Wow!....I can't believe I've neglected this blog for so many years.   But, I've also neglected my passion for quilting.   Not that I haven't quilted at all, but there have been fewer projects, haphazard fleeting moments of grabbing time to piece a few blocks,  or chain-stitch some pieces.....and definitely no documenting. 

Here we are approaching the end of 2021.  I have 2 granddaughters who turn 25 this year:  Madeline & Lilli.  I decided to make each a quilt to celebrate that landmark.  With 12 grandkids, one must have a "plan".   I've completed Madeline's quilt and sent it to her in April for her birthday.  Lilli's birthday is in December and her quilt is a 'work-in-progress' at the moment. 

On Thursday, I got 2 phone calls from two unrelated parties asking me to make T-shirt Quilts.   Those calls stimulated my interest to get back to business and quit wasting time.  Quilting is too much fun for me to NOT make it a priority, even if it is for someone else's quilt.  So, hopefully, I'll be posting completed T-shirt quilts in the near future as well as the granddaughters' finished projects. 

2016: Assessing What To Do Next......

 I could hardly wait to start 2016....but I didn't know WHERE to start.  I have shelves and shelves of fabric:  Fabric on bolts, mini-bolts, folded in baskets, and scraps separated by color of which most is cut into various sizes of squares.  I decided to concentrate on using what I have rather than make new purchases.  First, I went through patterns and found one I bought about 5 years ago called "Radiant".  Then I picked a fabric of which I knew I had at least 2 yards to use for "inspiration" and as the outer border.  The next step was easy:  picking out fabrics from my stash that fit the color scheme of the "inspiration".  This called for 32 different fabrics.....no problem!  One thing missing was a light neutral.  I used all my light neutral fabrics in Christmas projects, so I had to break down and buy some white-on-white at the local quilt shop.  The directions were easy and the project went pretty fast.  Here's the finished product......It is backed in maroon and quilted with gold thread.

Fewer Projects This Year......

My quilting time has suffered due to working a full time job, but when I found some time to sew, I decided to do another Radiant pattern in a different color scheme:  blues, purples, and greens.  Since I didn't have an "inspiration" border, I made more blocks and omitted the wide outer border.   It's backed in a country blue and quilted with ecru thread.     I enjoyed this pattern so much that may make more in additional color schemes (I have lots of fabric!!)

Fewer Projects This Year......

My quilting time has suffered due to working a full time job, but when I found some time to sew, I decided to do another Radiant pattern in a different color scheme:  blues, purples, and greens.  Since I didn't have an "inspiration" border, I made more blocks and omitted the wide outer border.   It's backed in a country blue and quilted with ecru thread.     I enjoyed this pattern so much that may make more in additional color schemes (I have lots of fabric!!)

A Big Finish for 2015

Working fulltime really cut into my quilting time, but I persevered and managed to get the last stitch done in time for Christmas Eve.  Here are the projects for my girls:

Junghee's Oriental Stork....a symbol of long life:





Shelley's Blue Floral.....I saw this pattern in a catalog and thought it was a great opportunity to use some of my stash:





Stephanie's Coral Floral......another pattern seen in a magazine using same overall floral fabric as in Shelley's.  The different accent fabrics changes the entire look.




Cristi's Maroon Americana......this was a 2014 Block of the Month winning Honorable Mention in the 2015 Granbury Quilt Guild Quilt Show.





Mary Joy's Yellow Butterflies....Yellow Ohio Stars compliment these varied butterflies; accented with a bright teal.

Happy Fishing!

Bob, longtime family friend from California.....Jimmy's best friend since children growing up in Denison, Texas.....visits us each year in the spring.  A few years ago, I ran across two panels that made me think of Bob, and I got them with plans to one day make a lap quilt for Bob to commemorate his love of fishing.  As happens to "the best laid plans", these panels ended up on the backburner until about a month ago; when I was going through some stash, I ran across them.  Knowing Bob would be coming to Texas, I set them aside to start a project for him.  Of course, two panels are not enough to make a full quilt, and two panels are not going to make a balanced pattern.  I had recently seen some fat quarters at the new quilt store next to Big Lots that I thought may have come from the same maker of the panels, so I went back and bought the 2 fat quarters and some matching teal fabric.  Then I searched the shelves in my quilting room for fabric that would work as a contrast and found some beige print....Perfect!   I went to work making half square triangle blocks to make the star effect around each of the four panels and then sashed those blocks in the teal fabric.   Another treasure in my stash was the teal/turquoise ombre fabric used in the outside border.  The green section of the ombre was in the center of the fabric so I had to cut the strips in half at the green and sew them back together at the darker ends to get the green effect in two places on each side of the quilt.  It turned out better than I expected.  The binding is another stash item that worked its magic in bringing all the colors together.   

I had some smaller fish pictures that were originally around the larger panels, so I cut one out and adhered it to the label before I framed it with the same binding fabric. 

I rushed to get this finished before Bob's departure on Saturday night, but I put the final stitches on the label Thursday morning and presented it to Bob Friday night.  He likes it!

TCU T-Shirt Quilt

A friend of a friend called me to do a T-shirt quilt for her from college T-shirts.  She brought about 25 - 28 T-shirts.  I managed to use all except 2 of the shirts, including pocket logos.  Delivered yesterday: