Can I Get A Whoop Whoop? Vintage Beauty Restored!

 

Hi, all!

Friday, and the month already more than half gone - how time does fly!  But Friday means that it's time for us to get our whoop whoop on, so I hope you're ready.  Let's get started!

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A long while back, a friend at church brought me three vintage quilt tops and asked me if I could quilt them for her.  Two were fairly simple jobs, but the third was more challenging...

There were some areas in the sashing that had serious staining - you can see one at the bottom left and there was another one on the top right.  The fabric was feed sacking and I didn't have anything remotely similar to replace it with.  But looking at the layout of the quilt, you can see that the three strips of blocks are each three blocks plus a half block.  I decided to take the top apart and cut it down in size, eliminating the half blocks and laying it out in a three by three grid.  By doing that, I was able to use one of the clean eliminated sashing to replace the stained one, and the other was completely cut off in the remake.

The original outer border fabric was too flimsy and worn to re-use, so I found a copper colored cotton in my stash to replace it with. I actually think this color works better than the original!  (PS the quilt really is square - it looks like it isn't because I had to manipulate the photo to "square up" the picture.)

And now it's all finished - quilted and bound!  I thought it looked particularly nice here beside some of my vintage machines, too.  It's my last commission job for 2021, and now I can work on some "me projects" - or at least fun stuff!

And that leads me to my next whoop whoop - I've finished up that last commission just in time to start something fun...

Leanne, also known as @devotedquilter on Instagram, is hosting a 100 day WIP (works in progress) finishing challenge!  I have lots of projects that need finishing, and this will give me just the little extra encouragement I need to really plow through them. The challenge starts on 9/23, so there's still time to join in the fun.  Won't you join me?  It would be a great way to finish up some Christmas gifts, you know?  And as an added incentive, there are prizes!  

So - - - can I get a whoop whoop?

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And now it's your turn!

What's got you whooping it up this week?

What's making you do a little happy dance?

Share!  We want to dance right along with you,

And it's always more fun to dance with friends!

The party will stay open until Sunday midnight.

Hope to see you then!

Hugs!

Sarah

Make-A-List Monday - Light At The End of That Tunnel!

Hi, all!

Monday is here once again (and thankfully my time sense is back on straight so I KNOW it's Monday!) and that means it's time for a little list-making!  But first let's see how last week's list went...

1.  Quilt the three memory quilts.

Done!  I'm so glad to have these finished! 

2.  Ship my friend's quilts to her.

Done!  She's already received them and sent me a picture of one of them on the bed!

3.  Finish piecing the hockey quilt.

Not finished, but progress made...

4.  Start repairing and re-assembling the vintage quilt top.

Again, not finished, but ready to be re-assembled!

5.  Pack up the three memory quilts for shipping.

Packed up and shipped! They should arrive at their 

forever home on Thursday.  

A good week, yes?  And I have almost finished with all my commission obligations, too.  Once that vintage top is repaired and quilted, I will not have any more commissions and won't be taking any more until at least next year.  I've decided I want to make up some of the projects I've had sitting around for fear too long!  It's exciting - now I just have to decide which comes first....

So here's my list for this week...

1.  Re-assemble the vintage top and add a border.

2.  Quilt and bind that vintage top.

3.  Quilt a quilt that will be a farewell gift for someone at church.

4.  Keep piecing the hockey quilt.

5.  Bind two ministry quilts.

I'm going to leave it at that this week, in hopes of getting everything on this list finished.  And then I can play!!!

So now the question is - - - what are YOU working on this week?

Hugs!

Sarah

Can I Get A Whoop Whoop? Finishes and Near-Finishes!

 

Hi, all!

It's been a fast week, but guess what?  It's Friday!  And that means it's time for us to get our whoop whoop on!  Are you ready?  Let's go!

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It's been a good and productive week around here!  When the world goes crazy, sometimes sewing is the only way to deal with it - and that's good for productivity.

Tuesday I quilted this beauty, and put the binding on too!

Wednesday morning it joined this beauty in a great big box and went to UPS!  It's winging its way to Florida and my friend as we speak!

And Thursday was a big day, too, as I finished quilting all three of these memory quilts!  Binding should happen on Friday, with any luck.

So - - - can I get a whoop whoop?

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And now it's your turn!

What's got you whooping it up this week?

What's making you do a little happy dance?

Share! We want to dance right along with you,

And it's always more fun to dance with friends!

The party will stay open until Sunday midnight.

Hope to see you there!

Hugs!

Sarah

Make-a-List Monday - Wait, What? Tuesday?

Hi, all!

Whoops!  Holiday weekends always mess up my internal blogging calendar - I completely forgot yesterday was Monday!  My husband and I spent a lot of time this past weekend cleaning out and organizing the garage in hopes of getting at least one car in it this winter so I didn't get much done on my list after Friday morning, but let's see how it went...

 

1.  Make a back for Nathanael's quilt.

Done!  No picture, but I found a great blue and green sea turtle print that looks perfect with it!

2.  Make a back for a friend's quilt.

3.  Load that quilt on the frame and get'r done!

Done!  I'm happy to say that this quilt...

...is going to join this one....

...in a big box headed to Florida!  They are long past due but I hope my friend loves them as much as I loved working on them!

4.  Load up the memory quilts backing on the frame and start quilting them.  

I did get the backing loaded on the frame and the first quilt is pinned on and ready to go, but I didn't get any further this week.

5.  Start cutting and piecing a Christmas gift quilt.

Started!  I can't show this one on Instagram, but I'm fairly sure the recipient doesn't read my blog, so I'll show peeks here.  I've gotten further than this, but it's the only picture I had on my phone.  I'm past the tough part of this pattern, so the rest should go together pretty quickly.

6.  Find and make a back for Emmy's quilt.

Done!  No picture of this one either, but I found the perfect print - rainbows and unicorns on bright pink!  

7.  Start repairing and re-assembling the vintage quilt top.

I didn't get to this one at all.

So actually, not a bad week considering I didn't do much at all (quilting-wise) over the four-day weekend!  But my road for this week is pretty clear, so here's what I'm planning to get done...

1.  Quilt the three memory quilts.

2.  Ship my friend's quilts to her.

3.  Finish piecing the hockey quilt.

4.  Start repairing and re-assembling the vintage quilt top.

5.  Pack up the three memory quilts for shipping.

I'm going to keep this list short and sweet and hopefully will get to everything on it!  It would be really nice to report back that I not only finished the list, but did some extra stuff too.  We shall see!

And now the big question is - - - what are YOU working on this week?

Hugs!

Sarah

Can I Get A Whoop Whoop? A Finish, and Progress!

 

Hi, all!

I know it's hard to believe, but it's September!  This year is just whipping along, isn't it?  Now's the time, though, when we'll all start having some finishes - some we can share, some we can't - but we can all cheer each other on as we work!  So gather up your whoop-whoop-worthy stuff and let's get started!

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Well, it's been a couple of busy weeks around here, and I've finally got my sew-jo back, which means that things are moving right along on the quilting front.  First of all, here's the finish...

Remember when my friend moved and gave me a lot of her quilting supplies? Well, the deal was that in return I would finish two quilts she had started for her.  This is the first of those quilts, and it is ready to go, just waiting for me to quilt the second quilt so I can ship them off together.  

And then I finished piecing Emmy's annual quilt top.  I've also found a great back for this quilt, and it's ready to go on the frame soon.

And I've made a good start on this, another pattern by Lorna at Sew Fresh Quilts (so is the unicorn, by the way).  This one is a little more complicated so I'm moving slower on it, but I'm still having fun!

So - - - can I get a whoop whoop?

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And now it's your turn!  

What's got you whooping it up this week?

What's making you do a little happy dance?

Share!  We want to dance right along with you,

And it's always more fun to dance with friends!

The party will stay open until Sunday midnight.

Hope to see you there!

Hugs!

Sarah

Make-A-List Monday - Back in the Groove!

 

Hi, all!

After a tumultuous weekend for much of the South, Monday has finally arrived! If you were affected by Hurricane Ida, my thoughts and prayers are with you and your family.  The scenes we've been seeing on television of the storm damage have been horrific, and it looks like it will be a long time before things are back to normal.  We are now getting the first of the rain bands from Ida here in Tennessee, so we've got a couple of rainy days ahead of us, which means more quilting time!  I've got projects lined up and ready to go...

But first, let's se how last week's list went...

1.  Assemble Nathanael's annual quilt top.

Done!  And I found the perfect print for the back, too.

2.  Figure out why Jolene is skipping stitches, and quilt the top on the frame.

Done!  Turns out that the new needle I put in was bent and was causing her to skip.  After trying everything else, that was all that was left and as soon as I changed the needle, all was well!   And look how pretty the quilt turned out....

3.  Do some very cautious frog-stitching (rip-it, rip-it) on a vintage top to allow for some repair work.  (It takes a lot longer when you have to be really careful....)

Done!   I had to sit with the kids three mornings last week while each one had doctor's visits, and managed to finish deconstructing the quilt top just as Nancy got home with the last kid on Friday!  No pictures, though.  But I'll have pictures after the top is put back together... 

4.  Put out fall decorations on the front porch and around the house.

Done!  I really went all out on the front porch, using most of my stash of fall decorations.  Looks like I'll need to get some more!

5.  Start piecing Emmy's annual quilt.

Not only started, but finished!  Didn't this turn out cute?  I just love Lorna's (Sew Fresh Quilts) patterns!

So a good and productive week, all in all!  And lots to work on this week, too - here's what I'm hoping to get to next....

1.  Make a back for Nathanael's quilt.

2.  Make a back for a friend's quilt.

3.  Load that quilt on the frame and get'r done!

4.  Load up the memory quilts backing on the frame and start quilting them.  

5.  Start cutting and piecing a Christmas gift quilt.

6.  Find and make a back for Emmy's quilt.

7.  Start repairing and re-assembling the vintage quilt top.

More than enough to keep me out of trouble, that's for sure!  I'm excited to get some of these obligations out of the way so I can work on some of the projects I've had on the back burner for way too long - my Christmas present to myself.  

And now I have one burning question - - - what are YOU working on this week?

Hugs!

Sarah

Can I Get A Whoop Whoop? Let's Hear It For Emily's New Book!

 

Hi, all!

Can you believe it's the last Friday in August already?  This year is just flying by - but Friday means that it's time for us to get our whoop whoop on, so I hope you're ready!  Let's go!

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As you all know, I may have a slight scrap problem.  After all, fabric is expensive, so we don't really want to throw even the leftovers away!  But mine are starting take over the studio...

...and I really need to find a way to use them - because they aren't doing anyone any good just stacked in bins!  Well, last week I was contacted by Emily Bailey of Em's Scrap Bag about her new book...

...and she wanted to know if I would be interested in reviewing her new book, Crumb Quilts, on my blog.  Well heck yeah!  I've known Emily for probably close to ten years.  I love her blog, and all of her scrappy endeavors, and her giving heart (she's the driving force behind Quilty Hugs for Happy Chemo, one of our annual charities for Hands2Help) so of course I was willing to help.

As you can tell by the title, this book deals with using crumbs - those bits and scraps, even the smallest ones, left when a quilting project is completed.  Using crumbs means that there's almost no waste involved, which is a great thing!  After all, with fabric costing upwards of $12 a yard sometimes, it doesn't take much in the way of scraps to add up to a good chunk of change.  If you don't believe me, take some of your scraps and weigh them.  A yard of fabric weighs about 5.3 ounces.  How many yards are in that pile of fabric?  See what I mean?

Emily's book has great instructions (with photographs) to show you how to create crumb "fabric", and then she shares fifteen projects to inspire you to make and use your own crumb fabric!  I mean, just look at that quilt above - doesn't it just sparkle?  And I have quite a stash of black and white fabrics just gathering dust.....

But when I saw this picture, I fell in love!  I'm not a huge fan of appliqué, but those leaves!  (Can you tell I'm in the mood for a little fall weather and changing leaves?)  So I looked further on in the book to see what the whole quilt looked like...

...and wow, it didn't disappoint!  I'm definitely adding this quilt to my future sewing plans.  What a scrap buster!

So I think it's easy to see that I really....

...this book!   Small projects, big projects, there's something for everyone - because hey, we all have scraps, don't we?  Emily's book will be released on September 14, 2021, but you can pre-order it right now on Amazon and if the price drops, they'll adjust your charge accordingly.  And then you too can enjoy this beautiful book and use up those scraps!

So let's give Emily a big whoop whoop for a job well done!

Whoop whoop!!

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And now it's your turn!

What's got you whooping it up this week?

What's making you do a little happy dance?

Share!  We want to dance right along with you,

And it's always more fun to dance with friends!

The party will stay open until Sunday midnight.

Hope to see you there!

Hugs!

Sarah

Make-A-List Monday - Getting Back To Normal!

 

Hi, all!

It's Monday, and I'm actually starting to feel my sew-jo coming back!  I made progress on some things last week, and it feels so good - and I actually want to work on more stuff this week.  So let's see how last week's list went...

1.  Finish the borders on the third memory quilt.

Done!  I love these three quilts and how each is similar, but not exactly alike.  

2.  Make the backs for those three quilts.

Done!  I didn't get a separate picture, but the backs are that blue fabric on the left side of this picture.

I had some leftover pieces from the shirts that I sewed together into a 7" wide strip of pieces.  I cut that strip into three sections 2.5" wide, then sewed it between lengths of backing fabric.  I made one REALLY  long back that I will load onto the frame all at once, allowing me to quilt all three quilts one after the other without having to reload the frame every time.  I've done this before with kids' quilts - should be interesting to see if it works well with larger ones!

3.  Make the back for Lilli's annual quilt.

Done - although I don't have a picture yet.  

4.  Start working on the half-square triangles for Nathanael's annual quilt.

And here's where my sew-jo started coming back!  I went from a pile of sewn squares...

...to a pretty bunch of trimmed HSTs...

...to a whole quilt laid out on the design wall!  I had hoped to get it sewn together today, but didn't have time.  With luck, that will happen tomorrow!

5.  Have a baking day/Spanish lesson day with Lilli.

Done!  This girl is growing up so fast - and I love spending time with her!

And look what we made!  (Actually she made them while I drilled her on the Spanish words for all the ingredients...)  I just had one while writing this post and they are still yummy, but almost gone.  Maybe we should make some more tomorrow!

It was a very good week!  Now if I can just keep that sew-jo in place, despite a very different situation this week.  All three grandkids have their annual doctor visits this week, each one on a different day, and I'm babysitting with the two who aren't going to the doctor that day for a few hours in the morning.  So less time than usual on the sewing machine, but I have other things I can work on while I'm there.  So here's what I'm hoping to get done this week...

1.  Assemble Nathanael's annual quilt top.

2.  Figure out why Jolene is skipping stitches, and quilt the top on the frame.

3.  Do some very cautious frog-stitching (rip-it, rip-it) on a vintage top to allow for some repair work.  (It takes a lot longer when you have to be really careful....)

4.  Put out fall decorations on the front porch and around the house.

5.  Start piecing Emmy's annual quilt.

I don't know if I'll be able to get to all of this, but it's a good place to start!

And a funny story - when I took out the vintage top to work on at my daughter's house this morning, Emmy asked me if I was working on "another quilt".  I told her "always" and that actually I had about five quilts in progress right now - the memory quilts, the one on the frame, Nathanael's quilt, her quilt, and one for her dad (oops, that's actually seven, eight counting the vintage top!)  She looked at me and very seriously said, "Nana, maybe you should just work on one at a time!"  But I explained to her that because I had been going through a time when I didn't really feel like sewing, but needed to, that having several projects going at once meant that I could switch off when I lost the will to work on the current project.  She just looked at me and shook her head!  But Lilli, my granddaughter who always has several books going at once, totally understood.  It's all a matter of perspective!

So now I really want to know - - - what are YOU working on this week?

Hugs!

Sarah