Iron Craft Challenge: Halloween

The challenge for Iron Craft was Halloween.  I have not entered the challenge in so long.  It seems all I have been doing is canning and tending to the kids.  This week I really wanted to enter.  While I am not big on Halloween, I did totally enjoy this project and my kids will be glad to have something to decorate our house with.

Thanks Kat, et al.

You can find this group and others on Just Crafty Enough.  Come on, join the fun.

What to do with my Farmer's Wife

It's a conundrum.  I have so much color going on in my blocks.  Well, too much color, really.  It is very difficult, at least for me, to decide how to set this one up.  Depressing really. So I set it aside.  I thought nothing really looks good with this.  Sashing doesn't set the colors far enough apart.  Too much chaos in this quilt.  I thought I had better set it with black or white?  Straight up and down or on point....  ???

 I dunno.

I even tried a different design.  I thought this would be kind of cool so I cut up all the white and sewed it together and thought it look rather silly.  Then I ripped it all out.  I did actually rip out that lavender block (the one in the inner square bottom left) that was sewed wrong and redo that one too.

Any suggestions on where to go from here?

Hearts That Found a Home

I have not been to many garage sales this year.  That's okay because sometimes I ge tthings I might not necessarily need.  I did find this pile of hand appliqued hearts.  I said to the woman who appliqued them, "are you sure you want to get rid of those?"  I appreciate the time that went into these.  I bought the pile for a dollar.  I will put something together because I don't want all that energy and time she spent to just sit there unloved.

The older fabric/Civil war type stuff and Americana is not my style.  While I like to look at it and have an appreciation, it just doesn't fit in my house.  Eventually I will find the right person to give it too.

Farmers Wife; Missing my mojo

I am afraid I have lost my crafting mojo.  Maybe it has been taken over by the canning season that is upon me.  Canning tomatoes, peaches, salsa,... Freezing vegetables and fruit.  Dehydrating fruits.  Picking my lavender and drying it out.  Lots of stuff to do during harvest.  My garden of weeds is crying out to me.  I think my plants are being starved right now. Poor things.


I spent the better part of this evening ripping out seams- such a bummer.  Some idea I had for my Farmers Wife quilt just did not work out.  Hopefully this mojo thing will return.

I havent done Iron Craft and very little blocks for my Farmers Wife quilt.  Just the one above and below.

Design Wall Monday: Vroom Vroom

A boy quilt.  This is my first one.  A very simple design. 

I picked up some scraps in a bag at one of our local quilt shops.  I love doing this.  Every time I go I pick up about four bags or so.  I come home, open the bag and press every single piece.  I then cut my triangles out for my 1000 pyramid quilt and the rest becomes whatever or sits around waiting for a new life.  Its very exciting to open these packages and discover the material inside.  Once I saw these autos and related fabric, I had to make a quick boys quilt.  Its one of thos e things that just grabs you.

Like the Christmas material that was in there.  It grabbed me too and I am putting it all together so I can make something real soon. I am very focused on Christmas at the moment.

See what else is on everyones wall over at Patchwork Times.  Lots of inspiration.

Design Wall Monday: Autumn

I know it's not Autumn yet but I want it to be here.  It is my favorite season.  If I sew it then maybe it will arrive faster.

The two on top are totes for my kids for Halloween.  I am not sure about the pumpkins yet, probably a table runner.

I am not very verbose here but I wanted to share my Design Wall.  Click here to go to Patchwork Times and see bunch of other designs.  I wanted to say plethora but you know, it just didnt feel right on a blog.

Design Wall Monday: Kokopelli Dancing

Ahhh, many moons and light years before, I started this pinwheel quilt.  I am happy to report I am totally done with it.  Well, okay, aside from the tag that I have to put on there.  It's done.  My daughter is asleep under it right now.  Well at least I hope she is asleep.  Anyway.  Here it is. 

Kokopelli Dancing

My free motion design.

Here is a few pictures from my "design wall".  The quilt took on a life of it's own and kept growing in ways I had not anticipated.

I started of with a bunch of stars and pinwheels.  Some pattern from my class that I wanted to throw together.  Then it kind of grew from there with borders and such.

I machine quilted it.  Stitched in the ditch in the squares and did this kind of angular free flowing design around the borders. This is ultimately how it got its name, read here for a more detailed account of that.  But anywho, I am glad it is here and done and in use at this moment!

So I say goodbye to that project.  I am kind of sad to see it's colors go bye-bye.  They were very cheery to work on.