It's Picking Up

The sewing front has picked up a little.  This is the July Craftsy 2013 BOM.  It's a big block, 17 1/2 by 18 1/2 inches.  I think that this may be the center pattern for a baby quilt for my newest great-grandbaby due in October.  It would be cute in little girly baby fabrics, I think.  Maybe some bow ties around it as a start. 

The year is over half finished, and projects are starting to come together.  Hope this one turns out well, some of my color choices are a bit odd, but I wanted quilts that looked different from each other colorwise, too. 

I have the initial cutting done for 5 or 6 blocks, and then July BOM's will be pretty much finished.   I'd like to do a dresser top cover for the other dresser in our room as part of the RSC for July, but don't know if I'll get time.  We have out of state company due and even though at this point they aren't staying with us, I hope to get to be included in some of the festivities.  It's my niece and her 8 children.  They range from almost 2 to going into the second year of college.  Quite a family. 

A Week Off

Really not much on the sewing front.  I've thought a lot about it, but all I've actually done was this block 2 for the Nabby's Dowry sew along from Heartspun Quilts.   I'm really looking forward to this little quilt (wall-hanging), as I am excited to use up some of my little bonus HSTs.

I have done a few dishcloths, or as I call them "Sweat Sweaters", as my daughter and I use them as feminine glisten gleaners at the gym we've joined.  A friend told me that her mother told her "horses sweat, men perspire, and ladies glisten".   I'm not much of a knitter, but I've enjoyed doing them while my husband watches his Red Sox.   It's kind of nice to switch between watching with him, going on my ipad and knitting.  I should add a fourth category, dozing off.

One of my grandsons passed his real estate test this week, so a few of the family went to a sushi restaurant for lunch.  Three of my grandsons are in the picture, but it's not a very good angle.  My husband wore the hat to protect his head, the bandage is also protecting his recent skin cancer bout and keeping the bandage on.  No offense to you Yankee fans, but he was given the Yankee hat as a joke from a Yankee fan and he has been wearing it during his healing process so that if he messes up a hat, it won't be a Red Sox one.  The restaurant was so empty when we went that we felt like we had a private room.

My dinner before digging in.  It was pretty tasty, but not as good as the company.  As you can see, I'm not authentic, I can't seem to master chopsticks, but I do think that they are handy sewing tools.

Seventeen of Seventeen

It's nice to have the flowers finished, now on to frames and borders.  Not too far away from having a quilt top. 

Second Teal Week Rainbow Scrap Challenge and Nabby's Dowry Sew Along

My July teal kaleidoscope block.  And below, my bonus kaleidoscope block from June and July leftovers. 

  July's scrappy trip along block.  I really am enjoying the teal and  turquoise.  (Below)

This evening we went to a local club with my daughter,  her husband, a grandson and his friend, a grandson and his wife and son, and we all listened to another grandson and his band perform.   (My grandson is the red head with the guitar.)   They get better each time we hear them and I think they are really good.   They are on a small stage in the middle of the bar surrounded by liquor bottles. I think I'd be too nervous to play afraid that I'd fall. 

I've been accumulating bonus HST's from my Deck-ade the Halls, Quilty Barn Along, and especially the Flower Patch Quilt Along.  They are only 1 1/4 inch finished, and I was wondering what I would do with them.  Along came a post on Kathy's Quilts and lo and behold, lots and lots of HST's, hers are 1 1/2 inch finished, but my 1 1/4 inchers will just make a smaller quilt, 30 by 30 inches if my figures are correct.  Just a nice size for a wall quilt.  The Nabby's Dowry Sew Along is here on Heartspun Quilts.

Add caption

Here they are, I think I'll have plenty.  You'd think with all these that I wouldn't have had any duplicates in my little block.  I'll use the excuse that I was doing this at 3:00 am.  Even in broad daylight my brain doesn't always function well.  3:00 am is very iffy.

I thought originally that the HST's were 1" finished, but I guess that they are 1 1/4" finished. 

Candace

PS.  As usual, to see more RSC entries go to Angela's soscrappy's blog here.  

Fourteen out of Seventeen

There are other things that I should be working on, but these are cut out, and morning is the time I'm best at cutting out.  Mornings have been busy, so I take the easy way.  This was my last one with leaves and a stem, the last 3 are just flowers.  

Step 4 - Done

Not my favorite, but fun to make. 

Nine and Ten, I Think and......

I think that this is blocks nine and ten of the Flower Patch Quilt Along, plus the five leaf blocks.   I believe there are seventeen total flowers, and they are already cut out, so I am moving along on this one.   Should be moving along on other things, but what the hay.  

Eleven and Twelve, too.

Block 11 and 12 of the Quilty Barn Along

I meant to work on the RSC, or some of the BOM's, but somehow, I ended up making my last 2 barns.  I'm putting them aside for awhile though while I catch up other things.  Maybe, I could have a finish by the end of July?  Haven't decided if I'll be doing the silo barns, but I do want to do the tractor block for the back. 

July Teal Rainbow Scrap Challenge and Mail

I have all my July Rainbow Scrap Challenge blocks cut out, except for the kaleidoscope block and a table runner, but this is the first that I have actually sewn. 

Later in the day, I got these made.  My 6 inch finished 9 patches, 4 1/2 inch finished 9 patches and 8" finished 16 patches.   The year is more than half over now, and I have 21 of the snowball and 9 patch blocks, and the 16 patch blocks.  I have 42 of the larger 9 patches and 14 of the smaller ones.  Not too shabby.

I definitely had to dig a little deeper to come up with 24 different fabrics.  Here are the 16 x 2.5 inch strips ready for my rainbow scrappy trip along.

New fabrics in the mail this week from Form and Fabric (http://www.formandfabric.com/).  Another blogger had mentioned on her blog the great deals she had gotten and so I had to look.  I'm glad I did as the fabric is all nice quality, I like all of them, and I got 13 yards for $37.67 including shipping.  I'm happy with the older lines of fabric and not the latest, as you can often get them on clearance, and I figure what the heck, they are new to me.  Mostly, I do scrappy, so if they aren't all harmonious, that's ok with me, too.

To me turquoise or teal is just a different shade of blue, and I got to wondering, since some of the same fabrics were used in both, how much different the teal would be from the blue in the quilt.   I think that it will definitely be no problem to pick them out in the crowd.  

As usual, to see lots more RSC and lots of teal, go here to Angela's Soscrappy blog after Saturday morning.

Happy Fourth of July America

And from Arthur J. Goldberg:
Our fundamental liberties were guaranteed in the Constitution, not for enjoyment by a majority but for the protection of a minority—whether it be one or many, in war or peace, equally for the weak as for the powerful. True patriotism, it seems to me, requires us to guard jealously those liberties for others as well as for ourselves.

“Oh beautiful for patriot dream

That sees beyond the years.

Thine alabaster cities gleam

Undimmed by human tears.

America! America!

God shed his grace on thee.

And crown thy good with brotherhood

From sea to shining sea.”