WA swap blocks

I belong to a small internet group - and each year we do a WA swap. This started with a larger group - and I've done the larger group swap since around 2000. Each person makes a 9 1/2" block of something that reminds them of WA state. It can be anything you like - just so it is WA related. There are so many possibilities.

Then you send in the blocks to a central swap hostess - and she (and a group of friends) sorts out the blocks and resends them to the participants. In the larger group you can swap in multiples of 5 - up to 35 blocks, and in the smaller group we make one block for each participant, and one for ourselves.

Having participated for so many years I have a lot of blocks and made two tops from them so far. I am saving up blocks for a third quilt - so each of my kids can eventually have a WA quilt.

This year I am making two blocks - 8 of each - and that should be all I need for this swap. The first block is this umbrella girl - she certainly reminds me of WA - I want to eventually make enough of these blocks to make a quilt for our bed - it will be our winter quilt since it rains so much in the winter here - perfect!

Some are walking this way . . .

And some are walking that way . . .

Tried a fancy stitch to outline her umbrella . . .

Now I just have to sew a cute button in the center of each umbrella.

My first swap quilt top - it is at Julie's, waiting to be quilted.

My second top - Attic Windows - also at Julie's, waiting its turn . . .

Below are some other quilts that the swappers have made. It is so much fun to see how creative everyone is in their settings. I have to decide on the setting for the third set of blocks, once I get enough for another top - I'm almost there - I think I need 17 more.

A very complicated and lovely setting - I might try this one. Sue Bee made this lovely quilt.

Great colors and border to go with the blocks. . .

Blocks I've made for the swap over the years . . .

Blocks made by other swappers.

This is a great swap and I love the quilts that have been produced. It is fun to look at the quilts and think about why someone picked what they did for their block.

Wonderful fabrics

Today I had an appointment in town and was done early so I stopped to pick out some new fabrics for the Grandmothers Flower Garden quilt. I seem to have plenty of the darker and bright colors - and needed some softer colors for the outer ring.

I was in luck - found some really pretty pale colors that are just the ones I needed. I still don't have any "flowers" finished - but I've got lots of hexagons basted - and lots of them strung on thread in bunches - one yellow for the center - 6 dark for the inner ring and 12 light for the outer ring. I'm doing each flower in one color - for example - yellow center/dk blue/pale blue.

Soon I will have some flowers to show you - but for now - you may pet the fabric if you'd like.

Happy Easter - Happy Spring

I'm making hot cross buns today - instead of raisins I'm using candied fruit. We had a friend that made them that way when our kids were little and we've always loved them. We are going to our youngest daughter's for brunch tomorrow - along with a group of friends and family.

Hot cross buns are a traditional favorite on Good Friday in England, a spicy currant or raisin studded yeast bun, topped with a "Cross" of lemon or orange flavored icing. While Christians have adopted the hot cross buns and the symbolism of the cross, it wasn't always this way. To Pagans, then as now, the cross was/is representative of the sun wheel, which symbolizes perfect balance at the time of the Spring Equinox.

Hot Cross Buns were originally used in pagan ceremonies and rituals and the Christian Church attempted to ban the buns, although they proved too popular for that. Fearing defeat on the issue, the church did the next best thing and "Christianized" the bread with Queen Elizabeth I passing a law which limited the bun's consumption to "proper" religious ceremonies, such as Christmas, Easter or funerals. Thus leaving out the pagan holidays and making criminals of those who wished to continue to worship in their own way.

Hot cross buns
Hot cross buns
One a penny
Two a penny
Hot cross buns
If you have no daughters
Give them to your sons
One a penny
Two a penny
Hot cross buns

That nursery rhyme was from the English street sellers who would sold their buns by crying out “Hot Cross Buns, Hot Cross Buns”. The first recorded use of the term "hot cross bun" is not until 1733.

Long before the modern Easter was celebrated, the ancient Saxons celebrated the return of spring with an uproarious festival commemorating their goddess of offspring and of springtime, Eostre. Buns marked with a cross were eaten by Saxons in honour of the goddess Eostre (the cross symbolizing the four quarters of the moon, or the four seasons, or the sun wheel). The goddess "Eostre" is the origin of the name "Easter".

In legend, the creature that would bring baskets filled with colored eggs, candy and toys to the homes of children on the night before Easter, was a bunny - the ancient symbol of fertility and rebirth in spring. The Easter Bunny would either put the baskets in a designated place or hide them somewhere in the house for the children to find when they woke up in the morning, depending on the tradition in the home.

I love all the stories of easter and spring - and I love this time of year - such good feelings as the spring creeps forward (or jumps in with both feet in some areas),

The trees begin blooming in our area . .

hundreds of tulip trees . . .

pink and white blossomed trees and . . .

the daffodils wave to us from roadsides and gardens.

One of the neatest things about where we lived in N. CA was that daffodils grew wild there. Amazing show of color just exploded along the roads and on the hillsides.

And soon to follow - the tulips!!!

Happy Easter everyone - however you choose to celebrate it!!!!

A Lovely Award - again

I am so late in acknowledging this wonderful award - given to me by Crispy. Maybe she wants to take it back now - nahhh, she's too sweet for that - but I'm sorry I have let this slip - I meant to post it earlier and it somehow shot right out of my poor ol' head. This is my second time to be given this award and it humbles me to think that my blog affects others this way.

This award is a blogger's recognition of great attitude . . .

ooops - not THAT kind of attitude - LOL

and/or gratitude . . .

I am supposed to pass this on to other bloggers -

*have talents that leave me in awe
*educate me and enhance my talents
*touch my heart and emotions
*remind me of home
*challenge me
*and those who quilt with me

I will think on who this award should go to - there are so many wonderful bloggers. So I will do my famous list - and go around to blogs and re-list and go to more blogs and re-re-list - until I have the final list. I sound like a basketball tournament. LOL.


I met Crispy because she was reading my blog about some of my friends who quilt. We get together for a day of quilting each month and I showed one quilt and named the maker. Crispy thought it was someone she had once been friends with and had lost contact with her. She wrote me an email - almost didn't send it - asking if it was the same person (she gave me a little background), and it WAS the same person. I gave the person Crispy's email and they got back in touch - I'm so happy to have been part of it. I know my friend is enjoying Crispy - and I certainly am - her blog is so much fun. So head over there and see her fabulous hand work - she is a hand quilter - amazing - while I think on my list of who I will sent this award to.

Thank you Crispy!!!

New Ironing Board Cover - and some other stuff.

I was supposed to have Ben all day today but his mom is sick so they both stayed home. I decided I would try and get some stuff done on the extra free day.

First - the weather is gorgeous - the spring I've been whining for, for so long. It was sunny and bright and warm - I had the doors and windows open most of the day. So then I set to work - washed, dried and folded three tubs of towels, unloaded and loaded the dishwasher (it won't be full for a couple more days), and worked on the Grandmother's Flower Garden Hexagons.

I have a box full of hexagons that have been glued (washable glue stick) to the fabrics and cut out

And a box of the hexagons basted . . .

And a box of hexagons strung like beads - with the yellow center, 6 of the dark color and 12 of the lighter shade - ready to be stitched into "flowers".
Oh - and a little tin full of paper hexagons too.

This is the first official "flower" for the GFG quilt - it isn't quite finished but it wanted to be in the blog too so I let it come in unfinished. I'll finished it up tonight. You can see another GFG quilt that I made by going here.

Then I made some curtains for the laundry room. We've lived here over a year, and I've had the fabric almost that long. It is soft and feels so good, and so pretty, and I got it for $1.00 a yard at Walmart. While I was working on the curtains I happened to read the edge - and it is 100% pure silk - can you imagine - silk curtains in my laundry room?? And silk for $1.00 a yard?? I was pretty impressed. I also made a valance and a half curtain for the long window by the washer and dryer - but have to get some tension rods to hang them up. It looks like the sun is shining in there all the time now.

Next - I decided to re-cover the ironing board. This photo came out fuzzy, but I can guarantee, you DON'T want to see it clearly anyway. I can't remember where, or why, I got this cover for the ironing board. The needle threader is there to show you how big and ugly those blue dots are on the turquoise. Who designed this? And WHO bought it? It must have come on my ironing board, which was used when I got it - because I KNOW I wouldn't have bought this on purpose.

I was at a sew-in recently and there was a stack of give-away fabrics. You bring stuff to give away and you can take from the pile also. I found this pretty rose patterned fabric, a nice heavy, almost canvas fabric and brought it home with me. I didn't really have a plan for it - but it was calling my name, and I didn't want to be impolite and not listen. Once I got it home I knew what it would be. And today it became the new ironing board cover.

Now isn't that better? And it even has a little purple in it to go with the iron. I will certainly enjoy ironing on this - it is so springy and bright.

And that was my day without Ben - dinner is ready (steaks, potatoes, green beans and tossed salad) - I sure hope Ben comes tomorrow so I can get some rest.

You Gotta Have Heart

Now that song will be running through my head all day - oh well, it is a nice song. Better than I Want A Hippopotamus for Christmas I guess.

I spent some time yesterday with my sewing machine - finally - I think it was beginning to think it was an orphan. A small internet group I belong to sends out heart blocks (or flower blocks) to our members in celebration of births, marriages, happy events and in memorials to loved ones that pass on. I was a bit behind on my hearts - so I made four yesterday.

First I got out my yellow scraps . . .

And my blue scraps . . .

And punched the pattern for paper piecing. I layer several pieces of paper together, with the pattern on top and sew through them all with an unthreaded needle. I get several designs done at a time and the patterns are easy to follow once they are punched. I save the top pattern for the numbering if necessary - and it was necessary with this pattern. I love the pattern, but you do have to follow the numbering - and sometimes I will even write the colors in the spaces just to make sure I don't make mistakes.

I got the pattern from Etsy - you can find it and many others in this Etsy Store - Piece By Number. She has several other patterns I would like to try - and her prices are great. She sends you a PDF of the pattern, so there is very little waiting - not like waiting for the mail, that's for sure.

And speaking of mistakes - here is my first one . . .

And here it is corrected . . .

Next I made a yellow heart . . . the pattern is called Feathers in My Heart.

I've had some friends say that they don't do paper piecing because it is so wasteful of fabric. Here is my pile of waste fabric after making two hearts - I put the bobbin there for size comparison. Most of the trimmings left over from paper piecing are smaller than the bobbin - most are just tiny little slivers - and I don't cut carefully, I just whack off a piece of fabric that is about the right size, stitch it on and trim.

Next I decided to make some applique hearts - and used this very pretty multi-colored fabric.

I place the pieces so that each section of the heart was a different color. This is the first heart - I call it the blue heart . . . pinned and ready for hand applique.

And here is the "green" heart - I love the way the colors can be changed around, and still only use one fabric for the whole heart.

Green heart - finished . . .

Blue heart - finished. Should I do some fancy crazy quilting stitches on these?