MQR Sunbonnet Sues

Here is my last piecing project for January 2016.  I started 10 new piecing projects in January....but some of them are finished. that means already 10 new UFOs for the year. hahahahahahaha   but 6 of those are embroidery projects.   job security for the rest of my life.

These Sunbonnet Sue blocks were given to me by a MQR (Machine Quilters Resource) member, an online quilting forum that i am a member of.

There were 15 blocks. so i decided to set 4x4 and figure out the 16th block at the end.  I used almost all of the purple 'stripe' fabric that i had for sashings and border.

These were made by different individuals....with varying degrees of talent.

I like that they go in different directions.

I had an embroidery SS design that looked like it matched pretty well, so that was the 16th block. i used the border/sashing fabric for her dress to tie it all in.

Here's a close up of block 16

It came out to be 42x52"...i rather like this.  thanks for gifting the blocks to me.....i hope you like the result. 

Michigan

Here is Michigan..... 48 states left to go. LOL

They missed putting Lake Ontario on there

I have always heard Great Lakes State ... with the 'S'...they don't put it. which is correct?

I am finding editing errors in the book.....in numbering steps....#22 was missing....and #24 was mis-labeled. and it seems all the sizes of the "C" blocks are mis-labeled also.  they transposed the 'width' and 'length' figures.

It really bugs me to find errors in embroidery CDs. makes me happy i didn't pay full retail price, though. haha

Primitive Christmas

Here is the last embroidery CD that i purchased last weekend .... called Primitive Christmas.  it has the cutest blocks. I had a piece of fabric that i wanted to use for the background, but didn't have enough of it, so i am using it for the applique....on the sheep, snowman, reindeer, rocking horse, and anywhere else i can. i did find another piece for the backgrounds....i think it is a linen...a soft gray...that will work.

Block #1 is the sheep. my applique fabric looks just right for her. and i like how it puts the buttonhole stitch around the applique pieces. although not all of them are buttonhole....some are other decorative stitches.

Block #4 is the snowman. you can't see it much, but there is a stipple stitch on the background....and stars. you could put a piece of batting under the fabric block  and have a sort of trapunto effect with the applique. 

I might have to do all of these first. i like them....a lot. my sis wants them when i am finished. i don't know. i am making the blocks 6". there are several sizes.

I'm a sucker for embrodiery CDs. even though i have dozens that i have not used yet.....i bought these 6 new ones last weekend. i need a 12 step program. hahahahaha

Let's embroider a 50 states quilt

This one might take a while....i have one state finished. LOL

I fell in love with this 50 States embroidery CD when it came out last year. only 1 problem....the price was $500....yep, you read that correctly....$500.  I was reeling...no way.....but, i actually thought about it for about a week....no, can't spend that much.

Wellllll, last weekend when i visited my sister, we stopped at Jackman's Fabrics and they were having one of their famous embroidery parties.....i've been to 2 of them. they are a lot of fun....but you do tend to spend some money there. oh, LOOK....the 50 states embroidery CD is on sale.....party price....$150.  I snatched that baby up so fast.....if it had been the last one, i would have fought some little old lady for it if i had to. haha

There is a book that comes with it to explain everything and show individual pics.

I am doing the main state blocks....like this.

you can also just use the state outline for applique....make a block with the cities on it...

Just do the state bird....and it shows you how to put parts and pieces together for a whole different block. there are several different transitional blocks, too....see the stars below.

There are several sizes. i used size C...8.8" high x 5.8" wide.  there are 2 sizes larger than this and 1 size smaller. I did the city block, too, and attached it to the bottom of the state block. this is how i will do all of them.

Here are closeups of my Texas block. my plan is to use the same fabric for the background in the state name banner and the background of the cities.

They use a different brand of thread than i do, so sometimes i have to give it my best guess as to color. i need a conversion chart.

I like the idea of the cities block a lot. i am happy they are the same width as the state blocks so they go together easily.

Don't know when they will all get finished.....but i hope to work on them sporadically until they are all done. very happy i stopped at Jackman's on Sunday. 

More new embroidery CDs

While i am having a great time trying out the new embroidery CDs.....all i am actually doing is creating more UFOs.  hahahaha   but it can't be helped....they are so cute.

This one might be my favorite....Shop Hop Quilt.   a little town of houses for sewing, quilting, knitting, embroidery, fabric, etc.  adorable. here is the CD....27 different blocks. i hate when they make an unusual number of blocks. messes with setting issues. why not just 25......or 30?  sigh!!

A little better pic of a few of them

And their new thing now....sashing and border blocks.....what a great idea.

I made block #1....a sewing machine house.  LOL    isn't it precious?  i am making the 5.8" blocks. they all have applique sky and ground. plus this one has an applique house, door and tree.   the little swing is just cute. as you can see, i use old fabrics that i no longer want for the base.

These all might get finished first....i really like them. 


The other one that i tried was Christmas Town. There are 25 blocks...houses, animals, Santa and Mrs. Claus. all will have the same sky and snow....and gold stars in the sky.they are applique, also.

Here are some of the blocks.

This one also has sashing and border blocks. that little fence is just right for the house blocks. 

I did block #21, the smallest one.  The house was applique, too. 

I really like Christmas blocks....and snowman blocks. but i don't decorate for Christmas. is that weird?  haha

Tomorrow i have the last 2 sets to try out. 

New embroidery CDs

While at my sister's this weekend, we had to stop at Jackman's Fabrics for a backing for her quilt. the parking lot was packed to the max.....they had an embroidery class going on.  oh,oh.....trouble...haha!!

I love Anita Goodesign's embroidery CDs.  because of the show, they had some awesome prices....some half price....some buy 2,. get 1 free.....some deeply discounted.  i came home with 6 new CDs.  and although that was more than i needed...... i easily could have bought 2 or 3 times that many. they have so many new cool things.

So, today at the studio i decided to make 1 design out of each CD and see how they turned out. you know that will be 6 new UFOs...right?  hahahaha  i got 2 of them finished today. i put all the background pieces, in a box along with notes and the CD so when i pick it up again i'll remember what i did.

The first one i did is called Landscape Christmas.  There are 5 different sizes of blocks ...9.5x14... 8x12... .6.8x10.2 ......5.8x8.8 .....and 4.8x7.2.    i am using the middle one...5.8x8.8".  there are 12 blocks in the set. and there are 6 other blocks in every size to use as sashing and cornerstones. 

These blocks even put a little border around them...but you wouldn't have to do that if you didn't want to. and the instructions were to make it a 'quilted' block...with the batting in it.....but i didn't do that part either. 

It is applique.....several pieces across for the background and then the scene embroidered on top. my snowman is made with faux leather. 

The second CD that i tried is called Primitive Snowmen.  There are 10 blocks....in 4 sizes...7.8" square....6.8" square.... 5.8" square.... and 4.8" square.  i used the 5.8" one

This is block #1. the snowman is appliqued...i used 2 layers of feedsack...and will use the same on all the snowmen in all the blocks. his hat is applique also. all the snowflakes in the background will be the dark blue. it is hard to see, but there is a squiggle design sewn on the background....i used white for that....you could skip that part if you wanted to. i like that it puts lines around the block, so you don't have to worry about centering the design when you trim. the lines are a perfect square so you just seam them together on the line.

Tomorrow i hope to try 2 more of the new CDs and show you what i made.  stay tuned.

5 New Famous Buildings of the World

I have finished a few more of my buildings....at great peril to my sanity. haha    by the time these are all finished...i will be, too. i repeat....these are HARD. haha

Stonehenge...Wiltshire, United Kingdom   The site and its surroundings are included in UNESCO's list of World Heritage Sites. A legally protected site, it is maintained by the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England. 

Basket Building...Newark, Ohio   This building is the corporate headquarters for the Longaberger Company, maker of famous baskets.

One World Trade Center...New York City, New York    This building is part of the effort to memorialize and rebuild following the destruction of the original World Trade Center complex in the attacks of 9/11.

Great Sphinx of Giza....Al Ahram, Giza, Egypt   It is the largest monolith statue (carved from a single massive stone or rock) in the world and the oldest. The Sphinx measures 241 feet long, 63 feet wide and 66 feet high.

El Castillo, Chichen Itza, Tinum .... Yucatan, Mexico   El Castillo is one of the most visited pre-Columbian structures in Mexico even though climbing the monument is no longer permitted.

And, this, my friends, ends your history lesson for today. more to follow.....hopefully soon.

Little Lego Table

I found a little table at a thrift store. it had a baseball diamond on the top and some other sport thing on the bottom shelf. the legs are baseball bats....nothing i could do about that.  but, i sanded it down and painted it red.....and added legos. haha

too bright in the room from that window to get a clear pic

the top

the bottom shelf

the drawer

i love the chicken knob. haha

legos make it weigh about twice as much as it did....but i'm ok with that.  i'm going to the Duck tomorrow and have another little table to bring home to play with.

Martin's Quilt

This quilt was made by my sister. when her daughter moved from Savannah, Georgia, up the coast to Maine or Rhode Island.....i forget....one of those tiny places....her friend, Martin, volunteered to help her move and drove the moving truck.  thank God for Martin.....that meant my sister and I didn't have to move her. LOL

It is rather large...between queen and king size.

Martin requested camo colors. haha

I used a panto called Star Swirl

Absolutely nothing shows on the back...thread blended right in

This is the panto

Glide Sienna for the top; Bottom Line goldish for the bottom

Martin just bought a new house and has a housewarming party coming up at the end of the month. so, this is going to my sister on thursday...hopefully, if there is not a snow blizzard.....so she can get the binding on it and mailed to Martin. 

Now, back to my regularly scheduled program....my quilts. haha