Two Civil War Blocks

 I've just about caught up with the CW quilt-along.  Before the weekend I had an evening to put these two blocks together, can't wait to start on the latest block now. 

Here are all my blocks so far, I'm quite pleased with the fabric choices overall.

With the other project Ive been working on, I'm very close to finishing a centre applique block and getting the last of the  small star blocks for this quilt done.  Pictures soon.

I am so pleased my little fire bug (10 yr old with burnt thumb,see previous post) has had the dressing and bandages removed and his thumb is looking very pink but healing well.

Happy stitching,

Rowena  

Civil War Blocks and a Quilt Top Finish

I made 99% of this quilt top for my 26 yr old son, Nicolas, last winter.  I only had one last strip of border to attach to call it finished but it sat and sat until yesterday.  It took me about 5 minutes to pin it on and a further 5 to stitch it!!  Why do we do that?  The fabrics were from a jelly roll of Japanese Indigoes with some neutrals and a Japanese terracotta dragonfly fabric plus the navy/indigo border.  I've looked at it a hundred times and thought "oh, I'll get around to that in a while" .  I have another quilt top in a similar condition, only a couple of hours work at most, I really love the quilt but I seem to have lost the momentum to finish it.  I never have a problem buying the fabric for a new project!!!  I know I'm not alone or the UFO would never have been invented ,LOL.  No one was home to hold it up for me to photograph and it was after nightfall so here it is folded in half and hanging on a door.  I have a couple of customer quilts to quilt then I'll put it on the longarm and give it to my son before winter arrives.....I WILL!

I have finished another of Barbara Brackman's Civil War quilt-along blocks.

I've always loved the Churn Dash block, in fact it was the very first block I ever made.  I only made one, sort of a test to see if I liked the process.  Apparently I did!  That poor lonesome block still sits in a tub with some of the first fat quarters I bought.

Talking of fabric.... these arrived in the mail a while ago.  They are a Bonnie Blue Basics III fat quarter bundle, gorgeous.

If you're squeamish don't look at the following pictures.  My 10 yr old son decided to see what would happen if he set fire to a square of kitchen paper towel!!!  What is it that makes kids do these things?  He has a nasty 2nd degree burn on his thumb.

One of the many joys of raising children!  After having 5 you'd think I'd get used to this type of thing but I was really appalled at his insanity. That was 2 weeks ago and after a visit to the doctors every 2nd day to change the dressing, the burn is looking really good with no infection and the dressing can come off next week.  Life is never dull!

Enjoy your weekend,

Rowena

Civil War and Catch Up

 My 94 yr old Grandmother passed away last Sunday after a bad fall put her in hospital a few weeks ago.  Unfortunately her age and frailty were against her and she succumbed to pneumonia.  She was such a character, she traveled all over the world, her most recent trip only last year and she was never afraid to speak her mind!  I hope she's in a place where she can surf to her hearts content (a favorite pastime into her seventies), play her best game of golf and win at bridge!  Betty Alice Findlay I will really miss you, the world was a better place with you in it!

I feel as though I have be away from blogland for ages, my computer got a really nasty virus.  If only the people who create those things put their smarts to better use, imagine what they could accomplish!  Fortunately we have a wonderful Chinese fellow who is a whiz at all things computer and he was able to put things to rights so I"m back, I'm back!! Yay! I think I had withdrawals.

Not too much sewing or quilting has been done with trips up and down to the city to see my poor Gran but I've managed to get these blocks done and I have the next ones ready and waiting for their visit to the sewing machine.

These are my blocks so far.

As you can see I've made several of one of the blocks and a couple of the star block.  I ended up with enough to make two blocks from my interpretation of the cutting instructions for Block One, then I decided to try a different colour way for Block One and the star block.

Happy stitching,

Rowena

More Civil War Blocks

I was reading a blog the other day ( sadly I can't remember whose) and this quilter was lamenting the fact that she'd been in a "I don't want to do anything " mood and had been for a couple of weeks....well me too!!  I don't know why and I don't know how it started, maybe it was the extreme heat we had.  My applique has been sitting looking at me, just begging to be picked up.  I have had blocks cut out and sitting in piles at my machine,  I even had a parcel arrive full of beautiful new fabric, usually a sure way to get me stitching or at least dreaming of the wonderful quilts I could be making!  None of it seemed to move me.  Then last night at around 11pm, don't ask me why, I suddenly got the spark back and made these two blocks for the Civil War quilt-along.  Yay!!!!!   I can't tell you how much better I feel.  I wasn't even interested in looking at quilting books and magazines, now that's serious!  So, here are the blocks that broke the drought.

This one is the Richmond block.  This was a bit tricky and is far from perfect, there was some fudging going on around midnight!  Once I finished this one I thought a Log Cabin would be a cinch.

I was so delighted with my night of sewing I even took a picture of my new blocks with the other Civil War blocks I've made so far.

The weather has cooled down to a more comfortable temperature and my ten year old son has gone back to school after two and a half years of home schooling, so I have no excuses to not be sewing and quilting.  

Hope everyone has had a great weekend.

Happy stitching,

Rowena

Kansas Troubles Block

I finished this block tonight and it went together really well.  I'm pleased with the blues I have used.  This has been really good for me to make blocks I may not have chosen myself.

These are the blocks I've made that are pinned to my makeshift design wall.

The star block looks a bit odd because there is a ripple in it from the batting that is hung over a door...my "design wall" !!

I still have a couple of borders to do before I finish the quilt on my longarm.  I  have had a bit of a disrupted routine as my Mum ended up back in hospital with her heart rhythm going haywire.  I spent many hours this week with her while they did tests and sorted out medication.  Fortunately the Doctors let her come home yesterday afternoon, her heart has settled back to a normal beat. Thank goodness.

However, we are so fortunate to be safe in our comfortable, dry home, when so many Australians have suffered such a beating from floods and now the cyclone.  Our thoughts and prayers are with them.

Hope you are all well and having a great weekend.

Happy stitching,

Rowena  

Texas Tears Civil War Block

I'm a little behind  because I had computer problems last week.  Problems fixed and block four is made.

I have the fabrics for the Kansas Troubles block, just have to cut it out and get stitching.  I'm really enjoying my first quilt-along.

Happy stitching,
Rowena

Civil War Stars Finished!

I managed to finish these the other night and I'm pleased with the result.  I have definitely improved my point applique skills in the process!

I also made another couple of block One using some different fabrics.  The blue and the brown are from the Collection for a Cause Hope range and the shirting is  from Jo Mortons Attic Shirtings range.

I chopped the bottom edge off the block when I took the photo, oops.  I don't think I'd ever take up photography as a profession,lol.

Four of my children have gone away camping at the beach for a week.  The house is so quiet.  With no-one to wash or cook for I'm looking forward to a week of sewing, reading and DVD watching.  I bet I start missing them after a few days!  

I have also just received an email with the welcome news that my eldest son and his GF are flying home from Central America where they have been working on the Survivor TV series(we never watch it!).  It is such a brilliant job.  They have worked for the show in the Caribbean, China, Micronesia and most recently Nicaragua.  They save while they work on the show and then travel for a few months or until the next one.  Luckily for us they are coming back home for a few weeks before they are off to a new job in Morocco.  I'm not sure where or if they are going to work on the next Survivor series.  It will be so lovely to see them as they have been away for nine months.  Life is good.

I'm off to do some more machine quilting on my longarm, still working on the quilt I posted about last week or so.

Happy stitching,

Rowena