DEAR JEANNE QUILT TOP FINISHED

I finished piecing the last quadrant of my 'Dear Jeanne' sampler quilt.

Here are my favorites from this week's blocks:

Twisted Star

Dance Recital

Family Circle

The Family Circle block has the names of our four generations with the middle name of Jeanne.  There will be room on a label on the back to add names if and when there are more little ones with this special name.

Here are all 64 blocks put together.  All 64 blocks are shown individually in the Dear Jeanne page under the heading above.  Just click here.

Now what?  I should get it basted soon, and start hand quilting it which will then probably take many months.  But, for now, 'Dear Jeanne' and I need a little break from each other.  
For one thing, my sewing room is a mess with red, white, blue, and brown scraps -- there is a desperate need to regroup!!!!

I'm joining the following:
Love Laugh Quilt for Monday Making
Cooking Up Quilts for Main Crush Monday
Sew Fresh Quilts for Let's Bee Social Wednesday
Confessions of a Fabric Addict for Can I Get a Whoop Whoop Friday
Crazy Mom Quilts for Finish it up Friday

BOX OF NECKTIES AND A FREE PATTERN

Recently a friend gave me a box of neckties -- 70 of them, mostly silk.  She wondered if any of my quilting friends could use them.  The fabrics are really pretty.

 Another friend whose daughter makes beautiful crazy quilts was the first person I thought about.  The daughter also teaches middle-school sewing, so she is excited to receive them for her personal and school sewing projects.

 I pulled out 16 of ties for my use, as my donor friend said she would like a little something made from the ties as a remembrance.  I thought I would make her a pillow or a tote bag.  Does anyone out there have other ideas or experience sewing with ties?

Speaking of gifts, for Valentine's Day I made my granddaughter two cat-eye pouches from the free pattern offered by Thread Riding Hood.  Click here for link.  These were fun projects with their little windows to showcase appropriate-to-the-recipient fabrics.  They are the perfect size for cosmetics, markers, or a phone, etc.

My granddaughter loved them -- now her mother wants one.  They were very inexpensive as the fabrics were from my scraps, and my only added expense was $3 for the two zippers.
Be sure to check out the Thread Riding Hood blog.

I'm joining the following:
Sew Fresh Quilts for Let's Bee Social Wednesday
Crazy Mom Quilts for Finish it up Friday
Confessions of a Fabric Addict for Can I Get a Whoop Whoop Friday
Love Laugh Quilt for Monday Making
Cooking Up Quilts for Main Crush Monday
Quilt Story for Fabric Tuesday

A MONTH'S WORTH OF PROGRESS

I've been moving right along working on my Dear Jeanne quilt for the last four weeks.

I've finished the upper right quadrant of the quilt --

When I finish the lower right quadrant, I can complete the quilt top ---

Only 16 more blocks to go!!  I'm sad that I'm getting closer, as I've enjoyed working on this quilt so much.  

It's not the prettiest of quilts, but has been a challenge to size all of my block patterns to 5 inches.  My brain needed the exercise.  I have plenty of quilts that I have deemed more attractive, but this one is close to my heart because of conquering the challenge.

Here are a few of the blocks from the third quadrant that are my favorites:

All 16 of the new blocks are shown on a separate page -- click on the title, 'Dear Jeanne Blocks' under the heading at the top of the blog.

I'm joining the following:
Sew Fresh Quilts for Let's Bee Social Wednesday
Confessions of a Fabric Addict for Can I Get a Whoop Whoop Friday
Crazy Mom Quilts for Finish it up Friday
Quilting Readers Garden for WIPS Be Gone Friday
A Quilted Passion for Whoomp There It Is Saturday
Love Laugh Quilt for Monday Making
Cooking Up Quilts for Main Crush Monday

THROWBACK THURSDAY

For the month of February's Throwback Thursday, I thought I would go way back to the beginning of my quilting life.
When I started 1st grade my mother went to work in town; so during vacations and after school, my grandmothers stepped in doing child care.

The question was always what are we going to do to keep Sally busy.  We tried crocheting, tatting, embroidery, cooking; but nothing really took until they got out the sewing machine.  Sewing and quilting was the answer.  

Below is my first project doing patchwork -- not really a quilt, because it was tied and not quilted.  I made it for my favorite doll, Jerry.  There are some pretty wonky four-patches and a few tucks in the sashing, but not bad for the first try of an 11-year old!

I remember I was not happy embroidering my name, age, and date on it; but my grandmother insisted that I label my quilt.

I'm so happy she made me do it, because I now know when I first fell in love with quilting.

When I wrote my first book, "Keepsake Signature Quilts"; I dedicated it to my grandmothers -- they taught me so much.

I've experienced 65 years of the joy of quilting!

The child's rocking chair was a Christmas gift to my grandmother Billingslea when she was 2 years old in 1901.  She gave it to me in the 1980s -- a treasure I love along with my first quilt.

I'm joining the following:
Sew Fresh Quilts for Let's Bee Social Wednesday
Quarter Inch from the Edge for Throwback Thursday
Crazy Mom Quilts for Finish it up Friday
Confessions of a Fabric Addict for Can I Get a Whoop Whoop Friday
A Quilted Passion for Whoomp There It is! Saturday
Love Laugh Quilt for Monday Making
Cooking Up Quilts for Main Crush Monday
Quilt Story for Fabric Tuesday