The Picnic Quilt

Dear Readers,

One of the summer challenges of the Mississippi Quilt Association was to finish a UFO.  I, like many quilters, have many UFO's.  I was looking through some of them and found this one based on a block called the Massachusetts block.  If you like the block, click here to see the instructions.  This UFO stemmed from a program that we did one year at Possum Town Quilters in Columbus, MS.  These had sat around for at least 7 or 8 years.  They were gifted to me the year before I moved over here to Winona.   The program was you could pick a block and ask every one that would like to to make you one in your chosen colors and pattern.  I chose to ask for one in creams or whites with 30's fabric or mock 30's fabrics.

One of the nice thing about this design web site, is that they have figured out all the sizes for you for common sized blocks.  I asked the guild members for the 12 inch finished size.  Like all group sewing  projects, some did not work out, as the colors were so light that the block disappeared or they came out too small.  A few were too big, but I trimmed them down and lost some points, but went with it anyway.  I made about 4 or 5 more blocks to fill out the collection and then put them together.  One of the things I love about this block is it is an asymmetrical block.  That means there are lots of different arrangements.  I chose to do a barn raising style setting.  The other exciting thing about this quilt is it is the first one I did on my new long arm.

It isn't great, but I am excited.  Here in Winona, I have been hanging my quilts on my fence to photograph.  Well, I was never happy about photographing quilting large quilts, as they would hang into the garden!  This quilt is 84 x 84, so it is definitely taller than my fence.  About that time Fred's was closing and I saw a curtain rod for 80% off and I bought it and put the curtain supports up on my porch.  When I was at the Innova dealer near Nashville, I noticed that they had quilts hung from pipes with bulldog clips zip tied to the pipe.  I was talking to them about it and they suggested keeping them a little loose so they could slide up and down the pipe.  So here is what is looks like at the top.

I know it would not do for a show quilt, but, most of my quilts are not show quilts.  I want the recipient to use and enjoy the quilts.

Sew long,

Terry

Clever Companions

Dear Readers,

My niece had a baby in July.  So I found out her theme was woodland animals.  So, since I loved the fox designed by Elizabeth Harman, I decided to use that.  I had bought her pattern Fancy Forest about a year before.  If you need her book/pattern you might want to check out her page here.

I decided to do it in soft clear colors with a grunge for the background.  I mostly used my scrappy stash for this.  I did buy the grunge for the background.   I found a cute print for the backing that had forest friends on it.  I also made a pillow slip and a crib sheet to send to her too.

I was telling one of my friends, Theresa Pino (an award winning quilter) about the quilt and she suggested I quilt it with a wood grain look...it would give the animals some feel of fur and variety in texture.  I decided to do that!  I quilted this on the sit down quilter.

Here are some close ups of the quilting and the back.

Called this one "Clever Companions".  Enjoy James Dwight S.


Sew long,

Terry

Tip Toe Quilt

Dear Readers,

The next quilt I completed came about because a friend told me they were having a granddaughter and I decided to use a pink jelly roll I won at the Spring gathering of the Mississippi Quilt Association.  Thanks hosting guilds!!   I had seen a photo of a quilt square designed by Pat Sloan that I thought would be really cool.  I went to her site and it was only sold in a book, and I didn't know if the book's pattern would be using 2.5 in strips or some other size.  So I got my graph paper out and designed my own version.  If you are interested tho I encourage you to go to her web site and buy her book.  Click here to go to her web site.

"Tip Toe Quilt"
Made for Ellie Marie Harmon
About 34 x 45
2019

I quilted this on my sit down quilting machine.   I tried to make the pink part have the feel of petals and did leaves in the grey part.  I put a row of asterisk styled stars in the outer border.  I quilted veins in the leaves.

So this quilt went to Ellie Marie Harmon...enjoy.

Update:  Look how cute Ellie and Vance look!

Sew long,

Terry

Kappa Kappa Kappa Quilt

Dear Readers,

Last year I spent most of the year trying to get the MQA website up and running.  I have missed putting time into my own blog.

Time to catch up.

One of the quilts I completed last year was a t-shirt quilt that I call Kappa Kappa Kappa as it was a lot of sorority t-shirts.  I put a lot of custom quilting on this and like the way it came out.

 I stipple quilted on the gold and then did custom work on the black and the t-shirts.  Here are a close up of some of the blocks.

More to come on another night.

Terry