December Modern Mini(s)

 Bright Little Trees - 2020

I have seen these little blocks on social media so I decided to give them a try.

I made a 'casual' paper piecing pattern.  ha ha....pattern.  This way they would be the same size.  

On my bright one, I used pearl cotton and big stitches.  It was fun.

I used this bright polkadot for the back.  You can see that I am using the pillowcase technique to make these.

I made 3 versions in all.  Here is one fit for gnome.

I used this cute woodland print for the back.

This one went to our friends', Susan and Owen.  Here it is on their mantel.   It fits in perfectly with their Red & White display.  

They team up to make wooden mice every year for family and friends.  I am lucky to be a recipient.   Here is the collection on display above my sink.

This one  was also gifted and I hope it has arrived.  You can't go wrong with red, green and cheddar.  I quilted tiny drop diamonds on this one.

The backing fabric is a funny dot print.

I was tempted to keep it because it looked so cute with Ralphy's House and playground.

I've also been learning to crochet.  I am working up to making a granny square afghan.  I've made 5 beanies so far.

I do a lot of ripping out, but I figure it is part of the learning process.

I like how the striping works out.

We got a BIG SNOW yesterday!

Winter Wonderland.

It was so pretty in the evening.

This may be our last fresh tree.  We had to go to 3 places and the pickings were slim.   It sat in the family room like these for almost a week.  I was joking that it was done.

With the snow day, we were inspired to finish the job.   I can't seem to find the tree topper........it's 2020 and I'm okay with it.

So which little quilt do you like best?

Thank you all so much for your kind comments on my Sparrow Post last week.   I appreciated them so much.

I wish you all a wonderful day.  

Stay Safe and Healthy!

xo

The Sparrow Story Reprised

 My mother, Catherine Anne (Clarkson) Bednar, left my world 30 years ago today.  Many of you already know the "Story of the Sparrow" but I'm sharing it again today to mark this anniversary and share more quilts with the sparrow.

Song of the Sparrow - 2019

Alice Payne - 2017

Jubilee -  2012

Hot Flash - 2014

Here is a post I did in 2011 with the Complete Story.  

My 20th Anniversary tribute for my Mom that I finished in 2011.  I turned 48 that year, the same age she was when she passed away.

  

This quilt remains one my favorites and has been shared in many exhibits.

I quilted her initials, CAB on the urn.

So each time I stitch a sparrow onto or into a quilt, I remember my Mother and my dear friend Mary.  I am blessed to have had these women in my life.

In ordinary times, I would have planned something nice to do on this day.  This year I've decided to give blood through the Red Cross.  I hope it will help someone in need.

Stay well

xo

Figurative Applique - Finally!

I'm very excited to be sharing this group of quilts that were started with our Cupcake Group of four friends in 2006.

  

My Quilt:  Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious:  86"x86"

I used all reproduction fabrics on a soft pink toile.  I made mine in 4 large square sections.

It was for this quilt that I designed and made my own super sized baptist fan stencil.   You can get one in my Etsy Shop along with a set of folk art patterns found in this quilt and others of mine.  Enter BLOG20 for a 20% discount good through the year end.

Our quilted were inspired by this quilt top  in the V&A Museum in London.

Kaffe Fassett created a quilt and pattern for his book Museum Quilts.

Mary Vaughan's Quilt:   63"x77"

Mary chose Red & White because she felt she didn't have a wide variety of reproduction fabrics.   I will admit that was sceptical but her quilt is spectacular!  Note the martini glasses and anchor.

Mary grew up in Ho Ho Kus so included this great Native American motif as well as a self silhouette.  

I love the variety in Mary's shapes like the egg and crown. 

Mary chose a wavy horizontal line for the quilting.   

Mary chose a beautiful Kaffe Fassett for her backing.   The black binding frames this special quilt wonderfully.

Susan's McDermott's Quilt:  Animal, Vegetable or Mineral 70"x75"

What I love about Susan's quilt is it is so unique and the border is just fabulous.    Susan arranged her around a center tree.  

Susan added many wonderful details in the quilting.   Her use of fabrics and colors are just amazing too.

Susan thought it would be fun to use motifs from the natural world.   

Lin McQuinston's Quilt:   Menagerie  51" x 71"

Lin pinned my quilt in 2009 and wrote me in 2018 when she started her quilt.   She used my patterns, Kaffe's and made her own with her grandchildren.

The background and border were gifted to her by a guild member who had passed away making it even more special.

Lin challenged herself to make mitered corners with the striped fabric and it sets the quilt off beautifully.

Lin's is beautifully machine quilted.  Here is the backing and label.

Jill's unfinished quilt.

I am working on Jill's.  She never liked the polkadot background,but I love it!  I plan to put a house in the center.   It was not with her materials, but I think that is what she intended.

Still need to embroider her hot air balloon lines.

Barbara Brackman featured some of our quilts in this post.

If you would like to see antique examples of this style of quilts you can read more on Barbara Brackman's blog post here and again here.

If you have made a quit like these, please share a photo with me at barb.vedder@gmail.com.   I'd love to see it.

Happy Friday!

xo

Grateful During Dark Days

 I hope you all enjoyed a safe and healthy Thanksgiving 2020.  I wanted to document ours because we were blessed to be together for a whole week.

My someday to be, son-in-law, David, made his family's dinner rolls from scratch.

Rich's Apple Pie.

One of three cranberry sauces.

These little cornucopias and singing ALL verses of We Gather Together have been a tradition at our table for over 30 years.

We had a 16lb Turkey this year.   (I over cooked it a bit, but gravy saves it, right?)

Coco enjoyed her annual Formal Thanksgiving Dinner.  Hanna's narration so cute.

My favorite part of the week was playing board games with my family!

The Game of Life - Andrew Won (again).

Masterpiece - such a fun old game!  We enjoyed playing and eating a 70s cheeseball :)

It is auction game of paintings from the Art Institute of Chicago which is where my love for fine art was born.

We started Careers also, another oldie but had to abandon it for dinner.

I am grateful for all the friends and family in my life.   For those who live near or far and hope and pray next year we will have even more to be Thankful for.

xo

p.s. for Advent, I am posting a quilt a day on Instagram.  You can find me at Barb Vedder or Fun With Barb.