Just stopping in to thank all of you for such a successful quilt along. Mercyful Quilts now has another batch of fresh, gorgeous quilts on the way. I am always looking for ways to keep the shelf full for their Palliative Care department and all of you are a huge part of that.
Many thanks to Preeti (Sew Preeti Quilts) for heading this Positivity QAL up for the second year in a row. Preeti designs the quilt, writes up the instructions, keeps the timeline and answers many questions from quilters needing a little help here or there. Without her, this event wouldn’t happen. Thanks also to the quilters who graciously spend their time and money to make a quilt (or two!) for the program. I believe we have about 15 quilts this year as a result of the event. There may be one or two more that get finished up later and that is totally fine.
Due to the generosity of Art Gallery Fabric and Benartex Fabric, each quilter who finished a quilt and either linked up or sent me a picture of the final quilt will receive a gift. I know the prize, or gift, is not the reason we make these comfort quilts. But it is nice to be able to replenish your fabric after you have given up some of your stash to make a quilt for us. These gifts will go out in the mail later this week. If Preeti or I don’t have your address, we will contact you to get the mailing information.
As I write this post, I am thinking about how grateful I am to have your support for Mercyful Quilts. When I consider the time it takes to make a quilt, the expense of the fabric, batting, backing and binding, possible expense of a long arm quilter, and the cost of the postage – this is no small undertaking. Many people don’t understand how many hours and hours go into each quilt. Nor do they know the amount of money spent to make one lap size quilt. But I know and am so thankful. When I count my blessings, each of you are counted.
Who has finished their 2022 Positivity Quilt for Mercy Hospital in Sacramento? Visualize me with my hand up in the air and a huge smile on my face! Whether you are finished, or still working on it, know that Mercyful Quilts is so grateful to you for your time, creativity and generosity. These quilts give comfort to families as they say goodbye to a person very special to them. Anyone who has lost someone dear to them knows how difficult this is. For us to be able to provide some support to these people is a gift.
My 2022 Positivity Quilt
I am really happy with the quilt I made for this QAL. Before I left California, my friend Stephanie (who has donated 3 quilts to Mercy Hospital already) gave me a stack of fabric. In her honor, I used the bundle of Dreamcatcher fabric for this quilt. It wasn’t the absolute perfect choice because so much of the fabric was directional and made some of the blocks look a bit chopped up. But – the overall effect is good, so I am pleased. I mentioned before that this western themed fabric isn’t something I would typically choose. But this quilt isn’t for me, is it? The region that Mercy Hospital in Sacramento serves has plenty of people with horses and ranches so I am hoping this quilt calls to a family with this sort of vibe.
Pieced backing for the win.
I had some large pieces in the stack and was able to piece a backing with them. At least this way I could feature the directional prints in the right manner.
Loops and more loops
I quilted the body of the quilt with loops of all sizes. I wanted to practice one shape while I was quilting so I selected circles – quilting just circles over and over was great to develop that muscle memory. As usual, I quilted with Glide thread. It is super silky and works well for me.
Time for the binding
I like this little nook in front of my machine – it is just the right place to tuck the roll of binding while I am attaching it. I machine stitched to the front and hand stitched the back.
Now that this is finished, I have two Mercyful quilts ready to go. So – do you have yours ready too? If so, please link up and show us your finish!
If you can’t link up, please send me a picture so I can enter you in the prize drawing. Here is Lisa T’s quilt finish. Lisa’s quilt is a lovely rainbow of color!
Pieced and quilted by Lisa T. Lisa’s pieced backing made with a few extra blocks.
Such pretty colors in this one – pieced and quilted by Wendy F.
The two quilts shown above were made by Danielle (@justanaveragequilter). The different background colors make such a difference in the overall look of the quilt!
Maybe I should share a prize or two donated by Art Gallery Fabric. They are always very generous sponsors and I am grateful. Surely you are already aware of the quality of AGF fabrics but if you haven’t given them a try, please do.
A fat quarter bundle of Jessica Swift fabrics1/2 yard bundle of tone on tone pieces
Each of these Art Gallery Fabric prizes give you three yards of fabric to work with! There are also bundles of fabric provided by Island Batik as well as
OK – Here is the link up! Show us what you made. (Or email me a picture! You can use the contact me button on this page.)
I have been out of touch for a couple of weeks. Last we chatted, I was heading to stay with my grand girls for a long weekend while their parents took a quick break. We had so much fun. The girls were very easy to take care of even though the two year old was running a bit of a fever. She was still very happy to be with her grandpa, even if not feeling quite 100%. We got to celebrate Ray’s birthday while we were there.
Celebrating Grandpa’s birthday together
The girls had fun painting a cardboard box outside. There was no real plan other than to paint for the sake of painting.
Muffin tins make a great holder for the paint.
Once the box was done, H asked if we could make it into a rocket ship. She clearly had a very specific plan in mind. Ray and I talked to her for a bit to try and suss out her plan. She was able to explain just what she thought it would look like.
Working with Grandpa to make the rocket ship
It turned out so cute and the girls were pleased!
Rocket ship to the moon!
When H was in the box, she and Grandpa would count down to blast off and Grandpa would shake the box like crazy to make it feel like she was blasting off. It was so fun.
The day we were driving home I started to feel sick. By the time we got home (it is only a 75 minute drive) I felt horrible. Climbed into bed and there I stayed for three days. Then I just felt awful for another three or four days. I tested negative for Covid and it seems I had the flu. The day I started to feel better, Ray crawled into bed and repeated my entire experience. Ugh!! We lost a couple of weeks to this virus and it was not fun!
Once we got our energy back, we invited the girls to come for a weekend. We really wanted to spend some time with them before H starts school.
Playing at the local splash pad
We went to a local park that has a splash pad. Little sister was a bit leary of most of the fountains but she would occasionally stand near one and shriek. It was really funny. Mostly she watched and also stomped in the puddles.
This girl couldn’t get enough!
No fear with this one though. She has such an adventurous spirit!
Two kitties in a swing
There was a playground next to the splash pad. H was in this big webbed swing and really wanted her little sister to join her. A was not going anywhere near it. She kept saying it was scary. After many invitations, big sister said, “let’s be kitties” which is one of A’s favorite games. A few meows later and little sister was in the swing snuggling with H. I was almost getting choked up here. H kept patting her little sister’s back, saying ‘see, this isn’t scary, I am here with you’. They fight occasionally but this sort of thing makes up for the squabbles.
Making pizzas.
The last night we all made individual pizzas together. The girls love doing this. Yum.
Summer is winding down and H starts kindergarten in two weeks! Hard to believe she is going to be in school.
My friend from California arrives today for a quick visit. She is also a quilter and as luck would have it, today is the local quilt guild’s show. I am really excited to see Sophia, even if just for one night.
Scrappy pumpkins
With school starting for H and summer winding down, I have been thinking about fall. I made a few scrappy, strip-pieced pumpkins. I think I will incorporate them into a Halloween quilt.
Debbie Mum Halloween panel
I can’t remember if I shared this but I was at an estate sale some time ago and picked up this Halloween panel. I am thinking I will use the pumpkins to border one side. I am going to make blocks out of them that set the pumpkins on an angle so they have some character. More on that as I make progress.
Lastly! Sunday is the opening of the final link up for the 2022 Positivity QAL!! I have my quilt finished. If you do as well, please link up!! Remember that if you don’t have a way to link up, you can email me a photo and I will add it to the blog post. I want you to be eligible for the prize drawing!! The link up will be open all next week so you still have time to finish it up. See you soon!
Good morning everyone! I wanted to pop in and let you know the names were drawn for the prizes for this link up. Mercyful Quilts is truly grateful for both the quilts being made as well as the sponsors who have donated gifts for these quilters! The next time you are looking for just the right pattern to make, please check the shops for our sponsors. You will surely find just what you are looking for!
Congrats to these quilters! I have emailed you so please check your in-box for the information. The next link up will be to show your finished quilts. This happens during the end of August.
The turnout for this year’s event is a bit less than last year. Who knows why? Maybe people are busier this summer. Maybe it is too darn hot across the whole country to be sewing. (I cannot believe how scorched much of the US is right now!!) At any rate, we are grateful for those who are participating. If you are working on your quilt and not making the time schedule, no problem. The need at Mercy Hospital is constant so we will happily receive your quilt donation at any time! If you feel overwhelmed and cannot finish the total number of blocks please make as many as you want to complete your quilt. While the pattern calls for 80 blocks, a generous quilt can be accomplished with less than that. Especially if you add a pretty border to enlarge it.
I hope you are sitting down as you read this because I have some news! Not only have I finished my quilt top for the 2022 Pos QAL, but I have pieced the backing. There is more! The binding is cut! The quilt is basted! I know, I know – this is shocking. I am almost positive I have never finished a QAL within the stated timespan. What is happening here??? Is my plan to focus on one project at a time actually working? I feel like I don’t even know myself anymore. Hahaha.
OK – Closing for now. I have the pleasure of staying with my grand daughters next week for a couple of days while their parents have a quick getaway. No sewing will be happening but lots of fun will be had!
Because blog posts are much more fun to read if they have pictures, here are some fun ones!
Feeling so cool with their shades on while waiting for their swim lesson.What do you think? Is this girl not an Audrey Hepburn lookalike??Big sister taking little sister (and Olaf) for a ride.
Good morning all! Hope you are having a lovely weekend. Believe it or not, it is time to link up a progress shot of your 2022 Positivity Quilt. This might mean sharing a couple of blocks with us. Or maybe you have actually stitched a few rows together. Maybe, like me, you are still in the earliest stages and have been cutting your pieces out. Wherever you might be, let us enjoy your progress so far.
I started cutting blocks for mine. Before leaving California, my friend Stephanie gave me a stack of leftover fabric from a western themed quilt she made. This line of fabric is called Dreamcatcher and was made by Whistler Studios . It is not my usual style fabric but this quilt is not for me. Being destined for Mercy Hospital, there is no way of knowing who will receive it. With Mercyful Quilts, the family of the patient chooses the quilt and oftentimes, they choose one that is meaningful to their relationship with the person they are saying goodbye to. Thus it is good to have all sorts of choices. A variety of colors, styles, and themes are advantageous. So this quilt will have a strong Native American, western vibe to it. Some of the fabric is directional and I am hoping this doesn’t create issues as I assemble the blocks. That remains to be seen.
2021 Positivity Quilt
As I was cutting the pieces and getting excited to start assembling blocks, my practical side grabbed hold and told me to finish up last year’s quilt first. Most of the top was done and it didn’t make sense to move on until I got this completed. I set the fabric aside and pulled out last year’s plus quilt. I didn’t make more blocks. Instead, I went with what I had completed. To increase the size, I added a yellow border. Then got it basted and ready for quilting. On Friday I began quilting it. It feels so much better to work in a more orderly fashion. My husband will be the first to tell you I often flit from one thing to another which is, for the most part, unproductive. Once this quilt is done, I will start sewing blocks for the next one.
So this is where I am at for now. How about you? Have you got lots of blocks assembled? Maybe your quilt top is even finished. Share it with us here. One of the best parts of a quilt along is the camaraderie of sewing together. Also, since we are making the same pattern, it is so cool to see it in any number of fabric choices. I look forward to seeing all of them. Link up is open until Saturday, July 2, 2022. Thanks for joining in and sewing for Mercyful Quilts!
