Latest Applique Block

Here is a picture of my latest finished applique block for the Aunt Millie's Garden quilt. I have three done now, nine to go! This block was much easier for me to sew than the last block. But when I finished it, I looked at it and thought it needed more color. My first two blocks had more color. I like the orange color I used in this block, as well as the green, but when I added the lighter yellow with the inner circle, it livened up the block more for me.

I love the look of applique, and I enjoy the act of hand stitching. But my fingers are itching to sew on my machine, so I think I need to start working on a machine project. I want to finish one of the quilts I have "in progress" on my sewing table. I am going to pull one out and finish it. I have joined with Finn to complete some UFOs before the new year, and I think this is just the time for it for me. My sewing table overflows with projects! I have one quilt that needs the final border of HSTs and the top will be complete.

I am off to my knitting/crocheting class this afternoon, and I am hoping to finish the shawl I started last year. My knitting skills are very basic. That is the reason I enrolled in this class. I also have a knitted vest that I started last year. I was hoping to get it done so that I could wear it last winter, but did not make that deadline. I am determined to finish it now so that I can wear it this winter.

Happy Quilting and Knitting

Great Quilt Show and Great Friends

Yesterday my hubby and I went up to Sonora for their annual quilt show. We were joined by our friends Julie and her hubby. We all had a great time checking out the quilts and vendors. I always enjoy the Sonora quilt show. We go every year, and I know some of the ladies who are in that guild. Since we have been going to the show for so many years, I am beginning to recognize different quilters' work.

The featured quilter had many beautiful quilts displayed. Years ago she lived in this area and taught classes at a local quilt shop. I took an Around The World quilt class from her. I finished that king sized quilt and had it on our bed for 10 years or more.

There were many large quilts. My hubby found a mariner's compass quilt that he liked. BTW, he does not think it is a quilt unless it is large enough to fit on a bed! I could not decide on any one quilt that I liked the best. There were many that I thought were good. I liked all the the quilts of the featured quilter, as I did last year as well.

There were three buildings full of quilts and vendors. This show is held at the county fairgrounds. In the front building, I saw a quilt in the last row that I really liked. It was a mystery quilt, and I thought the colors were great in the way they went together. Sometimes even though our colors are wonderful sitting together on our sewing table, when they are put intoo mystery quilts, they are not always as pleasing to us as we originally planned. When you do not know where a color will be placed, or what other color it will be placed next to in a design, it is not always the most pleasant experience when finished.

I was trying to figure out the pattern of this mystery quilt. I think I have seen it before somewhere, or a design similar to it, but I could not remember. There was not a name of the pattern on the information card, just that it was a mystery class quilt. I forgot to take my camera, AGAIN, so did not get a picture. I really liked the design. It had stars in it and part of the design looked similar to a Jacob's Ladder design. This quilt really interested me.

There was another quilt that I could not discover the block pattern. It was a 12 inch block on point. It had small squares in each corner, then the main part of the block. It was the way the blocks were sewn together that made the pattern. Or, maybe it was sashing in between the blocks that made the squares appear to be in the block. I love that type of quilt. I will stand in front of it and try to dissect it and discover the design elements, and/or how it was sewn together.

Simple Quilts (that look like a million bucks) is a book that I bought a few years ago that has this design surprise. When viewing the quilts, it looks like the block is the main focus. In reading the book and looking at the design elements, it is the sashing that is the main focus with all the color, and the block is a smaller, less important element in the design. I saw a quilt at a show made from this book and I fell in love with this concept. I have seen many quilts since then with the sashing as an important player in the quilt's design.

The photo I have included today is of my purchases from the quilt show vendors from yesterday. I purchased some luscious batiks, a couple of regular cottons that look like batiks, and three patterns. One of the patterns is the Baltimore Halloween applique pattern. The other two designs are from the same designer. Watch for more of her designs. I think she is going to be a household applique name before long.

Happy Quilting

P.S. Crispy, I am putting needle to fabric today (as soon as I get my fabric washed). *VBG*

P.P.S. The froggy batik is from generous Julie!

August Block Finished

My August Aunt Millie's Garden block is finally finished. I did not think it would take me so long to get it done. I sewed my back to my front twice on this block. I took off two pieces and resewed them because I did not like them. I think I could take off every piece and resew it to make it better. But, I have decided that for now it is finished. I did the center like the pattern. On my first block, I changed the center. I am not really happy with the first one, so I will probably change it to the pattern design some time before the top is quilted, but who knows? Maybe each one will be different.

My next project is the guild challenge. I almost forgot about it. I have not looked at my To Do List lately. I know what I want to do, and I have all the fabrics gathered for it, so all I have to do now is cut and sew!

Friday evening I taught my Shop Hop Bag class at Camp Stitches. There was a great group of ladies in the class. I saw several bags in progress throughout the evening, but none finished that evening. Almost everyone was taking all the other classes at the same time, so many were table hopping trying to get in as much information as possible before they sat down to sew. A few quilters brought sleeping bags and stayed all night. I heard there was not a lot of sleeping accomplished, but they had lots of fun just the same.

I returned to Camp Stitches on Saturday after lunch. I brought my applique block to work on. My main purpose was to bid on some items in the Silent Auction. I certainly do not need any more UFOs or fabric, but I brought home two hexagon UFOs and two bundles of fabric from the auction. I also bought two $5.00 bags of fabrics!

Saturday evening, after Camp Stitches closed, we had LAFS and Quilting 101. A member demonstrated paper piecing using a small heart pattern. She also demonstrated how to paper piece without sewing through the paper, so there would be no paper to pull off afterwards. I must try that idea. I am not much of a fan of paper piecing though. I cannot seem to get my fabric the correct size, or sew it in the correct direction so that when the fabric is flipped over, there often is a small hole in a corner or on a side!

One project I sewed using paper piecing turned out okay. The designer included directions for precutting the pieces, and the sizes they should be cut to cover their respective areas. Those blocks did turn out well. It was a friendship block exchange, so I wanted my blocks to be good. My blocks that I brought home from the exchange are awaiting further sewing. They are still in the bag I brought them home from the exchange (and placed them under my sewing table with many other block exchanges yet to be completed). One of the members of the exchange did sew her blocks together to complete her quilt. She is a quilter who actually sews her blocks together and completes quilts almost every time. She is usually the first one to bring a completed quilt to share at the next block exchange. I wish I had more of her "finishing" determination.

It is raining outside! Friday evening we had lighting and thunder with a little rain. By Saturday morning, the sun was shining. It has been overcast and dreary looking outside today, though. I have been sewing and washing fabric today. Now I must find someplace to store that fabric! Where, or where? The bathrooms are looking pretty empty these days. Hmmmmmm?

Happy Quilting

Finally a Free $5.00 Block!

Today I actually arrived at the quilt shop before it opened, so I was one of the first to get my ticket for my $5.00 block. Since I arrived on time, and had my block from last month with me (finished), I was able to receive next month's block kit for free. I did not need to pay $5.00 for it. I know the next two months I will need to pay because I cannot be at the meetings, but at least today I made it. Hubby and I were up early and on our way. It is about a 35 minute drive from our house to the quilt shop. If the traffic through the pass is heavy, of course it takes longer. With the Bay Bridge closed for the weekend, I was afraid the traffic everywhere else would be really bad, but not so this morning.

The teacher of this class had her finished quilt with all the $5.00 blocks with her today. It is in purple, and very nice. All the blocks are on point. I thought I remembered that from the picture I saw of them before I signed up for the activity. Her quilt was so pretty in purple! Oooooohhhhh! She placed her nine blocks on point in the center without sashing, then placed four other basket blocks in each corner. Very interesting design.

There is no set design for these blocks. They are nine different blocks the teacher picked from the book we are using. So, all our quilts should look different depending on what design we decide to use when we put the quilt together. I hope that there will be a "reunion" of all the participants so we can see what different designs were used for these nine blocks. Of course, these nine blocks could be combined with other blocks to make a quilt that would be uniquely different that anyone else's design.

At the first meeting of this $5.00 quilt group, there were a few ladies who brought their finished quilts to share who had participated in a previous $5.00 quilt group. The quilts were all very different and very nice.

The picture I have included in this post is my sample for the Shop Hop Bag class I am teaching for my quilt guild this coming Friday evening at Camp Stitches. It is an easy bag to sew. It is large enough to keep things that you may need while shop hopping, but small enough to tuck under your arm. The strap is long so it goes over your shoulder, or if you make it a little longer you can throw it over your head and be hands free to grab your purchases with each hand! For avid shoppers, I think this is good!

Happy Quilting