Favorite Things Quilt- revisited

This quilt was made years ago. Our quilt group exchanged the 25-patch scrappy blocks and the 4-in the corner blocks.

Many beautiful Irish Chain quilts were made that year. This is one of my favorites.

I was in an applique mood and each trade I added my embellishments.

Some were free hand. Some from color books, others from mag. patterns of the time.

I bet you can see a few that will bring back memories!

The tulips and daises have been favorite blocks to applique and I have made several quilts from each.

The car applique was from a mag. and I made a birthday quilt for our daughters 16th using the pattern. (She is 26 now!- still uses the quilt)

This quilt lives with my mom and will be passed down to our oldest daughter someday. Favorite Things brings back a lot of memories of the gals I sewed/quilted with over the years. It also holds a sample of the fabrics we liked and the applique techniques I was experimenting with.

Do you have a favorite quilt that brings special memories for you?

Monochromatic Challenge March=Brown

Great FNSI- worked on my "Brown" block for the MC. Mark this one off my list as - completed! To see other Brown -MC click here Here are my first Three blocks- I will have to come up with something fun for setting strips! Pieces for the Bear Claw block were all cut and modified using my GO. (I will do a separate Tutorial later) Finished block is 6 1/2" I will set them with spacers in a 9-patch arrangement to yield a 20 (ish)" block for my MC quilt. The Book: "Brown Bear, Brown, What Do You See" was my original inspiration, thus the brown Bear paws. After doing a holiday search for ideas on March, I discovered that March hosts National Anthem Day on the 3rd. I decided to change my wording to "Oh Say Can you See" as a Patriotic reminder. My new puppies, Jack & Oreo , 9 wks old Hard to believe these are brothers! . The MC for March is BROWN- I have ideas and will update this post as I come up with something. My theme is going to be "What do you See?" - a line from the story Brown Bear, Brown Bear My goal is a 20" block to add to my on going collection for a MC top. I have decided for each month to just keep one post going start to finish. At the end of the month I will link to Judy's post that shares the other participants projects. Can't wait to see what our 'color' is for April! Just found out April=Orange

Monochromatic Challenge 2011

Saturday Night was a bit more productive- !

Friday Night Sew in didn't yield a lot of sewing.

I did manage to get some letters cut out for my border on my scrappy block.

Don't know why it cracks me up that the word Monochromatic is in scrappy fabrics!

The challenge is an Eleven Month project hosted by Judy L.

I hoping to make a total of 12 blocks to sew into a keepsake quilt.


I will raw-edge applique these little letters in place the next time I get a couple of minutes to sew.

My daughter's favorite color is "Plaid", mine is "Scrappy". What is your favorite color?

Like a Butterfly......

I too shall awaken in my own time.

I don't know which was more fun, sewing the strips for the tumbler borders, or cutting the left overs for the scrappy words.

Hopefully this top will be one of the ones I quilt this year. I have a new to me butterfly pattern I want to try out.

Fed Ex Driver Delivers GO in the Snow

Fed Ex called me to confirm the delivery of my new GO (and additional dies!).

Due to the snow, I asked him to park up at the road and I would meet him.

He did and then carried my 30+ pound box down to the house for me. What a nice man.

There was no school again today and a couple of the grandsons were over to help me.

Tyler opened the box and started taking out the dies.

When he saw this large Drunkard's path he held it up and asked: "Are you going to make some underwear?"

I said, NO- this is for my quilting.

He responded: "But you could make underwear if you wanted too right?"

That kids cracks me up! I might just take a couple of the outer shapes and make him a pair of underwear out of them- or maybe NOT.

I was able to get the applique on one side of my scrappy butterfly top.

The phrase is suppose to be: Just like the Butterfly, I too shall awaken in my own time.

After cutting letters and playing around with the spacing. The first line now reads: Like a Butterfly (saved myself from sewing 6 letters)

now I need to decide if I will edit the rest too. Any one have any good ideas for the rest of verbiage?

strings and tumblers make a nice scrappy border

I did not get to sew as much as I had hoped to this evening.
We are getting another snow storm, which for me is an excuse to stay home from work (yeah) but I ended up doing computer stuff all day (darn reports) and missed out on getting to sew more strings together.

Maybe tomorrow night I can get back to this border-

I an sewing sets of strips and then sub-cutting them into the small tumbler die shape.

They take on a scrappy crumb block look.


This die works on my BABY GO. I have ordered the larger die and it should get here tomorrow!

I have a whole new found love of strips and strings knowing that I can now get more use out of them with the new cutting system I ordered.

These blocks take 5 strips each and I am cutting both horizontal and vertical tumblers.

I have one side done and a bunch ready to sew up for the border on the other side.

I finally figured out what saying I want to put on the last border.

I have been cutting out scrappy letter to raw edge applique.

Salmon pink is not my 'color' but I am learning to like it.

This top is growing on me and hopefully will be a bed size quilt sometime in my life time!

The outer border will be wonky letters and say:

Like the Butterfly, I too will awaken in my own time.

For some reason I love that saying. Kinda makes me sound profound and sarcastic both at the same time! Wont this be fun to sleep under.- cw

Piano Key, Strings or Crumbs? That is the question...

I started this top awhile back. I learned that I am not really a fan of spider web blocks (that's not entirely true, I am a fan just not a fan of doing them myself)

So this center sat for quite a bit.

Last week Mary asked to borrow one of my tops to photograph for a class she is getting ready to teach. This one was in the pile.

I had always intended for it to be a bed size quilt some day. (evidenced by the box of scraps labeled: TO DO)

A border of scrappy butterflies brings the top up to 54 x 63 (ish)

What do you think should be the next borders? 6 inch scrappy Piano Keys, String blocks or Crumbs?

I really thought I wanted to do some wonky letters on the final border but can't decided what I want to piece.

Phrases to consider: Just like the Butterfly, I too will awaken in my own time.

or: The butterfly counts not months but moments and has time enough.