Half a Halo - finished!

Finally this one is finished, labeled, and ready to put on the sofa. I called it Half a Halo" based on the where I decided to stop making this intricate pattern by Sue Garman. See her version here. It is stunning, but I'm not up to any more little triangles.

Now on to a couple more UFO's.

Stash busting

These pieces and the block are from my box of brown/orange scraps. The plan is to make the blocks until the scrap bin is empty, adding from stash if needed to make at least a twin-size. The block finishes at 8" so I will need at least 40 of them, likely more.

This will be a darkish quilt but some contrast and bright spots. I've only one block so not sure how the setting will go, but at least the scraps will go! Well, I might keep the largest of the leftovers, too small for 2.5" but large enough for a foundation paper-pieced project, etc.

Halo Medallion binding is nearly done. Need a name and a label. Since it is not the full pattern, it could be "Half a Halo" -- was thinking of subtitle: "the story of my life" but not sure I want to go public with that! 😀

Hope everyone is using February to finish those January projects...

Looking forward

Thanks to all for kind comments regarding my situation. Had the worst nosebleed ever and the doc in the ER and I decided it was time to permanently stop taking the blood thinner. It only lessens the chance of a clot/stroke by 5% and I'd rather not spend the rest of my life with a nosebleed nearly every day, or having it packed to stop it. Painful!

My sister's Celebration of Life service was amazing. If such an event can be called glorious, this one was. It honored her, glorified God who gifted her, and produced both tears and joy, mostly joy. We had a wonderful family time after that could only be described as a God-thing. She wanted this for her funeral and the Lord answered our prayers "exceedingly abundantly above all we could ask or imagine." I'm so grateful for this and for her life well-lived.

In all the stuff going on during the past few weeks, I've tried to get a few stitches in each day. It does not make for even, smooth work, but this is getting done.


Some of my next projects include these little piles of fabrics for baby quilts laying on the bed in our guest room. Nine show, but there are about thirteen. All will go to Basically Babies. a remarkable charity that does layettes for needy families.

Slowly, slowly

I now understand those who quilt for therapy in a loss or pain. These are busy days and I'm having trouble with focus and that "Be still and know that I am God" thing that is so true but often difficult with a million thoughts and memories crowding into my head. I miss my sister yet cannot believe she is gone. I am sad for me and others in our circle of family and friends as she was such a unique and wonderful person, but happy for her as I know she is with Jesus. Put the memories into the mix and no wonder all I want to do is sleep! But quilting helps.

Here is the progress on Halo Medallion. It looks okay, lots of ruler work, but the best part is the above stew of thoughts seem to settle down when I work on it. Might be that concentration is required, but nothing else does it, for me anyway.

I've had nosebleeds again. Started on the weekend. Had to miss church. Woke up at 4 am bleeding until 6 am. I did all the doctors said. Finally slept at 7 until 10 am and then it started again as soon as I gently touched my face. Remembered an old trick that I heard from a doctor -- slapped the bottom of the foot on the opposite side of the bleeding nostril -- really hard, a couple of times. The bleeding stopped instantly and has been okay since then. It is now 2:30. I want to sleep, but think that is a false signal. I need to quilt... I miss my sister.

Two kinds of 'cold' and other issues...

The past few weeks have been challenging. My hubby caught a cold (rare) and about the third day nearly passed out. ER couldn't find the cause. Nasty cough and now much better. About 3 days behind him, I got it, no passing out, nasty cough though and now nearly better. My sister's hip healed nicely but other things are happening. Not good. She may not survive. We are praying and hoping to be well soon so we can go see her.

Our son and his gal are in the Philippines and left Lake Taal just before the volcano erupted. He is so thankful they got out of there. No wonder I felt prompted often to pray for their safety.

Our oldest son is working north, was -48C (-55F) there all day yesterday. And it is -30 C here (-22F). Praying for his safety too. Global warming anyone?

However, I did get the final borders on this medallion. I like it. The next thing is deciding how to quilt it. The binding is ready... look on the right side to see a short strip preview. This quilt took forever, mostly procrastination. Also, my mind works this way: we were supposed to be in FL for the past two weeks and had that happened, I would not be working on it anyway, so I didn't... at least until I got sick of looking at it unfinished. It is about 60" square.

Our home is warm, hubby doesn't need to go to work, we have lots of groceries, and it is supposed to hit -36 here tomorrow then warm up to -25 the next day. Positively balmy!

This border took forever...

Foundation paper piecing is a favored technique -- repetition is not. Thirty-six of these blocks nearly made me decide to quit this project and go fishing (or shopping). Anyway, they are done, on the center, and waiting for an idea of what to do with the rest of it. I don't want to make the full quilt as the rest of the borders are more of the same... bitty pieces that take forever. I'm thinking something plain and calling it a lap quilt. Colors are a bit off in this photo but you get the idea. That last border has 916 pieces in it. The geese are about 1 1/8" across the widest part.

It's been a rough week. We had a lovely Christmas Day then late in the evening received the news that my sister fell about 3 pm and broke her hip. She was taken to hospital and had surgery the next day. She has other problems - forgets words and slowly become unable to communicate. She is aware, just can't remember how to talk or do some other things. She is 3 plus hours from us. We planned to go down, but hubby picked up a nasty cold virus right after Christmas and he sounds awful. Doc said his lungs are okay. We were supposed to travel soon, but he is thinking we should cancel. The last time he got sick nearly did him in as he has a compromised immune system and this cold could lead to something worse. Lots of chicken soup and naps happening here!

If I don't get back on for a day or two, Happy New Year!

An easy finish • Jungle Stuffies

Here is another charity quilt. I've a pile of panels suitable for children that will go to a charity called Basically Babies. They make layettes that will cover one year, including duds, quilts and blankets and even match colors etc. These go to families in need. This one was fun. I added borders to the panel and had fun with the quilting. It was a Panto called Gingersnap, but I added eyes and ears to the concentric circles and made them look like stuffy faces.

I'm also working on a guild challenge quilt. The first person gets a photo of a landscape and must make a 18" x 24" quilt inspired by the photo. They send a picture of their quilt (not the original photo) and an artist's statement to quilter number two. 

That person makes an 18" x 24" quilt inspired by the photo and statement from quilter #one. They email a photo of their quilt and statement to #three. And on it goes. There are 10 in each group and the resulting 40 quilts will be on display at Quilt Canada next year. This is exciting, sort of like that telephone game aka known as the gossip game. By the end, the last quilt will be a huge departure from the original photo. I'll post a picture when the rules allow it!

Also working on Halo Medallion. All those arcs are finished so need to put them in their blocks and sew them on... then decide what to do next.

I've been busy. . .

I cannot believe the last post was more than a month ago. But I have been busy. I'm working on a charity quilt and one for my living room wall. 

The charity quilt is small so will likely wind up in one of those silent auctions where people either go big and buy a week in the Bahamas, or want something small for a gift. 

The living room is getting an original. We bought new furniture including a long, low TV stand. Not wanting to put it on the wall meant it dropped below the electrical outlet and cable receptacle on the wall that had been hidden. Rumor has it we are getting a bigger TV but in the meantime, I wanted to hide those two little white boxes. So I designed a long skinny tree with dark background and bare branches. I sewed the background together on my machine but the tree is applique. Several more football games and it will be done. No photo except a "before" one... that I cannot find. Sigh.

This past week I made a list of all the kits, patterns, planned projects, etc. and the number was large. So I used one of those 'compare and prioritize' charts. It resulted in a list of what I'd like to get done and in what order. For some reason, this makes me feel better even though it is a bit overwhelming. Too much fabric, too many ideas, no personal assistant! Here is a photo of the one that made 'first to finish' at the top of the list. 

Below is the finished version from the pattern, but because it is a medallion, I can stop when I want to, or when I run out of fabric. My version is paler and prettier than it looks in the above picture. I'm not sure I want to do all those HST, pinwheels, and flying geese, but will finish the FPP arcs.  They are easy and very pretty.

Halo and Hawaii

Since the last post, more of those flying geese in quarter circles are finished (but lots of them are not!) Here is what is done so far. They are just pinned on the design wall -- and will have a border between them and the star border. The main fabric is not as yellow as it looks here.

Also progress on Scott's king size. He wanted Hawaii, but I'm taking liberties for both the design and the colors. That aqua blue along with dark green foliage looks too much like a painting on velvet -- as in 'garish' -- even though it looks terrific on Maui. Anyway, these are the background 'islands' with aerial perspective. The white strip will be much narrower, just a contrasting highlight on the water way back there. I've pinned this to the full size pattern that is pinned to a big quilt hanging on my hallway wall. Even this bit was a bit unwieldy, but with practice, it should get easier to manipulate the pieces?

The photo is a bit dark, but you get the idea. Next is the water and sand, then the sky, then the foliage...

Progress on Halo Medallion

The little (5") star blocks are done, now I'm working on the flying geese curved ones, which take longer (nearly 50 min each) but are more fun. They are also foundation paper-pieced... and the pattern calls for 36 of them. So far, I have 3.

You may note that I erred on the saw-tooth border, but since I've decided to put an almost invisible heart on my quilts, this one will have four of them to hide those mistakes.

As for other projects, I have the pattern for my son's king-size up on a wall. It is a landscape. The fabrics are in a box. That is progress. I'm still procrastinating because this one will be physically hard, never mind trying to figure out how to do it. Has anyone ever made a raw-edge applique that has to be washed now and then? I'm thinking that is not a good idea, even though it would be easier than piecing this big one. 

Keeping Busy

I've been working on the Halo Medallion, and also taking a Craftsy class to force me to practice. The medallion quilt is here, and I'm on the round of floating stars. They are 4" with 18 pieces in each one. Cute, but 32 of them is hard on someone who is not crazy about repetition! Indoor lighting for this one. The background is much lighter in real life.

 The Craftsy online class is about mixing motifs to make an interesting all-over pattern. I threw some junk fabric on the longarm which is why this is hard to see. So if you cannot see it -- take my word for it -- I need a lot of practice!

Halo Medallion BOM

This one is behind schedule. I've done the star and the next round, but should be working on the staggered star border. It has 32 little blocks, 5" square all done in foundation paper piecing. I love that technique, but someone has to cook supper and make the bed!

Here is the progress so far. The colors do not look "dirty" like they do in this photo; they are clear and soft. The pattern is a BOM designed by Susan Garman (now desceased) for The Quilt Show. The pattern is available free to members (about $42 a year and totally worth every cent!). 

One nice thing about this one is that I can stop at the size I like -- or until I run out of fabric! I bought a hunk of the one used in the four corners of this section, but picked everything else from my stash. If you want to see the total picture, go here or here. It is really pretty in the original colors, except I didn't like the red (too much contrast) and wanted something less springy and more soft. See this for my fabric choices. 

Happy quilting!