Finishing the Mac Race

My July Modern Mini - Finishing the Mac

Yes, that is my nightgown, lol!  It has been a bit since I've done a PJ early morning photo.

I tried to quilt "wind" across the surface with light blue and pink silk threads.

I love the way silk looks as it glides over different colored fabric.

 I haven't sewn down the binding yet, it is glued in place.  The best technique I've ever used.  Here is the backing fabrics.  I had to use a light one for the top so it wouldn't shadow the front.

 I give myself a A- on matching the binding.  It may get better after it is stitched and pressed.

Here is a look my process for this quilt

 I spray basted it just went for it.

Remember Pasta Salad?  Well, it is as good as you remembered.  I hadn't made it in forever.  You can add just about anything, I added fresh herbs from my garden and it is such a nice side dish for a summer supper. 

 What can I say?  We're still smitten with Nutmeg.  She's a monster and tears around the house, but she is also sweet and soft.

 Happy Summer! and Smooth Sailing in August.
xo

Summer Fun

Summer seems to be flying by here!
I marked my Pineapple quilt for machine quilting.

 It can be handy to set up a banquet table in my sewing room so I can leave it for a couple of days.

Here is a great tip I shared on IG:  Fold your top, batting and backing into quarters and cut the layers this way.  It is hard to crawl around the floor!

 I used these 3 marking tools:  Blue water soluble pen, clover white pen and Sewline white ceramic pencil.

 I also like to weigh down the stencil so it doesn't shift.

I was so excited to mark it, I forgot to orientate it correctly and Mr. Lincoln was upside down!

 I made a patch and fused it on top of the strip.

Here is a video of the fix.

My Boys went sailing on the Chicago to Mackinac Island Race.   They came in 11 out of 14 in their group (they were happy not to be last).

 I kept tabs on them at home with a great racing tracker system.

 Beautiful  early morning photos that Andrew took.  Rich is really in his element on a boat.

The race takes several days and they are racing around the clock.  No major storms this year.

 They had a little trouble finding the wind at times.

While they were sailing, I had my Chicagoland girlfriends here.  It is fun to be a local tourist.
Mark Twain's Home in Hartford.

A beautiful day at Mystic Seaport Museum.

Yale Gallery in New Haven.

It was great to spend time together catching up.  We've been friends for almost 45 years!  We started this puzzle.

I finished it yesterday.  It was so so hard!

I'll be back soon so share how I made an outdoor spray basting wall.

I wish you happy summer days! 
xo

Honest House Quilt and Pie

Hi Ya'll!
I attended Pepper Cory's lecture on Southern Scrap Quilts while at VQF and wow!  Was it a treat.  I have always admired Pepper for her kind and easy way of speaking about quilts.  And not only because she awarded me a judges choice once :)

 This is the quilt that decided I wanted to make for myself.  I adore all house quilts.

If you have seen my scrap lecture, you'll know that I love to study old scrap quilts.  This one is awesome.  Here is what I learned:

I suspect it was made by several people with some people making multiple matching blocks.

The blue and red all used the same fabric and substituted that blue where needed.

These green and brown print blocks are all sewn the same "different" (not wrong) way.  I guess they had a front stoop.

 The red and black & white stripe houses use the same fabric but 2 have extra large doors with extra red strips.  Maybe 2 people were sewing together and sharing fabrics?

 same fabrics.

 Same fabrics and same challenge with the triangle over the door, I can relate to her!

The piecer forgot the windows were to be the same as the sky and door.  Charming, if you ask me.

 These are all crazy town, so I don't know what's up with them, but maybe they came from different people who didn't live near the others?

As far as layout, they were paired to face each other in the center area.  The top and right row are all facing the same way except one which also had 'custom' windows.

So here are mine so far.  I usually call these kind of quilts "Really Nice Quilt" but Pepper referred to one as an "Honest Quilt"  and I LOVE that!  Do you like my setting plan? 

I drafted my own 10" finished block and I'm paper piecing the roof section because: angles. 

Well, something went wrong here......

Take that perfectionists.😜  I always like anomalies in old quilts, so I did the easiest and quickest fix I could think of. 

I'm trying to keep up with the Whig Rose project.  Only 1 block to go before the borders.

 While at the Pepper Lecture, I was working on this project and Wendy offered to send me some acid yellow.  Yay!!! She sent me loads and I'm using some of them for the houses that don't work for the Whig Rose.  Thank you Wendy!!!

By the way, if you have acid yellow and want to be part of my border plan, I'm taking all sizes from 3" - 10".

I made this Mixed Berry Pie for my visiting girlfriends and we all agreed it was delicious.  Click here for the recipe!  It called for three berries, but I added blackberries too.  No berry left behind.

Okay, I'll leave this post here and come back with sailing and other news next time.

All I can say is "what????" 

Hope you're having a happy summer!

xo