Monday Meanderings 8 - 1 - 2022

 The year is rolling by -- Welcome August! The last week of July was great for me.  Here's what I got done.

7/25/22

✅Bind Migrating Geese. -- Done!  Honestly, I'll share pics soon. 

✅Keep working on Picnic Time -- Just need to bind 

✅Make some Halloween Blocks, and spider blocks -- Done. Here's a few spider web blocks I made this month. (I can't believe I made 4 with the same fabric.) 

✅Quilt and bind one of my quilts -- Done! 

And, I've got new plans for this coming week. 

 

8/1/22

Start center block for Halloween quilt

Start working on August UFO

Start Melodic Mystery 

Bind Picnic Time 

Work on grand’s Christmas ornaments 

These are the blocks that are my August UFO.  I have 33 of them. I'm planning on making 3 more and try a 6 x 6 setting.  This is a suggested layout.  Who knows what layout I'll finally decide.  Most of these still need to be trimmed and the paper pulled off the back. Then I can move forward to making a quilt.  Hopefully I'll have some fabric to use as the backing.

Here are my fabric choices for Melodic Mystery.  I was happy to have some of the fabrics in my stash -- the green raindrop and the lighter green.  I had a darker magenta but not enough of it so off to the local quilt store I went. I made my decision in about 5 minutes or less. The darker could be the binding.  I ended up buying new background fabric even though I had some in the stash, just not enough. 

Did you read my blog last week?  I showed the blocks that might go into a Halloween quilt. Cbot was kind enough to suggest that the larger block might have been made incorrectly.  She was right so now it looks like this. 

I actually sewed it although this pic is only the lay out. Now it's a bat. However, as I was flipping through patterns this afternoon I realized it wasn't a bat.  Go check out Butterfly Blossoms. Yep.  It's really a flower. I made a quilt with that pattern a long time ago so my guess is I decided not to put it in with the rest.  But I can see it as a bat too.  If it fits in I'll add it. 

I'm going to make a center block for the Halloween quilt.  I can't wait to get it made so I can show you. It's going to be fabulous! If I'm lucky I'll get this to top stage before it becomes the UFO of the month. 

Now for the regular info -- I'm linking up with the following parties. I'll be back later to link up the ones that haven't posted yet. 

Oh Scrap

Monday Making

Design Wall Monday

To Do Tuesday 

Have a great week. 

Happy Quilting All!  Bonnie 

Monday Meanderings 7 - 25 - 2022

Are you living where the heat has gone sky high?  The heat has finally arrived in the Mid Atlantic where we live.  We've had a pretty easy summer mostly low 80s to high 80s -- some days with low humidity until this weekend -- 96 and high humidity. Ugh.  It was good to stay in the basement studio this weekend and get some things done.  

Here's what I've done this past week.  

7/18/22

✅Keep working on Picnic Time -- made the backing and a couple of blocks

✅Quilt and bind July UFO -- quilted, no binding yet

✅Look at Halloween blocks and make some more -- see below but no additional blocks were made

✅Make more red, white, and blue blocks -- done and turned into quilt guild 

Here a sneak peek of the quilt I finished quilting this week. This is the UFO Challenge quilt for July.  I'm tickled with how this came out.  I'll share more photos soon. (Check back Friday to see if I follow through showing all of it.) 

Here's the beginning of the Halloween quilt.  Or at least I hope it will be the beginning of a quilt. Here's all of the blocks I have -- do they make a quilt this way? 

Um, no, I don't like it this way. So below are the blocks broken out by types.  First up the 6" finished blocks.  Hum, lots of the same blocks from Halloween colors and fabrics.  

The blocks below are from top to bottom:  2" squares, 4" blocks, and a 10" block -- all finished sizes.  I think the purple ghost is suppose to be trimmed to 4.5" or 5" or ?  

My thoughts are I need at least one bigger block and then I can use these (or some of these) to surround it along with some sashing or filler.  This "quilt" is one of my UFO Challenge quilts. Luckily, it hasn't been the quilt of the month yet -- I hope to at least have a plan and maybe even a quilt top done before it is. Then all I'd need to do would be to quilt and bind it.  

It was on last week's goals list and you'll find it again on this weeks -- hopefully I can make some plans for it. Here's the rest of my goals for this week. 

7/25/22

Bind Migrating Geese

Keep working on Picnic Time

Make some Halloween blocks and spider blocks 

Quilt and bind one of my quilts 

I sure hope I can make some decent headway on this list.  It would help if I didn't fall into any books this week.  I just finished Book Lovers by Emily Henry.  Loved it and all its references to book publishing and reading.  

Time to link up to some great Linky parties.

Oh Scrap

Monday Making

Design Wall Monday 

To Do Tuesday 

We had an unusual visitor in our kitchen this weekend.  We found this unhappy guy on the wall near the pantry.  Yep, he was on a vertical wall.

Hubby finally figured out how he got into the house.  Our propane tank needed filling so he carried it through the house to the garage. Mr Frog must have jumped off and landed on the wall.  Hubby carefully captured him and set him outside (in the horrible heat.)

That's it for goals this week.  Hope you find some time to check out some of the blogs listed on the Linky parties. 

Happy Quilting All! Bonnie 

  

Stash Busting and a Quilt Show

First up a great stash busting report.  I finished several quilts in June so I used more than 14 yards of fabric.  WhooWhoo! (On the other hand I haven't finished any quilts this month but I still have time and fabric to at least finish one!) 

2022	Fabric In Month	Fabric In Year	Fabric Out  Month	Fabric Out Year	Total In or Out Year
July	8.875	59.25	14.75	69.75	10.50

Last Friday I attended Sacred Threads quilt show with a friend.  The quilts were amazing as were the artist statements.  Quilts were grouped in broad categories such as Spirituality, Grief, Joy, Inspiration and others.  Here is the link to the show's web page.  It's on until Friday, 7/24 in Herndon, Virginia, a suburb of Washington, DC.  It is well worth a trip to see some fabulous art quilts. I chose to photograph a few of the quilts and the artist's statement so I knew who made it and a little about what it meant to her/him. 

This one struck me because I agree completely with the statement. It was entered in the Grief section. 

"I began 1500 + the day after the Parkland shooting in Florida, February 14, 2018. There were approximately 1500 victims of mass shootings in the US at that time. I began the quilt in anger and needed to put it down for a time. By that time there were, of course, more shooting deaths, and I needed to add the + sign to the wording.This piece expresses my anger

and outrage that we as a country simply offer "thoughts and prayers"

instead of real solutions to the violence that is part of our way of life. Our children experience active shooter drills' every September asthey return to school. And women in the US are 21 times more likely to be killed with a gun than women in other high-income countries.When will we say enough?" Ann Bertorelli 

Heian Garden, Kyoto was entered in the Inspiration category. 

"Nature and, in particular, gardens are a huge inspiration in my life and my work as a textile artist. I find them peaceful and a wonderful antidote to the craziness of real life. On a trip to Japan, I was struck by the beauty and poetry of the gardens of Kyoto - even in the dead of winter. This view of the famous stone footbridge in the Garden of the Heian Shinto Shrine particularly resonated. The peaceful setting, simple design, the beautiful morning light proved to be the subject of many photographs, including this one captured in cloth. Printed cottons purchased in Japan frame my composition." Sally Wright

Joy in the Time of Covid 19 was entered in the Joy category.

"A posting in my Buy Nothing group offering two Cirque du Soleil shirts morphed into a project that brought me great joy after a long winter during the COVID-19 pandemic. My creativity had slumped, I had no

energy for art quilts, and I was only working on quilts from patterns. When I took a look at this shirt design, I remembered a technique I had learned many years ago to make lovely art from batik panels. It worked so well with this shirt, and I happened to have many fabrics in my stash that worked color and print-wise. I completed this project in just a few days, and it allowed me to get my creative groove back. I was also happy to recycle some textiles that would otherwise have ended up in the landfill." Gay Bitter 

Lake Life and Love was entered in the Healing category.

"I started this piece as the next fabric mosaic quilt in a series. Whitney Lake had been our summer home for over 30 years, a place of so much life and love. It's where my kids grew up. It's even where they were married. We spent many hours on this dock. Soon after this quilt took shape on my design wall, we found out my husband didn't have long to live. I worked on it as he continued to be my quilt business's shipping department and accountant. My progress stopped after he passed away, and there it hung. I walked past it almost every day. One year later, I slowly came back to it during the pandemic. Finishing it was cathartic. It's about grief, healing, and so many memories- two empty chairs." Cheryl Lynch 

And a close up:

And, now, why did I pick these particular quilts to share?  The first one speaks for me.  I don't see any reason anyone except the military should own assault rifles.  

Heian Garden, Kyoto is so peaceful and it amazed me that it could be portrayed so well in fabric. It spoke to me. 

Gay's Joy in the Time of Covid 19 is such a bright fun quilt and utilizes many traditional blocks in a piece that look so modern.   I hope I remember the way she used smaller blocks en mass. I want to try something like this. And, note, those borders are not even at all. 

Last is the mosaic Lake Life and Love.  I was surprised it was in the grief category until I read Cheryl's statement. Looking at these pictures don't really show how tiny the fabrics are.  I went to her website to read about her mosaics. The squares are 3/8th of an inch. I'll wait while you go back and read that again. Yep really small. It is a serene scene. 

I hope you enjoyed this little bit of the Sacred Threads quilt show for 2022.  It has been in the DC area for 12 years.  As stated on the web page "The team in Virginia would like to pass the baton to a new leadership team, in a new location, with new ideas and energy."  The last paragraph on the first page has the link to what the future may be for Sacred Threads.

I hope you enjoyed this mini quilt show. It's time for me to do a little clean up in the studio although I really need to do a massive clean up.  I'll keep you posted on any success I have.  I'm linking up to the following parties.  Please enjoy surfing the web starting with these blogs. 

Midweek Makers 

Wednesday Wait Loss

Needle and Thread Thursday

Finished or Not Friday

Beauties Pageant 

Happy Quilting All! Bonnie 

Monday Meandering 7 - 18 - 2022

Oops!  I thought I had finished all of my goals last week.  But when I really read what I had written I hadn't. Not that I didn't get a lot done.  Just not all of what I wrote. I did quilt and bind a patriotic quilt that Marlyn, Beth and I made together last year. Here are the goals from last week. 

7/11/22

✅Finish July UFO to top stage -- done.

Quilt and bind July UFO -- didn't even look at it! 

✅Cut out Picnic Time wall hanging and start machine appliquéing pieces all pieces were cut out but no stitching was done. 

Make ✅June BOM from A Quilting Life, ✅Rainbow Scrap Challenge & ✅R, W, B blocks -- finished some of each of them.

✅Work on Christmas ornaments for grands -- progress was made.

 Here are the blocks I made... First up all the blocks from Sherri McConnell's, of A Quilting Life, block of the month. This month's block was the second row, middle block.  Looking at the blocks as a picture makes me realize I might need to lighten up some of my fabric choices for the upcoming blocks.  I've enjoyed making these and haven't had any problems keeping up. 

Next, my purple Rainbow Scrap Challenge blocks. 

Yes the darker part of the middle block is a really dark purple -- doesn't it look like black instead? 

And my final block is a log cabin (with strips cut using the Accuquilt Log Cabin block on board.) I decided I would use a waving flag print as one side of the block because there would be enough difference in the fabric to be interesting. It's a 12.5" block.

I have enough strips cut to make at least one more block, possibly two.  Since I won't be turning these patriotic blocks in until Wed evening I hope to make some more of them.  

This week I'll be working on the following projects.  

7/18/22

Keep working on Picnic Time

Quilt and bind July UFO 

Look at Halloween blocks and make some more 

Make more red, white and blue blocks 

I have an eye appointment and a couple of evening meetings this week.  Hopefully I'll make progress on all of these goals. 

Please take some time to visit the following Linky parties.  You know you want to see what everyone is working on!  I've finished this blog fairly early this week.  So, I'll have to come back to link up with the rest of the parties.  

Oh Scrap

Monday Making 

Design Wall Monday 

To Do Tuesday 

That's it for today.  

Happy Quilting All! Bonnie 

Monday Meandering 7 - 11 - 2022

Welcome to another week and new goals to work on.  I just had a big shock. (Ok, not THAT big of a shock but an unhappy surprise.) I spent the last 20 or so minutes writing about my goals.  Everything looked terrific until I realized I had copied and pasted my 6/27/22 goals. Delete, delete. Copy and paste the correct week. I keep my goals list on the Notes app that is on all my Apple products. Generally I check it on my cell phone but it is on my Mac Book and my iPad. 

Ok, here's how I did this past week. 

7/4/22

✅Work on July’s UFO challenge Meandering Geese - Top is almost complete

✅Start on Picnic Time small wall hanging - All pieces are traced on adhesive web

✅Make blocks for FCQ Officers, more red Spider Webs - done 

✅Quilt something… decision to be made during the week - quilted a patriotic quilt and a very small customer quilt.

This quilt was made by Beth, Marlyn and me several many months ago.  I've let it sit in the "to-be-quilted" closet for way too long. Recently my local guild put out a request for red, white and blue blocks, tops, or quilts. So, I got it out and got it quilted.  Hopefully, I'll have it bound before the meeting next week. 

The block request was for either 6.5", 9.5", or 12.5" unfinished blocks.  I decided it was a perfect time to try an Accucut die I received at Christmas. So I pulled it out and some fabric to make a 9.5" block. Talk about easy.  The directions on the packaging tells you exactly what size to precut your fabric and how to place it on the die. Easy peasy! Here's my first one. I suspect I'll make more before the next meeting. Or I could use the 12.5 Ohio Star die.  Or both. 

This is the Starry Path block on board. 

Here's what I plan to work on this week. 

7/11/22

Finish July UFO to top stage

Quilt and bind July UFO 

Cut out Picnic Time wall hanging and start machine appliquéing pieces

Make June BOM from A Quilting Life, Rainbow Scrap Challenge & R, W, B blocks  

Work on Christmas ornaments for grands

Yes, I did get all of my goals either finished or moved forward! Yippee! My goals for this week seem doable.  And, maybe I'll start a new baby quilt.  I haven't been starting many quilts this year as I have been focusing on the monthly UFOs. I've also been trying to get more tops quilted.  That often means I need to buy fabric for the backing.  I'm hoping I can scrounge enough fabric for backing for at least one more top of mine this month. (I already have the backing for the UFO challenge.) 

I'm ready to listen to the end of a book now.  So it's time to say go visit one of these Linky parties and enjoy surfing quilters' blogs.  I always find great inspiration whether I want it or not. 

Oh Scrap!

Monday Making

Design Wall Monday 

To Do Tuesday  

Happy Quilting All! Bonnie 

To Do Tuesday

Did you notice I skipped Monday this week?  I had some plans to do a short Happy 4th blog, even picked out the artwork.  But, nope, didn't happen.  So it's To Do Tuesday instead.  

So let's start with last week's goals list.  It was a great week actually. 

6/27/2022

✅Make backing for Cheese and Crackers quilt -- Check below to see the yellow backing at the top of the photo. 

✅Quilt and bind Cheese and Crackers -- Here's a peek at the quilting.

✅Finish making the dog toys -- Something like 28 toys are done.

✅Make 3 more blocks for Irma -- Ready to put in the mail.

✅Sew cupcakes block together -- Done, and it doesn't look much differently from last week's picture. 

Here's what I'm working on this week.

7/4/22

Work on July’s UFO challenge Migrating Geese

Start on Picnic Time small wall hanging 

Make blocks for FCQ Officers, more red Spider Webs 

Quilt something… decision to be made during the week

Here's the new challenge piece.  Several years ago I purchased a Technique Sheet (TS) from Studio 180. The sheets are printed in color and then laminated. The TS  shows how to make the geese and gives sizes for various widths of the strips. I made 5 long strips 9.5" wide. All the geese strips are completed.  I bought a wide back from Connecting Threads to use as the sashing, borders and backing.  After hours of making sure I would have enough fabric for the backing if I cut a hunk off for the sashing and borders, I started cutting.  

As you can tell I used some of my homespuns.  All the plaids I used made a dent but unfortunately I still have some left. Sigh.  I might need another project of homespuns one of these days. (Cheese and Crackers made a dent in my 30's and fabrics but another project or two also will be needed to use them up.) 

I admit there was shopping going on the last week of June.  I was hoping both packages would come in after July so I wouldn't have to count them in during June.  One is being counted on my June stash busting numbers and one will be in the July numbers.  But here's what I got.  First the June add ins.  

I've been getting emails from Craft Town fabrics for years.  In fact I've bought from them before but not for several years.  When they offered a great price on a rainbow box of Mettler Silk Finish threads I was totally hooked.  See the box below.  Don't they make you want to sew something in a beautiful bright color?  

I figured I could add some fabric for the same shipping charge, so I did. Plus they often have All or Nothing fabric or fabric at lower costs starting at $3.99.  These are older fabrics but definitely quilt store quality.  I decided to check the All or Nothing selection. Hum, there were several that appealed to me.  I ended up with 2 prints and 3 neutrals. Here's my haul. 

I hadn't bought novelty fabric for a while so I decided to get the popsicles and sheep just for something new.  Actually the popsicles is a full yard and will be used for the basis of a new quilt -- possibly a 3 yard quilt.  The sheep will probably be the centers a child quilt but not sure what as it is only 3/8th of a yard.  The other 3 neutrals will work well as background fabrics when I use a variety of backgrounds. (note -- Craft Town has $5.00 shipping up to $49.99 in July. And, no I don't get compensated for sharing this, just call me The Enabler!) So I thought I was set for awhile. 

Except, Connecting Threads was having a 20% off sale and I fell for a fat quarter bundle of red fabrics.  So, again, I checked shipping and decided to add a one yard piece of wide backing.  I have had great luck using wide backing for piecing.  I was "planning" on getting some white I had purchased before.  It was a little surprise when I got the package. That lovely grey fabric was what was suppose to be white. Note to self: double check your order before submitting it! Sigh. I haven't decided how I plan on using it.  I will check my tops and see if there is any that would fit on it. Or it might become a background fabric for some project.  Lots of possibilities. 

The reds are going to be used on more spider web blocks.  The reds in my stash don't seem right to me so this influx of reds will be put to work soon. 

It seems like I had a whole lot to let everyone know about today.  But, I'm done now.  Well, except the plug for the Linky parties.  Here are links to the parties I'm participating in today. Please use these as launching pads to visit quilters on the Internet. 

Monday Making

Design Wall Monday 

To Do Tuesday

Midweek Makers 

Happy Quilting All! Bonnie 

A Small Friday Finish

My finish is my 2021 Rainbow Scrap Challenge blocks. These are 6" finished Friendship Star blocks. I tried to move the colors from dark to light. Although, when I was making the blocks I didn't have that in my mind but it definitely worked. No pictures of the backing -- just look at the back of this quilt as I used the same backing on it and the same borders.  It's nice to be able to pull from the stash! 

Now, back to Norfolk.  Last post I was sharing about our visit to the USS Wisconsin.  After lunch we took a 2 hour tour on Victory Rover Naval Base Tour.  The weather was beautiful that afternoon and we enjoyed the time on the water.  I took a lot of pictures but I'm only going to share a couple with you.  It was so interesting finding out about the Naval ships along with the businesses along the Elizabeth River. Naval Station Norfolk is the largest naval base in the world. Although we heard about so much Navy history, I had to look up the information about these specific ships. You can read more about the Naval Station Norfolk here.   

First up are the submarines. I have no clue which ones they were because not much was showing.  I remember going on a sub when we lived in Norfolk. These are nuclear subs (if I remember correctly.) 

We saw a lot of ships but only some of them I could identify from the pictures I took. So here are two of the ships we saw and I could figure out what I had seen. 

This is the USS Bataan, LHD 5. It is named after the Battle of Bataan during World War II.  It is an amphibious assault ship.  The LHD means landing helicopter dock. My understanding is it has a complement of helicopters and someplace to store them on board. You can read more about LHD class hulls at Wikipedia. 

USS Monterey (USS 61) is a guided-missile cruiser.  It has a crew of 400.  

Unfortunately all the big aircraft carriers were out to sea during our visit.  I was on several air craft carriers while growing up.  Once I was on a dependent's cruise.  And, sad to say, I got sea sick.  Ugh.  Being around Navy ships was always interesting. But the moving every 2 to 3 years wasn't so much fun.  I ended up going to 11 different schools.  

After the boat tour was over we had a great dinner at Grace O'Malley's - Irish Pub and Restaurant. Yummy food.  I had Cottage Pie and Pat had Bangers and Mash.  We followed that up with Bread Pudding. It was all wonderful.  

I don't know whether we'll go back to Norfolk for more tourist activities.  But I am interested in the museum that has some great art and glass so who knows. Maybe we'll visit other cities and stay downtown. It was a lot of fun in Norfolk. 

I'm linking up with the following Linky Parties.  Give a look at them and then find lots of different blogs to see what quilters are doing across the Internet.     

Midweek Makers 

Needle and Thread Thursday 

Finished or Not Friday

Beauties Pageant 

Scrappy Happy Saturday 

Happy Quilting All! Bonnie 

We spent the whole day learning about some of the US Navy history in Norfolk.  My dad was stationed at the Naval Station Norfolk in the mid '50s so I remember going to the base and specifically to his ship.  It might have been where I put up a stink at dinner in the Officer's Mess because they only had canned milk. Hey, I was in 2nd grade, what do you expect?  Here's some info on the Naval Base which is the largest naval base in the world.