Fresh Modern Bee II – Union Jack

After my battle to complete the first quarter of this block, I finally got the whole thing done.

I’m celebrating – these took some real focus and energy for some precise piecing, but will look great all together.

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Doll Quilt Swap – Ready to Mail

Finally finished the last details of my doll quilt and associated goodies.

This will be in the mail soon to my partner, in it’s matching envelope. My entry in matchiest doll quilt package contest. : )

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Working through my Work in Progress pile

A finish! This tablerunner has been hanging on the back of my sewing chair for weeks (alot of weeks), just waiting for a few lines of quilting to finish it.

 

The blocks are extras from making this aqua and white quilt

I cut the big HST’s into hourglass blocks for the table runner, though.

And assembled it using this method

Now it’s for sale in my shop

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Action Kivu Sewing Workshop Fund Raiser

If you haven’t seen it, there’s a fabulous fundraiser going on at Handmade by Alisa

She writes “This is a fundraiser for Action Kivu, an organization in eastern Congo that runs a sewing workshop for victims of the conflict there. The conflict in Congo has taken the lives of over 5.4 million people since 1998. Rape is used as a weapon of war, with estimates putting the number of rapes in the hundreds of thousands.”

“Action Kivu provides some of the eastern Congo’s victims of violence with the opportunity to rebuild their lives on a foundation of hope, dignity, and economic self-sustenance. Their approach is spearheaded through two programs. First, they run a sewing workshop that teaches women who are victims of the conflict to sew. This leads them to be able to support themselves and their families. Secondly, they pay for children to go to school which is not free in Congo. It costs $40 a year, per child. That’s very little money that makes a big impact.”

More information here

She’s set a goal of $10,000 in donations – they were at a little over $7,500 when I gave yesterday, and a little over $9000.  That’s an amazing testament to the generosity of this online community.

I’ve been watching it all week, but finally got my act together to give yesterday:  if you can, head over there to contribute what you can. I know times are tough right now, but nothing reminds me of how fortunate I really am than making a donation, however small.

(And if you need an added incentive, she’s lined up some fabulous fabric prizes if you donate before Sunday 8/29 — think Heather Ross and Flea Market Fancy)

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Two fabric orders

I’ve been shopping lately….

And, the donation blocks to go with them…

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Watercolors quilt top

I liked this pillow/block enough to make a quilt top out of watercolor HST’s.

By my count this is the fourth quilt I’ve made with these blocks:

1. Watercolors, 2. Watercolors, 3. Watercolors 3 4. New One

Err, and the pillows…

But this is the first time I’ve made triangles with them. There’s a million seams at some of those corners, but I like the effect.  The top isn’t complete, I think I’m going to add borders – probably a thin one in a color and a wider one in white.

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Changing seasons

A sign of things to come:

That’s my quilt, back on my bed.

the room last spring with the quilt...

Earlier this summer, in the middle of a heat wave, I swapped it out for a light coverlet,

but a couple of days ago I bought apples at the farm stand, wished I had a jacket when I went to the store, and pulled out the quilt.  Fall is coming to New England.

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(pink orange squares)

Another finish – actually, this quilt has been finished for a while, but a full time job and a couple of days of gloomy weather have made getting photos tricky. I’ll still have to wait for a sunnier day to get one that shows the quilting well.

The patchwork was fun (though it took some figuring to place all those squares so I could assemble them reasonably) and the quilting ended up adding so much to the design.

And, this quilt’s now for sale in my shop

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Watercolors Pillow

A small finish: this block into a throw pillow for the shop

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Planning a new Quilt

I’m planning a gift quilt for a family birthday in September.  I love making things for people I love, but gift quilts are often the hardest to plan, since the recipients often have a more traditional style than I do, and I want the gift to reflect their tastes and mesh with their home.

Nicey Jane’s vintage feel, though, should bridge the gap. I’m planning a simple quilt with fussy cut roses framed by the green kona and pink tiny-gingham, with the stripes for the backing. I think we’ll both be happy with the result.

How do you reconcile your style with those of recipients?

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