A few small projects

 

This little wool penny project got sashed and put together this week after languishing for a few weeks.  It's a sampler of various embroidery stitches.  I found the batik background a little difficult to embroider but was pleased to find the sashing/binding in just the right colors hiding at the bottom of my blue tub.  Now it needs quilting, which I will get to manana.

At guild the other night, the coming month's block of the month turned out to be a 12" block exactly like the 6" one that will be coming up for the June Unity quilt round.  I got busy right away and found it wasn't so hard at 12".  I was dreading the 6" version, but now that I see how it goes together, I'm not AS intimidated.  Still slightly intimidated, but ready to soldier on in June.  I can't remember its name - Twirling something-or-other.

At any rate, I made one to keep and one for the guild lottery in May.  I won the March blocks but have set them aside while I work on a few other things.  I'm still working ahead on the May section of the Unity quilt - 2" x 3.5" flying geese.

This week I also made a beige linen tote bag for the Quilters' Auction at the state guild meeting in May.  Everyone on the board will be contributing things to put in it.  I've had the linen for quite a while and still have enough to make another bag or two.  Forgot to take a picture, unfortunately.

Olde St. Nick

I've been working steadily on my Christmas woolen applique, and today I hopw to stitch down the tree, star, pocket, and bear.  I was so pleased that I actually remembered how to make a French knot for the eye.  Here's the pattern so you can see what the finished piece should look like.

It's about 8" tall, so some of the pieces are pretty small.  With my machine still in the shop, I am enjoying this slow bit of stitching.

Wool applique

I love wool applique because you don't have to turn the edges under, but it always begs for additional embroidery which I'm not confidant about doing.  Nonetheless, I did finally finish this wallhanging the other day.

Those French knots weren't so hard once I got started working on them, and there are also little cross-stitches and flowers scattered here and there.  I outline quilted the flowers and vase and then echo quilted the center.   I worried about quilting around the red buttons, but they weren't a problem at all.  It measures about 14" x 20".   I will probably make another wool appliqued piece soon, although I'm really focusing on finishing UFOs this year.  A clean(ish) slate would be nice.

The pattern for this quilt came from my new favorite magazine, Primitive Quilts.  It includes ideas for punch needle and patchwork projects as well.  I have stopped getting most quilting magazines except that and American Patchwork and Quilting.  They are all pretty repetitious and very focused on selling particular lines of fabric.

The vase applique will line my suitcase along with a few other wallhangings and zipper bags when we go to the Netherlands in April.  We will see my four cousins, a sister and a brother, and my mother's cousin along with their various families.   I can't make something for everyone, but will have a few things on hand for gifting.  I'll run out to a sugar shack and get some maple candy to share at a gathering that my cousins are planning in early May.  Wow!  Just two months to go!

Next on my to-do list

I have been working on the wool appliqued block, about 20" square, since before Christmas.  It's made of scraps of wool, a small wool charm pack I bought last summer, and a piece of gray cotton.  I tried to do some fancier embroidery stitches which you can't see in the photo.  The pattern is by Kim Diehl and appeared in a magazine (American Patchwork and Quilting?) a few weeks before I started.  I think my friend Jan is working on the same in cottons, but doing the whole quilt.  This week I hope to design a border of purple scraps and get it ready for quilting as a wallhanging.

To the right of the block are some scrappy rose squares made in December based on a book by Karen Eckmeier.  I thought I might make some every month out of different colored scraps and put them together at the end of the year.  I am never good at keeping to those block of the month plans, so we'll see how it goes!

The gray quilt for Bennett is coming along.  I finished the big center which measures 54" square, and I have made pinwheel blocks using cut-offs from the squares.  I'll use those for a border to get the quilt up to at least 65" square, but I need to take a little inventory of my grays first.   I have another project - a swap of Missouri Star blocks - that needs grays also.

It is good to have all these projects in the queue because our weather seems to have taken a snowy turn.  It snowed all day Sunday, it's snowing right now, and a big storm is predicted for tomorrow.  I ran out to the store for provisions.  We are prepared! 

Wool applique WIP

The sun was shining for the first time in many weeks, so I quickly took a picture of my wool work in progress.  Unfortunately, the pane threw a shadow on the photo, but you can get the idea of what's happening.   I'm using a light green cotton blender for the background.  There will be centers in each big flower, and I'm going to embellish a little with embroidery after everything is stitched down.  This has been fun!

Side-tracked

I had every intention of going to the LQS and getting some white-ish batik so I can continue with Dutch Treat.  But "life" got in the way.  First, Paul had a slight medical procedure requiring me to take him to the hospital in Burlington on Tuesday (what a way to spend Valentine's Day!).  We had to be there by 8:15 am, so we left home at 6:45.  I did a lot of waiting, but he came through just fine.  His roommate, once he landed, was a neighbor which was quite a nice and fun thing.  Paul spent the night in the hospital, and of course the weather report for Wednesday was simply dire, with lots of snow predicted. 

So I worried all night, and when I saw flakes coming down in the morning, I got in the car and drove back to Burlington.  They had said he probably wouldn't be released until noon, but I was taking no chance.  When I arrived, he had been discharged and was ready to leave, amid some big, sloppy snowflakes.  They let up on our way home, though, and all that worry was for nothing.  Paul is fine, just has to take it easy and then have cardiac rehab when we get back from Alabama in March.  We'll walk and take it easy down there, where it's in the 60's and 70's.  Can't wait!

Meanwhile, Dutch Treat.  Still haven't gotten the batik (I have a gift certificate burning a hole in my purse), so I've been making little wallhangings instead.  One is a vase of flowers with almost everything - stems, petals, vase - made of selvages.  It needs a little more work - outlining some of the flowers in black or green so they stand out better. 

But this one, done with wool and a vase made of selvages, is coming along really well.  I'm not great at embroidery, but I'm learning as I go along.  I need to add the leaves and a bluebird.  It's from a book by Wendy Williams - Wild Blooms & Colorful Creatures.  There are some really fun designs that I hope to use as inspiration.

A few quick projects

This was me, this morning.  I was making scarves out of old cashmere sweaters.  My friend has been buying used sweaters for years and giving me any she thinks I'd like.  Most are too small, and I've given a few to my sister and even to the Salvation Army.  A quilting friend showed some scarves she had made with her late father's cashmere sweaters as keepsakes for her siblings.  I was nervous about cutting into them, but she assured me they would hold up fine.  The other day I took a deep breath, got out my 6.5" square, and rotary cut a stack of squares out of four sweaters.

Today I sewed 10 squares each into four strips, alternating the colors, then sewed the strips together to end up with two really soft and warm scarves.  I'll keep one and send the other to my sister Jenny who's always cold and lives in Colorado.   I also traced my hand for a set of mittens which I may get to tomorrow or Saturday.  I'll attach the ribbing which I cut off the sleeves separately.   I still have most of the 8 sleeves left, but I set those aside for a "rainy day."

I was on a roll today so I started on a wool pincushion project from a kit I got at the Rocky Mountain Quilt Museum on our last visit to Golden.  When I cut all the pieces out, I was a bit disappointed that the kit didn't include nearly enough fabric for the whole project.  I had to scrounge around in my very limited wool stash for under the wings and the "cap."  I did get those things doubled and blanket stitched, along with the beak.  

Now I'm ready to sew the body together and stuff it with some crushed walnuts.  Then I'll add all the other parts, including the button eyes.  It's nice to work on something and get it nearly done.  Quilts are such a long term commitment!

I have volunteered to handle the monthly UFO challenge for one online group I'm in this year, so I think I'll try to make some more pincushions using wool.  They won't be as fancy as this, but I'd like to do a little more work with wool, and pincushions seem perfect for a quick winter afternoon project.