Looking Back at 2020 Quilty Accomplishments

Well, we're finally here at 2021. Whew! It's been quite the slog hasn't it? Frankly I am amazed to see so many quilts reach the finish line--17 in all! Somehow my expectations were that the entire year was a total dud, but maybe not in regards to quilting. I've been having so much fun checking out everyone else's 2020 makes, that I almost forgot to do my own end of the year wrap up!

2020 finishes (1)

I don't like to post the final year wrap up as a boast or a 'look at me' thing, but rather as a marker for scrutinizing where my quilt making is headed as compared to past years. Is my voice still managing to shine through? Am I creating unique and interesting quilts or am I just phoning it in these days? It's also my way of encouraging forward momentum. Seeing all of the completions together in one place reassures me that the previous year wasn't wasted effort. 

2020 finishes (2)

And on a side note, personally, I don't feel that anyone present with their quilting during last year was 'phoning it in', no matter what they made. At least it happened! Just maintaining a regular routine of playing with fabric kept many of us in the game and sets us up for more creative adventures in the future. That's a good thing. Creative flashes of brilliance are something to be treasured. Lets pave the way for more opportunity whatever our resources or limitations!

2020 finishes (3)

Could I have challenged myself more? Sure. If I would have had the mental reserves to actually push myself. Ha! As it was, I'm so very grateful to have had a hobby and craft where I could consistently lose myself in the mediation of hand work. Even if it was on the most simplistic quilt ever! I've talked and talked and TALKED about how important using my hands is to my overall {mental} health and well being. This past year brought that message home to me in spades as if it needed further underscoring...

So sad, depressing, irritating? to read back how wonderfully optimistic I was going into 2020 and know now that it would be more about surviving.*sigh  Are you tired too? I'm just exhausted. Clear down to the bone. Maybe my quilts will turn dark and scary as I work through so many emotional roller coaster rides, disappointments, and missing out on basic, ordinary human interactions. Nah... We're a resilient breed, us quilters. Gonna make all the cozy, cheery looking quilts that I can possibly churn out in the next 12 months! Count on it!

Here are the 2020 Quilty Folk details that probably only matter to me:

• 5 Bed sized quilts finished up
• 9 Lap size quilts
• 3 Baby quilts
• 8 of these quilts were completely hand quilted
• 1 of these quilts was completely machine quilted
• 8 of these quilts were a combination of both machine and hand quilting

Like always, there are quilts that grow tired of hanging out in the quilt stacks here and decide to go live somewhere else. 9 quilts were given away this year, some of them finished up or made especially for a special someone. I whittled down my 'completed' quilt top list to 22 {it was 23 last year}, and then one of my sisters handed off two older quilt tops that she was intending to drop off at Goodwill. Yup. I caved. Honestly, it doesn't feel like added pressure though. I'll get to them whenever. Without any sweat equity involved I could even potentially use them as quilt backings. 

What's 2021 gonna be like? Well, no promises of tutorials or anything like that. I'm usually doing pretty darn good to get in a post once in awhile here on the blog. Still going to be doing deep dives into the stash totes challenging myself to make something, anything? cool with the old stuff. Turns out that I love doing that, and the more it happens, the more interesting it seems to get. When I'm having a particularly unmotivated day, making a new fabric stack is a huge draw. Nothing lifts me up faster than an hour or so lost to digging for the absolute perfect fabric combination. Though I rarely find perfection, it's the tactile {and visual} hunt that thrills.

Applique has gotten fairly out of control around here lately. I'm literally shaking my head so much your screen is probably vibrating. Do I have any self control? With 9 open ended quilt projects in the works {totally normal for me!}, 8 of them involve applique elements or I'm currently scheming about how to work them in. gah! Who has the time? Oh, and 2 of those 'completed' quilt tops from earlier? Don't be surprised if a couple of them end up with more applique added on too. I continually keep pulling Big Kiss and Ormes Inspired in particular out, pondering the very best way to get the look that I keep thinking they need. It's my process. Guess I might as well own up...

So yeah, I'm not giving up nor am I giving in. Just gonna keep going with all the quilty stuff that blows my skirt up whether it makes sense to you or not. We'll probably be seeing more tulips and baskets on quilts, more series work, continuing efforts at a utilitarian and improv. sorta vibe, the occasional weird color palette, and yeah, lots and lots of other applique and hand quilting. Feel free to come along for the ride. I'll try not to bore you too much....

A gift of Free Autumnal Tulip Applique Templates Thru Christmas Day 2020!

Autumnal Tulips is a true blue finish now! This has been such a sweet quilt to work on, I almost didn't want it to be finished up. How is it that some quilts start out so impulsively but then somehow end up being an all time fave?

The finished quilt

This is a quilt that has generated quite a bit of interest, here and also on Pinterest {not that I follow any of that very closely}. Surprisingly, a couple people have also requested a pattern.

A full view

Picture me scrunching up my face and making a 'who, me?' look and you know that's not going to happen. I'm terrible at making patterns, don't have the tools to do it properly and honestly, just don't want to take the time to fine tune all the details.

Looking closely

However, in light of the fact that it's close to Christmas and this year has been a total buzzkill, I decided to trace all the applique templates onto a piece of paper and save it as a PDF file. Just for YOU! Thank you to all my wonderfully supportive readers who stick with me through good quilts and sometimes, even the bad. I love you for that.

Crumpled quilty goodness

No, I can't figure out how to embed it into a post or load it somewhere onto my blog. After about an hour of trying I completely gave up. Techy stuff is so not my area of expertise and I have better things to do with my time right now!

Ready for a good snuggle!

So here's the deal. I'm offering you a Very Merry Christmas gift from Quilty Folk! If you want to have a copy of the Autumnal Tulips applique templates, leave a request in the comments below or drop me an email. It's that simple. I will attach the pdf file with my return email and then you can get started on your own version of this sweet, spunky quilt! Wouldn't it look yummy in pink and/or red poinsettia colors too? This offer is good through December 25th, but I might need until January 1st to get caught up on all the emails. Life is kinda crazy around here during the best of times!

A few notes to consider: 

• This is NOT a pdf total quilt 'pattern', simply the templates for applique parts and pieces. Obviously they'll work better if you trace the shapes onto template plastic or freezer paper before using.
•  This is not a huge quilt. My quilt ended up being 48 3/4" x 57 1/2" after being washed and dried!
• There are 30-8" tulips blocks in my version. Cut the background fabrics out at 8 1/2" x 8 1/2".
• I included a template for the stem, but it's actually easier to make a long tube of bias or not bias stem {either one will work here} and further cut to size in regards to the length. Cut stem fabric out at 1 5/8" wide in long lengths. Sew the lengths together and then further sew into a very long tube with an extremely scant seam. Iron the tube with the seam at the middle at the back. Cut 30 stems at approx. 4 1/4" long each.
• Sashing and cornerstone squares are cut out at 1 3/4" wide.
• Outside border fabric is cut out at 3 1/2" wide.

That's all the guidance you get, but I'm pretty sure most will be off and running with something amazingly unique and totally different from the quilt pictured! 

For the purposes of this giveaway, be sure to leave a return email in your 'request' comment. If you do not request the pdf file, I will assume you don't want it. Remember, blogger does not always play nicely with others these days, and a lot of comments can easily end up being 'no reply'. Even if your comments always made it thru to my email a year ago! What no-reply means is, I have no way to contact you! ZERO! If you have not heard back from me by January 1st, then it might be best to email me personally at audkateaster at gmail dot com. Crossing my fingers this actually works!

A Surge of Productivity

So nice to finally have Dried Flowers completely finished! This one was started in July of 2018 and has always felt like a sweet little gem of a quilt. I love when a quilt starts out with a whisper and then gradually morphs into something so much greater than the initial seed of inspiration!

Dried Flowers is completed!

This one originated from a thorough deep-dive through the orphan totes one day when the lure of working with cut-out-from-the-backs-of-other-applique seemed especially enticing. At that moment, all I really wanted was something quick and easy to start stitching on.

Looking across the quilt

Once in awhile I don't bother to draft out a full quilt idea and just plunge straight into the making of blocks. For this one, I first layered the circles and then later, decided what to do with the flower 'body'. The colors to this quilt were chosen on the fly, all very much based on those original circles and what might emphasize them to the greatest degree.

The full effect

After that, the whole quilt just sort of fell into place piece by piece as was needed to properly move on.  The strings were decided on because I love cutting/sewing improv. strings and I felt they would be a good relief block to the formality of the flowers. It also gave me opportunity to further play with some old, tired fabrics, something that {surprisingly} continues to be of interest to me even still today. The decision to make the applique rows pointed instead of just chopping them off at the same width as the rest of the quilt was partly a coping strategy and partly true serendipity! How could I ever have imagined the totality of this quilt in my head before starting to see the pieces emerge right in front of me?

Why don't I applique interesting leaves
more often?

I personally adore the stringy improv. blocks alternating with the sweet pea look to the flower blocks. It comes together as very quiet and soothing looking, with pops of what I like to call  pure deliciousness! Add in the hand quilting and the texture jumped up to a whole 'nother level. Love it!

Can't get enough of these flowers...

In case you had any doubts whatsoever, I am seriously thrilled with the end result of Dried Flowers. It feels like a good me quilt and I'm so very glad for impulsively deciding to start stitching those circles together on that day!

Hoping it looks sweet and girly enough!

In a spontaneous surge of productiveness, I also cut out, sewed and machine quilted a basic looking quilt for the brand new great-niece. Honestly, I was scared to wait until later in December as it might never get finished! The Fons & Porter 60 degree pyramid triangle has been lurking in my drawer for years and this seemed like a great way to test it out. I have had ideas for making another quilt with that same ruler but somehow never have managed to make the first cut.

Lovely to use up some of these fabrics

This entire quilt would have looked loads better if I had taken the time to cut smaller triangles for just a few of those solid triangles. {Hanging my head with chagrin just a tiny little bit.} Wouldn't it have given it lovely depth? Alas, this was one of those quilts where the saying 'done is better than perfect' kept looping through my brain. Best to whip it out and get it gifted. Expending too much of my precious creative time on something that only has to look 'cute and girly' doesn't sound like a real winner in the long run. I have important quilts to work on!*wink

Baby quilt for the new niece

Did you see the periwinkle fabric that I ended up including in the baby quilt just because? It's been hanging out in the stash totes for a million years and never, ever plays nicely with any other fabrics.  And you know me, just because I was in a tearing hurry doesn't mean there's not sufficient time for a wee little personal challenge...

Quarter Triangles quilt

And here you go for those that keep track, the 'Next Up In The Hoop' quilt is this Christmassy Quarter Triangles one. I totally forgot to take a picture of it until the top was sandwiched and pinned, about to be folded up in the quilt bag. The top was finished up in January of this year after I went on a Christmas quilt top sewing binge. This particular quilt top was also a So-Tired green fabrics challenge to myself. Lots of oldie moldies got whacked up and included in the mix for this particular making! The other quilt top is prettier, but this is the one that felt perfect for sliding into the hoop and burning through for a quick finish. Yes, I could definitely have tried to machine quilt this quilt without ruining anything about it, even with my paltry skills. The thing is, I need uncomplicated right now for the hoop business. Pick it up, settle into stitching and not THINK. Sounds like my happy place right about now!

A Peachy Finish

So I finally got Peachy Cameo quilt hand quilted and bound! Lots and lots of distractions this past month and unfortunately, hand quilting did not always make the priority list. It turned out to be such a pleasant quilt, almost restful looking! Turns out that I adore strong blues paired with orangey reds and peach. Who knew?

Peachy Cameo is finished!

The original intent was to use loads and loads of the peach solid fabric, but somehow it only ended up with one wide border. Not terribly unhappy with that outcome as the quilt ended up with a nice peachy glow regardless. Something to remember. A little bit can sometimes go a very long ways! The fabric behind the blue circle-ish blocks is a darker peachy brown colored fabric. It was something that had languished in the stash totes for at least 10 years and finally found a wonderful home in this experimental palette. I love how the darker shade grounds the quilt just a little bit more than the lighter shades would have.

 A look at the full quilt

Every time I finish up another medallion sort of quilt, it seems that I'm raring to go on yet another. I definitely don't want all of my quilts to read this way, but hey! Medallion quilts can be sort of addictive!

Centerpiece

I don't usually put eyes on the birds in my quilts, but this one insisted. This centerpiece is not especially intricate or fabulous, but I am super happy with the overall sweetness. And the background fabric for the centerpiece makes my heart go pitter patter. Too bad I only had a fat quarter of that particular fabric!

Looking across the quilt

I think it's safe to say that many of us who have quilted for years and years often get in our little 'ruts'. We have preferences and go-to background color choices and it's easy to stay in our safe little comfort zones with very little thought. With this quilt, I was determined to step away from the cream background look that I continually turn to. Then of course, I ended up working cream into the quilt anyway, first in the very center of the quilt and then later, at the outside border. Just can't seem to help myself! I felt like the quilt needed the lighter color at the outside especially, just to continue with the soft, open look that had been developing. There's something about the way the borders almost seem to 'flow' through one another that is very intriguing to me.

Border work

This entire quilt is my own design. Like usual, in the initial planning stages, I drew up a rough draft {quilt doodle}, just basic ideas for the borders and a general plan of attack. I love starting with a scribbled-on-paper feeling of what I think/want the quilt to look like. The details are not super important at that point. It's more about getting the intended vibe drawn out in picture form before being totally forgotten and swept away in the detritus of life. You have to remember that I often take several years from the very first seed of inspiration to final quilt completion. Not to mention, there are usually many other quilts in the works at the very same time!

Overall I think this quilt was successful in maintaining most of that original intended vibe. The only thing that I wish had turned out differently, would be the green vine applique. It should have been more rounded {or bowl shaped} on the bottoms of the vine. There were several factors involved in that decision, including having to increase the vertical width of the border or potentially losing the amount of tulips and berries that could be added in. Maybe even having to make the tulips smaller? Knowing that the side borders were going to be altogether different kept me more focused on 'proportion' than maybe I should have been.

Bottom corner details

As usual, I started this quilt with a stack of long-simmering fabrics. The colors used in the centerpiece were vitally important in setting the tone of the entire quilt. I've found that if you get that part wrong, there are certain colors in that gorgeous stack of fabric that will never, ever play nicely together. Always so disappointing to have to abandon perfectly lovely pieces of fabric that originally seem destined for good use together. But it does happen. And sometimes it even hurts.

With a medallion quilt, I make notes of which color combination to try and use in each proceeding border, trying to tie back into the centerpiece of course. This is something that I audition several times throughout the making of the quilt top. If I use a lot of blues in this border, then what works best moving forward to the next round? 

Sometimes you find that a coping border will be needed and then there's the challenge of finding a fabric that doesn't read too glaringly 'off' or ends up being distracting. It's important that coping borders fill a minor role and don't take away from more complex border work done before or after.  I hit the jackpot with this very light blue fabric. For whatever reason, that soft, simple fabric ended up emphasizing my centerpiece, which was an awesome result! 

For those of you who were wondering, the light blue coping border was needed in order to have the next pieced border fit together properly.  Though it doesn't usually bother me, I didn't want anything chopped off in this quilt. And well..., it has to be said. I rarely plan ahead for perfect measurements at the exact moment of starting a quilt! Maybe I should? Hmm...  Most of you know very well by now, that my preferred method is simply 'eyeballing' things. If something looks good to my eye {or appeals to my gut instinct}, then it's a go. Everything after just has to be made to adjust and fit in. It's the human touch look that I'm after. Absolute perfection is just sooo boring!

So even with the original scribbled quilt plan, I never truly know what my quilts will look like until they are 100% completed. The entire project becomes a huge make-do effort as one decision informs the next one. That's the way that my personal creativity works best. Meeting the challenge of getting a quilt top to 'work' at each particular phase, whether that includes color, fabric, measurement issues or perhaps even needing to add in a new design element. The best quilts keep me on my toes throughout, cause me to think outside the box for solutions and often end up with something that surprises.

In this quilt, the 'surprise' is the multi-colored fabric that was used for the scalloped border. Deliberately cutting that fabric in a specific direction gives it a subtle striped look that just makes me smile. I would have thought that fabric entirely too busy for use as a scalloped border, but no! Turns out it was the perfect choice {color-wise} for that particular border and then it was just a matter of figuring out how to use it best. How could I not use it when the colors were so very spot on? We all know how difficult it is to find these pieces of fabrics when the moment is at hand. 

Okay, enough babbling. Time to quit avoiding the to-do list around here! It's good to have another 2020 finish wrapped up and behind me. 

 

A Good Finish

Not getting very far with the paperwork, but at least there has been time spent there. Just like with quilting, I figure every little bit accomplished equals forward progress. In better news, there's a new quilt finish! This has been such a cheerful quilt to work on. Can't believe it didn't end up in the hoop much sooner. Totally sanity saving, believe me! Why do people tend to believe that yellow isn't a positive mood enhancer?

Sweet Tarts

Maybe it's the combination of yellow and pink that works all the charm? This was a quilt top that was maybe started back in 2018? Can't find the original post now and don't want to scroll through pages and pages to find it. The beginning was sparked by an attempt at improv., free-style cut baskets and one of those stacks of simmering fabrics that are always begging to be next in line.

The full quilt

I seem to remember struggling with the inside of the baskets. Flowers? Leaves? And then somehow that morphed into adding little baskets too. Why not do both? There was a rough drawn design at one time, but it didn't take long to figure out that all the other border ideas didn't quite belong in this particular quilt. There is generally always that point in sewing a quilt top together, where the whole thing just kind of shrieks at you to 'go away' and leave it alone. Pretty please and thank you, with a cherry on top.

Close up of the little baskets

I loved the idea of framing the little baskets in simple half-squared triangle borders and using the bright, intense cheddar fabric just made the most sense at the time. Been itching to use it for years! And that pink floral fabric was just pleading to be included too. Didn't really know the very best use, but finally settled on super easy blocks. I like how the floral acts more like a background fabric in these understated blocks. Sometimes this sort of simplicity feels a bit like 'cheating', but what's the use of pretty printed fabric if we can't enjoy it?

Loving these larger baskets

I hand quilted around the edges of the baskets in organic, radiating rows {like usual}, but left the inside area free this time. It looks a little bit rumpled in the pics, but looks great in person. It's interesting when there are areas not quite as heavily quilted as the surroundings. See how the fabric looks so much lighter inside the baskets? It must be the thread color I used that appears to darken the outer basket fabric. It's a variegated cream/tan/light brown thread that seems all but invisible, but apparently not!

So happy with the cheddar/pink mix

After I posted the picture of this quilt being 'next up in the hoop', an observant reader emailed me and let me know that the cheddar triangles frame {on the very bottom right little basket} had a row turned upside down {check the second picture in the post}. Super kind of her to give me a heads up before the quilting actually happened!

In the end I decided to leave it be, though you can bet that I considered it very seriously for well over a 24 hour period--pretty much the time frame where it would have been the easiest to start ripping things out. It's something that I find to be charming and whimsical in another persons quilt, so whats the point of being fussy in mine? And there you go. Sometimes the mistakes just have to become part of the quilt around here. I had this feeling that it would be something to regret if this quilt ended up looking a little too perfect. And you know that I sometimes rip things out. I do! And would have this time for sure if I thought it would be something to bother me forever.

Some quilts just need the hand quilting love...

So funny that I had actually never noticed this mistake until the exact moment that it was pointed out! This quilt didn't seem demanding at all about the binding and so I went ahead with the scrappy look that seems to be my fall-back these days. There were several orphaned binding pieces in various shades of pink to make up the needed length. One of them is probably a little bit on the 'too light' side to perfectly compliment the quilt, but does it really matter? This quilt is striking enough not to have to rely on binding color for needful spark. For the life of me, I cannot figure out why those two little totes never seem to run out...

This one might have to stay with me

You may have noticed the sweet vintage-look floral used as the backing fabric. It's something that was bought last year at a senior citizens rummage room sale. Love it so much! Totally made my day to use it so successfully, though it probably would have been a fun challenge to incorporate it into the front of a quilt too. I had to smile at one of my daughters when she first saw it. Her face! Apparently this floral is an acquired taste. And here I thought it was absolutely fantastic!

Spring Flowers

All 18 of the Spring Flower blocks are finished up now too. Once I started hand stitching the leaves to the background it went really fast. Of course it helped that I was stuck in a vehicle for most of two days traveling to and fro a family funeral. While this was a very sad occasion, it wasn't exactly unexpected as the health issues had been ongoing and/or progressing for a little over five years.

All orphaned 'cut-out' circles and scrap bin fabric leaves

Of course, there's never enough time with loved ones, and I don't have a clue what to say to my sister.that would be the least bit comforting. Losing a companion is heartbreaking under almost any circumstance. We were just relieved that the graveside services allowed accommodation for all of the family who wanted to attend. Even a month or two earlier, the numbers would have been severely limited which would have made a distressing situation even more traumatic. As it was, my sister had to make unhappy choices within the Covid safety rules and just do the very best she could within those boundaries.

As far as these quilt blocks are concerned, something needs to be done to wake them up. I'm completely rethinking the colors/ideas for alternate blocks. Right now the blocks look very soft and cozy close up, but absolutely boring from a distance. Am keeping them on the wall until something interesting floats through my brain. Not feeling especially creative right now, but the hand stitching and hand quilting feels super soothing. Gotta take the 'feel goods' where you find them these days. And the rare moments of inspiration too...

 

Starting and Finishing

Finally brought out the Chunky Tulips for hand work. It feels like a great project for July and I definitely need to get moving on the applique list. These four represent 30% of the blocks being finished so that's a good start!

Chunky Tulip blocks

I've been thinking and thinking and then, thinking some more about the latest AHIQ challenge. It's called 'Positive Thinking' which isn't always my strong suit. I'm more the glass half empty gal, generally expecting things to get worse before they get better! Probably why I tend to veer towards making happy looking quilts, always wanting my surroundings to be more hopeful than I am on the inside. I live with an incredibly optimistic guy which is a blessing and honestly, sometimes a little, tiny bit of hardship. He's Sunny Sam to my Pragmatic Pam and well..., you can only envision how that turns out on occasion! We have learned to avoid mornings. That's where everything falls apart if it's going to.*wink

So lots of ideas have been swirling around in my brain, but nothing very concrete coming together except of course that it needed to be improv. Then, last Friday, I walked past a saying {verse} I had stuck up on my inspiration board in the quilting room. It's something that I've had vague ideas about incorporating into a quilt some day, but never could quite conjure up the details. All of a sudden, the Positive Thinking challenge clicked into place.

The start of a new AHIQ challenge

Instead of starting yet another super, labor intensive applique quilt, why not go with improv. letters? And by deliberately choosing this verse, perhaps I can focus on 'positivity' in a more personal way. I just don't wanna get sucked down into the mire of Covid-19 emotional ups and downs in regards to a quilt. If I worked exclusively with those feelings, I might have a very bleak quilt indeed. Ughh...  There's actually a meme going around that says this, 'Stop complaining about your life. There are literally people who live in Washington State.' Ha! 'Nuff said.

Anyway, this is the start of whatever it will be. I'm not sure beyond finishing the verse. So far it's all been going very well, lots of intuitive cutting and sewing on the letters. Definitely more free-style than I've ever accomplished before! I know it's been mentioned before, but here it is again. The book you want to reference for making custom pieced letters is 'Word Play Quilts' by Tonya Ricucci. The method she explains easily translates/incorporates your personal 'voice' through the style of letters you personally choose to make. This is the third time around for me and it's absolutely getting easier each and every time I attempt this!

The cream print, softer purple and blue fabrics are all cut up shirts, straight out of the closet. The cream print is running out fast which is a shame, because I wanted all the background of the letters to be the same. Waah...

Had to fix a letter or two

That's default thinking though. Mixing up the backgrounds will probably make the quilt more interesting in the long run, right? I've already went back and fixed the second 'o' in Wool and also, had to fix the 'n' in the second And. When I sewed the pieces together, it ended up looking like an 'r' next to an 'i'. The third 'W' was sewn, redefined, and then finally tossed out altogether and restarted. While there's no reason to get terribly fussy with this quilt, it's important that it reads well overall. It's a subtle thing, the attitude that develops alongside the message. Trying to get it right....

Completed baby quilt!

The baby quit is finished up now, just needs a label! It was hard to get a good picture of it because the light kept washing out the lighter pinks. The plaid border reads green or yellow depending on the light, but regardless, it seems to help keep the quilt from looking too moody.

Still happy with the floral sashing...

I'm very happy with this sweet little quilt, but it obviously will read as too 'traditional' for some people. One of the few people who have seen this already, told me that she probably wouldn't like it for a baby quilt for herself, but nevertheless, assured me that my sister-in-law will undoubtedly appreciate the old-fashioned theme. Crossing my fingers the little bit of added hand quilting will up the appeal factor!

A feminine, old fashioned look

Sometimes I wonder. What exactly are the important variables of our lives that make up our intensely personal likes and dislikes? Apparently these preferences can change somewhat with the times, trends and life experiences. And too, there are those of us who can more more easily overlook qualities that don't necessarily appeal, if the item in question is home-made. Thankfully, that is something that still matters in our huge, extended family. There's only been one time in all these years of gifting where I had a quilt basically discarded as worthless {that I'm aware of!}. Lesson learned. When we gift something, it's not longer ours. Gift generously as our hearts dictate, but preferably with no strings {expectations} attached.

A little bit of machine and hand quilting....

It's hard to see, but if you look closely, you can see that this backing fabric has little mice on it. I don't often give a shout out to designers, but this is a Cotton & Steel fabric that I bought special for this little quilt. It just felt like it needed something to 'baby' it up. This particular fabric caught my eye because it was a subtle pink, with fun, discreetly babyish elements,. More, because it feels amazing. Then after being washed up, it gets even better! So,so soft. Sort of a cross between a muslin and a linen fabric which drapes wonderfully. Love it!

Crossing My Fingers New Blogger Cooperates

So pleased with the way this little quilt finished up. Wowsers! Why don't I just give up and make improv. orphan block quilts all of the time? Somehow this ended up being such a joyful, unpretentious little quilt, all quite by happy accident. Maybe because I didn't sweat the details?

Finished quilt!

Hmm.. Just one little problem. Gotta have the leftover bits and pieces around in the first place! This project was thrown together last March really as an exercise in escapism. Ha! What did I know then? I really, really hope you've been saving all your orphan bits too. You just never know when they'll be most needed!

Love all the texture

Adding the applique was done kind of on a whim {a very compelling whim?}, but it serves a good purpose here. Upping the 'oomph' in the overall messaging is never a bad idea. If you even have a message. It's perfectly okay not to.*wink  I know a lot of you grimace a little at needle turn applique, but I can't even imagine my quilting adventures without having the option. It's not nearly as scary as some people make it out to be. Like everything else, it DOES get a lot easier with experience. Promise!

Love the applique additions...

Though I'm mostly just using this quilt as the excuse for trying out the New Blogger today, I have to smile at this quilt message. So timely. I am many, many things, but good at computer techy stuff, I am most emphatically not. Ugghh.. Hate having to deal with change in this arena of life.

Good place for these leftover wordss!

I did not enjoy hand quilting the area around the letters. So many seams! But it's done now. Thankful I didn't try to do anything more complicated there. Oh, who are we kidding? Do I ever do anything complicated in regards to hand quilting?

Loving the washed and crinkly goodness.

Not so much. When I finally get the quilting hoop arranged in my lap, all I want to do is relax into the quilt. Stitch, stitch, stitch and it's like magic. If people aren't playing weird little videos on their phones in the same room {just saying!}, my troubles can just drift away. I guess we all have our ways! I'm sure the videos are much more interesting with context. Hmm.. Yeah. Pretty sure.... Have you ever thought about implementing a noise curfew in your own living room of an evening? 

Two good pieces of news for today. Our county was approved to move forward to phase #2. Finally! Minimum of 3 weeks between phases here in our state, so its still gonna be the end of July till anything resembling 'before'. And after a stressful day yesterday, {my youngest daughter had to be tested for Coronavirus along with a group of co-workers} we found out we don't have to quarantine for two weeks after all!*sigh  And Yay!? I was about to run screaming from the house and everybody I know. So, so grumpy these days without my second handing, library and quilting store fixes especially. Can't wait till this whole 2020 health issue/state lock down is firmly in the rear view mirror. Now if I can just avoid the news long enough to truly relax and unwind.... More quilting please! But no, need to go to the bank and do some grocery shopping. It's still a jungle out there.

A Sweet Cozy Finish

It was a strange Memorial Day weekend. Usually we're up camping in the woods with a bunch of friends, young adults and teenagers, roasting hotdogs and trying to keep dry. This year we had a houseful of family and a little tiny campfire on the edge of our property. So nice to avoid the big push to get everything ready to go, but also a little bittersweet not being able to share that time with so many of our friends.

Makes me want to go to the beach!

Our son unexpectedly brought his family home for the entire week prior to the holiday. It was a last minute decision due to his work 'slow down', but very welcomed on our end.They're trying to get their house fixed up to put on the market later in the summer. It was chaotic of course, as the grand daughters are quite young, but such a delight to have around! We have missed them so very much....

Quarter Log Cabin is done!

Quilting-wise, I stitched the binding onto this Improv. Quarter Log Cabin quilt and also finished up the hand quilting on I am a Maker. Both were easy projects to pick up or put down at a moments notice. It felt kinda wonderful to finish up another quilt as most days it feels more like 'drifting' than real, tangible forward progress.

Simple stitching....

For the binding, I ended using the back side of a very bright blue fabric. Didn't want to order anything on-line and have to wait and the local quilt stores are still closed due to the state lockdown. On the website, it says that they are open for a couple hours a week for mask/hospital gown drop-offs and to replenish supplies, but somehow I don't think that translates to the browsing I had in mind! Regardless, I think the quilt turned out very nice. Overall, it seems to have a very cozy, snuggable vibe, and as you all know, that is top priority around here!

A cozy vibe

The next quilt moving into the hoop is 'Antique Crows'. I pinned it to easily stitch-in-the-ditch between all the blocks, something that {thankfully} happened before our company arrived. I had hoped to have made in-roads on the hand quilting this past week, but somehow it never got touched.

Antique Crows is ready for the hoop!

Not that I'm the least bit regretful. We don't get to see our granddaughters nearly enough these days and the quilting will definitely keep!

Love the look of this one

Last night was the first night that I was back in the quilting room for any decent amount of time. Felt so good to just sit and chain piece on a scrappy project! Really expected to pick this Antique Crows quilt up later in the evening, but once again, I ended up choosing something else to work on.

Should all look even better with some good texture!

It's not that I'm avoiding it, just isn't the time for it quite yet! For right now, I'm eyeballing it over in the corner of my bedroom, kind of anticipating the moment when it starts hanging out in my lap and giving me all the feel-good endorphins.....