More Birthday Cards

 March is a month filled with birthdays.  In my last post, I shared the cards I made for my son and my granddaughter.  This past week, I finished two more cards for friends.  I haven't done much sewing, but some is better than none, right?

I found these fish faces in a bin.  I'm not sure what I had planned for them, but I think this is effective, no?

Estate sales continue to be few and far between.  However one popped up last weekend, that had several nautical-themed things and kitties.  I LOVE this painted rock!!  I keep expecting it to begin purring.

My garden has a single iris bloom.  Hopefully it is a herald of many blooms to come.  This one is in the backyard, in an iris patch that has rarely bloomed over the past 10 years.  The neighbor cut down seven trees from the fence line, so these plants are getting much more sun than ever before.  I look forward to seeing what color iris I have planted back there.  

And that's all I've got for now.  Hopefully I'll have more to post later this month.

Happy Quilting!

Be Mine, Valentine(s)

 For a change, I realized that Valentine's Day was quickly approaching...in early February.  I made plans to make valentines for my grandchildren, then realized I was running out of time.  Quick!!  Stitch those hearts!

Above shows the tops, below are the backs.  There is a bunny, for P, who was born in the year of the rabbit.  There are puppies for A, who LOVES dogs.  There are street signs for truck-loving J, books for F, and balls for the youngest, H.  Hopefully each will recognize his/her own valentine.  If not, I will.

Not wanting their parents to feel overlooked, I also made cards for my sons and their wives.  The boys will be here for breakfast with the children.  Two of the wives will be absent because of work.

As with the cards for the grands, I went with themed backgrounds.  Patriotic for A, cowgirl for A; strawberries for M, wood for A; woods for M, and measuring sticks for D.  A well-rounded bunch, for sure!

As I was sewing, I ran across this red background for a card, which I began in December.  I decided to finish it off as a valentine-ish birthday card for a friend.  I usually make winter-themed cards for her, since her birthday is in early February.  This one is quite different.

On Friday, I took part 1 of a Zoom class with Jean Impey.  The class is called "Twinkle," and it focuses on making Liberated Stars.  My design wall already had a UFO in residence.  hmmm.  These seem to play well together.  I wonder if they'll end up as a single piece?

Yesterday, I realized that with all of the valentines I'd already made, I'd yet to make one for my Valentine.  I spent the morning piecing this little house (the color of our big house), and trying to personalize it a bit.  Each year, I make a valentine for him.  You can see more of them here.  I'm sure I had another post with ALL of the valentines I've made for my husband, but apparently I neglected to tag it.  sigh.

In other news, I went to an estate sale on Friday, and had happy hunting.  I found this cement pagoda, that reminds me of my mom.  She had one similar, in her front yard.

I also found this pair of iris lamps.  I bought them for Cambria House, but may end up keeping them here.  I really like them!

And speaking of Cambria House, work continues.  I pulled up carpet last week, and found that the floor beneath the window is squishy and falling.  Not only does it need to be replaced, but the subflooring as well.  But first, the foundation.

All in all, the vacation home will be an adventure.  It may look like the above today, but that will change.  In contrast, it is a mile or two from the ocean, which also changes...but is always there, should we wish to visit.

And with that, I've got a breakfast to assemble before heading off to church.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Estate Sale Treasures

 One of my favorite things to do on a weekend is to poke through an estate sale, or two, or three.  2020 was a horrible year for them, what with the lockdown and all.  But I keep my eyes open and my ears to the ground, and every once in a while, one will come to my attention.  This happened last month...or was it the month before?  It's kind of blurring.  Anyway, one of our dear guild members passed away in the Fall, and her house was cleared out.  I heard about the sale, and off I went.

I was most interested in her quilts, primarily because I had quilted one of them several years back.  I put hours upon hours into it, and cringed when I gave her the bill.  But she LOVED it.  It was in the estate sale, for about 10% of what I charged her to quilt it.

Oh, look at that.  It HAS been years since I quilted that quilt!  This is an old picture, taken when I finished the quilting.  In the years since, I've peeled off that wallpaper, and painted the wall...purple!  I hadn't even thought about putting it on our bed yet.  I should try that and see how it looks.  wow!

Above is a close-up of the quilting.  It is an over-sized queen.  As I said, it took hours to quilt it.  I couldn't believe it was up for grabs at the estate sale.

Next is another quilt of Phyllis', that I bought at the sale.  This one is flannel, and oh, so cozy!  I had just washed it, dried it, and was letting it dry even more in this quick photo.  (A friend wondered if this was a quilt she had quilted for Phyllis.  It wasn't.)

On her bulletin board were her ribbons.  Beautiful memories!

And finally, the piece de resistance:  Her President's Quilt, from 1993.

Each year, our outgoing guild president is presented with a box full of blocks.  When Phyllis' year ended, I had been in charge of her quilt.  I had asked everyone to make their favorite 12" (finished) block, and to sign it on the outside, so that we would know whose block it was.  Then I set them together, in a way that would give us some space to quilt.

I love the variety, don't you?  The only problem with the plan, was that Phyllis did not do much hand quilting.  We began quilting it at one of the first Best of the Valley quilt shows, and I hadn't seen it since.  When I would ask her about it, she would shake her head and say she didn't know what happened to it.

Once I finish my "current" - and I use the phrase loosely - hand quilting project, this is what I want to tackle next.  It is actually close to half done.  Quilted in the 90's, it does not have the sort of elaborate quilting that you usually see nowadays.  It's more functional quilting, to hold the 3 layers together, with little more than stitch in the ditch.  I may finish it with that, and then decide if it needs a bit more.

So, that's what I've got for today.  Some older quilts, once again seeing the light of day.  There's nothing better than a quilt made with love, to wrap up in, on a cold winter's day.

Happy Quilting!

This n That

 Ahhh.  Another post before the end of the month.  That is good news, because it means that I've spent at least a few minutes communing with my sewing machine.  I don't have a lot to show, but I have finished a few quiltlets and postcards.

First, the postcards:

For these sets, I cut up a panel, added a back, and zigzagged around the edges.

This one was made from scraps in my scrap pile.

These quiltlets were quilted and embellished, before adding the self-binding backing.

Yesterday, we celebrated two birthdays.  One for Henley, one for her mama.

Other than that, last weekend, I hit another estate sale.  I do love to find good embroidery, and I'm a sucker for pillowcases.

And these Sunbonnet Sues?  What was the quilter thinking, when she chose that orange for the arms?  What was it called?  Coppertone QT?  for quick tan?  In high school, I remember a lot of girls with that bright orange skin.  Then again, I do not remember them dressing like this!

Finally, I found 5 beautifully embroidered basket blocks, sporting pink ribbons.  I'm hopeful that they will wash up beautifully.  I might also put them in Retroclean, if the background remains discolored.

And I guess that's going to do it.  I am happy to report that I've been interacting with fabric.  I'm hopeful, that with the holidays ahead, I'll get even more studio time in the not too distant future.

Happy Quilting!

Still Here

 This COVID stuff.  The days run together, along with the weeks, and now months.  Days are filled with this, that, and not a lot of anything.  It is hard to come up with content for posting.  One would think that with all of this time on my hands, I would be uber-productive.  Not me.  sigh.

I did make a couple of little pillowcases this week, for two little pillows that had been on my studio floor for almost a year.  Imagine how much space that left behind!  yay!

My DIL asked for a green mask, to match a dress she plans to wear to a wedding.  She indicated that embroidered flowers would be really pretty.  I made a plain mask, an embroidered mask, and a third mask with a floral print.  I'm sure she will find the opportunity to use them all.

Over the past month, I learned to cure olives.  yummy!

I made my first cheesecakes in decades.  I mean, since Costco, who bakes their own cheesecake anymore?  I have to say, these may be ugly, but they were tastier than Costco's!

I was quite happy when estate sales began opening again.  Lots of mask and entry restrictions, but sometimes?  The amazing deals are still available.  I bought this shell collection for $5.

Last weekend, I stumbled in at the end of a sale that had a table full of shoes left.  The shoes were all size 42.  If you've ever looked for 42's, you know that they are not easy to find.  When I chose the boots and a pair of flip flops, they offered me the entire collection for $25.  wow!  I feel like Imelda Marcos now!!  Only a couple of the thongs are uncomfortable.  The other shoes?  Are now residing in my closet, waiting for an opportunity to be worn.

I've also spent a lot of time with our local grandchildren.  Tea party, anyone?

These cousins are 2 months apart.  They are as different as can be.  One is all into physical activity, the other will sit for hours, as I read book after book after book.

And our grandson?  Is a busy boy.  Here, he's helping his dada by loading the tractor.  Such a good worker!

And finally, the project that keeps my attention.  I have been hand quilting this one since April.  I am closing in on the last portion, which is just amazing.  I truly thought this quilt would always remain a top.

Happy quilting!!

STAY AT HOME

Well, what better hobby/obsession to have than to be a quilter?  How long have you personally been looking for some extra quilting time?  Looks like we all have it, whether we want it or not, that is if you live in California.

I spent the first part of the week sending out notifications that Best of the Valley Quilt Show, originally scheduled for April, has been rescheduled for October 9-11.  The response has been very positive.  It does my heart good to know that people did NOT want it to be cancelled altogether.  We have a LOT of support from the quilting community.  Thank you!!

After finishing the bulk of the notifications, I took a few hours on Wednesday and Thursday to work on a UFO.  It's been hanging in my closet for over a year.  It required about 2 hours of quilting and then binding to finish it up.  And here you go, my first COVID19 UFO finish:

I still have 38 UFO's on my list.  That is more than enough to keep me busy for a long, long time.

This particular quilt was put together with one set of blocks from a two-block mystery quilt.  The blocks were made sometime in the 90's.  When I sewed them together, the result was hideous.  I took them all apart, and separated the blocks.  I believe this is the third quilt I've made from that particular project.

hmmm.  I wonder if I have digital pictures of the first two?  hmmm.  Seems not.  Maybe scanning more old-school photographs is something I can do if I find that I have idle hands as we wait out this emergency.

Last Friday, I probably went to the last local estate sale for a long time.  I bought 200 skeins of DMC perle cotton.  There were no duplicates in the bunch.  When there were two of one color, there was one skein of size 3, one skein of size 5.

 Finally, the pandemic has had no effect on my iris garden.  The buds are beginning to pop, and their beauty is enough to calm the most frantic heart beat.

Be wise, be safe, stay healthy...

And get some quilting done!  :D

Sew Faster!

I think I mentioned our Sew Eclectic Challenge in my last post.  I finished my second piece, and am very happy with it.  I can't wait to see what the rest of the finished quilts look like.  We have a new deadline of February 1.  Hopefully the other half of the whole will be done by then.  no pressure.  ;)

 We went to the first estate sale of the year, and I found this cutter quilt for $2.  Had to have it.  I thought I would make it into pillows, until I realized that it only has holes on one end.  The other end has already been chopped off.  Maybe I'll chop off the holey end and make it a floor quilt for babies to play on.  We'll see.

 I wasn't familiar with the pattern, but Charlotte looked it up and tells me it is Road to Oklahoma.  In looking at this photo, I see that there are chains running top left to bottom right.  I hadn't noticed that before.  The blocks are set with cornerstones and sashing, so it's a bit tricky to see that the blocks consist of 4 diagonal squares and two arrows.

Other than that, I've been busy trying to prepare for various events.  Tomorrow I give a trunk show presentation at the local Orange Blossom Quilt Guild.  It should be fun, and will be good preparation for my scheduled presentation during the World Ag Expo.

This year has gotten off to a wild and woolly beginning.  Let's hope it calms down a bit, because it's hard to keep up when so much is happening so quickly.  My father-in-law passed away at the beginning of the month.  His memorial service was held last week.  This was the first time to see all of our grandchildren together in one place.  They are a joy to behold.

The baby does not belong to his handler.  That's Penelope's dad, holding her itty bitty cousin.

And I guess that's going to have to do it for now, because I've got lots to do and not a lot of time in which to get it done.  Happy New Year!  Happy Quilting!!

Shopping at the Quilt Show

I'm still busy putting the show to rest, though it's been a few weeks.  I've finally emptied the van, and transferred most everything to the storage unit.  My garage is still overly full, but I'm getting there.  Baby steps.  It's all baby steps.

On Day 1 of Best of the Valley, I made the bold statement that "I never buy fabric at quilt shows." 

Then again, I do have several quilts waiting in the wings that need to be organized and produced.  I have a few ideas in mind, and with that?  I pulled out the credit card.  oh my.

 Here are the results, viewed from both directions.  I have a lot of prewashing in my future!

 I bought these painted treasures from Rainbow Resources, and hope to use them soon.

 These twists of silk were from Tenaj.  I have a plan for them, too.

Lots of plans, just not so much quilting.

I made it to an estate sale last week.  There, I found a couple of inexpensive pieces of oak furniture.

 The chest is in great condition, and came lined with cedar and a non-closing hinge.  It's perfect for a toy chest!

 The oak end table needs a bit of TLC, but it's made in USA, so I'm sure it will quickly respond to a bit of sanding, staining and sealing.

And the final news from around here?  I was thinking of getting another cat (kitten) to take Charlie's place, but my son called two weeks ago from work.  "Mom?  Someone dumped two puppies in the orchard."

I put my foot down, but when he assured me, "They're not that big," I capitulated.  Pidge and Pudge are thriving, now that they are eating regularly.  I should take a newer picture, since they are no longer skin and bones.

 These pictures were taken within their first hour of arrival.

 After feeding them for a week, they officially weighed in at 5.6lbs and 4.6lbs.

And they are the sweetest little loves.  I might just have to keep them.

Quilt-wise?  We just posted the images of the top award winners at BOTV 2018.  You can see them here.