Quilty 365 Revisited + Westering Women

Hi! It's May. No basket on my doorstep, too bad. Today we're revisiting Quilty 365 because this is the final post/ show and tell/ linky day with Audrey, the project's inventor. You can see many more versions on  her blog Quilty Folk.

A bit of a rehash for my regular readers, I'll just do it briefly. I know I had lost the final photos, so here is my top completed. My project is called Dotty 365.

Dots are in order of days made.

Text backgrounds, spacers, and backing, to refer to the idea of a quilt as a diary. Pencils print border.

The funny splotch dot is intended to be the binding. You can look at my Dot Quilts Pinterest board for ideas of how it will be machine quilted. I don't cut out my backings behind the circles because I believe it weakens the top.

Here is my little companion diary. I'll make a small pocket for it once the quilting is done.

Project notes included.

Label made, though I also have a nice printed strip: Remember.

Too bad it was such a crappy year for me, due to poor health and intense pain, but I enjoyed every moment of making Dotty and love the final top. Surprisingly I did not fall behind, though I did do the sewing in batches of 5 to 10 at  one sitting. Also the pieces went together so smoothly and perfectly; a pleasure for me as after sewing my entire life, since age six?, I still struggle with my piecing skills or lack thereof.
 It will be quilted as soon as I save up for the quilting. (And I suppose you'll have to see it again once it's done, hahaha.)

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Westering Women, a 2016 sewalong by Barbara Brackman, following a pioneer woman on the wagon train west in 1853. My girl is Annabelle Emilia Smith, from Cherry Grove, Ohio. Her maiden name was fancier, but her husband comes of good farming stock and Annie is proud of her plain wifely name of Smith. She is 24 years old and has two children so far.

I finished Brackman's blocks earlier this winter, but chose to add more blocks to have a square quilt of  16 blocks. These are my final blocks. I had made Prairie Queen first, Annabelle's block,
Block One. She'll have the strength and gumption and resolve needed to travel west and prosper. Post HERE though I may remake this block, I'm not sure it does Annie justice; it's rather dull, isn't it?
Final three added blocks, below.

Corn and Beans: referencing having to cook meals everyday after a long hot walk behind the wagon. How difficult and exhausting that must have been! Where did drinkable water come from? Who built the fire [gathered firewood or oxen pats?], scrubbed up afterward? Where was the bathroom?!

Log Cabin: Destination is reached and the Smiths build their first small home in the farmlands of California.

I decided to use this  very traditional Log Cabin block because Annie is using up the last of her scraps, handpiecing now after chores are done , as the light fades and the children sleep.

Basket: I saw this block on a number of mid-19th century blocks that Brackman has been showing.

Sometimes the blocks are signed or quite boldly dated.

This is the final block of Annie's quilt. The fabric of the Basket was once her mother's best go to meeting dress, when Annabelle was a tiny child. When it wore out, Mama made herself an apron from the good parts of the full skirt, then later a pinafore for Annie. Nothing was wasted in Mama's house! Annabelle has used this last scrap, remembering her home in Ohio, knowing she will never see her Mama or Papa again in this life. But she stays hopeful. The Basket represents the Smith's first harvest and their future as well as the past.
Peace and plenty and good times in the Promised Land.

These are possible sashings for the blocks.

I wanted Star cornerstones but I think they may be too fussy for a quilt that was so humble and would be needed in case winters are chilly in California? So that's another post.
Mo helped with the photo shoot!

Be sure to visit Quilty Folks blog and see the rest of the projects. Thanks again to Audrey for her fun idea and for including us, and documenting our 365 journey last year with her posts and linky set-ups.

love

lizzy 

gone to the beach...

from the thrifting  finds, this seashell was drab til I ran it thru the DW a few times.
Now it's a gorgeous pink!
I don't think people wash their beach finds?
Clorox and the dishwasher make a big difference sometimes.

Roasted Radishes and Other March Projects

Hi! I suppose I should tell you all about the roasted radishes first? I mentioned them last week, and was so intrigued! I had to try.
The verdict is: ''interesting''.
They are pretty and pink, they are pleasant, and as my dad always said when we'd be ooohing and aaaahing over the first artichokes of spring---"Anything is delicious if you put enough lemon butter on it." 

The roasted radishes are translucent and bland, rather like  peeled over-steamed zucchini? On the other hand, the roasted parsnips were delicious, almost caramelized and quite tasty, think plantains. Verdict? Radishes are best crisp and cold with a smidge of salt, maybe some goat cheese to go with.

....
Oh no! I lost the photos of one of my big quilting accomplishments! I finished piecing [not quilted!] Dotty 365. She went together so easily and well. It was very fun.

Here I am auditioning borders. I used the black and white Pencils, as originally planned.

Even my daughter said Dotty is cool! She enjoyed finding her birthday circle and other dates like 4th of July and Mo's adoption day. The backing will be a very large scale text print. I love everything about Dotty, really was a great project.

Then I also finished When the Wild Geese Fly. [top only, not quilted]

Just as planned I sat there on a few rainy days and sewed the 147+ Wild Geese spacer blocks.

This is a new to me method. It makes four Geese at a time with almost no mental effort. If you pay even a smidge of attention you can sew many chained together, it was wonderful! Addicting!

But then.
To put the top together. Never in all my sewing years have a seen a commercial pattern so badly planned--or  maybe just unplanned.

Nothing went together entirely, it was exhausting. The good news was, the parts mostly did fit, in their jigsaw puzzle kind of way.

Here I'm again auditioning inner borders but in the end I went with scrappy plaid borders, no inner border.

The Basket will be embroidered with  my name.

Date on top of Cottage roof. My good friend L does my necessary embroidery for me because I hate doing embroidery and she is so good at it.

The original pattern quilt was very brown. I'm pleased with my orange and blues instead.

book cover but not quilt
You can see the original colors though here.

I enjoyed this project so much--- especially the searches for and utilization of the needed plaid shirts, and the no pressure, no deadline, no race to the finish-ness of it---everything except the final assembling, which , though annoying and odd, wasn't as bad as designs that don't fit together.

So okay. Another top done.

I ordered a brown and blue flannel plaid for its backing. If I decide I don 't like it, I'll go with my first, too $$$ choice Fireflies in Mason jars, navy flannel. here

Both will go to my quilter in a few months.
I did not get anywhere with Westering Women! The Corn and Beans block has me stalled. And Monday when I saw my Pineapples, for Fall Festival, online I realized they are crooked. A redo may be in order! The pattern also has crooked pineapples, so I'll draft my own pattern and sew one up, see if it's an improvement or not. I also made my swap doll quilt but I will wait to show it to you til the swap reveal day, I think. Fingers crossed! Hope its recipient is pleased...

love

lizzy

gone to the beach


PS We has heavy rain and fog today again, couldn't even see the beach from the house. Mo wanted to stay in bed all day.

But poor baby had a  spa date in the groomer van. He loves the groomer because she gives him wonderfully disgusting chicken jerky as a reward.
Clearing skies at sunset.........