Thanks to all for the lovely comments on this project! I have all the blocks for my Minnick and Simpson QOV done already! They went together very quickly while listening to my audio book.
This is my favorite block.
I have 30 blocks done. These blocks finish at 10 inches. I will add a border as well. And my next audio book is ready to go as well!
I have really enjoyed every David McCullough book I have ever read/listened to.
Have a great day!
I’ve had two of these Minnick & Simpson jelly rolls hanging around for a while so I brought them with me to AZ.
I’ve been looking at jelly roll patterns available free online and finally settled on one called Tropical Punch from the Moda Bake Shop. It didn’t take long to chop up that jelly roll.
I don’t know that I will follow the pattern exactly but I do like the block pattern. I have these done so far.
I’m listening to this audiobook while I sew.
Have a great day!
Linking up with Patchwork Times, Love Laugh Quilt, Cooking Up Quilts
Empty Nest but Full Heart, written by my friend Kathy, also known as Nanato4T’s, has long been one of my favorite blogs. I am sure many of you have enjoyed reading it too. Kathy was diagnosed with cancer over a year ago and it is with a heart heavy for her family, that I share the news that she has entered into eternity with her Savior, Jesus.
Kathy and I never met in person, but we corresponded by email for the last several years. She was a Nana before I was and we enjoyed sharing stories of our grands. She was an encourager. I can’t remember her ever complaining about anything. She loved life, her family, and Jesus. I am fortunate to have called her my friend.
In December, she wrote in her last email to me that she intended to enjoy Christmas making memories with her family. She said she was blessed to be here and would be blessed to soon meet Jesus face to face.
I will miss you, Kathy. I am thankful you are now free of pain. We will chat again someday!
I needed to go to Lowes this week and I took a trip through the garden center while I was there. It was fascinating! The garden section of the home centers back home aren’t even open. And you certainly won’t find these plants there:
I really enjoyed walking around and seeing all of these amazing cacti and succulents.
Have a great day!
I’m so excited! Im going to this tomorrow with my dear friend Zenia from A Quilted Passion!
If any of you see a wide eyed woman there carrying this bag, please tap me on the shoulder and say hello!
Have a great day!
I haven’t kept up with the monthly mini challenges over on the Small Quilt Talk Yahoo group over the last year of so. But I was in the mood for a mini recently, so I checked in to see what the current challenge was. This year, the challenges will all be based on quilts from Kathy Tracy’s latest book. I started with this pile of four patches.
They were set stripy style using sashing. You were supposed to use some sort of stripe here, but I went with what I had on hand. I also seemed to have forgotten the pattern, which called for only those two middle sashing strips. I got carried away and sashed everything!
I added some mismatched borders and quilted it on my Singer 301. Nearly all the fabrics in this little quilt came from the box of fabrics Ila sent me! Thanks again, Ila! I couldn’t have made this without you!
Time to bind.
And, tadaaaa!
By the way, I enjoyed reading all of your comments yesterday about the bias edges on blocks. Val asked if having a straight of grain border helped if the blocks are on the bias. It does if the borders are carefully and accurately applied. However, it is much more difficult to apply the borders accurately if the blocks have bias edges.
Have a wonderful day!
Linking up with Busy Hands Quilts, Confessions of a Fabric Addict, Crazy Mom Quilts
I was asked for more details regarding the blocks I made for this quilt.
The squares are all cut 2 1/2 inches. The setting triangles along the sides started out as 4 1/2 inch squares that I then cut twice on the diagonal as shown.
The corner triangles were 3 inch squares cut once on the diagonal.
After piecing the block, I trimmed it up to 12 inches for a finished size of 11 1/2 inches. Some patterns/tutorials for this block have you use squares or rectangles along the edge and then trim them off when squaring up the block. This gives bias edges to your blocks, something I loathe. Bias edges can be eased to fit, but they are unstable. They can easily be stretched out of square, especially when long arm quilting.
And if I may go on a bit of a tangent here….. I really dislike the method of making half square triangles in which you take two squares, sew around the edges, and then cut diagonally twice to give you four half square triangle blocks. This method is used in many Missouri Star tutorials. It is a clever use of fabric, but those bias edges! Ugh! It takes a careful, skilled quilter to properly add borders to a top that has all bias edges. More often than not, wavy borders are the result. As a long armer, wavy borders can be a real pain in the back side. Also, the tension on the quilt top in the frame can make it easy to pull those blocks out of square.
Your mileage may vary. I know many of you love this method. This is just my opinion. I have much better success when the edges of my blocks are all on grain.
Have a great day!
I finished sewing the 5 blocks I had cut out.
Please excuse the sunspot in the photo!
I had to use some creative piecing to get those last few blocks made.
Allison suggested that I try putting these on point. Brilliant!
I have the perfect number of blocks for this setting! Thanks, Allison! I may add sashing and cornerstones yet as well as a border. I do have some French General fabrics at home though. So rather than shopping, I may just put this on hold for the time being. If I can wait that long!
Have a great day!
I pulled these out again.
I really like these blocks and have been thinking about making more. I used a jelly roll to make these and I’m down to scraps. I did find a FQ from this line recently and that along with a piece of French General red I brought with me, was enough to squeak out the cuttings for 5 more blocks.
Of course, I would really like 5 more blocks and a border. Hmmmm…… That would require some shopping since I don’t have my stash here. I think I’ll go sew up these five blocks while I think about that.
Have a great day!
Linking up with The Quilting Room with Mel
Remember these?
I pieced these a couple years ago. And in the process, I got so sick of them I hadn’t touched them since! But I had hubby bring them out when he was here in December. I figured I would have to do something with them then! So I have started to play a bit.
These all came from one Fat Quarter bundle and while I do like the fabrics, I’m finding them a bit boring altogether. I thought off setting them might help.
Or maybe I will just go block to block as originally planned. Sigh….I really have fallen out of love with these. But it’s time to get this top done.
Have a great day!
Linking up with Cooking Up Quilts, Love Laugh Quilt, Patchwork Times
KatyQuilts 