Travelin’ Wednesday

I went on a mini-road trip today and had a great time.  I met a fellow Sunshine Quilter (we make children's quilts to donate) up north of Tampa at a new quilt shop, Sweet Darling Quilts, and then we went for lunch.

Oh, did I skip over the part where I went wild in the new quilt shop?!  I had taken a few fabric samples to match for my next venture and I found exactly what I had in mind.  I have some half-yard pieces of a fabric line that has strangely different colors (for me) and a really different design.  The design concept is computer circuits and robots and zigzags, so I’m going with the simple attic windows pattern.  I’m not showing it yet because it’ll look weird, I’m sure, with just the fabrics lined up  – here's hoping that it turns out!

Then I found their sale area and, of course, had to snap up a bargain.  That's just astute shopping, not splurging!

And then, *B* and I went for lunch and she brought her “show and tell”.  She had the neatest stuff – two scrappy baby quilts that were just darling.  I wish I'd remembered to take pictures of those.  And she brought me my Round Robin top that she was assigned to do the last round on.  I think it turned out great!  It’s going to one of those that will be hard to let go!

That's *B* holding my finished top

And lastly, I stopped by another quilt shop by me and gave this top to the lady that donated all of that fabric to me.

Not a 30s print backing, but it's what I had on hand

Her shop collects quilts for Project Linus and she’s going to donate it to them.  I wanted her to donate it in her name since she was kind enough to give me all of that fabric!  I loved this one, too.  I think I’m becoming attached to these quilts … so easy to do!

Saturday Sewing

I recently was given a fantastic gift.  I am NEVER lucky – I never win at casinos (I don’t even bother to go) – I never win drawings or door prizes – but I must have been in the right place at the right time one day last week.

I was shopping the pre-Thanksgiving sale at my LQS and talking with the lady cutting my fabric about the children’s quilts that I make.  I told her all about Wrap-a-Smile and Wrap-Them-in-Love and all of the great work that they do.  And then she asked if I wanted some fat quarters that she had been carrying around in her car just waiting to give them to somebody!  Of course, I said yes – I was expecting 3-4 FQs.

And this is what she brought me – that bag was HEAVY!  It had fat quarters (on the left), a layer cake (in the middle) and some yardage (on the right).  I was stunned!!

So yesterday and today I worked up this sweet baby quilt from the layer cake pieces.

9-Patches (sorry about the sewing room mess!)

More 9-Patches

Still more 9-patches

Square in a squares - set on point

Coming Together!

And the final top - it is just too sweet in person!

The pattern is called Fiona and it’s from this book by Me and my Sister Designs:

I’m going to try to quilt it up tomorrow and take it back to show her my appreciation on Monday and give her a thank you note.  What a nice person she was!

PS  The fabric I bought that day had to be put away for Christmas – I wasn’t allowed to play with that!

Fibonacci Day

Today is Fibonacci Day because the numbers corresponding to this date fit into the Finbonacci Sequence (Nov 23 = 1,1,2,3).

It’s been awhile since I’ve talked about the Fibonacci sequence.  I’ve always been fascinated with chambered nautilus shells and the spirals found in seedheads of some flowers such as large sunflowers or coneflowers:

Chambered Nautilus Shell - Image by Jitze

 Coneflower - R. Knott - Univ of Surrey - UK

Leonardo da Pisa (nicknamed Fibonacci), a mathematician, was born in Pisa around 1170 AD and is best known for a simple series of numbers called the Fibonacci sequence.  The series begins with 0 and 1.   After that, it uses the simple rule of adding the last two numbers to get the next:  1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, etc.

The Fibonacci sequence appears consistently in nature in various ways – such as in seeds, flowers, petals, pine cones, fruit and vegetables, among others. Some plants branch in such a way that they always have a Fibonacci number of growing points. Flowers often have a Fibonacci number of petals, daisies can have 34, 55 even 89 petals.  Seeds of a sunflower appear to spiral outwards to the left and to the right - and there are a Fibonacci number of spirals.  This arrangement keeps the seeds uniformly packed no matter how large the seed head.

Someday, I’d really like to make a quilt based on the Fibonacci Sequence – it would be quite easy:

To learn more about the mathematical concept, check out these great sites:

http://www.mathsisfun.com/numbers/fibonacci-sequence.html

OR

http://www.decodedscience.com/the-fibonacci-series-phi-shapes-and-numbers-sacred-geometry-in-nature-and-culture/3245

It’s Thanksgiving!

Did you Know?

Benjamin Franklin argued that the Turkey should be our National Bird.

He stated that it was more respectable and a native of North America.

Not to be disrespectful, Ben, but let’s EAT!

Drop Everything and Quilt!

There was a cry for help on one of my quilters message boards.  Someone wanted to send a lot of quilts to Afghanistan and she was in over her head as far as the number of quilts she had committed to.  Quilters across the US (and even Germany) jumped in to help, of course.  That’s just what quilters do.  I volunteered to make this one and get it into the mail in about 4 days time.  I just made it (wahoo!).  The pattern is called “Warm Wishes” and that’s exactly what I wanted to send to the young soldier over there.  I hope I get to see pictures when they are delivered in Afghanistan …

And then it was back to the children’s quilts:

Lots of Dots is quilted (in a double bubble pattern!) and all done and into the box getting ready to go to Wrap-a-Smile.

The Monsters and Their Trains is now a finished top – I need more fabric for the backing and it’ll be next on the frame.

I love quilting!

Veteran’s Day – November 11, 2012

Veterans Day is intended to thank and honor all those who served honorably in the military - in wartime or peacetime.

In fact, Veterans Day is largely intended to thank living Veterans for their service, to acknowledge that their contributions to our national security are appreciated, and to underscore the fact that all those who served - not only those who died - have sacrificed and done their duty.

If you know of or see a Veteran, a word of thanks goes a long way …

How a Quilt Grows

I had to stop and clean up the sewing room … you know how that goes.  I had just set aside stacks of extra fabrics after cutting and had piles of things sitting on every available surface and it just had to end!

So I took some time to put away the fabrics, stack up the magazines, re-file the pattern directions in notebooks, and even dust.  Yes, me dusting!

And then I got back to growing the Monsters and Their Trains:

 I still have to add a black border all around the outside (I haven’t decided on a binding of purple or blue – I’ll have to audition them).  But it’s starting to take shape and look good!

Tomorrow is my Quilts of Valor group meeting – then a quilt show on Saturday, but after that, it’s back to quilting!

Election Day!

Get some exercise today …

exercise your right to VOTE !!!

I Made Some Progress Today

Despite being confused about what is the “real” time all day, I did make some progress.  I worked on the Summer Winds block and have two almost put together using the monsters fabric. 

I changed my mind from my original idea to have only one block in the middle (sort of as a medallion) and decided to make two instead.  I’ll put them one over the other, since the monsters print is directional,  and put the monsters on the trains in the middle.  I’ll add a little sashing to bring it up to the right size and “poof” it’ll be a top!

And just to show that I really don’t have a one-track mind (no pun intended), I had to lay out those scrappy hearts blocks that I’ve had forever (from an old block swap).  I elected to go the quick route with plain blocks in between just to get it out the door.  I’ll finish this one off tomorrow.

So it sounds like tomorrow’s work is already cut out for me.  OK – that pun was intended – low humor – very, very low! - it must be that time change thing ....

Daylight Savings Time Tonight

I’m still saying it:  “I hate Daylight Savings Time”

And now that I’ve said it, I plan to sew tomorrow, so hopefully the differential between the official clock time and my internal clock time won’t matter!

I’ll be working on this big block pattern:

It’s by Janet Wickell at About.com and it’s called Summer Winds.  There is both a 24" and a 12" option.  These are the fabrics that I've pulled to use:

I’ll use it as the center block since I'm doing the 24 x 24 block and then I’ll add borders to bring it up to a good size for my children’s donation quilts.  Should be cute (and hopefully use up the last of those monsters!).

Nautical Print Fabric

A Reader recently made a nice comment on an old blog entry of mine and asked a question.  Unfortunately, she has her computer set on “no reply” so I could not send a return email.  I left a comment below her original one in case she went back to look there, but there has been no further activity.

So just in case she reads the most recent posts, here’s the answer, just for you dear Reader!

The nautical fabric that I showed was this:

The line is called “Seaport View” and it was designed by Dan Morris for Robert Kaufman Fabrics.  Although it is at least a year old, you can still find some of the fabrics, including this design in two colorways and also the nautical flags, on-line through various sellers.  The Robert Kaufman site is at:  www.robertkaufman.com

Good luck! 

PS  I had pulled two compatible fabrics for this last year and was waiting for the right pattern to strike me …. Lightning has finally struck and I will be making something from the Take 5 book … Soon!

One More in the Box

I finished up the quilting on one more quilt before the box to Wrap-Them-in-Love was sealed, so into the box and off to the Post Office it went!

Again, this one is way cuter than it looks.  My little camera doesn’t take photos of stripes and plaids very well.  They look distorted in the pics, but in real life they are great!

From the book "Take 5"

 And this quilt is another of those that turned out to be so soft … I like ‘em cuddly!  This detail pic shows the backing – I try to make the backs less busy, so the quilts have a fun side and a quiet side.

 I’m glad this one made it into the box!

Spotlight on Betty Tisdale

Earlier this year, Ellen over at Wrap-Them-in-Love let us know about Betty Tisdale’s latest activities.

Betty

If you haven’t heard about Betty, you’ve missed out on a remarkable story about a most amazing woman.  Betty, who is now 90 years young, has been making a difference in children’s lives around the world through the organization that she founded called H.A.L.O. (Helping and Loving Orphans).  H.A.L.O. has founded schools and orphanages and taken part in many humanitarian efforts on behalf of children everywhere, but especially in developing countries.  In June of 2012, Betty was in Afghanistan to open up a baby orphanage.  She took 20 Wrap-Them-in-Love quilts with her and you can see some of them in the pictures on Betty’s Facebook page:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/HALO-Helping-and-Loving-Orphans-Betty-Tisdale/336965935274

NBC featured Betty and her work in Kabul during a “Make a Difference” Special in July 2012, parts of which can be viewed at this link:  http://www.bettytisdale.com/dnn/

To learn more about this inspirational woman and read a short biography, go to H.A.L.O.’s website at:  http://www.bettytisdale.com/dnn/Founder/tabid/62/Default.aspx

I am happy to be able to send another box to Wrap-Them-in-Love next week with four of my most recent quilt finishes.  These four will be in the box:

Americana

Rogue's Gallery

Boy's Toys

Little Froggies (or was it Frog Pond?!)

Two of the quilts were made with Ellen’s mother’s fabric (Americana and Rogue’s Gallery), and those two are made in her memory.  The other two (Boy’s Toys and Little Froggies), I would like to dedicate to Betty Tisdale, and thank her for her work that brings such joy and light into the lives of children.  Thank you, Betty!

A Full Day All to Myself to Quilt!

Finally, I had a full day to myself … what to do?

Ñ        I could garden – the weather is good right now.

Ñ        I could cook – we need cookies (who doesn’t?).

Ñ        I could clean house – not an option in my book.

Ñ        I could do laundry – no way!

Ñ        I could quilt ALL day – now there’s an idea who’s time has come!!!

I finished up quilting and binding the little Rogue’s Gallery quilt:

I quilted the Americana quilt (although it still needs to be bound).  I'll show the finished quilt later.

And I cut out the blocks for my latest – Polka Dots (or should that be Lots of Dots?) and started swing them together:

I’m lovin’ the brights in this one!  And the alternating dots and solids.  Just a fun quilt.

Aren’t days to all to yourself wonderful?!

The Importance of Milkweed

I've heard that there are over 100 varieties of milkweed – and many of them are the host plant for the monarch butterfly.  Their common characteristics are the “milk” or white sap released when the plant is injured (or being eaten) and the seed pods that burst and disperse in downy puffs. 

I have several plants of the milkweed type known as “Tropical Milkweed” in my garden.  These are perennials that reseed themselves in my area – they have gorgeous, showy, orange and yellow blossoms and elongated leaves.

old photo of the plant before this year's buffet began

I grow them purely for the dining enjoyment of monarch butterflies (for the nectar) and monarch caterpillars (they devour the leaves until the stems are sticks).  The plants and leaves rebound rapidly after having been the entree on the caterpillar buffet.

But I have never seen so many caterpillars as this year - there were at least 5 within a 1 foot radius and one was less than ½ inch long – the smallest I’ve ever seen.  I had to rush out and locate a few more plants because they were munching so rapidly and I was afraid they would run out of food before they were ready to go into their chrysalis (pupa) stage!

they eat the flowers, too!

These caterpillars are truly eating machines.  They will chow down all day and when they feel stuffed too tightly, they will shed their skin and eat and grow some more!  Lynn Rosenblatt has a wonderful website that explains the entire life cycle of the beautiful monarch butterflies and the importance of the milkweed plant to their existence.  We need to heighten awareness and promote restoration of monarch habitats in our neighborhoods.  Please visit: http://www.monarchbutterflyusa.com/Cycle.htm

One note of caution – milkweed plants are poisonous to livestock.  Do not plant these if you live on a farm or have a pet that likes to chew!  Deer will stay away from them naturally.  And you will want to wash if the milky sap comes in contact with your skin as it can harm your eyes.   Just be careful …

Oh, and this is a boy monarch … the stem is almost in the way, but you can tell by the tiny black dots in the black lines on the butterfly’s lower wings – girls don’t have the dots.  True factoid!

 

Oh, and I did get some stars appliquéd onto the Americana top and added some borders – now on to quilting it!

the homespun doesn't photograph well as the
 plaid looks distorted, but it looks great in person!

Recap of the Past Week

It’s been a busy week – I had to take my dog to an eye specialist for her semi-annual checkup (she’s fine) and then take my mother to an eye specialist (she’ll be fine – one more visit in store for her).

Then I had my monthly meeting for Quilts of Valor.  Those meeting are always great fun and we get so much done.  I was able to take my finished top to show:

Modified from a Fons & Porter magazine design

Everybody liked how I used those leftover triangles from their snowball blocks, so I was relieved.  Several others showed finished tops or quilts:

Debbie's Finished Quilt



Pat's Persimmon Quilts Mystery #20

 

Pat's Persimmon Quilts Mystery #24

And then we had a Binding Blitz:

All wound up - multiple layers in this box!

We have several scrappy quilts waiting for their bindings, so we used 2.5 inch scraps and made miles and miles of bindings – enough for the next 25 or so quilts!  I tell you, these ladies are the best!

And as a coincidence, I have a small patriotic quilt being assembled in my sewing room.  These were fabrics passed down to me from a lady that passed away that was a great supporter of Wrap-Them-in-Love, so this quilt will go to that organization.  It is a child-sized lap quilt.

 I’ll be adding borders and getting this one quilted soon.