Hello everyone, and happy spring! We are in full bloom here, and the weather has been really nice. It feels so great! Of course, it also feels kind of sneezy and scratchy, but who even cares? It's like waking up from a very, very long sleep. I have been sewing quite a bit lately, so you know I'm feeling quite a bit better. I think getting the vaccine helped me a lot, and so does the sunshine. Not to mention that this nightmare semester is almost over! Pandemic teaching has been the worst, but at last we are coming to the end. Hurray for that!
I have yet another small quilt top to show off today. I actually already basted it and it's ready for quilting up, but this top has to wait its turn in line. Here's this fun top:
If you have children, or know any children, you might recognize Brown Bear of Eric Carle fame and the book of the same name. Long ago (the selvage says 2008) I started collecting kits and fabrics and putting them aside in what I called a "grandma box." In case I ever had grandchildren, you know. A couple of years ago I pulled out this kit and found a poorly-cut panel:
Yeah. Always check as soon as your fabric arrives! Or check it in the store before you purchase a kit of any kind. Once I saw this, I took the kit apart and have used some of the fabrics for other things. I kept the panel in case I had another idea, but it just made me upset so I didn't do anything with it.
And then my almost-youngest granddaughter fell in love with the Brown Bear book and pretty much memorized it. What's a grandma to do but find a way to make it work? So, of course, I did, and I'm pretty happy with the results.
I can't wait to quilt this one up, because it's going to live here at Grandma's house. With all of us having gotten vaccines, I expect that my granddaughter will actually get to visit again pretty soon, and it just makes me happy to think about having this one ready so she can tell me all about Brown Bear. That's some pretty strong incentive to quilt up the others ahead of it in line, too!
Before I made this quilt top, I also completed another project-- a new ironing board! My husband cut the plywood for me, then I covered it with a layer of 1/2- inch foam and two layers of (the cheapest possible big box store) batting, then a final layer of cotton duck. I'm still going back and forth about covering it in the silver reflective cloth, but so far it's working great for me. And it's 54 inches wide, so pressing yardage is soooo much easier.
Finally, last Wednesday this little blog turned 7 years old! I have no idea how this happened. I think next week I'll have some kind of a giveaway or something to celebrate, but for now, thanks for hanging around for so long, and special thanks for bearing with me through the really hard times we've been having. Quilty friends are the best!
Have a wonderful weekend, everyone! My plan for the weekend is to haul out the patio furniture. Lunch on the patio, everyone! Hurray!
18 comments:
That’s a great milestone. Now to pass the 7year itch.
Such a fun quilt, great job. I have a few panels waiting for inspiration to strike :)
Great way to work with a poorly cut panel! What fun to have the Brown Bear fabric too, since the book is such a hit. Hurray for lunch on the patio - enjoy!
I think you just created the PERFECT "Grandma Quilt"!!!
I don't think I've ever seen a panel that was cut straight, or printed on grain for that matter. You've made wonderfully sweet lemonade from your old lemon! Congratulations on blogging for seven years.
Your granddaughter is going to love the Brown Bear quilt, although you may have trouble keeping it at Grandma's after she sees it. Someone gave me that panel (or maybe just part of it) and I used some of the blocks in a baby quilt. I may have put some of them on the back as well. Crooked panels are not unusual so I tend to avoid them. Your daffodil hill looks so inviting. Here's hoping spring is here to stay.
Pat
I love how you made the sloppy panel cut work, especially since I, too, have endured a couple of those. Congratulations on blogging seven years! That's a huge milestone! So happy you get to see your granddaughter again; I know she's going to love the finished quilt. But that homemade ironing board... holy cow! I need to copy you!!!
Congratulations!! - on the blogiversary and on finding the perfect use for that panel. It turned out so cute and the grandkids will LOVE it when they visit your house.
I get my second shot today, in about an hour. My husband will get his second one next Friday. Yay!!
Awww Brown Bear is adorable!! and that Spring has sprung - wow!! Those Daffodils!!! I am glad you are feeling better! and hopefully school goes back to in person next year - its hard for these kids -
Enjoy Grandma time!!!
Before I forget...your daffodils on the hill is awesome! That kind of thing isn’t prevalent here! And now to the gushing about your Grandma quilt! It’s wonderful! I think MissPat may be right, your almost-youngest granddaughter may want to take it home with her,
Happy blogoversary! You whipped that panel into a great shape and it will be the perfect quilt for your visiting granddaughter :)
Such a fun, happy quilt, your granddaughter will love it when she comes to visit. Happy blog Anniversary, 7 years and going strong, it's a great achievement!
That is so cute, Mari, and looks like it will be perfect for your granddaughter! I can still remember one of my sons and his friend, in the back of our car on the way home from kindergarten, reciting all of Brown Bear, Brown Bear from memory. So fun!
a neat quilt! love your ironing board and the flowers in the garden look so good. Glad you have been able to get the second vaccine it makes all of us feel better to get it. My girls liked the Brown Bear too
Love that GD quilt! Great incentive. Too bad they chopped that square in half! I've had a big board for 14 years. I recover it about every other year. Maybe when your board needs refreshing you could cover it with the metallic fabric. That's what I use. I put it right over the old. Love your flower photos!!! Ours are blooming here in Minnesota, too, since Tuesday.
What the heck? How did I miss this post. I love Eric Carle and of course Brown Bear, Brown Bear. So glad you pulled the panel out and used it up. So adorable Mari! Enjoy your family time. I know you will. :-)
Kudos to Larry and his carpentry skills. I love your new ironing board; it sure makes life easier. Congratulations on your blogiversary!!!
Keeping this darling quilt at home and watching your grandbabies snuggle in it is like having your cake and eating it too :-)
Congrats on 7 years. Great quilt. My kids loved that book. I don't know if my grandkids have it or not.
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