Fabric Boxes

A couple of weeks ago I took a class on box making.  I have made a couple of them before, but every time I take a class, I learn a little something.  My friend Betty was the teacher.  She is a former school librarian, very precise and organized.  The best thing she did was to cut the mat board for us.  This saved a ton of time, and I know her cutting is superior to mine.  

I used one of my ribbon embroidery practice pieces on the top of my box.  I was going to make a red box, but the blue from my stash worked better than the red I had, so blue it is.

I'm in the process of making a couple of more utilitarian boxes without the embroidery.  

Good Fortune, Part 3

My closet installation,  lunch date, acupuncture appointment, and shop Christmas get-together were all postponed today because of the snow.  We got about 11 inches yesterday.  My industrious husband cleared the driveway, walkways and my car just in case I needed to get out, but I stayed in to sew.

 I finished making all the half-chevrons and HSTs today for Bonnie's mystery.  I used the bonus triangle method, and still need to trim the dog ears on the HSTs.  I will probably use my bloc loc ruler or Eleanor Burns method to remove the dog ears and square them up a little.  Most of my HSTs are pretty close, but a few could benefit from some extra trimming. 

I am very happy with the variety in my neutrals this year.  I am usually scraping the bottom of the scrap basket to find something, but this year I picked up FQ neutrals as they went into clearance at the shop.  Now I have an abundance of neutrals, as defined by Bonnie:  anything lighter than a paper bag.

I was afraid at first to use green for this step since I used seafoam in the first clue, but by choosing darker and brighter greens, there will be enough contrast.  

Linking up: https://quiltville.blogspot.com/2018/12/mystery-monday-link-up-part-3.html

Good Fortune, Part 2

My friend Nancy sent me Christmas flowers yesterday.  What a nice surprise!  Nancy used to live in our cul de sac, and she was just a neighbor then.  Now that she has moved about a half hour away, we have become friends.  We sometimes meet halfway to walk in the park or go to lunch.  When we lived in the same neighborhood, we were both busy raising kids.  There wasn't much time for grown up friendships.  Since she moved, we have made time for each other.  It has been fun getting to know her!

I've done no decorating myself this year, so I am particularly glad to have these flowers to put in my foyer.

Since my last Good Fortune post, I have gotten my 4 patches pressed.

I've also gotten my HSTs made.

I cheated a  little and stole about 60 HSTs from another WIP.  This way I have more variety in my HSTs for both quilts

When I need a lot of HSTs, Triangle Paper is my favorite construction method.

You sew on the dotted lines, cut on the solids.  There are pros and cons to every HST construction method.  This one has minimal cutting time initially, you just need big hunks of fabric.  The sewing is also fast.  It depends on the size of the HSTs how many you can get from one sheet.  Trimming these HSTs is also pretty easy, just line up the ruler.  The time consuming part for this method is tearing off the paper.  Some people hate that part.  For me, having accurate piecing is worth the paper. The part I dislike the most is dealing with the dog ears.  

I wasn't sure how this color combination was going to work, but I think it will be ok.  At least I like it so far !

Stash Report:Used this week: 0.5 (fabric box)
Used year to date: 165.0 yards
 Added this week:  6.25 yards (backing for Treasure Hunt, fabric boxes)
Added year to date:181.125 yards
Net Added: 16.125 yards

Linking up: https://quiltville.blogspot.com/2018/12/mystery-monday-link-up-part-2.html

Treasure Hunt, Top Complete

I got the borders on Treasure Hunt OBW today.

It is amazing how bad the color is in this picture.  The tumbling blocks are a light gray, a  medium gray and a dark purple grunge.  The purple isn't showing up at all!

I'm very happy to get this one off my design wall.  Make way for the next quilt!


Used this week: 4.875  (Treasure Hunt OBW top)
Used year to date: 164.5 yards
 Added this week:  0
Added year to date:174.875 yards
Net Added: 10.375 yards

Linking up:http://crazymomquilts.blogspot.com/2018/12/black-licorice-completed-quilt.html

Treasure Hunt OBW Progress

Treasure Hunt OBW has been on my design wall for over a month.  This afternoon I finally got the rows stitched together!  I'm celebrating!

The only thing left to do to get this top finished is to trim the top and bottom and put on the borders.  

I already have another OBW cut out.  I've also completed my Dawn's Early Light Blocks, so that top is almost ready for sashing. I wish I had another design wall, so I could work on them both at once.

Good Fortune

As usual we had a big Thanksgiving gathering,  36 people here for  this year.  I cooked the turkey, ham, and mashed potatoes.  Everyone else brought at least one dish. We had 3 kind of stuffing because different people have different favorites.  The rule is if you have to have a certain food on Thanksgiving, you bring it!  We had a lot of food, and so many desserts, I didn't get a chance to try them all.

 At our house, it is not about fancy china and the perfect table setting.  It is about family.  All of my brothers and sisters were here except for one brother who was sick and one brother who went to his in-law's house.  My husband's whole family was here too. My sister brought her Chinese neighbors who don't celebrate a traditional Thanksgiving on their own.   We set up folding tables in every room downstairs.  We used paper plates to make clean up easier.  The kids played outside.  Some people watched football on TV.  Some people helped cook, others cleaned up. My wonderful mother-in-law washed dishes.  She is one of 9 kids and enjoys big family gatherings.   This is our 12th year of hosting Thanksgiving.

 We were also celebrating my BIL's swearing in.  He is an US citizen now!

I didn't get a chance to start Good Fortune until Friday morning.  Both of my kids were home, though, so  it wasn't all I did.  We also went to an Escape Room, a movie and out to dinner one night.  The kids and my husband put up the tree and Christmas lights outside.  It was a busy, fun time!

So far, I have all of my 4 patches sewn.  I need to press them and spin the seams.  I should be able to get all of that done by Friday.  

Instead of the red Bonnie is using, my 4 patches are seafoam green.  I know some people spend a lot of time and energy searching for the perfect colors for these mystery quilts.  I just use the colors I have the most of.  My goal is not to make a beautiful quilt or to copy the Bonnie's;  my goal is to use up my scraps.  A quirky quilt will be ok with me. 

Linking up:  https://quiltville.blogspot.com/2018/11/mystery-monday-link-up-and-cyber-monday.html

Sleepy Hollow Framed

I have been working on the Cross Eyed Cricket's Sleepy Hollow for about 6 years.  Last week it came back from the framer, and I'm very happy with it!  I'm not sure why it took me so long to get it done.  I love the piece, just couldn't get very excited about working on it.  I've already passed the pattern on to someone else. 

It's so hard for me to get good pictures this time of year.  We have been having lots of gray days, and it gets dark very early, so the light isn't great.