Spools of Fun

I thought I'd give you a peek at the spools, to help you decide if you want to join a sew-along. 

They can be plain...

They can be scrappy...

They can be both. 

Little 4 inch blocks of fun. 

And I promise no Y seams. Super quick and easy. 

Come back Monday for your first set of cutting instructions. 

Take care, Brandie

Greenish

The last border has finally been put on. There was also time to get it sandwiched. And time for a happy dance!

So far I've only had time to put in a few ditch stitches but I'm not complaining. It would be nice to finish this up before the end of the month. 

I'm going to have to be more selective with my time. 

One, I have a civil war dress to make. That's a paid priority. 

Two, I've been thinking about make a spool quilt. I'm very distracted by new fabric. I want to play with something new. 

In fact I already sewed up a block but I made myself stop at one. But I'm looking forward to starting it. 

Three, there is spring like weather outside and the garden shops are all advertising their wares which of course is causing me to want some spring color outside. I admit to buying a few. But come on, there was a Daphne on sale! I had to buy it! It's not like I can go pick one up any time I want. In my experience, Daphne is a rare thing to find. So I grabbed it, plus a couple flats of pansies. I was kind of good. And if we end up getting another cold front, the pansies will like it and I've still left the leaf ground cover on the other plants. I must wait till April. If I do clean up now, another freeze will happen. If I don't, well it won't freeze. Murphy and his laws. But I've learned from bad experience. 

Anyone interested in doing a 4 inch spool sew-along?

Leave me a comment if you are. 

Have a wonderful Monday!

Take care, Brandie

Bits and Piecing

Between all my running around yesterday, I finally managed to complete the next step on "1" of my Soupçon blocks. 

If you look closely you will see I have an extra border. I somehow ended up with my pieced border being an inch longer than the rest. So I improvised. 

Now I'll need to remember that when I do my next "2" blocks. 

With each step I find I like one block better than the others. Now this one is my favorite. 

It's hard to get much done when I have to share my workspace. I was sewing like a princess yesterday. With just my toes on the pedal and daintily sitting on the front of the chair. 

Within fifteen minutes I had another cat on the table and a dog by my feet. Sometimes I feel like locking myself away just to get anything done!

 Last night our small group got together to construct a new quilt. 

We started off making 300 plus half square at 3 inches. 

Then we constructed a few blocks. 

The hard part was trying to configure a layout. 

Between the 10 of us ladies we had these block going every which way and not always right! 

I really is difficult when your blood sugar is low. 

Ultimately this will be our layout. I just need to make it work. 

So I have a bit of unsewing today to make the middle. The rest should be easy for our next meeting. Should be. 

Take care and have a wonderful weekend! 

Brandie

Almost

The end is near. I'm sew close to being done with these tiny trees. I'm so done! These tiny trees will fulfill my need to ever want to make a postage stamp quilt. That need will always remember those tiny 1 1/4 half squares. I'm so done with those tiny squares!

I'm hoping today I will finish the last three trees and finish this flimsy. I'm hoping. 

Tomorrow I will be starting another period dress. Those of you who were around two years ago remember the last 1860's dress I did. Well the younger sister is now entering into the same local tradition and I was asked to do her dress.  It's a bit unnerving by still fun. I'm looking forward to starting a new project!  

Take care and have a Wonderful Wednesday!

Brandie

Crossing Borders

I'm at the border stage and I am really at a loss as to which border to use. 

I've made up three choices and I'm undecided about two. 

We all liked the gold but maybe I made it too thin?

I didn't think I liked the green but now I'm not sure. It really isn't too bad either. 

I don't think I like the stripe but that could be because it is too wide?

And the color doesn't seem to add anything to the quilt. 

The green isn't the same exact shade as the trees but they do play well together. 

So if you have an option, please tell me! Because I'm really at a loss!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Take care, Brandie

Forest Update

I've been having fun avoiding my tiny trees but I didn't want another UFO growing right under my nose. 

So I buckled down and sewed three mostly completed sections together. And guess what? It wasn't so bad! I'm not sure why I've been putting this off. 

So I started pulling fabrics to see about a border between these two sized blocks. I thought that green strip fabric would be good but then I saw this gold strip fabric. I think I like that gold strip. What about you? Do you have an opinion? Please let me know which fabric you like. 

I thought I might flank that gold with a brown like the trunks and border the big trees. Then maybe that same border around the whole thing? But I won't know till I get there. 

I wanted you to see my mistakes and learn how I fixed them. 

Those tiny tree trunks are on a 4 3/4 block. When I trimmed them, I lost a tiny bit of root. And then when they are sewn together they lost a bit more. 

My solution, paint those roots back in with a permanent market. Bet you didn't notice in the first picture. 

These little trees look like camouflage to me. But I only had enough of the green check fabric to make three trees. That's what a stash is for, for finding other coordinating fabrics. (Then crossing your fingers and hoping it will look like you meant to do that the whole time!)

Mr Dorian has taken over my new laundry basket. Cousin Linda gave this to me for Christmas, (plus all that tissues paper that makes a nice bedding for a cat) and I haven't used it once! He thinks its a cat bed. This has become his new hang out and I'm getting a bit jealous. This is also my excuse why I don't fold clothes but once a week. It's the cats fault!

Take care and have a wonderful day!

Brandie

Small Finishes

During the rainstorms we had last week, I hide away and completed a couple of UFO's. 

This first one I don't think I even had on my list but that didn't keep it out of the UFO pile. According to my blog records, I started this linen quilt last March. I wasn't happy with the quilting and just threw it in the pile to take it out later. When I pulled it out of the pile this year, I couldn't see what I didn't like last year. Sew I finished it up. 

I think I wanted absolute beauty but I'm learning to settle for "good enough". 

I also uncovered another UFO that just needed a backing. Again, I sewed it up, quilt it up and gave it to the guild to pass it along to someone who will love it. Of course I didn't take a picture that would have taking planning. 

And I wasn't lying when I said I'd finish up Lori's Midwinter Blues. 

This quilt is a favorite with the cats. They really appreciate that cheddar!

Then I tripped over a pile of Minky and thought, why not just cut it up and sew it together? Sew I did. 

It's the softest quilt I've ever made! Too bad I didn't have enough to make an adult sized one. 

The backing is pretty perfect too. Just stuff that's been in my stash pile since I first started quilting, 15 years ago. I think it's a match made it heaven and it will be perfect for a sweet baby girl. 

Have a Wonderful Wednesday!

Take care, Brandie

A Productive Weekend

I was too impatient to wait for Lori to give out the next set of instructions, so I forged ahead on my own. This was such a fun sew along! It was an almost finish for January, almost. 

Its all quilted, I just need to trim it up and put on the binding. Easy-peasy!

Remember that other UFO box I got into just to avoid those tiny trees? Well I finish one of those blocks too. 

I am using my cat weight to keep the block from running off. Sometimes, that cat just won't leave me alone! I think he thinks I quilt for him. 

Anyhow, this block is block three of "Party in the Garden" by fellow blogger Lynn (sew'n wild oaks). 

I started this quilt two, three years ago and forgot about it. Not sure why I just stopped but its time to finish it up !

And finally I got one ring on one block of my hexie stars. 

I had my box packed for a visit with my SIL. She is still in a care home but it looks as if she might be on the road to recovery. She has had so many set backs! She still doesn't speak but she can read and write, which is great! 

Yesterday was her birthday so we all piled into the car and spent the day with her. She was in a great mood and very responsive. She even ate part of an In and Out burger and half her fries! That was wonderful because she has gone a long time without solid food. We all have our fingers crossed that this means she's improving. 

Have a Wonderful Monday! I'm planning to!

Take care, Brandie