royal friends and scrap built houses

You meet the best people through quilting, I think.
And those friends get you into THE best quilt-y projects!

First up: Royal Friends

Last Autumn, at retreat in Shipshawana, Indiana, 
a friend and I were going to a quilt shop (imagine that:) .
We offered a ride to a couple of other quilters (they are from out of the country).
Little did we know that those out of country quilters were royalty.
After fabric shopping, they acquired their royal headdresses!

Here is a picture of the new friends in the back seat,
riding like the royalty they are - 
the Norwegian Queens in their crowns:

 I was riding up front (as co-pilot) with our driver:

(She is even wearing her driving goggles and cabbie hat!)
And, our royal bounty for the day:

Secondly: Scrap Built Houses

So what do I see online recently?
Those very same royal friends 
shared pictures of their foundation-pieced, 
three-inch houses!!!

I never knew that royalty could be such troublemakers!!
             That's my way of saying that I let my arm be twisted.  Again.
OK, full confession here - there was really no arm-twisting involved. :)
The royal plan is to bring a finished quilt top of little houses 
to the 2015 Shipshewana fall retreat.  

We have a year, and I'm full in - 
Building Little Shipshewana houses!!

I'll soon have more to share on my little, scrap built houses,
because I'm starting my construction this week!

See?  That's the kind of stuff that quilting friends 
(even royal, quilt-y friends) get you into!
Stash building AND house building!!!!

I String Thing... Do you?

String piecing with foundation, that is.

A friend got me started on these stringy things...

Don't know if she is

more of an inspirational instigator

or trouble-maker, :)

but, I do thank you, friend - you know who you are.

Like most quilters, I have plenty of scraps to use...

 String Things sure make for great use of scraps.

And use scraps I did!
I used some of the great colors of Autumn for my strings -

browns of all shades:  

from warm golden browns to deep, almost blackish-browns.

Throw in a little Autumnal accent:

brick-y red, some mossy-greenish-teal and dark, stormy blues.

I made four- 20" string squares and put them together for
a very nice table-topper size.
Since the strips on top were random in size and spacing,
I quilted using randomly spaced squares also:

Perfect for my Autumn table!

Thanks again, friend, for getting me started with a new addiction.
Just what I needed - another fabric addiction!
Albeit an addiction that's totally worth it!!!

If you do the String Thing, let me know...
I may just have some Autumnal Strings to share!

Happy early October Stitching!