Playing, visiting, and futzing around

I'm still here - not sure what I've been doing with myself!  Certainly, not posting anything!

 

Below are two unusual purses/totes I bought locally.  I've seen similar at quilt shows but never expected to find them in our local gift shop!  I kept one for myself. 

This is Mary, one of my dear sisters-in-law, retired art teacher, at their home near Denver.  Mountains in the background have only small amounts of snow, not a good thing.

This is me, my engineer brother, and my boatmaking husband during a recent visit, when weather was warm! 

This is my current project, "Lady of Shallotte"  on my Design Floor for tooo long, because I haven't figured how to deal with the corners and the flying geese do not fit properly - lack of planning on my part!  But, I WILL figure something!  This is a large quilt, folded to fit the Design Floor.   I am planning on hand quilting this one.

My Quilt Guild friend Sharon and I will be working on quilt show ribbons again this year.  The theme is SUN, so we are each playing in prep for a July quilt show.  My first effort did not work well - waaaay too fiddly, too many wedges, too fussy, too large, etc.  The ruler worked perfectly but not suitable for this project.  I tried inserting little white "rays" of foldy things, more of "tooooo fussy"! 

Than I tried a  45 degree ruler and cut wedges, but moved the ruler down a bit, still using a 2.5 inch strip.  OK, size is better, just 8 wedges (hard to see), has possibilities.  Of course, using a variety of yellow/gold fabrics would have been better.  Still needs something on the back though, but it's a beginning.  Yes, I dislike the center but ...

Sometimes you just have to play to find answers!

Making Ribbons, and a Handsome Log Cabin

Our Quilt Show is approaching in July, and this year a friend (Sharon) and I decided to fussy up the standard ribbons.  We made 22 in all, 11 First, and 11 Second.  We didn't have instructions, and just flew by the seat of our pants.    Between paper piecing the little Pineapple Blocks, making different sized yo-yos, learning benefits or difficulties of including posterboard in the yo-yos, sewing and unsewing, demolishing the "standard" ribbons, adding more to it, knowing where to sew and where to glue, we are pretty near finished!  Oh yes, a hammer was heavily used somewhere along the way!  After two 4-hour meetings, most of them were nearly done.  Here's one, still without it's hanging cord.  We decided we wanted to show it to Guild members at the last meeting, Saturday, so everyone can see them.   I stopped at JoAnns and bought a glue gun - never had one before, but it was definitely useful for this project.  

The pineapple blocks are paper pieced and quilted, with a back as well, and finish at 2.5 inches. There are 2 yo-yos in different sizes, behind the little pineapple quiltlets.  On the back is a white label, for names, etc.  

Is this not a lovely collection ?  The large ribbon was purchased, but we took it apart as well.  

Other than making ribbons, I made this scrappy log cabin (below), and put the blocks on vertical - wow - I LOVE how this vertical setting!!!  Here it is without the border.

(Below)  I added that dark border, because I had used the fabric in the side setting triangles, and LOVE how it make this standard looking quilt into one handsome quilt.  The red on the outside is a dimensional flange, and I will bind it in the same blue - I have enough.  

Right now it is about 52" x 62".  Again, always scraps!  

Happy Quilting!

Quilt Show Planning

Guess what committee I am on for the Annual Quilt Show?

I was asked to play around and maybe come up with some ideas.  It's just a start, but I LOVE the little blocks in the center (2 in. finished) - now THAT (IMHO) is what a Quilt Show Ribbon should include!