Sentimental Scraps – Chopin – A Passionate Quilter From Texas

March 31, 2022March 31, 2022

To-Do Tuesday – 31 March 2022

Morning all. Welcome to almost Spring! The trees are producing leaves each day and daylight in the early morning is arriving, thus walking is done the first thing in the morning which gives the the rest of the day to play! YEA It appears that all the unforeseen problems are over with and the hearing aids will be returned and a new set coming soon. Right now just using the old ones and they work just fine.

Clay ordered a picture frame for my ”Love”. It was plain wood and he put a nice stain on the wood which I really liked. Then he set it up for me.

Last week was a week to stop working on Alaska quilt. I made a little ”mini” quilt (?) with the 4 blocks I had made. If anyone is interested in my experience with this ”project” click here and here.

Tuesday I ripped out some of the ”strips” that I had started for Sentimental Scraps. I was having an issues getting things to line up so I took all apart to re-check the squaring of the 200 each 9 patch blocks. That is all done and today I will begin sewing them together.

Yesterday was a very relaxing day for me and I did FaceTime with Kathy for a short period of time while finishing up my ripping project. Then I decided to finish the 3 1/2 ” Friendship Star blocks for a BOM that I decided to not do. I now need to press them and put them away to be used in another project. I have a lot of 3 1/2” blocks using Reproductions of Stars and Churn Dash blocks, but I used shirtings for the backgrounds. The fabric I used for the Friendship Stars is from a Brackman collection.

I feel for Stars Around the Garden, I must get with it and put it together. Tammy has not called for the quilts yet, if I get it together in the next 2 weeks it will go along with the other 9 quilts for her to quilt!

So mini goals for next week will be to start ripping the binding out on the Southwest quilt that the long arm quilter screwed up. It is a very very large quilt – this should be fun. I will finish Sentimental Stitches and begin work on Stars Around the Garden. THEN I will select a brand new project to work on!

For those who follow me, you know I am the ultimate Traditional Quilter AND the Ultimate Perfectionist. Call me nuts, but I want my quilts to not have cut off points, or mistakes. I strive for perfection and if something is wrong, I stop and take the time to figure out what I have done wrong, or if the pattern has an issue. Call me nuts, but it keeps my 77 year old brain working and that is so important to me.

Talk about staying in shape, Look what Clay and I did today. He is napping and I am wrapped in heating pads! Guess that is par for a 77 and 78 year old. now just waiting for our contractor to come finish the job to move the rocks onto the lawn fabric and lay the new road from the from the garage to the Studio.

.Have a wonderful end of March and Let’s welcome in April 2022 tomorrow! Just 9 more months until New Year’s Eve!

Hugs, Nanette

zLinking To: My Quilt Infatuation; Confessions of a Fabric Addict; Finished or Not Friday ; Em’s Scrap Bag; BOM’s Away; Sew Fresh Quilts; Crazy Mom Quilts; Oh Scrap; Scrap Happy Saturday; Slow Sunday Stitching Quilt Fabrication Mid Week Makers; Peacock Party; Design Wall Monday, Scrap Happy Days, Quilting Patch Linky Party To-Do-Tuesdays;PHD in 2021;

March 27, 2016

Happy Easter, Margaret Potts Quilt,Stonefields, and Civil War Bride QAL with Friends

I would like to wish all a Happy Easter. I do not remember having such an early Easter. Have a great day with family and friends.

I have been busy trying to play catch-up on Civil War Bride, Stonefields, and now I have added another project on my “to do” list. – The Margaret Potts Quilt. I am a member of the Baltimore Applique Society BAS and they are doing a BOM each month. BAS is a great organization for Appliquers’ to join even if we are miles away from the meetings. The Margaret Potts quilt BOM is a great way for BAS to reach out to their members who are do not live in the area but want to participate in the group projects. The quilt consists of 85 blocks. Doing a block a month will take about 7 years – think I can do this one? LOL. Since I have decided to not make the Farmers Wife quilt, I will be doing this quilt in the 1930’s fabric that was purchased for that “ex-project” (new terminology for not working on a pre-determined doomed project) LOL.

Of course I am 4 months behind the group because for some reason I had not read my BAS newsletters since November (hum wonder where my mind was)? My friend Jaydee just assumed I knew about the project because we are both members, but when dealing with an empty head sometimes…..we are now both working on the project needless to say after I did read this month’s newsletter and realized what was going on. We had a good laugh on that one.

My Civil War Bride (CWB) is coming along. I have 6 blocks ready to applique and today should have Block 1 completed today (if I can get away from this computer). I have made the changes I wanted to (so far and I am sure there will be many more) and ready to catch up with the group. My friends Cathy and Lynn from the DC area and hopefully Jaydee from Washington will be working on the quilt each month. Cathy has one more Lady who may be interested in driving herself nuts along with the 4 of us. We had decided to do 2 blocks a month, but boy that Lynn is really going to town. I will be posting our progress on the 1st of each month so stay tuned. It is so interesting to see the different interpretations of this quilt – each of us have changed things on the pattern and using different fabrics with unique outcomes. Hopefully I can finish Block 2 by Thursday and not start April behind the others. It is so much fun to have others working on the same project – always provides me a challenge and a reason to “get with the program” to start on a quilt that has been in the “que” for a few years!

Jaydee and I are working on Stonefields – well, let’s put it this way. I am in Segment 3 and Jaydee is in Segment 6 – She will have that puppy finished before I even get half way through. We worked on an Edyta Sitar quilt – Sentimental Scraps – that we made almost 2 years ago (purchased all the fabrics for the middle border) but I have not finished putting all the blocks together (shame on me!) Jaydee has her completed – in fact she completed it a long time ago! Turned out beautiful. The pattern was in a Quiltmania magazine I believe in 2014.

Here is a photograph of a quilt that my friend Jaydee Price made for President George W. Bush and it is now hanging in his Library – what an honor! Jaydee is a wonderful friend, quilter, and such a giver. One of these days she and I will tour the Library and just relish in the fact that her hard work has been honored. (Even if it is in our dreams!)

I leave you with thoughts of my Poor Dear Jane! I had illusions of grandeur the other day and set it all out on the cutting table to work on color placement…………Yup – still there but it is on hold for a few more days! I looked back at the 8 blocks I had finished about 18 months ago, and put it on hold when I realized how difficult this project would be and I wanted to really do it justice with a different selection of fabrics. Well, no excuse, just keep putting other things ahead of it. It is next in line! Although I think I am ready to do a “no-brainer” quilt – one that does not take a lot of thinking! One the struggles I deal with when I make a quilt is that nagging little thought that “this one may be a Show quilt” and that is when the perfectionist idiot comes out slows me down. Oh well what can I say!

Have a blessed day – Until next Blog!

January 17, 2015

Happy Scrappy and 2014! On to 2015!

I hope all had a great New Year and that the year is starting off in a positive manner for everyone. Mine still has a few hiccups but things have settled down for us a little bit. I look back at the year and realize that I did not produce as much as I have in the past with my quilting. I do not know if it is age, Darryl’s illness, the stress of losing him, the extreme dampness this winter, or if I have really done something to my back to cause me so many problems with my Fibromylagia and Sciatica – whichever it is – I am not a happy camper when it comes to physical slow downs. I definitely am not going into my 70s gracefully! My mind says I can but the body is balking! We will see who wins! LOL But life does get in the way sometimes and we must remain as positive as we can and move forward.

–I was so ready to do all of the selected projects that I found on line – Barbara Brackman, Pat Sloan, Ester – Love Entwined, etc, when I started my Blog. I love keeping up with all of my favorite Bloggers now. Looking back over the year here is my progress (or no progress)

–I did make 2 quilt tops for the San Antonio Show this year and they are ready to be quilted. One of the tops was from Pat Sloan’s Globetrotting.

–I started on the Austen Family quilt, but had issues with time and interruptions and problems with reducing the block size to 6 inch blocks.

–Threads of Memory is almost completed with only 2 blocks to finish and then I can decide on a setting for the quilt.

–I still have one more block to finish on Wanda’s Antebellum Ladies Quilt and only one (1) bird to finish on Block Number 1 of The Lost Boy Quilt!

–Rosemary Young’s Happy Scrappy BOM was to be a challenge quilt and for me to work on my desire to develop quilt designing skills. This project has taken me longer than I thought it would.

–I finished one wall hanging for the Baltimore Applique Society On-Line Auction and that was very satisfying to be a part of the fund raiser for BAS.

–Darryl’s quilt – Sylvester’s Bean Pot

— Sentimental Scraps – that one needs to be finished – almost forgot about Edyta Sitar project.

++On the negative side of positive – I did not get the bindings done from left over “ready to be finished” quilts from 2013. Maybe I will get in the mood soon to get those done.

This year I made a decision that before I would start any major new project that I would try to finish the projects that are begging to be completed from 2014, BUT I now find out that decisions and plans sometimes need to be changed! Here I am already changing that decision on not starting a new project!

The Austin, Texas Guild has a Dear Jane Bee and I joined it. We do 4 blocks a month (hum… wonder if I will be able to maintain this challenge) The Bee will meet in Austin quarterly on a Saturday for a sew in and I am so looking forward to this. Today I downloaded the 4 blocks for the month (will see where I am in February – they are “due” to be completed (if possible) by the 19th of February – this will be interesting. I have the book, rulers, and the EQ Dear Jane. I am thinking that I am going to hand piece each block. I printed out the templates on the 8 1/2 x 11 sheets of freezer paper and this will cut down some of the time in preparation work. Next decision on this project will be the fabrics. I miss working with my batiks, but think that might be a bit challenging for hand piecing and take away from the original time frame of the quilt. I sincerely hope that I will be able to complete this project as I had purchased everything (less fabric) for a Dear Jane in 2009!!!! Where has time gone?

The other project is Ester’s Oma’s Blue Quilt. What a beautiful quilt in Blue. I am thinking that this one would be beautiful in my Batiks and either in Blues, Reds, or Purples. Decisions Decisions Decisions! I will probably shoot for a March start date on this one if life permits.

— Oh yes – and then there is Di Ford’s 2014 Quiltmania Mystery Quilt………….yup still in the drawer along with a lot of my money that I spent on Dutch Chintz fabric. WOW – where have I been?

So here we are and I am so happy because I have completed the top and bottom “block rows” of my Happy Scrappy quilt. I am pleased with it so far. Next I will begin to design the side panels from there – who knows.

Happy Scrappy Top and Bottom Block Borders

Here is a picture of my Lost Boy Quilt (also Civil War Bride) Block 1. – One little brown bird to finish! I am using Batiks for this quilt. I miss working with them, especially when I am working on an applique project!

I am grateful to have completed the projects that I did and the one’s that I am trying to finish. Life is good to Clay and I even with the impending heartache that is coming sooner than later. I just hope that we can make it through the rough times. Quilting has really saved my sanity many times over. I have missed working on special projects for my Show Quilts, but if God allows it, there is next year.

Have a blessed day and enjoy all that you can. I am thinking that next winter Sierra Vista, AZ would be a good place to be.

August 1, 2014August 1, 2014

Sentimental Scraps Coming Along

Life has been a little hectic, but calming down some. I have been working on my Sentimental Scraps project. Thought I would take a few pictures to show that I am getting some projects going.

A Bucket of Strips — This is my “Bucket of Strips” getting smaller

The Light Strips are thinning out – Need more!

Here are the “Future 9 Patches” – Ready to be put together

I was going to cut out some additional fabrics, but decided to just continue with the process and use up all the 5″ strips I have already cut. I did pull some of the lights I had selected as I did not like the way there were turning out. So now I get to cut some more strips. The pattern calls for 130 3 inch 9 patches, but I am going to make a larger quilt, so I am “assuming” that if I make a total of 230 or 260 that the quilt would turn out to cover part of the California King bed! Now if I find that I just cannot continue on with this “fun” project, it will be what it will be.

I have started quilting my BAS block and hope to have it complete next week. It needs to get in the mail by next Friday ….. Humm.

Here is an idea I had for my last border on Rosemary Youngs Happy Scrappy project. I originally decided to do the last border in the Chedder crackle with the hexie flowers on each corner, then last night I thought I might add more…. Boy those 5/8″ hexies are tough to do, but it might look better with more than one on each corner…..We will see what I end up with!

Scrappy Happy Last Border — Happy Scrappy Medallion – Last Border

I have received my patterns from Australia – They are neat. I ordered Auntie Green’s Garden, Mosaics, and Tulipa from the original Irene Blanck the Designer. Nice future projects. Her website is focusonquilts.com.au. The postage may be high, but the patterns are in wonderful condition. Clear and easy to trace for applique. They will be a challange and are on my Bucket List!

I hope all have a great week-end and keep on quilting! Until next week…. hopefully I will have finished some projects by then – or at least caught up with BOMs.

July 18, 2014

Sentimental Scraps – Drowning in 5″ Strips

Happy Friday – We were blessed with almost 2 inches of rain and hoping for more later today.

I have been working on cutting 5″ strips, sewing 3 together, then making some 3″ 9 patches for my Sentimental Scraps. This is a fun quilt to make. Grabbing the different pieces and putting them together, cutting them into 1 1/2″ segments and putting them in a nice pile! The next step is to start making more of the 9 patches. It is so interesting when making a scrappy quilt, just grabbing strips and putting them together in a random fashion and the making the 9 patches that come out so pretty! I am enjoying the process and the outcome. I am glad that I decided to work on this quilt at this time. It is really mindless sewing, and mistakes cannot be made – not when it is scrappy.

Funny how time can stand still. I was working on my strips when Darryl’s Doctor called. It was not good news. Evidently I was in the middle of winding my bobbin thread when the call came through and we had to leave quickly. He will now enter Hospice System. We will continue to have some valuable time with him.

Here are my 5 inch strips. I am using Reproduction Fabrics with a few Batik fabric thrown in. I tried mixing the Reproduction fabrics with Batik fabric strips and for me it did not work – it did not yield a 3 1/2″ square 9 patch – the length was off 1/8″… HUMMMM. So I will make some 9 patches with Batik fabric to spark things up!

Sentimental Scraps - 5" Strips — Sentimental Scraps – 5″ Strips

I have been busy sewing some strips together, pressing, trimming, and then cutting into the 1 1/2″ segments. This keeps me from completely getting bored with one facet of the process. Tomorrow I will begin putting some 9 patches together.

And here is what the “strip sets” will look like. Need to make a design decision on the darker color Moda Aged Muslin 3.5″ squares.

On Monday I made a decision to enter 3 quilts into the Austin, Texas Quilt Show in September (lucked out as it was the last day to enter quilts). I entered my Lone Star Over The Rainbow (received a Blue Ribbon at San Antonio Show last year), Floating Stars, and my Jacobean in Batiks. I used Debbie Maddy’s HST pattern for the Star, added an additional border to make it float and designed the border using the Floating Stars in Red). During the Show last year, a lady was admiring my quilt and assumed I had paper pieced my floating star border. I told her I did paper piece. The star has 350 HSTs and 208 star points – all rotary cut and pieced. I used all the colors in the Rainbow when making this quilt and entered it in the Show’s Theme Category. This is the best picture I have – hoping I can get a better one while it is hanging in the Austin Show in September.

Lone Star Over The Rainbow — Lone Star Over the Rainbow – 90 x 90

I started Jacobean Batiks in 2009/2010 while we wintered in Arizona. I just could not let it be an easy project, no I just had to do 4 more Medallions and put it on Point!!!! It took me until last summer to finish it. I had other projects that I chose to work on before finishing one. Before I could get it quilted, our “ex-cat” bit me in late June and I spent 8 wonderful days vacationing in the Hospital with Cat Scratch Fever – I was very lucky to survive that one. Then I came home pumped full of mediation and sat down and hand quilted this puppy in 5 weeks. I did not make it easy – the quilting is Vertical and 1/4″ apart – talk about STUPID! Believe you me – never again will I wait until the last-minute to finish a quilt for a Show. For some reason (wonder why) this is really NOT my favorite quilt! If it wins a ribbon – any place – I MIGHT begin to like it! (LOL)

Now let’s talk about Floating Stars………..Nothing is easy in the quilting world……… The pattern had a cutting direction issue and it took me about 2 weeks of working with a practice block to get the star to float. Believe me, I have perfected this one! Thanks to Perseverance and Math! Again if it wins a ribbon – any place – I will be so very Happy. I really worked hard on color selection and placement. I am not happy with the professional quilter who quilted it – she must have had a bad week – so again – I think that 2013 was not my best year – hoping 2015 gets better. I will probably go back to quilting my own quilts or find someone who really cares about providing show quality quilting. I had worked so hard to perfect star, I could have cried when I saw the mistakes on the quilting.

Well, I hope that everyone North of Dallas, Texas is enjoying the nice cool weather. We here in South Texas are keeping the home fires burning – and now I understand that we have 100 degree weather coming everyday next week……….YEA Until next Post, stay safe and have a Blessed Life!

July 8, 2014

Where Does the Time Go?

Anyone who is still in the active workforce knows that time passes so s-l-o-w… Well, let me tell you – Retirement times passes so FAST that even when one wakes up at 4:30 thinking that they will be in their Studio quilting by 9:30 AM has another thought coming! How can a quick run to the store, bank, and pick up tacos at a drive in window take over an hour and a half? Especially when one lives about 5 miles from a small town! Well believe me it does and it threw my schedule off about 3 hours. So my dream of being in the Studio cutting out a new quilt today has not really gone as planned. I guess I knew that it was not a “good brain day” after I had pressed my block for Baltimore Applique Society (BAS) donation, cut the batting and backing, then realized – OH do I have to add a BORDER???? Well, needless to say, back to the cutting table….. At least I did not mess up the block! Whew!

I did finish the border on my for the Baltimore Applique Society donation quilt without anymore stupid things happening and it is now ready for quilting. This particular block is from the Elizabeth MacCullough Hervey Quilt Pattern, Block D3. BAS is such a great group to be a part of. They are located in an area where they go to the Museums and actually copy the Baltimore quilt pattern from the original quilt. I really regret that when I lived in the Northern Virginia area that I was not a quilter. I had always wanted to learn how to quilt since the 1970’s, but there was not time with a full-time career. So I jumped into the quilting world two years after I retired. The first technique I tried was needleturn applique and I feel in love with the it! This was before glue! (I am a Traditional needle turn appliquer.)

BAS will be hosting a “Bits of Baltimore Online Auction” to be held October 1st through the 15th and October 20th – November 3rd. I will post more information on the Auction in another post. Now on to the hand quilting. I am pleased with the outcome. At first I had some issues with the fabric I had selected, but things began to take hold and now it is finished (oops except the quilting!)

I have decided that I will continue to save the Austen Family Quilt BOW, but will not be working on it this year. I am going to complete the Globetrotting, Threads of Memory, and Happy Scrappy Quilt. I have received my fabrics that I was lucky enough to find to add to my stash for Happy Scrappy. The fabric line is Ruby’s Flower Garden and Summers Basket of Flowers! So it is now time for me to get serious on getting things done. I have also decided to do Sentimental Scraps by Edyta Sitar for Laundry Basket Quilts. The pattern is in the Quiltmania magazine Number 99, page 81. My friend Jaydee has already completed her quilt and she did a wonderful job. I hope mine comes out as pretty. I purchased the border fabric along with some other pieces from the Hope Chest Collection. Here is a picture of Jaydee’s beautiful Sentimental Scraps quilt.

Jaydee Quilt Mania Scrappy Quilt — Jaydee’s Sentimental Scraps

I will be posting my progress as I go along with Happy Scrappy and Sentimental Scraps. SS has 130 3″ nine patches and I will have to make more as this will go on a California King Bed…… Oh boy – more fun than a barrel of monkeys!

Have a blessed day – Enjoy!