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Friday, May 15, 2020

It's a good day in the neighborhood

The sun is out.  WOOHOO.
And, best news yet, Oregon is starting to open up. I'm not sure what to do first! VBG.  I think the local quilt store is requiring reservations to come and shop.  I think I'll wait on that one.

I was motivated this week by the Mini Maven Mainiac, Miss Wendy Reed [constantquilter], to get my May mini done!  I found some orphan blocks in a drawer and decided to set them using some DiFord fabric (I believe it's her design) I had.  I have accumulated a fair amount of border/stripe type fabrics that I've yet to use.  VOILA!!  

What's interesting about this mini is that I have the original quilt here at the cabin.  Same blocks that are set differently.


I'm not sure you can see the binding fabric very well.  This fabric had two different prints side by side:  the floral and the ribbon.  I decided to use the ribbon for the binding (well, I had to cut them off anyway to get the floral strips cut).  I'm calling this Tic Tac Toe!!

Here is the original quilt.  The blocks are 4" finished, by the way. So each little 4-patch is 1".  I made this as part of a swap maybe 5-6 years ago.  The original pattern was called Dipped in Chocolate.  I can't remember where it came from though.

I think it's so interesting to see the difference between the two with just the setting.  Same exact blocks!  I actually prefer the setting with the floral print.  The quilting on the larger quilt is very tight so it's not a particularly soft cuddly quilt.  Oh well.  I have already hung up my mini on my wall and I think it adds lots of perkiness, if that's a word!

I have also been making more of the trip around the world blocks and the album blocks.  I'm hoping to get enough done to put them together into a quilt maybe this weekend.  I'm meeting my long arm quilter friend next week so hope to give her one.

Do you see the horseshoe in the upper right corner?  That was a project little Emma made last summer in horseback riding camp so I decided to hang it on my design wall.



We did go back to California over last weekend to see all our kids.  I hold Mother's Day very dear to my heart every year so I didn't want to miss it.  We had our grandkids staying overnight and they loved that too.  No one is sick so we feel okay about being together.  This is me with all 5 grandkids;  the baby wasn't too happy about being in the picture!


Hope you are all well and healthy and safe.  This too shall pass--hopefully sooner rather than later.  



13 comments:

  1. I love your Mini May, Randy. Love the border/binding fabric too. Wow. The original quilt is just awesome in my book. That "horse" shoe has bling bling on it, no? Anywho! On my monitor it looked like an unicorn shoe. VBG! Wonderful picture of you and your little ones. Darlings all of them. Take care. ;^)

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  2. The mini is fabulous!! And so is the bigger version, I think..two completely different looks--amazing!
    I like how your TAW is coming what size strips (are you using strips or squares?) are you using...Neat colors in it
    Hope you have a great weekend Julierose

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  3. I didn't realize at first how small the blocks were until seeing your original quilt. That was a great use of the border fabric for the sashing and an even better use for the binding. Love the blocks you're working on and , of course, the bling horseshoe. Glad you could celebrate Mother's day together.

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  4. A great mini--love making something out of leftover pieces. And I like the way you used the fabric for sashing and binding. Very effective. The original quilt is really eye-catching!
    I really like each of your other two projects, but the winner is the photo of you and the grands! Glad you got to celebrate together. :)

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  5. Congrats on your finish! Lovely projects on the go. What a special Mother's Day you had with all those grands!

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  6. wowzer that mini is fantastic! such tiny pieces.
    great family photos with your grands. Glad you are healthy.
    Stay safe during the opening friend.

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  7. What a fabulous mini!! Love the original too. I cannot believe how those kids have grown! Love Jack's smile! Stay safe and healthy!

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  8. I recognized those blocks from your blog header but never imagined the blocks were so small! Love the finished top and the fussy cut sashings. How fun to have all your grands together!

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  9. Cute mini! Have away liked the quilt in your header. Those are tiny blocks! The other blocks are turning out really well! Going to be lovely scrap quilts...my favorites. Love the picture with the grands. Stay well!

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  10. Love the mini, good choice in the sashing and binding, such pretty fabric! The scrappy blocks at the bottom are great too! Love the blend of colors. take care. xo

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  11. oooh 5 little grands...you are so blessed! and awesome mini quilt...

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  12. A great mini finish and those pieces are just so small! I like the "x and o" effect of your setting. Cute horseshoe - you've got it hanging upside down though! Flip it the other way so it "catches" good luck:). the photo with you and your grandkids is great!!

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  13. Randy, is it possible to follow your blog by email? Carol in Texas

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