Now What?

Over the winter, I spent more time in book stores than fabric stores.  Cold weather found me curled up with a book, or knitting in front of the TV.  But warmer weather - and a good bargain - have lured me back to the sewing room.  

A local lady advertised a huge lot of quilt kits for sale.  I have no idea where or how she came to own so many kits, but I went to check them out.  Most were wall-hanging size with  "primitive" applique or embroidery - not really my thing - but I did find two Moda charm packs.  I had no plan in mind, and to be honest, they aren't even colors/patterns that grabbed my attention, but I'm a huge fan of pre-cuts (because  I don't care for cutting) and they were less than half the sticker price, so I hoped that they would inspire me.  Not so far!  That's where you come in.

The first pack is "Plum Sweet" by Blackbird Designs.  I actually had a few fat quarters of the darkest florals at some point.  I have no memory of how I used them, but I remember having them in my stash.  The shades of purple are pretty and I like the variety from large flowers to simple polka-dots.  I would probably leave out the center row.   It seems to have too much yellow/gold to blend with the others.  

The second pack is "KT Favorites" by Kansas Troubles Quilters.  When I laid them out, the colors struck me as odd - for lack of a better word.  There are dark blues, greens, browns, reds, neutrals that run from barely-off-white to an orange-beige, and four purple/blues straggling along at the end.  The whole thing is a bit boring.  It needs either a fun application where the individual fabrics blend into a neutral background, or it needs to be mixed with other, more interesting, fabrics.  

So, ideas?  They can always become doll quilts for the kids in foster care, but neither pack screams "little girl".  I found ideas on Pinterest for charm pack tote bags and table runners - neither of which I need.  For the moment, they will go into the stash, but I am trying to use what I buy, so someone help me with this impulse purchase.  What would you make? 

Needlework Tuesday

These Christmas ornaments are not technically "needlework", since there is no sewing involved.  But, since they involve cutting, folding and pressing - close enough.  Fabric squares are folded in half, then into triangles, and pinned into place on styrofoam balls, then the raw edges are covered with ribbon.  Specific instructions are easy to find on Pinterest.

Most of my real stitching this week has been dedicated to making pot holders.  I donated these potholders to a benefit auction at church and one of the ladies there asked me to make sixteen more for her to give as Christmas gifts.  I have 10 left to top-stitch and they are complete. They would have been done sooner, but I got sidetracked by the idea of a "10 Minute Quilt Block".  I saw a video that showed a short-cut method to producing a 20-inch quilt block in 10 minutes.  Theoretically, you could make an entire throw-size quilt top (9 blocks = 60" x 60") in 90 minutes.  In reality, it's possible if you were starting with pre-cut 10" squares and are familiar with the method.  Add in the time it took me to find enough scrap pieces 10x10" or larger, cut them, watch the tutorial again, rip out a few mistakes . . . I still had a 60x60" quilt top assembled in an afternoon.  

Sorry for the poorly lit picture, but you get the idea.

The fabrics are all remnants from favorite projects.  I was hoping for thirty-six different fabrics, not including the black and white center squares, but came up a bit short.   I think there are two fabrics that are repeated.  After I took the picture, I added a border from the same black fabric used for the centers.  It's going to get backed with flannel and tied for a cuddly, TV-watching blanket.  

If you want to try the 10-Minute Block, just search for it on You-Tube.  The same lady also came up with a 5-Minute Block.  This time I purchased a "layer cake" of pre-cut squares.  I only have four squares completed so far.  Hopefully I'll have a finished quilt top to show you next week.

Needlework Tuesday is hosted by Heather @ Books and Quilts.  Visit her to see what she and other participants are stitching this week.

My God-Given Right to Craft . . .

Did you know crafting is biblical?  One of my favorite Bible verses is 1 Thessalonians 4:11 - "Make it your goal to live a quiet life, minding your own business and working with your hands, just as we instructed you before."  Christian comedian Anita Renfroe, posted her personal paraphrase of that verse on Facebook:  "Calm down.  Mind your own business.  Do crafts."  I totally agree!

I have been studying the Proverbs 31 woman in recent months and it occurred to me that this seemingly-unobtainable model of womanhood was slipping in some craft time, cleverly disguised by biblical language.  

"She selects wool and flax and works with eager hands."   She goes fabric shopping and can't wait to get to her sewing room.

"In her hand she holds the distaff and grasps the spindle with her fingers."  The spindle and distaff are tools used to spin yarn, and why make yarn except to knit and crochet?

"She makes coverings for her bed."  Quilts, of course!

"She makes linen garments . . . and supplies the merchants with sashes."  She sews clothing and accessories.

"She speaks with wisdom and faithful instruction is on her tongue" - She posts tutorials for her projects to share with fellow crafters.

So, no more guilt over time spent in "crafty pursuits".  I'm simply obeying scripture!

Craft Crazy

I finished a quilt!  It's small and it's simple, but it's done!  I made the top four years ago from a package of pre-cut squares purchased at Wal-Mart.  We had just moved, so I was unemployed and was easing myself back into quilting after a five year break. It's a bit too small to be a lap quilt, but looks pretty draped over the back of a chair.   Lesson from this quilt:  look at your fabrics from a distance before you start sewing.  The lines of the lattice pattern on the blue fabric appear even from up close.   But when you step back, one diagonal is definitely dominant and the lines don't all go the same way.  Details, details!

The rest of my sewing time has focused on small projects - some for a craft sale coming up at church, and some just for kicks.  Like this mug rug.  They are hard to see but the quilting lines on the top section are the "steam" rising from the coffee.

This coloring book and Crayon caddy will be donated to the church craft auction . . . (sorry, I didn't take time to stage pretty pictures.)

 As will this quilted basket - after it's filled with cookies . . .

And this set of three potholders that still need the quilting done.

There are a couple table runners in the works but not sure if they'll get done in time.  Why is it that, when I'm sewing items to give way, everything seems to go wrong?  I goofed on quilting the basket, but I think I covered it well.  The potholders were supposed to be a set of four but somehow I cut one owl centerpiece "wonky" but didn't notice until it was assembled and the entire thing was "mega-wonky".   I finally got the corner points on one table runner to align correctly - after several retries and sewing the entire bottom border on upside down once - and realized I had swapped two blocks so they didn't match the top border.  I let it sit for 24 hours while I cooled off, then tore it apart - again - and reassembled it correctly with all points matching.  Now I may not have enough time to get it quilted and bound.  Oh, the joys of sewing!

Needlework Tuesday: Babies, Blocks and Headaches

Tuesday came and went last week without so much as a thought of posting for Needlework Tuesday.  Don't know where my brain was, but it left me with a lot to share this week.  

1.  The baby blanket is done!  It's not perfect, but it's done - and done with love.

And just in time. My great-nephew, Ruger, arrived 7/18/2014 and I will get to see him for the first time tomorrow.  

2.  Grandma's Quilt Blocks - I have posted before about the jackpot of Kansas City Star quilt patterns I discovered in a trunk in my dad's basement.  My grandmother had clipped and saved during the 1930's-1950's.  She passed away in 1954, before I was born, so this small connection to her was special to me.  I set out to make a quilt using a variety of patterns from Grandma's collection - all cut to the original specs in the pattern, and all sewn by hand.  I gave up after 6 blocks.  Those six blocks of varying sizes have been in a drawer waiting for me to get inspired to do something with them.  I finally got sashes added to make them all finish the same size (17 1/2 inches), and put them together.  

I'm not sure what's next for this odd assortment.  Do I add more blocks?  Add borders?  Finish it the size it is (51x34)?  Do I quilt by hand or machine?  Hopefully it won't take another 15 years to figure it out.  

3.  I shared a couple weeks ago about my new obsession with "hexies".  I've made dozens and dozens of 1" hexagons and sewn some of them into flowers which are destined to become a table runner, but I hadn't found a layout that really struck me until I visited my favorite antique store the other day.  Two fun finds will combine to become a runner for the antique buffet in my living room.  Find #1 is a vintage white table runner - very simple, with lace edging.  Find #2 was a plastic bag of fabric scraps already cut to just the right size for 1" hexies.  I love the delicate colors so I have started a whole new batch of hexagons which will be made into flowers and appliqued to the vintage runner.

4.  While pondering the 1" hexies, I also made some 1 1/2" hexies out of leftover Christmas prints.  They, too, will be made into a table runner, and this one is already coming together.

There are rows one and two of eight.  Each flower contains the same six prints plus a black center.  They are joined by the dark green hexies to represent leaves.  This part is all done by hand, but will be machine sewn to a backing when complete.

5.  And finally - what do you do when you are awake at 4:30 a.m. with a killer headache?  Make a random quilt block, of course.  Dave had to be on the road by 5:00 Monday morning to help our daughter move out of her apartment, so I got up to make the coffee and see him off.  Like a total idiot, I forgot to take my medicine the night before, so I awoke with a throbbing head - not much chance of going back to sleep.  To distract myself while waiting for the after-headache medicine to kick in, I started perusing pattern books and was struck with brilliance - or what passes for brilliance at 5:00 a.m. when your head is pounding.  I will work myself through my pattern books making random "practice blocks" out of scraps as practice on cutting and assembling with precision.  

Ta-da---- Block #1 is called Attic Window and, as you can see, was made from scraps from Grandma's quilt blocks (above) which were still laying on the cutting table.  

What are you sewing, knitting, crocheting or otherwise stitching this week?  Visit our hostess, Heather, at Books and Quilts and link up to share all your projects.

Needlework Tuesday: Hexed!

Image from "We All Sew"

Geometry was not my favorite subject, but when I saw this picture, I was immediately sucked into the "hexie" craze.   Doesn't  that make you want to sew hundreds of hexagons just for the fun of it?  Ok, maybe it's just me.  

If you are drawn in, this article from We All Sew includes links to several tutorials and project ideas.   I decided on 1" hexagons (meaning each side measures 1"), so I needed 2 1/2" squares of fabric.   

I won't go into the process of making hexies, since it's covered so well by others, but I will add a couple of my own discoveries.

1.  The best place I find for printing paper templates is at Love Patchwork and Quilting.  They offer free downloads of multiple sizes of hexagons.  I printed 10 sheets and spent a couple hours at my "ultra-busy" job cutting them out.  However, the paper hexagons can be reused multiple times, so I didn't need as many to get started as I thought.

2.  I wasted a ridiculous amount of time and brain power figuring the size of fabric scrap needed, and the fastest/easiest way to cut multiple hexagons.  Then a friend pointed out that the fabric doesn't have to be a perfect hexagon.  Cut 2 1/2" squares, pin on the 1" hexagon template, then snip off corners before you start stitching.  OR, my preference, is to just leave he corners on.  It actually makes it easier to fold around the paper piece and when the final product is pressed, does not add enough bulk to matter.

3.  Don't skip the pinning step.  Whether you use a straight pin, paper clip, glue stick, butcher paper or any of the other methods listed in the article, don't skip this step.  I thought I could just hold the paper in place well enough.  WRONG!  No matter how well I thought I was holding, the paper shifted and I had uneven hexagons.

Now that I have a small stash of hexies made up, I am assembling them into flowers - 1 hexie in the center, surrounded by 6 "petals"  There are dozens and dozens of project ideas on Pinterest, so everyone on my Christmas list can expect hexies in their stocking.  

A sampling of my hexagon flowers on my design board.

For starters, and practice, I'm making a table runner - white background with hexie flowers scattered down the center and machine appliqued.  I practiced on one flower, using a blanket-style stitch.  You can see that I experimented with the number of stitches/inch until I found what I liked. And, of course, on the final project I will use white thread.  I am going for a "scrappy" look, rather than color coordinating each flower (as you'll see in many projects) - the better to use that large plastic tote of scraps I have collected.

I also made progress on the baby quilt.  My great-nephew is due on the 19th, but the doctor says "any minute", so I'm trying to get it complete and ready to go for our first visit. The tying is done and the binding is sewn on.  All that's left is the hand sewing - my favorite part. 

 Someone asked for more details about the machine-tying method I used.  The corner of each block is tacked with a tight zig-zag stitch.  It makes a cleaner look than hand tying - no lose ends - but it was more difficult to keep from bunching up.  Even with pins every 4", the backing shifted a little.  I didn't bother to clip threads between corners, I pulled out enough thread to get to the next corner without pulling in between, and made the next stitches.  I clipped all threads after I was finished.  

Hopefully, there will be pictures of the finished quilt next week.  Maybe even one with the new arrival.

Needlework Tuesday is hosted by Heather @ Books & Quilts.

Needlework Tuesday: 4th of July

A holiday from work + no family home = a day of sewing.  

My first project - a Prayer Flag for our nation - was inspired by an image on Facebook of an American flag created from vintage ribbons and trims.  I didn't have enough red, white and blue trim (vintage or otherwise) to make a flag, so my version used fabric scraps. 

It flew on our front porch all weekend and will remain there indefinitely.

Project #2 was the baby quilt I'm making for my great-nephew - due on July 19th.  This was my first attempt at this style of border and, I have to admit, I'm pretty proud of those mitered corners.  I'm trying another new (to me) method in the finishing of the quilt - "machine tying".  Rather than hand typing and leaving the ends of the thread or yarn loose, I tacked the corners of each square with zig-zag stitching.  Much faster and neater than hand-tying and also disguises triangle points that aren't perfect.  I have completed the tacking on the inner section.  I just need to find some red thread and tack at  4" intervals all the way around; then add the red binding.  

During breaks in quilting, I whipped up a journal cover.  I journal almost daily and I am frequently tempted by the beautiful journals I see, but the cost can be prohibitive.  I used to stock up on plain school-type notebooks during the Back-to-School sales.  They were economical (5/$1 in the mid 90's) but not very attractive.  A fabric cover is the best of both worlds.  I used a fat quarter I had picked up months ago just because I loved the sewing motif; and a strip of a reproduction vintage floral that Amanda gave me for Christmas.   After the cover was complete, I decided it needed a pocket for a pen and highlighter.  I fussy-cut the pocket from another fat quarter purchased on a whim.  If I had thought of it sooner, I would probably have re-arranged the pocket and contrast strip - but I'm happy with it anyway.

One more fabric strip helped finish off the interior flaps.  My cover fits a standard

9.75x7.5 composition notebook that costs around $1.50 each, but could easily be adjusted to fit any size.  Best of all, when it becomes worn or stained, or if I'm just tired of it, I can create another.

For hand-work, I tried a new technique for loom knitting, but this post is long enough so I'll save that for next week. If anyone has experience with "double pegging", let me know.  I could use some help.

Hope you had a great week of stitching.  If so, visit our hostess, Heather, at Books & Quilts and link up your post.  If not, stop by to see what others are stitching.  You  might be inspired.

Needlework Tuesday: Kaleidoscope

One Block Wonder, Kaleidoscope, Pinwheel . . . no matter what you call it, this may be the coolest quilt block ever.   A quilt made entirely from one fabric - the bigger the pattern and the more colorful the better.  I'm not going to give you detailed instructions, but I highly recommend Jacqueline O'Brien's series of videos on YouTube.

You begin by cutting six "pattern repeats" from your fabric.  A large print that repeats every 20-24" makes a wide variety of blocks. The size of your quilt is determined by the width of the repeat.  A 24" repeat will cut into six 3 3/4" rows, and each row makes about 20 sets of triangles - so you would have 120 unique blocks.  I used some fabric I've had in my stash for 15 years - hyacinth patterned fabric in shades of green and purple that I've been "stashing" all that time.  The pattern really isn't large enough, and the pattern repeats about every 12-14" inches, so I will only have 60 blocks, but it's free - so perfect for my first experiment.

There's a long explanation of how to stack, align and cut your fabric, but you end up with sets of six identical triangles.  

Each set of triangles can be layed out to form three different kaleidiscope designs, depending on which corner points to the center.

Choose the design you prefer and sew into two halves of a hexagon, but don't join the two halves.  The full quilt is assembled in vertical rows of half-hexagons.  

Check out One Block Wonders on Pinterest or Google to see the amazing variety of ways the hexagons can be assembled.  This fabric doesn't supply much variety of color, but I'm thinking I'll arrange them to move from dark to light diagonally across the quilt.  

The surprise of the designs formed by the triangles and the combinations of hexagons will certainly make this a technique I use repeatedly.  Not to mention - it's cheap!  That ugly, gaudy print on the sale rack will be unrecognizable when it becomes a kaleidoscope.

Needlework Tuesday is hosted by Heather at Books & Quilts.  Stop by to see what everyone is stitching or to link your own post.

Needlework Tuesday: Holiday Week Version

Monday was a holiday in the U.S. - Memorial Day - so, of course, I didn't work.  That threw me off completely, and all day yesterday I kept thinking I needed to get a Needlework Tuesday post ready for tomorrow.  So - here's my holiday version.

I completed my 100 mini prayer quilts.  If you don't remember, a friend volunteered to head up a drive to make 1500 4" 4-patch mini quilts by mid-June.  She farmed it out in lots of 100 to everyone she knew who sews.  I volunteered for 100.  I finished them last week and presented them with a great feeling of accomplishment.  Then she asked if I could do a few more because some people didn't return theirs.  So I'm in 4-patch mode again.

I completed the blocks and settled on an arrangement for my baby quilt.  I'm going to assemble that much while I ponder options for borders and backing.  The baby - my great nephew (wow) - is due in July.

My third project for the week was a prayer flag for my birthday.  The base is a vintage napkin - off white with red trim.  The fabrics in the crazy quilt represent things I like - sewing, knitting, music, anything "vintage"  - there's even a bit of Christmas stuck in there.  The triangle with embroidered flowers is the corner of another vintage napkin.

I also started kitting a red, white and blue afghan.  In fact, I've started it at least 15 times now.  I'm having some tension issues - but I think I have it under control now.  Hopefully there will be enough progress to warrant pictures next week.

Visit Heather at Books & Quilts to see what all the Needlework Tuesday participants are stitching.

Needlework Tuesday: A Family In Stitches

One of our daughter's best friends and fellow crafter, Sarah, wanted some potholders to display on hooks she made from vintage spoons.  So, when Amanda was home for a few days last week, we whipped up four.  Amanda is an expert crafter with paint, Mod Podge or scrapbook paper, but she hasn't shown much interest in sewing until now. She did the majority of the stitching and they came out great.  

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A couple weeks ago, I picked up five fat quarters of Riley Blake's western coordinates to make a quilt for my great-nephew, who will arrive in July. I'm making simple half-square triangles, but I can't decide on a layout.

I could use a simple layout . . .

                                   

Or, I could add in some blocks with adorable cowboys that I fussy cut from some fabric in my stash.

Or I could try a chevron layout.  This is just a sample laid out with the few blocks I have assembled.  In the final version those two mismatched triangles in the second row would be from the correct print.  

Or I'm open to other suggestions.
  
Needlework Tuesday is hosted by Heather at Books & Quilts.    Visit Heather to see what everyone is stitching.

Needlework Tuesday: Kansas City Star

Once again, a busy week has kept me away from the sewing machine, but I did accomplish something sewing-related.  

For years, my father had a small trunk filled with old family photos, sitting in his basement.  About ten years ago, we pulled the pictures out to sort, and found that the photos were only a shallow top layer of the trunk's contents.  Underneath were hundreds of quilt patterns, poems, games, recipes, and helpful hints that my grandmother had clipped from the newspaper.   I decided to try some of the patterns, stitching them completely by hand as my grandma would have done.  I took my piecing to a quilt guild meeting one afternoon and when the more experienced quilters saw what I had, I was shocked at their reaction. They were shocked that I was carrying around quilt patterns from the Kansas City Star in a plastic bag.

The Kansas City Star, Weekly Star and Star Farmer published quilt patterns (most submitted by readers) from the late 1920's through 1960.  During the 1930's they were published on a weekly basis, becoming less frequent through the 40's and 50's.  A bit of research showed that individual patterns sell from $1 for the most common patterns, to $10 for the rarer ones published later on. Grandma had done almost all of her collecting during the 1930's, so probably no rare items there (not that I would ever sell them at any price).  Even so, there was a monetary and nostalgic value that needed to be preserved.  In anticipation of a reunion of her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren (plus two great-greats on the way) this past weekend, I finally got around to organizing them into acid-free, archival-quality albums so they can be enjoyed and used for many generations.  After eliminating duplicates, I stored over 300 patterns in the albums.

What ever happened to that hand-stitched quilt I started?  My enthusiasm ran out after six blocks, but I pulled them back out last week and am developing a plan to finish them into a small quilt.  I constructed each block according to the measurements given in the original pattern,so they vary from 12" to 18".  I purchased some red, white and blue fabrics to use as sashing around the smaller blocks to make them all finish at 18" and then I will figure out how I want to arrange them. Here are three of my six finished blocks - more on that project later.

"Puss in the Corner"   "Jacob's Ladder"      "Bridal Path"

While we were traveling for the reunion, I stopped at a quilt store and found the cutest fabric panels!  

These lovely ladies also had coordinating fabrics featuring buttons and other sewing supplies.

I found this Christmas panel on the sale shelf.  All of the coordinating fabrics had been sold, but I'm sure I can find grays and reds that will work. 

Now my dilemma:  What do I make from them?  Do I leave them whole or cut out the individual squares? Quilts?  Wall hangings?  Table runner?  I am accepting all ideas.

Needlework Tuesday is hosted by Heather at Books & Quilts.  Visit Heather to see what lovely things she and the other participants are stitching.

Needlework Tuesday: What Goes Up . . .

... must come down.  Or, more appropriately, "What gets knitted, gets unknitted."  I spent a large part of my weekend undoing progress.  I've been learning to loom knit - and loving it!  I spent the week working on two projects.  The first is a shawl for myself, made from a tweed-look chunky yarn.  The finished shawl will require four panels and I have one completed and waiting to be blocked.  Hopefully there will be pictures next week.

The second project is a baby blanket for my great-nephew, who is due to arrive in July.  I'm using Bernat "Baby Blanket" bulky yarn.  The pattern requires two 15 x 36 panels (the multi-color) and one 4 x 36 stripe (solid blue) down the center.  I began the project with a regular knit/purl stitch, but this heavy yarn needed something looser.  After a lot of experiments and unraveling, I finally settled on the Figure 8 stitch, which is tight enough for warmth, but loose enough to wrap easily.  

If you haven't used Baby Blanket yarn, at least touch it the next time you're in your favorite yarn shop.  It is so soft and snuggly!  I may need a blanket of my own. :)

I also made progress on my book quilt - 2 "shelves" completed, 6 to go.  I ordered the brown fabric for the sashing and backing - a coordinate of the beige I'm using for the negative space above the books.  It arrived this week, and I also spoke with the lady who will be quilting it on her long-arm machine.  Everything is going well and I'm excited to complete my very first full-size quilt.  Hopefully there will be photographable progress by next Tuesday.

Thanks to Heather for hosting Needlework Tuesday.  Visit Heather at Books & Quilts and see what everyone's stitching up.

Needlework Tuesday: Pinwheels

My crafting time this week was devoted to experimenting with loom knitting.   I tried a variety of yarns and a variety of stitches, then ripped them all out and started again.  The ripping included the scarf that I showed in last week's post.  After I had about a 10" strip to look at, I decided I didn't care for the unconventional yarn I was using - so it will return to the yarn cupboard to become something else another day.  

I spent hours working on a baby blanket made from "super bulky" Bernat Baby Blanket yarn, only to decide that the stitch pattern I was using was too "close knit" for that bulky yarn and the blanket was going to weigh a ton.  So, it also unraveled and returned to the yarn stash.  I'm still planning to make the blanket, but after I find a looser stitch.

My loom currently holds the first few rows of a shawl I'm making for myself from tweed-look yarn, in a basic pattern of knit and purl stitches.  Hopefully there will be something to show on that next week.

Between knitting and un-knitting, I made one quilt block - yes, just one.  The idea has been hanging around the back of my mind for ages and I finally got around to trying the 3-D Pinwheel block.

Pattern from You Can Make This.com

Now that I know this really is as quick and easy as it looks in the instructions, I am looking for a way to use them.  I'm envisioning a red, white and blue summer wall-hanging, or maybe continue the purple and white theme to make a K-State banner.

Do you have a loom knitting stitch that would work well for a baby blanket?  Or an idea for the Pinwheel block?  Leave your thoughts in a comment.  And don't forget to visit our hostess, Heather at Books & Quilts, to see what other stitchers are doing.

Needlework Tuesday:

I have two projects to report for Needlework Tuesday this week.  First, a prayer flag for my kids who are graduating from college in May and facing a world of choices and decisions.

The flag depicts our home, where they started, the common road they traveled, and the new, divergent roads they face after graduation.  The background is half purple (though it looks blue) and half gold, to represent their colleges, and each side contains an icon that represents their chosen major.  Even on their different paths, Christ is the Force that guides them individually, yet ties them together.  

The second project is a bit of a Jeff Foxworthy joke:  "If your quilt is made from fabric you got at The Wal-Mart and 4 scrap pieces of batting stitched together; if there are two places where the block corners don't even come close to matching up; if you were using pliers to pull the needle through the layers while tying the quilt and slipped and ripped a hole with the nose of the pliers; and if the binding is made from the excess fabric from your sister-in-law's dining room curtains . . .

  . . . it might be a Redneck Quilt!  But I love the vintage tablecloth backing and it will keep me warm and cozy by the campfire, so it's a success.

Needlework Tuesday is hosted by Heater at Books & Quilts.  Visit Heather to see what everyone's stitching or to link your own post.  

Needlework Tuesday

You can't tell by looking, but I really did accomplish quite a bit this week. 

• Last week I mentioned the 200 mini-quilts I need to get made by May.  Several people asked for a reminder of where this project is going.  The mini quilts are for a friend who needs 2500 of them by May for a national church conference she is attending. They are just a 4-patch sewn to a backing square (no batting) and turned right-side-out. A small wooden cross is tucked inside and the opening hand stitched closed.   She parcelled them out in batches of 200 to friends and family who sew.   Chain piecing whenever I have a few spare minutes is making measurable progress.  I'll just keep plodding along on them.

• For a break, I made a prayer flag to represent our prayers for my father-in-law, who was recently diagnosed with cancer.  If you're not familiar with prayer flags, read this post for my interpretation.

• With the remnants of fabrics I used to make Christmas gifts, plus some fat quarters I received for Christmas, I have reached the goal of . . . [drum roll, please] . . . four hundred different fabrics - necessary to make my "book quilt", based on this quilt from The Last Piece.  I had to special order the fabric I wanted  - cream with faint swirls - to create the negative space above the books, but it has arrived and will be in my hand Wednesday, so I have no excuse not to get started . . . except those 200 mini-quilts.

• And finally, from the Not-So-Successful Department - jumbo-size spool knitting.  Last week I discovered and enjoyed spool knitting, but I'm still unsure what to do with the pencil-size knitted tube.  In a stroke of brilliance, I decided to try the same process using a hexagonal loom from some past project.  It's fun - but the result is just a larger knitted tube with no obvious use.  I suppose if you went on long enough, you could use the tube for a scarf, but I went through half a ball of yarn just getting this far.  I decided the end didn't justify the use of time and supplies, so I ripped it out and saved the yard for another day.

Needlework Tuesday is hosted by Heather @ Books and Quilts.  Visit Heather to see what everyone is stitching this week.