Sister's Choice Quilts

I Love This Quilt

Really.  I really really really really LOVE this quilt.  I haven't had so much fun making a quilt in years.  It took the fun level up to previously unexplored levels.  If you have had an idea that you might want to make this quilt, just go for it.  You will love it too.  Just make sure you make all your half square triangles the right size so you don't have to do them twice.  Just saying.

As you see, I got the blocks all sewn together.  This quilt is E.N.O.R.M.O.U.S.  Actually, it may be too large to live in a house.  Maybe a circus tent or a humongous office building with 50 foot ceilings?

You may notice that my quilt is missing its piano key border.  Yes, well, I did my best.  Grandpa fell over the weekend, and I have been checking in on him two or three times a day, and then I had my student over for a sewing lesson, and I just didn't finish that border. Grandpa is ok, and my student is terrific, but there are just so many hours in the day, and I decided I was done at this point yesterday.

Now, my friend Thelma at Cupcakes 'n' Daisies had no such issues with last minute deadlines.  Her Halloween 1904 quilt has been done for a week or more.  No waiting about for the eleventh hour for that girl.  Go check out her post today to see her version.  With borders.  Thanks Thelma for the experience of sewing along with you.  Always a treat!

As several of my dear readers have pointed out, I now have a heck of a good start on a quilt for NEXT Halloween.

This little sweetie is all pieced and ready to be quilted.  I considered briefly staying up through the wee hours and finishing it, but I just ran out of steam.  Another one for next year, for sure.  Don't you love that lime green?  This is Darcy by Miss Rosie's Quilt Co.

Tonight is the big night around here.  Grandpa and I have a full day, with doctor appointments, a lunch date, and an afternoon of soup making and then our evening of passing out candy.  I will be so wiped out by the time Thursday gets here that chasing after Eva will seem like a rest on the chaise lounge.  Happy Halloween everyone!

Halloween Preparations

How clever is this invitation?  My sister Andrea makes the Halloween Party invites each year, and this year she may have outdone herself.  I don't know how she does it.  Most of us are quite familiar with the Ouija board, having had them when we were kids.  I love the little magic triangle indicator, don't you?  Underneath it is the address of the party, which I thought wise not to include, and the instruction "Don't be caught dead without a costume".  Love it.

I am spending today getting ready for the Big Day.  Halloween in my neighborhood is very serious.  People bring their children from miles away just to roam the streets in my subdivision and collect candy.  Last year we got 286 trick or treaters.  I am serious.  I counted. 

So, preparations need to be made.  300 pieces of candy?  Check.  Decorations outside?  Check.

Yes, I have an orange lighted spider web in my front window.  I am that person.  I am telling you, we go all out around here.

Table set?  Check.

Grandpa and I are going to be on our own tomorrow to pass out the candy.  My husband is working and can't make it home during the middle of the week.  So, after a day of doctor's appointments, Grandpa and I will come home, have pumpkin soup, and position ourselves outside at a table in the driveway to greet the Halloween Hoards.  Can't have them ringing the doorbell because Ozzie goes insane each and every time.  We sit out there all bundled up, surrounded by candles and candy, and sip our tea and compliment all the children on their costumes.

So, just when am I going to finish my Halloween 1904 quilt top, you ask?  Hmmm.  Well, I guess I had better get going on that right now!

 

 

Loaded Potato Casserole

I made an awesome potato casserole dish for dinner and wanted to share the recipe, which is from one of the Taste of Home cookbooks.  When we were at Buggy Barn this summer for our quilting classes, a local woman who had her own catering company fed us the most incredible lunches each day, and she told me many of her recipes came from the Taste of Home cookbooks.  I looked into getting a few of them, and everything I have tried has been so tasty.

Loaded Red Potato Casserole

16 small red potatoes, unpeeled

½ cup milk or half and half

¼ cup butter, cubed

½ tsp pepper

1/8 tsp salt

1 ½ cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided

½ cup crumbled cooked bacon

1 cup sour cream

2 tablespoons chopped chives

1)      Place potatoes in a large pan and cover with water.  Bring to a boil and cook 15-20 minutes until tender.   Drain

2)      Mash potatoes with half and half, butter, pepper and salt.  Transfer to a 9 x 13 inch baking dish.  Sprinkle with 1 cup shredded cheese and bacon bits.

3)      Dollop with dabs of sour cream and sprinkle with chopped chives and remaining shredded cheese.  Bake uncovered at 350 for 20-25 minutes, until cheese is melted.

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I know I said I was done with Halloween, but I know some of you will get a kick out of this.  Eva was Angelina Ballerina for Halloween, but wouldn't wear her mouse ears.  For those of you who aren't familiar with Angelina, she is a little white mouse who wears a tutu and wants to dance.  Eva was busting a move for us, but I don't think she had a clue what all the fuss was about!

I Have a Student

Well, for goodness sake, whooda thunk?  I am a mentor to a high school student.

My student is doing a commendable senior project, in which she plans to make three or four baby quilts, which she will donate to charity.  Never having sewn before, she was in need of someone to show her how to do it.  Despite my many failings, knowing how to sew is one of my strong points, so I felt it was ok to accept the assignment.

Last week we went shopping, where she picked out fabric for her first baby quilt.  Dinosaurs were the theme, and it gladdened my heart to see how enthusiastic she was about her choice of fabric.  Love of fabric is crucial to quilting satisfaction and feeding the passion, do you not agree?

This week we got down to business. I laid out our text, and the basic tools with which I wanted her to become familiar.  I taught her how to use a rotary cutter, and she managed to cut out her fabric, keeping the ruler mostly in place.  The cutting took rather a long time, and I wanted her to get some sewing in to satisfy that craving for instant gratification we all need when embarking on a new endeavor.

The biggest challenges we faced in our first lesson was keeping the ruler from shifting while we cut our fabric, and sewing an accurate quarter inch seam.  When she first put her foot on the foot pedal of the sewing machine, I think it really startled her!  At first it went gangbusters, then she slowed down to a stitch per two seconds.  However, it didn't take her long to get up to speed on how to operate the machine, but that quarter inch seam allowance was a real problem.

Above all, I want her to succeed with her project, and that quarter inch business is a buggaboo for most new sewers.  What to do?  When you are first learning to sew there are so many things to pay attention to--how fast the machine is going, if your fabric edges are in alignment, should you sew over that pin, etc.  Worrying about all that plus paying attention to the seam allowance as you feed the fabric through the machine is just a bit much.

Thank goodness for having the proper tools at hand.  I switched out the number 37 quarter inch foot on my Bernina for a number 57, and that made all the difference.  The number 57 foot has a little metal guide that stays right on the edge of your fabric, so you can't wander all over.  In no time flat, she had a perfect quarter inch seam allowance!  Thank you Bernina.

Here is her design wall, with her blocks and lattices all laid out.  She loved that dinosaur fabric, and managed to get her first row of blocks sewn together today!  I am pretty jazzed for her success.

 

 

The Thread

My book club meets this Friday and I am scrambling to finish this month's selection.  The book is titled "The Thread" by Victoria Hislop, and I am enjoying it quite a bit.  The story begins in Greece in 1917 and the plot continues up until the present.  It is a wonderful story about love and loyalty, but also about modern Greek history, particularly events that took place in the city of Thessaloniki. 

I once had a boss who was a Greek woman, who lived in Greece during World War 2.  She sometimes mentioned how hard things were at that time, especially the lack of food.  She told me that a few times she and her sister were so hungry they ate grass.  What I didn't know, but learned from this book, was that during the war, all the Jews were rounded up and sent to Poland.  I am learning so much about how Greece was affected during the war and afterwards.  The country sure did have a pattern of rounding up anyone who was not Greek and shipping them off elsewhere, which they also did with all Muslims in the early 1900's.

The book isn't all dismal historical events however.  The main character, Katerina, is a skilled seamstress (particularly fine hand embellishment and embroidery) and works for a tailoring house in the city.   I enjoyed reading about her handwork, making fine lingerie or embellishing bridal gowns with fancy beading and stitchery.  There is a love story, which takes quite awhile to get off the ground, but is compelling anyway.  She and her love, Dmitri, end up together (which is not a spoiler-you can see that coming from the first chapter), and find themselves caretakers of the belongings of those friends who were sent away.  They tell their tale to their grandson, so that he understands why they do not leave the city in their twilight years.

The book got mostly good reviews on Amazon, but was occasionally criticized for being "too discriptive".  Is that a flaw in a book?  Not for me!  I thought the events well researched, the characters well drawn and the story interesting.  Not bad at all.

Spooktacular

As you can see, I am plodding along with my Halloween 1904 quilt.  Will I finish the top by Halloween?  We shall see.

I got the half square triangles all re-made and finished up all the blocks that required orange ones.  Much progress has been made with the black ones, and some that are pictured above have been finished.  Well, maybe one or two anyway.  

I truly love this quilt, but keep saying to myself:  "I am spending this much time, money, and effort on a HALLOWEEN quilt? Really?"  You know what?  It doesn't matter.  I love this quilt and have had so much fun making it, so what if I only use it for four weeks out of the year.  I am even having trouble imagining just *how*  am going to use it!  On my bed?  Hmmm, I don't know.  Maybe not.  Hang it on the wall?  Good gravy, it is gigantic!  Drape it over the sofa?  Maybe.  Time will tell, and at any rate, it is %*&# cute.

Hope you all had a good weekend.  One of the high points of mine was having some long lost friends drop by the shop I work at occasionally.  One of them, a wonderful gay woman, has finally found love in her life.  I am so happy for her.  She was just glowing and couldn't sing her partner's praises high enough.  Ain't love grand?  For any age, any gender, for anyone?  Bless her and her new found happiness.   I endorse love, in all its miraculous forms.

 

Making Up For Lost Time and PRIZES

Oh joy.  Be still my heart.  Look what arrived on my door step.  My extra blacks and neutrals for my Halloween 1904 half square triangles. 

And you know what else?  Eva took a super long nap today and I was able to finish all of them!  The stars are now in alignment and the cosmos is in balance again.  I am now back to where I was on last Saturday.  Look out Thelma, I am catching up to you!  As if you are worried....

Here is what they look like, made the super fast Easy Angle way.

If you ever need to make a gazillion half square triangles and just need to get 'em done, this is the way to do it.

Was that Spools Parade yesterday fun or what?  I even got a comment from the pattern designer herself, Rock Star Camille Roskelley of Thimble Blossoms, who sincerely got a huge kick out of seeing all the quilts made from her design.  It must be like giving birth to an entire herd of Spools quilts.  Never mind.  That analogy is definitely not working.  At any rate, Camille has been following our progress with great interest and was completely jazzed to see all your projects.

So, how about some prizes?  Chris, who made the amazing red and yellow quilt absolutely must have a prize.  I had a number of people email me to specifically mention how gorgeous her version was.  There is going to be trouble if that woman doesn't get awarded a prize!  Congratulations Chris!!  Email me your address and a Bonnie Hunter scrap quilting book and two charm packs will be coming your way.

The amazing Cheryl is also going to get a prize.  A woman who can complete *anything* while homeschooling six kids deserves some sort of recognition!  And besides her Spools quilt using the black, red and grey Sew Mama Sew collection was so off the chart splendid.  One of my favorites for sure.  Let me know where you live Cheryl and some charm packs and Miss Rosie Schnibbles patterns will be going to your house.

Lisa from Stashmaster is providing two sets of two matching charm packs to two lucky winners, and my random finger pointer says Paula and Amber are the recipients.  Send me your addresses and Lisa will pop your prizes in the mail.  And Paula---everyone is raving about your rebel little spool.  You must tell us what you decided to do about him.  The consensus is overwhelming that he must live and be in your quilt.

Thank you everyone for your participation and for following along.  We are Sister Threads without a doubt.  That thread goes out into the internet and binds us all together, and it makes me proud to "know" you.

Spools Parade

Welcome to the Spools Parade!  Thelma is hosting her half of the parade on her blog Cupcakes 'n' Daisies, so be sure to visit her to see even more Spools quilts.  I understand she is riding in a convertible with a crown and sash, giving everyone the royal wave as she rides down Main Street, so don't miss it.

This sew along has been so much fun for me.  I hope those of you who participated enjoyed the experience as well.  The minute Camille Roskelley's (of Thimble Blossoms) Spools pattern was released I knew I wanted one to hang on the wall of my sewing studio, and figured lots of other quilters would too.

My friends Thelma (Cupcakes 'n' Daisies) and Lisa (Stashmaster) are usually game for a sew along, and we figured the more the merrier.  We wanted a low key, fun summer project, and this  one fit the bill.  It has been exciting to see the photos of these quilts as they got finished, and now the time has come to share them with all of you.  If you haven't made your Spools quilt yet, you just might after you see these!

The first quilt pictured is Amber's.

This is what Amber said about her quilt:  "It provided a nice easy distraction this summer and now I just have to wait for yardage to go on the back. Yes matching backing and straight spools for this "type A" quilter! :) Thanks for convincing me to get this one made".

Next up is Cheryl's.  Is this fabric selection just to die for? She used a jelly roll of the super fun collection "Sew Mama, Sew", which she thought was perfect for this project.  I agree.

Cheryl seems to have a friend who is enjoying her quilt top as well.  Cheryl is a homeschooling mom to six (yes SIX) children, aged 4-14.  If she can find time to sew, well then, my goodness, we all should be able to!

The next entry in our parade is by Chris.  I keep thinking these quilts can't get any cuter, but they just keep coming!

 

Chris made her red and yellow version completely out of scraps left over from another project, a Pinwheel Quilt Along sponsored by Rachel of PS, I Quilt.  She made five red and yellow quilts she gave as Christmas gifts, and had loads of fabric leftover.  Shop at home girls, you may have a treasure trove of fabric on hand!

Now we have Laila's version.

Laila told me she loves hers so much, it is going up in her living room!  She prefers the straight set, and quilted it herself on her long arm, after much consideration of what design would suit it best.  She mentioned how much she likes the space between the spools and the design opportunity it offers for quilting. 

Michelle's quilt offers a setting twist, with the scrappy cornerstones.  She liked the straight set as well, but made a larger version with more blocks.  Love her fabric choices.

Pictured below is Paula's batik version of Spools in progress.  Paula said the wonky version appealed to her the most, and experimented a bit with a smaller size block.  Look at that little rebel spool at the upper right.  In an email to me, Paula mentioned that she wasn't certain the little guy was going to stay in her quilt.  Paula, what did you decide in the end?  I am dying to know if he got to stay or if he had to go!

Robyn's Spools quilt top below is all finished and ready to be quilted.  She did a wonky version using fabrics by Bonnie and Camille for Moda.

Shelly did not make a mini version of Spools, I just can't seem to get the picture to enlarge!    She used a gorgeous collection of Fig Tree's California Girl fabrics.  So sorry about the teensy photo, I messed with it for ages to try to get it to be bigger, but couldn't manage it.

Sally (Chocolate Chip Addict) had so much fun with her fabrics!  She made some strips for her "threads" narrower for a scrappier look, and utilized some sewng themed fabrics for her background and border.

Here is what Sally had to say about her project:  "Yes, I finished my spools quilt top.  After it gets quilted, I’m going to try something quite ambitious for me.  I want to appliqué a needle and thread on it that will be in proportion.  Will probably use red yarn to weave in and out between the spools and connect it to the red spool.  I’m going to have my LQS owner, who is the teacher I have taken all my classes from, help me with that!  My border fabric on here has buttons and straight pins in the design!  It was so much fun to do and I thank you, Thelma, and Lisa for hosting the “spools along sew-along”!!!!"  Doesn't her enthusiasm just jump off the page?

Last I heard, Stephani's Spools (below) was still a work in progress, but I love what I see so far!

Another teensy photo I can't make bigger, but I think you can see how Stephani used bright colored fabrics for her spools tops.  It is so much fun to see how everyone took this project and made it their own!

Last, we have my version of Spools, which you all have seen umpteen times, but I want to be in the parade too!  If Thelma gets to wear a tiara and ride on a convertible, I want to at least wind things up at the end.  Picture me coming along with a big push broom sweeping up all the confetti and party streamers!

I did a scrappy Civil War version and made my thread strips narrower.  In addition to this, I am still working on a wonky setting of the pattern using Marmalade fabrics like Camille used in the original version.  That one will be my Summer Spools and the darker Civil War version will be my Winter Spools. 

Thanks to all of you who played along with us this summer making Spools quilts.  We all love to sew, but isn't it even more joyful when we can sew along together?  It has been inspirational to see everyone's enthusiasm and gorgeous results.

Heaven forbid, if I left anyone out of the parade, bring it to my attention so I can show your picture too. Please do come back tomorrow, when both Thelma and I will be giving out prizes to some of the participants! 

 

Spools Wrap Up

Thelma reminded me that we haven't officially wrapped up our Summer of Spools Sew Along! Thelma, Lisa and I had such a fun time making our versions and so enjoyed seeing some of yours.  But there is still a parade to have and prizes to give out!  We can't forget the most important part of a Sew Along, and that is honoring everyone who participated.

I have received pictures from a few of you (Chris, Sally and Laila), but am putting out the call for more.  Have you finished your Spools quilt?  Come on, join our parade and join in the drawing for prizes!

Send your picture to either Thelma or I today, and we will have a parade tomorrow or Thursday and award prizes on Friday.  Come on girls, let's see what you got!

 

Halloween 1904 Half Square Triangle Fiasco Revisited

Hi there friends.  Thanks for all the sympathy and encouragement over my Halloween 1904 Half Square Triangle Fiasco.  Do you think this means the quilt is haunted?  Possessed?  

You offered some great suggestions on how to solve my problem or at least salvage the wrong sized triangle units.  Thanks so much for that!  I have decided to make the correct sized half square triangles with the fabric I have left.  It wasn't enough, so more has been ordered and should arrive this week.  I will get caught up to Thelma, but I won't lie, this has been a set back.

The 384 wrong sized half square triangles will go into another project.  I have in my mind, a cute and complementary black and orange table topper or dresser runner.  Perhaps even a lap sized quilt.  Won't that be cute, the two coordinating quilts displayed in the same room?  It will all work out.  When life gives you lemons....etc  It will also be a reminder of my humanity.

But you know something?  When it came to making all those half square triangles all over again, I just could not face fiddling around with those Star Singles papers.  I am a fan of them, but they are labor intensive.  Lots of steps before you actually get the units.  So I just grabbed my Easy Angle ruler and started cutting out 3 inch strips, ironing them together and cutting.  I have about a third of them ready to sew, and will make the rest of them as soon as my new fabric arrives.  Have you tried the Easy Angle ruler?  It is a fast way to crank out a lot of hsts.  And you only have one corner "dog ear" to trim!

If you don't know the Easy Angle, here are some photos from an older post.

First cut your strips the size of your unfinished triangle size.  For the project in the photos, I was making 2.5 inch half square triangles.  Layer the two strips right sides together and press.

Position the ruler and cut on the diagonal edge.

Flip the ruler around, line the edge up and cut again, this time on the vertical edge.  Can you see how fast this method is?  Your triangle units are ready to stitch.  You just have to be careful not to disturb them too much until you get them sewn.

Thanks again for all your comments and emails.  It was a rough weekend and that show of encouragement really helped.