Friendship Quilt

Dawn of Collector with a Needle and I exchanged little quilts this year. I am thrilled with what she made for me.

Click on the photo to admire the variety of fabrics she used.

Before I started decorating for Christmas I had it on this sideboard in the dining room where I could see it often. I expect it will return there in January unless I find another perfect spot for it. I like moving things around!

This vintage flannel backing is so soft.

A very special quilt. Dawn and I met last June when she was presenting a program in Warrenton Virginia. I hope we can meet up again soon.

Here are a few more Stars in a Time Warp blocks.

Week 39 Claret Red

Week 24 Blotch Ground Chintzes - I think

not sure which week I was thinking with this one

Week 44 Early Roller Print Clouds and Storms

Week 42 Sprigged Muslins and Indiennes

Week 43 Provincial Prints

Week 40 Cadet Blue and Celestials

Week 41 Neon Novelties

I hope to to put these stars into a quilt top this winter. I have lots of plans for time spent in my sewing room. Right now I'm finishing a scrappy Jacob's Ladder quilt top for a great niece. I hope to have the quilt finished by the end of the month. Also, on the sewing agenda for the winter is a small quilt to display in my dining room - Paula Golden says wall hanging sounds too violent! - using my collection of dutch fabrics. Lastly, I hope to make roman shades for my kitchen and powder room. I've had the fabric for months now and it's time to get that done.

Thanksgiving week was a fun family affair. We played board games every evening.

Yesterday, DH and I collected greenery and pinecones to decorate the church hall for the Advent Lessons and Carols reception. I couldn't resist taking this photo of Frida. She's an outdoor cat who came with our property. She is always trying to get in our house. I relent too often and let her in even though I'm allergic to cats. She is good though and knows to go to the one chair I've covered with a towel. Admittedly, she picked the chair but it's okay because it's in the foyer and no one ever sits on it.

Hope to be back soon with a finished Jacob's Ladder quilt.

Flying Geese Strippy and Lots of Stars

Last year I made this quilt top for our bed. I'd had the fabrics forever. I believe most are Robyn Pandolf designs. This summer I had it custom quilted by Patricia at Brown Bird Quilts in Millboro Virginia. I'm very happy with what she did.

Click on this one to see the detail.

I made a lot of stars over the past couple of weeks. I'm learning so much from Barbara's weekly Stars in a Time Warp posts and I'm using fabrics I haven't used in years and some I've never cut in to.  I'm sure I'm stretching the definitions with some of these.

Week 30 Floral Trails

Week 31 Toiles

Week 18 California Gold

Week 17 Conversation Prints

Week 29 Lapis Blue

Week 21 Neat Stripes

Week 25 Wood Block Prints

Week 33 Later Turkey Reds

Week 27 Quercitron and Arboresces

Week 37 Chocolate and Blue plus Lace Prints

Week 13 Printed Plaids

Week 15 Woven Plaids

Week 14 Rainbow or Ombre Prints

Week 16 Paisleys

Week 19 Serpentine Stripes

Week 38 Black, Gray and Asian-Style Design

Week 32 Faded Synthetic Dyes

Week 12 Foulards

Week 20 Excentric Prints

Here are all my stars together. I'm thinking of using the border fabric (Matters of the Heart by Kay England) to make a strippy quilt - alternating with the stars on point. I must like strippy quilts!

I was visiting my friend Laurie in her shop - Appalachian Pieceworks - and she showed me this quilt she had taken apart. Theses fabrics were used as the foundation to a silk log cabin. The silk was shattered but the foundation fabrics are still very vibrant. She thinks the fabrics are copper plate roller printed from the early to mid 19th century. I looked back at Barbara's posts and black fabrics weren't available until about 1890 so I think at least the backing is later.

This was the backing.

This evening.

Beets from our veggie garden.

Back to Stars in a Time Warp

It's been so long since I posted I almost forgot how. It was a busy summer with company and farm work. The freezer is full and the pantry is lined with colorful jars of our harvest. Things are slowing down a bit and the last few evenings I've been making stars...

week 10 green calicoes

week 36 lancaster blue

week 35 cretonne

week 34 bronze-style prints

week 11 purple

week 9 chrome yellow

It's not too late to join the fun. These blocks go together pretty quickly. I think I spend more time picking my fabrics which I'm really enjoying. It is making me dig through my stash. I'm finding things I forgot I had and learning what it is I have. Seriously, please tell me if I've misinterpreted any of these. I really want to know. For those of you who don't know, Stars in a Time Warp is a weekly quiltalong from quilt historian and fabric designer Barbara Brackman at Civil War Quilts. Each Wednesday she gives a lesson on a color and/or fabric design from the past.

While I wasn't posting this summer I have been quilting. I made the quilt below for a fundraiser for a birthing center. I made another quilt for the quilt auction for our local hospice center but forgot to take a photo.

the back

I struggled with the Jacob's ladder. I wasn't pleased until I separated the blocks - bright and not so bright. Below are the not so bright.

I still need to stitch these blocks together.

We got 17 chicks 8 weeks ago. They've been a major distraction!

I have a couple more projects in the works. I'm stitching down a binding on a quilt for our bed. We've had some chilly nights here so I want to get it done and on the bed soon. I'll be back soon to share.