Friday, March 24, 2023

Thursday's Therapy Session


Yesterday was Thursday and I was lacking some motivation.  It's been a month since we started our vacation trip to the Gulf Coast and I was missing the camper.  I had a stack of items that needed to be put away so I wandered out there and spent time putting things back in place and making the bed since I had just tossed all of the bedding onto the bed.

I still have not vacuumed since our return... and when you go to the beach sand gets EVERYWHERE!  It just wasn't quite warm enough so instead I returned to the house and my studio and began a session of "recreational therapy", by piecing some of the sign blocks for our Camping Journal Quilt as well a few blocks that I wanted to machine piece.  I also prepped a few "kits" so that I have hand-sewing ready to take with us the next time we decide to take a little trip.

The yellow flower will represent our night in Amarillo, the Yellow Rose of Texas... and the Texas flag has a small portion of the awning we lost in the windstorm.  I have kits ready for a campfire, a crescent moon and a lake.  I have a few more patterns printed and ready to prep, including a stained-glass window block to represent one of our nights in Beaumont and the Cathedral we visited while there.

My "recreational therapy" was quite relaxing as well as motivating.  I feel ready to take on quilt #6 of 8 for my customer.

As I read through my emails today, I had a reader leave a comment on one of the Pieces From the Past stories... in German.  But thanks to the German to English translator, I was able to read it.

Mr. Hauswald is my husband's grandfather, we were very happy to find something from him on the Internet. My husband is very similar to him.”

Needless to say, I am very excited about this!  Sadly, the comment was left as a no-reply comment... I am hopeful that they will return and see my request that they contact me via e-mail.

The rest of the week found me at the computer working on getting the Pieces of the Santa Fe Trail stories ready to upload for the printing of a proof.  I located a young lady that has interest in becoming a writer with the plan that until she can write full-time, she wants to edit books for others.  What a God given gift for me.  She has proofed the book and it is ready for me to made corrections/changes.  But that will be on hold for a few days.

I have a quilt top to sandwich. 

Thanks for listening to my ramble... 

Where do you go when you need a little "recreational therapy"?
What sort of activities do you do?

I sometimes go for a walk.  Sometimes I write... sometimes I will do hand-sewing... sometimes I spend time in the kitchen... but most times I will quilt or design patterns.

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

Keep Piecing,

Melva

Linking with:

Can I Get A Whoop Whoop at Confessions of a Fabric Addict
Off The Wall Friday with Nina Marie
Brag About Your Beauties at From Bolt to Beauty
Peacock Party at Wendy’s Quilts and More
Friday Foto Fun at Powered by Quilting
Finished or Not Friday at Alycia Quilts

m


Sunday, March 19, 2023

Sew & Tell ~ Hiding Imperfections



 This week I share two finishes... two more from the collection of eight quilts from a customer.

The first is a good size to be a table runner.  I was worried about quilting this one because it was really, I mean REALLY, wonky... all over.  The fabric the quilter used was slick and shiny, and the rows were uneven and all over the place.  


I was pleasantly surprised as I prepped the quilt sandwich with the Heirloom fusible batting that it fused much better than I had expected.  I had already decided in my mind that I would need to use spray adhesive for the sandwiching step.  I had discovered on other quilts that poly-blend fabrics don't fuse very well.  I'm not sure what the difference was this time, but I was not complaining.


The second finish was a queen-sized quilt that had borders that were way too long and eased in during the sewing process.  I made a date with my good friend, Jaqueline, and proceeded to remove stitching and adjust the size of the borders that were actually needed so they would lay flat.  You can see the excess fabric in this photo...


Once the excess was taken care of, the center of the quilt got stitch-in-the-ditch quilting of squares, on point.  The inner border has vines and leaves, and the outer borders have a serpentine chain design.  
The final border has twisted ribbons.

The design is seen easily on the back of the quilt...


There are still a few imperfections that are hidden overlooked easily because of the shrinkage of the 80% cotton batting.  Just one of the reasons I love using it.

What is your batting of choice?  And why? 

I'd love to hear from you... leave a comment.

It's your turn now!  Link up with Sew & Tell.  Remember to link back here on your story and invite your friends.  The more the merrier! 

Keep Piecing,

Melva



Linking with:

Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts
Monday Musings at Songbird Designs
This & That at Days Filled with Joy
Craftastic Monday at Sew Can Do
To Do Tuesday at Quilt Schmilt
Mid-week Makers at Quilt Fabrication
Wednesday Wait Loss at The Inquiring Quilter
Put Your Foot Down at For the Love of Geese 
Needle & Thread Thursday at My Quilt Infatuation
Free-Motion Mavericks at Quilting & Learning

m

Thursday, March 16, 2023

Mini Quilt Update

In mid-January I had discovered a 52-week challenge on Instagram to create one mini quilt each week.  


I just so happened to have made two and, completely unaware, I was participating. LOL!  Below is a display of one through ten...



This little guy is 6" square and a little wonky.  It is just something that happens easily when working with small or narrow pieces.  I don't mind... it adds to the character and uniqueness of the piece.  I used a variety of thread colors for the quilting stitches and a red embroidered chain on one log.  On the mauve pieces near the middle of the piece I did a larger running stitch and then wove back through the top stitches.  

It is a bit of an echo from Scripture and the many instructions to use blue, purple and scarlet as the tabernacle was being built...  “Make the tabernacle with ten curtains of finely twisted linen and blue, purple and scarlet yarn,"

I think I have mentioned before that these mini quilts tend to push me to think outside the box and explore new-to-me techniques and ideas.  

Creativity is an endless pool of ideas... if you allow yourself to "go there".  And the more you explore and open your mind, you find that there are even more creative ideas that spring to mind. 

A few years ago, before I started hosting my sew alongs, the way that I would stretch my creativity was to participate in blog hops.  Designing and coming up with new ideas and projects to fit into a particular theme was always fun.  

How do you stretch your creative muscles?
Do you "exercise" on a regular basis?

Leave a comment... I would love to hear from you.

Keep Piecing,

Melva

Linking with:

Put Your Foot Down at For the Love of Geese 
Needle & Thread Thursday at My Quilt Infatuation
Free-Motion Mavericks at Quilting & Learning
Little Things Thursday at Good Random Fun
Can I Get A Whoop Whoop at Confessions of a Fabric Addict
Off The Wall Friday with Nina Marie
Brag About Your Beauties at From Bolt to Beauty
Peacock Party at Wendy’s Quilts and More
Friday Foto Fun at Powered by Quilting
Finished or Not Friday at Alycia Quilts
Scrap Happy Saturday at Super Scrappy
Patchwork & Quilts at The Quilting Patch
Slow Stitching Sunday at Kathy’s Quilts




Sunday, March 12, 2023

Sew & Tell ~ I'm Baaaack!

There really is no place like home... 🏡 Our time away was wonderful, restful and fun.  We explored, we strolled and meambled on the beach, rode our bikes, laughed, ate a good portion of seafood, enjoyed the sunrises and sunsets and I created using items from nature. 💗🐚

You may have seen the mini quilt I shared last week...

I really like it... Dave thought this one was a little out there.  When I proposed another idea for a mini, he was on board with it (not that I needed his approval) and helped me to hunt for the perfect shells.

After finding a broken and surf-worn oyster shell, some almost matching clam shells and a smaller shell with a whole in it, I made an angel. 😇 This is #10/52 minis I am doing this year.  It has been a fun change and challenge to think outside the box and has spurred some new ideas and possibilities.


Let me start at the beginning... We had planned to leave early on Thursday morning, but with a storm threatening to move into our town on Wednesday afternoon and the potential to shut down Raton Pass, we scooted on down the road 12 hours early.  We had strong cross winds as we traveled across New Mexico on our way to the panhandle of Texas.  

We discovered that we had lost our awning to the wind when we stopped in Clayton, NM and decided to wait out the windstorm so we found an empty parking lot, made and enjoyed a quick dinner and as the sunset we joined the semi drivers back on the highway.  We stopped in a very frigid Amarillo for the night.  Thank goodness our furnace kept our little trailer cozy warm as we slept.  After a few cups of tea and coffee, some cereal and muffins, we were back in business and on our way to Seymour and our friends with the farm... where it was still cold!


We enjoyed the day with Jamie & Jack and had a good time as we taught them how to play Rummikub.  After a quiet night of sleep, we took off in the still frigid temps and made our way to Sommerville Lake State Park where we met up with our friends, Tom & Betsy.

It was a little overcast and slightly windy, but warmer than what we had left Seymour, TX that morning so we weren't complaining (too loudly).  


The next morning, we drove to Galveston where we made a stop for a seafood purchase at Katie's Seafood Market... a stop that has become a tradition for us when we visit.  🦐 The next stop was the ferry to take us to the Bolivar Peninsula, our final destination.  Betsy said she was a little nervous as they crossed... we had gotten separated in the line for the ferry because we had to ditch two full gas cans since they were not permitted.  UGH!  As we drove through a small neighborhood near the ferry launch we spotted a guy walking his dog.  He was a little confused, but willing to take them off our hands.

Once we met up with Tom & Betsy again, we finally found our way to Crystal Beach.  We quickly got settled in and enjoyed the view and "happy hour".  You can see from the picture it was still a little breezy (isn't there always a breeze on the shore?)... and a little humid which was releasing the naturally {tight} curl that happens with humidity. With each day it seemed to grow in size.  There was no controlling it or taming it.  It wasn't long enough to pull back and clips and hair pins didn't help... thus the "natural" look.  LOL!


Sunday afternoon was when the sun finally appeared! YAY!!!! We enjoyed several hours in it and, ooooh, it felt so good... 

We walked along the shore, collected a few shells, watched Shelby play in the surf (BTW, she was very happy to have made the trip with us) and we just talked about life in general.  Tom tried out his metal detector but didn't locate anything of significance.



Betsy and I shared stories about grandchildren and their parents and learned more about each other.  It was a sweet time of friendship.  A small fire was enjoyed each evening on the beach.  We did some stargazing and satellite spotting, jokes and laughter.  As the days passed, we did some exploring at a local bird watching site where we saw very few birds but encountered many mosquitoes.  We also explored Fort Travis where we were pursued by mosquitoes.

I found it interesting that it was used from pre-civil war all the way through World War II when it was declared surplus property and sold in 1949 (about the same time that Camp Trinidad was dismantled and sold off piece by piece.)



Our time with Tom & Betsy came to an end when we parted ways at Beaumont.  We were meeting with Dave's very first customer and some other customers/friends... and avoided high winds and a storm on the beach.  Dave and I wandered downtown and were surprised to discover that there wasn't much going on there... We saw a few murals, went to the Port of Beaumont and visited Saint Anthony's Cathedral Basilica.  What a beautiful cathedral.  The stained-glass windows and the mosaic floors were stunning!  


Our plan to avoid/miss the storm worked!  (Tom & Betsy were dodging severe storms and tornados as they turned back northeast.) We had just a short time of rain on our last night in Beaumont and woke to a beautiful day!  We traveled back to Bolivar Peninsula and Bolivar Flats... a much quieter section of the beach.  

This was where I was collecting shells for my angel mini-quilt.  We were fascinated with the difference of shells we found.  I played with them, sorted them, and decided to keep a few for a special project.  I found the perfect piece of driftwood that will be the background for an oyster shell cross.

I'll be sharing my finished souvenir as soon as the drift wood dries well enough to adhere shells to it. :)


All along the way I enjoyed making quilted hearts and I left a little trail of quilted hearts as I finished them...
 

We knew that we needed to return home when Dave's phone started ringing with customers.  Amazingly, there were very few calls during the first 12 days of our trip.  God's timing is always perfect and we turned our thoughts toward a journey home.  We spent time with the friends we made last year at a boutique RV park in Crystal Beach and enjoyed a time of Praise in the Park again. 

Our next destination was a state park northwest of Austin, TX ~ Inks Lake... It was a beautiful park, and the locations and layout of the campsites were well executed.  We enjoyed a gorgeous sunset and moonlit walk before we retired for the night.  

We had one more overnight stop before we made the final leg of our journey... The phone was busy with customers contacting us, and because of the remote location and poor cell service, conversations were cut short.  We revisited Jack & Jamie in Seymour.  Our time with them is always too short but full of joy... and plenty of food!

A few other blocks I stitched together
while on the road...

A recap of our two-week vacation.  In summation... 
14 days 
2,159.2 miles
237.76 gallons of gas
8 different campsites
22 blocks to stitch and add to our camping journal quilt
COUNTLESS MEMORIES TO LAST A LIFETIME!

Time for you to Sew & Tell!  Link up a blog story, or social media link... or a regular ol' picture.  I want to see what you have been doing while I was away.

Keep Piecing,

Melva


Linking with:

Oh Scrap! at Quilting is More Fun Than Housework
Sunday Stash at QuiltPaintCreate
Scrap Happy Saturday at Super Scrappy
Patchwork & Quilts at The Quilting Patch
Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts
Monday Musings at Songbird Designs
This & That at Days Filled with Joy
To Do Tuesday at Quilt Schmilt
Mid-week Makers at Quilt Fabrication
Wednesday Wait Loss at The Inquiring Quilter

Sunday, March 5, 2023

Sew & Tell ~ On the Road

We're still on the road and unsure when we will return... most likely later this week.

Join the Sew & Tell Party and talk nicely amongst yourselves... I do promise to return soon with all the fun details of our trip.



I had fun making this mini quilt ~ #9/52. I am in love with it 😍



I had fun hunting for shells with holes in them so that I could sew them on. My friends are now the owners of the mini as it graces a small space in their camp trailer 💓 and will be reminded of our time together whenever they look at it.

Keep piecing, 

Melva 

Linking with:

Mid-week Makers at Quilt Fabrication
Wednesday Wait Loss at The Inquiring Quilter
Put Your Foot Down at For the Love of Geese 
Needle & Thread Thursday at My Quilt Infatuation
Free-Motion Mavericks at Quilting & Learning
Little Things Thursday at Good Random Fun
To Do Tuesday at Quilt Schmilt
Can I Get A Whoop Whoop at Confessions of a Fabric Addict
Off The Wall Friday with Nina Marie
Peacock Party at Wendy’s Quilts and More
Friday Foto Fun at Powered by Quilting
Finished or Not Friday at Alycia Quilts


Sunday, February 26, 2023

Sew & Tell ~ On the Beach

 

If all is as planned, I am unplugged and enjoying the sound of waves on a beach. 

Go ahead and join the Sew & Tell party below and I'll join you as soon as we get someplace to check in...

Before we headed to the beach these were a few links that I thought deserved a little attention...

Sew Sunshine and her friend were on an adventure and found several murals that offered the perfect backdrop for a photo op with scrappy quilts... This is just one of them.



And Gail showed off her SAHRR (Stay At Home Round Robin) quilt...


I hope that you are having fun.  We are!  Now... it is time for you to Sew & Tell.




Keep Piecing,

Melva

Sunday, February 19, 2023

Sew & Tell ~ February 20, 2023

 

I finished #8/52 mini quilts... this one is my artistic expression of the section of Scripture from Exodus 28.  My daughter and I took a little extra time and did a shared synopsis of the stones placed on the piece, the properties of them as well as the meanings and significance of them.  

The Breastpiece

15 “Fashion a breastpiece for making decisions—the work of skilled hands. Make it like the ephod: of gold, and of blue, purple and scarlet yarn, and of finely twisted linen. 16 It is to be square—a span long and a span wide—and folded double. 17 Then mount four rows of precious stones on it. The first row shall be carnelian, chrysolite and beryl; 18 the second row shall be turquoise, lapis lazuli and emerald; 19 the third row shall be jacinth, agate and amethyst; 20 the fourth row shall be topaz, onyx and jasper. Mount them in gold filigree settings. 21 There are to be twelve stones, one for each of the names of the sons of Israel, each engraved like a seal with the name of one of the twelve tribes.

The placement of the "stones" is from right to left, as the Hebrew language is read.  Interestingly enough, not all translations list the same gemstones in the same order.  I am using The Message Bible in my readings. 

It was a fun and creative activity and helped to get the Word a bit more engrained in my brain.

Among other quilty items I finished or worked on... The "Toy Boats" quilt for a customer and HS classmate/friend.


I made a number of repairs to clothing and snow pants and cleared off my cutting table with several hours left to begin sandwiching and quilting another one of the 8 quilt tops for another customer.  I pulled a green and white one out...


I have a few lines of quilting on it and will mark the remaining lines as if I get time this week.  We will be doing final packing and prep for our trip.  You can expect that I will be rather silent on the web for a period of time but have the posts/stories for Sew & Tell scheduled so that you can all show off your creative endeavors.  The link-up opens at 7:00 p.m. (Mountain Time) Sunday evenings and remains open until 5pm (MT) on Friday.  You are able to link up blogs or social media links, or even a YouTube video, if you would like.  And if you have more than one link to share, that's ok too.  Invite your friends. The more the merrier!  

Last week I spaced the features... I'm not sure where my mind was, other than preoccupied about something.  Sorry folks... I am an imperfect person who is sometimes forgetful. 🙈 The most recent parade had some great shares.  These are the ones that captured my fancy.

Andree shared a project from a class where she learned a technique to make stones.  She shared a meditation card as well.  Both have given me ideas for future mini quilts.


Jocelyn shared four scrappy patchwork quilts she is making to be given to a nursing home.


And from Joy's Jots, Shots & Whatnots we have a beautiful Quilt of Valor that was pieced by a group of quilters on QOV National Sew Day.

It's your turn now!  Join the party, talk amongst yourselves by visiting a few links and leaving some kind words.  

Keep Piecing,

Melva

Linking with:

Oh Scrap! at Quilting is More Fun Than Housework
Sunday Stash at QuiltPaintCreate
Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts
Monday Musings at Songbird Designs
To Do Tuesday at Quilt Schmilt