Moving my blog to: Wabi Sabi Quilts

Hello fellow quilting bloggers, 

With the new year just around the corner, I'm simplifying a bit and starting fresh with a few things.... including in terms of blogs... 

I will be blogging at Wabi Sabi Quilts now.  Nothing spectacular, just a fresh start - feels sort of like beginning a new journal.  I love new beginnings!

I really appreciate the quilting/blogging community and I sure hope many of you will visit me over in my new blogging digs!

Best wishes and Happy New Year! 

xo
Cynthia 

Steps to the Altar - finished!

Finally finished Kaela and Joe's wedding quilt - Steps to the Altar, from an old 1930's Ruby McKim pattern.  Yay!  Five months off and on in the making.

I quilted in the ditch around the blocks:

Then checkerboard in the pieced blocks:

Then free motion wreathes in the alternate blocks - very free - not staying in the lines exactly, but overall it worked.  I feel like I finally got the hang of it about 15 blocks in to the process!

I used 60 weight cotton in the bobbin and nylon monofilament in the needle.  Quilters Dream Cotton batting in the "Select" mid-weight.

The only problem with this quilt is.... after I had pieced the blocks, I tried to match the muslin for the plain alternate blocks.  Wellllll the lighting in my local quilt shop isn't great, and it isn't great in my sewing room either - because as you can see, not a great match... but... it's a vintage-y looking quilt anyway right?  It looks better in person than in photos, and I believe over time with lots of use and washings the difference will be even less an issue.

I first blogged about this quilt here and give directions for making the blocks here.  

Now...... time to make toffee.... wrap presents.... do all those non-quilting related holiday tasks.... Mrs. Santa, time to get busy!

Flags of the American Revolution - part 4 - stars and Whiskey Rebellion

This month for the quilt-along we worked on some star setting (filler) blocks...

I was going for very scrappy, with chambray blue, beige, and celery green.

... and the Whiskey Rebellion block - which seemed to be my constant companion all month - dense with applique!

And in other news:

This 51 pound puppy is giving us fits... eating her third or fourth (who's counting?) bed...

We've had our first snow...

Finally basted Kaela and Joe's wedding (um, Christmas) quilt top (Steps to the Altar)...  

Made WAY too many pies for Thanksgiving.... 

And now here we are, December already!  Can't wait to see what Lori has in store for us this month... I am really enjoying the quilt-along - the built in deadline pressure, and seeing how everyone else interprets the blocks.  Go over to Humble Quilts to check it out! 

Veteran's Day

Just a quick post this Veteran's Day with thanks in my heart for Veterans of our wars.  So many young families affected on all sides.

I have been working on family history lately, and came across the World War 1 Draft Registration Card for a great great Uncle.  I love the extra bits of detail we see on a Draft Registration Card...

And meanwhile of course I am continuing work on my Flags of the American Revolution quilt:

Flags of the American Revolution - part 3 - stripes

I'm really enjoying this quilt-along organized by Lori at Humble Quilts.  It's "homework" but the really fun kind.

Can't wait to see how the other quilters' flags have turned out this month, especially with three of the blocks calling for buttons.  I don't really want buttons on my quilt, so I got creative (lazy?).

Here are mine:

Guilford Courthouse Flag.  For the "buckles" the block called for, I blanket stitched felted wool ovals:

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Sons of Liberty, aka "Rebellious Stripes".  You can see that I ran out of the tiny red stars on white, and patched in something else.  PRIMITIVE.

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U.S. Navy Jack.  The fleet signal issued for the first ships of the Continental Navy:

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Bennington Flag.   This one called for thirteen star buttons arranged in an arc over the 76.  I tried embroidering small stars.... finally opted for one big star - I figure it's ok to improvise - it's true to the spirit of the flag and this quilt.

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First Stars and Stripes.  Sort of.  Perhaps I will find a way to attach a circle of 13 tiny white stars, perhaps felted wool while I am quilting it.

These blocks are all taken from Jan Patek's book Flags of the American Revolution.   Thanks Lori - can't wait to see what our next assignment will be!

seeing yellows and reds

We are in full autumn leaves mode here - I just love this time of year.

Our front yard is at its best during these weeks.

Raking can wait...

In the past two weeks I've started a part time job, and hosted a gathering with family from Ireland, Ohio, Washington State, North Carolina, and New York!  Three generations, sharing memories of Grandma Mary Lou... and lots of great food!

Here's how the teenager of the house sleeps when the house is filled to the brim with company:

I have to admit after such a busy time, I am relishing a quiet Saturday.  Today I took myself to a quilt show organized by the Women's Alliance of our local Unitarian Church:

The quilts were draped over the pews - white gloves for those of us who wanted to touch and turn the quilts.

I put in my Kimono Friendship Quilt from our time in Japan:

The show coincides with our town's 300th year anniversary. 

   

xo
C.

Flags of the American Revolution - part 2 - Tree flags

For September we made the four tree-themed blocks for the Flags of the American Revolution quilt-along at Humble Quilts:


The Continental Navy sailed under this "Appeal to Heaven" flag:

A flag depicting the Battle of Bunker Hill:

The Pine Tree Flag - a symbol of strength and used as a symbol of Massachusetts long before the Revolution:

And another form of the Pine Tree Flag,

All of the blocks are from Flags of the American Revolution by Jan Patek.  Working these was challenging and I kept reminding myself that extra-primitive is OK in my book!

Meanwhile... fall is arriving!  My favorite season by far.

The first time I ever saw my house, I thought wow, someone had the guts to paint the door ORANGE and I love it!  It is high time to repaint the door... and I'm thinking of keeping the orange...

With the cold weather coming, someone has to stack this wood..... not me:).

this and that

Meanwhile back on the ranch, I've just been sewing away on Kaela and Joe's wedding quilt, Steps to the Altar:

I'm working on the appliqued trees for the Flags of the American Revolution quilt-along organized by Lori of Humble Quilts.

I tacked up the center medallion on my sewing room wall.  I can see it across the hall from my bedroom.

From this far away, and especially in dim light, I see that I don't have nearly enough contrast between eagle and background.

But I do not want to re-stitch this block.  I have my heart set on using a lot of this blue throughout.

I may do some off-white sashiko stitching around the perimeter of the Eagle, once the quilt is sandwiched.  Any other ideas??

The nights are chilly now, and the mums are everywhere, another sure sign of fall:

Small world

This is the simple block I made over the summer to send to Tokyo for the 2015 NHK Partnership Quilt project.

The theme this year is kawaii ("sweet") and because Kaela and Joe had just gotten married, I had PINK and WEDDING CAKE in my mind!

I used scraps from the first "little girl" quilt I made Kaela long ago; and white silk leftover from my own wedding dress.

Volunteers in Japan will create bed quilts from all the many donated blocks, and those quilts will be displayed and raffled off at the Tokyo International Great Quilt Festival in January 2015.  Thanks to "Queenie" at Queenie's Needlework for the push!

And speaking of the newlyweds,

Kaela's first ever patchwork, such a sweet dollie quilt she made as a young child: