February Quilt of the Month

Sorry, I'm late in getting my February quilt on the bed. If you've been reading my blog, I've been busy posting all the photos from our fun quilting weekend at the Cape.

My February quilt is Popsicle Sticks by Atkinson Designs. It is made from 2.5 inch batik strips. This quilt was made from fabrics I exchanged with my Brown Bagger friends. I organized a strip swap in November of 2010. It was a lot of fun. Everyone cut a bag of 15 different strips. I think we each got over 150 different strips.

I started this quilt in December of 2010 and finished it in August of 2011. I enjoy going back and reading my quilting notes. My friend Terri quilted it for me. I gave it to her in February and she gave it back to me in March. Apparently, I was really busy, since I didn't put the binding on the quilt and finish it until five months later.

The colors in the quilt reflect the lovely colors in the tapestry hanging over our bed.

Cheerful and bright! Guaranteed to beat the February blues.

The back of the quilt is this fun elephant print batik
that I bought in the bargain room at Tumbleweeds.

I used this quilt in my entry for Pets on Quilts last year. You can see more photos of the quilt along with my darling pug boys, here.

Have a great day!

I am linking up on Friday to Confessions of a Fabric Addict, Richard and Tanya Quilts and CrazyMom Quilts. Thanks for visiting.

Pugs and kisses,
Nancy

Cape Cod Final Wrap Up

Looking back at all the beautiful projects, blogged, here, here and here, I can see that despite my own paltry efforts, a lot of progress was made at our Cape Cod quilting weekend. I didn't even get a photo of everyone's projects because some of the girls are such fast sewers that they would whip a top together, put it away and then move on to the next project without giving me a minute for a single photograph.

Here is my other quilt pattern designer friend Karen. Karen has graced the pages of my blog many times before. You can find more information about Karen's business, Quilt Lily Designs, just by clicking the link. She has an Etsy shop too.

The first two patterns shown below are brand new. I don't think they're on Karen's website yet, but you can always send her an email and inquire.

I believe this pattern comes with an option for additional sizes.

This sample has gorgeous peacock fabric in it.

This pattern is called Linked Up.

Pat was looking for some purple fabric in her stash when she found the blocks for this quilt top. It is a Sampler Quilt that she started a long time ago at the Quilter's Compass. She added sashing and cornerstones and now it is ready to be quilted. She made good use of her purple stash--that's where she found the border fabric which coordinates perfectly.

Purple Sampler Quilt by Pat

Mystery Quilt done in Amy Butler fabrics

Pat brought the finished quilt shown above to sleep under (it's cold at the hotel). This is a mystery quilt that we did a few years ago. Sorry the photo doesn't do it justice.

Jo Ann E., at right, (assisted by Debby) made a matching pair
of quilts using birthday blocks. Jo Ann is very fond of muted colors.
We tease each other all the time, since I like brights.

Marion made this pretty table runner.

Cordula layered her flannel quilt top.

Joan S. is working on this brightly colored quilt.

Kate says, We're not stringing you along, come back soon
for more quilting adventures with PugMom Quilts!

Hope you enjoyed our virtual quilt show!

Pugs and kisses,
Nancy

"A" is for Applique

There were some really pretty applique quilts seen at our weekend. I spied at least two nearly finished wall hangings and some works in progress.

You never know "Whoooo" you'll see at a quilt weekend...here is Debbie with her adorable owl wall hanging for her grandson Kellan. When Debbie wasn't quilting, she was indulging in her second love, playing Candy Crush!

Great job Debbie!

I also spent a few hours helping my quilt designer friend Kate add some gadgets to her brand new quilting blog, Kate Mitchell Quilts. Click the link and check it out!

Here is Kate with her newest pattern, aptly called Cupcakes.
You can buy it in the Annie's catalog or from Kate's own website.
Hey, I need a cupcake! A real one, not a fabric one!

Pat's chocolate bunnies make me drool!
Such a pretty table runner. Now I want a chocolate Easter bunny!

Jo Ann E. is making these adorable little dresses. I can't wait to see more of them.

Below are some non applique projects in progress...

 

 

 

Cheryl worked on some birthday blocks.

We didn't see much of Cheryl this weekend, but for a good reason... Cheryl has made the transition from corporate America to future real estate mogul. She completed her first closing this weekend as a realtor. Her Mom Jean threw a mini party for her at our weekend. We all sang "Happy Closing to You" (sung to the tune of Happy Birthday) and ate some cake in Cheryl's honor.

Congratulations Cheryl! Watch out Donald Trump!

Jean was working on some pinwheel blocks made from a charm pack from 2000.
I have the same charm pack, and I'm still working on my blocks too...

At least one more Cape Cod blog post to follow!

Pugs and kisses,
Nancy

Under the Big Top

A lot of beautiful quilt tops to show you from our recent weekend at the Cape.

Joannie put the final borders on her Christmas Quilt. She is keeping this quilt for herself. It may end up being Christmas all year long at Joannie's house.

Joannie designed the parallelogram border.

She also made this pretty little mug rug. Not shown is the set
of eight matching place mats. They are already on her table!

Sue was making the Lemonade pattern that I found on the Fat Quarter Shop's website and shared on my blog recently.

Here is Lemonade in Black, White, Gray and Yellow. These colors
remind me of a stormy day with a little sunshine peaking through.

Here is Lemonade in Valentine's Day prints.

Sue also put together this Alphabet panel quilt for her granddaughter.

Marion, at left, finished this top done in all Kaffe Fassett fabrics.
She started this in a class with Kimberly Einmo at the
Vermont Quilt Festival in 2012. Kate, at right, is going to
machine quilt it for Marion.

Carol brought some sunshine to our quilt weekend while
she was working on this cheerful orange quilt.
It came out great, and she cut out a second one!

Joan S. put together her Kaffe Fassett quilt which is made
entirely of half square triangles using a light fabric
and a dark fabric. I love how she set her design off center.

Lots more photos to come!

Linking up to Sew Fresh Quilts, Let's Bee Social. Thanks for visiting!

Pugs and kisses,
Nancy

Ring A Ding Ding!

I have returned from my Cape Cod Quilting sojourn. The photo below represents 2.5 days of work...

I made four sets of "A" rings for my Double Wedding Ring quilt. Yes, they are lovely, but time consuming. I also did a little bit of applique on my Edyta Sitar quilt, shown below.

For those of you waiting to hear, I am disappointed to report that I did not win any of the Right, Left, Center games. Pat won the black and white fabrics; Cordula won the Kaffe Fassett fabrics and Kim G. won the batiks.

Winning smiles from Kim G. and Cordula

I was able to drown some of my sorrows with a little ice cream. Several yards of new Kaffe Fassett fabrics took care of the rest...

Sue and I enjoying  our sundaes. What's underneath my hot fudge?
Forbidden Chocolate and Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream! Yummy!

Unbelievably, it required this much luggage to work on
my two small projects pictured at the top of the blog.

In contrast to my tiny projects, Kim P. completed the top of her Orca Bay, one of her Bonnie Hunter mystery quilts that she has been working on for a while. It was one of Kim's 2013 quilting resolutions to finish this. The quilt is amazing. Almost all of the blocks are string pieced (i.e., made up of little tiny pieces). This is no longer a free pattern on the Quiltville website, however it is available in one of Bonnie's books.

Kim P, at right, is the talented quilter who made this quilt top.

Here are the "bag ladies" from the Cape Cod weekend.

From left to right: Joan S., Sally, and Pat model their finished creations.

Joan's bag is the Chubby Charmer. Sally and Pat both made the Travel Duffel bag from Studio Cherie. Unbelievably, all of these gorgeous bags will be gifts. Sally's bag is for her daughter-in-law; Pat's bag is for her sister; and Joan is still trying to decide who will get hers--although Jean volunteered several times to take it off her hands...

Marion was also part of the Bag Lady Brigade. She made
this cute little zipper pouch by Atkinson Designs.

Marion says, "Stay tuned, lots more Cape Cod photos to come!"

Come back tomorrow for more Girls of the Cape!

Linking up on Tuesday with Connie at Freemotion by the River Linky Tuesday. Thanks for visiting!

Pugs and kisses,
Nancy

The Wages of Sin

I am heading out this morning to the Cape for our annual February quilting weekend. I am bringing these nine little lovelies with me...unfortunately not all of them will return.

However, I could come home with 45 fat quarters or more if Lady Luck shines upon me. Joannie has organized three rounds of Right, Left, Center, which is a dice game. We play for fat quarters, based on a theme. As you can see, we will be playing three rounds for Black and White FQs, Kaffe Fassett FQs, and Batik FQs. I love all of these fabrics!

Wish me luck!

I am sticking to my guns and I have packed the three projects you saw here.

If you are not quilting this weekend, and you want to try a new recipe, Mike made this Chicken Marsala on Tuesday night and it was delicious! So good, we ate it two nights in a row. Mike doubled the amount of Marsala wine and the mushrooms. Yum!

Happy Birthday Marion!

Linking up with Freemotion by the River and Sew Fresh Quilts. Thanks for visiting!

Pugs and kisses,
Nancy

My Word is "No!"

A lot of quilt bloggers have been posting their "word" for 2014. Your word is supposed to be your mantra, your inspiration, your theme for the year. Bonnie Hunter has a word (actually, she has three). Pat Sloan has a word. In fact, if you Google search "my word for 2014 quilting" you can find a lot of quilt bloggers who have picked a word for the year.

I'm late to the party, but I have a word too. And for 2014, it's going to be "No!" as in "No way, no how, I don't want to." It may sound selfish, but after 20 plus years of quilting and giving away about 80% of what I make, I think I'm entitled to take a year for myself.

We quilters are a generous lot, and if we're not getting asked to hem your pants or make curtains for your sun room, someone is asking for an "extra" quilt for a donation.

Joanne put together this quilt for a charity auction at her workplace in under two weeks.

I haven't actually put my word to good use yet. My first finishes this year have been two fleece blankets and a pillowcase, all intended as gifts.

Sometimes it's not my fault. I got "volunteered" for the first blanket, when we visited our friends Matt and MaryKate for Thanksgiving. Right before we left, Matt said to his wife, "Honey, why don't you give Nancy that bag of fleece you bought at JoAnn Fabrics and she'll make you a blanket." I had to make a blanket for my dear friend's husband who has to have six weeks of radiation and chemotherapy. How could I let him go to treatment without something hand made and warm to comfort him? The pillowcase is for a friend's three year old boy who loves music. I found the fabric at Sewphisticates ($3.99 a yard) and couldn't resist it. I'm trying to save it for a Valentine's Day gift, but I may end up mailing it early.

If I look at my giant UFO (unfinished objects) list, 99% of the items on it are for me. That's why they never get finished, because I put myself last. So, in honor of saying "No!" in 2014, here are some of MY projects that I want to work on.

My Bali Bed Runner that I started this summer with Ginny Radloff.
I'm taking another class with her this year. I'm so excited!

My 2013 Swoon Block of the Month. I have two blocks finished. Seven more to go.

My Edyta Sitar Laundry Basket applique Block of the Month, started September 2012.
This will be a "life time" achievement quilt if I ever get it finished. And if I do,
I have a couple of Kim MacLean applique patterns in mind.

Here we go 2014. And I'm saying "No!"

What's your word?

I am linking up with Confessions of a Fabric Addict and Richard and Tanya Quilts and CrazyMom Quilts. Thanks for visiting.

Have a great day!
Pugs and kisses,
Nancy