More Dear Jane Retreat show and tell 2

This Dear Jane retreat group is one prolific group of gals!!
so I'll split the quilt photos into a few posts.

Judy usually makes Small Quilts and Doll Quilts (blog),
but she made this large quilt of baskets: 

OK, that's more like it!:

 She also made small and then smaller 'HO-HO-HO' quilts:

The one on the left is sideways in this photo ^.
Do you see the lines of red 'H's, and white 'O's?
Then she also had another large finish of beautiful cheddar and stars:

I really wanted her to leave this one for me :), but she wouldn't go for it.  Imagine that!

Caroline, from Belgium, shipped her quilt tops to a quilter in the USA, then picked them up while in the States, so she was binding away while on retreat:

 LuAnn is as addicted to English paper-piecing as I am
and she had to large quilts with EPP in them...
this one in the works:

And this one finished:

 Yes, she ALSO had a finished Dear Jane quilt!
 And, in her spare time, she does the mystery quilts, too:

 More to follow

Dear Janes from Dear Jane Retreat #1 & Black Friday

Black Friday!!
I don't participate in the shopping craziness, but usually
do some cleaning in prep for the decor changeover in my home...
I remove all of the Autumn-looking quilts, table-toppers and pumpkins and replace with Winter-looking quilts and snowflakes and snowmen.  Rather minimalistic compared to what all used to come out of storage.
Anyway, after that change-up, then treat myself...I sew!!! 
It's a pretty relaxing day.
But before I start up my sewing machine, 
I do want to share some more pictures from my last retreat...
  
The Dear Jane retreat mid-November is over...
and boy, oh boy, was it a good one!
The retreat, as any retreat, was wonderful, but
besides it being a great retreat, 
there were Five more Goddesses!
You reach Goddess status if you are a member of this group 
and finish your Dear Jane quilt.
Though I'm unorganized, forgetful, and don't have everyone's names, there were such beautiful Dear Jane quilt finishes this year, and here they are:

Pat

LuAnn, of Loose Threads blog fame

I probably should have done some photo cropping; sorry I didn't, but wanted to share sooner than later.

Also, did you notice that if you do a Dear Jane quilt that you have to dress to coordinate with your quilt? :)  I'll have to remember that for some year.

More quilts from show-and-tell tomorrow.

Thanksgiving greetings

from me and my family 
to you and yours!!

I hope your holiday is a safe, happy, and healthy one with lots of love, and pie :).
And if you are reading this in a country other than the U. S. of A., I wish you the same for your day.  ('Cause pie is always a good way to start your day.)

I am thankful for all of my abundances and blessings, 
which includes all of you: my family, friends, and neighbors near and far! 
Thank you for being a part of my life!
Happy Thanksgiving and Happy Thursday!!

funny, even after retreat!

So all the projects that I had to take retreat?
Here's what I got done - (wedding gift quilt progress)
this:

a boatload, 128 quarter-square triangles

this:

the second boatload, 96 half-square triangles

and some of the above blocks made into these:

about half of the needed star blocks

I still need to strip-piece the 9-patch blocks that go between these stars. I think there are just over 30 of those.  Should be pedal to the metal since the strips are all cut.  (insert laughing soundtrack here :)

And why do I think I can get through 10 project finishes when
I didn't even get one done during retreat??

Yep, I'm definitely funny!

Now, off to make the rolls for tomorrow's family dinner. The turkey is roasting, the potatoes are washed, ready to peel and boil, and the tables are ready to be set.
I love this time of year!

Are you ready for the upcoming season?

I'm now a curator...

Not really - 
But with the fabric that I have,
I could be. 
It's all about perspective -
Not as bad(good) as some folks collections, 
but definitely worse/better than others...

I'm going with 
'The fabrics in my 'Collection' ARE historical'
(: as I've had some a lot for multiple decades :).
Also, I keep accumulating more
that I just HAVE to have, but don't want to cut.
SO, I've decided,
I have a textile museum!
Not a hoarding issue, but a textile collection.
:)
Again, perspective.

While on my recent Retreat to an Amish area of Indiana,
I acquired some new fabrics for my 'museum':

Above, this g.e.o.r.g.o.u.s Jo print and a matching solid (Kona, I think) in the color Acorn.
Do I know what I'm doing with it? No.  
But had to have it - perfect for The Collection. 
Also, I found a little more 'text-y' print in neutral.

Then, the five fabrics below:

They jumped right into my hands.  This scrumptiousness will probably be the backs for my (hopefully someday soon) Dear Jane blocks.  We'll see.
And the last picture shows some more for The Collection
that I had to acquire when the gal at the shop said 
'finish a bolt and it's 25% off ':

Left to right - a wonderful purple reproduction stripe by Nancy Gere for Windham Fabrics called Shenandoah Valley; the orange is Molly B's by Marcus; The vintage looking holly print is Holly Wishes by Kansas Troubles/Moda;  the perfect red is R&B Tavern by Paula Barnes/Marcus; 
and finally, 
THE only fabric that WAS on my shopping list - 
the blue floral at the bottom is Lexington/Minick & Simpson/Moda 
that I got for the wedding gift, quilt border
(more on the wedding quilt project to come).

So, during retreat I did add more to the textile collection...
more for me to curate. :)
But I only went to three quilt shops while at retreat.
Oh, also one on the way there.

I really did sew and stitch while on retreat...
I'll show a few pics of what I worked on tomorrow.
Do you also shop while on retreat? 
OR do you buckle down and put the pedal to the metal?

Happy Monday to you!

Retreat Time!!! and a Hall of Lucy

Time for the semi-annual gathering of all things Dear Jane,
held in Shipshewana, which is a very nice Amish area in upstate Indiana.
Besides the Dear Jane quilt, you can, of course, work on any other quilting project you'd like to bring along.  Here's a shot of the room - 

120+ quilters sewing, stitching, talking and laughing, all hours of the day and night.
It's just a wonderful time catching up with friends and making new friends.
Friends from across the whole nation and around the world.
Even if friends couldn't make it this time, we are thinking of them and reminiscing about retreats past.
Earlier today we had a 'Hall of Lucy' photo op - Lucy Boston that is, as in Patchwork of the Crosses.

Here are a couple of photos down one hallway:

 

Caroline's

 Colleen's (with Belgian gals showing the correct position to take good photos :) :

 Kim's:

 Susanne's:

and I'll share more later.
I need to get back to my work station!
Hope everyone is having a good Friday!!
Debra

another beautiful day and I'm funny

It is BEAUTIFUL in the neighborhood today!
This:

arrived overnight.  And still coming down now, going on 11 a.m.
Welcome back, Polar Vortex!
The beautiful snowfall and dropping temps have closed the schools, closed roads, and made it treacherous to be out.
But I still love it.
And only the 17th of November.

So I'm inside, laundry going, a little baking,
AND packing for a retreat!
This is where the funny comes in.
Travel day Tuesday - 5+ hours - making arrival after lunchtime.
Leaving retreat to head home Saturday morn,
so that is Three And A Half days of retreating.
Remember that number - 3 1/2.

Here is what I've laid out to pack so far:

Works In Progress - Above

• Little blocks of fun (left) need roofs and sashing added to the blocks

• top, center - vintage bow ties need setting with the melon fabric

• top right -9patch swap blocks-I've designed layout, need to make a bunch of setting blocks

• bottom right - the now fourth time this project of Autumn Garden Sunflowers, a Buggy Barn pattern  will travel to Retreat

Then, there are the things I WANT TO START:

• Left - I've had this idea about churn dash blocks in Christmas-y reds and greens and then I found that great border print
• Top - A Farmhouse Threads pattern with reproduction fabrics that I got when The Good Wives Co. was in business.  I really miss The Good Wives. :(
• Another Farmhouse Threads pattern... Let It Snow, with piecing and embroidery.  This has been on my wish to make list for over two years now.

Next, I've been collecting text-y, numerical prints.

Just this past summer I saw Kim's 'Text Me A Quilt' .  THAT is EXACTLY what I had in mind the whole time I've been collecting these wordy fabrics!!!  And she has a tutorial!!!  So I've stacked up all my fabrics, thinking that would be a great retreat project.

And of course, there's the wedding quilt gift that I showed the pattern and fabric stack last week - all blues and creams and browns.  The quilt that I SHOULD be working on.

OH, almost forgot - I've also packed up my Lucy Boston, Patchwork of the Crosses quilt-in-progress.  Only a handful of blocks left to add!!
 
That's only TEN projects.
What was the number that I asked you earlier to remember?
3 1/2?

See?  I'm funny.

Happy Monday!  I'm off to pare down some of my retreat take-along.

my story and sticking with it

I have a wedding quilt gift to make.
The wedding was a few years ago, so, yes, it's due.
I awaited the color choice of the wedding couple before I got started.
Their answer was:  'Neutrals.  Maybe with some blue?'
My question back was which color of blue?
Marine? Baby? Navy? Aqua? Turquoise?, etc...

Finally, working with/talking through their momma, 
I got the answer: 
'Navy?'

So, after three+ years of awaiting answers
 (: That's my story and I'm sticking with it! :),
I've chosen some fabrics:

Some from the Lexington line, some from Songbird, 
and other random pieces from my stash.
Fat quarters totalling:  3 3/4 yards light, 2 3/4 yards medium/dark, and then 1 3/4 yards dark & blues (the pattern called for red/greens for this).
This fabric accumulation has been hanging out on my table this past week...
and after seeing this photo again, I think I'll pull out the light, fifth from the left - too medium looking.  Also, the flash on the blues make them look too bright, so I may pull the blue with stars, second from right.

I'm using a pattern called Anniversary Stars, 

 from the book: 40 Fabulous Quick Cut Quilts by Evelyn Sloppy. 
I've used more than a handful of patterns from this book, and love it.  They are quick to cut, the directions are great, with nice illustrations.
But. 
Though the quilts ARE quick cut,  
they. are. NOT. quick. to. sew. back. together.
So, this may take me a while. Longer.

I used this exact quilt pattern for this recipient's sister's wedding gift.  
And it's great for this couple, too.  Ohio Star looking for an Ohio-born couple.  The title of Anniversary Stars, great for a wedding gift I think.
I just need to find a border fabric.  Hopefully THAT won't take me another year.

issues, issues

I think I've mentioned before that I have issues?
Well, here's the latest (that I'm acknowledging) :

I've been making these snowball blocks,  (shown above, right).
Each snowball is 2 1/2 inches unfinished.
You know when you are making them 

that you have those little corners that you cut off?

Well, I turn the block around and 

sew down the little corner that's going to be cut off  (shown on the left).

Then cut between the seams,

cutting off the corner triangles (shown middle).

In this case, 
a LITTLE corner triangle... 
What I'm cutting off is small - a little less than an inch...
I then press them open, trim, and sew them together:

So that little pinwheel block on the right will finish at one inch.
See? Issues.
I just can't throw away scraps of fabric - even the littlest of scraps.
No, I have to sew them together to make bigger scraps/blocks...
well, little blocks.

Do you do the same?  
And is there a size to your how-small-to-save-limit? 
And, then do you USE these little blocks, 
or just save them in a box like I do?

Issues! But probably better than some issues that I could have. :)

precursory sunset?

It's Tuesday - Veterans' Day.  I want to thank the Veterans for helping make this another beautiful day.
May we never forget the price paid for our freedom here in the United States.

The last couple of early evenings I've been stitching away, 
busy finishing a quilt for a customer,
the evening news on in the background.
Last night, I glanced out toward the back forty - westward,
and this is what I saw:

I snapped the picture, as the weather forecast came on in the background.
The weatherman said the "V" word!!!: "VORTEX". 
Then he backed it up by saying:  
"There's a big snow/cold event coming this way".
Guess that beautiful view was the calm before the storm. 

I'm glad I'll have the customer's quilt 
to bind (and snuggle under) when said storm arrives!

Happy Tuesday and
Happy Stitching to you,
Debra

only 45 more days...

Since I just last week finished up 
my three All Hallows Eve quilts
that I gifted for the grandchildren,
I got to thinking that I'd better get busy on thinking about
the gift-giving for Christmas.
Which, by the way, is only a month and a half away!!!
Eeek! 

Do I even have time for quilt-y gifts for Christmas??
Why, oh why, do I do this?
So it's time, NO!, PAST TIME 
to get busy on stuff for Christmas!!!
Besides quilting my grands' Scaredy Cat quilts,
I also meandered over a couple more quilts for a friend -
she HAS been thinking and working on her Christmas quilt gifts.
She made two of these quilts:

With the cutest open-dot backing fabric:

So I did meandering with an open-dot swirl. ^
Perfect piecing!:

So cute!  And it has me inspired!
Time to get cranking on the Christmas season things to do!!!

star buttons American Revolution Flags

I finished the blocks that I THOUGHT were the October assignment
from the sew-along on Flags of the American Revolution (a Jan Patek book).
I missed one and stitched a different one.

Does this mean that I'm behind and ahead of myself? :)

Sounds like I'm going in circles, doesn't it?


Anyway, behind/ahead aside,
like others doing this stitch-along,
I've wondered what to do for the star buttons on some of the flags.
The book/pattern is five years old, and the recommended buttons source is no longer available.

 
I need 13 blue star buttons for one flag, 
and for two of the flags, I need 13 buttons each...

26 star buttons in vintage-looking cream.

I haven't found the blue buttons as of yet,
but I did I find some buttons that are bright white 
(quilt-shop: Dill Button Co., 15mm).
I'm not a bright white type of quilt gal.
But, I figured I could somehow 'antique' these white stars...

 I tried black shoe polish - 

 yeah, that just waxed them and the black came off.

I tried the product Distress It - 

that just stained my fingers and nails, not the star.

I tried tea - too weak for dying, but tasty!
Then I had an eureka moment.
Coffee! Steaming hot and very, very, very strong coffee!

left-black polish; center-distress; right-coffee sludge.

I dropped the star in the coffee sludge and left it until the thick brew cooled.  Laid the star on toweling to dry, and WA-la!

I think I like i!
In the pictures, it's subtle.  
But not stark, bright white anymore.
Just what I was hoping for!
 
You can visit more folks' work on 
the Flags of the American Revolution
by stopping by Lori's blog: Humble Quilts.
There are some great looking flags and fabrics and work!

all hallows eve & quilts

The grand-kids came visiting -
Did I have tricks for them?  Why, Yes I Did!
I had root vegetables...turnips, radishes and potatoes for them. :)

After the funny looks and laughs about the turnip bags,
I also had some treats ready for them -
a few sweets and treats for the older two,
applesauce and fishy-crackers for the little guy.
Also, I had their Scaredy Cat quilts done!
Just. In. Time. (well, except for the binding on the bottom one for the little guy)

Three ScaredyCat quilts!
Oh, and in the right corner?  That's my costume!  
Batting strips - I was a Grand Mummy!!

I had the fabric for these quilts last year, before the little guy was born.  So that only took me a year, plus to get them done.  That's not bad for me.

A picture of the quilt for granddaughter:

Swirls and polka-dots, and the back with spiders!:

For the three-year-old:

 Pumpkins and spiders!

And the backing:

Spiders and Webs, Oh my!
And for the one-year-old (same as the one above),:

just a little more scrappy on the back:

They each finished at about 60 inches square.  Perfect for couch snuggling.
I used the leftover fabrics and made scrappy backs and bindings.
Almost like I planned it or something. :)