as promised....

here is the entire wallhanging top, now done. this means my 30s stash has now dwindled down to possibly enough for one more quilt top. i've got a pattern in mind that should use them all up....now that's REALLY stashbusting! this won't get quilted until next year and will be a 2011 UFO finish for certain.

at sara's request

first, i apologize for the lighting/image being so poor. next, some background info. i've always said i'm no designer. i found this pattern called "beginner's star" in one of jan halgrimson's wire-bound, soft-cover books on scraps. they are oldies but very good goodies and i refer to them a lot because i make mostly scrap quilts. when i saw the pattern, i thought it was ideal for 30s prints and would be easily paper pieced. the blocks are 4 units each, so i divided the units into half units and voila! - all straight lines. i then traced each unit onto vellum for paper piecing. at that time, my knowledge of paper piecing was nearly zip, so i got exasperated with the project and set it aside. after taking carol doak's class last summer, i was enthusiastic about finishing it, which brings us to the present. here are 4 blocks (of the total 9) that i pieced BEFORE the class. i have really noticed a big difference in these as opposed to those i pieced AFTER the class. Not that these aren't ok, but you can almost see the difficulty i had in the block itself. isn't that uncanny! anyway, sara wanted to know what the block looked like, so i've posted this for her. ***** this photo emphasizes the fact that i have no design wall, which is really helpful for construction and photographic purposes. i was looking around my room yesterday trying to figure out how i could possibly find space for one. and then, a bona fide brain storm (not merely a drizzle)! i am going to make a roman shade from flannel, hang it over my closet door and then i can unroll/roll it as needed. watching HGTV has really helped!

next year's UFO

of course i am still job hunting, but fortunately it doesn't interfere with my sewing much. for instance, this past weekend i whipped up this little christmas tablerunner. i've made a lot of these using the gold lame fabric as the center square. it washes and dries fine and gives the runner a little zing. the red fabric has gold threads/stars on it as well. in person it's gorgeous if i do say so myself. it probably won't be finished until next year, though, as i'm furiously quilting butterflies. in the next couple of days, i'm going to show off my paper piecing skills again, so stay tuned.....

PP Frenzy!

just like eating potato chips! i spent the WHOLE day at the old viking paper piecing these little units (4 make a square) for a wallhanging that's been in the shoebox for eons. i only have 1.5 blocks to go (6 units) and i can put the top together. today, though, i'm working on the wedding quilt as that absolutely MUST be done soon. these are mostly 30s repros but scattered in are some authentic vintage fabrics. this is the 4th item i have made from my 30s stash, but i think i have only enough small pieces for 1 more wallhanging or a couple of tablerunners. once this top is done, i'm moving on to another languishing UFO and clear out a large shoebox. i really AM busting stash, even though it takes a while for it to be noticeable.

caution: objects appear larger than normal

on her blog yesterday, bonnie talked about collecting hotel pens. well, bonnie, i have a storage solution for you. this is walmart's mini 3-drawer plastic storage unit that i use for writing implements. in it i keep markers, pencils and pens that i have amassed including from job fairs, various employment situations and from banks, school, etc. most of my pens have drug names on them (from "drug dealers" aka pharmaceutical reps). this goes for writing pads around the house as well. every so often i check to see if the ink has dried out and toss the dead ones, but as you can see, shelf life is huge (no pun intended). ***** a great sewing day today. it's cloudy and cool out but the viking is smokin! working on an aged UFO, a paper piece project, utilizing tips i learned from carol doak this summer. i tell you, she is the queen of paper piecing in my book. i struggled through the first 3 blocks on my own, but now i'm whizzing through the others. i hope to have the entire 9 blocks (4 units each) done today or tomorrow. now that's progress!

today's finish

i was in an autumn block swap some time ago (exact date/year escapes me now) and got some adorable blocks that are included here. i have a few more as well, but they featured gold prominently and didn't "work" in this piece. if you think you spy some 1970s calico, you have been quilting as long as I have. i think i still have a bit more in my stash someplace. the green calico from the top left is from a granny dress i made....like didn't everyone? this needs a quick dunk in the washer to remove the chalk lines and it'll be done! you can see where i blotted off the erasable marker in the border and wasn't quite dry.

lest we forget....

those who gave their lives throughout our history and those who bravely served to establish and defend our freedoms. please don't let them serve in vain......

as promised...

here is the completed winter swap tote, well-received (thankfully) by tudy just yesterday along with its contents.

tudy also makes/sells craft items and she has some displayed on her blog...hop on over, you might find something you can't live without! i was pleased with the result here. i received the green snowflake material in a christmas swap earlier this year and it was just exactly right, along with others from my stash, for this project. the only thing i wish i had done is make the lining the same blue as the top edge. i didn't have enough fabric, used muslin, but realized once it was complete that the blue would have worked better. ***** a sunny, cool thursday here in maine. no real plans except some sewing today and tomorrow also. i've nearly lost track of days now that they run together. still working on the unemployment, which will hopefully come soon. i'm a low maintenance woman but i do need SOME maintenance regardless.

more nashua

some of the amish style had striking colors like this one. this last applique quilt was done by wendy reed, the person in charge of maine's quilt documentation project. she always makes such beautiful repro quilts and this one with the sensational applique is no exception. i love it, don't you? ***** whoops, unemployment makes the days run together and i just realized today is WEDNESDAY, not tuesday, but no matter, nothing important to do. better hurry and get dressed for the non-exciting day ahead!

winter tote swap

my package got mailed yesterday to tudy, so it should be arriving in the next day or two. once it's received, i'll post a photo of the bag i made and sent to her. she requested a winter rather than christmas theme tote. fortunately, i had gotten some seriously snowflake fabric in a christmas swap earlier this year. i used that as the focus and added others from my stash to complement. i was pretty happy with the finished project and i hope tudy is as well. inside were some quilt-related goodies as well as a special snack for her to make/share this holiday season. this was the only swap i chose to do. being out of work makes it iffy to depend on income for postage/gifts etc. and i want to focus on my own family first. i like to do swaps, but with sporadic income it's difficult.