Little Red Baskets

I quilted up my little basket quilt. Boy, red, black and white is an unbeatable combination.
The inner border fabric with the different sized polka dots came into my life as a cotton mini skirt. Most of the rest of the fabrics came out of the scrap bag.
The oregano in my garden has bloomed, and the bumble bees love it. I've had lots of bees in my garden this year and I love to go out and listen to them buzz.
There is another holy card transfer project on the design wall. This one is the Sacred Heart of Mary.

Another One Done

I finished quilting the other polka dot quilt I made for my nieces. I collected polka dot fabrics for a very long time, and I think I finally hit the bottom of my supply.
My loopy free-motion quilting seems to fit the style of this quilt especially.
Here's a shot of the back (with the light shining through). That yellow fabric at the center top is vintage 60s or 70s--I really love it. You can click on it for a better view. I don't like the tedium of piecing my quilt backs, but you do get to use up a lot of odds and ends that way.

Halloween Quilt (50 x 50)

I finished piecing my old and new Halloween quilt, using both a charm square pack I picked up at IQF and some old Halloween yardage I'd used years ago as tablecloths. The inner and outer border fabrics are the old stuff.
In the third block on the top row, you can get a better view of the blue fabric. Below that is a bit of fabric from a piece Debra just sent me. The brown on the end of the third row is a vintage 70s print.
I've got a big piece of this skeleton fabric, but I just sprinkled a few pieces of it here and there.

I even pieced the back of this quilt, so I expect to be ready to use it this year.
Louie advised me during the piecing. He's taking all the credit for the results.

Lady Bird Johnson Grove

Last weekend we took a stroll through Lady Bird Johnson Grove, a looping trail through a sliver of old growth redwood forest.


Enjoy some of the sights: the magestic
and the minature.
(I got to use that micro lens on my camera.)
A variety of ferns and other plants grow on fallen trees. What a feast for the eyes. What a lovely slice of heaven.

Old and New

I bought a packet of Moda charm squares at IQF. They have a funky Halloween theme and a lot of orange accents. I'm going to pair them with this cream and black print and make a small quilt with all half square triangle blocks.

I've got a few other fabrics to throw into the mix. Louie is playing Vanna White and pointing to them with his lovely orange feet. He figures that since the theme is orange, he wants to be involved.

I bought the orange and blue Halloween yardage back in the 90s when my kids were small. They've been hemmed to use for small tablecloths. I used to decorate with seasonal tablecloths when my kids were little, so these have a lot of sentimental meaning for me. I'm going to work them into the Halloween quilt as accent blocks and borders. The brown fabric is actually only two small chunks. I don't know where I got it, but it looks like vintage 70s cotton. I wish I had more. It's obvious that the some of the Moda prints are inspired by this kind of 70s pattern.

I'm going to start making the blocks as soon as I bind the quilt I just quilted for my niece. Oh, and I'll have to do some work too.

Shirts and Sheets (60 x 70)

This quilt finished up fast. The diamond pieces were pretty big: about 4.5", and the Y-seams weren't that big a deal.



I love the softness of these colors. The quilt has gone to the "to be quilted" pile that I'm working on (slowly).

Striking While the Iron's Hot

I'm on a roll in the sewing room, probably because I have to go back to work soon, so I'm trying to use the free time I've got right now.

In a bit of serendipity, I found some bird charms at Jo-Ann's that I immediately conjured a use for. I have this crazy block I made one of in Sharon B's embroidery classes that was sitting in the drawer.
I added some silk tie pieces, sized it up to 12 x 12, and backed and bound it. With the bird charms, it's now part of my 12 x 12 bird series.
I'm calling this one "Wisteria." Although it's a bird series, all of the pieces are named for flowers or plants. Go figure.
It's a pretty block and I put a lot of work into it, so now I can display it with the others.

Remember my red basket blocks?

I pieced them with some 4-patches, added borders, and last night I pin basted it.

If I get really ambitious I will quilt it soon.