Sandwiching my layers, one method

 

While not a  perfect solution to a puckerless backing, the canned goods do a pretty good job, and even better, I can usually find these "weights" when I'm sandwiching a quilt before machine quilting.  

Zippity Blue Da, Pineapple

 

When your entire collection of fabrics seem to be ALL scraps and pieces, this is a perfect solution of what can be used.  Once again, I used a ruler and suggestion from Gyleen Fitzgerald, because it's smaller than the Creative Grid version.  I think next time, I'll try the larger one, just to note any difference.  This is 7 x 8 blocks, 8 inch blocks with a 6 inch border., about 68 x 76 in.  Note the difference made by the alternate block, with a slightly different value placement.  This is my 6th or 7th Pineapple quilt. 

Freeze warnings for tomorrow night - electric blanket installation time!  

Lovely Surprises, and a Disappearing Log Cabin

 From my daughter ...

 ...and a BIRTHDAY SURPRISE from a BUNCH of quilty friends ... (goodness, you'd think I could have arranged this collection of gifts in a more attractive setting).  There are even homemade food items in that amazing group of gifts which includes yards of fabric!  What a lovely and surprising day I had.  I'm feeling all warm and fuzzy inside.  8-)))  

Playing with Disappearing Log Cabin blocks.  

My final choice - because I didn't want to make more blocks  and end up with yet another huge quilt!   OK, I bet some of you are thinking of trying this one.  I got my instructions from that clever gal Suze, at Revelation Quilts.

Farm Memory

 

I was born in Chicago, but when the 4th of us kids was due, my parents were concerned they might not be able to feed us all, so they decided to buy a farm in 1948, south of Chicago, in Richton Park, Illinois.  Dad still had his good job as a steel roller.   I personally think they were always adventuresome and they welcomed this "ridiculous" idea.  That is the farmhouse, my room was upstairs behind the right window, the huge barn was behind the foliage, to the right was a nice orchard with apples, pears, peaches and cherry trees.  A glimpse of the corn crib can be seen in the middle of the photo.  There was a huge, beautifully built granary out of sight.  The light "speck" in the driveway was probably Queenie, or some farm dog. This 1950 ish photo was our home, filled with incredibly valuable memories, until about 1960, when we 4 kids were grown and each had our own lives in other locations, and our parents sold the farm and built a lovely modern home nearby.   In the foreground was a field that sometimes flooded if the creek got jammed, where the pigs got out, and I saw my Mother in her homeade feedsack housedress, physically tackle one of those runway pigs!!!  The main road (Sauk Trail) was a poorly maintained 2 lanes -- today it is a 4 lane highway with with stop lights.   There is nothing left of that original place - it is all under asphalt, and apartment buildings except for one open space I've seen on Google, that remains a green field where I exercised my horses. 

Us 4 kids all realize we were incredibly lucky to have spent our growing years living this fortunate life.  

At last ... someting to post about

 

Old Lesson Learned ... Organizing my scrappy triangles.  I had all these lovely small  60 degree triangles made up into larger 60 degree triangles, each one more attractive than the previous but no matter how I arranged them, grouped them, turned them, NOTHING looked right..they just didn't "DO".  Finally I realized they still had no  STRUCTURE or ORDER, until I put that sashing in there.  Suddenly they looked good - immediately.  Some of our scrappy quilts end up ... blah ... and I am guessing they need order, or structure.  I'm hearing someone saying ... "the dynamics of the setting " .  My piecing was good with all these bias edges, but that didn't matter - the design needed STRUCTURE.  

One is Good, Two is Better

 

OK, so I got carried away - and despite the THOUSANDS of options for this simple 9-patch, I accidently made the very same design from an almost-the-same layout.  Not sure how it happened but ...  The first quilt  (left, posted a few months ago) was so much fun, and such a good use of leftover squares, I just HAD to make another, not realizing I used the same layout.  Each is about 60 inches square.

Some of you ask about quilting designs I use for FMQ.  I quilted lots of overall swirls with a variegated Metler silk finish cotton No 50 thread .