Sister's Choice Quilts

Midnight Moon Catch Up

Yesterday I did get caught up in the Midnight Moon sew-along. I knew I had weeks 10 and 11 to do, but discovered I had somehow skipped week 7, All good now, all done. That star block in the middle of the upper row?  I did that three times. I just could not get the colors right. The block on the far right in the upper row is called Darting Birds. I made that one three times too. I kind of hate it. It is a weird block:  easy as sin, but and it was hard to get the colors/contrasts right. I may have to sacrifice that one and come up with a new block.

The Rollin' Along sew along is about to start. I got my Cozy Up fabrics all starched and I am ready to go with the center Great Granny block.

Our weather is warming up, but I am looking forward to it. I love sitting out on my porch reading my book and getting some fresh air. There is a limit though. If it is over 100 degrees, I do not last long! Early morning is the best time to sit out. 

Best of all is the time I have been finding to get some sewing done! 

Ozzie had a birthday yesterday. 15 years old, can you believe it? He definitely has mellowed in his old age. He's still annoying, but not nearly the scamp he used to be.  Here he is, about 13 years ago with a ball of yarn I had been saving for something nice.

Catch Up Day

When you have multiple sew-alongs going on, it is easy to fall behind. And that is what is happening to me at the moment.  Not too badly, but enough so that I plan to spend today catching up on several of the sew-alongs I am participating in.

First up is Midnight Moon, a sew-along based on a book by Carrie Nelson called Summer Moon. I am only making the blocks in the 6-inch size, and have really been enjoying working on them in a Halloween collection by Joanna Figueroa. I have two or three blocks to make to get caught up.

These are my Moda Blockheads 4 blocks. I have just one week to catch up on I think. That's manageable.

This is the Piecing the Past Peace and Healing sew-along. I have three more blocks to make, and I need to start making the block frames and setting squares. This isn't going to happen in a day or two, but I hope to at least finish the blocks.

I have to admit, the Flea Market sew-along has been put on my back burner. I have maybe 5 basket blocks to catch up on. I am to blame of course, but I have to say if there had been any publicity by the sew-along sponsors I would have felt enough encouragement to get back to work on this project. I don't think I have ever participated in a sew-along that started out with such a great impetus, then died out so completely. I still believe in the project and think the quilt will be amazing, so I am determined to keep at it.

Hope you all had a great weekend. It was Father's Day on Sunday in the US. I had Father's Day morning with my dad, which was so nice. My sisters turned up in the afternoon to have a celebratory dinner with him, which I know he was looking forward to. We had a Father's Day BBQ at our house for my husband and my son-in-law, which was lovely.  The early summer weather has been so nice here, wish it would continue. That's not to be apparently, with 100-degree temps expected by Tuesday. How's the weather where you live? I understand It has been all over the map lately!

Rollin' Along Book and Sew Along

I picked up this recently published book, Rollin' Along by Moda Bake Shop that features quilts made from Jelly Rolls. Then I found out Moda Bake Shop is going to do a sew-along for one of the quilts in the book.

The quilt is called Family Reunion and showcases one of my favorite blocks, the Granny Square! 

I have a dilemma though and would love my blogging friends to weigh in and help me make a fabric decision. I was initially planning to use a jelly roll of an adorable collection called Squirrelly Girl by Bunny Hill. 

This collection contains pumpkin, apricot, and a muted brown color. I was thinking of doing the outer border of square in a square blocks with the orange acorn fabric. The question is, is there enough color and contrast in these fabrics?

But then. I studied the photo of the quilt featured in the book, and loved its greens, oranges, and blacks. The greens didn't photograph well in my picture, they look grey, but trust me, the second round of blocks is light green. I remembered that I had quite a lot of Urban Chiks Kitty Corn collection, which has all those colors. The blacks would be striking in the square in a square border.

So, advice, please! Which fabric group should I go with?

Summer Has Arrived

Summer has arrived and that means some sewing, some reading, and some Eva time. This is a block for the Peace and Healing BOW I have been working on. Love this block.

Eva is really into making smoothies these days. And they are a delightful treat on a warm afternoon. This one was strawberries, bananas, orange sherbet and some juice. It was delicious. I keep trying to get her to try blueberries and peaches, but so far she is resisting.

And of course, it wouldn't be summer without some light reading. The Golden Couple by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen is a perfect summer book. You think you know what is happening, but you couldn't be more wrong. Matthew and Marissa are having some marital issues and seek help from Avery, a therapist who has lost her license due to her unorthodox methods. I was hooked from page one.  I am enjoying this fast, light, brain candy read. 

I have been buying books like a crazy person lately. There are so many new books that have come out lately that are perfect summer fare. In fact, did you know that yesterday, June 7, was the day that more books were published in 2022 than on any other date? And I think I bought six of them!

I hope to get a May book review out this week. Those review posts are a heck of a lot of work, so if I can drag myself away from my sewing machine, I will produce something for you!

Three Days of Sewing

I have to say the blocks for the Piecing the Past "Peace and Healing" sew along are getting more interesting. And more complicated! I was worried at first at how simple some of the blocks were, but things are picking up nicely in terms of difficulty. I've made 17 blocks so far and have a couple more to do today to get caught up.

This first one was kind of fun. My fabric starching and new iron seem to really be helping me achieve accuracy. Seriously loving my new CHI iron.

Love this basket block. 

Ooh boy, this one was a doozy. Very challenging. I got it done, and it came out ok. Had to redo the flying geese units, but in the end, it was fine. These larger 9 1/2 inch blocks are kind of forgiving.

I think tomorrow I will do a post on some of the tools I have been using that are helping my blocks come out so well.

The school year is winding down, Eva has gone to stay with her mom for the rest of the week, and I have two full days to spend any way I choose. That will be sewing and reading of course! Hope your week is going well.

Peace and Healing

Peace and Healing is the name of a free sew-along, not my present state of mind. Although, who couldn't use a little peace and healing most days?

Piecing the Past Quilts almost always has one or more free sew-alongs going on. I have done a few of them and really enjoyed them. Since they are free if you sign up for the weekly pattern emails, it seems like a no-brainer way to expand your collection of sampler quilt blocks. These particular blocks are 9" finished, which is larger than I typically like, but I am enjoying how accurate they are turning out!

Here is a previous Piecing the Past sew along I did. The quilt is quilted and I have really enjoyed using it on my bed. 

Oh, I should mention that the patterns are free up to a certain point, then they go away and are only available for purchase. 

Piecing the Past Quilts specializes in Civil War Reproduction fabrics, but I don't see why one couldn't make the blocks using any choice of fabrics. There is a Facebook group that is very lively and supportive, especially for less experienced sewers. Lots of encouragement. 

I really raided my stash for fabric for this patriotic-inspired quilt. I had a vintage Primitive Gatherings red white and blue collection, plus a really older group called Threads of Time by Julie Hendrickson for Marcus fabrics. The fabrics worked great together along with a couple dozen different cream-colored shirtings I had on hand. I did not purchase a single thing!

Can you tell I am getting more time to sew during the week now that homeschooling is winding down?

Moda Blockheads Progress

These are the latest two blocks in the Moda Block Heads 4 sew along. Both were designed by Lisa Bongean. The block on the left was supposed to have a nine patch center. I made it originally for the block on the right, but decided it was too much navy for one block. So I used it for the star block on the left instead. Both centers were 5" square, so it worked out great. I am pleased with the outcome.

Here are my two weekly sew-along projects on my small design wall. I am at the point where I am going to have to take them down because there is no room for more! The bat block I made for the Midnight Moon project really stands out! It is going to force me to do a diagonal setting for those blocks, which I was considering anyway.

I am still feeling exhausted for some reason. I hope I get some pep back soon! Hope your week got off to a good start.

Getting Things Done

The school year is winding down with a bang rather than a whimper. Eva was in a school play over the weekend, which was jolly good fun. "The Enchanted Bookshop". She had two roles, Little Red Riding Hood and The Lady in Red. You can see her singing her little heart out on the right in the photo above.

By Sunday, I was absolutely exhausted, done in, good for nothing. All I wanted to do was sit in my chaise lounge with my book, and even then I nodded off. Before I was down for the count I did make a bat block for my Midnight Moon Quilt Along project. Designer April Rosenthal put out a free 8 1/2" bat block as a special bonus last Friday. Since I am making 6 1/2" blocks, it didn't work for me, but I loved the idea of adding a bat block in.

I found a downloadable pattern on Etsy.com for $6, and you can see in the photo above, that it turned out really cute.

It did have just a few pieces. lol

Now, I have to go lie down again.  Hope you had a great Mother's Day weekend.

 

Midnight Moon Week 4 and Laundry Love

These are the two latest blocks in the Midnight Moon Quilt Along.  Bear's Tracks on the left and Buzzard's Roost on the right. Patterns are from the Summer Moon book by Carrie Nelson. An excellent book with over 30 quilt block patterns in three sizes. A great reference tool even if you aren't making the sampler quilt. I am using various Fig Tree fabrics in green, grey, orange, and black.

I am making my blocks only in the 6-inch size. I tell you, I would not have enjoyed making that Bear Paw block any smaller. It turned out really well though, and I think it may be my favorite so far.

It's always such a nice feeling of accomplishment to see completed blocks up on the design wall.

My border and lattice fabric for the Christmas Among the Stars Again quilt arrived over the weekend, so I got it all starched yesterday. "There was a good bit of drying in the day", as the Irish say. Everyone hangs their clothes out on the line in Ireland. If anyone has a mechanical dryer, they don't seem to use it. And of course, since it rains all the time and is often cold and damp, things take f.o.r.e.v.e.r to dry. Unless you get a rare nice day with sunshine and a bit of a breeze. Then they say there's a good bit of drying in the day and everyone and their brother does loads of wash and hangs it up everywhere possible all over the countryside. 

 

It would not be an exaggeration to say this book is life-changing. Do you hate doing laundry? It might be because you've been doing it all wrong. Laundry Love by Patric Richardson is so entertaining and full of fantastic ideas to make your laundry chores more fun and more successful. The author is a charming sounding guy, who apparently loves doing laundry more than anything else on Earth. 

Hope you had a great weekend! Happy laundry!

 

Christmas Among the Stars: Blocks Done!

I can't quite believe it, but I have finished all the blocks for the Christmas Among the Stars Again quilt!! It is a quilt-along sponsored by Fat Quarter Shop and has been going on for 8 months. My Month 8 package of fabric is in the mail and will contain what I need for the lattice and a red and white border. I love the subtle look of these blocks. Christmassy, but not in your face. 

The pattern booklet is by It's Sew Emma, and the fabric collection is Christmas Morning by Lella Boutique. You can still find the fabric on Etsy, but it seems to be pretty much sold out elsewhere.  It was really a gorgeous collection. I still need to get backing fabric, so I had better get on it.

Have you ever done a monthly BOM kit/sew-along with Fat Quarter Shop? If so, you have probably noticed that they send you way WAY more fabric than you actually need. See those colorful pieces on my cutting board? See the little white strips of triangle piecing paper at the top of the photo? All I need out of each of those great big pieces of fabric is a smidgeon the size of one of those foundation paper strips.

That strip on the left is what I cut, and I used about half of it. The big piece on the right is just leftover.

My point is, with a Fat Quarter Shop BOM, you will end up with loads of fabric leftover. Plenty for a table runner, a baby quilt, zipper bags, or any other project you can dream up. I am going to use my extras for a table runner. Of course, if you tend to make mistakes when you are cutting and sewing, you would also have plenty of fabric for "do-overs".

I have had an absolutely splendid week. You may have noticed a lot of sewing going on. Every day I sewed this week, and it sure did put me in my happy place.

I sure hope you have had a good week too, and that your weekend will be splendid!