Whoop Whoop! Thanksgiving's over!

Did you do the Bloggers' Block-A-Palooza quilt by QuiltDad?  I got off to a great start, kept up with each block.  For six blocks, anyway.  Do you do that too?  Really excited to a BOM or BOW (week), but fizzle out before the end.  Sigh.  I have one or two UFOs suffering from severe fizzles.  Anyways -- I decided I like the blocks I made, so just sashed them and made a baby quilt.  Maybe I should call it Lemonade!

Hope everyone had a happy and fulfilling (heh) Thanksgiving -- we sure did.  Great friends, great food, great laughing jags, great big nap afterwards!!

Go to ConfessionsofaFabricAddict.blogspot.com for more Whoop Whoop! Friday finishes!

Well, foo.  I missed Friday's Whoop Whoop!  I missed Design Wall Monday.  Here it is, Tuesday.  So I'm just here to say "Happy Thanksgiving" to us who celebrate it!  I'm going to be busy tomorrow getting ready.  Two of our fave couples are coming over -- which seldom happens because all our kids live from one end of the U.S. to the other and in between.  And it's gonna be easy -- everyone's bringing a couple of dishes, and I'm doing the turkey.

I did something quilt-y this week, but I'll save it for a post Friday, cuz I'm sho'nuff not gonna be shopping out there!!!!  And here's a little hint of a giftie for someone, I'll bet you can guess what it's going to be, can't you?!?!

I read somewhere that a study of octogenarians showed three traits in common.
1.  Love someone.
2.  Have something to do.
3.  Have something to look forward to.

I wish you all of the above :-D  Have a wonderful, safe, thankful, Thanksgiving!

This and That...

I did accomplish a couple of Whoop Whoops (http://confessionsofafabricaddict.blogspot.com/2011/11/can-i-get-whoop-whoop-oh-i-wanted-to.html) but not as much as I'd hoped.  One of the guilds I belong to meets at the Welcome Center in a subdivision.  In the meeting room is a huge fireplace in the middle of a long wall, and they borrow members' quilts to hang on either side.  Looks great!  However, they decided to ask members to donate quilt blocks, and one of the ladies is making quilts that will belong to the POA, and will be rotated throughout the year.  They asked me to quilt the first one, and said to have fun playing.  So I did!  I quilted each block differently, and had a blast.  I hope they like it :-D

One of my friends' (PA) mother made several of these Dresden Plate (or Fans) centers, and they were packed away for a very long time.  Some were hand pieced, others were machine pieced, but none were the same size blades, they didn't have anything in the middle, and they didn't lie flat. Another friend encouraged her to try and make blocks and then a quilt, rather than keep them stowed away somewhere.  And so we began....  First we determined they could be salvaged without ripping and re-sewing.  We used the tried-and-true method of  beating them into submission -- hot iron and lots of steam, plus pleats where necessary.  We had to make a few more blocks so that she could make quilts for twin beds, so we rummaged and found more fabrics that looked older (the originals were made probably in the 60s).  We added a center with rickrack around it to each block, and PA stitched them to squares of muslin.  I'm in the process of squaring them up (which is another story in itself) to 18".  These will be wonderful quilts, and she'll get lots of enjoyment having them out on the beds.  Do you have old blocks or parts of blocks hidden away that really should be in use?  I hope you'll think about bringing them out to play :-D

Design Wall Monday 11/7/11

That's a lucky date, I would think, 11/7/11!  Sounds good, anyway.  I've been paper piecing up a storm the past week, and I finally have all the blocks made for Fiesta!  (If you recall, it's a pattern by Possibilities.)  The blocks are on the wall, and will be shuffled and re-shuffled several more times, and I'll no doubt make substitute blocks.  I love paper piecing, and this has been such fun, I might even make the top larger.  The pattern says it finishes to 46" x 64", I think that's kinda small.  Of course, I could always resort to borders and borders :-)

Judy at www.PatchworkTimes.com will be posting other Design Wall Monday blogs today, go see!

The autumn weather is on the Plateau, it's been cold and frosty, with clear blue skies, and it's been dank and rainy, just right for hiding away in my sewing room :-)    Stay warm, y'all!

Another Friday Whoop Whoop!

This is a wonderful tabletopper made by a quilting pal, that I quilted.  The brown/gold/cream Autumn color batiks are so luscious, unfortunately they don't show up as beautiful as they are in person!  I love the pattern!  She had such a clever idea -- the snowball alternating blocks were too plain, so she appliqued the half-squares and four-patches smack in the middle, which added lots of interest.

And I was able to get the gifts quilt finished, and I think it's so cute!  Love the colors, so fresh and modern.  It's going to be tough deciding who gets which Christmas quilt.  Hmmmmm, gotta check the list, ho ho ho!  Edited to add that this is a Kate Spain "Flurry" pattern.  It's easy to make, and comes together very nicely -- when you glance at the directions occasionally.  I had lots of bits left over, but better than not enough :-D  B

 I don't know how time gets away from me!  I just noticed I've even skipped a week of blogging.  I just loaded a quilt for a guild I belong to.   But I want to work on arranging the Fiesta! blocks, now that they're finished.  However, I can't get to both the design wall and the Avante at the same time.  Argh!  I need a bigger house!  Go see Sarah's blog for pictures of other accomplishments this week: http://confessionsofafabricaddict.blogspot.com/2011/11/can-i-get-whoop-whoop-not-your-usual.html