STASH REPORT SUNDAY

Fabric used this week  4 yards

Fabric used year to date  66.75 yards

Fabric added this week  0 yards

Fabric added year to date  51 yards

Net used 2017  15.75 yards

My used fabric was for pillowcases.  Our sewing day made 223 pillowcases for area children's hospital.  The only other sewing I did was to cut the yardage for tablecloths for DS2's use at work.  I didn't add the fabric to my stash report, so I can't claim it as used.  I serged all the edges, then turned and top stitched the hems.  I was able to use the differential feed on my serger for the round cloths, just eased the fabric enough to turn and stitch with no puckers.

I've been baking this past week.  I made 4 loaves of whole wheat bread, 2 French loaves to take to a dinner party, and 4 loaves of cinnamon raisin, fruit bread.  Three of these were gifted to neighbours.  I wanted to use the fruit before packing up to head north.

Company is coming tonight.  We plan to go out for dinner, and I have made an apple crisp for dessert, to have with some vanilla frozen yogurt.

Check out the progress shared at Judy's blog, Patchwork Times.

A SUCCESSFUL PILLOWCASE DAY

Our clubhouse began humming, as members of my quilting group and their friends and neighbours began to get set up early for our 2nd annual pillowcase day.  By 11am, we had 4 sergers, 10 sewing machines, and 10 non-sewing helpers ready to begin.

The Tampa Bay area coordinator for the Cases for Smiles charity came, loaded with lots of pre-cut pillowcase kits to add to the ones donated by our group.  She made sure everyone was busy, and supervised the non-sewing workers. 

 
They pinned the "kits" together and kept the machines humming along.  They also picked up the cases when each step was finished, and took them to those who were turning them, pressing them, and then delivered them back to those sewing to continue with the next step.  

The 4 sergers were kept busy, as we tried to complete each of the pillowcases.  Near the end of the day, we also had some finished using a French seam - one extra step.

We took a short break for a quick lunchtime snack, sharing some chocolates and bar cookies, then it was back to work!  The coordinator counted the finished pillowcases, and packed them into bags of 50.  By 3pm, we had completed 223 pillowcases, beating our record.

 We carried the heavy bags of completed pillowcases, along with the rest of the supplies to the coordinator's vehicle, then waved good-bye.  Everyone slowly packed up all their gear, and we straightened the clubhouse - putting chairs back and searching for forgotten items.  I'm sure everyone was tired, but thinking about all the children that will sleep on the pillowcases at the area's childrens hospitals kept a smile on everyone's faces.  

We're looking forward to doing this again next year.
 

MY LATEST FINISH

I finally talked DH into being a quilt holder, so I could get a picture.  He's been so busy lately - 6 band performances in the past week.  They've been visiting all the local nursing homes before the band members begin heading to their northern homes for the summer.

The block pattern was ladder star, from Bonnie Hunter at Quiltville, in her "Addicted to Scraps" column in Quiltmaker magazine.  I used the leftover half square triangle units, along with some 4-patch blocks, for the border.

I did basic quilting in the blocks, and had fun making swirls in the neutral borders.  I used a variegated King Tut thread from Superior, colour #921 Cleopatra  
It had Variegated Colors:LIME-RED-ORANGE-AQUA-PURPLE, which coordinated with the Egyptian fabric I used on the back and binding.

You can see a bit of the backing showing in this picture. 

My quilting group, along with several other volunteers from my southern community will be making pillowcases for Cases for Smiles tomorrow.  I got my serger out, oiled it, put in new needles, cleaned out all the lint, so I'll be ready to sew from 11-4.

Now off to pack up all my supplies......

STASH REPORT SUNDAY

Fabric used this week 13 yards

Fabric used year to date  62.75 yards

Fabric added this week  15.5 yards

Fabric added year to date  51 yards

Net used 2017  11.75 yards

I almost went into the red this week - totally not my fault!  My quilting group were out for our annual lunch and shopping trip on Wednesday.  The brought a card and a lovely gift of 62 fat quarters! It was a lovely surprise, but I had to hurry and finish my quilt to compensate for the huge influx of treasures!  Picture soon.....

  This week we are having a pillowcase sewing day for Cases for Smiles.  We hope to finish as many as we did last year.  We have lots of helpers, including some non-sewers, who press, pin, trim, fold and count the completed cases.

I hope to finish a couple more baby quilts before it is time to pack up and head to our northern home.  We always get so busy near the end of the season - lots of invitations to share meals with friends.

Check out the progress shared at Judy's blog, Patchwork Times.

A SMALL QUILT DISPLAY

Last Sunday, our southern community had their annual Variety of Talents night.  In the past, it was purely a performance show, with singers, dancers, musicians etc.  This year the idea was to show other talents.  My quilting group was asked to set up a display, along with the Swedish weaving group, the wood carvers and both of the painting groups.  
The attendees were able to look at all the displays before the concert began.  My friend and I took the opportunity to share our love of quilting, let people know just what the group does, and advertise our annual pillowcase sewing day.

Of course, I forgot my camera, but a friend took a few pictures of the quilting display.  We placed chairs on top of a row of tables, and draped them with some larger quilts.  We also had smaller projects on tables in front, including runners, bags, pillowcases, etc.
It was fun to see some of the projects that we made this year, as well as a few from previous years.
A few people were disappointed to find out that nothing was for sale!  Unfortunately, I know what people are willing to pay for a quilt!  They don't know how much fabric costs, and want the labour for free.  Most of the people in my group quilt for family, friends and donate quilts to many different charities.

STASH REPORT SUNDAY

Fabric used this week 7.125 yards

Fabric used year to date  49.75 yards

Fabric added this week  14 yards

Fabric added year to date  44.5 yards

Net used 2017  5.25 yards

My stats are up and down like a see-saw!  Another internet sale found me last week.  I didn't catch DH's cold and cough, but have been feeling just a bit stuffy, with little energy all week - I think that made me weak enough to be lured in by a sale!

I took pictures of my last two finishes this morning.....

 The row quilt uses a pattern by Lori Holt.  I added a border from Judy Laquidara's book, "60 Pieced  Quilt Borders".  It was a sew-along a couple of years ago.  Since I was determined to use my scraps this winter, I used lots of 5 in squares, 1 1/2 inch strips, and all the background fabric was cut from small pieces that had been hiding on my shelves for quite a while.  I did have to cut into some yardage for some of the larger pieces, and for the final gray border.

I was inspired by Nann's Ripple quilt shown here.  It uses 1 1/2 inch strips, so I pulled all my pre-cut full width strips, and was able to make a smaller quilt, only 5 x 6 blocks.  I even used leftover binding strips for both quilts too!

Check out other's progress at Judy's blog, Patchwork Times.

STASH REPORT SUNDAY

Fabric used this week 14 yards

Fabric used year to date  42.625 yards

Fabric added this week  0 yards

Fabric added year to date  30.5 yards

Net used 2017  12.125 yards

Finally back in the black and hope to stay there!  I finished my row quilt, spending last night checking for missed thread tails.  I'll try to get a picture posted tomorrow.....

Our community is having a "Variety of Talents" show this evening.  I is usually musical, with some dancing.  This year they decided to showcase other art forms in a display for everyone to see before the performance shows.  The quilting group was asked to participate, along with the Swedish weaving group, the wood carving group, the watercolour painting group etc.  I've been collecting quilts and other articles that we have made over the past couple of  seasons, and will be heading down to our clubhouse to get set-up by 5pm.  The performances begin at 7, and people will begin arriving around 6 to get a "good seat" for the show.  I just have to remember my camera to get some pictures of the displays!

DH has a cold with a cough, and his voice sounds really gravelly.  Fortunately the band doesn't perform until Wednesday this week, so he's hoping that his voice will be up to the performance.

Check out all the progress at Judy's blog, Patchwork Times.