Sick

My week has been very low key!  No sewing.  Just sleeping and over the counter medicines for colds. I stayed home from school for 2 days and didn't think I should miss any more.

I did make a necklace from a kit from Eclectic, a local bead store.  In the past, I had done this a lot and even went to a big bead convention here in Milwaukee a couple of times.  But I really liked this sample, and needed something this length to wear.



I also ordered Marti Mitchell's template package to make  a  Jack's Chain quilt.  I have a few hundred 9 patches already made for it  Those below are 3 and a half inches. I thought I could draw it, but just caved in to getting the templates that someone on pinterest discovered were perfect for this size. 



I have been compiling photos/drawings of  main street buildings for a row by row. I have a plan for  a few two story buildings in a row on one side and a basic white church with a steeple on the other.  Typical buildings of many small towns is my plan.


The only other thing I have accomplished was cutting hexi's from freezer paper which I printed from this site:  https://www.getasquiltingstudio.com/2013/01/tips-for-cutting-hexagon-templates.html Also template pages for several sizes.  See Sue Daley's videos on how to glue and piece them by hand.  Just look up Sue Daley on You Tube.  So many great tutorials.
( I think I am taking these on an upcoming road trip.) 









Picture of my pre-concert concert. My daughter and husbancd both have their music spread on the table and are "playing" their percussion instruments on their laps. They are both leaving for Madison for the afternoon concert and will return for dinner.

Spring? only on the calendar

So the Vernal Equinox is today.  Yeah  for the sun!

But in Wisconsin it is brown and cold...like 20's in the morning as I go to school and 40's when I come home with a breeze. So even if it is sunny, you don't feel the warmth of the rays. And this is for the next 10 days.  UGHHH!

It  matches my mood.  Well, I am home for a sick day and slept all morning  But I am TIRED of winter. I can't seem to stay focused on projects and jump from one to another. ( kind of like my sophomore boys.)  Good news in some ways, but barely making progress as a whole.

I made 2 more blocks for Covered in Love:



This totals 4 here and one more.   I need to send them in the mail. They turned out nicely.  Kat's requirement was a solid blue for one half; they should be great  combined with many others.

I did churn out this large center block for my BOM Gooseberry Christmas.  This is a large center block and took longer than I expected. It is  30 inches square and a variety of golds from Kansas Troubles. It will eventually have a holly wreath appliqued, which I will do with fusible web.



And I did straight stitch  all my blocks for The Square Dance mystery by From my Carolina Home.
Mine will be a donation quilt having  used my homespuns.  ( I did purchase the black for the 9 patches, but had a large piece of the gray shot cotton.





At least my spouse and I have decided to go to Nashville for part of spring break. They are at least in the 60's.  Any suggestions for quilt stores in Louisville or Nashville area?

Quilt show 2

 

I loved this little one. It is a block of the month with such  woodland characters. 

The rest are all a part of the theme for the show:  "Everything goes with purple".

And there indeed was purple.  ( which is not really a favorite color of mine)

 

 

This is all appliqued in wool. So gorgeous!  It was hard to know why it did not win a ribbon. But that is the judges decision and I don't know the comments.  

 

 

 

 

 

I liked this one which was all Kaffe Faucet fabrics, but was so beautifully set off by the light gray background.  It really is a lesson on color.  

Quilt show Mukwonago pt 1

Quilt Show  

My guild had its annual Quilt Show last weekend.  It is a lot of work and I am amazed at the wonderful women who donate their time and talents for days to pull this off.  

Further, their quilting expertise is amazing in an array of divisions and styles.  It is open to everyone both to enter and see.

Here is one that the colors just popped. The maker said she spent 2 hours with her son selecting the fabrics for it which are batiks.  The black, of course, just makes it striking.

 

This is one I watched as they put it together at retreat.  There were two ladies who each made their own version.  I may have to do this for a grandson.  The bright happy selection of fabrics and the cute pattern really is perfect for any little one. 

 

 

This is one of the 3 big winners.  It of course, won for the fabulous machine quilting and the piecework. Love it. 

 

This is an up close block of the grand winner. The maker teaches machine quilting classes and I have loved her previous work including a reindeer quilt she designed and sent to a national competition. 

 

This is the whole quilt. Such a beauty of applique work and machine quilting!

 

The hand quilted winner is not in this group. It was completed hand quilted in silver metallic thread that was all intricate small snowflakes in between the appliqued one. It's background was a beautiful grayish blue.

See my other post for more. 

Spring fever aka new purchase

So we had snow again for 2 days.  It is a wet heavy snow, but the ground is melted, but not completely underneath. So the pellets of snow bounced off the ground and didn't accumulate until later at night. Ugghh. Those poor robins.

And I saw this kit online and couldn't resist the coordinating prints for the background.  So bright and cheerful.  I actually enjoy doing paper piecing hexies as well.

Well, is a print of  hexigons for the flowers.  I want to make them anyway.  It will take a little planning, and prep work, but it shouldn't be too bad.



Next up some stitching.  Here are some wool applique blocks started years ago.  I needed something fast to pick up  for school as I was the security office person while the school shut down to go to the state basketball finals for the girls.  And I knew where this one was located.





The second one only needs the wheels, and acorns completed.  Yeah! 
 One other block is  done, only  to do.

March forward

March : a new month;  so what is there to look forward to and plan. Spring is just around the corner.

A)  My guild has its quilt show next weekend. So if you want to see some beautiful quilts and vendors come to Mukwonago Crazy Quilter show at the middle school on the main through street of town. In Wisconsin, that is.  I have been going for almost 30 years and it is my favorite local show, even before I became a member.

B)  Easter is at the end of this month.  And that means a break from school!  Yeah!  Plus HB and are  going away.  Where? I don't know yet.  But away from yucky winter weather.

C )  Goals:  I have made the Stash Bee block.  Check!



My string blocks: I just took the purple apart to realign and restitch.  And light green is the color for Rainbow Scrap Challenge. Plus I need to add the black and white to my light blues and sew them together.





Gooseberry patch  next block section ( 4 completed for February so far)



Covered in Love:  Hunters star: pieced with half square triangles for March and April in blues.
http://katandcatquilts.blogspot.com/2018/02/new-covered-in-love-block-drive.html  Here is the link of you might be interested.
One          Two  

Row by Row:  ( March and due mid April.)  This is the most challenging  row of all. in my group.  The details and preceding rows are so incredible. I think I have a plan for a train station and old train.




Transportation quilt for my grandson!  A must!



So many ideas, so many UFOs.   And how many can I work on?

Stash bee block

New month...New block.  This one is geometric, bright and super easy! It is a 15 inch block called Up from Here!   Yeah for March!

And I saw the first Robin of spring yesterday in my backyard.  It was in our birdbath looking for water and probably food.