Hourglass Reprise

"The trouble with our times is that the future is not what it used to be."

~ Paul Valéry

Quilting

This quilt went together more easily if only because most of the parts were already sewn and ended up a repeat of the previous one. I thought about making something very different but... all the hourglasses with polka dots were already sewn and it needed to be gifted this week so time was of the essence. Time; hourglass. Somehow appropriate. Plus, it uses up all these specific pinks, aquas, and the second black print in my stash {which has been lurking for a while because it never fit anything else.} There's several more yards of the stripe since I purchased it for bindings. The last excuse is that the quilts will reside in different states and their owners most likely will never meet.

I enjoyed working with hourglasses as both a central block and a border. There are a few more ideas running through my mind {aren't there always} that I may flesh out in the spring. We'll see.

Improv Hourglass quilt 2

The pink with red polka dot triangles were short one to finish the center {more or less} identically to the previous one. I dug through the stash and scrap bags for a bit more to no avail. Something had to change and the very center seemed the likeliest. Perhaps a different block should have been used but the design needed to be centered in the block like an Ohio Star with the hourglasses turned into star points. After cutting the beautiful birds below {which are laid out in the opposite arrangement in this photo} their backgrounds were obviously too strong for the rest of the quilt. A single bird in the center was even worse. Like a wart on the end of your nose. I didn't even pause to snap a photo.

Possible quilt center with bird fabric

One reason I felt comfortable with this diffuse design is that I've done something similar before. Not every quilt needs spectacular blocks. The sashing or the border can grab your eye first. Because we start with the block, sometimes we focus too much on making them the focus {how's that for a pun?} rather than letting them become part of the background.

The quilting is almost identical to the previous one except for SID at the inner border - a more felicitous choice because my machine is home again - and quilted spirals in all the inner hourglasses. The straight lines in the border quilting add a bit of contrast and actually show against the prints. Wonders never cease.

Detail of Improv Hourglass quilt 2 border 

Pink micro-check gingham became the best choice for the border interior. The black is printed with turquoise and grey so a dark grey with pink dots made a good binding. It blends into the black triangles well and makes a simple, strong edge to this quilt.

When folding the quilt for views of the front and back together, I unfortunately lined up the edge with the inner border. Now it looks like a different front. Oh, well. The back is the same fabrics as the previous quilt and that finishes all of them, too.

Border and back of Improv Hourglass 2

From the original mistake of low contrast pink and blue fabrics, these two quilts made a good recovery and have become some of my favorites. The striped sashing helps enliven the quilt but the black outer border adds confidence... or gravitas.

Detail of front, back and binding of Improv Hourglass 2

Again, this quilt was also gifted "warm from the dryer" and the parents liked it very much. For a change, it arrived before the baby. Ha.

Quilt Specifics

Size: 42"x42"

Design: Hourglass

Batting: Mountain Mist Cream Rose cotton

Thread: Gutermann 50 wt light blue, pink, and white cotton

Quilting: FMQ spirals, SID, parallel lines

Approximate yardage: 5 yd

Monthly FUR (Fabric Use Rate) 
For my records, January saw two finished quilts = 10 yds. Roll on, February.

Enjoy the day, Ann

One Improv Hourglass Quilt Finished

"It has been said that patriotism is not a frenzied burst of emotion, rather the quiet and steady dedication of a lifetime." 

~ George H.W. Bush

Quilting

After three weeks this "quick and simple" baby quilt is finally done. Wow, that's too long but it turned out well.

Improv Hourglass quilt 

Since my machine with the working walking foot was in for repairs I had to use FMQ only. No SID around the sashing. I tried using a ruler to make straight lines a quarter-inch inside the sashing with mediocre success. The lines wobble but worse is the way the fabric pulls without an even feed foot. It doesn't pull with other FMQ designs so I'm not sure what caused it. My solution was to go back and FMQ a simple sine wave down the sashing. It won't win an award but looks much better. More stitching usually hides irregularities.

The rest of the center alternates spirals with wishbones although none of it is visible.

I used a design from Angela Walters FMQ challenge on the pink part of the outer border then sewed parallel lines on the blue and black sections.

Detail of quilting and binding of Improv Hourglass quilt 1

There wasn't a large enough of any pink for the back so these peach fabrics filled in. I'm not sure why I didn't look for any blues. Some days... The quilting doesn't show much on these busy prints either.

Detail of quilting and back of Improv Hourglass quilt 1

There was just enough of a black-and-white print for binding which blends well with the outer border.

Another view of the front, back, and binding. The dots are the same size which help the odd pink and peach combination work. The white gives needed contrast and the black ties it all together.

Detail of front, back and binding
on Improv Hourglass quilt 1

I thought this would go on the stack but it was a grandchild asked for it as it came out of the dryer. Isn't it fun when they are old enough to have opinions?

Quilt Specifics

Size: 42"x42"

Design: Hourglass

Batting: Mountain Mist Cream Rose cotton

Thread: Gutermann 50 wt light blue, pink, and white cotton

Quilting: FMQ spirals, SID, parallel lines

Approximate yardage: 5 yd

Previous Posts

1. Choosing fabric
2. Working the border

Reading

I just finished Finding Chika by Mitch Alborn who also wrote Tuesdays with Morrie. Mitch directs the Finding Faith Haiti Mission and Orphanage where Chika was brought after her mother's death. Two years later doctors found she had an inoperable brain tumor so Mitch and his wife brought her to the US for treatment.


Enjoy the day, Ann

Working the Border

"Far and away the best prize that life has to offer is the chance to work hard a work worth doing."

~Theodore Roosevelt

Quilting

Last week the black border didn't add anything to the conversation but the quilt still needed more contrast. I pieced more hourglasses with some black added to the pink and blues for the border then spent a while laying them out. This arrangement makes a striking zig zag but is much too strong for the weak center. {I'll have to remember it for another time.}

Zig zag border arrangement

Black to the outside and pink inside makes a much better border but the corners need to be resolved. Removing some hourglasses to add the sashing means there's almost enough for a second quilt if they aren't used in the corners. This notion prompted another search through the stash for possible corners.
Even though the other colors in that floral are pink and blue, it reads orange. Not a solution. However, the blue choices might work.

Trying different corners

I settled on the gingham because it contrasts with all the florals and polka dots. Some might remember it as the binding on the Rose quilt.

What an improvement from last week!

Once this quilt is finished, the second should go together easily and will finish off those polka dots. But there's a slight hitch - the machine must have a tune up. I've been told the BSR software needs an update, too. I have a second machine but it doesn't have a walking foot.

Reading

I just finished Celestial Bodies by Omani author Jokha Alharthi and translated by Marilyn Booth which won the Man-Booker prize last year. {The Man-Booker is given to the best book translated into English and published in England as opposed to the Booker is for the best fiction first published in England.} Written in various viewpoints with many flashbacks, it tells the story of a large family including three sisters, their father, and one daughter as well as other people from their ancestral village as Oman transitions from slavery to an oil-producing state.

Interesting note: One woman sewed on a Singer with a butterfly decal. I've never seen one like that. Was is a treadle {most likely} or a featherweight?

Simplicity half apron pattern 

Gifting
While sorting I found a vintage apron pattern and would be happy to pass it on to someone who would use it. Let me know in the comments.

Enjoy the day, Ann

Using the Hourglass Prompt

"Green is not simply a new form of generating electric power; it is a new form of generating national power - period."
~ David Rothkopf

Quilting

For a change I'm starting the AHIQ prompt right away. {Although I should be finishing the Square Deal or Tethys Waves, they were put away when company came and you know how that breaks the rhythm. A new project pushed its way to the front of the line.} The previous hourglass quilt was rotary cut; this time I wanted to try an improv variation from Cultural Fusion. It seemed like a relaxing and quick{er} solution.

I dug out the pink fabric, purchased as a back but never used it. What if I used it as one value then mixed several turquoise blues for the other? In this photo there appears to be enough contrast. We are good to go.

Fabric pull for hourglass blocks

Once the hourglasses were sewn... what a mess. No contrast. The colors don't even look good together. {The values are a bit off in the photo but they are just flat in person.}

Sets of improv hourglass blocks

Sashing could increase the contrast by introducing new values but adding it between each four-patch would make the quilt too big for a baby quilt and too small for a lap quilt. Reworking the hourglasses into a variety of sizes seemed like it might work. It's a bit better in the photo below but definitely not inspiring.

Making space for sashing

Adding black and white stripe as sashing made a difference but it still seems sub-par. What about a black border or binding? No, that's too severe.

Adding sashing and possible borders

It's taken me all week to get here. So much for easy. And so it goes.

Travel

DH took me to see the fireworks, something we haven't done in a few years. What a delight to see the colorful lights bursting over the Bay and to visit friends over a leisurely meal on New Year's Day. As we age we appreciate these special events more and more.

2019 New Year's fireworks

He also gave me two quilt themed t-shirts. My favorite one reads, " If I could just find a way to read and quilt at the same time my life would be perfect."

Reading

Speaking of which, a friend invited me to join her book club and I eagerly agreed. It's been a few years since I've been active in a club; travel and moving cause them to fall apart. Oh, how I've missed the joy of discussing books we can sink our teeth into. We read the first of a science fiction duology, Semiosis by Sue Burke. {Only one other member reads SF and she convinced the others to try it.} A group of earthlings travels in suspended animation to a distant world to start over again without war or waste. The situation seems primitive but manageable until they realize the plants are sentient.

We spent a happy evening discussing themes, relating this book to others we've read, and planning the next few meetings. A couple of us {myself included} plan to read the Sue's sequel.

Enjoy the day, Ann

Quilting Year in Review and AHIQ Prompt 2020

"The hallmark of those countries and companies that continually thrive is that they continually reinvent themselves."

~ David Rothkopf

So long 2019. It's been a rough year for our family. How fortunate that my siblings and I get along so well. They are the best. With all that, you'd think I wouldn't have done much quilting and yet there are more finishes than ever {although the stash level hasn't dropped much.} How did that happen? Most of them are baby quilts - relatively quick, easy to quilt since there is less weight to manipulate, and a great way to use up extra bits.

Chinese Coins,

Scrap quilt using leftover Chinese Coins to make HSTs

Lone Stars,

Lone Star baby quilt

and Hourglasses featured heavily.

Hourglass quilt in solids

Parallel lines, spirals, and fans are my go to quilting designs. The first two use a walking foot but the fans are FMQ. Angela Walters' YouTube videos have given me many new designs to quilt and smaller quilts are the perfect playground. Fifteen baby quilts, two small collage quilts, and only two lap quilts.

After several years of declaring I'd start sewing clothing again it finally happened: three dresses and two shirts.

Examples of the clothing sewed in 2019

What's up for 2020? Several larger quilts that were set aside. Once the quilting is done on the Square Deal, I'd like to finish Tethys Waves and the star quilt but I also have more clothes in mind. Having a friend to sew with helps with clothing; we encourage each other and help with fitting. Hopefully I can leave more time for new projects like wall quilts or art quilts. Several of these ideas have been running around my brain for a few years. It's time to make the time to make them.

Monthly FUR (Fabric Use Rate) 
Two finished baby quilts = 7.75 yds plus two yards donated for a monthly total of 9.75 yds. I only started tracking in October so the grand total for the past three months is 72 yds.


AHIQ Prompt 2020
Kaja and I email frequently - especially when a new prompt is due. Trying to remember all the previous prompts was difficult so we added a page just for them because we all get behind in our intentions or change our minds about a project or simply want to review the past. We've tossed several ideas around and decided some need more gestation. In the meanwhile I finished another hourglass quilt, this time for my niece, and am discovering several more ideas. Kaja commented that she'd like to explore those blocks, too. It seemed like a good prompt for the beginning of 2020.

Would you like to join us exploring Hourglass? While we are thinking of the simple block, it could have many other interpretations. That's part of the joy of improvisation. What does it mean to you?

Use the hashtag #AHIQhourglass so we can find your work and post it on the AdHoc blog. More details there.

Happy New Year!

Enjoy the day, Ann

Back to the Square Deal

"I slept and dreamt that life was joy. I awoke and saw that life was service. 

I acted and behold, service was joy."

~ Rabindranath Tagore

When I saw Tula Pink's Free Fall extra wide on a trip it called to be made into a dress but without the pattern I couldn't calculate yardage. The store closed and that opportunity was lost. Finding the fabric online seemed like a sign but... It's printed at a much, much larger scale. Instead of kumquat-sized circles, these are grapefruit. Who needs a quilt back 108" wide but only 72" long? The mistake compounds - absolutely not a dress and not enough for a larger quilt either. It could be the back to several baby quilts.

Tethys Waves needs a back but this is much too short so I pulled out other quilt tops. According to my calculations it was just enough for the back of Square Deal but once pinned it came up an inch short. Grr. Fortunately there's loads of width left so I matched the design as best as I could, pinned and then glued it in place, then took the whole mess to the machine to sew the seam. Crazy but it worked {if you don't look at the birds closely because they are different angles.}

Large scale Tula Pink Free Fall fabric back

SID the sashing and borders was my first task {Hey, I remembered!} then I stitched the edge of the quilt to keep it from pleating during the FMQ.

SID sashing, borders and sides of quilt

The dreaded thread color decision was next. I could use red to match the large HSTs, light blue to blend with the Coins, or nylon monofilament to cover it all. The blue looked terrible on the HSTs while the red wasn't quite as bad on the Coins {probably because of their variety} so that was the choice. You might have to enlarge the photo to see the threads crossing it. Let that be a lesson to us all; sometimes we create a bigger deal out of things than is called for. {I do this almost every time I choose thread. Sigh.}

Red or light blue quilting thread?

Because the back is light blue I tested that color in the bobbin. No threads are peaking through from the other side this time. Yea.

The quilting designs came from Angela Walters YouTube videos. While the wishbones are easier, I can't make the quilting travel easily so I'm going with the echoed lines although it involves more quilting and more time.

Three variations of a
quilting design from Angela Walters

OTOH ribbon candy might look nice on the sashing and straight lines here will add good contrast. That's my story for now. We'll see what emerges.

Merry Christmas to all!

Enjoy the day, Ann

Adding Flowers to Tethys Waves

"The danger is not that America will collapse into a Depression tomorrow... The danger is that the paralysis of the American political system - its inability to tackle any big multigenerational problem anymore - will just very slowly erode our strengths and assets as a society. We will slowly choke off immigration, slowly give up our commitment to free trade, slowly allow the budgets for research in science to decline, slowly let our public schools slide into mediocrity, and only slowly face up to our energy challenge."

Thomas L. Friedman

Hot, Flat, and Crowded, p20, 2008

Friends are a blessing. The blue striped yardage from Kaja that was used to bind the Froggy Star reminded me of Tethys Waves because it's in the same family of blues. There's enough to appliqué triangles over those gaping white triangles on the sides. But then... Thinking about the AHIQ flower challenge, a better solution presented itself. You guessed it. Flowers. A small bit of red batik scrunched under some larger pieces lurked in my stash. Ah, the joys of cleaning house... Well, at least of cleaning the sewing room.

Half flower pinned on the sides

Can you tell I don't appliqué much? That's a lot of pins. But this time I wanted to see the result before sewing everything. See, this old dog can learn a new trick. After pinning three red petals and adding a blue center to one I can tell the idea works. It tones down the gaping white triangles while blending with the floral theme of the red squares.

Half flowers added to Ocean Waves

It's only eight half flowers. How long could it take? Knowing myself, much too long if handwork was involved. So these were blanket stitched by machine in matching thread. Done it a couple of hours.

Tethys Waves quilt top with side flowers

Now to find a back. And consider whether or not to add a border. And figure out a quilting design that won't take the rest of my life.

Off the Bookshelf

 I enjoyed the Lady Astronaut series so much I picked up Shades of Milk and Honey, too. It's the first of an older series by Mary Robinette Kowal set in Regency England with a small twist - magic exists. Threads of glamour can be pulled and twisted to created visible images. Young ladies of quality are expected to practice this talent along with painting and music.

Mary credits Jane Austen as her inspiration. While not as complex and deft as Jane's novels, it is an intriguing read that reminded me of Rick Riordan's first book, The Lightning Thief - another clever first book developing a coherent alternate world - that should improve throughout the series. Definitely worth the time.


Enjoy the day, Ann

Froggy Went a' Courting

"Quilts leave messages in signs and symbols."

~Kathy Doughty

This is absolutely the end of the stripe now sewn as the border. The top is quilted and bound. {No more sticking it back in the stash to age some more.} Instead of salamanders, this one features frogs. I finished the other first because it attracted me a bit more but I've changed my mind. This is my new favorite of the pair. Ha. How's that for fickle affection?

Lone Star quilt 9 with frog border

For the back there wasn't enough of any fabric that worked with the front so I sewed WOFs together... and it still came up short. One more narrow pale blue strip was added. If you ignore that strip it looks a bit like a flag, doesn't it?

My now standard spiral was the quilting choice. This time I held it properly so the result is wave-free. Easy peasy if I just remember to position my hands correctly.

Four stripes make the back of this Lone Star quilt

Next up was binding. The top has lots of bright colors. For a while I tried to match/coordinate with one of them but none worked. Then I really looked at the border. At the outside is a dull navy; not at all expected but it makes the brights shine.

Taking that as an example, I pulled the last of the stripe with dull navies, greys, and reds from Kaja. Perfect. And I have an idea for the remnant, too. Fabrics are moving out of the stash and out the door.

Binding detail on Lone Star quilt 9

Open, folded, or or simply tossed, this one looks cheery and bright.

What happy memories are sewn into this quilt. The frogs are an obvious sign {see quote above} but it holds deeper memories for me. This child especially loved to play at the creek, wandering miles up and down stream. He brought home loads of precious flotsam/junk every trip - from fossils to tadpoles to bits of pipe stuck in concrete. Lone Stars remind me of one house where my parents had a classic example on their bed. I snuggled under it next to Mother while we watched Wizard of Oz, pulling it over my eyes whenever the wicked witch appeared but keeping my ears open for Glinda. Oh, to have a dress like hers!

Lone Star quilt 9 detail

Quilt Specifics

Size: 38"x38"

Design: Lone Star

Batting: Pellon 100% cotton

Thread: Gutermann 50 wt light blue cotton

Quilting: Spiral with a walking foot

Approximate yardage: 3.75 yd

Off the Bookshelf
DD sent me Old Man's War by John Scalzi, telling me I would enjoy it. She was correct - as usual.

Scalzi is a long-time blogger but this was his first science fiction novel; there are currently six in the series and I plan to read them all. At 75, people from Earth may enlist in the Colonial Defense Forces and leave Earth to fight aliens. No one knows how their bodies are enhanced but John Perry and his wife sign up anyway.

Scalzi writes confidently and clearly about what makes us human as well as mortality and life extension. He also begins addressing the ethics of war and humanity's inhumanity, concepts I expect to be developed as the series progresses. I've ordered the second book, The Ghost Brigade.


Enjoy the day, Ann

Reprise and Somebody Had Her Face Washed

This is the other baby-size top from that old nine-patch exchange. The tan is the same fabric as the center of the previous quilt but the blue and red are different. And all of these blues and red were used up making these two quilts. Yea!

It seemed like a good idea to practice my new FMQ skills again. I used the same design on the nine patches as the first quilt. The outer tans have a new-to-me dot-to-dot from Angela's video. The middle one had the same problem as the previous quilt - it needed a "centered" design. This one didn't turn out as well as I'd hoped but it was still good practice. The red and blue squares got figure eights this time but I rotated the design for the two colors. {Just for fun.} Thread on each of those squares had to be started and stopped but all the others traveled or ended in at the edge.

Four-Patch Nine-Patch baby quilt 2 with quilting ideas from Angela Walters

I forgot to SID at the beginning so had to add it as a final step. Note to self: if you're going to SID, do it first.

Back of Four-Patch Nine-Patch baby quilt 2
with quilting ideas from Angela Walters

Despite a box full of solids, none of them worked for binding except a tan twill. Because it was a bit thicker than quilting cotton I wondered if it would work at all. I sewed the binding to the back first then pressed it - an important step to make the binding smooth. After folding the binding to the front and pinning every few inches, it was easy to sew close to the edge.

Quilt Specifics
Size: 40" x 40"
Design: Four-patch nine-patch
Batting: Mountain Mist Cream Rose 100% cotton
Thread: grey, red and blue Gutermann 50 wt cotton
Quilting: FMQ based on Angela Walters videos and walking foot SID

Approximate Yardage: 4 yd 

Revisions
Clara has been bothering me quite a while because she looks like a tart. When I couldn't stand it any longer, I removed her heavy red triangles of blush and added two small peach hexagons instead. She still has false eyelashes and they will stay. The hussy!

Clara collage quilt with a facewash

Travel
I hope your Thanksgiving was as delightful as mine. Lots of family gathered together. My daughter suggested I purchase a Spiralizer apple peeler for the pies and crumbles. They are a lovely company out of Wyoming with great personal service. How did I manage all these years without it? We all took turns coring, slicing, and/or peeling the apples and potatoes. This little machine lets you pick and choose among these features plus it has an additional appliance that juliennes. I have a food processor but this little hand-turned machine works much more easily.

Spiralizer apple and potato peeler

You know you're a Texan if you think Blue Bell makes the best ice cream. I hadn't been to Brenham since the children were in grade school. Things have changed.

Blue Bell Creamery

The girl with her cow is printed on every carton so, of course, they commissioned it for their front lawn. The last time we visited, tour guides led us around to watch workers filling buckets with ice cream. Now we washed our hands before entering and were not allowed to bring food or drinks. The factory floor is much more automated and every worker is carefully garbed for safety. It still looks like a great place to work and the ice cream is delicious.

Family left in stages and almost everyone missed the weather delays. Now it's so quiet. Good thing I have some projects to keep me busy or I'd be crying.

Enjoy the day, Ann

Free Motion Quilting Practice

"The American people must understand that as soon as America doesn't stand for something in the world, there is going to be a tremendous erosion of freedom. It is true. And yet, it is awful hard to convince people of it at home."
~George H.W. Bush

From time to time I remember to check my YouTube subscriptions. Recently Angela Walters started a new series called, Help! How Do I Quilt It? which I've found helpful. She is extremely organized yet friendly and funny. She created a panel printed with all the blocks she discusses quilting over the series and sells thread and other tools. And then she taped these videos that are freely available. I really, really, really don't need another project so I didn't purchase the panel {That would have been too easy.} so I was just watching them randomly.

Angela's first video discussed nine patches and oh, how I wished for a small quilt to practice. Then I recalled these blocks from a trade many years ago. I sewed them into two baby-sized tops last year but all the solids gave me the willies so I put it away.

Four-Patch Nine-Patch baby quilt
with quilting ideas from Angela Walters videos

Angela showed several ways to quilt the block but she returned to the start each time since that worked best for her panel. Mine was already sewn and I wanted to travel from one block to the next to avoid starts and stops. Also, my nine-patches are "backwards" so I wanted the x's in the corners.

It took half the day marking the vinyl {the best idea to practice quilting designs I've ever found} but I finally figured out how to do it. Here's a diagram of my variation of Angela's design. There are nine pictures on this graph going across and then down {with space between each picture.}

Traveling nine-patch quilting design
 based on Angela Walters videos

Since Angela was so gracious to film videos, I don't want to reiterate all her details. This is just a reminder to myself of the order I quilted the nine patches. Go watch her series. It's fabulous. But my version moves me across each block so I can quilt them diagonally.

And here's a photo of the front and back of my quilt after completing all the nine patches. You'll notice only two of the corners have x's. The others could be done by sewing a diagonal line the other way across the quilt. It's the only way I could figure to allow me to end up on the opposite side of the quilt without backstitching.

Nine-patch quilting based on Angela Walters design

All that and the large solid squares are still not done.

After watching her video again I decided to add quilt the red and blue squares with dot-to-dot on one side and continuous curve on the other. Angela had one more line of dot-to-dot but again, I wanted to travel across the block rather than finish at the starting point.

Then I framed the tan squares and used curves I call figure eights but Angela calls wishbone. Her wishbones have much smaller curves; something to work on. The last four squares on the middle of each side seemed to need a centered design so I created my own variation as Angela. It did end up back at the start but it's on the edge. No threads to bury.

This photo shows all the quilting but you'll notice none of the squares are SID.

Quilting designs on Four-patch Nine-patch quilt

Angela and I both have a compulsion to keep those seams from coming loose. So my final step was to take care of those long seams. I used the walking foot. Usually SID is my first step. Doing it last meant this was not as neat as one could hope. Lesson learned.

It's a lot of quilting and took more time than I usually spend on a baby quilt but the point was to practice her methods. Learning new skills always takes more time.

Quilting designs on Four-patch Nine-patch quilt
with stitch-in-ditch added between blocks

Changing colors on the different squares meant there were several threads to bury. I have two drawers of thread and none of them are tan. But as part of my clean-it-out kick I chose to use what's on hand. The grey was too stark against the red and blue squares so I changed threads.

There was just enough red remaining to bind the quilt. The back looks a bit Christmasy but it matches the red on front.

I learned new ways to think about quilting, tried several new designs and feel more confident. This one can go on the baby quilt stack... you know, the one I've spent half a year trying to build up.

Binding detail

Quilt Specifics
Size: 40" x 40"
Design: Four-patch nine-patch
Batting: Mountain Mist Cream Rose 100% cotton
Thread: grey, red and blue Gutermann 50 wt cotton
Quilting: FMQ based on Angela Walters videos and walking foot SID

Approximate Yardage: 4 yd 

Monthly FUR (Fabric Use Rate) 
For my records, October saw three finished quilts = 17.75 yds, one shirt = 3.5 yds, and 2 yards donated for a total of 23.25 yards.


Travel
After my niece's baby shower we visited the George H.W. Bush library in College Station which none of us had seen before.

George H.W. Bush Library

With much more land than his son's at SMU so there is room to add Air Force One when it's retired as well as the engine that carried his body here. George, Barbara, and their daughter, Robin, are buried nearby.

The museum is chronologically arranged with sequential rooms for various stages of his life. Interestingly, a section of the Berlin wall was gifted to the library by the citizens of Berlin. This side faced West Germany while the other side is completely blank. They are spread worldwide. I've seen other sections at Rice University in Houston, Montreal, and Mountain View, California. Have you seen any?

A section of the Berlin Wall

A room dedicated to the Gulf war held the Gate of Kuwait. The hundred-year-old door is framed with plates bearing the names of American service members killed in that conflict and contains this inscription:

Gate of Kuwait

"When a man gives you the key to his home it means you are the best and most valuable friend to him; when a man gives you the door to his home it means that you are one of his family."

Happy Thanksgiving. I hope everyone connects with family or friends - whether in person, writing, voice or video.

Enjoy the day, Ann