Five Down! On to the Borders

I'm keeping my nose to the grindstone, I almost feel like Amy or Soscrappy who get 'so' much done. I have my five tops ready for borders, the red strips and then each boy will have a different five inch border. The leftovers from the blocks I have cut out three and a half inches wide and I'm going to sew them together and put a pieced border on the top and bottom of each quilt. Then it's on to backs and embroidering names and I'll be getting closer and closer.
My grandson was over yesterday and he liked what he saw, so hopefully they will be a hit. I don't know if I'll be finished when they all get here, but I'm sure going to try.

Will Work for Crumbs!

I've been sewing quite a bit this past week, and sometimes it is also thinking time when you are sewing full strips assembly line style. I am trying to do quilts for several young people and with just a "little" encouragement. That's what I mean by crumbs. One is due to:
"I get cold too, Grandma.", another when my niece got the quilts for her 3 little ones the older ones were there and wondered if there was something for them too, and the one for my nephew is due to his getting tearful when he accidentally burned a hole in the fleece blanket that I made him. Just a little bit gets me sewing, and I'm sure I'm not the only one.
(Edited to leave out parts that could be seen as negative)
I got a package from Thousands of Bolts today. The red is for a little border around each quilt, and the other fabrics are for 5" borders. That way they will be similar to each other but different.








The other picture is my new iron. I had a $15.00 off coupon from BJ's, but unfortunately they were out of that iron. Since I had a lot of strips to iron I wanted one "now" so I got this Black and Decker. I have a Maytag cordless, but it is across the room and I was walking myself to death and taking up way too much time. The geometric fabric is what I bought for the binding, and the tan fabric underneath is for the backs. My husband says that way maybe they'll like the fronts better, lol. I got the tan fabric at Ikea for $2.99 a yard and it is 59" wide. The last fabric I got there seemed to be good, and the price was right.
This is the first top without borders, and it doesn't look too good in the picture, but in person it has promise.

It's a Big'un

My Strip Twist from Bonnie Hunter's pattern is back from the longarmer. She did a nice job, and it is huge. It's for my oldest grandson, hence the dark borders, I was trying to boy it up since there are flowered fabrics in there. I usually try to stay away from flowers for the males, but he is 23 and has females around, so I figured that he's old enough that it shouldn't be too bad. If he doesn't like it, I'll keep it and try again.

Problems at the Quilt Shop

Not really, but so far my blocks kind of look like there was an explosive illness at a quilt shop. These are piles of 4 blocks each, and I have 2 more sets of 16 blocks of 4 each to do. I'll end up with 192 blocks, but all the same 16 fabrics. Hopefully, with the different combinations of blocks and the borders and quilting, the quilts will be something that will please boys and young men. If not, I'll give them to them anyway and they can keep them in the closet in case of emergency.
I promise, the picture of the quilt that I saw on the ladies blog was quite pretty. Of course, it was pretty florals and in one basic color scheme. Details, details.

Assembly Line Sewing

I haven't gotten to the sewing part yet, but I have been cutting strips. I decided to make 5 young men quilts for my niece's 2 boys, my nephew, and 1 grandson, 2 grandson's if the other shows any interest, or for me if he doesn't, I really like some of the fabrics. I saw a quilt on a blog that I liked the looks of and that I thought that maybe I could assembly line enough to get them done in a few weeks. I wish that I remembered which blog so that I could ask permission to put the picture on mine, but I can't. It is just 3 different width strips for each block and then they are turned different ways. I plan to put a narrow probably red border and then different larger borders for each one. So they'll be the same but different. They won't be art, but they will be warm and hopefully will turn out cute. Size about 57" x 81", enough to tuck under the toes and under the chin.
I had enough of the fabric left to make a 2 1/2" strip from each fabric to use in my 9 patch quilt from Crazy Mom Quilts sewalong so that is still in the works and I also need to quilt the 2 tops that I have for my niece's two girls so I have plenty to keep me busy.
I may not be able to reach my goals, as I think that my niece is coming the second week of August, but maybe I can get at least her kids and my nephew's done by then if I keep my nose to the grindstone.

Mail From Amanda

Amanda had let me know to be on the lookout for a Pay it Forward package, and as soon as I saw this I knew I was in for a treat. I love the "Royal Mail" label.
I tried to get the pictures in the order in which they were removed from the envelope and opened, but sometimes blogger doesn't cooperate so bear with me please.
I have never seen this magazine and I'm saving it for a quiet time when I can really enjoy it. Sometimes it is so nice to be a blogger and to be exposed to other parts of the world. Amanda being a teacher is a great source of information about her part of the world and her blog is always interesting and informative. I'm expecting that this magazine will be the best example of UK quilting information.














This picture is a little busy, but at the top is a wonderful little triangular shaped bag and inside wrapped in pretty gold paper was the little "bracelet" of charms. It's not a real bracelet, but the charms are so cute, I've never seen anything like them before. They say "Hand made with love", and I know they are to enclose with gifts, but I don't know if I'll be able to break up the set, lol.











Of course fat quarters need no introduction and are always a welcome gift.

In the package with the fat quarters was one of Amanda's hand made cards, and it is just as cute in person as I thought that it would be from seeing some of her cards on her blog.

I love anything with little houses, and the bookmark is adorable.

Everything was wrapped in cheerful, feminine pink tissue paper and this package had pretty ribbon.

You can't see the iron holder too well here, but it along with the beautiful wall hanging will soon be on my sewing room wall, and will be something that I can look at each day and enjoy. If you click on it you can see it bigger, it is wonderful.

This last picture is of everything. I think I had one of my best mail days ever. I felt like I was having Christmas in July as I opened each package.

Thank you so much Amanda, you are a wonder and a treasure.

First Shop Hop

The first picture below is my "free" booty from the 4 shop shop-hop that I went on a couple of days ago. It was $5.00 to go and you got the lanyard, then at each shop you got a pin, and if you spent $25.00 you received the free foundation panel. The little notepad was just a bonus from one of the shops.
The last shop of the day had thimbles of all the states which was great as one of the bloggers that I follow, Highland Quilter, has requested to exchange thimbles from different areas. That's why there are 2 Florida's, one for her and one for me.

A few months ago, when I took a class at our local quilt shop, I bought a Creative Grids ruler and it has become my favorite. It's a 24 1/2 by 6 1/2, so at 2 different shops I got a 7 1/2 square and a 12 1/2 by 6 1/2. Sometimes the long one is just too long to work with, and I got the square one with the idea of using a method that I found for quick 9 patches.

I thought that these fabrics would be a good start for some boys quilts. If I go through with my good intentions, I will need 4 or 5 of them to go with the 2 girl quilt tops that I have made. My niece has 4 more children that would like quilts, and if I do those I have a nephew and possibly two grandsons who will feel slighted without one too. They would be simple ones, but that's ok as they would be given no mercy and used a lot.

New Vacuum Cleaner

A few months ago I decided I needed a new vacuum my old Kirby was about 25 years old and getting pretty raggedy plus I wanted a canister so that I could get to some things better and have more versatility without having to change back and forth to the Kirby hose. I had had a canister when we were first married and enjoyed it for a short time.
I read all the reviews that I could find, and they were almost all good for the model of my choice, but a few people mentioned that it was "heavy". I thought how heavy can it be it should be fine, and also it had a good dust filter which my Kirby didn't so maybe my house would be less dusty. When I had gotten my first of 2 Kirby's, a friend from our church was starting out selling Electrolux and he wanted to come give us a demonstration for experience. He said he'd wanted to try something so he put the hose on my Kirby and put the 2 hoses together and was quite happy when his vacuum sucked my Kirby bag flat. It must have impressed me too, because I still remember after all these years and decided that if I was getting a canister I'd prefer an Electrolux.
I worked with a lady who always said, "Horses sweat, men perspire and ladies glisten." Well, I guess I'm no lady because when I vacuum with my new machine it sure feels like I'm sweating. I do about 1 room, and it is dripping down my face and off my hair. A rest, and then 2 more rooms and another wet paper towel. So on until I've finished our relatively small home. We keep the air conditioner on too. I told my husband that it is harder work than mowing the yard and I'll use it as long as I'm strong enough because it must be good for me. I do a lot more up and down, getting under and behind, and dusting this and dusting that, so maybe eventually our house will be less dusty and I will only "glisten".
PS Thank goodness for Ibuprofen, because today I'm just a little stiff.

Nine Patches

DH has several skin cancers on his arms and so we have been going back and forth to the doctors, about 25 miles each way. In between the doctor and the holidays and just not doing much, I have started my One-A-Day nine patch quilt along with Crazy Mom Quilts. I am supposed to have 70 blocks done, and have 12 done so I am again holding up the end. They are 6 inch blocks, and to be sashed with white.

The other little quilt is leftover blocks from my Strip Twist from Bonnie Hunter. I decided to make a little quilt to put over the breaker box in my family room, but if the new baby coming in the family is a girl, I may finish it as a small baby quilt.

I heard from my niece this morning that she received the baby quilt and 2 little girl quilts that I sent and she seemed happy with them. They live in Iowa and had gotten about 7 inches of rain which caused her cellar to flood so had other things to deal with. The babies were in day care so the rest of the family could clean up without too much extra "help". She has 4 older children, the oldest two teenagers, and she said they were wondering if I sent some for them too. I felt kind of bad that I didn't, but it took me long enough to get these done. Maybe a little later.

My Brother's Woodworking

I can't believe that I have hardly posted in the past few months, and now in just 2 days I have posted 3 times. I guess once I get started I can't hush up.
I wanted to share some more of my brothers tables. A few months ago he made me a laptop desk very similar to these, and I guess he liked it too because he has made himself these two. The darker one is walnut and he made it first for a laptop table for himself, and then he made the second from cherry and just finished it in the past few days. He wanted it to hold an old singer sewing machine that he had gotten for himself and uses occasionally, although he is not a quilter. The legs were a little short so he added some ebony wood and it looked nice so he also made an ebony knob and added some little round insets on each side that he made from oak and dyed ebony. Between the three of them, they are similar but a little different from each other and I love all 3. I'm really proud of his skill, he just started a few years ago and is self taught and does really beautiful work. He does almost everything himself except cut down the tree, when he starts it is a big heavy rough board and he goes from there. I think he is quite something.