Change of Plans

Yes, believe it or not I am still doing some quilting. At the beginning of the year I had big plans to quilt through the winter and post about all the stitching  I was planning to do. The plans did not include being ill and when I am sick I don't feel like doing much of anything. It started with gallstones on New Years eve and finally after lots of tests, surgery and procedures and more illness, I am feeling more like my self. And though I feel like sewing again it is also gardening season. I did however, do a little quilting this winter so can at least share those projects with you.

 The name of this pattern is Twilight Hopscotch by Kim Diehl. The pattern is available from shopMartingale.com  either as a single pattern or one of her books. Martingale also included it in one of their compilations of quilt designs by various author,s including myself, in their Big Book of Civil War Quilts. I enlarged it by one row of blocks and the addition of the red border. They included 4 of my quilts in the book of 58 designs. Boy if that doesn't give me a notion to do another book. Don't be watching for another book from me.  I did this quilt with the Thursday Group at Studio 3. It also qualifies for an Irish Chain variation for the Stashbusters Yahoo group that did an Irish Chain challenge. And talk about busting stash. I didn't have to buy any fabric! I hope I didn't repeat myself. I should have reviewed my 2017 posts.

I was inspired to make this Halloween quilt while on a roadtrip with friends to visit the Missouri Star Quilt Company. My plan was to choose a simple pattern and buy a piece of fabric for the quilt at the different shops we visited along the way. It didn't quite work out that way as the design didn't require as many prints as the shops we visited. But I'm still pleased with what I chose to make with all new fabric! A simple meander and it COULD be ready by October. But it won't.

Most of my piecing is usually done at Studio 3. The plan is to focus on machine quilting at home, but I worked on these hanging diamonds here at home. I'd collected the prints  over the years without a plan in mind. Once I decided on the plan I cut most of it out and stacked it on the shelf for a kit from stash. When I went back to it I changed my mind about the design and came up with this instead. But then I felt it was best to work on it here since  I needed it on my flannel wall while I assembled it.  It doesn't go together in the usual way and I thought it might take a while to complete and really I didn't want to hog the flannel wall at Studio 3. I think it's the longest any project waited on the wall to be sewn. I enjoyed it there the whole time.

I have started other projects I'll plan to share soon and I did some machine quilting I can share as well but right now Mark is napping under that quilt so I'll wait to get a photo when he's up.
Don't expect lots from me this summer. I am out in the woods or sedge meadow as weather permits. That's most days.