Wrapping up another month

This week's Moda Blockheads block is Lucky Charm by Stacy Iest Hsu.  It's block 22 so I think there are only 2 more remaining.  Maybe 3.  

Lucky Charm is a 9" block and I really love how this one looks.  There is a 4.5" bonus block because of course I couldn't just throw away the trimmings.  The little one could become the center of a mug rug.    

Nearly every day this week had things going on, including evenings.  Tonight we'll actually stay home and hand out candy to lots of Trick or Treaters.  We average about 80-85 each year, usually all between 5:30 and 7:30, so we hardly have time to sit down. 

The list of goals for October looked pretty overwhelming at first glance, but there were some very small or quick projects on the list.  Plus some items just required progress, not necessarily a finish.  There was no pressure as any forward progress is good, right?  And there isn't much red on the list so I'm very satisfied. 

• Quilt Show projects - Deadline was Oct 18!!!!
• Finish Challenge project for quilt show Oct 18-19 - DONE
• Choose 4 quilts to display at quilt show - DONE
• Make one themed raffle basket for quilt show - DONE
• bind Sophia's lap quilt - DONE
• Keep up with the Blockheads weekly blocks - DONE
• Begin the new Saturday Sampler - YES
• progress on Cactus in Cabin - ALMOST, but still needs borders
• Rainbow Scrap Challenge
• Make lots of RSC blocks with dark neutrals - YES
• finish assembling RSC Windmill quilt top - DONE
• Choose next set of RSC blocks to finish - MAYBE
• Donate a couple of quilt tops- Donated 1 top with backing
• QOV Ribbon - assemble rows from blocks - NO
• Bad Kitty pillow - DONE
• quilt and bind at least 5 placemats (tops are done) - only 4 are done
• bind Jamie's Lone Star wall hanging - IF back from quilter - NO
• bind Candy Lane quilt - IF back from quilter - NO
• Finish bird Christmas stocking - DONE

More mini projects

 

The Christmas Tree mini quilt is finished too.  I've been on a roll the last couple of weeks with the small finishes.  This one is 13" square.  Because I have 2 of these small metal hanger stands, I've been enjoying having lots of seasonal options to change out in them.  

In this mini quilt, each tree is different.  My favorites are the 2 with diagonal piecing.  These are paper pieced from Shabby Fabrics kits, and their instructions are always excellent. 

 On Sunday afternoon I managed to finish the flimsy for the Bah Humbug pillow, but I'm not sure yet how I want to quilt this one.  My plan C involved carefully adding another layer of fusible to the backs of all of the small wool pieces.  And I ended up replacing those green eyes completely - swapping out the wool eyes with cotton ones.  Everything is fused down now, and blanket stitched on the edges.  The eyes have some simple straight stitching with embroidery floss in those tiny green pieces.  The combination of wool and cotton, plus a loose weave fabric was not easy to work with.  Add in what must have been "old" fusible that didn't work on the wool - what a pain!  And that grey background is a nightmare.  It is positively shredding on the edges every time I touch it, so I plan to do some zig zag stitching around it before sewing on the backing.  

Not much time in my sewing room has happened so far this week.  Monday was busy with various errands all day, and I went to my monthly pinochle group that evening.  Tuesday was household chores and various appointments - followed by the first college basketball game of the season in the evening.  After the game we stopped for an adult beverage with some friends.  And yesterday I went for coffee (and lunch) with the retired group from the school I taught at, then got on the road to Brookings for college basketball double header.  Today is my day to sew - hopefully.  And maybe tomorrow too. 

Prepping for Veteran's Day

In the next 2 weeks our Quilt of Valor group has 9 quilts scheduled to be awarded, at 4 different events held in our area.  Two events will be Veteran's Day luncheons, 2 quilts will be awarded at a school district Veteran's Day program, and 1 will be awarded at a DAR meeting.  We're so honored to be involved with these. 

There are some quilts that still need to be washed and all of them need labels sewn on.  But the certificates are all printed.  And our paperwork is in order.

At our recent guild quilt show we were honored to award a quilt to a veteran.  The original plan had been for me to give a brief "talk" about Quilts of Valor.  Then one of our members asked - why not actually present a quilt.  Some of our ladies in the QOV group had never been able to be present at an award before, so this was wonderful.  

Bad Kitty pillow

I am happy to say that one of the small UFO kits can be checked off the list - and in time to enjoy it for Halloween THIS year!

Bad Kitty (on the right) was a laser cut kit I purchased at least a year ago.  The kit had only the cat silhouette and instructions, and we provided our own moon and background fabrics. I chose to make mine a 16" pillow, so also found backing and binding in my stash.

It was ironed onto the background right away - and then just hung neglected in the closet.  I think I was a bit intimidated with how to stitch down all of those tiny little spikey parts.  The solution?  I used black thread and just did a straight stitch close to the edges of the cat.  And then I did a blanket stitch around the moon.  A very simple random curvy line of quilting every 3 inches or so finished it.  

The envelope back is a spiderweb print from my stash, and the purple binding is a striped batik, also from the stash.  Yay!   It looks really cute on my sofa this week.  

Design Wall Monday - October 27

Where does your inspiration come from?  A lot of my inspiration comes from the quilt blogs and other quilt related social media I follow.  On Friday morning with my first cup of coffee I checked out Alycia's weekly blog post Finished (or not) Friday.  And there it was - an idea of how to use those orange Dresden wedges I had recently pieced from scraps.  https://saneandcrazy.blogspot.com/2025/10/fan-flowers-top.html  Check out Cathy's gorgeous Fan Flowers (Tilda's World pattern) quilt in this post. 

Ironically I have had this wall hanging (about 36") in the closet for 3 or 4 years - made from a kit I purchased somewhere on a shop hop.  When I pieced this I knew that I wanted to applique something on it but hadn't gone beyond pinning a couple of pictures on it with ideas from Pinterest.  It was very bland and needed color, so it's been on a hanger all this time - just waiting patiently.  One picture I had pinned on it has pink Coneflowers on stems, and the other was just an random orange flower.

Cathy's post provided that "light bulb" moment and immediately I went downstairs to pull out that UFO wall hanging - and those orange Dresden wedges.  I think with some green stems and leaves, this could be the solution for merging 2 UFOs into 1 finished project.

On Friday afternoon I went to a workshop on embellishing jean jackets.  There were 5 of in the workshop and we had so much fun.  Thanks to Becky - you were full of great ideas and helpful hints!!!  Each of the jackets was unique.  One lady used some leftover blocks from a One Block Wonder quilt, and put 3 of them on the back of her jacket.  The other 4 of us used pieces cut from panels.  I have my pieces all fused down, and this week I'll work on the stitching and possibly some other embellishments.  This is the front of my jacket so far.

While I contemplated solutions to problems, I decided to move ahead with one more mini quilt kit over the weekend, and have the Christmas Tree mini partially done.  These are paper pieced (Shabby Fabrics) and go together very quickly with excellent instructions. 

The other plans for the week involve the Bah Humbug pillow, and the borders for Cactus In the Cabin quilt.  I finally have a Plan C (not B) for solving the problems with the applique for the pillow.  And I still need to quilt the front of the Halloween black cat pillow.  Both pillows will require winding some black bobbins too.  

We'll see what I actually accomplish this week as I have a lot going on that doesn't involve sewing.  Can you believe that college basketball starts this week?  

I'm linking up today with:

https://smallquiltsanddollquilts.blogspot.com/ 

https://songbirddesigns.blog      

RSC25 - Week #43

My main project this week has been to make some progress on Cactus In the Cabin, and I'm happy to say it is all assembled except for the borders.  This isn't a scrappy project, but does reflect the October RSC colors with that black background. 

I do love how the black background makes the colors pop. 

Another set of RSC blocks from this year has been calling for my attention.  I had 30 blocks in the stack, so it was time to play with possible layouts.  I asked for feedback last week and readers suggested On Point and Staggered options that definitely work with these blocks. 

On-point is one option that looks really nice, and wouldn't take quite as many additional blocks.   The blocks look like crosses when turned corners up.  And staggering the blocks is another option I like, with the blocks more like pinwheels or propellor blades.  No matter which layout I go with in the end, I'm planning to make more blocks going forward in order to make a quilt large enough for at least a twin bed.  

While the brown scraps are still front and center this week, a single brown Give It a Whirl block was added to the mix above, along with a second Virginia Reel (Snail's Trail) block.  I used some very "warm" shades of brown for these.  

  Three small string blocks in brown and then light neutrals became leaders/enders while working on Cactus In the Cabin.  It always feels good to use up a few more skinny little scraps. The blocks have been added to the stack for some future unknown project.  

Not brown or black, but remember the orange pieces trimmed from the Cactus in the Cabin blocks?  I cut them into 3.5" Dresden Plate blades, and sewed them into partial plates.  They are quite pretty but I still have no idea what to do with them.  At least they are not in the scrap bin. 

                          What other fun projects are happening in the RSC world?

https://superscrappy.blogspot.com/

Finished (Or NOT) Friday & more

The view from my desk on Thursday morning . . .

The ash trees are mostly bare already, and now the maples are beginning to turn.  The morning sun was touching the tops of the trees across the street and one of them looked like it was on fire.  So beautiful.  

Cactus in the Cabin . . .

The main part of this quilt top is assembled, and I'm loving it.  To make it queen size and fit on our bed, it will need borders.  That means it's still a NOT Finished item, but it's getting closer. The pattern calls for 6" borders, and I'm using black like the background.  I have enough of one of the greens for binding.  

This week's Blockheads block was another 9" block, so it went together quickly.

It's called Bowtie Ballet by Vanessa Goertzen.  The pattern called for 4 different fabrics for those HSTs, but I decided to just use 1 instead.  I like my version. 

OK - the Bah Humbug pillow has a little beginning, but I'm having some trouble so far.  The cat body parts from the kit are wool, and the fusible webbing I had does NOT want to stick to it.  The grey fabric in the kit is a loosely woven fabric - and the fusible does NOT like it either.  Note some ragged edges created when pulling off the paper.  So literally NONE of these parts are actually stuck down in spite of multiple efforts to iron them on.  Plan B may have to involve some careful hand stitching around all those tiny parts.  Or maybe re-trace the body parts onto regular fabric instead of wool.  But for now all of parts, pieces and instructions are in Time Out on a design board.

Good thing the mini Spools quilt is actually a finish, because the cat pillow is NOT.  

Maybe I should get frustrated more often, because I took it out on my messy cutting station which turned out to be a good thing.

Before and After . . . 

A mini finish & more from the quilt show

The November mini for the Year in Spools really was quick to finish once I got the pieces cut.

There were not many small pieces in this one, unlike a couple of the other months.  The little leaves in the middle of the spools was the only thing that took very long.  For some reason this one did not want to lay flat when I got the flimsy done. But once I had it quilted I was able to square it up and it's fine.  These finish at about 13".

I'll leave you with 3 more photos from our quilt show . . . 

Our guild is small but we sure have some talented ladies.

Mid-week progress

There has definitely been progress on the sewing front so far this week.

The cactus bloom blocks for Cactus In the Cabin are all done, and I've been playing with some layout options.  A flimsy by the end of the week?  Maybe . . .

Yesterday I mentioned having way too many kits waiting in drawers, and deciding that would be my next PIG project as I'm reaching the flimsy stage of Cactus In the Cabin.  Kits and fat quarters tend to be what I can't resist buying, so yes I have too many.  Time to make use of some.  I've pulled out 4 small kits, and will try to work through them - along with the Bah Humbug pillow kit I just bought at the quilt show.  That makes 5 kits. 

I have a good start on the November spools mini quilt.  All of the pieces are cut, and actually the 2 pumpkin units are already sewn.  This should be a quick finish for this week. 

The Bah Humbug pillow is all applique.  There are a lot of pieces, but many of the pieces are pretty big.  The pieces have been traced onto the fusible, and fused onto the fabric.  Once the spool mini is done, I'll move to the next step for this one. 

Quilt show report

The Heartland Quilt Guild had our quilt show over the past weekend, and it was a good time.  The committee did a great job organizing.  There were demos and speakers, and awesome vendors as well as beautiful quilts.  It's always amazing to see all the talent our small guild has.  It's so much work for the committee especially.  

Our Featured Quilter this year is very talented but humble person.  Wow!  She had some lovely things to show.  And her "style" has such a wide variety.  This applique quilt was exquisite!!  I was working the registration table during her trunk show but everyone said it was wonderful. She even had her granddaughters on stage with her holding up quilts she had made for them. 

We always have a Viewer's Choice award and this was MY favorite quilt.  It won 2nd place in the viewer voting.  Isn't this beautiful?  If I remember correctly she made it for a granddaughter.    

There is always some kind of small Challenge project for each quilt show.  This year the challenge was an adaptation of the show them - Quilting Stars.  The winner was top center, #2 was the middle pillow on the bottom.  #3 was top left.  Mine is top right.  

Each vendor had such interesting things.  And I'll admit that I bought something from each one.  The Bah Humbug pillow kit for Christmas was one of those purchases.  This may have to be one of the projects I do right away even though I already have kits coming out of my ears.  It's so stinking cute!!   And I'm looking forward to some Christmas sewing.  

More from the quilt show to come yet this week.   

Design Wall Monday - Oct 20

 What a weekend!  Our quilt show turned out really well.  I do have plenty of pictures to share this week, but need to find time to go through them before posting.  We had awesome vendors and speakers.  And we had a Quilt of Valor award on Sunday.  I didn't win any ribbons or any of the raffle baskets, but did have a very good time.

As for my "design wall" for this week . . . I really want to finish up those Cactus in the Cabin blocks.  The blocks are trimmed but still need little black corners added where the green meets the black strips.  Once those are done, there is a bunch of other projects calling my name - loudly.  

I'm signed up for a fun class on Friday, adding applique to a jean jacket.  Plans for what to add to the jacket are still pretty fluid in my head, but I've pulled out a couple of possibilities to consider.  Do I want it pretty?  Or whimsical?  Colorful?   

While looking for something to use on that jean jacket applique, a couple of small seasonal kits were re-discovered in my sewing room that may need to become priorities soon.  And the Bad Kitty pillow still needs some stitching too, so there are WAY TOO MANY things tugging at my attention right now.

What's on YOUR design wall today?
https://smallquiltsanddollquilts.blogspot.com/

RSC25 - Week #42

How is it possible there are only 10 more weeks in 2025?  This year is going by much too quickly for me.  Today our guild quilt show opens!  I really hope we have a good crowd over the weekend. 

Another scrappy quilt top is done - using the Potato Chip blocks.  There were 19 of these 12" (finished) blocks hanging in the closet, so I made 1 more to finish it off.  Ten have the neutrals on the outer ring, and the other 10 have the colors in the outer ring.  There are also 6 more blocks clipped to a hanger in the closet with a totally different color arrangement.  Of course there is a small bin FULL of more Potato Chip rectangles to use for more blocks. 

Two placemats used nearly all of the brown batik scraps from the quilt top I made for the Jelly Roll sew-along a couple of weeks ago.  It's good not to add these pieces to the scrap bin.  The big stack of placemats (right side) keeps growing.  I'll be donating these, hopefully to Meals on Wheels or some other local group.

Are you already thinking about what blocks or projects you want to do in 2026?  I am of course because I always have multiple blocks sets going for RSC.  This week I looked through my binders of "favorites" and decided that I haven't made this block in several years.  Snail's Trail or Virginia Reel - 2 of the names this block is called.  I made this one just to play with some brown this week.  The pattern in my binder called this Virginia Reel, and I squared it up to 12", so it will finish at 11.5".  Now it's hanging in the closet with the pattern, waiting for the New Year to get some friends.    

What other fun projects are happening in the RSC world?

https://superscrappy.blogspot.com/

Cactus block progress

Hmmm . . . it's already Friday, and there has been good progress on a couple of fronts.  A flimsy from Rainbow Scrap Challenge blocks has been completed.  I'll share that tomorrow on the RSC post.  

Yesterday morning was spent sewing all of the Round #3 strips onto the cactus bloom blocks, and then trimming them.  Last step for these 20 blocks will be adding the little squares onto the green/black corners so they will look like the other rounds.  With the quilt show happening all weekend, this step probably won't happen until sometime next week. 

Today is the set-up day for the guild's quilt show held every other year.  It's a huge job setting up the poles and hanging the quilts.  The vendors will arrive today too.  The committee has been so organized with all the details, so I'm confident all will go well.  My rolling cart is packed with the 3 quilts and 3 small items that I'll be showing.  No sewing will happen today as set-up will be starting already this morning.  

Blockheads & cactus

 This is the 20th installment of Moda Blockheads for this year.  We're nearly at the end of this particular free sew along.

It's called Cross Training by Jenelle Kent.  The 9" finished block is a perfect example of one that I love the final look of - but didn't enjoy making it.  It wasn't difficult and didn't take a long time to make.  I think the problem was knowing that there were 48 of those little white corners to stitch and flip.

There is progress on the cactus blocks for Cactus in the Cabin sew along too.  The 2nd round of strips have been added, and I've trimmed all of the blocks to the correct size. 

 

This next step involves adding those little black pieces onto the corners where the pink meets the black strips.  I didn't get as much progress made as hoped because my husband has "gifted" me with another big box of paperwork to shred for work.  But since I haven't had any actual work hours since August, I guess it won't kill me to spend some time shredding again.  But it does cut into my sewing time. 

Decorating for fall

Notice how this is a second day with no sewing reports?  I promise there has been sewing, but no finishes to share yet.  

One of the things I enjoy the most about keeping quilts - other than snuggling into one, is to decorate with quilts.  

The Halloween wall hangings and table runners are out.

And I changed out the silk flowers on the hearth.

Saturday Sampler

Last Saturday was the reveal party for the 2025 Saturday Sampler program.  And it was the reveal of the new 2026 program.  The ladies did some research to find how many years this program has been going on, and discovered at least 27 years.  Wow!!  I've kept all of my patterns gathered in binders and had to go back and see how many years I've been involved.  The first one I did was in 2003.  Tucked into page protectors with some of the patterns were small swatches of fabrics I used.  It was fun to look back and remember some of those quilts.

Nearly 30 finished quilts and flimsies were brought to the reveal.  I took a lot of pictures because I was amazed at how different this design looked in all the different fabrics people chose to use.  There were 2-color versions, monochromatic, patriotic, bright and scrappy, and every color combo you can think of.  I'm sharing a few of my favorites here.

Mine is done in one fabric line (Twenty-four Seven Linen by Hoffman), which reads solid. It's a mix of a brown, a cream, 2 burgundy, and a lime green.  After seeing several of the quilts at the reveal had borders added, I decided I wanted borders too.  

The two colors that had enough left over were the dark burgundy and the lime green.  So that is what I went with.  There is just enough of the brown remaining for binding.  This is not a very good picture, but it was breezy and my husband was having trouble wrestling with the flimsy out on our deck.  I really like how those borders finish it off now.  And it checks off one item from this week's goals!!

The 2026 Saturday Sampler program is going to be Anthologie by Southern Charm Quilts, and each participant will choose their own fabrics.  It's going to be a very interesting mix of piecing and applique.  In looking over the pictures online it looks like it will be fun.  Now I just need to figure out my fabric choices before it begins in January.