Four Of The 11 Small Quilts I'm Working On Are Quilted

I have finished the quilting on 4 of the 11 small quilts I am working on at this time,

There is still a lot left to do before they are finished.

Each part I complete gives me a feeling of accomplishment.

 

Sneak Peak

 This is a sneak peak of one of the quilts I am working on.

I am currently working on 11 different small quilts.

I had a lot of small pieces of leftover batting so I paired them with some of my small works in progress and am working on all of them as inspiration strikes me.

Always Looking For Best Places To Showcase My Quilts

 

I realized the quilt I had hanging on the back of my standing post office desk had been there for quite some time.

I decided to find something else to hang there and this was close to me as I had recently finished it.

Yes, if you follow my blog you just saw it.

The size of this one is perfect and I love how it looks with my crocks of yarn.

I'm Currently Working On Using Small Pieces Of Batting To Finish Smaller Quilts

 

These are 3 of the nine smaller quilts I am currently working on finishing.

The one in the middle has already been quilted in the photo. The one of the left is partially quilted but was not quilted when the photo was taken.

In addition to quilting the quilts they need finishing which can take as much time as quilting.

I will be happy when I can add them to my list of finished quilts.

Did You See My Facebook Post About The Ohio Star Quilt?

I mentioned on Facebook I was sending someone an Ohio Star quilt.

It was an unexpected birthday surprise for a longtime special friend.

Neither of us currently live in Ohio but that is where we became friends.

She loved it and hung it right away.

I love the fact that the picture she sent shows the quilting so well.
 

Quilters In Australia Use My Sunrise Sunset Tutorial

 Several years ago a well known quilter in Australia found my tutorial and I had tens of thousands of views from Australia.

My friend Cassandra Philpot made numerous quilts from the tutorial.

Her guild Queanbeyan Quilters recently contacted me and asked to use my tutorial for their activiry session and I gave them permission.

Queanbeyan Quilters Inc.: Racing through those jelly rolls!

You can do a few clicks to see their report.

I have only been able to share a few with my meager computer skills. They really came up with some unique projects.

A "NEW" 30 Year Old Time Lapse Quilt Finished

 

This is one of those quilts that didn't impress me when I made it but when I took it out all these years later I absolutely love it.

So many quilters are purists and will only use 100% cotton fabrics.

This contains cotton sateen, chintz, poly/cotton blend, polished cotton and that great Gutcheon cottons.

Using all these different fabrics gives the quilt texture and a lot of life.

What Else Happened While I Wasn't Blogging?

 

You may know I LOVE teak furniture. This is a "new to me" piece of furniture.

I discovered marketplace and found it there. It is solid, like new and VERY heavy.

This is what it looks like in our living room.

Second Quilt Finish Of 2022

This is a photo of a finished quilt that I cut and rotated and had printed on fabric.

This is the original quilt I made from hand dyed fabric that I photographed.
 

Did Anything Happen In the 15 Months I Didn't Blog?

 Yes, and as I come across photos I am trying to share some of those occasions.

Jared graduated from Iowa State in May.

Nick (far right) graduated from University of Minnesota Dental School.

And Stephanie celebrated her birthday in May.

What Do You Do With Your Cotton Scraps That Can't Be Used For a 2 x 4 inch Piece

 In 1963 you figure out a lot of other ways to piece a 4 inch square block.

And what to you do for the reverse side of the quilt?

You create patchwork for the reverse side of the quilt as you still have scraps left.

And what do you do it batting is not available in 1963?

You find a factory that makes bedspreads and buy their scraps.

And what if you have no idea how to make a quilt?

You make tubes of fabric and stuff each tube with some of their batting scraps.

This created a large quilt that was very large, heavy and warm.

It was created in the fall of 1963.

These are the very first photos of this quilt.

Studio Stairwell Variety

 It is easy to change the display of the quilts on my studio stairwell.

This is the first group of quilts I hung on my studio stairwell.

This is another group of quilts I have hung over the stairwell. 

The hanging system we created makes it easy to change the display.

Another Quilt I Hope To Finish Soon

 

Looking at this quilt top 30 or so years after I completed it, I also am anxious to finish it.

What will I be finishing soon?

 I have at least 4 large Sampler Quilts that are works in progress.

They are in various stages of completion.

I started this sampler quilt in the late 1970's.

This was when I thought every quilt I made had to be king size because we had a king size bed.

I recently realized I could forego the borders I had planned to add and finish some of these quilts.

That is my plan for this one and I hope to finish it soon.

It will still be a large quilt.

Love Making Pincushions

 I didn't understand why anyone would make pincushions .... until I stated making them myself.

I had many little samples from projects and other things that made perfect pincushions. 

A great way to make something from almost nothing.

I found having a variety of pincushions allowed me to keep different types of pins I use separated.

I also allows me to have pincushions in various places I sew.

These 2 large pincushions were made from sample pieces to try designs for my slashed coat.

I had always stuck pins all over my design wall.

I now have one at each end of the design wall and pins are within reach.

I stuff all my pincushions with wool batting left over from my quilts.

My First Quilt Finish of 2022

I started this quilt only a little over 2 years ago.

I did spiral quilting on it which is one of my favorite ways to quilt.

It's a great feeling to have it finished.

Zipper Pouches Made From Clothing Patchwork Leftovers

 

These zipper pouches were all made from the neck cutouts from my No Sweat Checkerboard Shirt pattern.

These were made from the cutouts of various clothing pieces.

These are the last zipper pouches I made from clothing leftovers.

Zipper Pouches Made From Sewing Machine Embroidery Samples

 This is not programmed machine embroidery. It is from a class I taught many years ago where you move the fabric back and forth to create a design.

There are a total of 3 different groups in this blog post.

This is the first of  the 3 groups of embroidered pouches and a couple other designs.

More embroidered pouches. The blue and white one is made from just zippers.

The final group of embroidered pouches along with some other unique creations.

How I Get Myself Ready To Work On Quilts, Bigger Projects

 

I use leftover pieces from previous projects to make zipper pouches.

They are easy to do and I enjoy giving them to others

I had this small fragment of cross stitch and lots of very small scraps

I enjoyed creating this crazy quilt zipper pouch.

Celebrating Christmas With Greg and Julie

 

Everything aligned this past weekend so Greg, Julie and Oliver were able to visit to celebrate Christmas at last.

The huge Christmas cactus was one of my gifts from them.

Christmas Ornaments Using Yarn

These were all knitted.

I crocheted 6 granny squares to make a block ornmanent but it didn't hold the shape well.

This bargello ornament was made on plastic canvas.
 

More Handmade Ornaments - Getting Ready To Put Them Away

These are the only ones of this type I have left, although I had made many similar ones.

These were made from muslin, cotton lace and ribbon. 

 

This blue bird ornament was made from felt.

This ball and Sunbonnet Sue ornament were made from printed polyester double knit.

My Hand Painted Christmas Ornaments

 I've never considered myself a painter but I had fun creating this groups of ornaments.

These watermelons were a fun project for my tree.

Raggedy Andy and the soldiers were fun clothespin ornaments, though time consuming to create with all the detail.

These sweet innocent angel ornaments are painted on both sides.

Ornaments From Christmas's Past

 Over the years I have made a lot of handmade ornaments.

I have given away most of them.

I made these felt beaded Christmas tree ornaments 62 years ago. The felt was leftover from the circle felt skirts I made in the 50's.

The beaded bird ornaments came soon after.

This groups followed about 5 years later.

This final group of my beaded felt ornaments were created in the 1970s.

Corn And Beans Quilt in Progress

 I currently have quite a few quilts in progress that I am sharing my time working on.

I started it with left over patchwork pieces from a quilt I created about 22 years ago.

I have no idea where I am heading or how big it will get. 

I did find it was more interesting diagonally.

It is one of 8 quilts I am actively working on so it only gets added to when it tells me "Work on me, see what I want you to do next?"

Most Beautiful Amaryllis

 I received this as a Christmas gift from Greg and Julie.

This is what it looked like when I received it December 22.

This is what it looked like on January 5th with the third stems flowers.

There are 4 flowers on this stem. 

It is a gorgeous specimen that has kept changing and getting more beautiful.

Everyone who has seen this is amazed.