The Pastor's Attic Quilt, the Last Post

My Pastor's Attic quilt is completely finished, including the label.

The Pastor's Attic quilt is a Baltimore Album quilt replicated by Marsha D. Radke.

Most Baltimore Album quilts are red/green/yellow but I couldn't bring myself to use those colors. When I saw these blacks, beiges and reds on display at the Pumpkinvine quilt shop, I knew I had found my colors.

I appliqued this first block in November 2015 and now 3-1/2 years later, the quilt is completely finished.

You may read about the start of this quilt on my Word Press blog.

The entire quilt displayed on my clothesline. 

The quilting started on October 5, 2018 and took me 29 weeks and 885 yards of thread to quilt. If you count the weeks on a calendar you'll see it is 30 weeks but I'm not counting the week I took off to hand quilt the medallion on Wilfred & Cloves.

I made a few changes to the quilt blocks. There were 2 blocks which I didn't like so I didn't make them. This block was a substitute for one of them.

I appliqued a red block in this same design as the above black one.

I also changed the border. If you click on the link of the Pastor's Attic above, you'll see that the border is actually appliqued in a zig-zag setting. I didn't like that zig-zag. When I said I planned to change the border, I had some people commented they liked it the zig-zag way. Fine, put it on your own quilt, I don't care. But this is MY quilt so I set the borders MY way!

View of the border while laying on bed.

Another change I made was the corner of the border. I've used a block from the 1857 quilt from Sentimental Stitches.

I decreased the size from the original pattern.


Close ups of quilting stencils. The pictures all got run together but you can see the designs just fine.

Marsha included a design for the label. Her version has

appliqued flowers and leaves. My applique skills are not oriented towards teeny, tiny applique so I opted for embroidery.

You can read about my Pastor's Attic Quilt adventure, a Baltimore Album Quilt here.

This is a link to the book on Amazon Prime. I'm sure you can track it down other places too. As you can see, the price is all over the place. 

I'm pleased with my quilt and my accomplishment. I have always wanted to make a totally appliqued quilt, now I have!

Linking to Peacock Party, Kathy's Slow Sunday Stitching, Oh Scrap, Bambi's Show & Tell Monday, Monday Making, Design Wall Monday, BOM's Away, Moving It Forward

Vintage Candy Cane Snowman

The new grandchild arrived Monday morning at 3am, a healthy baby boy. My DIL's mother has been here for the week so I didn't have baby care but I had the 4-year-old part of the time.

I had an inquiry about the Pastor's Attic Quilt. The title of the book says A Baltimore Album - 25 Applique Patterns by Marsha D. Radtke. On page 9 of the introduction, Marsha talks about find the quilt in the attic of her parsonage/home. She calls the quilt The Pastor's Attic. This is the name I have chosen to call the quilt. If I called it The Baltimore Album quilt, how would you know which one I'm referring to since there are hundreds of Baltimore Album patterns?

This book is copyrighted 2009. I purchased it in '09 or'10. I had been appliqueing long enough that I wanted a project more challenging than what I had been working on, but I wanted the blocks to be more simple.  So many applique blocks are too cluttered for my taste.

This picture is from when I purchased the fabrics for the quilt. You notice the book has a spiral binding. When I want a book to lay flat so I can easily trace the picture, I take it to Office Max or Staples and have them put a spiral binding on. It doesn't cost much at all and the book will open flat.

The Baltimore Album, The Pastor's Attic Quilt, was published by AQS. I checked their web-site and they still have it in stock as an e-book. Check this link if you are interested. If you are a member of AQS, you can purchase it for $16, non-members $20. 

Anyway, I didn't get any prepping done this week for the Pastor's Attic quilt. So . . . I did this!

Last spring I had pulled several small embroidery projects I had hoped to work on this summer and prepped a few of them. Vintage Candy Cane Snowman was ready to go, so he has been my evening stitching project.

This pattern is for a pillow but I am going to turn it into a simple, small wallhanging.

I had to pull out my embroidery book to see how fly stitches and feather stitches are embroidered. I've never embroidered those stitches before.

This was so much fun, I started embroidering and couldn't put it down! I completed the needlework in one week.

I'm planning on putting this snowman into a picture frame, but I now need to get a frame so I can see what size to make the wallhanging.

Early last week, I had planned to print out the patterns for the Pastor's Attic Quilt so I could trace them onto the background fabric, but I was low on paper. I picked up printer paper Friday and printed off the rest of the blocks. Now I need to get them taped together and start tracing them. This will be a slow prep job. 

I'm linking to - Kathy's Slow Sunday Stitching, Quilting is More Fun Than Housework, Em's Scrapbag, Love Laugh Quilt, Super Mom - No Cape, Quilt Story, Esther's Wednesday WOW!, Sew Fresh Quilts, Silly Mama Quilts, My Quilt Infatuation, Confessions of a Fabric Addict, Show Off Saturday.

Starting the Quilty Season

I wrote this post in late September but didn't get it posted. Since being written, 4 of the 12 projects have been completed. I may repost this post occasionally during the winter to share the progress I'm making.

In January I read in many blog posts about the projects planned for the year. My life is different and my quilty season starts in the Autumn. Not on September 1st or the 22nd but when the end of the summer activities end. The garden needs to be put to bed, all the canning/freezing needs to be completed, the fall house cleaning needs to be finished and, hopefully, the flowerbeds are cleaned up (that hasn't hapened this year). When these tasks are completed, I can dive into projects with no guilt.

I'm sharing a list of the 12 projects I'm planning on tackling this season. They are in somewhat order of importance.

Some of the projects are small and will easily be completed. I will not finish all the larger quilts but I hope to make some progress toward completion.

1. Pastor's Attic Quilt - still appliqueing blocks. 16 completed, 9 more to applique for the center. I try to applique every evening, block 11 is under the construction right now. I'm not appliqueing them in consecutive order. Updated November 15 - 17 completed!

I started the Pastor's Attic Quilt in November, 2015 so I've been working on her for a year. My goal . . . to have her sewn into the flimsy stage ready for quilting by November 2017. I plan to hand quilt her.

2. Sweet Surrender - Inside applique blocks completed. Need to piece the triangle blocks. Foundation papers are copied.


    I started Sweet Surrender in January 2016. My goal . . . to have her sewn into the flimsy stage by sometime in 2017. Pastor's Attic quilt has higher priority.

3. Nearly Insane - She was my One Monthly Goal for October. I added a row.

I started piecing Insane in January 2016.

My goal for Nearly Insane . . . to have all the center blocks pieced by January 2018. This is a really slow project.

4. Postage Stamp Quilt - I decided I need to piece 10 blocks a month to get this quilt finished. (I dream kingsized!) When I got the blocks out, I realized why I had put it away; I had used all the yellows and oranges and there was only one purple 4-patch to be used! I went ahead and pieced 5 more blocks so now there are 10 completed blocks. The blocks without yellow and orange just jump out at me though! 

I pulled fabrics and had a marathon cutting session. I cut different sized strips besides the 1-1/2" needed for the postage stamps. I also cut a stack of 5" squares for some other projects. I'll keep sewing the 1-1/2" strips until they're all sewn. Then I'll cut them apart and sew 4-patches. Hopefully I'll be able to piece more blocks starting in January. My goal for this quilt project? . . . I have no idea when she'll be completed. 

5. Tractor crib quilt - This is my One Monthly Goal for November. We have another grandchild arriving in December. (Wow, two in one year!) We won't know the sex of the baby until he/she is born. I have a Sunbonnet Sue quilt I made several years ago so I'm prepared for a girl. 

I have this cute tractor pattern I've been wanting to make, perfect for a grandson of farmers. I have the fabric, just need to get the pieces cut and get started sewing. The pattern is available through Counted Quilts. They have a lot of cute patterns.

My goal for this quilt . . . he needs to be finished by the first of December. The baby is due the 8th! Update - Finished November 11, 2016 & the baby came early!

6. Wilfred & Cloves - This is the center of Wilfred & Cloves from the Creating Heirlooms, One Stitch at a Time by Carolyn Konig. I've been want to make this quilt ever since I bought the book several years ago. I appliqued the center of this quilt in the fall of 2014 and nothing has happened since. I have the fabrics pulled for the pieced blocks, just need to get them cut out. My goal . . . again, I have no idea. I need to finish up other quilts first.

7. Churn-Dash Quilt - This antique quilt was pieced and quilted by the farmers great-grandmother, Fannie Baumgartner Kauffman. I've always wanted to make a reproduction of this quilt. The plan is to use the blue fabric left from my Dear Jane quilt. Now I need to get the blocks prepped so they can be pieced at the Jane Stickle Retreat in November. My goal for this quilt . . . I would like to get her completely pieced and in the hand quilting frame by January. Will it happen? We'll see.

8. Summer Quilt - Several years ago, the farmer told me we need a light quilt for summer. I've been turning that idea over in my mind ever since. This winter it is going to happen. I have 12 quilt blocks I embroidered years ago. I need to come up with an alternate block in between them and some borders to make it large enough for king size. I will have her long-arm quilted so she will be ready for the 2017 summer season. 

9. Quilt  - 3 Star Bright crib quilts - I don't know on which blog I saw this crib quilt, but I went to the link they provided and downloaded the free pattern. It's designed by Katie Blakesley and called Star Bright. How could I resist? Of course I couldn't sew up just one, I made three tops. Now just to get them quilted. Goal . . . to be finished by May 2017. Updated - finished 12-27-16.

10. Grandmother's Flower Garden EPP crib quilt - I would like to possibly start another EPP project the first part of the year but I need to complete this crib quilt first. Update - Finished October 30, 2016 and I've decided I am NOT starting a new EPP project in 2017. I'm going to keep working on the applique quilts.

11. Blocks for 2018 Guild Charity quilt - Every year our guild provides a quilt for the Michiana Mennonite Relief Sale. The members of the guild piece the blocks, the committee puts the blocks together into a flimsy. Then the guild hand quilts the quilt top. Finished October 23, 2016

12. Block for Marie Troyer, 2015 Guild President - Every year the members of the Maple Leaf Quilt Guild make a quilt block for the past president as a thank-you for their leadership. The past-president specifies which block they want. Marie designed the pattern. Finished October 24, 2016

Linking up to -  Esther's Wednesday WOW!, Sew Fresh Quilts 

Lucy Boston & the Pastor's Attic Quilt

First I'm going to show you the photo of the block I made the end of September, you know, the one that ended up in the cyberspace abyss.

This block was completed this week.

You never know what the block is going to look like until it's finished.

I've also sewn several of the 4 patches that go in the corner of each section. I need to get the fabric cut for the colored squares. 

They're not all matching pieces but they'll do.

The priority project this week was to finish the marking of the Pastor's Attic quilt. That took awhile because I marked an allover diamond background. 

First I marked corners of the quilt with various stencils. I had taken a picture of this earlier which also disappeared into cyberspace so this is a retake. I forgot to tape it down for the retake. This is important because you do NOT want the stencil to slide while you are marking a quilt. Taping two sides of the stencil works for me.

When I was marking the diamonds, I put tape on the outside of the corner markings to keep from marking the corner design. 

You can erase the markings with a fabric eraser (the label on the eraser says FACTIS extra soft, purchased at my local fabric store), but erasing is hard on the fabric. That is another reason to mark lightly.

After I've marked the diamonds on the block, I remove the tape and carefully mark the lines to the edge of the design mark. Once the applique blocks are marked, I marked the borders.

For  years I have used silver pencils but I read on Sue Garman's website that she recommends Paper Mate Sharpwriter #2 fine point pencils. Supposedly the markings will wash out. I haven't tried it but I did test the eraser on a scrap of fabric. Don't use it, the crumbs are pink/red colored and you don't want that on your quilt, at least I don't. Use a Factis eraser, it's white and the crumbs easily brushed away.

Anyway, the quilt is finally in the frame and a new quilting journey has begun. I'm using a variegated YLI quilting thread and my new copper thimble. 

Wool batting stitches so nicely, the thread just glides through the layers. 

This quilt is going to be in the frame for most of the winter. I hope you all don't get tired of reading about it.

Here is a link to past posts about the Pastor's Attic Quilt.

Linking to Kathy's Slow Sunday Stitching, HQAL, Show & Tell Monday With Bambi, Monday Making, Design Wall Monday, BOM's Away, Moving It Forward, Esther's Wednesday WOW!

Pastor's Attic Quilt, the 24th Block

I'm showing the picture of the Pastor's Attic Quilt book. This is a Baltimore Album quilt book written by Marsha D. Radtke in 2009 and published by AQS. She found the original quilt in the attic of the parsonage in which they were living. I call it the Pastor's Attic Quilt (and she does too in the forward) because there are so many Baltimore Album's quilts and I want to differentiate my quilt from the crowd.

There are 25 blocks in this quilt of which 24 of the blocks are appliqued. There is one block which was first pieced, then appliqued to the background fabric. I've looked at that the block ever since I purchased the book so many years ago. I consider myself a very good foundation paper piecer. I mean, I pieced most of my Dear Jane that way and I'm paper piecing Nearly Insane. However, I could not make heads or tails of the directions. 

I decided to leave that block out and come up with another applique block, this is an applique quilt after all. I've been looking at different blocks for years, trying to decide which one to use. I finally decided to use an old stencil pattern. I traced off the design and appliqued her. I love it! There was no name for this pattern on the stencil but I'm sure there is one. Do you know what this design is?  {Updated Sunday evening - My friend Elaine says this pattern is Lancaster Rose. I think this flower may be showing up in another of my quilts someday}

I didn't think I would be able to applique her in a week, but I didn't feel like machine sewing for several days last week because of Nearly Insane burn-out! I had a marathon session of applique while watching season 2 of Poldark. I got her done!

Now, just one more block to be appliqued! But these completed blocks are for the center section of the quilt; there will be the applique border to applique after the center blocks are sewn together.

Linking to - Kathy's Slow Sunday Stitching, Quilting is More Fun than Housework, Em's Scrapbag, Love Laugh Quilt, Fiber Tuesday, Esther's Wednesday WOW!, Sew Fresh Quilts, WIP's With Friends, My Quilt Infatuation, Finished Or Not Friday, Crazy Mom Quilts, Confessions of a Fabric Addict

The Pastors Attic Quilt, A Baltimore Album Quilt

Other blogs are posting about starting new projects for this New Year. I also have a couple of new projects I will be starting to piece but I'll talk about them in a different post. 

My main goal in 2018 is to finish up several unfinished quilts that are in varying stages of progress. I've made a list of 10 projects. Will I actually get 10 quilts all pieced? No,  but I'm hoping to get at least 5 of them into the flimsy stage and make progress on the others.

I will talk about each quilt as I work on it. I am not going to rush myself, just plod along at my own pace.

First on the list is the Pastor's Attic Quilt. 

The center is pieced and the borders are finally marked.

A start has been made, these are 2 flower buds on the first border.

The Pastor's Attic Quilt book was written by Marsha D. Radtke in 2009 and published by AQS. She found the original quilt in the attic of the parsonage in which they were living. I call it the Pastor's Attic Quilt (and she does too in the forward) because there are so many Baltimore Album quilts and I want to differentiate my quilt from the crowd. This book is now out of stock.  

Linking to - Kathy's Slow Sunday Stitching, Show & Tell Monday With Bambi, Em's Scrapbag, Love Laugh Quilt, BOM's Away, Esther's Wednesday WOW!

A Pillow & the Pastor's Attic Quilt

In April, my friend Carol asked me to make a pillow. Carol's sister had embroidered quilt blocks and then gave them to Carol. Carol sewed the blocks together and hand quilted the quilt. There was one block left, so she quilted it, then asked me to make a pillow with that block because she had never made a pillow. I said yes but you know what? I've never made a pillow either! I can finally cross this project off the list. I think she turned out pretty good but I don't want to make another one. Carol is going to stuff the pillow, I didn't have to do that.

Slowly, a little sewing each evening, and the next Pastor's Attic quilt block has been completed. I like this block, the embroidered stems are a nice change. The embroidery in the vase looks good too, so much easier than appliquing narrow strips of fabric.

The next block has been prepped and I've started on her. When this block is finished, I'll have completed the first 2 rows of the quilt, just 15 more blocks to go!

Everyone has their own way to applique. I see some people glue all their pieces on then applique them down. I can't do that, I need to just applique piece by piece. The stems for these red buds will be back basted applique. 

When I was in Wakarusa last week, I took a picture of the Quilt Garden. I was unable to get the whole garden in the picture. Sorry.

The design is 1895 Star Puzzle. Click the photo for more information.







What is going on around the farm and garden?

I've always enjoyed driving tractor. One day, while the farmer was running errands, I mowed down a field of hay. The next day I raked the rows double; this is what it looks like. Rows that are already raked are on the left. On the right sides the hay is flat in the windrows. The rake turns one row onto the next row. 

This hay is high moisture hay. The baler bales them into big bales then they are wrapped in plastic. It ferments and turns into baylage which we feed in the winter. The cattle love it!

I wrote a detailed post dated May 28, 2014, about baling high moisture hay on my Word Press blog. You can read that post here. 

The wheat kernals that fell from the combine during wheat harvest have sprouted. The stems are 3" - 4" tall. Every morning several flocks of Canadian Geese fly into the field and graze. I was able to get pretty close to them for the picture. The different groups do not co-mingle, they stay in their separate flock.

I'm still freezing green beans but the plants are slowing down. I don't pull the plants when they stop yielding. After several weeks they will start blossoming again and there will be more green beans.

In late spring I plant my Amaryllis bulbs in the garden. Some summers some of the bulbs bloom. I would rather they didn't bloom in the summer but save their energy to bloom in the winter. The flowers are more appreciated in the winter than summer. Behind the Amaryllis are potato plants.

I'm linking to - Kathy's Slow Sunday Stitching, Quilting is More Fun than Housework, Em's Scrapbag, Love Laugh Quilt, Super Mom - No Cape!, Esther's Wednesday WOW!, Sew Fresh Quilts, My Quilt Infatuation, Confessions of a Fabric Addict, A Quilting Reader's Garden