A Block Exchange

Yesterday was the eagerly anticipated block exchange with my quilting group, The Calendar Girls. Here are the 9 blocks with the theme "North Woods Winter" that I was lucky enough to come away with! Don't you LOVE them?! This is such a talented group of ladies and I can't wait to get started on the design for making these blocks into a quilt.

The blocks are 9 1/2" square and I want the quilt to be small--a wall hanging of 42" or less--for a perfect little place in our foyer where I display seasonal pieces. I'll have to scour my books and magazines for ideas. If you have any suggestions, please let me know!

Here is our lovely group--that's me on the far right. We'll all have our blocks made into quilts ready to reveal them on December 11th.

We're Back!!

 My last post was 2 weeks ago telling you I was embarking on my first cruise and our first trip to Alaska. I really missed reading about and looking at all the Design Wall Monday projects but our trip was fantastic and I was surprised I didn't miss my computer at all! I was also surprised that I didn't get one stitch into all those applique squares I'd prepared for the trip! We were busy every minute with tours and interesting things to do. Highlights of the trip: Mt. McKinley (Denali to Alaskan's) "was out" and we saw her in all her grandure. Only 1/3 of travelers there see the 20,239 foot mountain because it's usually clouded over. I'd never been so moved--she really took my breath away. I also saw a lot of wonderful totem poles and learn a lot about them--something I've always been interested in doing.

I wanted to do something special for the lovely couple who organized this 11-day trip for our group of 30 (15 ship cabins) which certainly took a lot of time and effort. Everything was splendid and all we had to do was "write a check". They live in Connecticut and collect pinecones (and not just the kind that fall from trees!) so when I saw this fabric in one of the 5 quilt shops I visited on the trip, I new I would make a purse for her and a charge-cord organizer for him.

Next weekend is the block exchange for my Calendar Girls group and I can't wait! It's a whole day of show-and-tell, a gift exchange, lunch and goodies and then the exchange of blocks. Here are a couple of the 8 blocks I made. The theme we chose last December was "North Woods Winter". It could be any 9 1/2" block that depicted winter but not Christmas. I won't put them all up so they can remain a surprise and I'll show you the blocks I ended up with in next week's DWM.

Thanks to our wonderful blogging friend, Judy Laquidara for giving us Patchwork Times, my favorite means of inspiration.

Traveling Orders

I am about to embark on my first cruise--to Alaska! Perfect time of year for someone living in the hot central valley of California. Of course, I needed to prepare some hand-work for the trip so I'm bringing these 15, 10" blocks to hand-applique. These have been prepared in the freezer paper and starch method and have been glue-basted down in just a few places--ready to go.

 It's an old pattern, from 2002 I think, by Piece O'Cake designs. I was the high bidder on the entire kit of this quilt at a Breast Cancer Auction last month. LOTS of fabric and LOTS of work but it will be wonderful when it's done.

Of course this means I will miss next week's DWM on Judy's blog as I'll be at sea and I'm not going to bring my computer with me!! I don't know if I'll survive but I'm going to take this vacation seriously and just enjoy. And yes, of course I have researched all the quilt shops in the ports where the ship docks. I won't miss a one!!     

This September wallhanging was the UFO I was supposed to finish in June. Didn't happen. It's a finished top and it's small and I didn't finish it. I'm duly ashamed of myself. I hate to see another September come without this to hang on my front door. . .

This is my #2 UFO, "12 Days of Christmas"
pattern by Nancy Halvorson from a couple of
years ago. It's also a top. Christmas in July!!
Oh joy!! Don't you just love working on
something for Christmas when it's 100 degrees
outside? Me either.

But it's a completed top and all I need to do is
pin it (the most dreaded part of the quilting process for me) and quilt it (not so dreaded).

I hope to be a better girl in July and finish this one but, since I'm going on an 11-day cruise in July and have 8 blocks to make for a block exchange on the 30th of July,
chances are I'm doomed for failure.

Best of luck to the rest of you though! Can't wait to see the successful quilters on Judy's blog on July 31st!

Design Wall Monday June 27

This is Pilloapoppin, my Fairy Quilt Godmother. She is a paper pieced pattern from the creative talents at a wonderful website I go to for my paper pieced patterns. Right now they have a fun, FREE project that generates a unique Fairy Godmother for everyone who signs in. It took me about 3 hours to make this 10" x 14" project but isn't she wonderful!? You choose your own colors right from your stash so you can be as flamboyant and creative as you want. Definitely not for the faint at heart, there are dozens and dozens of pieces, some infinitesimally small in this project but OH SO FUN!!

Go get yours now! I hope to see some of them on a future Design Wall Monday at Judy's website!

Projects

  

 Just a couple of little projects this week. A sun hat and baby shoes to match this outfit (scroll down) that my daughter's best friend's baby will receive for her 1st birthday next weekend.

Below is the 6th block of Anne Sutton's Bunny Hill Designs Block to the Month--Henreitta Whiskers.
I've been having such a fun time making these delightful blocks and I've been keeping up every month! That feels so good.













Go take a look at all the fun projects
everyone else has been working on
at Judy Laquadara's Design Wall
Monday blog!

Can You Say "Retreat"?!

I spent 2 1/2 days at a quilting retreat in McCloud Calif this weekend--near the unbelievably beautiful, snow-covered Mt. Shasta. Twenty-six women (18 in our group) worked on this mystery quilt. Do you like it? Actually, the mystery quilt design was quite a bit different than this but I always have to put my spin on things and this is what I came up with. I really like it!

This retreat was in an historic hotel/mercantile so our charming rooms (all of them entirely different and wonderful), restaurant and huge meeting room were under one roof with no restrictions on how late or early we could sew. If you haven't quilted at a retreat in your jammies, it's high time you did!!

Because I'm a fast quilter, I always bring a few extra projects.

I'm attending a 1st birthday party at the end of the month for my daughter's best friend's baby. Her cousin, who's more like a sister to her, is celebrating her 5th birthday. I made the baby's dress (on the left) and a coordinating top for the 5-year old on the right. I also made coordinating shoes and a hat for the baby but don't have a photo.

See who else posted Design Wall projects on Judy's Blog!