april's challenge

the number chosen for April was #4 BUT doing a switcheroo and backing up to #3....the repro triangles top...this needs to get done ....10 rows to go...

why?  i want to finish the borders on the panel project so it can be basted and put in the quilting pile AND the pieces for the triangle project have been sitting under my ironing station and in the way.  a month should be more than enough time to do both.  i'm a bit saturated with applique right now.  PLUS #4 is the wensleydale, which is essentially a new start.  not really in the frame of mind to start something else right now.  

the latest....

a sneak peek at the last border....am thinking those elongated pieces are a tad too wide for this border so plan to tweak them a bit....seem to be overpowering....i'll keep the length as they just fit the border....the side borders will go edge to edge...

if both do get done, then might try and get a couple of basket tops together...and spend quality quilting time on "dreams" that has been ignored the past couple of weeks.  oh and baste the "i spy africa" top too, as that would be a fairly easy finish...

have a few projects in mind to start in addition to the challenge ones, but focus at present is on some UFOs...

april fool's joke by mother nature...yesterday 85 today 60...just a tad too cool to sit outside...but sunny and bright...have a blessed day!

quick post

the weather is awesome and no time to spend in front of the computer....but a quick update...

friday night spent with my zoom pals...as you can see we were all quite busy with chatting going on per usual...these gals rescue me from gloom every time i can join in...

and what was i working on?  this....nearing border finish and with the corners settled as well...

the pieces for the final border have been counted out and planned so getting closer to that flimsy!  a finish this year is possible....

keeping busy has kept the grief episodes at bay...not just mine but the loss of a neighbor and a quilty pal on her journey....so thankful for griefshare emails that help me process and deal with often overwhelming sadness, not just these losses but homesickness, daily life concerns...and keeping things in perspective is this wise young man...

so yes, nathaniel, it was a good day!  wishing you the same....

P.S.  thanks to all who requested to adopt....wish i had more to send along but these are now gone to a new home...

what's up friday/up for adoption

tangible sign that i AM using up fabric and finishing things...

the shoebox that held the dutch panel project is EMPTY!  the 3rd border is prepped and the pieces for the last fit in a sandwich baggie...leftover fabric went back on the shelves and not much of that either.  the long-range goal is to clear the space under the table...oh some will stay, those with precut pieces, but the UFOs need to be done and gone!  

the "i spy africa" top got finished and now ready to baste and quilt.  this will go in the library display later this year and hopefully will sell...

i used on-hand kona solids from years ago and the weave was quite dense, very noticeable compared to their kona solids of today

underneath the "africa" top are these.....

inspired by janet's top, these 25 blocks got played with and fabric for setting triangles found in the stash...plenty of baskets left so might make a tad larger and easily enough for 1-2 more...

last, now that i've satisfied my hexie period, offering these for postage only...will fit in a $10 flat rate envelope....some finished hexie flowers, plenty of littles to put together AND a baggie of precuts with the papers too....

these were for a repro of the 1861 healy quilt, gorgeous indeed, but would have taken up the remainder of my lifetime if not more

the quilt is in the Smithsonian and a true vintage and yes, gorgeous indeed....leave a comment with your desire to adopt...

another week nearly over and spring is inching toward us with still cool-ish days and yikes!  tomorrow 82?  but it's a rainy day so no walking outdoors...that has been the pattern....cool sunny days and warm rainy ones...mother nature's menopause!  it's also been a week with some unexpected blessings and continuing evidence of God's love and care for me..still waiting on that car tho AND trying to avoid the rantings of an unhinged and vindictive, emotionally immature bully-in-chief...

 

thursday throwback

 

yesterday 3/26/25 was my 9-year anniversary....moved to maryland in 2016...has been a tumultuous span with 3 major surgeries, a move east, losing mom, car bit the dust....a challenge to be settled when it feels as though i've been dropped into a foreign country.  plenty of events to take in but without car, totally impossible....an incarceration of sorts....

on the upside have left long winters behind, see my daughter more often, learned to enjoy crabcakes (an easy one), carefree cozy apartment living....perturbed that i've been put out to pasture while still vibrant and capable and mentally with it...downright annoying and exasperating!  

to keep sane, i've been sewing up half hexies this week and the other 3 borders are ready to finish...also been planning a couple more wish projects and today making spaghetti sauce.  i've also upped my bike time to 20 minutes and thinking 5 days per week gives me 100 minutes...respectable goal to keep heart healthy as long as the knees hold up....LOL

anyway, the sun is out and spring days increasing with nature's colors exploding...not a moment too soon!

monday design wall

pretty busy weekend sewing-wise for a change...to jump start the mojo saturday morning, pulled out a picture i saw on instagram for inspiration....

don't recall which of kaffe's books this is in, but i've always been tempted by it....and so i caved!  i'm a follower of wanda's blog, she is always making tantalizing things with kaffe's fabrics...she and this photo were my inspiration...

i stopped at 16 blocks that are 7" finished...photos are great as i can see some block moving needed...

even sewed up the bonus triangles AND ironed them to put aside for another project...aren't you impressed?  

friday at quilt group got 1.5 sides of the hexie border pinned and ready to sew...hoping to have all 4 done before friday.....march is speeding along and april challenge will be posted in just over a week.  more african resist print blocks got appliqued...this should be a fairly quick finish and keep me on target for april.  

a bit melancholy saturday--weather dismal per usual--sent me to the bright kaffe fabrics...before the day ended, tho, a surprise squishie arrived in my mailbox and the day perked up exponentially.  such dear friends sent along these delightful items...

a reusable bag from Oz thanks to chooky, a small packet of goodies from Janet--charm pack, chocolate, mug rug, some norwegian cloudberry sweets and soothing soap she had made.  i am so blessed by these dear souls and their over-the-top kindness to me, am truly humbled 

another dismal day but i've a few things on the task list so should keep me occupied...we are still below normal rainfall but do prefer sunny spring days instead...i'll keep calm and sew on!

caught up for now

 

that would be on the scrap thrift sew along....more pieces need to be cut so i'll be raiding the stash and scrap boxes for them.  the goal is for 7 blocks per week so done for a couple of weeks...

spring has sort of sprung here...the number of days at 60+ are increasing albeit with fierce winds that are icy so not yet long string of days to be outside.  then this morning in the 30s again...with rain days inbetween.  the cherry blossoms are about to pop...what else going on?

lots more half flowers have been sewn and one border is ready to sew down and another almost.  my goal is to finish this border before march is gone...that leaves the last border, so hoping for a flimsy before summer's gone maybe?  

thursday afternoon a friend took me to a new local shop for a "featherweight fellowship" sewing time...patterns were emailed prior and all things were assembled...this was the project...

i had one of these eons ago and it got grungy then tossed.. it was a matter of grace vs. the pattern but i finally prevailed...miss phoebe featherweight had fun meeting new friends and it was a delight for me as well.  it's held monthly and we're planning to go again.  

aside from a grocery trip not much doing.  trying to psyche myself into starting spring cleaning, maybe next week, to finish before the good weather stays.  spending way too much time dreaming over beach photos on the internet sent by friends and family and on instagram...here are a couple from old orchard beach, my hands down favorite place of many, many good time memories...

when mom and i vacationed, we would walk this short path to the sand...sit and read or sew, often late afternoons when we sometimes saw bluefish jumping during feeding time....

often we would stop at our favorite fries stand for a cup (not a box like this)...these were our absolute favorites....we considered ourselves connoisseurs...LOL!

back to reality here in the land of fried chicken...just read ANOTHER chicken wing place opening...there are only about 12-13 within a 5-mile radius...it doesn't really tempt me at all--no baked bean suppers in these parts whatsoever.  off to make the weekend list and see what i feel like doing....LOL!  have a blessed day...

not much doing...

wacky sleep pattern has made me zombie-like for about a week...time change culprit?  maybe in part plus the cabin fever too i imagine...even my sewing mojo was hibernating...to give it a kick i signed up for a doll quilt swap...one i've done before hosted by lori over at humble quilts...this was one i received in the past...

and it did give me a bit of oomph to do something else....

cutting pieces and pinning to sew blocks for the economy sew along...so far i've pulled scraps and a few FQs to make these blocks...even managed to sew a few more together...

unfortunately i ran out of energy before choosing a background and getting those hawaiian appliques at least pinned, if not basted

while sorting some finished pieces, pulled this one out as it needs a sleeve....made in 2012 and gave to mom...she hung it in her bedroom...still missing her so very much as the one-year mark approaches.

also prepped pieces for an upcoming sewing afternoon with a friend....we're making thread catchers...chose some spring-like kaffe prints for mine....

lastly, more quilting got done on 'dreams'....i've finished 3 star blocks and now almost the 3rd cross-hatch block....don't anticipate this will be done before june at least...

last night slept thru the night save for a usual bathroom visit.  *** i've been reading on my kindle since losing my transportation and i read online that it may be a culprit with interrupted sleep patterns, so after i finish my current book i'm going to trade off to the paper kind to see if it matters.  also wondering if it might be a contributor to my excessive dry eyes.

yesterday watched st. pat's day parade from boston....so thankful for youtube!  not everyone knows that it is also a state holiday for massachusetts--evacuation day--the day george washington with the help of general knox drove the Brits out of boston, actually dorchester heights.  next month the patriot's day parade will be a big deal since it's the 250th anniversary of the founding of our republic...a very big deal given the state of things today...

sun's out, temps to 60+, spring here....how good is that?  have a blessed day...

dreary day?

ignoring the laundry basket giving me the evil eye, dove into scrap shoeboxes instead.  lack of sunshine sent me to starting the repro quilter's sew along...those little economy blocks.

in less than 3 hours had all these littles assembled...will have to raid stash to finish them with reds and greens.  they finish at 4" and not sure yet how many i'll make but again, it won't be a big quilt.  

tuesday was a washout day for me...erratic sleeping habits left me with no energy whatsoever, but wednesday did manage quite a bit of sewing....

got the final border on the tree of life project...not yet ironed so might have to tweak the top border a bit...i measured twice before cutting the borders so hoping it isn't off.  i have decided on the half hexie flowers for the gold border and whole ones for the corners...the outside border design is planned and started as well.  even prepped the binding.  so happy to move this project along.  

some quilting on 'dreams' got done and sewed some on african wax resist circles project.  

it has seemed like a long week but keeping up with exercise waiting on really good weather...warmer but rainy this weekend so not here yet.  avoiding the news mostly but what little i do see really sickens me.  as one who relies on state assistance programs, continued support seems tenuous but must wait to see how all plays out.  like the feds, the state is also in a budget crisis which never bodes well for those who need it most.  

a spring tuesday!

yes indeed, at 70 degrees i am claiming spring to have arrived!  yesterday balmy at 64....waiting for shuttle with no hat or coat and sitting in the warm sun...priceless!  aside from that brief grocery trip, been whiling away hours on different things....first, those little hexies got some time...

dug out chookshed challenge piece and played a bit with those little hexies and how to finish this border....after quite a few trials, i like this one so far....those corner pieces will go...that leaves one more border that is planned already.  good project for sewing on the porch...

and indeed, the weekend was spent on serious quilting time on 'dreams'.....this is how it's looking so far...

those cross-hatched squares take about 4 hours each....there are 12 and nearly 2 done...not a quick finish here....that 4-heart pattern in the small square is from an antique amish quilt...will definitely need another spool of thread for this project.   

always longing for the beach, was given this panel that i quickly trimmed, backed with flannel and hung on my door....

the hallway is dark and that is my shadow on the left....getting there is on my perpetual wish list...

some regular appointments sidelined as county systems have been cyberhacked and no transportation can be scheduled.  nothing serious so no big problem for me.  at least good weather so can venture outside more for change of scenery and a smidgen of cabin fever relief.  am thankful for those who drag me along but longing to just jump in the car and go anywhere by myself and not feel like a pet on a leash....or handicapped....sigh....bike time and fresh air will chase the gloom away!  

about time!

 

according to the label, i made this wall quilt in 2003....that's 22 years ago....and today finally it got a sleeve so i no longer need to use a coat hanger with clips to hang it on the door...great huh?   i thought so....

another day with no place to go and no WAY to go either...so what did i do?  well, finally finished this wall quilt...

it's the 'oz' wall quilt renamed 'a quilter's journey'...after all, even with a wizard waiting, no quilter would pass by quilt shops along the way, right?  it's all ready to submit to the Maine quilt show late summer....i've kept my guild membership from afar...

and we all know sewing is fun but unsewing?  umm...not so much.  but that's another thing i did today....pulled out hexies meant for another project and began unsewing some to use in this month's chookshed challenge project....

not all will get used...perhaps some quilter might be interested in the remaining...happy to pass them on for postage only....

lastly, a confession....in the last post i showed "purple pathway" with plans to hand quilt....not gonna happen.  it was basted so i gave it to the senior center to machine quilt, bind and sell.  the money buys supplies for our charity projects and honestly, my quilty plate is full PLUS the list of things i want to make equally so.  a win/win anyway i think.  

the day is nearly gone and i won't belabor a lengthy diatribe on how bored or imprisoned i feel...i've a couple of outings this week and the following that should provide a smidgen of relief.  spring temps of 70 are due to arrive so at least i can escape the apartment and get some steps in.  i'm keeping up with the bike but it really isn't enough...thankfully my mom raised a family of readers and going thru a couple of good whodunit books every week that do provide a quasi-escape from hum drum.  been eating out of the freezer so no cooking to speak of---just fine with me.  farmer's markets open in april with early produce....mostly greens that i have to limit but even so, fresh vegs not too far away.  

anyway, it's keep calm and quilt on....or whatever keeps me from SCREAMING!!!!