WIP Wednesday

I'm desperately behind on my Block of the Month projects. Because I wanted to share some new Flying Geese tricks yesterday, I'm up-to-date on at least one!

One of my Block Parties at Ruth's Stitchery is making Lori Holt's "Quilty Fun" row quilt.

We've completed five rows so far. This week I finished 48 teeny tiny Flying Geese for row 5:

Oops -- I found the fifth row in my "Quilty Fun" bin after I took the photo.

Here are some close-up of this week's Flying Geese row:

Those "geese" are only 1.5" by 2" finished! I'm really pleased with the way they turned out.

I plan to have a sneak preview of my Mother's Day gifty from My Little Sailor tomorrow. Hope you'll come back to see how it's coming along!

From the desk of your

Tuesday Tool: Perfect Flying Geese

I know I'm always complaining about Flying Geese. This time, I think I've found the way to make perfect Geese!

This method combines three other methods/tools. The basic idea is the same as the "No Waste Method for Making Flying Geese Units." The earliest reference to "No-Waste Flying Geese" I could find was published in 2000 by Patti Anderson. She published an excellent reference chart for making geese in any size, here. [BTW, Patti, if you see this post, I'm sorry I couldn't find a way to contact you to ask permission to reference your tutorial.]

The second tool is new to me. It's the "Corner Cutter" tool from Perkins Dry Goods. This tool uses the same dimensions as the No-Waste method, with the addition of a clever little tool to cut off the corners of the "wings" before they are sewn to the "goose" square.

Step three uses my favorite square-up ruler from Bloc_Loc:

Here we go with step-by-step instructions for perfectly sized flying geese:

1. Cut one large and four small squares according to the size of the finished geese desired.

2. Draw a line corner to corner on each small square. Stack the four squares so all edges are even.

3. Place the corner cutter tool on top of the stack of four small squares. See the little line that reads "Align raw edge here? There's one on either side of the Corner Cutter.

4. With both of those lines aligned on the raw edges of the small squares, you'll cut off the perfect amount of the corners.

5. Cut off one only one corner on all four small squares.

6. Your stack of four squares will look like this:

7. Place the small squares on top of the large square with the chopped-off corners in the center.

8. Stitch a scant 1/4" seam on either side of the center line.

9. Cut on the center line.

10. Press the "wings" away from the larger piece. See where you chopped off the corner using the Corner Cutter Tool? That curtails the extra layers that are there in the No-Waste method.

11.  Press both "wings" away from the larger piece (goose).

 12. Place the remaining two small squares on top of the two larger geese that already have "wings."

13. Again, sew a scant 1/4" on either side of the line and cut on that line. Press the "wings" away from the "goose."

14. Now it's time for the Bloc_Loc Flying Geese Ruler. As do all Bloc_Loc rulers, the Flying Geese ruler has a groove on the bottom that "locks" over the seam allowance. Trim all four sides.

Here are two tiny Flying Geese. The smaller one is .75" by 1.5" finished, the larger is 1" by 2" finished.

Even this tiny, with the three-method trick, they're perfect!

Like my nail polish? It's "Jewell" by Zoya.

Come back tomorrow to see what I'm doing with those tiny Flying Geese!


From the desk of your

Weekend Mountain Retreat

I was so lucky to be invited to join a group of hand spinners for their retreat this weekend. 

Now, I'm not a spinner. My Little Sailor The Fiberisto tried time and again to teach me to use his Ashford "Joy" spinning wheel. Using a spinning wheel is kind of like of like patting your head, rubbing your tummy and chewing gum -- all at the same time. 

I found his drop spindle while packing yarn for the weekend. Friend Mary patiently showed me how to work it. And I spun about two yards of alpaca fiber left over from making thrummed mittens,

The most fun was dyeing yarn with master-dyer Peggy Doney. The theme for the weekend was "Italy," so Peggy chose dye colors that evoke the Italian countryside. Here's some yarn in progress by Julie:

Here are the finished products, drying in the sunshine:

That mostly-white skein on the top row is mine. I can't wait to see how it knits up! I've washed it and wound it into a center-pull ball:

Here's a close up of the second skein I dyed. Aren't the colors rich?

It was a lovely location:

The sound of the rushing water is so soothing. 

A herd of elk provided free entertainment. They had moved off to the forest before I got my camera out, but they were close by mornings and evenings.

What a perfect weekend in the mountains!

From the desk of your 

A Scrappy Sunday Finish!

At last! I have the piecing of my "Celtic Solstice" quilt complete.

As you probably know, this quilt was Bonnie Hunter's Holiday 2013 mystery project.  Celtic Solstice concluded January 1, 2014 -- but you can still print out the steps from Bonnie's blog, Quiltville's Quips & Snips, here.

It's really hard to get a good photo on a windy day!

Here is the link up, if you'd like to see what others did for the mystery.

Bonnie's patterns are always fun. I have all the parts to the previous year's mystery, Easy Street. That will be my next "Sunday Scraps" project. Here is the link to the Flickr group, if you haven't seen this quilt.

From the desk of your

Friday Jelly Roll Finish

This isn't the jelly roll quilt we'll be working on today at Ruth's Stitchery. It's for June 6. I forgot to take a photo of today's quilt before it was hung in the shop!

It was hard to get a good photo with the wind blowing and oh no! it's upside-down!

There, that's the way it's supposed to look.

The pattern is Celebration by Sweetwater Designs, and the fabric is theirs also -- Wishes.

Linking up to Link-a-Finish Friday at Richard and Tanya Quilts:

as well as Can I Get a Whoop Whoop at Confessions of a Fabric Addict:

Congratulations on 1000 followers, Sarah!

And of course, TGIFF at Quokka Quilts!

I'm hoping I'll have some photos from Estes Park, Colorado to share with you tomorrow. Come back and see!

From the desk of your 

May Day UFO Parade

Are you starting to see a dent in your UFO pile? This is the fourth month for the 12 in 2014 challenge. If you haven't joined in yet, go to this post to see how it works! And BTW, it's OK to send your finish as soon as you have a photo -- you don't have to wait until the last day of the month.

May UFO Number

I showed off my April UFO finish on Friday's post, "Thank Goodness It's (Barely) Finished Friday."

If you saw my "test post" from my new iPad yesterday, you saw a glimpse of my May UFO project. It's "Bounce" by Carrie Nelson of Miss Rosie's Quilts. I made it at Cindy's quilt retreat two autumns ago. When I got home and took photos of the "finished" top, I realised I had done the borders wrong. I love the fabric so much (Tula Pink Birds and the Bees) that I decided to un-stitch the borders and re-sew them.

Here is a photo of the (correctly) finished quilt, from Miss Rosie's Quilt Co.:

I love a parade!

The first April finish came in early in the month. Elisa finished this quilt for her daughter's birthday the first week in April!

Here's her story:

From last finisher (in March) to first in April?? Got my project done early and I'd be proud, except it's my daughter-in-law's birthday present from LAST year.  I gave her the pieces and said I was working on it, then got frustrated with it and put it away for almost a year. Embarrassing. But it's off to the long-armer - and it's better for the wait, since I'm a better quilter than I was last year.  Blog post is here: http://yarn-tails.blogspot.com/2014/04/ufo-no-more.html 

Elisa, I love that you found the silver  lining!

Addendum -- at the last minute, Elisa sent a photo of this one quilted and bound:

And here's a closeup of the back so you can see the quilting:

She was so jazzed at her early finish, she finished a second UFO for April! Click on this photo to admire the feature fabric:

And here's a shot of the entire top:

Elisa says this quilt is for her, read all about it on her blog "Yarn Tails" here.

Be sure to go to Mary's blog post at Zippy Quilts, here, and read her tutorial on this UFO finish. What an excellent way to use up scraps, Mary!

Mary writes she just started the UFO Challenge in April. She is so pleased with her progress, she's decided to go back and finish one for February-forward!

New grandmother Martha reports that the grandbaby is keeping her from her "work." But she managed to finish this "vintage" (that is, purchased a long time ago!) beauty.

Here's a second finish by Martha. Wouldn't these be perfect for a cabin (or Colorado mountain home, cough, Mary M.?)

Martha writes:

These were pillow kits on the latest shop hop in Idaho for $29 each pillow. Ultra suede tapestry and for animal motifs. They were quick to finish and will look great in the cabin!

She offers to provide info if you want some for your own mountain retreat. Email me at AuntMarti at 52quilts dot com and I'll forward your email  to Martha.

Becky finished this Bonnie Hunter Bargello quilt and sent a photo to Bonnie. And Bonnie Hunter commented on it on her blog!

Becky even took a page from Bonnie's book and pieced the back!

And I love her semi-scrappy Susie's Magic Binding! She used one fabric for the outside (main) part of the binding, and scraps for the flange:

Here's Becky's reaction to Bonnie's  post, and link so you can read it yourself:

 Guess what, guess what!  Bonnie Hunter mentioned my Scrappy Bargello on her blog!  I was so tickled I just about jumped out of my chair! I emailed her pictures of it because I know she likes to hear about people using her designs (who wouldn't!).  I also explained how I was going to be donating the quilt to my local batter women's shelter and how appropriate I thought scrap quilts were for people in that type of situation.  She replied to my email and said she liked the quilt and the story.  I was tickled and didn't think anything more of it.  I was gone on business most of this week and when I was catching up on Bonnie's blog I saw a picture I recognized and I thought, "Hey, that's my quilt!  OMG!  Bonnie Hunter shared my email on her blog!" http://quiltville.blogspot.com/2014/04/errand-day.html  

Good on you, Becky! And I'm sure the recipient will love this quilt.

That Martha! She has a third finish for April! I'm really excited to share this one with you, because the designer is a personal friend, Melissa of We Shall Sew.

You can get the pattern free from Robert Kaufman, just go to their website here. There is a second Hope Takes Flight pattern using batiks, also free here.

I love Sue's May finish. I've "pinned" it to my Quilt Wishlist on Pinterest!

She made it with the Molli Sparkles Broken Herringbone QAL last year. I don't know how I missed that, because I love this quilt! (I already said that, didn't I?) Sue blogged her story at Sue's Quilty Bits and Bobs, here.

Oh, look at this gorgeous quilt Heather finished! She found a baggie of 10-year old cross-stitched roses and calculated the setting herself. She even did the custom quilting - isn't it gorgeous?

I had to make the photo extra large so you could see the lovely cross-stitch roses. Wow, Heather. Just. Wow! Here is a link to her blog, Peachy Pages, which has the rest of the story.

Nancy's finish has a funny story behind it.  I'll let her explain:

I hate to admit it but several years ago when I was attending the local quilt guild I was given a charity quilt to piece into a top.  I am sorry to say I found it last year buried on a shelf with other UFO's when I was pulling stuff out of my sewing room. . . . . This quilt top is long over due...that is why it is my 'guilt' quilt.  Every time I have run across it in the last year I have felt guilty that it has taken me so long to complete.

Nancy, I think you did a great job and now you can let go your guilt!

Betsy completed this darling Halloween quilt from 2007 or 2008. My favorite holiday -- 'cuz you get to dress up, ring strangers' doorbells and demand candy, right?

Katie finished a long-time UFO at the request of her husband.

Isn't this incredible? Here are some close-ups:

And this one really shows off the quilting:

Here's what Katie writes about this quilt:

This quilt is one I started in a class in 1995 at Asilomar's Empty Spools Quilt Conference. It was hidden away for years when I wasn't quilting. My husband kept asking me to finish it. So last year when I found my unfinished quilts after having put all quilting away for almost 20 years, this was one that begged to be finished. I will say it is the hardest thing I have ever done, but in the same instance, probably the most rewarding. The machine quilting was done by Heart to Heart in Merrill, OR. She did a beautiful job interpreting what I felt would be the other natural elements in the scene, i.e. the wind, water, weeds, etc.

Love it, Katie, and thanks DH for getting her to finish it!

Amy's finish has a touching story behind it. First, the quilt:

As you can see, the focus fabric is "Thomas the Tank Engine." She writes:

Just in time for my 4 year old to start phasing out of his love for The cloud fabric on the top and bottom glitters, and is from my Grandmother's stash. She passed in 2005. My son and I are both thrilled it's in his quilt. 

Gill has two finished for April:

Here are my April finishes - previous UFOs from your challenge - which I quilted and bound this month. One is a scrappy trip with 1 inch straight(ish) line quilting and the other is columns of flying geese which has a dense all over stipple. It feels good that these are now finished and will not be added to next years challenge!

Gill, you know I really admire all those Flying Geese!

Joy's April finish also has a story behind it. Here's the photo:

What do you see in the focus blocks? Click on it to enlarge.

I meant to use this quilt to really focus on my 1/4" seams, pressing, and piecing, but turns out that I did most of it in a room with the lights off.  My grandnephew was sick, and they were always trying to get him to sleep while I was trying to sew.  Oh well...He's worth it.  The name is from his Dad, who saw the quilt from a distance, and questioned why all of the frogs were pink.  He laughed when he saw it up close.  Since I use floral frogges when I make arrangements in my real teacups, the name seemed appropriate: Teacup Frogges.

Great name, Joy!

Donna stepped outside her comfort zone for her first finish this month. She bought a discounted jelly roll at JoAnn's and made this table runner in one of my favorite color combinations:

Say, Donna, are those some A Quilt Block a Day blocks I see peeking in at the right-hand side of that photo?

To really understand Donna's second finish this month, you have to see the cover of the magazine where she got the pattern:

Here are the pieced blocks, sewn together:

Donna is a quilter after my own heart -- no applique'! She decided to add a HST border rather than all that applique'.

I think you made the right choice, Donna!

Noela finished her April UFO during a FNSI (Friday Night Sew-In). Be sure to go to her blog, Quilty Bits from the Blue Room to see the clever light her son gave her to help with nighttime outdoor sewing!

Saving a special treat for last, here are two Talkin' Turkey quilts finished this month. Another Bonnie Hunter design, Sandi explains:

This is a great design by Bonnie Hunter.  Who would have guessed a block in Quiltmaker;s 100 Blocks Volume 5 Magazine could turn out to be such a wonderful project with the layout she created.  Talkin' Turkey is one that a bunch of us who regularly swap components for Bonnie Hunter designs have been interested in creating.  I coordinated a block swap that started late last year and was finished in January.  It had everyone swapping the strings that make the corners of each block and the nine-patches that are the center of each block.  All the remaining parts were up to you.  I did manage to double the requirement for the flying geese units...I think I have enough for a second quilt! 
A reader on my blog came up with the clever name that I just love! 

You may recall that all of Sandi's quilt names begin with the letter "k."  This one is named Kranberries.

You can read more about Sandi's quilt on her blog, KwiltnKats, here.

Here is the second "Talkin' Turkey" quilt, this one by Debra B. Gosh, you two, I wish I lived close enough to be in your Bonnie Hunter group!

Look closely to see the little quilt admirer in the upper right corner! Debra writes:

Quite few of us did a swap (Sandi Delman, coordinator) of the strings that were used in the individual blocks surrounding the 9-patches. We were on our own with the outside border strings - boy-oh-boy do they ever take some time to do. I love how the quilt came out. It barely fit on my living/dining room floor.

She's a Winner!

Let's see who the Random Number Generator picks for the UFO Parade  winner.

Oh, look, it's Mary! A first-time finisher -- I like that! Congratulations, Mary, I'll be emailing you asking for your postal address. And I'll find a nice surprise to send you!

I'm going to a "SpinFest" retreat this weekend, so I'll be posting from my new iPad. Yippee!


From the desk of your