This month quilt group was at my house and I was very excited to host because I had special treats for the girls! I brought them all a swatch of genuine, Italian fabric all the way from Rome, tucked them into the darling bags my sister made for me along with a few pieces of Home-made Licorice Caramels! The mister and I went into a "Tessiles" shop looking for fabric and every bolt of quilting fabric was from the U.S. - I asked for a traditional Italian fabric and after a lot of gesturing and picture drawing, we broke through the language barrier and they showed me their original fabric they had designed. Sold! I also wanted to show you the yo-yo doily I purchased from Yo-Yo Cottage at ETSY.com - if you're in need of yo-yo's THAT is the place to go! I dragged out all of my Halloween crappola for my annual Halloween fest, including my vintage pumpkins and this year I added a fantastic "tree" to my dining room table display...it was a 7th grade project gone amuk that I picked up at a garage sale for a buck!! SCORE!
Claudia started off our show and tell with her darling new apron - the dropped waist gives it such a fun flare! She stunned us all with her embroidered Halloween blocks - she's still working on them but they are even more adorable in person! Can't wait to see this one finished! Claudia also brought in this "Schnibbles" quilt - if you're not familiar with Schnibbles, this is what it is:
Schnibble: noun A scrap of fabric; a leftover bit of cloth; a small piece. The word has a German origin and is found primarily in German settlements in the Midwest. You can find great ideas for "schnibble quilts" by buying one of the many books available, like the one shown here.
Claudia continued wowing us with her paper-pieced block, which will soon be part of a quilt...she suggested we get together and make these blocks as a group - and that went over like doggy-doo in a punch bowl! Our group tends not to be a paper-piecing group...just too darn much work! But Claudia likes work, as you can see by her selvege blocks - which she made into a selvege bag!!! Stinkin' cute!
Barbara made these darling bags for her grandchildren for Halloween - they're made with window screening and fabric, plus she added some fun beaded trim! Now picture them filed with candy!
Barbara also made this beautiful fall quilt - and that's her little grandson, Nathan, who stood perfectly still until I took the picture! Just look at all of those yummy colors - it's perfectly sewn, as usual.
Ardith brought in just a few of the holiday-themed placemats that she's made for her grandkids - all three of them have a complete set! There is a light layer of batting in between and she also machine-embroidered their names on them...Ardith has one of those super-duper Bernina's that does everything but windows! Perhaps in my next life I, too, shall own one...
Helen upped her game with this one - after years of making Americana quilts and then years sewing up one fantastic "Kaffe" quilt after another, she finally made a quilt that matches her turquoise sofa! It's a beaut, too! She also made a matching pillowcase for the pillow they keep nearby...but don't go thinking Helen is all matchy-matchy...no way! She's always one to toss in a "gotcha" fabric, plus, that girl couldn't "color within the lines" if her life depended on it!
See what I mean? This is Helen's basket quilt - unlike any I've ever seen and I just love it! It's dang happy, no? She's still got the binding to put on but it's a stunner already!
This was pieced by Janet - it's her American Hero Quilt. Our group makes blocks for someone each month, and we make the same block each month, too - but they are always sewn together differently and this one is no exception. Janet did a great job - just imagine the smile this is going to put on a wounded veteran's face!
Dawn was the only one who showed up in costume this year (we missed you Stephanie!) and she made it herself! She also played golf in it the day before (unlike her quilt group everyone on the golf course was in costume!) She looked adorable in it - so much so that I begged her to let me borrow it for our annual Christmas extravaganza! I'm so excited!!! Thanks Dawn!!
Our little group was founded in December 1996, so we're 14 years old! We've had as many as 17 members and as few as 9...and we've only skipped one meeting due to a windstorm! Over the years I'd say our group has probably made over a thousand quilts combined...we're small but we're busy!