Patriotic Tuesday

Hi folks! Today (Tuesday, November 11) is Veteran's Day in the US, so on this chilly, blustery day let me just start with a huge thank you to all of you out there who have served our country in any capacity. Many members of my family were drafted and my godson is serving now, along with several of our children's friends. Know that we appreciate all of you!

Over the last few days I made this patriotic medallion:

I think that this will become the center of a Quilts of Valor donation quilt. It's 32 by 32 right now, so it shouldn't be too hard to add some borders and layers to make a nice-sized lap quilt for a deserving veteran. This medallion was made from the Moda Love pattern, which is available HERE in 3 sizes (pdf). HERE is more information about Quilts of Valor, in case you feel inspired to make something cozy for a veteran yourself. They have a lot of free patterns, too.

I have started putting together the 9-patch quilt for RSC14.  Nobody laugh at this photo:

This is what we mean by "work in progress."  Actually, I put this corner together to test out the black and white fabric. I actually used a different black and white than I showed before. This one is a little more dense than the first one. I decided to use the black and white for sashing as well as the setting triangles, and I think it makes the 9-patches look like they're floating.

Also, what do you think  of the "cornerstones"? I'm still on the fence (ha,ha!) about the half-square triangles as cornerstones. Maybe when they're all together it will look better and I'll feel better about it. I've already made the hsts and I'm using them, darn it! (And yes, I cut the corner triangle too small. I know. I forgot to include the sashing strips when I figured the cut size. I promise to replace it in the finished quilt.)

Finally, in case you think I forgot, I finished the 4-patches for the Jitterbug quilt:

Since there are so many pieces individually cut from the jelly roll strips I decided to do a lot of the parts leader and ender style. It's just boring to sew 400 half-square triangles one at a time, but this gets the job done with minimal boredom. And now those 4-patches are done! With hardly any effort on my part!

That's what I'm doing this week, along with some more Drunkard's Path blocks. The more blocks I make, the better I like that quilt! We are in for some nasty, frigid weather, so it's just good sense to stay in and sew! Stay warm, everyone!

Linking to Fabric Tuesday, WIP Wednesday, and Let's Bee Social, and also the awesome Angela at soscrappy for RSC14. Stop over and have a look at all the great stuff others are doing this week!

Under the weather

Hi folks! Hope you are all feeling well, because I feel really crummy. My head is about the size of a basketball and I can feel my sinuses in my throat. Not sick enough to stay in bed, but too sick to do complex things--like cook, for example. I'm totally blaming the weather, because it is cold and raining. Of course, students always make sure they sneeze on their papers before they hand them in, so it could be that, too.

Since I'm feeling so crummy, there's not a lot going on right now. I really don't feel like working on either of the quilts I should be working on. I did make these three new blocks for the Loyal Union Sampler:

I guess I was in a green mood. That star block in the center is paper pieced and it still nearly killed me. Tiny squares do not go with a headache.What was I thinking? Thank goodness there is only one to make for this quilt. I'm not sure I like the other two blocks, but I committed to making all of the blocks for this one, so maybe they'll get lost in the forest of the remaining blocks.

I also spent some time paging through quilt books and I picked out a pattern for these strips:

I chose this pattern, called Jitterbug:

From this book, which was another library find:

(On a side note, I think there must be a quilter who works in acquisitions at our library, because there are quite a few really recent books on the shelves. Wish I knew who it was, because I have a couple requests!) I may do some cutting for this one if I start feeling better. I'm not sure I trust myself with sharp objects right now.

One thing I have hope of finishing in the next few days involves this orange tote bag:

I'm hoping to turn it into something else this week, if my eyes ever focus properly again.

Anyway, it's time for some tea and soup, and maybe several cold pills too. Thank goodness I have several quilts to cuddle under because it is darned chilly around here.Fall is definitely here. My neighbor's tree has even started changing already.

Everyone stay healthy this week! If you feel too crummy to sew, you have my deepest sympathies. Make someone wait on you!

Linking to Linky Tuesday, WIP Wednesday, and Let's Bee Social. Come on over and check out what everyone else is up to!