2 more blocks for 1880's Quilt-along

I managed to complete 2 more 5" blocks of Cheryl's Sew-along this week. Hopefully, I will be able to catch up to her soon.

The first block is Diagonal Paths.
It contains 64 pieces of fabric...a LOT for such a small block. lol

The second block I made is the Pennsylvania block.
Much easier with just 25 pieces to this one.

Such sweet little blocks...I'm enjoying this project very much!

every Quilt tells a story...

4 little Janes

Here are my Jane blocks for this week's Post.
Not the usual 6 but it was a very busy week and I'm thankful for the little gems I DID manage to complete.

G4 - Shutter Bug - 29 pieces
D9 - Uncle Richard - 35 pieces
F2 - Kaleidoscope - 28 pieces
E8 - Mama's Maze - 33 pieces
All of the blocks were machine sewn - 125 pieces in total this week.

I am thrilled to announce that my older sister made her very first Jane block!
I am SO proud of her!
Now BOTH of my sisters have started their Jane quilts.
I look forward to sharing this special journey with them!

every Quilt tells a story...

Honor's in Blog Land

Kay H of Quilt Studio Happenings has honored me with the Liebster Blog Award! Normally I shy from blog tags & awards but this one has great heart & substance to it. I will proudly post this award tag on my sidebar.


The aim of the Liebster Blog Award is to bring recognition and exposure to small blogs who have less than 300 followers. If you accept the award, you then agree to tag three other small blogs that you would like to recommend to others.

I can think of so many blogs deserving of this award but here are 3 inspiring blogs that I've carefully chosen to honor:

Quilt Inspiration would have to be my first choice! In my opinion it is a must read blog for quilters. Daryl & Marina fill it with so much valuable information regarding quilt shows, museum events, how to find patterns, free tutorials and feature the most amazing, award winning quilts. No doubt they will surpass the 300 follower mark very soon!

Pleasentree. If you love and/or appreciate Needlework then Merumo will surely inspire you with her beautiful heirloom style stitcheries! She is also a fabulous quilter. Her miniature quilts are gorgeous and all of her work is exquisite. If you stop by her blog - be sure to check out photo's of her darling dachshund LIMO.

Cozy Little Quilts This is a new blog owned by my very dear friend Sue. She creates the most elegant quilts! If you are inspired by Moda fabrics be sure to check out the beautiful quilt she is finishing up right now. I love her taste in fabrics and quilt designs.

The photo above is of SWEET LIBERTY -a miniature doll & tote that I designed back in 2008.

every Quilt tells a story...

Texas Tears - block #4

Here is my Texas Tears block. It is #4 of Barbara Brackman's Civil War block of the week. I am having a wonderful time following along with other quilt bloggers and love seeing the different fabric variations each person chooses for their blocks!

every Quilt tells a story....

Seven Sisters quilt block

I finished Seven Sisters yesterday. It is block #3 of the Civil War block of the week by Barbara Brackman. This block was entirely hand pieced - my method of choice was reverse applique'.

The blue background fabric is one of my very favorite 1800's reproduction prints. It's from an older line called Vintage Indigo by Harriet Hargrave. I look forward to using more of Harriet's Indigo prints in future blocks of this sew-along.


every Quilt tells a story...

Week 2 of January jane blocks

Here are the 6 Jane blocks I worked on this past week.
All were fairly simple for me to assemble and I was grateful for that. It allowed me the chance to catch up on my 2 sew along projects.

I1 Ralph & Nelda's Wedding - 11 pieces, machine sewn
I2 Kaye's Courtyard - 13 pieces, machine sewn
I3 Family Album - 21 pieces, machine sewn
G1 Hattie's Hen House - 8 pieces, hand applique'
H7 Bennington Star - 25 pieces, hand sewn
H13 Farm Fields - 7 pieces, machine sewn

every Quilt tells a story...

1880 Sampler - Cheryl's Sew-along

Here are the first 2 small blocks I made from instructions provided at Cheryl's 1880's Sampler sew-along blog!
Cheryl is recreating the fabulous sampler quilt originally made by Barbara Bucher Snyder of Lancaster County Pennsylvania back in 1880.

I really LOVE this quilt! It will be a longer term project for me. I'm hoping to complete it perhaps sometime in 2012.

Look at the tiny 1/2" squares & bars in this Corner Stone block.
The pink fabric I'm using for the blocks is from Charity "collection for a cause" by Moda. The rest of the fabrics I chose are primarily Jo Morton prints.

This one was a bit challenging for me when it came to matching up the background bead-chain stripes. A non-directional print would have been much easier as the sewing itself was fairly simple.


If you'd like to see the quilt and follow along with Cheryl you can find her link on my sidebar or simply click onto the picture below and it will take you to her free Sew-along blog!
every quilt tells a story.....

Civil War Block of the Week

Like many of my blog friends - I decided to follow along with Barbara Brackman's weekly Civil War sew-along for 2011.

These are the first 2 weekly blocks I've completed.
I'm not comfortable with random scrappy colors so I created a controlled palette for my blocks & quilt. I'm calling my color theme: Early American Patriot which will include colonial shades of red, blue, gray, black & shirting prints.

Each week Barbara will post a block to sew along with facts, events and photo's from the Civil war era. She has created a special blog for this project to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Civil War.

You will find a link to her site on the sidebar of my blog.

every Quilt tells a story....

Last Weeks Janes....

These are the 6 blocks I completed last week. As you can see, I seem to have had a bit of Molasses & Brown sugar on the brain. lol It wasn't until I uploaded the pictures that I realized how brown/beige my choices were.

E4 Buffalo Tree Hopper 11 pieces - machine sewn
J11 Twin Sisters 7 pieces - hand applique'
E9 Quilt Jail 35 pieces - machine sewn
E12 Aunt Ruth's Corset 28 pieces - machine sewn
G2 Mohawk Trail 28 pieces - machine sewn
E5 Rising Sun 17 pieces - machine sewn & hand applique'

As you can tell, I'm a bit behind in my posts. I've been busy visiting and getting to know my new little grandson Alexander.
But see...I wasn't completely idle last week. (grin)

every Quilt tells a story....