Heart of Vermont Sampler

We finally got outside to take some photos of the quilt I finished quilting and binding last week!  It was either too hot, too cloudy, too rainy before, but yesterday was perfect weather.  

The blocks in the Sampler were 9" (finished) and some were made by members of my local Heart of Vermont guild.  Here's a closup.

These projects are always tricky because some of the blocks are wonderful but others are a bit "off."   I deal with those in various ways, including taking them apart and making new blocks; adding some coping strips to get them up to size; and putting them in my "orphan" box to use another time.   In this instance, I actually made one very similar to another block a friend had made, because it seemed to need an echo.  I also put a few on the back and surrounded them with scrap fabrics for a pieced back.   As you may be able to see from the back, I quilted all the blocks differently, using my walking foot.  I love the inner border fabric which I also used for the cornerstones.

This quilt will eventually go to an old library friend of Paul's who has retired to Kentucky.  We have talked about driving out to visit him (I'd like to go to Paducah, too), but we're not sure when we'll be able to.  So I will probably mail it to him.

Yesterday, I also made a blueberry-peach pie, with peaches I had frozen last summer and some blueberries from our bushes.  I even made the pie crust from scratch, using a recipe from King Arthur Flour.  It's the first time I've encountered buttermilk powder in a crust recipe, but it was delicious.  We had salad for dinner and will be having lite meals until the pie is gone!  In the early evening, we played croquet with the neighbors and gathered for wine and conversation in the back yard, at social distances (of course).  These are definitely the lazy days of summer.

Busy, busy

It's been a busy week, and this coming one looks like it will be similarly busy.  Monday was our usual monthly library board meeting, and Tuesday the monthly quilt guild meeting.  Our speaker, Sharon, at the latter came from Bennington, 2.5 hours south of us, and because I know her slightly, I offered to have her spend the night rather than driving home late.  I was not on the May guild "team," but so many of their members couldn't come that I arrived early to help Sarah, Marty and Betty set up chairs and tables.  Then we all met Sharon for a quick dinner across the street from the church.

Sharon's program on mini quilts was amazing because she showed a seemingly endless array of minis she has made.  I estimate about 75 came out of her suitcase, and we spread them out on tables around the room.  I had made a mini for the paint chip challenge which was one part of the show and tell, too.  The colors I drew were royal blue, light blue, and lime green, and the night we drew the colors, a floral in the same colors happened to be on the "free" table.  I just had to use it.

After the program, Sharon came home with me and we had a great chat about all sorts of quilting things.  She isn't a fan of the Studio 180 approach to quilting (sew it bigger and cut it precisely using specialized rulers) either.   She shared some hints for paper piecing and gave me a nice schoolhouse pattern.  I do think I should make more minis but somehow my quilts always end up so large.

Later in the week, I worked on my "convergence" quilt, begun after the Ricky Tims Luminarium.  The top was hanging on the design wall, waiting to be sandwiched, and I noticed it was crooked.  So I cut the borders off and squared it up again.  Then I added a new border and quilted it Friday.  It looks good.  I finished sewing the binding down to the back on Saturday at my other, smaller guild meeting where we do handwork while chatting.  Very relaxing and often very informative.

Also on Friday, I started pin-basting a sampler quilt made of blocks from an exchange with an online group, Moda "Blockheads" weekly blocks, and other miscellaneous blocks.  There were so many colors in the blocks that I sashed them with a black print which has a green vine with red dots.  I have the binding all cut and ready to put on whenever I finish quilting.  But I took a couple of days basting because, when I use the bed in the guest room, I need to bend over and, thus, was taking care of my back.  It's only 62" x 72" so will end up a nice throw.

This week:  house cleaning! emergency library board meeting!  more quilting!

Quilting challenges

Our speaker at guild Tuesday night spoke of challenges and how they can help you grow as a quilter.  I must say that Dear Jane was a personal challenge that helped me grow a great deal and, as a bonus, introduced me to quite a few like-minded quilters all over the world.  Usually, I participate in at least one swap and/or challenge in my guild each year.  This year, I'm doing three of the five, and I may even do one more.

Tuesday night, we chose three paint chips from a bag and have to make something out of those colors.  The majority of the fabrics in whatever we choose to make have to be those colors, so today I did a little digging in my stash.  I had chosen lime green, light blue and a medium blue, and I have quite a few scraps in those colors which go so well together.  Another person I was talking to chose red, purple, and brown, so I'm really feeling lucky.  I hope to make a mini pineapple quilt.  We'll see how it goes!  I don't think it's due until June, so I have everything in a baggie waiting for a snowy day (which could of course be in the next couple of weeks, but I hope not til January).

The next challenge will be an Ohio Star block swap in any colors we choose.  We need to make 21 blocks, which shouldn't be hard at all.  I love that block.

I also signed up for a "block robin."  This will result in a sampler, which I enjoy making.  We each put fabric into a bag with a request for whatever size blocks we want.  We make three blocks a month for the other people.  Here's a sneak peek of what I made for Marie who included one challenging print that wasn't quite straight with the grain.   I needed to fussy cut the centers of the 12" blocks, but they - Cake Stand, Cypress, and Maple Star -  turned out pretty good.

This year, I chose a bunch of black and white prints, oranges, and yellows.  I'll be doing the guild's "blocks of the month" in the same fabrics while my bag goes around so that I'll end up with at least 25 blocks in the end, and maybe more if I feel like making more in between times. 

I have plenty of UFOs so may also join in the UFO challenge, which we can begin at any time.  Tuesday, several people showed their UFOs that they hope to complete this year, and it was sort of like an old fashioned "altar call."   One lady showed the blocks from last year's "block robin," but mine is already finished and we're sleeping under it.  I felt smug!

Round robin is home

Last fall, I made four pineapple blocks as the center of a round robin.  I have always wanted to make a pineapple quilt but hate paper piecing.  I made it through the four blocks, and that was enough for me.  I find taking the paper out at the end a real chore - and messy.  The center was packed away with a lot of miscellaneous scraps and a bunch of shirting, and then it made the rounds of five members of my local quilt guild.  We had the reveal the other night, and I'm really pleased with the result.

Marie, Lynn, Margaret, Paula, and Pat each added her own stamp to the quilt.   At the guild meeting, the last person to work on the quilt got up and explained what was done during each round.  This was the first time the owner had seen her quilt, and there were lots of oohs and aahs.  I love all the different quilts I worked on this year.  Maybe we encouraged a few more people to give it a try.

Now the challenge for me is how to quilt it.  I have hung it in the closet with the other UFOs.  I think I now have five waiting.  This summer I hope to make some headway.  My sewing room has air conditioning so is sometimes the best place to be on a hot day.  On this one, I will probably stitch in the ditch to hold the rounds together and then do a variety of quilting.  It should be fun.

Guild meeting

I went to my local guild meeting last night and, while everyone else was showing and telling big quilts, I brought a couple of the little zipper bags I've been working on.  The one on the left uses my latest favorite shape, the tumbler, and the one on the right shows one of the candy wrapper bags I've been struggling with.  I love the tumbler shape - it can be used in many different ways, is easy to cut, and goes together really nicely.  This bag uses little 2.5" charms in a minipack I got ages ago.  The fabric line, "Hubba Hubba," was so cute I couldn't resist.  I used them to make two little bags which I will try to sell at the fall craft show.

I saw the candy wrapper bag online somewhere, and there was a pattern in "Block" magazine.  Our family has been struggling (!!) with the high volume of M&Ms that have come into the house with this new endeavor.  I made two bags using the pattern in "Block" but I had to throw one away, because the stitching ripped as I was turning the finished product right side out.  The pattern said to quilt the laminated candy wrapper but I think it would be better to use fusible fleece on the lining and quilt that.  At least that's what I'm going to try next.  Yes - we are eating another round of M&Ms, both regular and dark chocolate.

The meeting also included demos of making flying geese two ways and using the Tucker Trimmer.  Having taken a class with Deb Tucker this summer, it was a good review.  I do love her laminated technique sheets, and my Atlantic Crossing wallhanging (waiting for me to hand quilt it) was started in her class.  Going to guild always energizes me which is bad since I get home at nearly 8 pm.  So I had a little wine to help me wind down, and this morning I'm ready to get back into the sewing room!

Gift bag challenge

Every year, our Heart of Vermont quilt guild has a challenge, and whenever I hear about one, I pass the idea along to our leaders.  An online quilting friend told us about a challenge her guild did, and we have adopted it for the coming year.  Each person gets a gift bag and then has to make something quilted that is both inspired by the bag and fits inside it.

I was asked to write up the guidelines, and then Paula gave me a bag to come up with a sample.  Bless her, she chose a bag that's purple, blue, and pink florals.  I noticed some lacy bits about the edges, too, which made me think of my stash of hankies.  I got a few out and incorporated them into this table topper.  I made a few dimensional flowers as accents and also machine quilted it.  It will be nice on a hall table.  The original challenge had everyone buying a bag from the guild, but we decided it would be just as much fun if everyone brought in a medium (not too big, not to tiny) gift bag.  We'll put them into plain brown bags and let people draw them so it will be a real challenge.  At least the final product doesn't have to be very big!