End of the "Spring" break

 Some bigger things accomplished this week:

First I attached my 2 borders: the 1 inch light blue and 3 inch white.
Then I quilted it myself using my new walking foot. New to me, 35 year old machine. Attachment seems like new. Worked wonderfully.

I just stitched in the ditch for each of the one inch sashings. I think I will just extend it into the border.

Anyone else have a better idea?

The blocks ( 4 in each white block are 3 1/2 paper pieced. I found it on Pinterest.

I believe it is an old Bonnie Hunter from a magazine called Wild and Goosey.

And I assembled all my Frolic blocks together.  I have the edge stay stitched to prevent stretching.  And I have the  first row of borders cut and ready to go. My sizing is  a little off for the pieced border which is to go on next.  ( I should have used the small binding as a coping strip to compensate.)

Distance learning resumes tomorrow. And we were informed by the governor that it will continue through the end of the school year here in Wisconsin

Bummed, bummed, bummed. 

7 weeks left.

And Spring is a relative term. We have been in the 30s and 40s.  Of course, THIS week is to get to the 50s.   And although we had a week off school. There was nothing to do and nowhere to go. Social distancing.

sewing in Spring Break

Happy Easter!  

I very quiet meal was enjoyed on Easter Sunday with our daughter!

I made this cute little bunny ear bags! 

I think they are adorable, but are only 5x7 ish for the body.

We did get a picture of the three of us. 

It is so good to have her healthy after 3 weeks of the coronavirus. 

We miss the grandkids and were supposed to have flown south .

But in the interim, I am sewing some. I have not posted in over a week.

Here is the progress of Frolic. More than halfway pieced.

And I completed another cake mix box. 

This was had much smaller pieces and made 2  blocks.

Here is the back after completing the sewing. It is hard to see, but it made 1 larger unit and 16 small half square triangles. Best Press is my friend to make these come out evenly.

Final blocks

Then I finally finished m 12 heart blocks. 

And I was even able to have a curbside pick up for some more white fabric for borders and sashing.

Lastly, I pieced this top together on retreat in March.

I have been tinkering with hexies to add here and there. 

But I don't like the end products and so am just going to finish this as is.

The photo dulls the springy pinks and yellows and reds.

Distance learning

Online school started this week. I sit on the couch answering "hangout" conversations with my students. This goes from 8 to at least 4 in the afternoon. And then in the evening I have been making calls to families to help the students get online. Or I have been answering emails and such.

They have been LONG days. Many of the students are trying. Some things go well; and other things not so well. Teachers adapt and we keep going. Oh, and did I say long and tiring.

So Thursday I finally sewed. I finished my Bonnie Hunter setting blocks.  Today I hope to make the corner blocks.
Then it is putting it together.

But just like many of you on your blogs, I feel like a need something NEW.   

Today we supposed to be our quilt show. And of course, it is canceled. We are having the raffle Sunday for he beautiful blue and white quilt from the Edyta Sitar book something about blues. We made it bigger than the one in the book. And a beautiful appliqued border was added: I had made all the bias stems.

GOOD news: Corners finished. It took several hours.  That is not because they are complicated, it is because I didn't have enough pink cut out. After a little specific cutting of the right shape and color, they are done.

Bottom line, DONE!  And assembly has started. Slow and steady!

And then I laid them out.  Toot, toot, to toooooooo.

Drum roll, please.

And then I found these extras.   Hmmm.  This goes to show: I am a VISUAL learner.

I look at the pictures of the directions, read it once, and relay on it for the duration.

Those 16 sets were not just for the setting triangles, silly.

Still, major progress.

Frolicing away! And a cake mix...

Steadily making progress on Frolic.  Here is a picture with 15 squares made. 

I am actually up to 21 and have the 9 patches to put the last 4 together today. 

It is a challenge, but I am pushing to get it done. 

The corners and setting pieces are cut, but not ready for anything. 

One step at a time.

Here is the alternate block for Blockheads 4 made in 6 inch size. Meh.  O.K.

And here is how to make a cake mix.  No not on the stove, oven or any other cooking device. 

This is the Miss Rosie's Cake Mix Recipe. I believe there are about 10 different pattern sets for the 10 inch block size. ( And some for charm packs as well)

Here are the 2 10 inch blocks cut.  ( It turns out that particular one needs 2 sets to complete a 16 inch block.

Layer right sides together. pin the pattern piece on. Sew on the dotted lines, ( There are even directional hints to do all the lines in one motion. ) Cut on solid lines.

And for this pattern you get 2 8 inch blocks, and 8 4 inch blocsk.

Here are the various settings I laid out. 

But this is my final block. 

Quilt alongs

FROLIC!  

Here is my first block almost put together.  

I am loving it. My spin on it  was to switch out the aqua and put in a gray. 

Here it looks more white, or background like the beige. 

My camera takes poor picture at night without natural light. 

And now I have m 2nd block completed for Blockheads 3.  

Again these are 6 inch blocks.  And the star is actually an aqua background, not white as it appears here.  More photos to come as more blocks get competed. 

Frolic and Blockheads

So I jumped off another cliff.  Not literally, of course. I started another project.

I had this great fat eights pack of the Hedge Rose fabrics.  

And decided they would be perfect fabrics for the Blockheads 3. 

Corey Yoder posted the directions in 3 sizes: 6, 8, and 12 inches. Here

And if you are really daring,you can find the 4 inch ones on Lisa Bongean : Cutting directions

You need to assemble it according to Corey's post. 

I am making the 6 inch which I did for the first go round. 

I am debating the triangles; the print is too big.

And I love the setting layout Corey proposed.

I think that is what drew me in to hers. 

But I did get some other sewing done yesterday on my day off.:

Here is another clue of Frolic. Only 4 more pinwheels to make. 

Then I need to do the last set of flying geese.

I already have the finishing fabrics cut out. 

Frol

Binding and blocks

I had guild last Wednesday.  I really liked the demonstration. Each member can make a block and enter a lotto for receiving all the blocks. Our BOM for next month is this.

It was a real easy block to make and called arrowhead

http://mysistersquiltsut.blogspot.com/2014/01/here-is-great-two-color-quilt-for-you.html?m=1

Sew almost around all 4 edges of 2 squares, cut kind of like a disappearing 9 patch, re-scramble and sew together.  Voila new block! The background is a great gray print and the fabric is Kaffe Fassett and all be made out of in blue/green/purple colorways. 

I also spent the football game, watching Green Bay win for the conference playoffs tonight while hand sewing the binding on this.

It was a nail biter at the end, but none the less a win for the Packers. 

This is the baby quilt. I had a hard time sewing through the minky.

I think it was more because my bindings were full. But it is DONE . Photos later.

Still working on the Frolic mystery. The top blocks are flying geese finished.

The bottom  are those left to attach the wings.

Still 2 steps behind.

These are blocks from my star quilt a long.

Love them for sure,  63 pieces per block. 

I am so proud of my sewing on these and can't wait to get it done.

Blocks and more

Sewing continues into the new year!

 I have made 2 more blocks for my quilt along for Bea et Cecile Quilt along. 

I really, really like these blocks and it is making my sewing much more precise.

 And if you couldn't tell, I am making sure to include browns. 

The baby quilt is progressing well. I have finished the free motion quilt on my home sewing machine. I couldn't find my free motion slider. Ugh.  But I muddled through and did a stipple. 

The back is a minky fabric with a soft batting in between.

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And here is a close up of part of the quilt; some of the quilting shows through.

I used a new thread for me called Isocord. It has a sheen and is 2 ply polyester. 

I loved the color, and it went through my machine well, but I felt I kept wasting some as it slipped after threading, but before my machine began.  I think part of it was the weight of the quilt as I sewed and drove it more with my arms than usual. My fingers are not strong enough or for that matter big enough to spread and control the movement.  I am kind of out of practice. 

For the Frolic mystery, I am happy to say I have all of  clue 4 done and trimmed. It took forever. And now I have all of clue 5 made and pressed and about 1/4 of these lovely triangles trimmed.

Progress a little at a time....on to clue 6 and 7. From my perusal around the blog world, I can see I am not alone. 

So I keep at it. 

Finishing the year sewing

I truly have enjoyed having time to sit and time to sew during this winter/ holiday/Christmas break.  I don't always get as much done as I would like, but I have been plugging away at projects in stages.

First I have the top completed for my nephew and his wife. The shower my sister is giving is in 3 weeks.  I love how the colors of teal, lime, and light blue and green have come together. Such a pretty soothing combination and such interesting fabrics.  Today I found a wonderful smooth teal minky to back it.  I think I will try to roll the back into binding.

Here are the wonderful fabrics up close. Colors never show up well for me.

I have also been completing color after color of cutting and sewing for Frolic, Bonnie Hunter's mystery quilt. The first 3 clues went together fairly quickly. Step 4 has been a bugger of colors and sizes and sheer numbers. But it is now all cut, and only needs the finishing seams for half square triangles and then trimming. These are the sets that are completed.

These are the sets that are cut, but need to be sewn.

 And I have all the background cut for step 5. I needed to add some more pinks to my stash.  This is not a color I particularly like or even use much. But it makes this quilt so cheerful.

My method is to double the measurement of unfinished square for half square triangles, say 2 7/8 inches and cut it into a square: 2 times 2 7/8 = square of 5 3/4 of both colors of fabrics. Then draw a diagonal form opposite corners making an X . Sew 1/4 inch from each drawn line. And then cut into squares and then on the drawn line. It makes 8 half square triangles each for this measurement 2 inches finished.

I have also been completing color after color of cutting and sewing for Frolic, Bonnie Hunter's mystery quilt. The first 3 clues went together fairly quickly. Step 4 has been a bugger of colors and sizes and sheer numbers. But it is now all cut, and only needs the finishing seams for half square triangles and then trimming. And I have all the background cut for step 5. I needed to add some more pinks to my stash.  This is not a color I particularly like or even use much. But it makes this quilt so cheerful.

I have been working on my Christmas Star blocks. Many steps and precise sewing needed. But I am really happy with the finished block. For Bea and Cecile's Quilt along, I am making 20 of these blocks. I hope to enter it in my guild's quilt show at the end of March.

I need to make the candy bags I have so carefully been setting aside. I have M & Ms, Oreos, Toll House chocolate chips, and a couple more. They are of different sizes.  I want to get this going on my last two days home.

To Frolic and Christmas

Time has gotten away from me. And I have not posted in a while.

Christmas is upon us and I am really missing my grandsons to make cookies and do all sorts of Christmas things.

And then Monday I got a very sad call from my DD. Her boyfriend of almost 2 years broke up with her. We all liked him so much  and feel he just wasn't ready for a commitment despite the fact they are both 31.  She, of course, is devastated and it leaves me a little bummed as well.

But onward. I have been sewing.
First here are the 3 steps of the Frolic mystery by Bonnie Hunter. I really like these colors together.
But instead of a scrappy background, I found yardage of a cream print for  dollar a yard on Connecting Threads Black Friday.

Then I am going to finish these mug rugs as gifts for my school pals. 

 This set needs quilting and binding

This set is quilted, and just needs binding.

And I have made a block for my Quilt a Long to see how hard it was and whether I liked it.  I think it is a go.