I do enjoy a finished quilt

At our Guild retreat last fall one of our guild members was throwing out her "bonus" triangles. I couldn't have that. When I said sure I'll use those she was kind enough to start collecting them in a baggie so they did not go everywhere. And then at another quilting get together another friend did the same thing. So these are primarily the bonus triangles from two different quilting friends. So much fun to play with. I used two different fabrics for borders because I did not have enough of either one. As far as I am concerned they work together. This quilt will be going to Project Linus later this week.
Hubby has set a goal of our 50th anniversary for me to get the quilt tops in the house made into quilts. And to facilitate that he is pinning them ready for me to quilt them. He has done three this week and I am just finishing stitching the binding in place on number three. So need to get backing organized for a couple more for next week's pinning session. I do have a couple of years to work on this.
There are a couple of big events coming up in the next little while. Hands2Help sign up starts today. and the Modern Plus Quilts Blog Hop begins this week. More about both in the coming week.
Piecefully, Joanne

Linking up with Cynthia for Oh Scrap! at quiltingismorefunthanhousework.blogspot.ca

Hands to Help finale, some more scrap quilts ready to donate

Both Hands to Hands quilt tops finished, washed and ready to donate. With the ridiculously high postage rates, especially to the US, these two quilts will be donated to the Scrap Bag Quilters of Saugeen Shores for local distribution as needed. It was nice to have two holders so the quilts could go up beside each other. Each quilt is made from the same pattern and totally made from scraps, except for the backings. It is a pattern I called 9 patch bricks but as you look at it you can see many other possible organizers for the scraps. I stitched two bricks together along the long side and generally pressed towards the darker of the two bricks. Then I made 9 patch blocks using a pair of bricks as one of the patches. I altered the orientation of the bricks within the block and also rotated every other block when organizing the top. I find that making the smaller units and building to a larger unit helps me scatter the colours throughout the top more easily.
I have been trying to make more finishes rather than tops, but I am like a kid in a candy shop when I see new ideas, I just need to try it. Piecefully, Joanne

Linking up with Cynthia at Oh Scrap! (here) and Sarah at Confessions of a Fabric Addict (here) for the finale of this year's Hands to Help challenge. J

Hands to Help number 1

This is scrap quilt number one for this year's version of Hands to Help. Sarah of Confessions of a Fabric Addict (here) runs this challenge annually to encourage quilters from anywhere to make and donate a quilt or more to charity. There are three designated charities on her blog but if postage costs make them prohibitive then you are encouraged to donate closer to home. I am planning to make two of these quilts. The block is a 9 patch with each patch consisting of two parallel  2 1/2" x 4 1/2" bricks. I have found that making the separate blocks and then assembling them into the larger quilt is more manageable for me. It also allows me to mix up the fabrics for a somewhat more blended scrappy look. Grandson number two (in need of a hair cut) is holding this quilt top. Piecefully, Joanne

Linking with Sarah at Confessions of a Fabric Addict
and Cynthia at Oh Scrap!

Hands to Help Final Linky Party for 2016

The quilting does make a difference. This quilt was a test quilt for The Quilt Pattern Magazine called Big Block Stars. I have donated it to my local Scrapbag group and suspect that some teenage girl may just like it. One of my Scrapbag quilter friends did the quilting for me on her long arm machine. My "planned" donations for H2H this year are not quilted yet as I am unable to go up and down the stairs just yet. I can do the three in the garage with my cane and the railing but do not have the courage to try a full flight just yet. I have quite a stack waiting to be pinned and quilted once I can get up and down more easily. Piecefully, Joanne

Hands to Help finale for 2015

I did a little laundry today. I like to wash a quilt before it is donated. Nita will be getting the second from the right quilt and the wife of a friend from the gym will be getting the third from the left. The others have not got specific homes yet. Quilts 3,4 and 5 on the line were all Mystery quilts and they turned out OK. Or at least I think they did.
My other donated quilt for Hands to Help this year is going to Project Linus through our quilt guild. I have what feels like a million tops that need quilting so I need to knuckle down and get some more ready to donate. I really feel that is what I should be doing with my time at this point in my life.
I enjoyed a wonderful retreat in Tobermory with some local quilting friends. It was fairly cold so nice to stay inside and get some sewing done. The women who plan this event do such a great job. We ate well, we had fun, we got some work done. And this year we had a totally unexpected surprise. On Saturday afternoon a woman came to the door at the Lodge. She was a quilter who was going out of quilting and giving away what remained of her stash. We were all invited to come to her place at 4:00. We went, we had a ball. She had bags for us and everything was laid out by colour. I got several quilts worth of very nice scraps (fat quarter sized pieces). Everyone got something. Piecefully, Joanne

I am a guest blogger today

Be sure to visit Sarah's Blog (here)  for my guest post for the Hands to Help Quilt Challenge. I talked about my favourite "go to" quilt block for charity quilts. Piecefully, Joanne