TGIFF ~ Past Revisited

Hello, hello!  Welcome To Melva Loves Scraps and Thank Goodness It's Finished Friday!  This is the place to celebrate finishes.  Maybe it's something that was quick and easy, or maybe... it's something that has been lingering for longer than you planned.  Either way, if it's finished... we will celebrate.

I also get that sometimes finished has a loose term... finished blocks, finished flimsy or top or quilted but no binding.  I'll let you define finished. ;)

This week I have a quilted and bound finished Pieces from the Past quilt that has been a work in progress for several months.  I don't tend to have WIPs, but this was one that was set on the back burner to simmer as I developed a plan, and the purpose was slowly revealed.

The custom quilt orders and custom quilting have been slow this year and I've had to redirect my passion and reset my mind to accept this and set aside the speed through to finished, "time is money".  It's been a challenge, but nearly 5 months into the year, I am getting the hang of it.

I started revisiting my Pieces from the Past blocks with the question of, "I wonder if I could make a quilt of just the 12" blocks?"  How many were already that size?  There were 12... Not enough for a larger throw... "that would work."  But some of my favorite blocks were 9" blocks and nearly 16"... 

And then one final question, "what would it take to make all of the blocks 12" blocks?"  Since I was in the middle of "math lessons" that I was offering during the Little House Sampler Quilt sew along, the math to do the adjustments was readily fresh in my mind.

As I pieced the blocks, I revisited the original stories and letters that accompanied the blocks during the sew along event 6 years ago.

Many of the blocks had minor changes such as making the darks light, and the lights dark... or turning the units to have a new position...

or turning a two-color block into a four-color block...

Like my original quilt, I wanted the quilting of this one to have a traditional look and feel to it.  After searching my reference books, I found a fancy scroll to be done in the individual blocks.  I wanted something to accentuate the cornerstones of the sashing that also had a traditional look.

It took some help from Dave, trial and error and finally locating the proper size Tupperware lid to find the perfect arc. LOL!  YES, a Tupperware lid!  Once I marked the centers, all I had to do was connect the dots.

I chose a flanged binding for the quilt, with the purple woven fabric offering the perfect pop of color!  I had enough of the dark blue flower print for the backing to not need to piece it... but I so desperately wanted to include the remaining piece of goose fabric.  Pairing it with the coordinating blue to offer a strip all the way across the quilt helped to make the darker flower fabric to feel welcomed to the party in the back. ;)

The setting for the last glamor shots below with the "yard art" mailbox that my parents had for forever... early 60s... they acquired it from my grandparents, Phillip & Katie Schleich.  I once reminisced that the box was the one that many of the letters from the former German POWs sent to them to let them know that they had arrived back home safely, and so many of them had asked for help.

As Dave and I walked the other day we imagined what sort of letter might be left for us... a little reminiscent of the Nicholas Sparks book, Every Breath... but more like the Hallmark movie, The Love Letter, where the desk offers a magical way to communicate through two different time periods...

What sort of messages might Phillip & Katie, or even my Dad, leave for me?  What would have happened if Phillip & Katie had been able to help and respond to the many letters asking for assistance.  Would the correspondence have continued?  Would any of the men eventually asked for help in moving to America?  It could make for an interesting story! 

A few of the men did get to move to America and several made it back to Trinidad for a reunion in 1964.  I received an email in 2023 from the grandson of one of the men.  I had attempted to reach the family of Klaus Hesselbarth who had been featured in a magazine article published in 2009.  Try as I might, I was unsuccessful.

Ok, I've done enough rambling and wondering and wandering... It's time to join the party!  But before you go...

Who would you like to send or receive a letter from the past?

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

Keep Piecing,

Melva

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