What I Sewed at Retreat

Here is my update on my retreat last week. I had several projects prepped, just in case, but I only worked on two of them.

The main project was foundation paper-piecing Carolina Lily blocks, 20 of them! I had paper pieced the green stem sections ahead of time, all the lily sections were pieced at retreat.

Here are the other 19 blocks.

Foundation paper-piecing is time consuming but it doesn't take a lot of thread. I used one bobbin for all of these blocks and it wasn't empty when I was ready to leave for home.

I'm using fabrics I already have on hand, I have a variety of green and red fabrics to use. All fabrics are going into this quilt from fossil fern to my mother's old 80's & 90's fabrics.

Now I have a total of 50 blocks, just 50 more to piece!

The other project was to applique Stonefield blocks. Three blocks were completed but you have to wait until Sunday to see them.

Linking to To Do Tuesday, Wednesday Wait Loss, Put Your Foot Down, I Quilted This!, TGIFF!, Finished or Not Friday, Off the Wall Friday, Beauty Pageant, Patchwork & Quilts

The Princess & the Pea

The two Stonefield blocks today are called the Princess & the Pea. 

The stars are EPP'd then appliqued onto the background fabric. After that, the circles were added.

Both blocks together.

Stonefields is designed by Susan Smith. 

I just realized that I made a mistake and I've got 2 posts today for handwork! Oh well, enjoy my blocks! Here is a link to Stonefields, Section 10 in case you missed it.

Linking to Patchwork & Quilts, Kathys Slow Stitching Sunday, Stitching Stuff, Oh Scrap, Handmade Monday, Sew & Tell, Craftastic Monday, Design Wall Monday, Monday Musings, To Do Tuesday

Stonefields, Section 10

The first four blocks in section ten of Stonefields are these pieced blocks called Fallen Rosebud. 

Foundation paper-piecing was used to piece these blocks.

The next two blocks are called The Dice. They were pieced then appliqued circles were added. 

These blocks remind me of the game, Tic Tac Toe except there are no X's, just O's. 

Just 6 more blocks then all the center blocks are completed!

These blocks were a good way to use up smaller pieces of background fabrics.

I'm home from retreat and playing catch up! I'll try to read missed blog post during the week sometimes but it's impossible to read all of them!

I now realize that somehow I published 2 posts today! Here is a link to the Princess & the Pea.

Linking to Patchwork & Quilts, Kathys Slow Stitching Sunday, Stitching Stuff, Oh Scrap, Handmade Monday, Sew & Tell, Craftastic Monday, Design Wall Monday, Monday Musings, To Do Tuesday

Stonefields, Block 109

The Lord is Risen! Have a blessed Easter with whoever you are celebrating with!

Block 109 from the Stonefields quilt is called 'My Bebe'. The star was EPP'd then appliqued. It's another very pretty block, it looked challenging but it didn't take as long as I thought it would.

Here are all the blocks in section 9 on the display wall.

I do have to say the next to the last block, Rollercoaster, is my favorite block of the group.

There is just one more section to stitch for Stonefields, just 12 more blocks! I'm so close to finishing the blocks for the center of the quilt. Stonefields is designed by Susan Smith.

Something totally unrelated to hand sewing is this apron I made for a little girl from church. She requested it from me, she enjoys baking with her grandmother and needed an apron. How could I refuse? The little apron sewed very fast, 3 hours from start to finish. The most time consuming part was when I turned the right side out and needed to pin the edge to press it. That took longer than the stitching!

I will not be having a Wednesday post this week. The Jane Stickle retreat starts Wednesday, I'll have a wrap-up retreat post coming later.

Linking to Patchwork & Quilts, Kathys Slow Stitching Sunday, Stitching Stuff, Sew & Tell, Design Wall Monday, Monday Musings, 

Garden Party

I have been piecing the various blocks needed for Bonnie Hunter's Garden Party quilt at the Jane Stickle retreats the last several years. Sewing all the blocks together went fast, a lot faster than piecing the individual blocks.

I decided to take the flimsy to a new to me long arm quilter, Dana Stalter. I am well pleased, she actually had the quilting finished and returned the quilt back to me within 10 days! 

This is a very busy quilt and those little squares finish at 1". I selected an all over Baptist fan quilting (no surprise there) to secure all the little pieces. 

This is not a regular Baptist Fan design, it's the one designed by the Three Sisters Fabric. This isn't the 3 Sisters who design fabric for Moda (I think it's Moda), 'my' sisters had a store before the designers started designing.

Can you believe it? I've actually made a quilt in which the main color is red. The backing fabric is red wide backing. My quilt was 97" before quilting but it shrank, now it's 92" by 94.5". I wish that I had added another row but too late now. Garden Party is found in Bonnie Hunter's Addicted to Scraps book.              

                                                                               

Next week is another Jane Stickle retreat and I've been trying to decide what project I'll work on. Maybe it will be another long term Bonnie Hunter quilt? I'll let you know what I sewed at retreat on my next Wednesday blog post which will be April 15.

Linking to Wednesday Wait Loss, To Do Tuesday, Put Your Foot Down, I Quilted This!, TGIFF!, Finished or Not Friday, Off the Wall Friday, Beauty Pageant, Patchwork & Quilts

Rhapsody in Blue, the Checkerboard Border

The checkerboard border from the Rhapsody in Blue quilt is quilted.

This is an abbreviated selection of pictures, all of the checkerboard border looks the same. 

Here is the left side quilting around the applique.

A few pictures from the checkerboard border but not all the border.

The pictures don't show how quilting in the light background fabric makes the darker blue square puff up slightly. It looks so nice in real life.

And the right side quilting.

The next section is an applique border.

I've used over 500 yards of thread on this quilt so far, that happened when I was stitching the outside border on this side. I thought I had a 250 yard spool of white YLI quilting thread but found that I only have 500 yard spools. The thought of possibly measuring 400 yards of thread was rather overwhelming so that's not happening. There won't be an exact number for yards of thread in this quilt.

Linking to Patchwork & Quilts, Kathys Slow Stitching Sunday, Stitching Stuff, Oh Scrap, Handmade Monday, Sew & Tell, Craftastic Monday, Design Wall Monday, Monday Musings

Tennesee, 2025 Laundry Basket Mystery Quilt

My 2025 Laundry Basket Mystery Quilt, designed by Edyta Sitar and now called Tennesee, has come home from Calico Point where the long arm quilting happened.

I really like this quilt, the house border is so cute!

It measures 97" square.

I had said that the binding would be a light blue stripe but it's not a true stripe. It is the difference in the floral print. 

The backing fabric is a dark gray fabric.

I don't remember the name of the quilting design. It shows on the light fabric on the front of the quilt and all of the backing fabric.

This was a fun quilt to piece, maybe someday I may make a second one from this pattern. 

Linking to To Do Tuesday, Wednesday Wait Loss, Needle & Thread Thursday, Put Your Foot Down, I Quilted This!, TGIFF!, March Favorite Finish, Finished or Not Friday, Off the Wall Friday, Patchwork & Quilts