Two Compassion Qults

This week I have two compassion quilts to show you. The first little quilt finishes at 41" by 50". The blocks were leftovers from a quilt I pieced probably 20 years ago, time to move them out. I posted about the flimsy last November.

As usual I did simple machine quilting. 

Using white thread I quilted through the purple chain then stitched in the ditch along the edge of the HST blocks. It still needed more quilting so I horizontally and vertically along the seam line every 4" which went through the center of the HST block.

The white border has quilting on both sides. 

I did mark a design in the border with a disappearing pink marker but I couldn't see it so I just kind of did my own thing. The border fabric is so pretty though, hopefully it will cover my poor quilting design. 

Years ago I had pieced two simple quilt tops to spiral quilt and donate. I quilted one and thought that was enough spiral quilting. The other quilt top was the perfect size for the back of this quilt.

Maybe they'll decide they like the backing fabric better and use it as the top side.

The second quilt was a store kit I bought at Caroline's last July and pieced in October.

The kit is named Trip Around the Cottage, a play on Caroline's Cottage Cottons. The flimsy measures 67.5" square.

I liked the touches of gold in the fabric so I pulled this thread to use for the quilting. This quilt has easy quilting, I stitched in the ditch on the side of all the seams. This was enough quilting so I called it finished.

I challenged myself to not buy backing fabric for these small quilts, I had these fabrics in the stash so that's what I used.

I did prewash the red fabric (which is more maroon then red), it bled a lot but the excess dye finally left.

I'm pleased to say that neither quilt has any pleats or puckers on the front or back.

Linking to To Do Tuesday, Wednesday Wait Loss, Needle & Thread Thursday, Free Motion Mavericks, Put Your Foot Down, TGIFF!, Finished or Not Friday, Off the Wall Friday, Beauty Pageant, Patchwork & Quilts

Elegant Garden, Block 24, the Last Applique Block!

Block 24 of the Elegant Garden quilt is completed, the applique blocks are finished!

I went ahead and pieced the center block so the center of this quilt is completed.

The row that was intended to be the bottom row (row 5) was switched with row 4 because the center block of row 4 had the same background fabric as what was used in the center star block. Switching the rows was an easy solution, but I did have a problem with the pieced center block.

This is the block trimmed to size. I don't know what I did but this isn't right!

Time for plan B, the block was trimmed smaller then sashing was added. Now it's the size it's supposed to be and it was sewn into the center row.

The next step was to piece the 24 half star blocks to go around the outside of the quilt. I don't think so, not after having a problem with the center star block.

Now the decision is, someday, will I regret not piecing those star blocks? That's an easy answer, NO! I was attracted to this quilt because of the applique, not the stars. Besides, if I made those half star blocks, I would need to buy more pink fabric.

I used to have more  pink civil war fabrics but back in 2022, I pieced a flimsy I named Churn Dash Diva.

In the civil war tub were leftover fabrics from that quilt, the dark brown fabric and the pink striped fabric that were used for borders in Churn Dash Diva. I had enough of the brown fabric for an inside border and an outside border for Elegant Garden. There was also enough pink striped fabric for a wider border. And, there is fabric in the tub that should work well for the binding. I always sew binding immediately after finishing the flimsy.

My Elegant Garden flimsy measures 60.5".

It was rather fun to make a small quilt for once. For now she's going into the 'to be quilted' closet and hang along side her older sister churn dash diva. And, in case you're wondering, churn dash diva is still waiting to be hand-quilted.

Every fabric used in Elegant Garden came from the civil war tub, no fabric was purchased for the purpose of making this quilt. The tub is in complete disarray but is still pretty full. There are some larger pieces in the tub that will be used as backing fabrics. Maybe I'll sew a pieced backing for churn dash diva too, I wonder what she'll think about that?

I hadn't planned to have a finished flimsy to show you today but sometimes quilting goes like that. I have started a new project that I will show you next week.

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

Quilting the Peter Rabbit Quilt

I have several smaller flimsies I've pieced in the last year that I'm going to quilt with my home sewing machine. This works well with spring work outside, I can quilt awhile then go outside into the sunshine, play in the soil and admire all the flowers and green grass. Some of these little quilts I will keep, some are designated for other people and some are compassion quilts. That is what my Wednesday posts will be about for the rest of May, maybe even into June until all the little quilts are finished.

In January I pieced the kit I purchased at Caroline's last summer during my birthday outing. I call it the Peter Rabbit quilt, the kit name is Book Adventures.

I've started a month of machine quilting all the small quilts I've made this last year. Most of them are compassion quilts but this quilt is staying with me until I find the right child, someone who loves to read books.

Last year I experimented with spray glueing regular batting, I also tried a glue batting that you pressed and it stuck to the backing and quilt top.

This year I stuck with the basics, pining only. I pin closely while watching a program on my ipad and time passes quickly. 

Something else I do that might be different from the normal is I don't have a lot of backing on the sides of the quilt. I understand why long arm quilters do but I don't find it necessary to have excess fabric on the sides.

For the quilting I used X and + quilting design. I marked a diagonal X on the quilt flimsy from corner to corner then marked a + at the center of the quilt horizontally and vertically. You sew on the diagonal and pivot on the center lines. I use a Frixon pen for marking, which is easily removed with a hot iron after the quilting is finished.

I used a lightweight poly batting because I don't like poofy quilts. Cream colored cotton thread was used for quilting.

I quilted a quarter of the quilt each day and I started with one of the sides because there is more quilting on the sides.

Here is a closeup of the quilting.

Day two of quilting. The opposite side was quilted. I don't know if it really makes a difference if the top or bottom was quilted after the first side. This just how I do it.

Day three, this time the top section.

Day four, the finish!

After the X quilting was finished, I stitched in the ditch around the neutral border between the book border and the outside border on both sides. See the blue gingham border, I also stitched in the ditch on both sides of it even though it was printed onto the fabric, not pieced. I just thought that would look nice.

Backing fabric did not come with the kit. One day when I was at Calico Point I saw they had a bolt that coordinated with these fabrics so I purchased two yards. Of course that wasn't enough so I added this nice floral because rabbits like flowers. It has been in the stash for a long long time.

Sorry, forgot to crop this photo, you have a nice shot of the emerging hostas. 

Obviously this quilt is directional and I even managed to have the backing fabric running the same direction as the front!

Of course I have to have a picture on the glider. 

The quilt has not been washed so it will probably shrink slightly after laundering. As of now it measures 59" by 66.5" I have no idea who this quilt will be gifted to, probably a child who likes to read. The kit even came with the Peter Rabbit book!

I don't know if the kit is still available, I'll let you google it.

I'll be honest, I don't really think the side border blocks look like books but it's a nice idea.

I'll admit the quilting lines aren't perfectly straight, the measurement between the lines aren't a perfect 1/2" but . . . there are no tucks or pleats on the front or the back and it's a FINISH!

Peter Rabbit Quilt or Book Adventures was #17 on my list of 2025 quilts to make.

Linking to To Do Tuesday, Wednesday Wait Loss, Needle & Thread Thursday, Put Your Foot Down, Free Motion Mavericks, TGIFF!, Finished or Not Friday, Off the Wall Friday, Beauty Pageant, Patchwork & Quilts

Elegant Garden, Block 23

Block 23 is finished. This block seems so bright and cheery with the pinks and ovals of yellow.

Just one more block to applique then they'll all be completed!

Elegant Garden is designed by Edyta Sitar.

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

Stars in the Center

Way back in 2018, I pieced a quilt flimsy called Starlight Express which I had planned to donate to the quilt auction fundraiser that our Pennsylvania grandchildren attended at that time. The sale committee would have hand quilted the flimsy.

I designed this quilt myself and didn't really plan it out ahead of time. Some of the checkerboard border spacing around the center stars was 'fudged'. The quilt committee didn't like my 'fudged' spacing and refused the quilt top. I was rather peeved, I didn't think it looked that bad, but in retrospect I decided that if I were going to buy a quilt in an auction, I would want it pieced nicely without fudged spacing.

The farmer flew to Phoenix to visit our daughter in March 2024 which meant that I was in control of the TV in the evenings. NO SPORTS were watched while I watched documentaries and other programs that were of interest to me and took apart the offending 'fudged' borders. This time, when I sewed the checkerboard border back together, I made sure the blocks were evenly spaced.

I dropped the flimsy off at Lori's in April 2024, it went into the quilting frame in August. Then poor Lori slipped on outside steps, fell and broke both bones in her upper right arm by her shoulder! 😢 It took several months for those bones to heal and then several months of rehab before she regained the necessary mobility. Finally she was able to long arm quilt again.

I've renamed this quilt Stars in the Center. The quilting is finally finished and the binding is completed.

Since our grandchildren no longer attend that school and I had intended to donate this quilt anyway, she will be donated to the 2025 Michiana Mennonite Relief sale held on September 27th at the Elkhart County Fairgrounds . . . just in case any of you are interested in purchasing a quilt. Stars in the Center is a large quilt, she measures 97.5" by 108". I don't know why I put a checkerboard border on the short sides of the flimsy but not the long sides. Like I said, I pieced this quilt back in 2018, who knows what my thinking was then.

There will be an online link, for viewing the sale quilts, that will be available in mid September. I'll publish the link when it's available.

Lori Null quilted Stars in the Center with the Baptist Fan design. When in doubt, go with  Baptist Fan quilting, it always looks nice.

In all of these pictures you can easily see the revised patchwork borders around the stars. I didn't take a before picture of the offending blocks.

I used a lot of leftover cream fabrics in this quilt.

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

2025 Sauder Village Quilt Show

I don't usually have two posts in one day but today I do. There are lots of pictures of very pretty quilts for you to view. Here is a link to my normal Sunday post about my Elegant Garden quilt.

Last week, Wednesday through Saturday, was the Sauder Village Quilt Show in Archbold Ohio. I drove out Saturday to view the show and to bring home the quilts the farmer and I delivered a week ago Sunday.

My Hearts & Wreath quilt received a 2nd place ribbon for hand quilted quilts!

I thought the lighting seemed a little dark in the corner they had the handquilted quilts but the quilting actually shows better in this picture.

I took pictures of other quilts that I liked, as usual applique projects dominate the pictures. If this works right, each quilt picture should be followed by the tag of the quilt owner.

This first quilt was made by Rebecca Yoder who grew up in my area. She does beautiful applique and has a first place ribbon every year in this show. Becky's tag says she made this quilt in the quilt as you go technique.

This next quilt should look familiar, it's Elegant Garden! She didn't finish the blocks the Edyta did but I like those diamonds in the borders.

The embroidered quilt was handquilted, it just seemed dark where these quilts were displayed but again, the quilting shows up so clearly.

This was the Best of Show winner. I talked to this lady about her quilt, she machine quilted it on her domestic machine, each block separately then sewed the sashing and finished the quilting. She said it made quilting the blocks so much easier than the whole quilt at once but it was challenging to quilt the sashing. I've never done a quilt as you go quilt, maybe I will someday. The quilting certainly was nicely done.

You can see the quilting better in this photo. Sorry, I didn't do the best job of cropping.

Here is a link to a list with the Best of Show Quilt and list of each division winner. I know the list says 2024 winners but it's not, it's 2025. Someone just forgot to type the right number, been there, done that.

I'm sorry I didn't post about the show happening in last week's post. I'll put a sticky note on my calendar to remind me next year to let you know ahead of time. You could attend if you are in the area. In case you wonder how far I live from Sauder's, I'm 2 hours west or, as Siri told me, 98 miles.

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

Elegant Garden, Block 22

Block 22 from the Elegant Garden quilt is completed, I'm getting close to being finished with the applique blocks!

I'm not satisfied with this block though, the teal color overwhelms all the other colors and the lavender looks rather blah. This was the size of the flower but I think it should have been larger. I decided to add some embroidery to see if I can add more color.

Here is a closeup of the flower, it didn't help much. It will just make the other blocks look more attractive.

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