Fractured Hexagons

 Last week, I was able to turn a UFO into a finished quilt. 

 Fractured Hexagons is a 40"X40" quilt designed by Jen Eskridge from Modern Baby. I made the top, sat it on a shelf and, sadly, just now got around to quilting it. 

 Since I'm planning to donate Fractured Hexagons to the Kansas City Modern Quilt Guild's charity program called Birthday Blessings, I kept it simple and did stipple quilting on all of the background area. The hexagons each sport a little lazy daisy.

The backing is a favorite Ikea number print. (I'm anxious for Ikea to open in KC in the fall so that I can replenish my backing stash!)

 The peach-colored bicycle print binding is Weekends by Erin McMorris from a few years back.

All of these photos were taken before I have popped the quilt into the washer and dryer. I'll do that before donating it next month for a little one-year-old child in foster care. The quilt will be donated in memory of my friend, Sharon Brandli, who started the charity program for our guild. She passed away a few months ago after a courageous, years-long battle with cancer.

 Every little one should have a quilt to call their own, don't you think? I sure do.

 Do you have a favorite charity that you enjoy making quilts for?

Thankful

We Americans celebrate Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday in November every year. But no matter where we live, it's nice to remind ourselves of all that we have been blessed with. As I make my mental list, I count blogging friends among my many pleasures! One in particular comes to mind today. Her name is Anna and she lives in the San Francisco area.

Anna and I don't correspond frequently, but when we do, I am always blown away by her sweet spirit and generosity. Last spring, she told me about a project that she was heading up to make quilts for some special ladies. She wondered if I would mind if she used my Liberated Cross tutorial as the basis for the blocks and the quilts that she had in mind. Of course, I was thrilled. If you are new to my blog, or don't remember (most likely!), this is the quilt that birthed the tutorial, Anniversary Crosses.

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I had intended to use Anna's own words to tell you what she did with the 1250 cross blocks that were made by her and her friends and collected between April and October, but I accidentally deleted them! Ack! So, instead, I will direct you to the website for Freedom HouseSF. org. 
And here are the 24 beautiful quilts that were given to the Monarch house and newly opened Nest (for minors) to be gifted to the survivors of human trafficking as they endeavor to rebuild their lives in a safe environment. Thank you, Anna, and your friends for the love and hope that these quilts represent. 

Aren't they just gorgeous! These are not tiny quilts. What inspiration! My eyes well up.

I was able to find this final correspondence with regard to Anna's thoughts on the importance of this organization and it's mission, something most of us have little  knowledge of. Please read.

And now, thank you again for offering to post our quilts. As there are so many charities and needs to be fill in this world. The viewers have a chance to hear a calling to help survivors of human trafficking. If not in a direct way, they may look into and support an organization like FreedomHouseSF.org. We need to let the victims know, there are many of us in support of their journey to rebuild their lives. Sadly, we know there are so many more that are still held in bondage and cannot escape. For these fews escaped, may they find hope, encouragement and strength to rebuild.

I'm thankful for you, Anna.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Carla

Quilt Joplin

Over the weekend I gathered some fabrics from my stash to donate to a quilt guild in Joplin, Missouri. This philanthropic guild of 75 members lost all of their supplies and 80 completed charity quilts in the F-5 tornado that devastated so much of that city two weeks ago. In the dark corners of my closet, I also located several quilt tops to donate. I am actually very excited to be giving them life through this lovely guild. If you are interested in helping out, you can learn about their work and needs here. The leader's statement is memorable, "We help the needy, and now we are the needy!"

 These quilt tops have been hidden from view for so long, and it's really a shame. This completed lap size quilt even has the backing ready to go...it just needs quilted and bound. I think I made it about 7 years ago in a class by Robin Askins. I've moved since then, and the colors just don't work for me anymore.

 Here's an even older one. The appliques are ironed on and they just need stitched around. It's a cute top, made in the country colors and style I used to favor.

A close up of the little penned prayer....

 Some of you may remember this Thimbleberries pattern and fabric. I actually led the making of this project as a mystery quilt and am embarrassed to say that I never finished it. Hopefully, it will bring some happiness in Joplin. I always liked the scalloped border.

 Now, this country house goes back to sometime in the 1990's when I attended a workshop by Fonz and Porter. I got to this point and lost interest for some reason. For someone who lost their house in the tornado, perhaps it will have special meaning.

 Last, but not least, I'm donating this hand pieced quilt top. It is in three sections. It wouldn't take much to get them together and into some one's hand for comfort. Can you guess how long this has been hanging over my head and hiding in the closet? If you say ten fifteen twenty years, you would be right! Yikes, how time flies!

My quilt guild here in Kansas City is going to be hand delivering supplies, tops and money donations to Joplin from our members. I'm hoping we bless their socks off!


In other quilty news, if you have ever sat around wondering how in the world Lollyquiltz got its name, this is your lucky day, my friends! I'm excited to be featured on the Name Game by Live A Colorful Life. Cindy did a little on line interview of me to find out all the inside info. It's riveting stuff, and you won't want to miss a word of it, so head on over! (Smile!)

Cindy has a wonderful blog...she's a fellow red head and we are making plans to meet in real life one of these days!

More Quilts4Hope

Unexpectedly, I had the privilege of sharing some Starbucks coffee with a woman I've been wanting to meet for some time now! Her name is Chantal and she is the founder of New Hope Homes in Rwanda, the home for orphaned and abandoned children where the Quilts4Hope projects were sent in July. This evening, Sara Groves, a Christian recording artist, is performing a benefit concert at my church to raise money toward building another house for ten more children and their caretakers. Chantal will be taking three more quilts home to Rwanda with her for the last three little ones who have come to live at New Hope Homes. I thought that you might like to see two of them before Chantal packs them away in her suitcase.

This  picture does not do justice to the beautiful colors Vicki used to create this striking strip quilt.  The black fabric is perfect for an African quilt with it's bright, stylized horse designs. I love the quilting she did on the borders.

I dug into my bin of 2.5 inch strips to create this bright scrap quilt using a Moda Bake Shop pattern called Random Reflections by Freckled Whimsy. The pattern calls for using a jelly roll but it was easy to substitute my precut strips and some Kona yardage I had on hand. I even found a length of "doggy" fabric for the backing and leftover binding in royal blue.

 Tightly spaced loopy quilting looks so wrinkly good when it's washed and dried, I think!

Maelie thought she might want to take the quilt home with her, but I told her that no, she already had a quilt from Lolly.

The Next Generation

When my daughter, Megan, was a little girl we sometimes did sewing projects together. She was quick to learn to use the sewing machine, actually pushing the foot pedal to the floor.  Her normal speed was "fast"! At eleven, Megan made her first quilt, picking out Amish colored solids to fashion a simple nine patch.  The second quilt came a good ten years later, in college......a plaid flannel rag quilt. Now a mommy, expecting her second child in a few months, Megan is proving herself to be "her mother's daughter"....the next generation of quilter. Megan has designed and pieced a twin quilt for little Lula to use when she moves to a "big girl" bed. Yesterday, guess who was learning to machine quilt?

I use a Juki machine on a Grace quilting frame to quilt most of my quilts.  Today Megan practiced on one of the Rwanda Quilts (which she also pieced). She still loves to put the pedal to the floor (or hand, in this case)!

The "cursive e" design is something Megan thought of and I think it is a wonderful first pattern for machine quilting.  It was smooth and easy and really cute when finished. I'll have to add this to my list of overall quilting designs. 

I love having my daughter as my quilting buddy!  It makes me really happy!!  Great job, Meg!

Sewing in the Rain

Rainy days are just right for a big old sewing day, don't you agree? That's just what five of us did on Saturday as the heavens opened up and thunder rolled!  And believe me, there was a whole lot of sewin' goin' on!! The deadline for having 27quilts ready to send to New Hope Homes in Rwanda is fast approaching.  Our goal is to make a lap size quilt for each child living in the three houses of the orphanage.  I feel confident that, with the Lord's blessing, our goal is going to be met! The eight ladies participating in Quilts4Hope have been working very hard to complete the quilts. Oh, and are the quilts ever beautiful!  I can't wait to show them all off to you!!
















Megan (my daughter), Vicki, myself, Deb and Sherri (not pictured) had a fun day gabbing and sewing.............my favorite way to quilt!
That's Deb's quilt we are holding...so cute!
She machine quilted it herself; her first time ever....and what a great job she did.

I was focused on attaching the binding to these three quilts and am happy to report "mission accomplished!". Normally, I am not a fan of sewing down the binding by machine, but to save time and to make the quilts more durable, I caved. And, you know what? They don't look too bad! I stitched in the ditch from the front and was able to catch the back. (Well, most of the time, anyway!)
All three of these babies were made using blocks from leaders and enders. You know my spiel by now on "Free Quilts".  If you aren't using this concept...just try it, you'll like it, Mikey!

                     My pile of quilts for New Hope Homes is getting pretty big!

Pink and Black

What's pink and black and loved all over?  This quilt, that's what!! Yes sirree, I finished another top for New Hope Homes, the orphanage in Rwanda that I've been amassing a pile of quilts for over the last few months. It's June and our deadline is fast approaching.  By the middle of July the pieced lovelies will be winging their way into the arms of 27 Rwanda children.  I'm beyond excited!  I was recently given the names of each child so that we can label the quilts before sending them.  I've been assured that the kids will be over the moon to have their very own blanket as they have few possessions to call "mine". 


This particular quilt was easy for me to put together for several reasons. The main one being that I already had most of the blocks finished and stored in a plastic box deep in the depths of my sewing closet.  I collected an assortment of pink and black fabrics over a year ago and then sewed about half of them together using Terry Atkinson's pattern "Birthday Presents" from a booklet called Take Two and Add a Few. (The booklet seems to be out of print.) Then, I got sidetracked and laid the project aside....(hard to believe, I know). I was making the quilt with a certain recipient in mind, but now that so much time has passed, it no longer seems appropriate.  Oh well!  I needed (another quilt for the orphanage so this came in very handy and the colors are perfect for a child.  I still have enough blocks cut out for another similar lap size quilt.  Since the blocks are large (thirteen inches) it went together fast and easy!  Now to find the perfect backing or piece my own from stash fabrics....haven't decided which yet.  
This evening I loaded the Green Zebra quilt onto my quilting frame and should have it finished tomorrow, hopefully.  I found the perfect binding fabric for it....will show you when it's all done! We are having a sewing day on Saturday at the church as we close in on our goal. The fabric will be flying around here in the next few weeks.....(as usual!)


In other sewing news, I've been busy working on hexagons for the Hexagon Quilt-Along with Julie at JayBirdQuilts.  They look so great all grouped together on my tablecloth hanging over the closet door design wall. I bet you thought I'd forgotten about that project!

As usual, while I've been sewing on these two projects, I've also been working on my next 
"Free Quilt".  Look how much progress I've made.........................................!

I'm sewing two inch squares of Kona white and colored scraps together. It will take A BUNCH to make the quilt I have in mind.  I'll keep you posted.  Are you doing a leader ender project?  I'd love to hear about it.

Award Winning!

Guess What!  I just got notified that my latest quilt has won an award!!




The fabric selection won special mention in the "wild safari" catagory.

Innovative piecing was given special notice.









Creative use of "spare parts" caught the judges' eyes.

Unusual use of many different fabrics, some quite out of date, was given two thumbs up............. kind of quilting green, you might say.



What's the award, you are wondering?  Well, of course, it's the annual
                                   UGLY QUILT AWARD, given every year on
                                                     
                                                            April Fool's Day!!

Do you have one uglier?  Send me a picture, I'd love to see it.  All is not lost, though.......the daffodils are lovely and I just know that a young boy in Rwanda is going to LOVE getting a quilt with lots of safari prints and animals on it.  I'm counting on it!

Quilts4Hope

I'm really good at starting projects....not so good at finishing. Or, so it seems, from the looks of my UFO list. The blocks in this quilt have been lurking around in a drawer of my sewing closet for oh, around ten years, I would guess. They are sampler blocks, as you can see, made by me and several quilting friends from The Starlight Quilt Guild. I didn't know what I was saving them for till recently. You see, I am on a mission, along with several other gals from my church, to make 30 quilts to send to an orphanage in Rowanda called New Hope Homes. The dated six inch blocks made up a sweet quilt for a young child in Africa who has little to call his own. The sashing, borders and backing all came from my *stash* which is one of my goals with this project....to use what I have, when possible. This is the third quilt that is completely finished for the orphanage. I have at least six more in various stages. Stay tuned for more Quilts4Hope.