Showing posts with label charity quilts. Show all posts
Showing posts with label charity quilts. Show all posts

Sunday, January 29, 2017

Linking My Inner Squirrel to the DrEAMi Party


January: The Month for 
Your Inner Squirrel


Did you hear the song, "Everybody's talkin', there's a new squirrel in town"? I meant 'girl.' Or actually a new link party? Sorry, so much squirrel talk these days with Sandra from mmm!quilts. Sandra has a new link party starting this weekend, and it's all called DrEAMi, and there's nothing confusing about it. It means... 

Drop Everything And Make It!

Thursday, January 26, 2017

Two More Tops Nearly Done



What a Difference Good Lighting Makes!

After bemoaning the lack of light in the studio, I made a trip to IKEA. I bought 2 standing lights with bright bulbs, and it was like summer again just using one of them.  I decided to move the mess I'd accumulated by sewing in my living room back to the studio. It took most of the day to get things back into order, and clean up.

Thursday, January 19, 2017

Fabric Challenges: Charity Quilts Day 19



"There's No Such Thing As Ugly Fabric"

Has anyone ever told you this? And did you believe them? Well, I beg to differ. I'm usually attracted to the one-offs, and not what everyone else likes, and I'm okay with that. We all have personal tastes toward color and pattern, and all it takes is looking at your own stash if you don't believe it.  For me, I am attracted to both stripes and flowers. Put them together in a 1960's-1970's print, and I am over the moon! Isn't it just gorgeous?!

Tuesday, January 17, 2017

Packing Charity Quilts for Shipment: Day 17



Do you remember me telling you the MCC Connections Store and warehouse was like a well oiled machine? Well, a machine is only as good as its parts, and today I have another example. Two brothers team up to make sure the donated comforters that arrive in the warehouse are properly packed for shipment around the world. I stuck with them from start to finish, and so can you to see how it's managed.

Monday, January 16, 2017

Accidental Volunteer: Charity Quilts Day 16


Simple, Yet Spectacular!

I made a trip back up to the MCC Connections Thrift Store and quilting room in Kidron, Ohio today. I went to ask a long list of questions related to charity quilting, and one person who could answer most of them was there working today. Not wanting to waste her valuable work time, I tried to help along side while she explained things.

Saturday, January 14, 2017

15 Stars 'Til Midnight Done: Day 14


"15 Stars 'Til Midnight"


Kids have the best sayings. They mix up parts of speech, and combine sayings. Several of ours were genius at it, and this would be something they would come up with. 

It's together at last, and measuring 72" x 91". Again, winter light makes for poor picture quality, but let's just say the dark blue borders gave this quilt new life. It was a pale gal without them.

Another one done, and ready for quilting.

Come on, Doxie girls.
Let's go sew.


Thursday, January 12, 2017

Follow the Charity Quilt Process, Part I: Day 12


Comforters Made by Serging

This past week I popped up to the Mennonite Christian Committee's Connections Thrift Store in Kidron, Ohio. To say it is an impressive operation is an understatement. More than 300 volunteers rotate through the month to assist in the many ongoing projects housed there besides the thrift store. Many help daily. The back of the store where donations were being sorted was teeming with people when I arrived. There were departments for electronics, books, clothing, shoes, furniture, home goods, plants, decorations, toys, sewing machines, and on and on. It was a cross between a small city and Santa's workshop, and everyone was genuinely glad to be there. 

Wednesday, January 11, 2017

A Two Top Finish: Day 11



Scrappy Trips Around the World
& Effy Helps

The past two days have been icy with both periods of snow and rain. If you didn't have to go out, you didn't. I stayed in as much as I could and finished tops. I also started another quilt or two, and have been piecing in front of the t.v. The dogs have been good company, but muddy feet and quilt tops do not mix. Effy sneaked onto the quilt as I stood on a stool to snap this shot. Thankfully she was clean. Around here we always say, "Effy helps." She's always there in the middle when you want to do something. 

Monday, January 9, 2017

Herding and Bordering Flying Geese:Day 9




Rows of Geese
I made these flying geese with a method that produces bias edges on all sides of the original HST. Check it out HERE. After turning them into flying geese strips, I was left with just a bias edge on each outside edge. These will all be bordered with fabric so it won't be a problem. 

Sunday, January 8, 2017

The Cost of Charity Quilts: Day 8



I believe most quilters are free of heart and hand, and love the quilting experience along with the actual quilt. When we are hungry, we are reminded of those who have no food. When we are cold, of those who cannot get warm. We want other people to have at least the basic things we ourselves appreciate, but all families struggle themselves at one time or another. Let's talk about ways to keep the cost of giving quilts at a reasonable level.

Thursday, January 5, 2017

Scrappy Trips Around the World: Day 5



Using What You Have


I've been reading every book I can about the history of quilting. Some things are surprising. In recent centuries, even fabric scraps were too precious for some people to come by. Many countries depended on textiles solely as an import, and had few raw materials to produce their own fabric of any kind. That's hard to imagine for most of us, isn't it? But as textiles mills became more plentiful around the world, so did fabric, and those who couldn't afford new fabric did find scraps or salvaged their own used clothing. Not all parts of clothes wore out at the same pace so pieces were cut from them to recycle into something else like a quilt.

Wednesday, January 4, 2017

The Human Element of Charity Sewing: Day 4





Julie Stocker, 2014

January for Charity: The Logic
Behind the Project


1. I am storing too much fabric.
2. People need something with which to cover themselves.
3. I will make them quilts.


How simple is that? Deeper down, it's far more complex. You have to appreciate the Devil is always in the details.

When we think about making charity items, there are things to consider:

Tuesday, January 3, 2017

Sawtooth and Variable Stars: Day 3 of Charity Quilts




1980's-1990's Fabrics

I was blessed with a sister-in-law who gifted me her stash when she decided she was no longer interested in quilting. That was over a year ago, maybe longer, and it's been hard making a dent in the tubs. The fabric is still in beautiful condition, but a little harder to use because it looks dated. I've been looking for ways to use it so the overall quilt doesn't look like it's from the 80's.


16 Patch Sawtooth Stars with 4 Patch Variable Stars

Monday, January 2, 2017

7 Grid Chain Quilt: Day 2


7 Grid Chain 

Yesterday I started playing with blocks, and today it all came together. Like many of you, I work best without a pattern. If you haven't tried it, it's liberating! Just start with an idea, and keep moving forward until you arrive. Let me give you a quick walk through this quilt's process. 

Sunday, January 1, 2017

January Goals: Charity Quilts



Happy New Year!

Isn't it heavenly to start with a clean slate? 

Are you ready to do a fabric purge in your studio, 
and put it all to good use?

A whole year of new starts, and fresh eyes toward our future is a gift. We stand on this exact spot, but recognize the opportunity less than we would like to admit. Many times it simply becomes routine with the New-Year's-Resolution-Thing. This time is different. I've taken the entire month of December to dream about what I was seeking in 2018. Nope, that's not a typo. How can you plan the year at hand by not looking further down the pike? Do you ever just get in your car and drive around and around? No. We plan destinations, and we determine the best routes. Energy is in limited supply.

Sunday, May 15, 2016

Guest Blogging at Confessions of a Fabric Addict Today




Today I'm taking a break here, but so pleased to be a guest blogger at Confessions of a Fabric Addict. I struggled for weeks to think of what to write, and when I sat down to actually do it, it seemed to write itself. Funny thing is, it's nothing that I planned. There's a link party there next Sunday for anyone involved in Hands2Help quilt charity, and I encourage you to pop over to check it out. 


In the meantime, I'll be working on the Naked Ladies, and have some dye pots going, too. I might even get to do some project sewing. I miss the purr of my sewing machine. It's too wet and cold out to work, so we're holed up inside with each other. I rather enjoy the company, and the break from the garden and lawn. 

I hope you have something fun to work on today. If you're working to finish your quilt for Hands2Help, I'll be sending you good thoughts. 

Come on, Doxie girls.
Let's cuddle while I sew.
Shh, Lucy. You're snoring!

Monday, March 14, 2016

How to Make Weekly Studio Goals Within Reason



It's Monday early, and both my personal and studio To-Do-Lists are crippling! I had a relaxing, long weekend away, but arrived home to find I'm swamped even when I was very organized. It feels awful.

How Do You Cope?

First, I am a list maker. I wrote everything down for each list--even though it was overwhelming. Then I prioritized half of it, and picked 4 of those things to start on. Still too much, perhaps, but well within reason. I made reachable goals.

Wednesday, November 5, 2014

Promise Kept and People Met



Yesterday was a Super Sewing Day! I packed it in from morning to night, but it was both productive and fun. 


First Meet-Up at Jo-Ann's

I think this deserves a shout out. We had a ball! Most who came didn't know each other. The company was diverse in age and interest, but everyone came to sew or stitch. No meeting. No agenda. The teenagers took off to walk in the mall together, but came back to observe what we were doing. We create a little hook or picture in their brain, and that is how it all starts for them. That was how most of us started. We watched, and then decided we could do that. About a dozen adults sewed, we laughed, we laughed some more, and kept on sewing. We showed off our work, asked each other how to do things--and someone there always knew how to help. It was actually nice that the room was fairly small. We became well acquainted with whatever our neighbor was working on. The cookie-brownies were a little burned, my own fault, but no one complained. We simply enjoyed the time we shared.