It’s almost 2026. This year has passed by fast. I’m sure that I have many more ufos than I did last year. I have plans to finish them next year. At least some of them. My plan for January 1st is to gather them all together and make a list. And to decide which ones I really don’t want to finish.

The clue for this month’s Magnificent Mystery is finished.

The instructions call this a flower. There are 60 flowers. The next clue will come on the first Thursday in January. It sounds like a lot to sew, but I had all the month to complete the clue.

I just heard that there will be another SAHRR in 2026. I have enjoyed making the Stay At Home Round Robins for the past few years. It’s fun to see what others can do with the same instructions. I didn’t finish last years. My choice of colors was not right. That quilt is in one of the ufo craft boxes. When I get to that box, I probably will cut it up for a mile a minute quilt. It will have a happier home there. Hopefully, I can do better this year.

My big quilt with the same pattern as the table topper is pieced. I pieced it in four quarters so that the parts would be smaller under the needle for quilting. This is one quarter of the quit on the basting frame.

Every seam in the blocks will be machine quilted using different built in embroideries. This has been taking a long time. There are a lot of threads to be buried. As I was working on this, I discovered that the best method was to quilt all the lines in one direction, leaving the ends loose. Then at night while watching tv, I tie the ends and bury them. Then, I’ll go back and quilt in the other direction, again tying the ends at night. I’ve found some nice embroideries. Some I will only use once. Others I’ll use several times.

These are some of the pieces in the Cynthia English wall hanging. It is the second registered ufo to finish before September. This project is very stressful. The pieces are very small. I know why it is a ufo. But it is registered and I will finish it. If only a little bit at a time. Quilting is supposed to be fun, but this is not.

I received six fat quarters of beautiful red and blue fabric in a Yankee swap. I knew if I put them in a drawer, I would not use them. A friend had been talking about the Easy Peasy mystery quilt that I had designed, so I thought that I would make it with the fat quarters. This is a quick and easy quilt, so I used the fabric and made it. It is so much fun to make a quilt, that looks complicated, quickly.

I used three-inch squares for the first nine patch. It is a good size for a community quilt. The quilt can be made in all sizes from a mini to a king size, depending on the size of the original cut squares. The remaining fabric will be pieced for the back. This is a great pattern for leftover scraps.

2025 is ending with some fun quilts and one not so fun.

Have a great day and happy quilting.

The first of the three registered UFOs is almost finished. The only thing left is the embroidered letter B. I’m going to move it to another UFO bin and consider the first bin completed. I think that I know what I want to do with it, but not now.

The first bin was birdhouse blocks that I won from my Maine quilt guild. The decision was to make a wall hanging or add something and make a bed quilt. I decided to make a bed quilt. The blocks were different sizes, so I made cutouts and placed them on graph paper.

The small pieces were moved around until I thought they were where they were supposed to be. I made log cabin strips and sewed them around the blocks. There were ten blocks and as hard as I tried, I could only find the space for nine. The tenth block will be the label on the back.

As I added strips the blocks moved around. Somehow. I was able to contain each block in sashing. The quilt has three borders. The middle border consists of strips of the same fabric as the log cabin pieces. I made several stratas , cut them, and sewed them end to end.

This is a quilt that was designed as I went along. I was amazed to find that I had made a king size quilt out of nine blocks. I’ve been asked the usual question, “Who are you going to give it to?” The answer is “It will go on my bed. ” I no longer go to Maine so my friends will be remembered as I look at it.

I am ahead of schedule to finish three UFOs. This bin was fun to work with. There were several small wall hangings in it. Hopefully the next one will be fun also.

The mystery quilt has been completed for this month. There are 54 of the following. The instructions come on the first Thursday of the month so there is time to make the blocks between sewing other things.

One day this month, I put a little table topper on my dining room table. Everyone who came in commented on it. As I looked at it, I thought – What if I made several blocks like this and made a full-size quilt. When I quilted it, I quilted every seam with a different built in embroidery on my sewing machine.

The mile a minute basket was full of strips so this would be a “free” quilt.

I needed 80 six-inch blocks and 20 3-inch blocks. This block still needs to be trimmed.

The blocks are all completed. It didn’t make a dent in the mile a minute basket. As this quilt will be large, I’ll make it in four quarters and then quilt each quarter. Then, I can sew the four quarters together. It’s the machine embroidery that makes this piece.

Now, it’s time to decide which of the remaining two UFOs to work on. The Cynthia English paper piecing wall hanging or quilting the applique wall hanging. I’m glad that I have until next September to finish them.

Have a great day and happy quilting.

My Maine Guild has a challenge. We are to register up to three ufos and have them finished by next September. That should be easy, but the hard part was choosing the three ufos. I have too many to count.

The first choice is a Cynthia English paper piecing wall hanging. It was started over twenty years ago. Only a small portion is finished. The pieces are so small, it was very stressful to piece it.

The second was a box of birdhouse blocks that I won in a drawing at the Maine Guild. When I opened the box, I found other bird blocks that did not go with the birdhouses. Also, other things that I forgot that I had.

The third is an applique that I designed. It is designed to fit over my sofa in the living room. It is pin basted, ready to quilt. I was deciding whether to hand or machine quilt. The decision is made. My fingers do not work well enough to hand quilt so it will be machine quilted.

This will be an ongoing project with other quilts made in between finishing these. Now, the decision to decide which bin will be the first. The applique needed a lot of planning. The Cynthia English would be stressful, although I’m thinking of a way to piece it without stress. That leaves the birdhouses.

I laid the birdhouse blocks out on the design sheet. If they are pieced together closely, I can have a wall hanging. If I add more piecing, I can have a full-size quilt. At this point, I’m thinking that a full-size quilt would be nice. The other two pieces are wall hanging size. The blocks will be set aside for a while as I work on the other pieces in the craft box.

The two embroidered birds have been pieced separately. They have been quilted and are waiting for the binding and sleeve. When I finish them, I will post the pictures.

These two birds were embroidered on a tan linen.

They have been quilted and are finished.

Somehow, a little teapot got into the mix. It’s about 13 inches by 13 inches. It’s finished.

Several other pieces are quilted and waiting for the binding. As I finish them, I will post pictures.

One of the other things that I found in the bin were three folded star hexagons. One had button on the front and a pin clasp on the back. I don’t remember making them and I don’t have a pattern. I googled the internet and found a YouTube video that showed the technique. It’s easy and all hand sewing. They would make great Christmas ornaments. Before I finish this bin, I’ll make a few.

I also found an elegant embroidery of the initial B. It was done in gold thread on a black background. When I decide what to do with it, I’ll also post it. The black fabric is heavier than quilt fabric so I’m thinking it would make a nice tote bag. I found more than I thought in this bin. I’m glad that I chose this one first.

If I can finish these three ufos before September, I might add some others to the challenge. It would be nice to finish what I’ve started.

Have a great day and happy quilting.

The bin of ufos, quilt parts and other stuff if finished. There are two exceptions. Two of the community quilts still need quilting. They won’t take long.

Fall is here. The flowers that were outside on the deck all summer are now in the house. Unfortunately, they don’t like it in here. I’ll spend a few months bringing them back from their decline.

These geraniums were rooted last winter from the mother plant. I have had her for four years. They, now, look almost dead. If they don’t come back, I can root more babies this winter. The mother plant is recovering faster that her babies.

The mystery quilt is up to date. I like the method of precutting all the fabric. The labels are with the instructions

October’s instructions made sixty Irish chain blocks. The fabric was pulled from it’s baggie and sewn in stratas.

The stratas were cut apart and sewn together.

Lea Louise had another version of the Potato Chip block. It is the easiest one to do. It has only one round. The rectangles are 2 1/2inches by 4 1/2 inches. Two rectangles are sewn together for the center. The trick is to make sure the white rectangles are in the right orientation.

The one round doesn’t look like much, but when four are put together, it makes a beautiful block.

The whole quilt doesn’t look like a Potato Chip. This quilt can be made any size by adding more blocks. It’s a great scrapbuster.

Another easy quilt is made by sewing a black strip to a rectangle.

The rectangles are sewn around a center square.

You can make the quilt any size by adding more blocks to the center of the quilt. There is sashing in the center to set off the blocks. The rectangles on the border are 6 1/2 inches by 2 1/2 inches. This is another easy quilt. A quilt doesn’t have to be complicated.

Now that this project is finished, I have to think about what I’m going to do next. I have several ideas in mind.

Have a great day and happy quilting.

Where did September go? It’s October already and I didn’t finish much in September. Pictures of everything that I started have already been posted. I have no new pictures to post so far this month. The weather was beautiful. It was enjoyable to sit on the deck and read a book. I did some handwork out there also.

Most of what I started in September still needs to be finished.

My goals for October are to finish everything from the bin. I have five more placemats to quilt and bind. The rest are finished. Three of the five community quilts are quilted and bound. One is in the process of being quilted. I’m practicing ruler work on it. The remaining one is waiting to get under the needle when that one is done.

The mystery quilt instructions for October have come. It shouldn’t take long to make the blocks. It’s assembly line sewing. The pieces are already cut, except for the background.

In September, I cut all the colored fabric pieces for an easy quilt. I needed 2 1/2 yards of black fabric for an accent. I looked everywhere and couldn’t find any so ordered some black Kona. Yesterday, while looking for something else, I found a 2 3/4-yard piece of black fabric. It wasn’t where it was supposed to be. I have enough black fabric for a long while.

I ordered the black Kona from Missouri Star Quilt Company. When I opened the package there was a Block Idea book enclosed. What a happy surprise. The book was dated 2023, but the articles were for today as well. The articles were about Refresh Renew, Reinspire. All good things to jumpstart your quilting life. I may incorporate some of their hints into my quilting.

The trouble with sitting on the deck is that one thinks about things to do. I’ve been saving pictures of interesting blocks that I’ve seen on the Internet. Lots of pictures. I will never be able to make all those quilts if I made quilts with the same block. It was a “what if” moment. What if I put color coordinated fabrics in a bin. I could make one block from each picture, using the fabric in the bin. Eventually, I would have a sampler quilt, and all the blocks would go together. I’ve started to put the pictures into their own file. I could work on this quilt when I get tired of finishing old ufos. One block at a time.

My inside plants have come back inside from their summer vacation on the deck. They are having a hard time adjusting but have had a little food and will be all right. It’s almost time to clean out the gardens and rake leaves. The leaves are just beginning to turn orange. It’s a beautiful time of year.

I have lots of ideas for this winter. But first, I have to finish up what I started in September.

Hopefully I’ll have pictures for my next post.

Have a great day and happy quilting.

The little bin is empty. All of the bits and pieces are either in a quilt or a placemat. I did add other fabrics to the pieces and combine some of them. In all, I made five community quilts and twenty-five meals on wheels placemats.

Today, I cut all the backings and battings for the quilts. My plan is to package them one at a time and quilt them. Some of the battings are whole pieces and some are Frankenstein batting.

Twenty of the placemats are finished. One more needs the binding tacked down. The other ones are watermelons and lemons. I sewed them together in the pillowcase method. After I sew the opening, they need a little quilting to be finished. These were pieced long ago. I have no idea where I got the pattern or where it is. They should be easy to replicate. It’s all in the fabric.

I’ve had a basket block that was left over from another quilt. I was given the little basket blocks. The baskets are not the same but together they make a pretty quilt.

There were six red stars and two blue stars in the bin. I’ve found that when there are eight small blocks, you can add seven alternate blocks and sashing, and the quilt will be large enough.

There were several 2 1/2″ squares in the bin. It was just enough to make eight 16 patches. Also in the bin was seven six sided pieces. They were similar colors to the patches. I added oversized pieces around the edges and then squared them up to the same size as the sixteen patch blocks. The eight/seven format worked for this quilt also.

This is my favorite. The house that I lived in, before I moved to where I live now, had a small wall near the ceiling. the adjoining rooms had different ceiling heights. I made the paper pieced village to go from one side of the room to the other on that wall. The color of the background is really a pretty forest green. It didn’t photograph well. Originally, I was going to make placemats, but decided that the village should stay together.

It’s amazing how many quilts can be in a little bin. I have another larger bin that has a lot of mystery pieces in it. That will have to wait until I finish quilting this project and send the quilts and placemats on their way.

The first sewing instructions for the Meadow Mist Magnificent Mystery quilt has come. There are 56 quarter square triangles. The pieces are cut oversize and trimmed down. Making the squares was easy. I sewed in short time periods. The time-consuming part is trimming them down to 4 1/2″. I trim a few every time that I go into the sewing room. Then I go on to something else. They will be done long before the deadline of the first Thursday of the month. I like the method of making this mystery quilt. The main cutting is all done before sewing starts. Everything is labeled in baggies. The little labels are provided in the download. Every year when the new Meadow Mist mystery quilt comes, I say that I’m not going to make it. But every year I give in and really enjoy the journey.

Have a great day and happy quilting.

The bin is a small bin, but there are a lot of quilted pieces in it. This one has four leftover squares from a wedding quilt that was made over 30 years ago. It’s about time it came out of the bin and came together in a quilt.

Somehow, I had acquired three packages of charm squares. Along the way I started to make half square triangles. I have no idea what was in my mind for a pattern. This pattern showed up on the Internet and was just right for it. Both of these quilts will be community quilts. They still need to be quilted. I will do that as soon as all the bits and pieces that are in the bin are in a quilt or the mile a minute basket. The backing and binding are cut and ready.

So far, I have 20 placemats for Meals On Wheels. They are made with leftover blocks and cut square of all sizes. The top one was a handout in a class. We ever did use it. It was already quilted and the perfect size for a placemat. It just needed a binding.

There are several placemats made from squares that I cut out from leftover fabric. The squares were different sizes from 1 1/2 inches to 2 1/2 inches. The rail fence 30’s fabric blocks just showed up. I don’t know where they came from. They were different sizes, so I squared them up. There are two cats cradle block placemats. They were left over from a fill size quilt. The fourth one is a log cabin block left over from a quilt that I made years ago. A twelve-inch block with three-inch strips on each side makes a good size placemat. I tack down the bindings while watching tv in the evening.

There are still a few quilts left in the bin, so there is more to come.

Have a great day and happy quilting.

While organizing the sewing room, I came across a small bin of bits and pieces.

My challenge is to use up all the bits and pieces and empty the bin.

In the bin was a few placemat tops., several blocks, cut squares and lots of other things.

Using the 2 1/2″ squares in a 6 by 9 setting made the placemat the perfect size. I added 3″ strips to the sides of 12″ blocks to make them the right size. In all, I ended up with nineteen placemat tops. I have a bin of leftover pieces of batting. I sewed the batting together with a zig zag stitch to make them the right size. A stack of fat quarters was there so I matched them up to the colors on the top. All is ready to be quilted. I’ll use leftover binding to bind the placemats. There are three additional placemat tops to finish.

At some time in the past, I had started to make half square triangles from three charm packs that were alike. I finished making the half square triangles and trimmed them to 4 1/2″. I have found a pattern for an oversized block. Four blocks and a border will make a good size quilt. These pieces are in a craft bin.

These little pieces were found. They made this.

All the new blocks are going into a waste not/want not craft bin to be made into a community quilt.

In the meantime, I have been wanting to try a new method of making four patches that was found on the Internet. Line up two fabrics right sides together. Sew on two sides. Cut in half.

Reversing colors, line up again and sew on both sides.

Then, I wanted to try another new method of making quarter square triangles. Line up two four patches, reversing colors, and sew all the way around the block. Cut on the diagonal, both ways. Trim.

Several 2 1/2′ blocks were made into four patches.

All of the little blocks and other squares that were found are in a waste not/want not craft bin. There are enough pieces to make a small quilt.

My goal ,now, is to finish the placemats and piece and quilt the two quilts. The bin of bits and pieces is empty. The pieces have been downsized and are in small craft bins, ready to finish.

Have a great day and happy quilting.

One of my grandsons asked me to make a wall hanging for his new apartment. Of course, the answer was yes, and that project went to the top of the queue.

His favorite colors are orange, burgundy and robin’s egg blue. I never would have thought to put those three colors together, but after I pulled out fabric in those colors, I thought that it would work. The size would be 40″ wide by 30″ tall. On my sewing room wall is a wall hanging that is 30″ wide by 49″ tall. The size would be perfect.

The pattern is Hunters Star. It would be perfect. I could replicate this wall hanging with other colors.

When I make a Hunters Star quilt, I use Deb Tuckers Hunter Star ruler. It makes the blocks oversize. They can be trimmed to the exact size.

The strips are cut 1 3/4″. The ruler can be used for several sizes of blocks. My original quilt used 5″ blocks, so I used the 5″ markings on the ruler.

Trapezoids are cut and sewn to the side of a strip. You have to allow for extra fabric at the top when the trapezoid is flipped and pressed. Also, a 1/4″ space is necessary between trapezoids.

The trapezoids are flipped and pressed. Trimming is easy when following the lines on the ruler.

Triangles that are the same color as the trapezoid are added to the edges.

Two sides are sewn together.

The block is trimmed to the correct size.

I made extra blocks, so I had a variety of colors to choose from.

The three colors do play nicely together.

I may make another Hunters Star quilt in the future. This was fun to make.

I’ve been cutting scraps into 2 1/2″ by 4 1/2″ rectangles for potato chip blocks. Maybe I could cut strips and triangles from the scraps for Hunter Stars. Who says the triangle has to be the same color as the trapezoid or the two sides of the block have to be the same fabric? The sides would have to be reverse values. That would be a very scrapy star.

Have a great day and happy quilting.

I came across a baggie of blocks that I received from friend’s sewing room. There were enough to make five blocks for a community quilt. They needed a little trimming, so I trimmed them to the smallest block. The blocks were dark, so I chose a gold sashing. Four plain blocks finished the quilt.

It is quilted and the binding is on ready to be tacked down. It’s definitely a man’s quilt.

A few years ago, I bought some blocks at a yard sale. They have adorable baby theme hearts appliqued on a square with sashing. I don’t know why the quilter didn’t finish it. There were just two blocks left to applique. That is finished. I was one setting block short so found a fabric that read like the other blocks. The first border is the same red. When this little quilt is finished, it won’t be obvious. When one of my daughters saw the blocks, she claimed it, so it has a home.

I’ve been watching Kate from the Last Homely House on YouTube. She has decided that 2025 will be the year of using what you have and not buying anything. I think that is a great idea and will try to do the same. I may have to buy some batting, but that is all. I enjoy having a cup of tea with her as she tells me what she is doing with her quilts.

We have had our quilt show and it was wonderful. These are the quilts that I had hanging in the show.

Kaitlin’s Quilt

Illusion

Hexagon Star

Trip Around The World

Irish Chain Star

Red Star

Postage Stamp

Dear Jane is out of her time out. Making and quilting the outside triangles is overwhelming. There are so many. I remind myself that it’s one triangle at a time and eventually it will be finished. She’s my go-to quilt when watching TV in the evening.

Meadow Mist Designs has started another mystery quilt. It’s called Magnificent Mystery. This looks interesting. I may make it when the instructions come out.

I’ve gathered fabric to make a wall hanging for my grandson’s new apartment. His favorite colors are orange, robin’s egg blue and burgundy. I would never have put those colors together, but they actually do play nicely together. The pattern will be Hunter Star. I’ll use Deb Tucker’s Studio 180 ruler to make it. Its quick, easy and accurate.

It will be nice to make new quilts instead of finishing ufos.

Have a great day and happy quilting.