Revisiting the Past ~ Sew & Tell - 5/17/26

Did you miss my safari finish last week?  You can read all about it here.  As I quilted it on Tuesday and Wednesday, I was up to my ears in listening to the classic Anna Karenina.

As it turns out... I am STILL listening. I am getting there... it is not an exciting page-turner that leaves you wondering what happens in the next chapter.  Rather, it tells of ordinary, everyday life events and relationships.

As I pondered my empty design wall I decided to pull out the 20 Pieces from the Past blocks.  I embroidered names and dates of my grandparents, Phillip and Katherine Schleich, onto two of them before cutting sashing strips and cornerstones.  

As I listened to the looooong novel I recalled some of the stories of Phillp and Katie and how their families were Germans from Russia and immigrated to the US.  The story was to have taken place in the late 1870s... a couple decades earlier than my grandparents' lives began.

I couldn't help but wonder what the lives of my great grandparents as farmers in Huck Russia was like.

But before I go any further let's take a look at this week's Sew & Tell feature... Sally at Crafts, Cavies & Cooking shared her Super Nova quilt.

This is a "Bonus" quilt as it was made from pieces leftover from a king-sized quilt.  The goal of this quilt was to "use up the remaining triangles and create as few (or none!) black and grey pieces as possible." 

Did Sally achieve that goal?  Make a visit to Sally's blog to find out!  While you're there you can read about how she squared it up. :)  I have been known to use the tool and method she used... have you?

Dave and I attended a book signing event in town for an author that wrote of a novel based on a few of her ancestors that arrived in the Trinidad area from Italy in 1910 and the mystery of a family member's disappearance.  She had very few details or stories of her grandparents and her research to locate more information on them uncovered some scandalous events.  The book is a novel based on stories and while many details are historically correct, some of the stories are fictional.

She made the comment that a few times she had struggled in figuring out a logical transition from one place of the story to another and then remembered that it wasn't a memoir or a biography... it was fiction.  

It made me think of helping my mom put together some old family photos and we were unsure of the identity of one person... the photo said one name, but another duplicate photo had a different name.  What do you do in such a case???

I also thought of some of my research as I hosted Pieces from the Past... Piecing together some of the stories and actual events was something of a challenge... But I loved every minute of it!

One can have a love-hate relationship with the past.  Don't let the past define you is one saying that comes to mind.  Remember who you are, from Lion King, is another...

But what happens when you want to look to the future and a new beginning, but those from your past keep reminding you of your past? Your past choices, your past actions or inaction, in some cases... something you said that keeps haunting you... how do you get a clean slate?  Or in the case of a quilter... a blank design wall?  ;)

As I considered these thoughts (and more) my blank design wall was quickly filled with 20 blocks.  Some of them were revised or resized... All of them are now 12-inch block.  

I added sashing strips and cornerstones and am ready for final borders... and for Anna Karenina to be finished!

Time to start the party!  But before you go... leave a comment.  I'd love to hear from you!

Keep Piecing,

Melva

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Safari Finish

I did it!  The Leo & Savannah quilt is finished.  The label is attached and it is on its way to my customer and HS classmate in wait to welcome her little grandson, Andrew Lincoln.

The assembly of the animals was easy, though the book Every Breath by Nicholas Sparks made it challenging to stay focused on the position of each stitch and flip direction.  I only had a few mistakes... one required the remaking of a small unit... several others required a visit with my friend Jaquie O for a ripping out session.

I had plenty of fabric... despite the accidental swap of two neutral fabrics.  One was 7/8yd, the other was 1/2 yard.  I didn't realize this until I was on block 4 (the leopard).  It all worked out in the end!

I moved on to the sashing and Anna Karenina... the audio book is 33+ hours long!  It did pass the time of sandwiching, marking quilting lines and quilting the hanging diamonds rather quickly.  I had originally planned on doing medium stippling.  Considering the size of the quilt and the fact that it is for a boy... I chose hanging diamonds.  Straight lines lend a more boyish feel than the flowing curves of stippling.  

I chose my own arrangement of the blocks and opted for a scrappy binding rather than what they suggested.

I've been able to pick up the speed of the audio narration just a touch... As of this writing, I still have 20 hours remaining.  😦

I asked mr. google a question about the book... and another question popped up that let me to a discussion forum about the book.  "Is there any reason to finish Anna Karenina?"  The writer of the question stated she had just finished Pt III (near the point that I was).  I too was beginning to feel the same way.  I read some of the comments including a spoiler and have decided that yes, I need to finish the book.

Since I was waiting for the quilt to dry, I decided to pull the fabric for this book.  I'd had a dream about it and knew what fabrics to use.

That completed... I have an empty design wall.  I have the Pieces From the Past blocks that worked on before our Moab trip.  Two blocks need embroidered names added to them.  

I'll be listening to Anna as I slow-stitch.  You know where to find me. ;)

Have you ever read Tolstoy's Anna Karenina?

Leave a comment... I'd love to hear from you!

Keep Piecing,

Melva

Linking with:

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Mother's Day ~ Sew & Tell - 5/11/26

Thanks for stopping by!  I'll start off by saying Happy Mother's Day to all the moms -- wannabe moms, birth moms, stepmoms, bonus moms, adoptive moms, mentor moms and spiritual moms.  And especially to my friends for whom this holiday will be hard. Friends who will be standing by gravesites this Mother’s Day. Friends whose moms haven’t been a part of their lives in many years.  And those who have challenging relationships with their moms who try to navigate Mother’s Day with grace but some necessary distance.

I hope that your day was blessed.  I'm sharing the link to an older post that includes some wisdom shared with me 30 years ago... go check it out here. 💗  

Let's take a look at this week's randomly selected Sew & Tell feature... Melisa at Pinker 'n' Punkin Quilting.  Melisa has been working outside in the garden area... and she continues to "garden" indoors as she works on her appliqued Butterflies and Berries.

How sweet are these blocks?!?  She was recently a winner of a FQ prize in the Little House Sampler Quilt Sew Along and shared her plans for the piece.  Head over to her blog to find out what she has in mind.  

Speaking of the Little House Sew Along... Block #8 was released last week!  We are coming into the final stretch of the sew along.  This is the most difficult block of the quilt but don't let it scare you!  The adorable heart will look fabulous framed in the log cabin.  

It was a busy week with medical appointments for Mom, but I got the scrappy wonky star blocks in orange (color of the month) both positive and negative blocks made as I listened to A Spool of Blue Thread.  

I thought this By the Yard cartoon was appropriate and funny. ;)

The book was a story about a pretty typical family that delved into the family dynamics and relationships between parents and siblings.  The mother was a vault of family secrets that went to the grave with her.  Family members trusted her with secrets as well as friends.  I'd tell you more... but I'd suggest you check it out if you really want to know the secrets I allude to. ;)

When I had the orange blocks finished at tucked away, I returned to the safari themed quilt...  Going back and forth between piecing and sealing guestroom flooring.

The room is all back together and looking pretty spiffy.  I've decided to hang my Colorwash Hexagon quilt on the wall over the bed... first I need to reclaim it from a local storefront that had stated they were interested in displaying it but have not done so.

The Leo & Savannah quilt (kit) is ready for sashing strips and borders that will be added this week.  I'll be quilting it this week! Probably an all-over medium sized stippling.  The freezer meals I made will be enjoyed as I focus on getting this quilt out the door.

I've recently rediscovered a couple old favorites from when the girls were in Jr. High... Taco pop over and Pizza Casserole.

We enjoyed both of them this week.  You may want to try them out as well. :)  I use the topping recipe from the Taco Pop over on the pizza casserole.  You can make it GF or use the original.  

I swap out the ground beef for other pizza toppings as desired.  I made our most recent one a "Supreme" with sausage meatballs, bell pepper and onions.  

We LOVE pizza!  And GF pizza crust lacks texture and flavor... but this casserole is a great option.  

What's your favorite sort of pizza?  

Homemade?  Or do you prefer to have carry out?

Leave a comment... I'd love to hear from you!

Keep Piecing,

Melva

Linking with:

Scrap Happy Saturday at Super Scrappy

Patchwork & Quilts at The Quilting Patch 

Oh Scrap! at Quilting is More Fun Than Housework

Sunday Stash at QuiltPaintCreate

Happiness is Homemade at Esme Salon

Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts

Monday Musings at Songbird Designs

Craftastic Monday at Sew Can Do

Handmade Monday at Sum of Their Stories

Senior Salon Pit Stop at Esme Salon

To Do Tuesday at Quilt Schmilt

Tuesday Turn About at My Wee Abode

Wednesday Wait Loss at The Inquiring Quilter

Creatively Crafty at Creatively Beth 

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Little House Sampler Quilt Sew Along ~ Heart Block - Block #8

Welcome back!  This week's book is #8 of the Little House series - These Happy Golden Years... the story of Laura and Almonzo's courtship and marriage.  Laura was not yet 16 years old when she took a teaching job 12 miles from home.  

Pa was driving her to the small, drafty shanty she was to be staying in when she asked, "Do you think I can, Pa?"  Pa replied with encouragement... "Of course you can.  You've never failed yet at anything you tried to do, have you?  You've tackled every job that ever came your way.  You never shirked, and you always stuck to it 'til you did what you set out to do.  Success gets to be a habit, like anything else a fellow keeps on doing."

Most of the pupils were taller than her and she was residing with hateful, crazed lady.  Laura was miserable but she did not give up.

Perhaps the words of encouragement from Pa kept her going... that and knowing that she would be able to return home on Friday afternoon.  At first, Almonzo picked her up as a "favor" to Laura's Pa... It didn't take long before their love began to blossom for each other and a formal courtship began.

It was only natural for me to choose Pieces of My Heart as the center of this log cabin block for the book that tells of their love for each other.  I struggled with this block in trying to make it reflect my original block which was 12" finished.

Reducing the pieces by 50% meant that tiny, narrow strips/pieces would be required. I tried changing the number of strips, but that made for an odd look... I tried using only two colors in three different ways...

I even considered paper piecing it... not a good option for this block.

Tiny pieces ended up being the chosen block.  The scant 1/4" seam is very important in this block.  If you struggle with that... NO FEAR!  Any shortage you may end up with in the dimension of the heart block can be made up in the log cabin frame.  OR you can add a coping strip the same color as the background fabric on two sides of the block... they won't even be noticeable. ;)

Let's jump into the math lesson.  There are lots of pieces and the process is the same for each piece... determine the finished size of the unit, divide in 2 (since the block is to be 1/2 the size of the original), add your 1/2" for seam allowances.

Original cutting size - 2" x 8" rectangle

Remove seam allowance of 1/2 " = 1-1/2" x 7-1/2"

Divide each dimension by 2 = 3/4" x 3-3/4"

Add 1/2" seam allowance = 1-1/4" x 4-1/4" rectangle

 

Rest assured that I have done the math on all 18 pieces of this block... multiple times.  I know that tiny pieces can be intimidating.  I do hope that you are not running screaming from this block.  Or sitting there with your ears covered going "la, la, la, la!  I encourage you to try! 

Remember the words of Pa to Laura... "Of course you can.  You've never failed yet at anything you tried to do, have you?  You've tackled every job that ever came your way.  You never shirked, and you always stuck to it 'til you did what you set out to do.  Success gets to be a habit."

You managed tiny pieces in the Snowflake block fabulously... YOU CAN DO IT!  Grab the Heart pattern, collect your fabrics and courage and get going.

But before you go... How about some trivia questions.

What three gems are in Laura's engagement ring?

What word does Laura not want to include as part of her wedding vows?

Keep Piecing,

Melva

Linking with:

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Bookish Journey Continues ~ Sew & Tell - 5/4/2026

It was quiet in the studio this past week.  Since we started the "window" project in the guestroom last weekend and I was waiting for a quilt kit to arrive, I did spent time in the kitchen and doing some spring cleaning in the rest of the house. 

First though... let's take a look at this week's feature.  Gwyned shared her story of how a package took a 2-week scenic tour around the country as well as her latest block in the Butterfly Sanctuary BOM.

This block had 71 pieces in it! It is beautiful.  Head over to her blog to find out why the block is not square.  She shares the link for the BOM, in case you are curious enough to want more details.

I did a HUGE shopping trip purchasing all of the necessary ingredients for 14 No Guilt::Go Quilt freezer meals.  Some of my favorites are tucked away in the freezer and ready to go!  It is a gratifying feeling when I spend about 4 hours of prep work and know that the time spent will be time saved later.

Follow the link above to find all of the stories tagged that have the recipes in them.

I pulled one meal straight from the freezer on Friday afternoon and popped it in the insta-pot with a stainless-steel pot and pressed start.  After the initial cooking cycle, I switched it to the slow cook setting to let it simmer until we were ready to eat a few hours later.  YUM!

Backing up one day... Monday evening was an enjoyable time at the softball game.  Hanna opened a birthday gift of a polaroid-like camera from Aunt Beck and Uncle DD and had a ball with it!  

I laminated the best of the photos into a photo booth strip and have it proudly displayed on the fridge. <3 

Thank you for the prayers! 

Emma hit an infield home run during the game, and it was fun to cheer her on as she rounded third base heading for home. Whoop! Whoop!

Another day was a much-needed day of dusting and vacuuming.  When Shelby was still with us, I was much more diligent about cleaning... I decided that I had neglected the deep cleaning chores for long enough.  Still waiting on the quilt kit... I wasn't too terribly distracted. LOL!

One final day was in the kitchen as I baked assorted muffins and cookies.  I am restocked in the snack department. ;)

FINALLY... I wandered to the studio to play with the fabric pull I had for the April Audio books I enjoyed.

I won't review each one here, but would be happy to share my thoughts on any of them you might be interested in.  Just leave a comment (with your email address) and I'll send you an email and my thoughts.

Map of my Heart by Susan Wiggs was my 15-minutes before bed slow-read.  And The Chilbury Ladies Choir was finished on May 1.

A sweet friend recently sent me a book by Sandra Dallas from his mother's collection ~ A Quilt for Christmas.

I nearly forgot that block #7 of the Little House Sampler Sew Along was published!  You can find the story with the link to the pattern here.  Only two more blocks... and both of them will be released this month.  :)

That sums up my week.  The wait for the quilt kit is finally over.  I need to have this baby quilt to my customer by the end of the month.

I don't usually use kits for quilts... this one was just what the customer was looking for.  Her grandson's nursery is in a safari theme, and this was perfect!

You know where I can be found.

Before you go, tell me...

Do you like using quilt kits?

Or, are you more of a "curate your own kit" quilter?

Leave a comment... I'd love to hear from you!

Keep Piecing,

Melva

Linking with:

Oh Scrap! at Quilting is More Fun Than Housework

Sunday Stash at QuiltPaintCreate

Happiness is Homemade at Esme Salon

Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts

Monday Musings at Songbird Designs

Craftastic Monday at Sew Can Do

Home Matters at Days Filled with Joy

Handmade Monday at Sum of Their Stories

Senior Salon Pit Stop at Esme Salon

Scrap Happy Saturday at Super Scrappy

Patchwork & Quilts at The Quilting Patch 

Saturday Sparks at Pieced Pastimes

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Little House Sampler Quilt Sew Along ~ Kitten in the Corner - Block #7

Thanks for coming back to the Little House Sampler Quilt Sew Along!  Block #7 of 9 represents book #7, Little Town on the Prairie.  The long hard winter was finally over, and the people of DeSmet were interested in getting out and began social life again.  They held church socials, dances and "literaries."  The Ingalls family had moved from town to their homestead claim, the garden was growing and, after spending the winter together in tight quarters, the entire family enjoyed the extra space the homestead offered, as well as the opportunity the get outdoors.

Pa had planted corn, but the gophers were plucking the new shoots as quickly as they grew.  They were a nuisance, as were mice in the house.  The family needed a cat.  Pa brought home a very small grey kitten and what a mouser it was!  There was quite the "cat-and-mouse" fight that occurred and the very reason I selected the Kit in the Corner as the block to represent Little Town on the Prairie.

This block is originally from the Pieces of the Santa Fe Trail sew along.  It was a 12" block with a 9-patch layout.  Reducing the block by 50% meant that the "kitten" pieces would be just 1" square finished.  I opted to use two-thirds of the block (a 4-patch) to make the 6" finished block.

Let's take a look at the math.  Each 1/4 unit needs to be 3" finished.  Two of the quarters are not pieced, so the units need to be 3" (finished) plus 1/2" for the seams... making the cutting dimension 3-1/2" square.  You'll need two of them.

The remaining two units are pieced.  Using the 4-patch grid again, which will finish at 3" square you can calculate that 1/2 of 3 is 1.5", add your 1/2 seam allowance... 1-1/2" + 1/2" = 2".  You need two of these.  There is no need for an unnecessary seam in the unit, so the final piece of the unit will be 2" wide by 3-1/2" long.  

Hopefully, this all made sense.  :)  Whether it made sense or not, head over to Payhip to get the free pattern.

Laura, aged 15 in this story, is quickly becoming a young lady.  She accepts a job as a shirt maker for a woman in town.  The shop owner purchased a treadle sewing machine for the making of the shirts.  Laura was to be doing only the hand sewing and earn 25 cents a day, plus dinner.

Laura quickly did the math and, thinking that what she earned could help to send Mary to blind school sooner, accepted the job.  In two hours, together, they finished four shirts.  Laura basted the collars and cuffs in place and Mrs. White then sewed them.  Laura was very efficient at making buttonholes... "She so hated making buttonholes that she had learned how to do them quickly and get it over with."  

This brings me to question you...

What is your least favorite step of quilting?

Do you procrastinate and put it off?

Or do you like to "get it over with", like Laura?

Leave a comment... I'd love to hear from you! 

Keep Piecing,

Melva

Linking with:

Share Your Style at French Ethereal

Put Your Foot Down at The Quiltery 

I Quilted This! at Quilting & Learning

Off The Wall Friday with Nina Marie

Brag About Your Beauties at From Bolt to Beauty

Finished or Not Friday at Alycia Quilts

Create, Bake, Grow & Gather at Shabby Art Boutique

Home Matters at Modern on Monticello

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Fort Building ~ Sew & Tell - 4/27/26

Welcome back for another episode of Sew & Tell.  The place where everyone is encouraged to share their projects and get inspired by what others share. 

Many thanks to everyone who happily joined the parties while I was away on vacation.  Especially to Patricia at Faith, Trust & Breast Cancer for acting as hostess for one of the parties!  The fact that we were camping in an area around Moab, UT that had no service made it easy knowing that all was managed by her and thanks to the ability to schedule posts, I was not concerned in missing anything important.  If interested, you can find the story of our trip here.

This week's randomly selected featured post is from Terry at On Going Projects.  She showed off her 2021-2022 temperature quilt with the quilting finished!  

She has detail photos of the quilting, which is wonderful!  She also shares what helped her push through when her energy was waning and her body aching.  

Be sure to give her a visit to learn about what helped her.

The week was a short "work" week for me since we arrived home on Monday afternoon.  Tuesday was overtaken with laundry, and I eventually needed to do some grocery shopping and get a visit in with my Mom to catch up.

When I finally got into the studio I was making a special birthday gift for our youngest granddaughter.  Her birthday is this week and her Mom thought she would like a bed fort... a tent like piece that fits over her toddler bed.  She said she loves blanket forts and would likely enjoy one built over her bed... she has her fingers crossed that she will even sleep in her bed instead of on the floor in Mom & Dad's room.  Hahaha!

I have it ready for velcro closures to be attached for the windows and I need a couple ribbons attached to tie back the doors.  The tent is temporarily propped up with my ironing board and a couple chairs.  We get to deliver it to Hanna on Monday when we attend another softball game for Emma.  Prayers for our get-together are appreciated!  Little, tiny baby steps toward an improved relationship have been seen, may they continue.

While on vacation we listened to 4 books... While waiting on laundry to finish cycles, I pulled fabric to make the 9-patch quilt blocks. (Upper left was one I finished before we left on our trip.)

I had planned to make up the blocks Saturday morning... however!  The day was hijacked when we started a small project in the guest room.  

We removed the window that opened into the garage.  Why the previous owners didn't remove it when they added the garage is a mystery to us.  It has always been low on the priority list for house projects, but I mentioned a few months ago that I wanted it gone.  Boom!  Done!

Ready to be taped/mudded

The project continued after lunch into the garage...

The old opening is now sealed up and ready to have stucco applied.  We'll paint the wall and get rid of the last of the hideous turquoise color that we despised from the beginning.  It has only been 31 years.  LOL.

By the time we had everything cleaned up and put away it was 4 pm and we were tuckered out.  We recovered with a happy hour in the hot tub.  We are so grateful that we made the investment in it.

I know the work on the guestroom will continue for a week or so in the evenings until it is done.  We plan to paint just that wall, ending at the corners.

This week I look forward to getting my bookish blocks made.  Our freezer is looking a little bare so I will gather together some of my No Guilt::Go Quilt crockpot freezer meal recipes and get a restock started.

That's all I have for now...

Thinking back to Terry's quilt and what she did to push through and pass the time as she quilted (4 hours for each row of the quilt)... 

How or where do you find the "stick-to-it -ivness" to complete a quilt?

Leave a comment... I'd love to hear from you!

Keep Piecing,

Melva

Linking with:

Oh Scrap! at Quilting is More Fun Than Housework

Sunday Stash at QuiltPaintCreate

Happiness is Homemade at Esme Salon

Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts

Monday Musings at Songbird Designs

Craftastic Monday at Sew Can Do

Home Matters at Days Filled with Joy

Senior Salon Pit Stop at Esme Salon

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