Nine Patch Quilt

Happy New Year to all the nice people that stop by my blog. May you have a good year. Here's an old fashioned nine patch that I'm making for a donation quilt. I won't have time to pin it to the backing and batting until next week. I thought that it was time to "get back to my roots" in quilting. I cut 4 inch wide strips, and join them up in threes. Then I cut those up into 4 inch sections, and I join into blocks. After that, I square the blocks up, and only then do I cut out the plain blocks, when I know what exact size to cut them. This quilt is not a regular size bed quilt, it only has 15 pieced and 15 plain blocks, finishing approximately 50 x 60 inches.

Unlovely Crochet blanket

Here is a warm-as-toast blanket. And it's free--I just used all the left-over sport weight yarn in my stash. I made this blanket several years ago, thinking that I was making a summer blanket, as it's only sport yarn and full of holes. Wrong--it's now my favorite winter warmer. First the flannel sheet goes on the bed, then this blanket and a few quilts on top of that. I "designed" this blanket as follows. Chain about 100. Turn, skip three sts and sc in next ch. Sk 3 ch, and sc in next st. At end of row, ch 3. Following rows: Ch 3, sc in first loop, *ch 3, sc in next loop. Continue in this pattern until you reach the width size of the bed you are making the blanket for. As you use up yarn, just join in another bit and keep going--there's no color or pattern here, it's just any sport-weight yarn you have on hand, or can buy from the close-out bin, or any odds and ends you can get from friends who may want to get rid of them. Make as many of these width lengths as you need for your bed--I have five width strips in my blanket. Then, crochet the widths together. As you come to the end of the rows, you will find that some are too short or too long. Adjust as necessary, by adding rows or subtracting. I found that with 5 width strips, I have enough blanket to tuck under at the foot of the bed.

The snow is snowing

Well, the mountains are sprinkled with snow here, after the cold rainstorm we had. This is the view from where I live, Saddleback Mountain. And below is the delicious knitted collar for a little girl. It's made of Lion Brand Fun Fur. The pattern is on their web site. A neighbor gave me the yarn. So it's free! What a nice lady. I guess that she wanted to make a scarf with the yarn, and got disgusted with it. Believe me, it's a hard yarn to work with. And as if that's not bad enough, the directions called for using two strands held together. The good side of it is, no one will ever detect any mistakes made during the knitting process. Here endeth the knitting and crocheting for Holiday Gifts (I think).

Now I have finally decided what I want to do. I don't like to be hanging around between projects for too long. I'm happier if I have something partially cut out and by the machine, ready for a few seams to be run up whenever there's a moment. Even if I'm on hold on the phone, I can put the phone on speaker and sew something. I've decided to make a bunch of plain old scrappy nine-patches. I cut strips 4 inches wide, join them and then slice into 4 inch sections. I plan to join the patches together to make a lap quilt for donation. I have no idea if I have cut out the right amount of patches, or how big the quilt will end up being.

Here's the hat that goes with the mittens. I got the pattern from http://sandyfroglegs.blogspot.com/ I like the pattern, it's not too lacy for a man, easy to make, and requires no pompom on the top.

Crochet mittens

This is the last of my "series" on quick-to-make gifts, I think (unless something comes up). Anyhow, I dimly remembered that back in the stone age sometime, I had a set of directions for crochet mittens in every size. I must have lost those back in the mists of time. I hardly have any reason to make mittens around here in Southern California. But I have a grandson--who was kind enough to post on the blog here recently--and if you read what he wrote, mitts were mentioned! I browsed around the Internet lately, and what luck--I found those old directions (minus a picture), and recognized the pattern. The pattern makes mitts in a jiffy, and the mitts are stretchy and the pattern includes many sizes, and it lives up to the title of "Crochet Mitten's for the family" (I forgive the person who posted this pattern for her little slip in grammar.) The website where the directions come from is www.knitting-crochet.com

Crochet scarves: coming and going

Here's some more quickly made gifts. These scarves are made with the same stitch, but one was worked horizontally, and the other vertically. Although they are crocheted, they're not too lacy for a man. But a lady might like them too, as they are soft and warm. Just add a fringe, I guess. Anyhow, to make the horizontal one about 7 ounces of knitting worsted yarn is required and a size J hook. Chain about 150 to 160 stitches. Work hdc in third ch and in each ch across. For each following row: Ch2, hdc in the back loop of each stitch. Keep going until the desired size, or you use up the yarn. To make the vertical scarf, about 6 ounces of knitting worsted yarn is needed, and a size J hook. Chain 28, and follow the directions above, until scarf is length desired, or you run out of yarn.

I spy quilt

I saw a quilt I liked in Quick Quilts magazine. It was designed by Caren Zimmerman. It's not an "I spy quilt" in the magazine, but used various prints in the blocks. But I thought that the pattern would make a good I spy type of quilt. I have the blocks stitched together, but I have to make a border and acquire a suitable batting and backing for it. The blocks are cut 7 1/2 inches, and 4 1/2 inches and the strips are cut 2 inches wide.

Quick-to-make Gifts

I made the pillow below for a gift. I like to use the half double crochet stitch and work it in the back loop. That gives a nice, soft stitch and has a "knitted" appearance. For this pillow, I chained 50 using knitting worsted yarn and a size J hook. Hdc in third chain from the hook, and in each chain. Chain 2, hdc in the back loop for all the remaining rows. Make two pieces the same size. Measure the rectangle, add seam allowances and sew a pillow form to insert in the pillow. Crochet all around the edges, inserting the pillow form.

If you are in a hurry for a gift, find some left over yarn and make a couple of granny squares, from 14 ot 16 inches square. Then measure, and make a pillow form. I made the pillow form out of a scrap of muslin and filled it with bits of left-over quilt batting. Crochet the squares together, inserting the form.

Here's a baby sweater that I made. I found the pattern on http://www.plymouthyarn.com/. I'm always searching for a pattern that is in knitting worsted yarn and takes 4 stitches to the inch. This little sweater is knitted from the top down, using some yarn that I had in my stash.

And another one

This little quilt is made in the Chinese coin pattern. I think that the name comes from the fact that many years ago (I don't know if this is still the case) Chinese money came with a hole in the middle, so that it could be stacked up on a spindle. Sort of the equivalent of our penny rolls. I had one of those coins when I was a kid. Anyhow, it's also a donation quilt. And I have found a new place to donate it to, too. (Pardon the dangling participle, but my old English teachers don't read my blog. They would all be in teacher heaven by now, anyhow.) So what I have done is to join up with a lovely group of ladies who do needlework over at our civic center once a week. And we donate a lot of stuff that we make to help homeless people to get back on their feet, and overcome their homelessness.
To make this quilt in a hurry, cut long strips that are 2 1/2 inches wide and join up two or three at a time. Slice the strips into 4 1/2 inch wide pieces, mix them up, and join the pieces into 36 or 45 inch strips. Cut background fabric into 3 1/2 inch wide strips and join the quilt top together. Add borders. This quilt is approximately 33 by 41 inches.

Donation quilt

This quilt, plus two others, (and a baby sweater and hat that I crocheted a few months ago) is gone to a good cause. My grandchildren took them to the "Adopt A Family" project at their college. Isn't that nice. My plan was to utility quilt this one using the Methodist Knot stitch. I used a 3 inch Soft Sculpture Doll needle and pearl cotton size 12. And that worked fine. But I didn't work so fine, I simply didn't find the time to sit down and do it. Eventually, after completing only a couple of rows of the utility stitch, I wanted to finish up this quilt and send it to the Adopt A Family in time for the deadline. So I adjusted my sewing machine and machine quilted it with a wave stitch.

Baby quilt

Happy Thanksgiving to all my dear blogging friends. This happens to be my 200th blog entry! I got up early and baked some brownie cookies for the big dinner. I have a lot to be thankful for today. First of all, I woke up today. And I have a wonderful family, friends and neighbors. Lots of things to be thankful for, our free country among them. My darling oldest daughter is making the dinner today. I'll go over and pitch in. And besides that, I have completed this quilt.

Now it can be told

Here they are, the secret can now be revealed. I made vests for each of my youngest grandchildren. I know that they read my blog, so I didn't post the vests until the girls received them. Now that the weather is turning a bit colder, I hope that they will get a chance to wear them. The red vest is crocheted, but I didn't make crocheted ribbing. Instead, I made the vest and then knitted on the ribbing. The purple vest was a plain pattern and I added a knitted mosaic pattern that I found in a Barbara Walker book.

Strips Baby Quilt

Here it is, all pin basted. It's a Strips Baby Quilt and makes a very quick donation quilt. To make it, cut strips of children's fabrics and other fabric to fill in, the full length of the fabric from 2 1/2 to 6 inches wide. I usually make the baby fabrics the wider strips. Sew them together, making one edge even. When the quilt is about 36 inches, it's done. Trim the uneven side and press. I want to try doing some of that utility quilting on it.

knitted poncho

A neighbor decided to give me her yarn in a big bag. It turned out to be some very nice bulky wool yarn (which I never buy) and there was enough to knit a poncho. Here's some of it, as it's still on the needles. She had started a lovely afghan out of boucle yarn (also something I never buy) and since it's made of granny squares, I just picked up where she left off. So there you are, and I don't even know the lady's name! Now, back to my sewing!

Due to family stuff going on, I've hardly had time to sew the last couple of days. I live in Southern California, and although I'm about 30 miles from the nearest wildfire, we do have smoke in the air, even though the sky looks so blue. It's really a shame about the folks whose homes have been burned, and those who had to evacuate. The firemen and police did a great job. I really admire the pilots of the planes and helicopters who have been flying day and night to fight the fires.

Utility Quilting

Because of all the interest, I have made a quick sampler of utility stitches. I learned these stitches from the book "Rotary Riot" by Judy Hopkins and Nancy J. Martin.
The stitches are from left to right: Crow footing (I call it fly stitch), Cross stitch, Buttonhole stitch, Mennonite Tack, and Methodist Knot. The principle of these stitches is that a small stitch of about 1/4 inch long is taken through all layers. The next step is to slide the needle through the batting to the position for the next stitch. I used a darning needle. I made the stitches in the sample with quilting thread. However, pearl cotton or crochet cotton can be used. The thread can be any color. Please pardon my messy stitches--except for the fly stitch, they're new to me.
1. Crow footing or fly stitch: Slide the needle into the first position, go through all layers from the other corner to the point. Tack in place by sliding the needle into position and through to the spot for the next stitch.
2. Cross stitch: The needle goes through all layers to form the top of the "X", then crosses and slides through and goes to the next spot.
3. Buttonhole stitch is just like the crow footing, only the thread is at right angles.
4. Mennonite tack: Take a back stitch through all layers, about 1/4 inch long. Slide the needle to just before the starting point, and take a tiny stitch, over the end of the back stitch. It forms a little "t," sliding the needle forward to the next spot.
5. Methodist Knot: Start with a back stitch through all layers, and follow by a smaller back stitch in the front, through the top layer only. Slide the needle through the batt to the next spot.
I have only tried the last two stitches just now, and I found them to be additive.

Utility-quilted liberated baby quilt

Here are the pictures of the completed quilt. I tried the utility quilting method. I used bedspread type crochet cotton for the stitches. I spread the quilt on the table and stitched it, using a darning needle. The backing is flannel, so the stitching was quite easy to do. As you can see in the photo, the method gives the quilt an embroidered appearance. And it looks puffy. The only change I would make is to use a regular weight batt, instead of the thin acrylic one I used. I think that regular weight batting would have given a more puffed effect. And I would recommend this method over the usual tying, especially for a baby quilt. So I've learned how to do something really old-fashioned, and a nearly forgotten method.

Another way to tie a quilt

Well, happily I'm feeling much better from the eye infection, I'm so glad that I went to the doctor. And I have pin basted the baby quilt that I'm making. I hope that you can see from this photo. I'm using the bedspread crochet cotton, and a nice darning needle. (Does anyone darn anymore? I can't remember the last time I darned anything.) And I'm stitching fly stitches, quite far apart. It's easy. I guess it might be better if I put the quilt in a frame, but I'm a frameless person. I tried a hoop, but I didn't like it. I started at the middle top. The method calls for sliding the needle through the batt from one stitch to the other. You bring the needle up to the surface, and then you stitch through all layers when you make the next step in the stitch, from the side down to the point. Then you stitch through the point, and slide the needle through the batt again. I guess I made that clear as mud. I hope that you can see it in the photo.

There's good news and bad news. The good news is that I have pieced together a quilt top for my charity donation. Some liberated stars put together with yellow gingham. This seems to be about the last of my yellow gingham, of which I had nearly a whole bolt. "I'm waiting for my ship to come in," as they used to say in my old book, The Five Little Peppers," which I read over and over when I was a kid. Ha, ha that book is so dated now--actually I'm just waiting for the batt that I ordered to arrive in the mail! Now on to the bad news--after spending a couple of hours in the doctor's office--I have conjunctivitis--known as pink eye, and etc. So now I'm taking those little pills. And here I was feeling so good, after enduring two weeks of the last sickness. Never mind. I want to make another quilt this week, too. I have in mind a Chinese coin of some kind--but I'll think about it. Meanwhile, I have finished knitting socks for my cousin Sandy. They're knitted with Kroy yarn. I don't know when I'll get to the Post Office to send them to her. To be continued.

Here's the quilt blocks I started for the binkie I want to make. Phone the quilt police! Looking kind of fungly--thanks to Gwen Marston's books, its another one of those Liberated Star things. I don't know how many of these stars I'll make--not too sure where I'm going with this.

Here's my new crocheted sweater, I sewed on the buttons last night while I was watching TV. When I was a kid, umpteen years ago, there was a song on the radio, "It looks better on the dummy than it does on me." It was about a lady who saw a hat on the dummy in the store window, and when she got it home, it was not becoming on her. My Mom and I used to sometimes remember that song when we went shopping, and have a laugh. I guess I can say that about this sweater, it looked so cute in the photo in the book. And it's patchwork. I had every color of yarn required except for the orange and the red. So I sent away for the yarn, and lo and behold, although I was using the exact brand of yarn like in the book, the red was in no way like the orange! It was much thinner, softer, and slicker. I had to phone the yarn company. Thank goodness almost every little thing that you buy has a phone number on it. So the lady at the yarn company was very nice, and about a month later, three skeins of the correct yarn arrived. And eventually, I finished the sweater. And tried it on. Oh well, at least it's a warm sweater. And as soon as the weather cools down, (it's about 80 degrees Fahrenheit) I can wear it. (If I dare.)

Bean Soup Recipe

Three Can Soup

A really easy recipe, and very healthy, low fat. I don't add any extra salt.

4 cups water

1/4 cup barley

2 carrots, sliced

2 parsnips, sliced

1 potato, cubed

1/2 cup (more or less) frozen mixed vegetables

1 can kidney beans, drained

1 can mushrooms, drained

8 oz. can tomato sauce

1 or 2 bouillon cubes

parsley, either fresh or dried

1 tablespoon of dried onions, or a small onion, chopped

dash of cumin

dash of Mrs. Dash seasoning

pepper

handful of macaroni, broken spaghetti, or noodles

Put ingredients except the pasta in a big pot and bring a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for about 30 minutes. Add more water, if necessary (soup will be thick). Throw in the pasta and cook about 15 minutes more. Serves 6. Nice reheated.

Hint, to cool down a pot of soup for refrigerating--add a few ice cubes.

Binkie

I'm starting a new thing, I want to make some donation quilts for the Binky Patrol. I just put this quilt top together. I call it a "liberated" I Spy. It's very easy, especially because I had strings and stuff hanging around, left overs from other projects. I ordered a large batt. I'm planning to cut it into four parts, to make 4 binkies.

This is the quilt that I'm sending to our new baby, Ella. I hope that she will be warm and cozy.

This is the vest that I knitted for my oldest granddaughter. She wanted bright purple, and so it is. You know, when I knit with knitting worsted, no matter what size needles or what brand of yarn I use, darned if I can get the 5 stitches to the inch that most patterns call for. I bought those new bamboo needles, and I just love them, but that didn't help. And I tried buying a better brand of yarn, but no dice. I guess that I knit more loosely than other people. My solution was to start a file with knitting patterns that are 16 stitches to 4 inches. I just leaf through that file, and I can change the stitch pattern if I want. This pattern was in an old vest leaflet, and I changed the knitting pattern to k1, p1 on one row and plain knit on the other. Anyway, I'm saving this vest to give for the holidays.

So, what's new? how about a new baby? We are welcoming a new baby girl named Ella to the family. Let's see, baby Ella is my first cousin's granddaughter. So maybe she's my second cousin? I guess I shouldn't get too technical about that. Anyhow, I have made a baby quilt and pink sweater, in the past few months. How did I know the baby would be a girl and made her a pink sweater? Well, the truth is, I didn't know, so I made a pink one and a blue one. I used to be a Girl Guide (called Girl Scout, in the USA) and although that was about sixty years ago, I did learn to "be prepared." A baby boy will turn up for the blue sweater one of these days, I hope. Best wishes to our darling baby and her family. Meanwhile, I'm planning to make a "liberated" I Spy quilt. I've just started on it. It's just a couple of sample blocks and a big mess of scraps on the ironing board at the moment.

Wonky Dresden plate quilt

Here it is, finished at last. I used the same fabric for the binding as for the borders. It is free-motion quilted. I don't know why I made this quilt, it was an impulse. That could be a title for a book--the Impulsive Quilter. I used Jan Mullen's book "Free & Eazy Circles," for making the quilt, except that I made my own modifications to the instructions, I used muslin for the foundations for the circles. And I found that if I made a running stitch around the circles, they were so much easier to applique. The circles are all hand appliqued to the background. I used all kinds of scraps for the quilt, even the backgrounds were bits of solids.

I'm back!

Wow, my free advice for you--don't catch a cold. My Uncle Maurice (the doctor) used to say, "If you treat your cold, you'll be well in a week. And if you do nothing for it, it takes seven days." But bronchitis takes longer, Oy. Anyhow, I feel stronger this evening, and not coughing so much. I'm going to pin together my Dresden plate quilt. I have to piece together some left over bits of batting. First of all, I have tons of left-over bits of batting stashed away, and second of all, I don't have a batt handy at the moment. I usually order batting when I get a "free shipping" coupon from that big yard goods store--you know the one. But I realized that it's come to the point where I better start trying to use up some of the left-over batting. By the way, I have found that left-over batting is great for stuffing those little crochet toys.
The other day, my neighbor asked me," What was so funny, we heard you laughing and laughing this morning?' I had to tell them, "That wasn't laughing, that was me coughing to death." I think that then they were a bit embarrassed. Life is like a fish bowl when you live in a condo.

The best laid plans

Well, shucks, I went and caught a cold. Now I have bronchitis. I'll have to take it easy for a few days. I thought I'd tell you something about my stash, which you can see by the look of the Dresden plate quilt seems to contain the most old and useless fabrics. I was talking with a couple of friends some time ago and one of them asked "Roz, you must have a big wastebasket in your sewing room for all the scraps?" The answer is no, I have an empty coffee can for any bits of fabric and threads.

Dresden Plate quilt

I'm making this wonky Dresden plate quilt. I got the instructions from the book "Free & Eazy Circles" by Jan Mullen. I used muslin for the foundations for the circles. I have to quilt it now. I plan to free motion quilt. This quilt is smaller than what I usually make. I don't know why, but I decided that 12 blocks were enough. I really enjoyed hand-appliqueing the blocks to the foundations. I used any light solids I could find for the foundation squares. I have quite a large piece of the brown that I used for the sashes.
Next, I hope to make a donation quilt following the ideas in the beginning chapters of Gwen Marston's book "Liberated Quiltmaking." And I still have that table runner that I put aside several weeks ago. I'm doing some knitting lately, but I don't want to show pictures because they are a present, and the recipients have been know to glance at the blog from time to time.
A little bit of quilting-type excitement for me. After all these years of quilt making I discovered something called "utility quilting." I do vaguely recall seeing a quilt in an old book that was quilted with cross stitch, but the idea never registered. I got my hands on a book published in 1991 called--I'm not kidding--"Rotary Riot" by Judy Hopkins and Nancy J. Martin. And in the very back pages, it describes quilting by hand using cross stitch, fly stitch (the authors call it "crow footing") buttonhole stitch, Mennonite Tack, and Methodist Knot. These stitches are used instead of tying the quilt. And I do believe that the method looks neater and quicker that tying. The process involves taking one of these stitches on the quilt using a long needle, and then sliding the needle through the batt, to the next spot. The fly stitch is the one that appeals to me. It's a stitch any one who embroiders would know.

Heart wall hanging, or mat

Here's a little wall hanging or mat that I made for my good friend Quilting Cindy. I hope to get to the PO sometime this week to send it to her.

Now on to the further adventures of Roz: In the last episode, Roz's nine year old Stereo bit the dust. The little thingy where you insert the CD's got stuck. It's a good thing in a way that the thingy got stuck in the outy position, and didn't eat my CD's. Also, I will admit that it only played one radio station, and only one of the two doors for playing tapes still opened. So I looked on the Internet to see how much it would cost to replace. The answer is nothing. It seems that the stereo is completely obsolete. My stereo could play CD's, radio, cassette tapes and old-fashioned records. I have the forty year old records to prove it. However, it is possible to buy something called a Shelf Stereo. It will play CD's and has a radio. My daughter went with me to the store and helped me to pick out a new stereo. And my grandson told me that he would come over, remove my old stereo, and install the new one in my entertainment center. However, before that could occur, she went to see friends in another county with the stereo still in the trunk. So my new stereo went on a sight-seeing trip for about 100 miles. But my grandson did phone me today and say that he has possession of the thing and will be over later to take care of it. OK, you say, but what will happen to my 125 cassette tapes and my phonograph records? Well I do have an ancient radio with good sound in my sewing room that plays tapes. And I will donate the records to the library for the Friend of the Library Book Sale. Actually, if I give away the records, I'll have the space for more books and a basket of fabric!

Wow, Wow

Today didn't start out too well. I had a dentist appointment. Then my stereo died. But guess what? It turns out that today is my lucky, lucky day! Quilting Cindy sent me this adorable bag! The mail doesn't arrive here until the late afternoon. I'm so happy. Now not only does this bag look cute, but it's reversible. And it makes a super Halloween decoration (of which I had none); and it will be good for holding those socks I'm knitting or toting the mail. So a big thank you to Cindy.

Tree Wall Hanging

Here's my tree wall hanging, I finished it. I designed this myself, so all the blame is on me. It's hand appliqued and embroidered. I included the Bible verse on the bottom. That's where my idea came from. I like to make a double line of quilting on wall hangings. My arthritis is too bad to be quilting a whole quilt, but I can get away with a small piece. I thought that I should take two photos, one showing a close-up. Of course, I put the photos on the blog in the wrong order. I do that often. I did make a hanging tunnel on the back, but I generally hang my wall quilts on a pants hanger on a door. Then I can switch them around, for different holidays or seasons.

Orphan train

Well, I'm really honored. Finn has put my fungly quilt on her Orphan Train web site. Just take a peek over there.
http://orphantrainsfromfinn.blogspot.com/2008/09/introducing-roz.html

A new direction

I'd like to thank The Liberated Quilter's Web ring for inviting me to be a member. Such wonderful quilters. And while I was at it, I rearranged my blog a bit. I have moved my reading list to a link. I'm trying to list some of my books on the librarything web site now.

Now, on to the adventures of my fungly quilt. I had sewn on most of the binding on Saturday night, and completed it on Sunday morning. I had the luck to notice one of my neighbors outside and she was kind enough to hold the quilt up for a photo. In the afternoon, my daughter came over and I showed her the quilt. "Perfect for my new Hammock!" she said. They have a hammock under a canopy in their yard. So that quilt was finished and found a home on the same day.

Now on to my quilting. Above is a photo of a Dresden plate pattern pillow that I made quite a few years ago. The little cross stitch house has snow on the roof (no snow where I live)--but never mind. Dresden plate is one of my favorite patterns. Once upon a time, a long, long time ago, I made a Dresden plate quilt. It was hand stitched and quilted one block at a time, and then I joined the blocks together. We used it to tatters. Anyhow, I thought that I might like to make another Dresden plate quilt, but not that kind, even though I have the plastic template and everything. So I purchased Jan Mullen's book, "Free & Eazy Circles." I wanted a liberated version. Then I tried to make a sample block. Jan Mullen calls for a cotton batting as a foundation for the ring. Well, I don't have cotton batting, and even if I did, it would make so much lint in the bobbin. I don't know why, but she never thought of a muslin foundation. I tried that and it worked fine. You then hand applique the wonky result to a block. I like it. I will probably make a quilt of these circle things. About muslin, I used to sew with it a lot, and my old Dresden plate quilt was made with it as the background. I still have a bunch of it laying around here and there. But lately I've gotten fancy and I generally use "quilter's cotton" in a neutral color instead. I remember the days when the old Montgomery Ward store used to advertise white cotton sheets for $2.50 during white sale days (they were loosely woven, not tight like the sheets they sell now). I would phone the linen department at opening time and ask the lady if she had any of those sheets in the ad. If she did have any, she would only have a few, they were a loss leader. I would say, "This is Rosalyn, and I'm coming right down, hold one for me." I would take that sheet, wash it, and cut it up for my quilts.

Completed Fungly Sampler Quilt

Well, here it is, the fungly quilt is finished. It came out to be a good size, about 50 by 90 inches, more or less. And totally ridiculous. But you know, I got to like it, and it's going to make a nice nap quilt. And thanks to Tonya (Lazy Gal blog) for encouraging me to make it. I don't think I'll ever make a "normal" quilt again. And I used up a lot of fabrics and bits and pieces that have been in my boxes for years and years. Some of those blocks used in the border were cut with a scissors on pencil marks--before I even used a rotary cutter. Meanwhile, I'm on overload with projects. I ordered yarn, books, and so forth. And everything has arrived. I'm making a bunch of stuff. Socks, vests, a sweater, and of course I'm hand quilting that tree wall hanging. So I just have to try to keep completing things as soon I can.

Here's one thing I'm planning on doing this afternoon, I'm going for a dip in the pool. This pool is part of the condominium complex where I live. As far as my many projects are going, the fungly is half tied. (That sounds funny--fungly) I wonder how anyone else is progressing on finishing a fungly project? And I've finished the embroidery on the tree wall hanging, and have found a scrap of batting for it. It's ready for hand quilting. And I started knitting a sock.

The tree so far

I've added the tree to my wall hanging, and embroidered it, but there is much more to do, as I plan to embroider a saying on the bottom, and add borders. Meanwhile, I've gathered together left over bits of strings and blocks and made a border on the fungly quilt. I hope to pin baste it later today, maybe. It will no doubt be a "museum piece" when finished. And I have so many projects going at once--knitting a vest for my librarian daughter--surprises for my granddaughters--crocheting a sweater for myself--making a table runner--the list goes on! Meanwhile, a new crochet book arrived.

The fungly quilt, so far

This is so much fun! I'm really enjoying myself. Some of these fabrics were remnants from the dime store (when dime stores did sell fabrics!). And some of them were cut-offs that I got at rummage sales. In those years, when I was raising three kids, money didn't grow on trees, and there were no fancy quilt stores. The yard goods store was where I bought fabric to make summer dresses and blouses. The left-over bits went into my quilts. I made a few of these blocks especially for the fungly quilt, and the rest were just sample blocks and failed projects. I started thinking, "Is my quilt fungly enough?" Then I realized that that's not the "fungly way" to think! I'm also enjoying visiting other people's blogs to see their fungly masterpieces. I'm going to add a fungly border---to be continued--

Fungly sampler quilt

This is what my fungly quilt is looking like on my "design bed." I'm calling it a sampler quilt. Remember years ago, people made sampler quilts in shades of brown calico? I made strips of the blocks and I have to join them together. I wanted to get them to be approximately the same width. But this is not the final order of the blocks yet. I happen to have a very big piece of that strange brownish solid color. So I'm using that for the sashes. I once was fascinated by the quilt block called "Practical Orchard." But I had a hard time figuring out how to make all the bits of the block fit together, and how to set the quilt. There's my two failed attempts at the quilt block in the fungly. A good place for them. I have lots of stuff for the border of the quilt, and I'm having so much fun so far.

fungly fungly

I'm sure that most people have read an old English novel--you know the kind--the sweet young thing is seduced into eloping with the evil, rakish fellow, and she is "ruined." Tonya--these fungly quilt blocks have ruined me. I now can take a pile of scraps, and with little forethought, whip out a rather crooked quilt block in about 20 or so minutes! And it's so much fun, I may never make a fussy, exacting, quilt police quilt again! I didn't even know what kind of pattern this was going to be when I began. Between these blocks, and the mess of odd blocks and parts of blocks that I found it an old box of mine--I don't know how fungly I will achieve!