Saturday, May 30, 2015

Meet the new chicks!

Although I love to quilt, there are other things on my agenda.  I love my chickens as well.  I have raised chickens for one year now.  Last week we successfully hatched seven new chicks using a brood hen.  Meet the new chicks:

 
I still can't believe that I got them to all sit in the egg carton long enough for the photo.  They are one and two days old in this photo.

Now here are some pics for my reference.  These rooster to these chicks was sadly killed defending the flock against a red fox the same morning that the first three hatched.  He was a Lavender Ameraucana.  The hens to these chicks are Orpingtons and Red Sex Links.  I can't wait to see what colors their feathers will be and in what pattern!




 
There are seven chicks.  It looks like I only got one individual photo of the chick below.  There are two chicks that are very identical in feathering.


One week later I tried to get just ONE chick to sit in the egg carton for a photo... No luck at all.  That's okay.  That means that they are super healthy and spunky.

Friday, May 29, 2015

Spangled Stars QAL Star Block Units

Our son's last day of school was yesterday.  I decided to do a little marathon sewing and finish this step for the star blocks for the Spangled Stars QAL.  This is unit A which will make up part of the stars for the QAL.  Here they are all in little sets of four.  I didn't want to lose the star concept because I was going scrappy.  I'm not usually this organized... 



I really liked making all of these units.  I especially like the ones that have blue star fabrics and striped red fabrics.  All of the neutrals are super scrappy!!!  I'm linking up with Susan at Quilt Fabrication.  Check out the other color options that other quilters are doing!

grab button for quiltfabrication.blogspot.com

Found this yummy, easy recipe on facebook.  Looks like it came from Judy's Kitchen...

Courtney Luper's photo.
 
Super easy!!!!
 BEST SHRIMP YOU WILL EVER EAT
Try this quick way ~ Melt a stick of butter in the pan. ...
Slice one lemon and layer it on top of the butter.
Put down fresh shrimp, then sprinkle one pack of dried Italian seasoning. Put in the oven and bake at 350 for 15 min.

Wednesday, May 27, 2015

Spangled Stars QA Bars and Stripes

I'm linking up at Quilt Fabrication for the Spangled Stars QA.  Here's my 25 blocks for this week.  Whew... that seemed like a lot with this busy week.



I'm linking up with Lee at Freshly Pieced today here. 
WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced

New Projects This Week
1.  Spangled Stars QA @ Quilt Fabrication
2.  That Quirky Scrap QA with Leila at Sewn
 
Pieces Still Need to be Cut & Sewn
1.  Underpants Project 
2.  Digging up Bones (Owen's dinosaur quilt)
3.  Rock Island Campfire Quilt
4.  Picadilly Circle
5. ...And Sew On BOM at Quiet Play (one block to go)
6.  MSBHQAL (Molli Sparkles Broken Herringbone Quilt Along)
7.  Spring Sampler Series at Cora's Quilts
8.  Gypsy Wife QA (recycling  Red/White Flower Basket Quilt into this project & duds.)
9.  Leah Day Building Blocks QA

10.  Love Laugh Quilt Christmas Improv QA
11.  Classic Meets Modern BOM
12.  Mod Mod QA (turning this one into a baby quilt) 
13.  Super Mario QA
14.  Grand Illusion -- Bonnie Hunter Mystery Quilt 2014 
15,  Sew Sweet Simplicity BOM (made from shirt scraps)
16.  Kite Girl (RSC14) Need one more red block and sashing made
17.  Modern Trees QA (at Christ's Quilts)
18.  Cabins at the Lake (from Fons & Porter Magazine) (only one house block complete.
19.  Wanderlust (A Bonnie Hunter pattern -- only 2 blocks done.)
20.  Flowers and Watercan (wall hanging)
21.  Little Houses
22.  Split Stars (Block Lotto win)
23.  Spools (Leader & Ender project with Bonnie Hunter)
24.  Fortune Teller (RSC14 started -- need blocks each month)
25.  Slabs with White Rectangle (RSC14 started -- need blocks each month)
26.  Pat Sloan 2015 BOM -- Vacation Time
28.  Charm Square Sampler QA by Modern Tradition Quilts
29.  QM Bitty Blocks QA
30.  The School Bell Has Rung sampler at laugh yourself into Stitches. 
31.  Starry Night customer BOM project
32.  OSU flannel customer quilt
33.  Urban Churn Dash customer quilt
34.  Spangled Stars QA @ Quilt Fabrication
35.  That Quirky Scrap QA with Leila at Sewn
 
Blocks Still Need to be Made
1.  NY Beauty
2.  Orca Bay
3.  We Can Do It Skill Builder Sampler
4.  Sweet Simplicity BOM
5. Finding Nemo Scrappy Trip quilt
6.  Color coordinated hexagon quilt
7.  Gourmet Quilter Sampler
8.  Bluepatch Mystery Quilt
9.  Amanda Murphy Designs (ugly fabric quilt)
10.  Drunkard's Path Variation baby quilt
11.  Scrap Crystals (working on blue pieces for RSC15)
12.  RSC15 Sawtooth Star Sampler
 
Blocks are made but need to be sewn together (and/or some sashing)
1.  Block Swap Adventure Orange/Yellow Sampler (2011-2012)
2.  Block Lotto Dud (Orphan Block Quilt)
3.  Orange/Blue Fish Blocks (that I won)
4.  Split Stars (blocks won from Block Lotto; October, 2012)
5.  African Violet baby quilt (Block Lotto inspired)
6.  Tall Fly
7.  December 2014 Block Lotto Big O blocks that I won 12.31.14!
8.  Sonja's Windows string quilt
9.  Block Swap Adventure (2013) Churn Dash Blocks 
 
Quilts back needs to be made (tops are done)
1.  Celtic Solstice (Bonnie Hunter Mystery 2013)
2.  Surround Stars Pillow (one big block is here somewhere.  It will be a pillow when I find it.)
3.  OSU customer quilt #2

Ready to longarm
1.  Little Letters QA Quilt (A RSC14 project)
2.  Julianne's Grand Illusion
3.  OSU customer quilt #1
 
Quilted, needs binding
1.  Antique quilt that needed a binding repair
 
Completed this week:
1.  Customer Quilt #3 -- Bonnie Hunter Smokey Mountain Stars pattern
2.  Customer Quilt #2 -- Scrap Squares in blue/green/white
 
64 -- Current WIPS
14 -- Finishes for 2015
 
WHEW!  I'm exhausted just typing this list!



Friday, May 22, 2015

Quilty Door Prize Game -- Friday Finish

Here's an unusual Friday finish for me.  I was "nominated" to work on the door prize game.  A set of cards were given to me with little quilty verses on them.  I tweeked the words, but the idea was came from another quilt guild. 

I used different colored paper for each verse.  But the fun quilty part is that I sewed each clue to the colored paper with a decorative stitch.  I like the way they turned out.

 
Here's some of the detail of the decretive trims.



I'm glad it was only 20 sets.  That was a lot of cutting paper, measuring, and folding.  The sewing wasn't bad.  That was the fun part.



Here's what they said:

(1)
Welcome fellow quilters with a friendly greeting.
We're glad you're at this meeting.
To inspire each other to make our guild stronger.
Pass this envelope to whoever has been quilting longer.

(2)
There's always something new to learn.
For better quilting skills we all yearn.
Improvements are quite enjoyable tasks.
Pass his envelope to the one who took the last class.

(3)
Some of us prefer to quilt by hand.
But quilting by machine is not to be banned.
We're hoping for stitches almost too small to be seen.
Pass this envelope to whoever has the most machines.

(4)
This group is an example of creativity that never ends.
We gain not only skills, but also new friends.
It's through quilting and chatting that creativity flows.
Who has the most UFO's?

(5)
We're so glad you're here to share the day.
We wish you a safe trip home today.
Our game is almost over.
You are close, but not quite.
The winner is the person to your right!

I'm linking up with Richard and Tanya for Link-A-Finish Friday.  Check out their blog here.



Wednesday, May 20, 2015

WIP Wednesday 5.20.15

Well, after today there's only one more Wednesday while school in session.  My son and I are sooooo excited for summer vacation filled with amusement parks and water slides.  I'm sure there will be a little quilting happening, but it's gonna slow down real fast.   Here's what happened the past few Wednesdays that I didn't post a WIP Wednesday:

I finished step 1 AND step 2 of the Spangled Stars QA at Quilt Fabrication.  I'm also linking up here for the step 2 linky party!  Look at all my fun, scrappy blues AND tone on tone neutrals!  Yum!



grab button for quiltfabrication.blogspot.com
 
Here are my blocks from Step 1.  I'm making the king version.  Fun, scrappy maroons, huh?
 
 
I also played with some of my green scraps for the RSC15 and joined in on That Quirky Scrap Quilt (along) by Leila at Sewn. I threw a blue and a brown in here and there for fun.

I finished the longarm quilting on this quilt for a customer.



I finished longarming another customer quilt!  I love this one too.  Scrappy is good.  I quilted it with the Baptist fan pattern.




I'm caught up on my Pat Sloan Vacation Time Mystery BOM.  I did the purple one on the top right.

 

I'm linking up with Lee at Freshly Pieced today here. 
WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced

New Projects This Week
1.  Spangled Stars QA @ Quilt Fabrication
2.  That Quirky Scrap QA with Leila at Sewn
 
Pieces Still Need to be Cut & Sewn
1.  Underpants Project 
2.  Digging up Bones (Owen's dinosaur quilt)
3.  Rock Island Campfire Quilt
4.  Picadilly Circle
5. ...And Sew On BOM at Quiet Play (one block to go)
6.  MSBHQAL (Molli Sparkles Broken Herringbone Quilt Along)
7.  Spring Sampler Series at Cora's Quilts
8.  Gypsy Wife QA (recycling  Red/White Flower Basket Quilt into this project & duds.)
9.  Leah Day Building Blocks QA

10.  Love Laugh Quilt Christmas Improv QA
11.  Classic Meets Modern BOM
12.  Mod Mod QA (turning this one into a baby quilt) 
13.  Super Mario QA
14.  Grand Illusion -- Bonnie Hunter Mystery Quilt 2014 
15,  Sew Sweet Simplicity BOM (made from shirt scraps)
16.  Kite Girl (RSC14) Need one more red block and sashing made
17.  Modern Trees QA (at Christ's Quilts)
18.  Cabins at the Lake (from Fons & Porter Magazine) (only one house block complete.
19.  Wanderlust (A Bonnie Hunter pattern -- only 2 blocks done.)
20.  Flowers and Watercan (wall hanging)
21.  Little Houses
22.  Split Stars (Block Lotto win)
23.  Spools (Leader & Ender project with Bonnie Hunter)
24.  Fortune Teller (RSC14 started -- need blocks each month)
25.  Slabs with White Rectangle (RSC14 started -- need blocks each month)
26.  Pat Sloan 2015 BOM -- Vacation Time
28.  Charm Square Sampler QA by Modern Tradition Quilts
29.  QM Bitty Blocks QA
30.  The School Bell Has Rung sampler at laugh yourself into Stitches. 
31.  Starry Night customer BOM project
32.  OSU flannel customer quilt
33.  Urban Churn Dash customer quilt
34.  Spangled Stars QA @ Quilt Fabrication
35.  That Quirky Scrap QA with Leila at Sewn
 
Blocks Still Need to be Made
1.  NY Beauty
2.  Orca Bay
3.  We Can Do It Skill Builder Sampler
4.  Sweet Simplicity BOM
5. Finding Nemo Scrappy Trip quilt
6.  Color coordinated hexagon quilt
7.  Gourmet Quilter Sampler
8.  Bluepatch Mystery Quilt
9.  Amanda Murphy Designs (ugly fabric quilt)
10.  Drunkard's Path Variation baby quilt
11.  Scrap Crystals (working on blue pieces for RSC15)
12.  RSC15 Sawtooth Star Sampler
 
Blocks are made but need to be sewn together (and/or some sashing)
1.  Block Swap Adventure Orange/Yellow Sampler (2011-2012)
2.  Block Lotto Dud (Orphan Block Quilt)
3.  Orange/Blue Fish Blocks (that I won)
4.  Split Stars (blocks won from Block Lotto; October, 2012)
5.  African Violet baby quilt (Block Lotto inspired)
6.  Tall Fly
7.  December 2014 Block Lotto Big O blocks that I won 12.31.14!
8.  Sonja's Windows string quilt
9.  Block Swap Adventure (2013) Churn Dash Blocks 
 
Quilts back needs to be made (tops are done)
1.  Celtic Solstice (Bonnie Hunter Mystery 2013)
2.  Surround Stars Pillow (one big block is here somewhere.  It will be a pillow when I find it.)
3.  OSU customer quilt #2

Ready to longarm
1.  Little Letters QA Quilt (A RSC14 project)
2.  Julianne's Grand Illusion
3.  OSU customer quilt #1
 
Quilted, needs binding
1.  Antique quilt that needed a binding repair
 
Completed this week:
1.  Customer Quilt #3 -- Bonnie Hunter Smokey Mountain Stars pattern
2.  Customer Quilt #2 -- Scrap Squares in blue/green/white
 
64 -- Current WIPS
14 -- Finishes for 2015
 
WHEW!  I'm exhausted just typing this list!
 
 

Saturday, May 16, 2015

RSC15 and That Quirky Scrap QA

I needed 15 more four patches for That Quirky Scrap Quilt Along to finish the step for this week.  Check it out here: That Quirky Scrap Quilt (along) by Leila at Sewn.  I'm happy to link up to Scrap Saturday at SoScrappy with Angela for the RSC15 (Rainbow Scrap Challenge, 2015).

 
RSC 15




Friday, May 15, 2015

Friday Finish -- Blue/Green/White Customer Quilt

I'm happy to finish #5 of 5 customer quilts!  Just in time for summer vacation.  Whew.  I love the way my customer selected the green, blue, and white to go with her scrappy blocks of anything goes.  I quilted it with my Circle Lord Giant Template called Baptist Fan.


 
I love the way the Baptist Fan quilting makes this quilt look soft and old-fashioned.  I know my customer is going to LOVE this one!
 
Here's the fabric on the back:
 
 
 
I am linking up with Richard and Tanya for Link-A-Friday Finish.  Check out the projects of others here.
 
LAFF - Richard and Tanya Quilts
 

Tuesday, May 12, 2015

That Quirky Scrap QA and RSC15

I'm just getting caught up with my RSC15 for Scrap Saturday.  I came across this QA this week -- That Quirky Scrap Quilt (along) by Leila at Sewn.

I had my green scrap bin next to the sewing table and knew that there were several 2.5" strips.  Easy peasy, I made the four patches for the QA.  Most are in greens.  I threw a blue and a brown in here and there for fun.

 
I'm linking up with Angela at So Scrappy for Scrap Saturday here.


RSC 15

Monday, May 11, 2015

Another Scrappy Quilt on the Frame

Here's what I'm working on today and hopefully only another full day this week -- another scrappy customer quilt.  I'll just call this the blue/green/white one.  I'm hoping for another Friday finish.


 
I am quilting it with Circle Lord Double Baptist Fan design.
 
 
I love how the customer put this green around all the blocks.

 
I'm linking up with Cynthia for the Oh Scrap! linky party.
 
Quilting is more fun than Housework

Sunday, May 10, 2015

Mother's Day -- A Vintage Machine for Me

Well, it's Mother's Day.  It's often an emotional day for me.  I am a mom to a life-loving, happy almost-eight-year-old boy.  He is the center of attention in our family.  His name is Owen.  He just happens to have Down Syndrome.  He is amazing.

Here he is "buying" lunch for us at a cub scout pinewood derby.  He's so proud of the things that he does -- as are we!

 
My mom (1932 - 2012) was a great mom.  Happy Mother's Day to her.  I had one of her old sewing machines in its box for quite a while in the basement.  She called it The DressMaker.  I'm not sure why.  My mom was the 4H sewing advisor back in the day (before I learned how to sew.)
 
She had perfect seams.  She mostly made clothes (back when smocks and stretch pants were popular for me, her chubby daughter.)  I wore a lot of smocks...


 

By the model, I'm thinking this machine is from 1963-65.  I'll probably just remember 1965... that's the year I was born.  If you have more info on that, please let me know.  I used this chart.
 
It's in great condition.  The belt looks like new.  There's a piece of tape on the power cord.  I'm thinking it is cracked, but I did not investigate further.

 
Here's the piece of knit fabric that she used to wrap the foot pedal.  She made me a blazer out of it to match my stretch pants.  I wore this blazer when I was in horse shows.  It was sewn beautifully.


Happy Mother's Day.

Friday, May 8, 2015

Spangled Stars QA -- Step 1 Complete

 


I didn't sleep well last night.  This time it wasn't insomnia.  It was just the fact that I had some blocks to sew.  I got all of step one done for the Spangled Stars QA @ Quiltfabrication.  Susan's instructions for the blocks are great.  There are a lot of options and plenty of step-by-step tutorial photos.  Thanks, Susan for inviting us to quilt along with you.

School is almost out for the year.  I'll have to have piecing projects handy.  I couldn't resist this one.  My colors are controlled scrappy.  Instead of red I'm using maroons.  Instead of white I am using scrappy tone on tone creams.  I'm using a mix of dark and cornflower blues for the blues. 

I LOVE how my "reds" look!  This block is called the uneven 9-patch.  I started out just making enough blocks for a twin-sized quilt.  After I saw the reds going together with the creams I just cut more and now I'm working on at least the queen size.  Here's my step one blocks:

 
 
grab button for quiltfabrication.blogspot.com
I'm linking up with Susan here.


 

Friday Finish -- Smokey Mountain Stars

Yeah!  Another finish for me.  Here's a customer quilt that I longarmed.  The quilt pattern is by Bonnie Hunter of Quiltville.  You can find the pattern on her free patterns tab here.  This customer quilt measures 78" x 101".  I quilted it with the Circle Lord Jesters giant board template.  I think it came out great!  She will be pleased.


Here's a close up of the quilting on the front.  I like how the curves softened the stars.

 
I love her pieced back!


Here's a close-up pic of the quilting on the back. 



I'm also linking up with Richard and Tanya for Link-a-Finish Friday.  Check out all the others here.