Day 2 - Back to the 1980's

Boxes and Boxes in my closet!  One box in my closet was gifted to my daughter and me sometime in the 1990's.  We belonged to a small community group called "Quilt Chat" that met at the local library irregularly.  We found the group by accident one day when we visited the library.  And on one occasion someone brought a box with an un-finished Quilt-as-you-go Log Cabin. This was maybe our first Quilt rescue. It has been untouched for nearly 30 years!

I can date this quilt.
The fabric:       early1980's.  (Earth tones. Calico)
The technique: early 1980's. (Quilt-as-you-go... )
The batting:      early 1980's. (Polyester...)
Way it was cut: early 1980's. (No rotary cutters then)

But there are 20 blocks set in 5 rows, 4 in each row.
This should be a quick finish.

I will post pictures when it is complete!

CathyH

Yo-Yos

June.  I want to work on quilts.

My goal: touch a different quilt project (and work on it!) every day in June.

Today I am evaluating a Quilt I Rescued.  A Yo-yo Quilt.  Well.  Technically you would call it a coverlet since it has no batting and no backing.

I received it in sad shape.  

Some of the yo-yos were sewn with two large stitches of black thread.

Some of the yo-yos had visible knots in the thread that connected them.

BUT  - it is a LOVELY quilt.  44 blocks of 36 yo-yos.  1584 yo-yos!!  Half of them are muslin.  The other half are made from SWEET 30's fabrics, I think!  And the blocks are not just random scraps - they have a common color theme in each one!! 

The yo-yos are constructed well - the gathering step that actually created the yo-yo.  The stitching that holds the yo-yos together ... well... is not uniform.  It suggests the possibility that this was actually a quilt made by more than one person.  But I would like the stitching to look the same throughout the quilt.

So.  Last year I started re-sewing the yo-yos together.  I tear out the old stitching and put in new stitching.  6 whip-stitches between each pair of yo-yos.  

I have completed 23 squares.

I plan to make the quilt 7 blocks by 6 blocks - 42 altogether.  So I still have 19 blocks to re-sew.

I timed myself sewing yo-yos together.  I think it takes about 2 minutes each.

2 minutes x 60 places to stitch on each block = 2 hours per block.

19 blocks @ 2 hours each = 38 hours.

Then I still need to sew all the blocks together.

Today I worked on this.  I WILL finish it. One yo-yo at a time.  Over a few days or weeks or months.

24

I MAY become known as a Quilt Rescuer.
A friend had a friend who had this BEAUTY - but did not want it any more.

I MAY have said "Yes" to another unfinished project.

Here it is - bundled on my lap!  SWEET!

Here you can see the wonderful choices of color and placement of the Yo-yo's.You can also see the.. love that it needs to repair some not-so-perfect sewing.

And it came with a gallon bag of Vintage Fabric Circles - if I need to make more Yo-yo's.

Dirt - A Mother's Day Gift

MAY 23rd I received my Mother's Day Gift, as promised.
Dirt.
A LOT of dirt.
A Dump Truck with dirt.
 Dirt = Love

The Dump Truck left it on the driveway.
4 Cubic Yards. 
Our Oldest Son spent the day hauling the dirt from the driveway to the backyard.
My project for the day - spreading the dirt in the flower beds in the back yard.

Oh!! The plants MAY really love this!!

22 - Physics Project

Yes.
I know.
This is not a Quilting or Crafting project.
But the High School Physics class I teach had Project Presentations today.

The teacher MAY be more happy the class is finished
than the kids are happy that the class is finished!

Now, on to other projects!!

Black Jack! 21!

Black and White and Bright Blocks
From a Block-of-the-Month ... Don't know when.

I plan to do this quilt-as-you-go so it is easy on my little sewing machine.
I have chosen solid colors that MAY frame the blocks and back the blocks.
(you can see the backing fabric in the box...)

It MAY Happen....
MAYbe.

Twenty - Tea Time!

The Old Blocks I pulled out to work on for MAY 15 were quite a challenge.
I lacked OLD material to put these together.

I DID find some old muslin - but it was far too clean, far too white.
So...  it's TEA TIME!
Time to tea-dye some fabric to use with so many vintage blocks I have collected.

Here's a new way to look at a Pot of Tea

The Muslin is ready to take a bath..

Letting it soak.....

Mission Accomplished!!!

I found some old Quilt squares in a box in one of my closets ... Squares that used nice, old, cotton fabric (the PINK vase above) and then some other scraps (double knit, seersucker) that were not so appropriate for quilting.  I cannibalized those blocks so I could make little vases for my flowers.

I am still working on these blocks... and think the vase needs to be a little bit bigger. 

I MAY figure that out this weekend.