Happy July 4 if You're Celebrating

For those of you in the USA, and those who also choose to celebrate with us - -

                
      Happy Independence Day Weekend!!
                   (...I'm starting early)

I have a couple of red/white & blue quilts to share - hope you do too!

This is the corner of my table runner.

It's hand quilted 'big stitch' style with pearl cotton.


This is the full runner:

I like how it 'buttons' together.

The kit was a gift from my guild secret pal several years ago.

Fused applique, machine assembled and hand quilted.

Sorry - can't recall the designer - if someone does I'll update this.

This is my coverlet quilt:

The fabric is designed by Mary Koval for Windham and I think the pattern was free with the fabric bundle.  Hand applique stars, machine pieced and quilted.

It's all about the fabrics!

More information about the Coverlet Museum and fabrics is available HERE

(Proceeds from sales there go to support The National Museum of the American Coverlet)

Similar Fee Patterns HERE

Have a great weekend!

Triangles Part 3 and the Winner

Another scrappy Triangle Quilt - simple shape done with lots of color.

This is an equilateral 60 degree triangle - easy to make up your own template or use an acrylic ruler.

Why you're cutting - why not do a few sets - one for you, a friend and a donation quilt?

This could be called a charm quilt - one shape repeated over and over - but I quit before I got to 1,000 pieces.   This is a nice lap sized quilt.

The border purple paisleys are chasing each other around the edge...no mitering.

It is machine pieced and machine quilted.

This is a close up of the top with the corner turned over.

The backing is flannel - the machine stitches bury nicely and the quilt is really warm!

I also used a medium/light binding - I usually go dark or a stripe.  Glad I tried something else!

I tried not to duplicate fabrics - but I see I did - oh well, that's what happens in the scrap basket.

Why was I wanting to use up some of my stash - when I look at some of these I wish I had more yardage now!

I completed my June Beyond The Cherry Tree Block.

This one was great fun - I have been looking forward to it.
Changed a few things here and there...looking forward to starting the borders.  Remind me later I said that!

The rest of my blocks are in my Flickr Album.

Thank you to everyone who dropped by and left a comment on the Triangle Strippy Quilt.
It was fun 'meeting' the people reading the blog - I always wonder...who are they?
...and now I've heard from a few of you!  Great FUN.
Your ideas are wonderful and very inspiring for future projects.


The winner of the triangle give away.......Drum Roll......

Congratulations - Heidi at Between Stitches.
          "...not a matching kind of girl, I like random! I may repeat a fabric if it's a small piece, but you'll really have to look for it to find it. As for the strips and their color, I normally don't plan ahead for such things, I just design as I go along and let the quilt tell me what it needs."

Please contact me at cwaneedle@gmail.com with your snail mail address and I'll get these posted so you can start a new project!

Have a fabulous week.

Jacobs or Josephs Coat Vintage Quilt - All Hand Sewn UPDATED Crochet Thimble Holder Patterns

Ok...so I do buy a few 20th century quilts...could you pass this one by?  DD likes it, so someday soon it will be hers.

Those of you who sew know how much time this hand piecing and hand quilting would have taken the maker (artist).

Maybe it's the dreary cool rain we're having here - this quilt lights up a room!  Checkout the beach ball and umbrella print.

Maybe I'll tell DD she can have it when she counts the petals and makes an inventory of the fabrics used...there are repeats.


The prints include stripes, checks, large florals, tight florals, solids including navy, geometrics etc. all on the white ground.

The reds really pop in this photo.

What a variety of print and color!

The edge follows the 'melon' of the piece - or at least it did at one time....

The corners are rounded

It is hand quilted around each petal or melon shape.  The batting is very thin in places, a little bunchy in others.  Pretty good condition.
More on the blocks at the bottom of the post....let's look at some colorful sewing accessories first...

This is a colorful variegated bunch.

The little purple pineapple crochet sachet or pin cushion is about 2" - I've seen several sizes and styles of these, they are so sweet I'd like them all...

Thimble Pattern - click here

I have several of these little sewing kits - I'll do a post with all of them later.  DH and I had a discussion on whether this one should have a thimble in it....What do you think?

I have some with advertising, some with a decorative tassel, more enamel, wooden...all in some shape or form intended for mending.

See the red petal from the quilt front in the background?





The little crochet thimble holder is multi functional!

Who'd of thunk?

The previous owner added a little gold frog pin that is not only decorative (VBG) on the little floral hat, but it closes a small compartment where the needle holder can slide in and out - check out the 'circle' and hand sewn buttonhole edge!  The thimble portion is stuffed and the thimble sits on top (see the group photo).

The tiny pink crochet flowers on the brim are 1/4".

This colorful beauty is hinged.

The thimble is stored inside the hat.  The inside felt is hinged with the hat layers for pins and needles.

Why not use red every chance you can??

While I'm at it how about another child's sewing machine?

This is a Singer Touch & Sew, maybe about 1970's?
I had one like this at age 8 ish, so when I saw this one I had to bring it home - what fun!!


Never made a quilt at that point of my life but do recall many doll 'fashions'.

Maybe it's where the seeds were planted for my love of travel.

Look at the lid - Camp Shawnee or Paris - I'm a Paris girl!
There is no camping in this girl...

I think I had a large clear plastic 'sewing box' for my pins, fabric scraps (I mean fashion fabrics...) and Dual Duty Poly Threads!

Here's the beauty, that made a little girl feel like she could set the fashion world (fashion doll world?) on its ear...but I don't remember any contest.  Maybe mine was an older model.

1976 was the USA bicentennial and I was not sewing at that time.








For those of you who want to see more of the quilt fabrics:

Click here for the hand piecing pattern.

Click here for a modern option.

Thanks for stopping by today.

What was your first sewing machine?

Have a happy and colorful week!

Honeybee Applique Medallion c. 1840 Reproduction

This is a crib or lap size quilt I hand appliqued and hand quilted in 2007.  My handwork is a work in progress and small projects like this give me practice - and allow me to finish in a shorter period of time.

This is the corner detail of the bottom band.

I am working my way through the projects in the 1990 book:
"Great Little Quilts"
45 Antique Crib and Doll Sized Quilts
by Eleanor Levie
ISBN 0-8109-3353-5

I chose a stripe for the applique and a light print for the background.  Looks like is has been folded too long!  I think I finished this in 2007.   My bad...another with no label....

The fabrics are all In The Beginning fabrics, 'Antique 1800's Blends'.

It is hand appliqued and quilted.

It went together ok, and I think it is a timeless design that many fabrics could be used.  Wouldn't it be great in a scrappy version?

This is the center corner medallion detail.

It's been folded away never used or washed.  I think I could add some quilting.  The original has cross hatching fairly close together.  With so many curves I also thought about adding some echo lines around the motifs.

The original is pictured in the book and is noted as a circa 1840

39" x 51".

It is done in red print on a cream solid ground - light binding.

This is the backing & binding - same fabric line.

You can see I need to work on getting those hand quilting stitches smaller!  Always a goal....

I have a couple other projects from this book to share in future posts.  One project is basted ready for hand quilting.  If you don't already have a copy - consider picking one up.  Books such as this one are timeless.

However instead of hand quilting I have been playing with fabric!  Dreaming of future projects - hope you are too....

In the meantime I'll be starting #21 of Beyond The Cherry Trees.....
















Have a great weekend and thanks for stopping by today.