May Goal Accomplished

There was lots to do in May for Lori's Sweet Land of Liberty sew-along (hosted on Cheri's Facebook page).  I knew I wouldn't be able to finish everything so I set a goal for what I knew I could reasonably finish.  I'm pleased with the progress, and especially pleased that I was able to get all of the vine and the two birds and star on the right side appliqued. 

The hand, basket, berries, and eagle are ready to be stitched down (though the eagle has been flying around trying to decide exactly where to perch).  I still have to prepare the letters and stitch them into place, too.  There's plenty to do to be caught up but, on the other hand, I have July's sections finished already, so perhaps I'll catch up by the beginning of August.

Just now I noticed that the heart fabric on the hand is the same fabric in the flag the angel is holding.  I may change the heart fabric.  I added a 1½" strip on the left side between the flying geese and the rest of the quilt (above) and a 3" strip (instead of the 2" in the pattern) on the right side between the economy blocks and the rest of the quilt (below).  I know that means I'll have to adjust the width in the rest of the quilt.  I hope it won't look obvious.  I wanted a quilt that was closer to 60" than 57".  I also want a longer quilt but I'm not sure if I can successfully accomplish it.

I think this is my second primitive style quilt.  (The other, Baskets of Plenty, is still blocks waiting to be sashed and quilted.)  I don't know how this one will look by the time it's finished but I suspect it won't have the quaint, inviting, truly primitive appearance that Cheri's does.  But it will keep someone warm for a nap.

Since this was my One Monthly Goal for May I'm linking this post to One Monthly Goal May Finish link-up at Elm Street Quilts.  Thanks for hosting, Patty.

--Nancy.
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Sweet Land of Liberty Progress and One Monthly Goal

I'm only a week late finishing my blocks for the Sweet Land of Liberty sew-along.  That's okay, every block and every quilt will get it's turn for attention.

The second month's blocks for April included
> the "of thee I sing" angel with flag and banner
> the eagle and flag
> 4 pieced stars, and
> 12 flying geese (mine don't look very primitive)

Granted, I'll need to add hair to the angel and an eye to the eagle (and maybe some writing) but I'm calling this finished for April.

For May, the third month of the Sweet Land of Liberty sew-along (hosted by Lori of Humble Quilts on Cheri Payne's Friendship Group on Facebook) we have a lot more to do.  We'll be putting the top row of the quilt together and adding the upper border and part of the side borders, specifically,

• sew all the blocks for the top row together
• cut a wide strip for the upper border and sew the pieced stars to it
• sew together flying geese for the left side and economy blocks for the right side, and sew those to either side of the quilt
• attach the upper border to the first row of blocks
• cut and applique a basket with a star
• cut and applique about two yards of vines plus berries, stars, eagle on the top border
• cut and applique the words, "Sweet Land of Liberty" on the top border
• cut and applique a hand on the upper left
• cut an applique two birds, a star, and the letters America along the right border

Whew!  This may be my month for watching lots of movies.  The hardest part for me will be choosing the fabric for the top border, though it will take time to prep the applique pieces, too.

My One Monthly Goal for May is to attach the top row of blocks together; attach the top border with stars; sew together the geese and the economy blocks and sew them to the sides; and prepare the basket, vines, and berries.  I think I can accomplish those things if I stay focused.  Whatever else I accomplish will be a bonus.

I'm linking this post to One Monthly Goal May Goal Setting Link-up at Elm Street Quilts.
I'm also linking this post to BOMs Away at What a Hoot Quilts.  Thanks for hosting, ladies.

--Nancy.
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A Little House (and a few other blocks) - One Monthly Goal in March

I put Sweet Land of Liberty aside for a while because I couldn't keep up last year when Lori of Humble Quilts was doing the sew-along.  I was thrilled to learn that she's offering it again on Cheri Payne's Facebook page, beginning this month.  Since I started late last year, I can begin at the beginning with everyone else this time around.  Maybe I can keep up!

The first blocks include a house with crow and flag; a large flag basket with crow; the pieced letters USA, and 5 economy blocks.  Not a lot of work but I'm slow.

These are the blocks I've finished on this quilt to date (except the house), arranged in no particular order.  Some need additional applique or lettering.

I'm looking forward to making progress on this quilt again so I've determined this month's blocks are my One Monthly Goal for March.

I'm linking this post to One Monthly Goal March Link-up at Elm Street Quilts.  Thanks for hosting, Patty.

--Nancy.
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Sweet Land of Liberty for August

Uneven stars?  Sure, no problem, I can make uneven stars.  I made a bunch for my Gwenny Medallion quilt. 

Oh, wait!  How do I do this again?  Making uneven stars is not like riding a bicycle!  I had trouble getting the first few angles right and had to unstitch several points, then ended with stars that are smaller than Cheri's.  These stars were a challenge.  And while I was making them without using the paper-piecing pattern because I don't paper-piece, it occurred to me that I was reinventing the wheel.  It's so much easier when one follows the program.  But there are some of us who have the need to go our own way....

These are my efforts for the Sweet Land of Liberty sew-along hosted by Lori of Humble Quilts.  Many thanks to Lori for organizing this sew-along.  It is both a challenge and fun.  Below are the parts I finished for August and notes about the change I made.  I'm a little further behind now than I was at the beginning of the month.  I think it's a good possibility I won't catch up to finish with everyone else who's participating, but so it goes.

I changed the flag.  A real U.S. flag has red stripes on both outer edges so I edited the pattern a little.  (I'm such a realist sometimes.)  My stripes are wider.  I'm happier with the balance.  The union will be at the top (as in the photo above), not at the bottom as Cheri stitched it in her original quilt.  I may add a star or three to the union (but definitely not the pattern's original seven or eight).

I haven't done the little angel with halo and "freedom" yet because I don't want embroidery on a quilt.  But I haven't had time to buy one more pen/marker to test for wash-ability and write-ability on fabric.  If I can get to the store this weekend to get one, I will have three different pens to try out.  When I learn which works I'll have several blocks to "embroider" with a pen.  I still need to choose fabric for the background and letters, then make and embroider them.  The yellow/golds below are possibilities for the crown but I may choose something darker.

The log cabin and eagle block is finished except for appliqueing to his side.

I haven't yet made the little embroidered remembrance block with the two birds and heart.  It's all embroidery on the pattern so I probably won't use pen to draw it but I may try to find a pattern to applique something similar.  Or stitch a pieced block.

So, if you write on fabric and want it to be permanent, what kind of pen or marker do you use?  Does it write smoothly on fabric?  Did you try pens/markers that you didn't like?

I'm linking this post to Month Sweet land of Liberty Linky party at Humble Quilts.  Thanks, Lori.

I'm also linking to BOMs Away at What a Hoot Quilts.  Thank you, Lynette.

--Nancy.
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Victory Bowl and Liberty Fish, Plus a Few Stars

I can hardly believe I've finished this month's section of Sweet Land of Liberty before the end of the month!  (I'm participating in Lori's quilt-along at Humble Quilts).  Of course, I have a ways to go before I'm caught up -- about four months' worth to go!


These were fun blocks to make.  I love practically everything about them, something I don't often say.  The bowl fabric -- gosh, it's beautiful in person  -- is almost copper in color.  (The line is where the fabric was folded.  It will quilt out.)   It's a color I love but rarely find.  This fabric came from a thrift store shirt.  And the flowers:  unusually bold of me to put that lighter fabric behind the deeper striped fabric.  The doves fabric came from part of a sheet pressed into use for a round tablecloth.  They are not quite white, leaning just slightly, just barely toward peach/coral/pink.  Maybe noticeable in the photo when compared to the much whiter "liberty" fabric.

I like the flag and fish almost as much as the bowl.  The fish's tail is a little wavy but I know that will quilt out.  The tail and head were my first time sewing curves for a quilt block.  Not exactly a great success but I wasn't about to redo them.  Those letters are a lot out of kilter, maybe the only part of this block I'm not thrilled with but, again, I'm not about to change them.  (At least not yet.)

While I was working on the flag the beautiful song "America" came to mind and I envisioned some of the lyrics -- spacious skies, amber waves of grain, purple mountains....  I especially love the phrase, "Confirm thy soul in self control."  Gosh, wouldn't America be a grander place if we all had a little more self control?

I read Robin's post about her interpretation of this block.  She stitched a tree and added the words, "Let music swell the breeze and ring from all the trees sweet freedom's song."  I couldn't remember those lyrics in "America" and suddenly realized the theme of this quilt is not "America" but "My Country 'Tis of Thee," which is just as beautiful (though I like the tune for "America" better).

And here are the five pieced stars.  These look a little cloudy, washed out even, in the photo.  I left them wider than 5½" because I'm still hoping to add enough width to have a quilt that's about 64" wide.  I don't know if/how these colors will work with the other blocks and will make others if they don't.

Finishing these stars and the two sections of Sweet Land of Liberty, above, completes my One Monthly Goal for July.

Now I'm on to Bromeliad for my version of Linda Brannock's Flowers quilt.

Fabrics for consideration....  These may change completely by tomorrow afternoon.

I hope you have a great weekend.

Nancy.

I'm linking this post to
> One Monthly Goal - July link-up at Elm Street Quilts
> Finished or Not Friday and Busy Hands Quilts
> Thank Goodness It's Finished Friday (TGIFF) at Sarah Goer Quilts
> Can I Get a Whoop Whoop? at Confessions of a Fabric Addict
> BOMs Away at What a Hoot!
Thanks for hosting, ladies.
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The Stars Can Wait

These are my blocks for this month's Sweet Land of Liberty sew-along hosted by Lori of Humble Quilts.  Thank you, Lori!

In the original pattern there are stars on the corners of the checkerboard block.  But the stars can wait.  I tried several different colors but none seemed quite right.  I'll add them when I finish some of the previous parts of the quilt and see what color stars the block wants.  (Your quilts do tell you what they want sometimes, don't they?)

I love this quilt for the challenges it offers me as a new-to-primitive-style quilter.  The casualness is probably really good for me even though it feels (maybe) a little stressful at times.

I wasn't sure I'd enjoy making the Snail's Trail blocks but they turned out to be fun, if just a little time consuming with so many seams and presses between.  They make me think of ocean waves, perfect for a quilt called Sweet Land of Liberty, which makes me think of the song, "America," in which we sing "from sea to shining sea."

I don't enjoy making the Economy blocks much but I love them when they're finished.  I might love them so much that I'll make a whole quilt of them.  You'd think that a block with 8 seams would be a piece of cake to make, but lining up the triangles required care and was time consuming.

I'm looking forward to the time when I have sections of this quilt that can be sewn together.  Those who started the quilt in January are half finished.  I may not finish "on time" but I'll work to catch up and eventually finish.

I love the unpretentiousness of this quilt.  It doesn't take itself too seriously, adapts to imperfections, and encourages a bit of improvisation when needed.  I think Cheri Payne was a masterful quilter and quilt designer.  As I work on this quilt I am impressed with how she made things fit together yet kept the casual, primitive look.  Unpretentious, yes, but also very busy.  There will be so much to look at when it's finished.

This is a quilt I know I would not have made without the support and encouragement of others working on it at the same time.  Again, thank you, Loir.

--Nancy.
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Sweet Land of Liberty, May

This is the fifth installment of the Sweet Land of Liberty sew-along hosted by Lori of Humble Quilts.  The pattern was created by Cheri Payne and I love it in all its primitive busyness.  But I feel way out of my element making this quilt.  On the other hand, it's a great learning experience and pushes me to test my abilities and push them along a little more.

I still have a flag to add to the blocks above.  I oriented my dolls differently than in the pattern which might make it a little difficult for one of the dolls to hold the flag pole.  I also need to figure out how to cut and applique a quarter inch strip for the pole.  It may be a chunky, out-of-proportion pole for the flag -- more like she's holding a log, maybe.

I'm far behind on this quilt.  The sew-along began in January and I hesitated, wavered, was indecisive about whether or not to participate.  In February I decided to join in and began with one of that month's pieces, the eagle.  When I finished the eagle, I put it away for safe keeping and promptly forgot where it was.  I searched but couldn't find it.  It reappeared in May and I picked up with the May blocks.  I'll have to spend extra time to finish the January through April blocks, plus keep up with June's.  And I have to give credit to Robin for help with the pattern.  She is very generous!

Here's the eagle surrounded by this month's Economy blocks, flying geese, and the little flag.  It almost looks like the beginnings of a medallion quilt, don't you think? 

The eagle needs a few stars and an eye.  I probably won't do any lettering and I'll let the hand quilting accent the wings instead of adding the suggested embroidery.

Gosh, those Economy blocks are hard to make, especially considering they only have eight seams!  Even though I followed the pattern, and even though I realigned the tape guide on my sewing machine, I couldn't get them right.  I eventually figured out the problem.  I should have made them all while I was on a roll.  If you have any pointers or tricks for Economy blocks I'd be thrilled to hear them.

Many thanks to Lori for this sew-along, to Cheri Payne for creating the pattern, and many, many thanks to Robin for help with the pattern.

I better get back to cutting and sewing!

I'm linking this post to Month 5 Sweet land of Liberty Linky Party! at Humble Quilts.

--Nancy.
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Blocks for My First Sampler Quilt

This is one of those times when I'm low on creative energy, maybe because I'm still recovering from that bug I had, or--who knows why.  When this happens I'm grateful to others who host online sew-alongs, make patterns available for free, and for quilting books and magazines.  They help me move forward when I don't have my own great ideas ready to begin.

One of the admins in Cheri Payne's Facebook group recently began a sew-along using the patterns from Everyday Patchwork on her blog.  It's a sample quilt and suggested we choose any nine and then she would give us the next step.  When I looked at the patterns I decided to make all the blocks and turn them into a quilt following her pattern for finishing the quilt. 

These are 6" blocks but Cheri adds a 1" border (cut at 1½") around each making each block 8".  It's an interesting addition, I think.  She also uses sashing between the blocks.

I started making the easiest blocks first and then realized I'd be happier to have the hard ones finished first--smooth sailing downhill, so to speak--so I cut and stitched the green, blue, and lower left block,  I don't know if those are the hardest but they are certainly not the easiest, at least for me.

The blocks that have multiple small triangles will be a challenge for me.  Somehow, the blue one, center row left, and the red and tan one, lower left, are both at least ¼" too large.  My diagonal seams are a true ¼" but the others must not be.  At least that narrow border around the edges will help compensate with these two blocks but I'll have to take more care on the others.

I like this sampler quilt because the blocks are small and I can use scraps to make them.  I can see the value in making a sampler quilt as I work on these.  It's a great way to try out blocks I might not be inclined to make otherwise.  And they push my skills a little, too, I think. 

My One Monthly Goal for May is to make the other blocks to reach a total of  25.  I may make enough to have a quilt that's 5 blocks x 6 blocks but I'm claiming only 25 blocks total as my goal this month.

Do you ever run out of creative energy?  Do you notice if it happens, such as when you're tired, have been sick, have personal or family challenges, or at other times?  What do you do when your creative energy runs low?

I'm linking this post to One Monthly Goal - May Goal Setting Link-up at Elm Street Quilts.  Thank you for hosting, Patty.

I'm also linking this post to Oh Scrap! and Quilting is more fun than Housework.  Thank you, Cynthia.

--Nancy.

Bleeding Blue

We always read or hear the horror stories of red bleeding, but blue?  It looks like this little flower has a blue halo.  It's crazy because...

...the same blue fabric, used in the flower below, was washed the same way, stitched the same way and did not bleed.  I guess I should throw what's left of that fabric into the washer with some dark jeans and other navy fabrics and let it bleed away.

These flowers are on the primitive basket blocks made for Cheri Payne's Baskets of Plenty sew-along.   I took them off the wall again today, arranged them on the floor, decided that several backgrounds were too light and sprayed walnut dye on them.  When I rinsed them out, there was that blue bleeding onto the background.  I guess that little round flower is just going to have a halo.

Have you had experience with blue fabrics bleeding?

--Nancy.
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Flags and Crows Joins 2017 Bloggers Quilt Festival

Amy of Amy's Creative Side is once again hosting the Bloggers Quilt Festival this fall.  It's a festival where many quilting bloggers share their favorite finishes from the past 12 months. 

This year Simply Flags and Crows is participating in the Festival.  I rarely use patterns and when I do, I usually adapt them one way or another.  That's true with this quilt, too.  I wanted this for my front door and began it the last week in June and finished it in time for the Fourth.  Record speed for me!  But then, it's a small quilt, finishing at about 18" x 24".  It was such a speedy quilt that I didn't take measurements as I went along or even at the finish.

This is a primitive pattern and practically everything about the quilt is primitive, including the stitching and thread.

The fabrics are mostly plaids and a few prints and the thread was an old spool of thick cotton that came in a box at an auction, or possibly from a thrift store.  It was sturdy and worked for this quilt.

I can report that this quilt hung on our front door for over two months and I haven't noticed any fading of the fabric.

I hope you'll visit this year's Bloggers Quilt Festival and enjoy the great variety of quilts submitted by participants.

--Nancy.

Basket Play

As usual, I'm behind with my Basket of Plenty for July/early August.  There was rain -- days and days of rain.  Some days were so dark we needed lights on inside.  Artificial light makes it hard to see and choose colors.  And then we had family in and out of town for three weeks.  Interaction with family is definitely a higher priority than choosing fabric and appliqueing a quilt block.

I chose the fabric for the basket (which, in real life, tends a little more to teal than in this photo) and cut and stitched the bottom half before the rain.  The bird is basted but nothing else is definite in this block.  I hope I can choose fabric for flowers before we have rain again tomorrow and then I can play with placement.

These are the pattern pieces for this block.  The leaves and several flower shapes are obvious but some of the pattern pieces can be combined to make six or eight different flowers.

You probably can't see it well (unless you click on the above photo to enlarge it) but along the side of the paper with the bird I've penciled in a few possible arrangements of the pattern pieces to create different flowers.  Decisions, decisions.

This quilt-along has been a fun and interesting challenge.  There's so much variety from block to block and I don't want to use the same fabrics for each block as I might for more traditional pieced blocks.  Baskets and flowers just want variety.  And yet not knowing what the blocks will look like in advance makes it hard to plan what the whole quilt might look like.  But it's fun to play.  With all the options for variety in the pattern pieces I suppose there are enough to make dozens and dozens of basket blocks.

There's just one more block in this quilt-along after this one so I guess we'll be finished with the applique blocks by mid-September.  I don't know if Cheri will suggest a layout or not.

I'm linking this post to
> WOW at Esther's Blog
> Let's Bee Social #188 at Sew Fresh Quilts
> Midweek Makers #83 at Quilt Fabrication
Thanks for hosting, ladies.

--Nancy.
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Poor Little Crow - Baskets of Plenty #6

It's a good thing this poor little crow is made of fabric and has no awareness of himself.  Otherwise, he might notice that his beak looks more like a dolphin's nose and that his tail feathers are permanently  ruffled.  I continue to struggle with the points of turned-edge applique:  they tend to curve, as the tips of the right and left hearts do, or not be very pointed at all.  I'm hoping the adage "practice makes perfect" is true.

This is basket #6 of Cheri Payne's Facebook sew-along, Baskets of Plenty.  Her blocks are always so full and rich with plenty of leaves and berries.  Her version of this basket has two small crows facing each other with a heart between.  Of course, we don't know her layout until after we've had four weeks to decide and stitch down our own.

Cheri used a charcoal background for her block but thinking that charcoal would not settle well with the colors in my other blocks, I chose this brown fabric.  At one time it was a shirt.  I used the back because the front had tiny, small, light leaves and tiny pink buds.  The color was right but the print was too busy.  The reverse seemed fine.

I like the colors of the flowers in this block a lot and I especially like them against the brown background.  Perhaps a peach/pink/coral and brown quilt is in my future.

I backed myself into a corner with this block.  I appliqued everything but the centers of the flowers on the right and then couldn't find fabric I thought worked.  I tried several blues, a brown or two, and a couple in the red range.  All of them weighed down the right side and drew the eye directly to them.  I opted to stay in the same color range as the other flowers.

I envisioned one little heart in the center of the basket but it nearly disappeared laying there by itself.  I imagined a string of hearts across the top of the basket but those hearts are so small and hard to make that I stopped with three.  Wednesday morning I laid all three where they are now and thought them perfect.  They, too, were cut from recycled shirts.

I call this block finished and I'm satisfied with it but I know that as it hangs on the wall it may insist on leaves or some other addition.

The top photo was taken in natural light without a flash, the bottom with a flash.  They're really close in color but the bottom one is slightly truer to the colors of the fabric than the first.  If you want to see details click on either photo.  I'm not using Blogger's Lightbox so they'll enlarge several times.


I'm linking this post to
> Oh Scrap! at Quilting is more fun than Housework
> Finished or Not Friday at Busy Hands Quilts
> finish it up Friday at crazy mom quilts
> TGIFF at Janda Bend Quilts
Thanks for hosting, ladies.

--Nancy.

A Blue Plaid Linen Shirt

The back of a blue, plaid, linen shirt seemed the perfect choice for the back of a small quilt.  The shirt had already been washed, dried, and cut apart, but not yet ironed.  It was large enough for my little flag quilt with inches to spare around the edges.  (Surely, the backs of gently used shirts must be a great choice for little quilts!)

Anyone who reads my blog regularly will have seen this quilt twice in the past week or two.  I apologize for that but I did want to record its making and details, finished in one week--from choosing fabrics, to sewing, to hand quilting, to binding.  Many thanks to Cheri Payne for this sweet pattern which can be found here.

Before quilting the top measured about 18" x 21".

For batting I wished for a piece of flannel but having none large enough I overlapped two small pieces of cotton batting (probably Warm and Natural) and stitched the length of them by machine.  The overlap is not obvious on the finished quilt.  Then I layered the quilt, batting, and linen back, basted the layers, and began quilting.  I think the batting was a better choice for thickness.

I don't have a great assortment of quilting thread on hand but I have some wooden spools of old "Intrinsic" thread, size 24, made by The American Thread Company.  I don't know their age but they are sound and the size is similar to, but slightly larger than, American brand quilting thread that I see at JoAnn stores.
 

I used it.  I reasoned that this is a primitive quilt and took a made-do attitude about it.

My attitude about the quilting was also primitive and make-do.  No fine quilting stitches on this.  I would call it big stitch except that the thread is finer than I've seen most use for big stitch quilting.

It's amazing what the eye misses that close-up photo shows.  All those little details... and mistakes....  Don't look too closely at that star or you'll see some really primitive applique stitches!  Still, it held in place through the washer and dryer.

When it came to binding I thought the quilt needed either red or blue.  Most of my red shirts are plaid with lights so I chose blue shirt with low contrast blues for the binding.

The finished quilt measures 16¼" x 20¼".  It now graces our front door and welcomes visitors.

Thanks for your patience with too many photos and details of this little quilt.  I was glad for a quick finish between other quilts and projects.

--Nancy.

Tulips, Maybe?

I'm imagining the flowers on the left as tulips (maybe?), which makes me think of spring colors--yellows, peaches, pinks, roses.  I like these flower fabrics together but they are so very similar to each other.  The ones on the right will get dark centers but the ones on the left, whatever fabric I choose, will be just those fabrics without any additional color to each.

This is my first round of color and fabric possibilities for Cheri Payne's Basket of Plenty Block 6 sew-along on facebook.  Cheri used a dark background for her basket so I'm giving a darker-than-my-usual-neutral background a try.  I like the brown which I think looks like a darker version of the color range for the baskets I've already made.  The basket fabric is set and so is the little black crow but I think the flowers and stems will change -- or at least some of them.  I'll play  more tomorrow.

These are the pattern pieces we were given for this basket.

Those little wavy round flowers and curves and dips along the top of the flower on the left are such a challenge for me with my newly-growing but very limited turned-edge applique skills.  I will probably substitute simple round flowers like the ones on the right in the top photo.

For me, choosing the fabrics and colors takes much longer than hand stitching the shapes in place.  The more options I have, the harder it is to choose.

When you are choosing colors for a quilt (or a block in a quilt, like this one) do you choose all your fabrics before cutting and stitching or do you choose as you go along?

I'm linking this post to
> Oh Scrap! at Quilting is more fun than Housework
> WOW at Esther's Blog
> Let's Bee Social #184 at Sew Fresh Quilts
> Midweek Makers #79 at Quilt Fabrication
> sew stitch snap SHARE at Koka Quilts
> Finished or Not Friday at Busy Hands Quilts

Thanks for hosting, ladies.

--Nancy.

Happy Independence Day

I hope you and your loved ones have a glorious Fourth.

My heart is full of gratitude to those courageous men who chose to declare independence from England and for the divine inspiration I believe Thomas Jefferson received to write the Declaration of Independence.  I hope never to forget the cost of freedom for us who live in the United States of America.

--Nancy.

A Little Patriotic Quilt

If you judged my patriotism by the number of red, white, and blue quilts I have in my home you would guess that I'm not the least patriotic.  I decided to fix that and make a flag quilt this week while I was between other things.

This quilt is adapted from a free Cheri Payne pattern, one she offered for a Summerthyme blog hop in 2015.  Many thanks to Cheri for sharing her talents.

The flags finish at 3" x 4" with 1" sashing and 1¾" borders.  I thought the size would be perfect for a door quilt.  In its current state -- without batting, backing, quilting, or washing -- it seems a little large but I maybe it will shrink and be comfortable on our front door.  I hope to get it layered, hand quilted, bound, and washed by or before the Fourth.  Can I do it?!  (I'm usually pretty slow....) 

This is my third quilty finish in three weeks.  I'm thrilled but I won't expect the speed of those finishes to come so regularly.

Happy Independence Day if you live in the United States of America.  Happy July 4th if you live anywhere else.

I'm linking this post to
> Finished or Not Friday at Busy Hands Quilts
> finish it up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts
> Can I Get a Whoop Whoop? at Confessions of a Fabric Addict
> Show Off Saturday at Sew Can She
Thank you, ladies, for hosting these link-ups every week.

--Nancy.

Baskets of Plenty Block 5 Finished

This is my small finish:  Basket Block 5 of Cheri Payne's Baskets of Plenty sew-along.  It's relatively small in size at it's 10½" x 13½" but not small in time.  It may eventually get further embellishment but it's finished for now. 

It has been the hardest block for me so far.  The large flower shape with "fingers" is a challenge for my limited turned-edge cotton applique skills.  And choosing colors was hard.  Comparing my original idea for flower color and the one I've used, I think I like the original idea better, though I do like these two blues.  But I see that the first color will be great for the next basket.  

I tend to be a realist.  My mind wants to know what kind of flower that is so I can choose colors the flower would be in real life (but I couldn't figure out what flower this might be).  If there are four flowers, I imagine they should all be blooming at the same time or at least be available for sale at a store at the same time.  Silly, I know, because it limits artistic license.  These primitive blocks help me work my way past those ideas/limitations.

Cheri suggests we use the patterns in whatever way we imagine and to use whichever pieces we choose and leave out the rest.  This leads to a huge variety of arrangements, flowers, colors, etc., amongst the participants, which is always so fun to see.  Cheri posted her finished basket on facebook a week or two ago.  My block is not like hers but I may add to my block based on her use of some of the shapes.

In fact, as I look at the baskets I've made so far I'm beginning to see where an embellishment could be added to this basket or that block.  My blocks are simple and I think they could be more interesting with some additions.  This has been a fun sew-along.

On to basket #6.

I'm linking this post to
> Finished or Not Friday at Busy Hands Quilts
> finish it up Friday at crazy mom quilts
> Can I Get a Whoop Whoop? at Confessions of a Fabric Addict
Thank you for hosting, ladies.

--Nancy.
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A Cow's Udder?

With my daughter and grands here all week I didn't have time to work on my Baskets of Plenty block 5 of Cheri Payne's facebook quilt along.  The photo below shows where my thoughts were headed before they came.  Until...

... I asked my husband what he thought.  I nearly always ask him after I have something to look at.  I find that others sometimes see what I've missed.  He commented that he liked the flower on the left but the one the right....  And then he stopped and said he didn't want to influence me.  When I pressed him to tell me what he was thinking he said that the flower on the right made him think of a cow's udder.  A cow's udder?  Really?!

Not to risk others thinking of cows when looking at this basket I changed colors.  (I wasn't absolutely committed to the coral, I just thought the color worked with the basket.)  This was the in-progress basket before our busy grands arrived. 

I didn't take time to take a photo until tonight.  Hmmm.  I checked facebook and saw that Cheri had already posted her finished Block 5.  Then I considered using just one of the blue flowers and adding several round/oval flowers in the salmon/red range.

Since this last photograph I've cut stems, leaves, and the roundish red/coral flowers.  But I'm still playing with the layout and haven't positively decided on one or two blue flowers.  Or maybe I'll go back to coral.  Oh, the possibilities....

I've been late with every one of these blocks.  It's become a pattern.  I started earlier this month and was almost ready to stitch until the "cow's udder" comment and my decision to redirect the block's colors.  Will I ever finish a block before the next block comes out?  Gosh, I hope so!

--Nancy.
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Albino Crow, Strong West Wind

As I was creating this block the flowers wanted to lean right and I imagined a strong west wind pushing against their stems.  And then the crow wanted to face the wind instead of having his feathers ruffled and blown backward.  It's funny how parts of a quilt block will insist.  (Sorry for the poor photo.  We had a few sunny days but the block wasn't finished.  Now it's grey again.)

Things always take longer than I expect they will.  I thought about this Cheri Payne Baskets of Plenty block for several weeks and then a few days before I knew Cheri would post the next one (which is the 10th or 11th of the month), I began cutting fabric, playing with placement, cutting more and/or different fabric, rearranging pieces, etc., thinking I would finish it in two or three days!  Not me.  Here it is nearly a week later and it's finally finished.  The new block has been available for several days:  I think I'll start on it tomorrow.

When I look at primitive quilts I often see muted colors.  I love the look but I can't seem to create it myself.  Most of my fabrics are either bright or dark/dull with few muted colors among them. 

 

I seem to have the inability to choose all fabric for a block/quilt before I begin cutting.  I gather fabrics but then when I cut one element I reconsider all the other fabrics for the other parts.  So every element gets several auditions and they are sometimes cut and partially stitched before I change my mind.  Sometimes I think I have impaired artistic vision.
  
About the albino crow.  I auditioned all three of the crows in the photo above but none seemed just right.  I thought about black but knew it would disappear against the brown basket.  Are there albino crows, I wondered.  Yes, there are photos online and they are beautiful.  So that's how this crow came to be on this block.  Does that albino crow look "primitive" to you?

This block, with its plain muslin background fabric, brought to my attention how much the addition of Cheri's tea/coffee dying impacts the overall appearance of primitive blocks and quilts.  I won't use tea/coffee because it washes out and I want this quilt to be washable and usable when it's finished.  (What is it with stains?  When we want them to wash out, they are stubbornly resistant.  If we want them to stay they're gone after the first wash.)  Walnut hulls will make a similar dye which, in my experience, is permanent.  I'll collect some hulls in late summer/early fall before the rain leaches the dye out of them, make a dyepot full, and use it the same way Cheri uses her tea/coffee dye.  Any extra will freeze for later use.

As always this has been a fun and challenging experience -- so many options, so many fabrics!  And, as always, the variety of blocks made from the same elements is amazing and such fun to see.  If you're interested in participating and you have a facebook account, you can request to join Cheri's facebook page:  Quilts by Cheri ~ Friendship Group.  She continues to welcome new members.

I'm linking this post to
> Finished or Not Friday at Busy Hands Quilts
> finish it up Friday at crazy mom quilts 
> Can I Get a Whoop Whoop? at Confessions of a Fabric Addict
> Sew Stitch Snap SHARE #4 at Koka Quilts
Thanks for hosting, ladies.

--Nancy.
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Quilting in the Dark

The sky has been thick with clouds for days.  The raindrops would glisten if there were the least ray of sunshine but it's been dark, dark, dark.  It's hard to see details on the greyest of days and turning on an electric light helps but not to see a fabric's true colors or how it will play with other fabrics.

I should not have waited until this week to choose fabrics for my Cheri Payne Baskets of Plenty block 4.

Colors in the photos below are somewhat close to accurate but none are the true colors.

This little basket will have a border of triangles along its top, hence the fabric strip.

There are three or four flower shapes, several leaves, and a bird for use in this block. 

Maybe it will be a star-shaped flower unless the star moves to the basket.  Right now it's all play -- elements, colors, fabrics, and placement of all the elements.  Anything's possible.

The sun came out today for a few minutes but I missed the chance to photograph.  Tomorrow's a day of rest but it looks like sunshine is predicted for Monday:  I won't have to quilt in the dark.  It'll be a good day to decide fabric and colors.

I hope you've had sunny days.

--Nancy.
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