As I mentioned, I am going to be spending several weeks in Vermont. My DIL is away for a 4 week seminar and I have the privilege of hanging out with H for a bit. Of course, I had to plan for some sewing time. This girl is a good napper so I should have two hours in the afternoon to sew. Luckily my DIL has a machine she loans me while I am here!
I brought supplies with me – most of which are duplicates so I plan to just leave them here. That way I know I will have the basics when I come to visit. (Thanks Wendy for the great idea! Up to now, I have been carting them back and forth with each trip.) I think I may have been a bit over-zealous when planning projects but I wanted to have choices!
I plan to make this cute turtle for H. I thought she would enjoy helping me stuff it when I get the body made. The (free) pattern is by Purl Soho and can be found here. I think the Denyse Schmidt print will be so cute for the shell and I have some Andover linen blend for the hands, feet, head and tail. Wool felt will be used for the tummy.
I also brought a stack of blocks I made last year during the Squared Away BOM hosted by Mari (Academic Quilter). I started this but didn’t finish it. I do have thirteen blocks though and Mari suggested I just alternate them with a neutral fabric to make a quilt. I think this looks great! I need to square the blocks and then will stitch the quilt top together. It will need some borders but that can wait until I get home.
This pile of scraps is the leftovers from my Twisted quilt. Some of them are already stitched together and need to be squared but many (MANY) of them need to be stitched and squared. I am excited to get this done because I think it will be fun to use these somehow. Maybe a baby quilt or a springy floral mini? The majority of the fabrics are Kaffe Fassett and it will be fun to have these to play with. First I need to get through the tedium of squaring them all up though. Have to pay to play, right?
Other than Myrtle the Turtle, this is probably my top priority. I posted this picture on Instagram two weeks ago. My friend Susie lost her husband to lung cancer in September 2018. She is ready to deal with his clothes now and asked if I would make a memory quilt. Of course I am happy (honored actually) to do this for her. I have cut the shirts into four inch squares. Some of the shirts were kind of thin but she loved them and wanted to include them. I reinforced them with a very light weight interfacing and I think they will work fine. We looked at patterns and she chose a simple patchwork. I am doing four patch blocks and sashing them with a neutral, low volume fabric in a creamy off-white. She also gave me two photos she had printed on fabric of the two of them. Those will be incorporated as well. I am hoping to get the four patch blocks stitched up during the trip.
I know, this is sort of ridiculous but I have one more project. A while ago, Sarah of Sarah Goer Quilts sent me these sweet fat quarters during a book share I hosted. I love them and thought they might make a cute purse for H to have. There is a tutorial here, created by Pat Bravo. I think it will be perfect though I plan to reduce the size a bit.
What do you think? How much of this will happen during nap time over the next three weeks? It’s anybody’s guess! But I look forward to sewing when not playing with H. She is such a cutie pie and we have lots of plans. There are tea parties to enjoy, the children’s museum to visit, and maybe a trip or two to the library. Such is life while visiting in Vermont!
You have a good variety of projects to work on, Bernie! I can’t wait to see the turtle; it reminds me of a frog that my grandma made for all of us grandkids. I still have mine (and I inherited the pattern). I’m glad you decided to go with the squared away blocks as they are; it will look great. (You’re welcome for the tip too!)
Oh yay! So glad you get to have this time with your family! I think you have just the right variety to accomplish quite a bit! Have a great trip!
Thank you Sarah. Family time mixed with a couple of hours to sew – what’s better than that!! It is weird to be gone for so long though – Julia and I and Ray have already been chatting on the phone quite a bit and I am only on my 3rd day away!!! Have a great weekend.
Fun projects for you during your time with H. I can tell you she will LOVE the purse. When I made one for L at about the same age, I put a little tissue holder in it with some vintage hankies, a mirror and tiny brush, and a little credit card holder with laminated photos of familiy members. She played with it for a long time. Have a great time. I wonder: are you having typical Vermont weather for this time of the year?
The weather isn’t bad. Yesterday was actually quite sunny out so we got a good walk in. Today I convinced her to go in the stroller by giving her a baggie with sliced apples. She walks well but wants to be carried after a while which is a back breaker!! But the stroller was fine and I got a better walk in that way. Off to finish up the purse. I hope she likes it!
I know you will enjoy your time and my guess is you will enjoy some time with projects but mostly spend time with your granddaughter. Safe travels!!!
Thank you!! We are having a lovely time together. It surprises me how she has changed since I saw her over the holidays. I am happy to be here for a while. Have fun at QuiltCon.
Sounds like wonderful time for both of you! These days go by so fast❤️Enjoy your time with that sweet granddaughter!
You are so right – she celebrates her 2nd birthday next month and it is hard to believe. These first two years seemed to fly by!
A little purse! What a great idea for those fabrics. I know she will absolutely love it and carry it everywhere. And a turtle, too! Perhaps you are trying to get her started on the joys of stitching early? Sounds like a great plan to me! It looks like you have some nice variety of projects there, so you won’t be bored. A great idea to leave some sewing supplies there, too. Have a wonderful time, and I hope you make some progress on your projects. Don’t forget to visit a fabric store or two! Maybe that would make a nice outing for you and H!
There is a cute LQS here that I intend to visit. She is a good ‘shopper’ as long as we don’t spend too long. I also want to check out the Baby Boho consignment shop.
The purse is nearly done. She just went down for a nap so I will go and put it together for her. I brought some sparkly necklaces from the Dollar Store. She likes putting them on me almost as much as herself. So far, so good!!
You took along some wonderful projects!! Smart choices for many things that you can pick up and put down easily.
Definitely – that was my goal. None of the projects are difficult so I won’t ‘lose my place’ if I start and stop a lot. Take care Carole and enjoy the weekend!!
These are great projects! Thanks for sharing the turtle pattern; I may see if my son wants to help me make a turtle! I hope you get a lot done during nap time and enjoy all your fun time with H!
What a great Grammy you are Bernie. 🙂
I love Mari’s idea of alternating blocks with neutrals. I may try that on a couple of quilts too.
I look forward to seeing your memory quilt.
I bet your family in CA misses you!
Yep, we all miss each other. It would have been fun if the timing were different and all three of us could be out here together. But not this time.
As for using up blocks with plain alternating squares, go for it. Better to use the blocks then let them sit on the shelf, right??