March's Mini

I'm imagining that many us save 

photographs of quilts.

Maybe it's a design we like,

or a color combination that's interesting,

or the quilt just speaks to you.

For my March mini I decided

to take a look at the photos I'd been saving.

I used this quilt

which appears to be from the collection of the 

International Quilt Museum.

(Sometimes it's hard to follow the trail)

 I found the image on Pinterest.

Here's my interpretation.

Rocky Mountain Snow Keeps Fallen

17" x 24"

A couple weekends ago when we had our 

"Big Snow",

I found myself looking for something to do

rather than volunteering to go shovel.

I remembered the quilt photo I had saved,

and began digging in the stash for fabrics. 

I hadn't used many of my stripes and plaids for a while

so it was fun to reconnect with many of my favorites. 

One thing that appealed to me about the original quilt,

besides the use of the color,

was the symmetry of the center.

It has a calming effect and 

a sense of order despite all

 the different fabrics.

Maybe the original quilter had strips

long enough to do the center in that fashion

and then had to piece the remaining rows.

I enjoyed the free use of the fabrics,

just adding pieces as I went. 

I added a little stripe as the binding and

did some hand quilting

down the center of each row.

Some ticking that I had

been saving was perfect for the backing.

It was a fun mini to make for March.

Be sure and check out the other Mini Makers

on Wendy's blog, the Constant Quilter.

It's fascinating and amazing how each participant

creates a unique little quilt each month.

Until Next Time-

Kyle

Snow and Hearts

Springtime can

take on a very snowy appearance

here in Colorado.

Last weekend we braced ourselves for 

A March blizzard.

2 feet of snow outside my door.

Spring time snow can be different than

winter snow,

very wet and very heavy.

It always looks beautiful outside 

a landscape of white,

but hard on the trees.

  Then reality sets in and it's 

 time to start digging out.

Two days to uncover the driveway, even with a 

snow blower, which was not very happy to be working so hard. 

Stepping out the side door, it took me 5 passes with

the shovel to get down to the driveway.

It was that deep and heavy.

The snow was past my knees.

The piles got pretty high, over 5 feet. We ran out of

places to put the snow!

You can see we're a hearty bunch here,

34 degrees and we were shedding our coats.

The sun has been out for the past few days and

it's beginning to melt.  We have desperately needed the moisture

this snow has brought, remembering the fires we had last summer. 

But while the wind was howling and the snow was blowing

I concentrated on finishing up my next set of donation quilts.

When I was trying to decide what to do next,

a friend gave me several pieces of fabric 

large enough for backings.

This time I chose a pattern based on 

 these two pieces.

Hearts, Red

and Pink

I gathered pink and red fabrics

from the stash and used 

Cluck, Cluck, Sew's free pattern

for making heart blocks in multiple sizes,

which you can find Here.

I made the blocks 6 inches finished and staggered the layout.

Super easy and fun to make.

Red Hearts

41" x 53"

Pink Hearts

Both quilts with flange bindings.

Hopefully, it won't be long before I can give these,

plus the other quilt 

I've already made, away.

For now though, I'm going 

to be concentrating on a few of my own lingering projects.

Snow and hearts, 

that's what the week has been like here.

I know underneath all that snow,

the grass is turning green and spring is on its way.

Until Next Time-

Kyle

Hooked on Bags- February's Monthly Minis

 I have to admit that this

monthly mini took on a slightly different shape

and direction than previous months.

I've been hooked on making

vinyl project bags.

Since I shared my newest obsession 

in an earlier post  (Here, Bag It)

I have been making a few (lots) more.

I am not the originator of the pattern. 

I followed Jen's YouTube video, 

Jenn Craft Idea, Flosstube #23.5

but altered the size to make it just a little bigger.

My friend, Liz, gifted me a few more

vintage towels and I have definelty 

been having fun.

I have been trying to use fabric

from my stash, 

the green is an older Mary Englebreit 

print but worked perfectly with

the colors of the mint plant.

 A trip to the LQS helped

to find just the right fabrics to accent

some of the other embroideries.

I love the little chicks.  

The embroidery is crayon tinted and 

the piece was originally the front of a child size

apron that had been well loved.

Now I want to keep my eyes

open for some more cute vintage embroidered towels

looking for an new job.

But it can also fun to use other

cute fabrics.

Why not use some of my favorite

Dutch fabrics, bright colors,

and big prints.

The possibilities are endless.

I counted and I have 10 more

16" zippers left.

I see more bags in my future.

I'm linking with Wendy and the 

other mini makers .

Take a look at what wonderful minis these

fabulous quilters have been 

creating.  I hope I haven't stretch

the definition of mini too much

for February!

Until Next Time-

Kyle