Hands 2 Help

This is my post to show the Hands 2 Help quilt that I made for this year. I chose the Little Lambs Foundation. They were looking for baby quilts this year and the way I was feeling, that was what I felt up to doing. It was tough to stay focused and get this done, but I made I and am very happy with the result. I need to get it packed up and in the mail.

 Made with Little Clementine fabric, perfect for a baby or toddler.

This is the back. A fabric gifted to me from a friend.

I was happy to participate again in this great charity. Thanks to Sarah for putting it out there for all of us.

The Month of May

This has been another strange month. Lots of projects and not much else. I was supposed to leave today to go and see my grandchildren. I miss them so much and haven't been there since October. Now I will have to wait, and there's no way of knowing when it will be able to happen.

 First, a toast to Mother's Day and then a week later, my 40th Anniversary. Love some bubbly.

Still chugging along on my Dahlia blanket.  am uninspired to crochet much right now, but I am close to finishing it, so maybe two more weeks? I do still love the colors.

 And since it is cherry season, I just had to have some to bake with. This is the first bag.

 I made cherry almond Dutch baby, from a Smitten Kitchen recipe that I love. You can find it on her blog.

 Then I made cherry chocolate chip scones that were very yummy.

 For a proper southern BBQ, though, I had to make this recipe. I must say, I loved it, but maybe a wee less sugar next time.

And then, from the second bag of cherries, a cherry crisp. Very tasty, but I should have baked it a bit longer to get the juice to completely thicken up.

So May has been full enough. I hope you are doing well. See you soon.

Penny Sampler Quilt Club Catch Up

I wanted to do a quick post for the Penny Sampler Club. My May blocks have been done for over a week. This is a weird month. First, we go our assignments on about the 7th. I still felt like I had all the time in the world. Then about a week later, I worried that I would run out of time, so I started on them. Then, I was so taken with them, I did them all in just a few days. So now I am working on other things and waiting until June.

 This first block is my bell flowers. When I posted it to Instagram, one person thought it was tiny tee shirts and another thought it was kimonos. So funny.

We made two economy blocks this month and mine are both fussy cut windows from the Sonata line by Amy Sinibaldi. I had pulled that fabric in the beginning when I did my fabric pulls for the project, just hoping to be able to use them.

And this one, my favorite, is the flowers in a vase. I loved doing it in the last Penny Sampler and was so happy to see it back in this one as well. Choosing the fabrics is my favorite part of so many of these machine paper pieced blocks. I never thought I would ever learn to do this technique, let alone to like it. Rachel has changed all that for me. Her blocks are so interesting they just draw me in.

I hope you are all staying safe and well. See you soon.

The Week That Was

I feel like I do lots of stuff every week, but when I sit down to write about it, I struggle to remember what I did. Oh, well. Here is a brief look at my week.

 I finished the flower on my Dropcloth ABC sampler. I am really enjoying this piece of work. It is fun to slowly work my way through the elements.

 I wore my Mother's Day crown all day last Sunday. I made one for each of my daughters as well, and they sent me pictures of them wearing theirs. The idea for these came from Susan Branch.

 Another batch of confetti cookies was needed. We have had a couple of guys working on our front yard and I wanted to thank them for their efforts.

 I ordered some cherries for our cocktail hour. Our local liquor store was out and these are our favorites, so I found them on line.

 I am also building this kit of London's Elizabeth Tower. These are like Legos, but super tiny. We didn't realize that the size was so small when we ordered it a couple of months ago, but I have decided to persevere and do it anyway. This represents a week and a half of effort.

 I am still working on blocks for my Penny Sampler Club quilt. These are called bell flowers, but I had a couple of funny comments on Instagram. One thought they were tiny shirts and the other thought they were kimonos.

In baking, I decided to make my own puff pastry. I have never done that before. It was a fun experience and it worked out okay. I do want to try it again and see if I can improve the outcome.
So that's my week, mostly. Hope you are all well. Talk to you soon.

Suck it Up Buttercup

I had three quilt tops done. One for 6 weeks or so, one just finished and one for 5 months. They were hanging there looking at me, and I kept thinking that I needed to do something about them. Awhile back I had cut out the battings for them off of my giant roll of batting, thinking that at least that part would be done and ready for me when I got to them. But that was all I had done.

So yesterday I told myself to suck it up and get the backings ready and pin baste them. One is baby size, one only 55 inches square and the largest is about 72 inches square.

So first I pin basted this little one. This is for the Hands 2 Help Comfort Quilt campaign. I had bought some half yards of Little Clementine last fall, thinking what a cute child's quilt they would make. Since I never did anything with them, I decided to do it now.

And the first one is done and ready to quilt, as soon as I figure that out. I want it to be soft for a baby.

 Then, there's this one. Not too big, and I already have a quilting plan for this one, so I'm ready to go.

 I had these two pretties with nowhere to go, so I pieced them together and the backing was done.

And I have begun the quilting on it. Just barely started, but I am already pleased with my choices.

 And then there's this big beast. It took me a whole year to get this thing pieced, if you'll remember. And I am just going to meander all over it to give all those tiny pieces strength.

Funny thing though, my Bernina BSR decided not to play nice yesterday when I started. My machine is a 440 QE and there isn't much troubleshooting on line for this older machine. But I did see where someone suggested to use the darning foot, drop the feed dogs and just free motion quilt. Kinda like taking the training wheels off your bike. So I tried it this morning and I did it!! Feel so lucky to be able to get this thing done. I have quilted about a quarter of it so far. Man! that's hard work.

So that's what's going on here right now, along with crochet, hand stitching, embroidery and baking. I am keeping busy. Hope you are as well. Talk to you soon.