Getting back into the swing...

Boy! It seems like such a long time since I've posted and I guess it is.
I've done a lot of crafts since my health has got back to normal. YAH!
I have finished this pretty beauty...

And instead of using the pieces I had, altering the pattern and assigning a generic name....I've found out this pattern is called "SISTERS CHOICE" . Wow, I was dumbfounded.
I have made 19 new dolls but only 4 different kinds. I need to dress 2 of them so they will be upcoming.
I had a urge to oil paint and I've since started a large themed  photo of a mama elephant with her baby. Elephants capture my attention no matter what they are the subject of. I think they are complex and amazing in their quiet and under spoken hierarchy ways of living.

I have finished this dedication to my cancer embroidery sampler, only needing to hand stitch the border and quilt my lines.I have seen lots of family in the last year, three of my nieces have had babies of their own and my sister was seriously sick but is much better now.
Madame continues to dance, cheer and go to school, she has grown in the last two years.
Oh, my husband and I built this,

He has always promised me one and now it is TRUE! Next will be the orchard.
Lastly, on a sad note...my companion of fifteen and a half years passed. 

What a triumphant dog he was. C & G Design

Words and photos by Dawn, C&G Design.

BOM #5

I know on last post I mentioned that #3 BOM is actually #4 so.........keeping in tune with the order, this is the next block but it's referred to as #5. I just love this kind of Annie, there is something about the texture of her hair being thicker.
To all of you who asked, I'm not the one making this quilt, it's another blogger with her own BOM, they are very popular and a great way to share. I DO have all the directions and patterns downloaded in my laptop and hope to sew this one day soon.
Click on the sidebar to visit "the painted quilt." Tell her I sent you.

I have a short update on my health but it will have to wait until Friday.

Happy Thanksgiving all! C&G Design


Words and photos by Dawn,C&G Design.

BOM #2

I just love this series of the Raggedy BOM and I have chosen to post on the current three until we get caught up, by then it will be four blocks released. The painted quilt publishes the blocks on the twentieth of each month. Check her out by clicking on my sidebar.

Don't ya just adore the red button eyes? C&G Design

Words and photos by Dawn,C&G Design.

BOM

What is a BOM?
It stands for Block of the Month, quilt block of the month.

I have found through the past two years, alot of blogs dealing with quilts, have designed their own block of the month. The blocks of a quilt are published once a month for about 12 months. I have downloaded a cute Noah and the Ark crib quilt that way, remember, you'll never find a BOM in the local shoppes.

The painted quilt, is featuring this adorable Raggedy Ann and Andy, redwork quilt.

This is BOM number 1. I'll post the others in a few weeks, thus far she has released only 3 blocks. I'm unable to transfer the pattern but it's linked from her blog.

Check the link or click here. C&G Design

Words and photos by Dawn,C&G Design.

Mother Goose

I've been jumping around really bad lately but it's only because I can't wait until my studio is done. Today I wanted to finish Humpty Dumpty but do ya think I could find the eyes??? Noooo. Then I picked up my scrap quilt....but couldn't find the rotary cutter, bummer....I just had those things this winter. I cleaned them up and now they are in a box. I've moved so many boxes it's hard to tell which one and I'm tired of opening them all up, grrr!
Anyway I picked up this cute little crib quilt I bought blank from a yard sale. I had this much done awhile ago and it was sitting on my table until Madame spilt a drink on it. My husband rushed and rinsed it out. This is Mother Goose.

She will be cute.

I HAVE WAY TO MANY UNFINISHED PROJECTS!!! C&G Design

Words and photos by Dawn,C&G Design.

Lap Robe

Everyone seems to be having crisis right now, my son is being inattentive to his classwork and giving a "sleepy teen" attitude. Okay. I'd be wealthy if I could figure a cure for it.

I went to the dentist yesterday and after almost 2 years from a deep decay filling, the dentist has decided I need a root canal. I've mentioned the pain and discomfort every 6 months since the filling was done and they kept suggesting a different solution, I even had a impacted wisdom tooth removed due to that side of the mouth pain!
Then thinking my husband was okay with his periodontal disease, he has 4 cavities. Today, (after his deep scale cleaning) he came home for work and doubled in pain from a alternating molar, (not the cavities) and no one can explain it. (I called the dentist) He had updated x-rays which seem fine. Ugh! He seems better tonight but the morning will tell.

Madame has added youth cheer leading to her growing list of things to do. It's coming to mom arranging appointments for a kiss goodbye from her as she flies off to school!

Anyway. I wanted to show you another old but new thing I've worked on. It's a lap robe for my family room couch. I have a really unique couch up here, it's a whiskey keg (3 of them) seater. You may of seen the back of the couch in the pictures that have the round wooden background, it's black and marked with the makers initials wood burned into the side of it. Well, since it's vinyl, it's chilly. We sit on it and find it's okay as couches go, (no dream bed though) but it needs a little zest.

This lap robe is the thing. It is fabric I cut from a winter coat from the 70's, I cut it in the 80's. (can you imagine!?) I never put it together because I didn't know what to do with the pockets. They are added to the robe as hand warmers and can be seen in the photo. The solid black is a pair of velvet pants from the same era. My blocks are 8'' x 7'' and the blanket is 3 blocks by 5. That is approximate 45'' x 20''. Vintage, I would say.



About time I came across it and put it together, brings back memories! C&G Design

Oh no, another quilt!

Yet, but this one is very pretty (they all are). I picked them up at a flea market for a minimal price, $3.00. It's done with Tri-chem or Artec and there are twelve, 12 x 12 inch blocks, I love them all but especially the lily.

Now I need to find the right fabric for the sashing, oay vey. C&G Design

Raggedy Ann and Andy Quilts

I found these cute patterns and pictures of Raggedy Ann and Andy quilts, I would like to try the first one some time. I believe the pattern is Daisy Kingdom and it's from the 50's, maybe? The next picture will show how a cute icon can become a 3 dimensional piece of art.

It is from Applause. The last picture is a quilt panel from Daisy Kingdom, it has been discontinued and is hard to find. Raggedy Ann and Andy Express, with a cutie current looking expression, they are taking a ride in their little red wagon.

Enjoy the free pattern, right click on the photo and print. C&G Design.

Random Sewing

I have stitcher's stump again, I'm not real fond of being in this frame of mind because it means it's hard for me to stay with one subject. Not only do I have the quilting red work and the vintage blocks going, but I have a repair to a doll and another quilt! It's because I'm trying to get stuff out of my studio and I can't resist a project. This is a taped bag I purchased from Marden's years ago. Marden's is the local discount/salvage store, it's a large chain here in the state of Maine, you can get some great deals that are too good to pass up, like $3.99 for a hefty bag of "quilt strips". I truly thought some of these pieces of fabric were squares, not true, much to my delight, they are all strips about the same size.

I haphazardly took one piece of fabric and stitched it to another. It is relaxing when I can sit at a sewing machine and do whatever. It was so fun doing the different blocks and went extremely quick, random....no plan....no color scheme..... no tight turns on the sewing machine..... stitching and ironing...calling it done.

I finished 9 large blocks in about 2 hours, I would of finished more but Madame had company. I will square these up and then quarter each one, placing them in this pattern , no arranged order.

It looks complicated when it's a smaller, strip quilted block.

Ay, iy, iy, I should get back to the red work quilt especially on these chilly evenings when the blanket could be on my lap.

C&G Design

One Last Peek

I am all done with the redwork coverlet! It turned out to be more of a full size than twin. My bed is queen, odd, it's almost long as it is wide.

I'm thinking of entering it in the fair but I'm not sure, one flaw and you won't be able to see it unless you enlarge the photo. The last row, between the bear and the bunny, they aren't even. I have no idea what happened but I believe it's with one of the redwork blocks, 1/4 inch off or something like that, I took it apart and tried to fix it, I may do it over again, I don't know yet. What do you think? Remember, I still have to redwork/quilt around every animal, so if the unevenness doesn't appear better, I'll take it apart and redo it by hand.

I picked up several wool batting blankets from Marden's, (I should have a VIP card there!) and I'm using brown for the backing, I wanted you to have one last peek because it will be finished the next time you see it.

Which....may be a while. C&G Design

Halfway....

I'm getting there, I thought I would show you a peek at the red work quilt. I'm really happy with the layout, the rows across jive, and the rows down jive. I have 5 categories of animals, not one repeats in either row, that makes for a good feeling by now.
Over the next couple of days I will add the center rows, the tops and the sides. I found I'm one row short so it is going to require I take another trip to, MARDENNNS! If the fabric is all purchased then I will have to change plans. DH and myself came to the conclusion this twin size quilt will need a contrasting border.....I'm thinking safari.
Until then....happy stitching. C&G Design

Fabric Fretting

You know when you have a idea in your head about what you want something to look like? Yeah, I guess I really needed to theme my red work...except I had a great time embroidering the cute looking choices. Hope I don't pay for it when it comes to the framing fabric (sashing around the blocks), but I did. I walked around Joanne's for over a hour with this fabric in tote. It was $6.99 a yard and not exactly what I thought would look good, after all...the only associating animal would be the lion and the parrot. I browsed the nursery fabric (soft flannel) and they had a closer relation, but pink! I found one in the country prints, pig, bunny, lamb and chicken! But it had barnyard printed on it with "farm girl". Ay, iy, iy. Finally I put the safari print back and just left!

I declined any other fabric place and decided the local Marden's would do, if anything I could get something for the garden. I hit pay dirt! Quilting the fabric will no longer be in question, I can red work the outline (dots) of each animal!

These are actually applique panels and they could only sell them by the panel, the cutter thought I was off my rocker when I bought 5 panels (panel=3 rows)

The way I figure...the animals in the first piece of fabric can be cut into rows, this will be the up and down sashing of my quilt. The animals in the above picture , cat, dog, turtle, dolphin, pig, bunny, butterfly, grasshopper, can be the short crosswise sashing, cool huh? I figured 5 1/2 inches wide for all sashing so when everything is all done, I will have a piece that measures 62'' wide by 70'' long. Twin size.

It was much harder cutting the crosswise sashing than what I thought though. C&G Design

Pink Saturday Yo-Yo's

I have my perfect Pink Saturday! Not only do I get to post something pink, I also get to post on something near and dear to my heart. Quilting! These are my PINK yo-yo's. They often get confused with Pennies, which are from a primitive pattern. The difference between Pennies and Yo-Yo's is the Pennies are stacked and the Yo-Yo's are 2 sided. Click on both highlights to see 2 different postings about Pennies.

I've only seen a double sized Yo-Yo quilt once....it was beautiful!

The whole thing was Yo-Yo's stitched side to side except when it came to the area of the pillows. There it was a empty square with just a few rows connecting up and down over where the pillow would be, expeensive!

I purchased these Yo-Yo's at a auction, they were in a shirt box with a note telling me how many....1,830, enough for a double size.

Since then I've added from all my scraps, I'm guessing I have about 2,500 and counting.

I LOVE the vintage pink....and the modern pinks that are shown above. I hope to soon! Have my blanket started.

For now, join Beverly for more pinks! C&G Design

Fab Fabric

I was browsing the local discount store yesterday, really looking for seeds and hoping for outdoor plants, but it's to early.
By gosh, I really know to stay away from the large craft department, I always find something to buy even if I don't need it. Well, there was a sale on certain fabric, $1.99 a yard. Quickly! Did a scurry on by, but....egad, this caught my eye. It sort of looks like a quilt itself, and I suppose it would be adorable worked up as such. But....but, I would like some custom quilt tags, these are perfect to be snipped, signed and attached to the back of a nice blanket.

Some of the blocks look like postcards with cute sayings on them. "It was sew nice to meet you". Is the wording on this one......

and "May we always share a common thread", on yet another.

Major debate going on in the center of the isle, the cutters were so busy cutting, I felt as if, I'd be there forever! I'd look their way and thought. I should of bought when I saw it at.......(store name). I know I'm going to regret not taking the time.

" Weaving the fabric of friendship". Oh, how nice it would be to have these, just one yard....

Yep, melting over a must have, "We admit, we are powerless over fabric".

I do live by this motto, "May your stash be forever plentiful". Sounds good to me.

And moving on the the color ones! I announce. My resolve? Well, I decided if I could see another must have in this humongous isle, I'd bother the cutters, measurers, and or sales people. Really, that was my resolve. Foolish, I know.

"Quilters share a common thread"! These are words to live by!

Tee hee, how funny. How cute!

Luckily, there was a woman on the other side of the isle and I'd already made it 3/4 of the way down my side before I spotted my tags. Maybe if I excuse myself really fast I could miss another 1/2 of the bargain bolts.

Needless, there was nothing else. So I hurried out as fast as my legs would go.

By god, there it was! In the cut remnant bin! One and a half whole yards! Those ladies, I know, must of thought I should have some sort of "anti- freaking fabric" treatment.

BTW, this is my favorite. Hello Jane! C&G Design

Spray glue?

I must have seamstress stump or dressmaker's duh, I'm searching for my next project and I can't seem to decide. I'm thinking I want to make a doll, a very complicated doll. But....I'm not sure the results will be what I want it to be, I've never done this media before. Sooo for the next couple of days, I'll mull it over and perhaps start and finish before I know it.
I found this can of spray basting, it's used for quilting although I've never tried it, it sure looks like a great help. It secures the batting to the top and bottom of a quilt, it can be repositioned for up to two months.
It won't gum the sewing needle and can be laundered out either before the quilt is done or after.
I've been staring at the can for 6 months now and the way I see it, anything that is time saving with quilting needs to be mentioned. I intend to use this in place of the tacking and pinning that I do before running my quilt through the machine.

I hope it works! Wonder why I hadn't heard of this!?!! C&G Design

Quilt a Pillow

Did you ever hear of quilt a pillow? Well, Madame got one of those kits.... They're pretty neat. The fabric has pre-punched holes in the places where the learner is to stitch, the center is joined (quilting) and wa-la! Done.

'Cept she is always pilfering my stuffing! C&G Design

Sunbonnet Sue

A nice gift for the girl newborn baby, Sunbonnet Sue crib quilt, she has been designed in quilts since the 1900. Sunbonnets have definite characteristics and folklore, the face is forever hidden and they are always doing something.


Materials: 1/2 yard of white for blocks; small pieces of print and solids for the appliques'; 1/3 yard print for sashing; 3'' x 27'' of print for the corner squares; 1/2 yard print for the borders; 1 yard print or solid for backing; 3/4 yard for the binding; 45'' x 36'' batting. (all fabric is 45'' wide)

Make a applique' template for each numbered part (in first photo), make a template of the full figure also. From white fabric cut four foundation blocks 15'' x 11'', press two guideline creases into each block; 21/2'' from the bottom; 21/2'' from the left edge. Match the guideline crease to the outline of each applique'.

First stitching should be done to the hand, applique' it to the arm, and the band to the bonnet. Note in block A and B the balloons are behind the bonnet so therefore they must be appliqued first before Sue herself. Using the graphics in photo #2 place the pieces in the approximate spots for all four blocks. Applique'.

Crosscut the 3'' x27'' into 9 3'' x 3'' corner squares, cut sashing fabric into 4 3'' x 45'', crosscut these into six 15'' x 11''. Sew 11'' to the corner blocks and the 15'' sashing strips to the blocks. (between blocks) Sew rows together.

From the border fabric, cut two side borders, each 3'' x 35'' and top and bottom borders each 3'' x 31''. Sew side borders to sash. Following the quilt mark, lightly draw lines inside each block. Smooth batting over backing, rt side down, center quilt on top with quilt right side facing up. Quilt the quilting lines. Trim the batting and backing. Cut and piece a double border, 2 1/2'' wide, overlapping corners by 2 1/2'', with appliqued side of quilt, pin the rt side of double border, stitch, miter corners. Turn double border over quilt edge, blind stitch to quilt. Using a permanent pen mark the back of the quilt with your name, saying, birth date of baby and baby's name.

Special thanks to Ms Wolff.

C&G Design