PIP's progress

Making an effort to devote some time to some of my "projects in progress". (Sounds less negative than UFO!) The handles are all appliqued to the tea cups border of my Sweet Tea quilt, so it's time to begin assembly of those blocks. The pattern called for a 1/4" accent strip around each of the tea pot blocks, but I am replacing that with piping. I did a test block, and love the look, but had to "reverse" sew it. I'm using my Pfaff, and to use the piping foot, must disengage the even feed . . . which means, of course, that it doesn't feed evenly. Each of them is going to have to be pinned to maintain the proper alignment. The blocks get a blue floral print around each, followed by a striped border to complete the frame. The original design has butted borders, but I don't like that look. Think I will miter each one, even though it is an uneven stripe . . . I'll just be happier with the look. There are only five blocks, so it won't take too long.

Last night, Laura did a program for The Old Tippecanoe Quilt Guild about including words on quilts. She had thirty quilts to show her progress, and emphasized that it is a means making a quilt more your own. Her examples are all stunning, but the quilt she just finished for her son, Jess, will take your breath away. She used a quote from "A River Runs Through It", and the fabrics are predominantly batiks. I hope she posts a picture to her blog. Through her inspiration, I've put words on a couple quilts recently, and now I'm looking at my Sweet Tea quilt, thinking it needs an outer border with words. First thought was "Sweet Tea" . . . but how pedestrian! So, I'm on a quest to find a simple little tea poem that I can adapt. Since that quilt is a Block of the Month from a quilt shop, it could use some personal touches to make it different from the other kits sold in town. I've already made some adjustments, such as the piping, and more fabric choices in the tea pots and tea cups. Commentary on the outer border will really personalize it.

Looking around at the things "simmering on the back burner", I picked up my Santas of the World, and continued the applique on the tenth block, the Lapland Santa. Just two Santas left to make. It needs seven small blocks for spacers, and it will be ready to assemble. To personalize, I started embroidering the Santa's name, and country of origin on each block. A couple weeks ago, I stumbled over the perfect fabric for the outside border. It is a creamy white, with Merry Christmas in red, green and gold, in several languages. Got enough for a nice wide border, and used a 40% off coupon at Jo-Ann's . . . really made a dent since it was $10 a yard originally!

I stitched up all the attic window pieces that were cut to perfume bottle blocks. Need to cut more, and that one will be ready to assemble, too. I think it will probably need words . . . something about perfume, no doubt!

Finally, I've been cutting rectangles and stitching four-patches for Bonnie Hunter's "Old Tobacco Road" mystery. Since all the clues have been posted, I've been skipping around on that one. Four projects at a time seems much easier to manage!

In a couple weeks, we are going to Virginia to see our son and his family. I'm taking my Featherweight, and since we gave our granddaughter a Featherweight for her birthday, we can do some sewing together. Sindy Rodenmayer at Fat Cat Patterns has a nice pinwheel sampler, and a Bear Paw Sampler posted. I'm going to cut kits for the first three blocks of each, so that Elise and Addison, my grandson, can each start a quilt. Ben, the five-year-old, will want to do everything the big kids do, so big blocks of super hero fabrics are going to be the order of the day for him. I always ask my daughter-in-law privately about my ideas . . . then, I ask her again in their presence, so that they see that I respect her rules. I don't think the grandkids should see their grandmother in Time Out!