monday plans

maybe today i'll finish off this little pile of scraps, cutting them into pieces for the christmas scrappy.  after these are gone, it's cutting into FQs and yardage for the pieces.  i am pretty sure i have adequate christmas fabric stash for this top.  since i am slowly veering away from bed-size quilts to smaller pieces, every one that gets done gets me closer to that goal.  ***** the pinks is ready for the binding, so that should be a finish this week.  **** and since it's monday, i'll do a bit of laundry to satisfy tradition.

placemats out, wallhanging in

the patriotic nickels in my stash are no more!  i decided against placemats (2 things to quilt/bind) and opted for this.  could be used as a tabletopper as well, i suppose.  gave me the opportunity to use some pizzazz-y plaids too!  it'll get bound with either the blue plaid or maybe a solid navy, need to audition both.  today i have some drunkard's path leftovers that'll get put into an orphan block and THEN i can get back to the christmas scrappy.  i hope to finish quilting the pinks today as well, then binding and voila, it's done!  this is basting week as well.  the boston commons and lovers' links quilts will (hopefully) be basted by week's end and the lovers' links will be my next quilting task until it gets too warm; then i have some small pieces, like this one, that need finishing. 

scraps to squares

there weren't many of these little black strips leftover from a previous project, but my conscience wouldn't let me throw them away.  i saw this block on the calendar and thought about them.  instead, i made these little 9-patch blocks that will probably go in a border of a small amish quilt at some point.  i might even have to make a few more with a different black but no matter; this is stashbusting and that will work just fine.  every little square helps to use it up! ***** it's a beautiful, sunny, breezy early summer morning here in coastal maine.  good day for the beach you think?  always!

secret project revealed

many years ago, a creative mom made a set of these for her precious baby daughter.  however, life was sometimes unpleasant in the little kingdom and the mother sold the dolls to earn some money.  the mother promised herself that one day they would be replaced.  that day has come and the dolls have been sent to the daughter, now grown and married, the promise fulfilled.

whites vs lights

these are the 2 elfa drawers containing whites and lights.  as you can see, i have far too many white scraps, most of which are from backing leftovers.  fortunately the christmas scrappy needs about 900 more of these for the scrappy quilt, so hopefully the drawer will be closer to empty when all the pieces have been cut.  i would much rather be using the lights, but they will keep.  ***** this morning already i have "busted" more solid scraps, tiny pieces that in years past would have gotten tossed but have now been repurposed into mini amish 9-patches.  *****  i have noticed again today that my other elfa drawers are less full. meaning i can open and close them without difficulty...LOL!  every so often i go through each drawer and see what scraps i have and how i might use them.  i have started a few new small projects and have others planned.  sewing has overtaken housework for sure!

christmas scrappy progress

here are 2 rows so far.  they look pretty lonely on the design wall.  the unfinished width of each strip is 3.5" and each strip is 72.5" long.  the finished size will be 66 x 72, big enough to hand quilt and for whatever use i'll need.  all you quilt police turn your heads because this is a real scrappy, meaning no rhyme or reason to prints placement.  the whites are some WOW and some solid, again no placement order.  and some of my points got mysteriously cut off.  so there, that's the whole truth.  even so, it's pretty and will be a great holiday (or anytime) snuggle quilt.  remember, i do this for pure enjoyment, nothing else.  ***** see those videos stacked on the floor in the lower right corner?  they need a home; hoping that i'll finish enough UFOs that will clear space on the shelving unit for them.

wreath flimsy

tuesday morning before i pulled out the christmas scrappy, i finished this flimsy.  now it's off my design wall and in the "baste" pile.  my muse must be in a holiday spirit directing me to these christmas-color projects.  hmmm, maybe my next project will be to finish the "carolina christmas" flimsy too, you think? 

a really old UFO

this pattern, "woven ribbons," by darlene zimmerman appeared in a 1998 issue of american patchwork and quilting.  i tore it out and filed it away because its scrappiness called to me.  some time later, i had some WOW scraps with a holly pattern and lots of christmas scraps from tree skirts and other projects.  i decided to make a scrappy christmas quilt.  today i once again pulled out the shoebox and found that i still like this a lot.  so, in the bottom photo you'll see the quilt in progress.  in addition to the WOW scraps, i'm using up plain old white scraps as well.  this quilt will also be quilted, but there isn't that much white space and plenty of color in this scrappy.  this is the only strip done so far, with about 20 more to go, but it's a good way to spend the hours and keep the old viking humming!

scrap tales

with this set of scraps (whites, solids, batiks), i decided to see what they could be used for and made up the block at the bottom.  alas, it's totally without zing....scrappy yes but boring!  so, back to the drawing board.  i decided to use the solids to make some mini 9-patch amish blocks and put the others aside for now.  the whites are leftovers from backings and backgrounds of other projects and i just can't simply toss them.  i do have a scrappy christmas in progress to use them up, but i'll still have some left over i'm sure.  the big problem with white fabric is that it simply STOPS any action in the quilt completely.  sometimes i use it purposely for quilting space, but

usually prefer to have more zing in my projects....

we have liftoff!

the 3 eagle chicks at wildlife center of virginia that were rescued after their mother was killed near the nest at norfolk botanical gardens are starting to fledge.  two have flown from the nest onto a nearby fake branch within their enclosure.  the 3 chicks, a misleading description since they each weigh about 10 pounds, won't be leaving the enclosure for the last time until august but they will soon get some additional room to strengthen their wings and polish their flying technique.  it's been educational and fun to watch them grow; sometimes they act just like human toddlers!  i'll miss them when they are released, but it's what they were born to do.  a calendar will be issued later this year with photos of the parent eagles, a tribute to the mother, dubbed "lady legacy," and of the chicks, proceeds of which benefit the wildlife center.  the president of WCV calls the chicks the center's rock stars due to the unprecedented worldwide interest prompting 24-hour online streaming for all their fans.  if you want to check them out before they are gone, it's www.wcev.com, the local TV station with a link directly to the eaglecam.  one caveat:  sometimes there are dead rats or fish in the nest!