Anniversary to my Mom and Dad, 62 years tomorrow, wow!