The guild is changing the way they make pet beds. The pet beds filled with schnibbles have been hard to wash and some shelters and animal rescue sites refuse to take them. I can understand the problem with washing. I, however, produce a lot of schnibbles and want to put them to good use. Erin and Michelle found another project where schnibbles are packed into a cube and used as seating for children. I can now fill up a bag with schnibbles and the team will fill the cube, called cubies (pronounced cube-eez). Cyndi offered to get me one when she heads down to the shop that hosts the group who coordinates them.
We will still make pet beds, but will fill them with more batting and leftover polyfil batting and less schnibbles.
I should have called this FINALLY Starting Chain Link. I didn’t like the way the pattern was written and that was a “launch blocker”, as we say at work. I finally sat down on the last day of the Retreat and figured out how to make this pattern work for me.
This project seems to be fraught with problems. Besides the challenges of the pattern, I cannot find the white fabric I chose to use.As you can see, I have already cut some up and sewed it into sections of blocks.
It MUST be around somewhere, but it wasn’t where I thought it was. I hope I didn’t use it for a donation quilt. We’ll have to see if this becomes a ‘design challenge.’
I finally finished the Butterfly Superbloom, but it is bittersweet. The organization to whom I planned to donate it has decided they have something similar and don’t want it, or the Dogwood Pouches, for their auction. 🙁
I have to figure out to whom to gift it or whether I can do my own raffle and send the money to the scholarship fund. Let me know if you want to buy a bag for a good cause!
I am happy with the way this came out. I like the positioning of the butterfly on the side.
Superbloom: Side pockets exterior
Of course, I love the side pockets. They are so fun!
I think I am done with the Superbloom pattern for awhile. I think the white of the zipper tape stands out a bit, however the rainbow teeth go well with the fabric. The side seams stands out a bit in the photo, but it isn’t as noticeable in real life.
Superbloom: Side pockets interior
I accidentally put a treat inside one of the side pockets. I hope whoever ends up using this bag will appreciate the various places where the butterflies are located.
I visited Cyndi for a Sew Day last weekend and was able to get the Old Town sashing to a good place. I had a lot of 1.5 inch squares to cut and then a lot of trimming to make a house shaped rectangle. It was a lot better to do all of that work with a friend. We were able to chat while I did the tedious parts and that was great.
I got out the Simply Folded Ruler** again to create the flippy corners of those house shapes. That ruler is a gem. I always forget, but it really makes those flippy corners easy to sew. I didn’t have to draw diagonal lines on the squares, which would have made the process even more tedious. AND there was no trimming afterwards which meant no opportunity to cut off the wrong triangle. I haven’t tried one of the Simply Folded patterns (actually Antler Quilt Designs). I remember seeing one that was interesting at the Granary, but thought I was too busy to buy it. I was surprised at how many patterns the company has. I remember them being kind of country colors and having weird looking angles, but that isn’t true. There are a variety of patterns, some with brighter colors and fewer weird angles.
The good part about Bonnie Hunter Mystery quilts is that she suggests different methods of making the various units. I was reintroduced to the Simply Folded Ruler** through this project. It is good to be reminded of how I can use different tools.
I cut out some more Dogwood pouches the other day. I am using the same sizes (F & J), mostly because I didn’t want to take the time to print more templates. The organization to whom I wanted to donate the set is having their luncheon soon and I wanted to make as many bags as possible. I have only the Superbloom and the Cotton Candy so far.
While working on the Old Town blocks I have been using my grey scraps to add to the Grey Improv donation quilt. I am really enjoying building up the size of this quilt. It takes forever to get the right sized pieces, but all of a sudden it is bigger. It is really fun.
Work has been very busy. It is stressful and I have been sewing a bit at lunch and after work. I haven’t had much time, but my effort at the Retreat at block making has gotten the process down to a science. I can make each block in about half an hour. Still, it has taken me several days to make this batch.
With this group, I only have four more left to make.
I finished the two Dogwood pouches at the Retreat. This is a worthwhile pattern as there are multiple sizes, but also a couple of new techniques to use in making your pouches.
Pouch F is the larger one and would be great for chargers and other small electronics. It went together very quickly.
The zipper instructions were a little tricky, but I watched the video (glad I brought my tablet to the Retreat!) and it was clear. I was actually kind of excited about the zipper instructions. They make a very cool finish to the zipper ends.
Finished: Dogwood Pouch-J
Pouch J is the smaller one. It would be good to corral small items in your handbag.
I found that the boxing of the corners was a different technique as well. I had to watch the video (Yay tablet, again!), which made the technique clear.
These are already off to their new home. I haven’t had a clear answer as to whether the Angel Mama likes her set of bags, but I feel good having made an effort to thank her somehow.
I started the Vervain at Sew Day the other day. The Vervain is a small belt bag (fanny pack). A front pocket on the outside and a lining zipper pocket on the inside lend storage space. The main compartment secures with the top zipper.
I am making this for my aunt, mostly because I have more iris fabric. She wants to use it to hold her cell phone on her daily walks I am happy to do it as she is my favorite aunt and I have wanted to make this bag.
Honestly, I almost cut out two of them. I restrained myself, though. I decided just to make the one and go from there.
Sew Sweetness has no templates for this one, which is a shame as the pieces are weirdly shaped. I used my scissors and that worked fine. I have a couple of pieces of foam I cut separately rather than on the fold. I’ll either stitch them together or cut a new piece on this fold this time.
I didn’t have much time to sew on Sunday due to my caregiving duties. Between Sunday and Monday, however, I sewed two more Old Town blocks. I really like having my design wall on which to lay them out.
Old Town block #16
Old Town block #17
These two blocks were possible because, first, I sewed all the HSTs I would need to finish the block assembly. Now it is just laying them out and sewing the pieces together.
These are some of the pillowcases I made at the Retreat.
Angel Family Pillowcases
I wasn’t planning on making them, but I was inspired by the chocolate fabric. I have been thinking of making the kids pillowcases and seeing the fabric at Family Threads was a little nudge. Knowing I had 2.5 days to get them done made the weekend a good opportunity. I don’t need another small project hanging around.
I chose some of the V&Co Galaxy fabrics for the cuffs. I wanted the pillowcases to be mostly equal so the kids wouldn’t fight. I like to call the chocolate pillowcases “Sweet Dreams.”
I used different bodies for the older kids. One of them really likes soccer and the other is really grownup, so I wanted to make him a pillowcase that was a little more sophisticated. The older boys got the same cuffs in different colors.
I wasn’t able to wash the fabric and I was pleased that I didn’t have any kind of reaction to ironing the unwashed fabric. I am giving them some Color Catchers** and strict instructions to wash them in hot water with the Color Catchers so they don’t bleed on their other laundry.
**N. B. : Obviously, you should shop at local quilt shops and small businesses. However, if you are too busy or can’t find what you need there, I use Amazon affiliate links and may be paid for your purchase of an item when you click on an item’s link in my post. There is no additional cost to you for clicking or purchasing items I recommend. I appreciate your clicks and purchases as it helps support this website.
As mentioned, I made about 15 of these blocks while on Retreat. The pattern called for sets of Flying Geese and Half Square Triangles ( HSTs), so slapping them together any old which way didn’t work. As you saw in my initial efforts, I had to choose the sets carefully. Surprisingly, it mattered which turquoise Flying Geese star legs went with the pink ring made up of Flying Geese and HSTs.
I call this type of work ‘controlled scrappy’. The paper bag method alone doesn’t work for me. I want a scrappy look, but I want the quilt to be cohesive.
I ended up coordinating the fabrics that make up the pink ring of Flying Geese and HSTs. Then I would match the lavender so that it wasn’t too dark or light in relation to the pink ring. I got a lot of different looks. I think it will make the viewer’s eyes move around the quilt.
There was no organized Community Quilt project at the Retreat this year as both Community Quilt chair people were otherwise occupied and didn’t attend. Despite that, the group made (or brought) ~15 quilts to hand in. First, I brought the White Strips donation quilt, but couldn’t hand it in, because nobody was there to collect it. Oh well, I’ll hand it in on Saturday.
Lee Ann put the finishing touches on the Improv quilt above. I made a number of the pieces and it was fun to see them. She said it has been sitting around for awhile. I was really glad to see what a great job she did.
Lee Ann’s Flying Geese quilt
Lee Ann also put together a Flying Geese quilt for the Community quilt project that was really interesting.
Peggy gave her the mauve-y red awhile ago and asked her to do something with it. The color wasn’t exactly Lee Ann’s style, but recently she got a layer cake that included fabrics she used for a background. This isn’t a quilt I would make, but I think the combination works really well! Lee Ann did a great job on the piecing. She ran around the room with the quilt fluttering behind her like a cape when she finished! It was a joyful act.
Anna’s heart quilt
Anna also finished a donation quilt that has been hanging around. We all helped her arrange the last few blocks, so she could get the quilt off her UFO list. I thought it was a Pulse quilt that Anna wasn’t able to finish, but she finally figured out it was intended for the victims of the Las Vegas shooting in 2017. In looking through the posts where I communicate the call for victims who need quilts, I was reminded how many times recently there has been some tragedy where a call has gone out. This quilt will make someone very happy. As usual, Anna did a great job.
Melinda was on a binge. She made 10 baby quilts (~34 inches square) from a tub of children’s fabric she can’t remember buying. LOL! I didn’t get any photos of her quilt tops and backs because she was so fast at showing them. She was pleased with how much she got done, but disappointed that she didn’t use up more of the fabric.
Pillowcase donation top
I made a donation quilt with some of the leftover fabric from the pillowcases.
I got the black and white triangle (pinwheel?) fabric from Melinda. She was happy to offload it. I added it to the pillowcase fabrics to make the quilt slightly larger.
As you can see, I messed up the layout somewhere along the way. Someone will like it.
Lynette’s Pillowcase quilt top
I wasn’t that happy with the black quilt once I saw what Lynette made with the other pillowcase scraps. She added a cream background fabric from Melinda to really make the pillowcase scraps shine.
Lynette is a on a potato chip quilt binge. I may have heard of Potato Chip quilts, but I have never made one. I might now that I know how great they can look.
Lee Ann’s special 4-patch donation quilt
Lee Ann found this block somewhere – I didn’t hear the story and made a donation quilt out of children’s fabrics. She added some solids and the quilt top looks really great.
I didn’t bring a scrap bin or my 2.5 inch squares bin and I was sorry. I had to scramble around for leaders and enders and that wasn’t easy. I got quite a bit done using other projects for leaders and enders, but it was difficult. I was shocked at how ingrained sewing with leaders and enders is for me!
I made really good progress on Old Town at the Retreat.
I was able to piece 15 (of 25 total) blocks. Each block has 69 pieces so that was a LOT of piecing. I was SUPER happy to be doing that piecing, I have to tell you.
Julie helped me put them up on the design wall so we could look at them.
Even with out much sashing, there is a distinct secondary design going on.
Old Town Retreat progress – detail
I sewed a little bit of the sashing and put that up as well, so we could kind of see what was coming.
I am back from the guild Retreat and pretty pleased with what I accomplished. It is ever enough? No, but I am trying to be satisfied with what I accomplished.
2025 Retreat Completed projects
Two bobbins made 7 pillowcases and 15 blocks containing 1,035 pieces, plus some of the chain Link blocks, two pouches and some various other leaders and enders pieces.
This is my stack of projects. I am quite proud of how much I finished.
Family Threads purchase 2025
I did decide at the last minute, while I was at Family Threads, to make pillowcases for the kids in the Angel Family. I didn’t give them anything last time I saw them. I am so grateful for their good care of my stepdad that I felt like I wanted to do something. Pillowcases have been on my mind so I bought some fabric at Family Threads and then made them.
