Home Sweet Home

No working on the little squares in squares this last week. Instead it was time to finish up another little quilt swap -- this time with the theme houses and villages.

I wanted a happy neighborhood, so lots of bright colors.

This quilt is a pattern I bought from Cluck Cluck Sew.  Such a fun and easy pattern to make.

This next week I hope to work on the little reproduction quilt again. The week after a friend is coming in from out of town and we'll be working on a bigger project, so this next week is good for me.

When the semester is on, the summer looks like it will be a vast sea of time. Playtime at that. But then the reality is I have a number of other commitments, and there's still school work to do even if I'm not teaching (I have a new class to design). Still, no complaints. There's a lot more time than otherwise. I'm hoping to get a lot done. (I always hope.)

And I did get another little red and white(ish) pincushion done this last week.

I love that wooden bowl. Obviously hand-carved. It was my mother's, and my grandmother's before her. It sits on my dining room table and I get to admire it everyday.

When It Snows

Well, here in Colorado it's been making more like winter than spring. Snow and more snow. Whenever I dared to stick my nose out the deck door, all I heard was the snap of tree limbs cracking throughout the neighborhood. Ouch.

Though, I have to say, bad weather makes for good sewing. The miniature quilt in plaid got finished.

I really liked the little one that got sent off in the quilt swap.

So I'm making another one, in softer colors this time. (Hmmm. Terrible color in that photo. It's actually very soft and pretty, I think. Perhaps my photo once it's quilted will come out better? . . . Hope springs eternal.)

I really couldn't ask for a better way to unwind from end of the semester chaos than reproduction fabrics and little quilts.  Of course, before long I need to start prepping for a new class that's just beginning this fall. That will be fun though. So, reading, writing, sewing, crochet, and continuing my efforts to learn how to knit. My goals for the immediate future.

Ahhh . . . .

Plugging Along

So, this past week it's all been about finishing up the semester: grade, grade, grade, break, grade, grade, grade.

There's a limit to how long I can grade at a time, so I've been pulling out little projects to work on. I cut out the patches for this pincushion years ago. Something that doesn't require mental concentration is exactly what I need during a grading break, so a project where all the thinking has already been done is perfect. All I needed to do here is sew the patches together.

I'm hoping to fill a basket with red and white pincushions. Here's my start:

There's just something about red and white . . . .

But then, once I finished the pincushion, I needed another little something, so I pulled out homespun patches I had also cut out years ago. First, I laid out the patches.

And then started sewing them onto a Fold and Sew foundation. (I call this my long tumbler to set it apart from the tumbler foundation that is in Miniatures in Minutes.)

Perhaps I'll finish that up later this week? I love the warmth of homespun. And it sure feels good to get some of those little projects hanging out in the drawers done!

Humble Quilts Doll Quilt Swap

And a half-hour after I posted that last blog entry, my hubby walked in the door with a package for me, a lovely quilt from my swap partner Carol.

I love cheddar and blue as a combination. What a gorgeous little quilt!

And look at the beautiful hand stitching. How pretty and even those stitches are!

Carol sent some lovely little extras as well.

More of those reproduction fabrics we love and a cute button and tape measure fabric. There's also some Canada flag fabric but I missed getting that in the photo. (Oops.)

Thank you, Carol!

My first little quilt was a little too little. It's here with the pincushion I made as a little extra.

I also made one of the Pink Penguin fabric baskets in linen and reproduction fabrics, but I forgot to take a picture of that.

Here's a second take on a doll quilt, a little bigger this time. The X-Blocks finish at 3 inches.

To get a look at all the wonderful doll quilts, hop on over to the Humble Quilts blog and have fun with the linky party. Thank you, Lori, for once again organizing such a fun swap!

Almost Sew Time

Oh, the semester! How it interferes! But, I'm almost there. It's the week of finals. Which means grading chaos, of course.

Still, earlier in the semester I pulled out my AccuQuilt GO! and ran off more tumblers and sewed them on. This guy is -- finally! -- ready for borders.

And I joined in the Humble Quilts doll quilt swap, so I'll have pictures to show soon.

But for now, it's grading, and looking forward to sew time ahead!