Buck A Block

This is a picture of my Buck A Block projects for March. They will all be trimmed when all the blocks are completed.

The half/square/triangles are made using thangles for accuracy.

Fussy Cut Friday

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They’re still blooming.

My Amaryllis are still blooming.

Part of the pleasure is the anticipation of what the blooms will look like. This bud is just starting to open. What will the color be?

Obviously she’s going to be red, but what shade of red? Deep dark red, bright red red or salmon red? I just have to wait and see.

I never know which one is my favorite. I like them all, my favorite one is which ever one is blooming now.

Grandmothers Flower Garden Quilt is Finished!

The binding is sewn, the label is attached. The journey has come to an end.

Here is a close up of a block . . .

and the border.

I was inspired by two old quilts. The first one was made by my Grandmother (Sylvia Jane) Miller.

This is a dolly quilt made by my husband’s grandmother (Celeste Kauffman Hoover) for his sisters.

Even though these ladies never knew each other, they both appliqued the hexagon center to the border and both quilted their border with the baptise fan design.

I liked the the way their quilts looked and incorporated their ideas into mine. I do think using diamonds and triangles to separate the flowers is more attractive. However, if I ever make another flower garden quilt, I won’t use the diamonds & triangles. They were much more time consuming to sew than hexagons.

Another Project Sewn

This year I’m trying to complete some of the kits I have purchased over the years. This top is Let it Snow by Edyta Sitar/Laundry Basket Quilts.

I probably purchased this kit at least 5 years ago. It’s interesting how my tastes have changed over that time period. This is a pretty design, but I wouldn’t buy it now. It’s dreary looking, like winter in northern Indiana. I want color in my quilts now! This will be machine quilted and make a wonderful gift for someone.

More Fussy Cut Friday

The same fabric was used for both stars, just cut differently!

This is what the original fabric looks like.

First Day of Spring!

Today is the spring equinox. Nothing is growing, the ground is so cold and frozen. I often have rhubarb by now, it may not be tall, but I cut it anyway and make rhubarb custard dessert in celebration of spring. This year I had to improvise; I used frozen rhubarb from last year, served with a fresh brewed cup of coffee and a splash of Golden Guernsey cream. Springtime delight!

Onto the Next Project . . .

I have to hand sew the binding on my Grandmother’s Flower Garden quilt before it is completely finished, but first had to lay out the Bonnie Hunter 2013 Leader & Ender Challenge blocks I sewed last fall. There are many designs these blocks could make, but I decided to go with the original Perkiomen Valley design.

This lay out is 12 x 14 blocks (72″ x 84″). I had planned to sew borders on the center, but now I’m reconsidering. I will piece more blocks and add another round of the design which will make it 84″ by 96″. I will decide then if I want to add a narrow border, or, if I want to add more blocks to make it 96″ by 108″ (king size). I’m liking the looks of pieced quilts without borders.

Of course, the beauty of this quilt is enhanced by my almost two-year-old grandson.

 

The Quilting is Completed!

I finished the hand quilting today on the Grandmother’s Flower Garden quilt! I started this English paper piecing project in 2006. Much of the fabric in the flowers came from my mother’s stash.

Someone asked me how many hexagons there are in the quilt; there are 1,970. I haven’t figured the amount of diamonds and triangles. I will share more details and information after I have finished the binding.

Pea Planting Time!

Today is St. Patrick’s Day and time to get those peas in the garden!

This is what my garden looked like last Wednesday, just five days ago.

The sticks mark the east side of the garden. They are there so my husband doesn’t drive in the garden.

This is what my garden looks like today.

The snow is melting; now it’s a muddy mess. The garlic is starting to peek through the sawdust mulch and so are the weeds!

There won’t be any peas planted here today, but the sun is shining brightly and tomorrow the temperature is supposed to get to 50*. Maybe in a couple of weeks I’ll be able to plant the peas.