Square One Quilt - Christmas Quilt

I recently saw a quilt at Quilt Vine's blog that I really liked.  It seemed so simple, sort of like a log cabin, but only wrapped on two sides.  They called it "Square One".  I did a smaller version based on the fabrics I wanted to use, all Christmas fabrics in 1 - 1/4 yard cuts.

I drew my own pattern using a 5" square as my "square one"( 5-1/2" with seam allowance).  Since my fabric had words on it, I decided to turn them all the same way. 

We've probably all seen the fabric cutters at the stores clip and then rip the fabric instead of cutting it.  Don't always trust that the rip gets a straight edge.  You still need to square up your fabric before cutting.  See in the picture above how off my straight edges were from where the cutter ripped my fabric.  I normally don't wash my fabric before using them, but this time I should have.  This red bled into the white fabric when I got it damp to remove quilt markings.

I had three colors from this fabric line WinterBerry Lane by Terri Degenkolb of Whimsicals.  I cut each of the solid/snowflake design into 1-1/2" strips.  (see my handwritten design on a post-it?)  Then I simply started sewing them in the order of their layout, just like you do a log cabin design (side-top-side-top).  The finished block measures an 8" square.  If you look at the picture above, I have the sides strips to the right of the block but I actually sewed them to the left of the block.  Not that it really matters, just keep it consistent.

I added a 3 1/2" white border between the blocks.  If you look closely, the white has words in gold printed on it.  I only had enough fabric to make a small quilt, 44/50".  I used the left over 1-1/2" strips sewn together to make another boarder and the binding.

This was a Christmas gift which the recipient is planning on using as a wall hanging, so a hanging sleeve will need to be added to the back.  It would also make a cute baby quilt or add more blocks to make it a lap quilt or full size quilt.  It's a very simple design and goes together quickly.

"Unfinished" Quilts

My quilting heritage and legacy is very important to me.  It' a part of my memories of my childhood, becoming a wife and mother, and remembering my mother, my grandmothers, and my aunts....basically, the women that surrounded me.  My memories include sitting on the floor playing dolls while these women worked with needle and thread around me.  My secret hiding places were under quilting frames and sewing machines.  I hung my clothes from a quilting frame suspended from the ceiling of my grandmother's attic.

I guess it was a natural thing for me to be given all the unfinished projects of these women when they passed away.  I cherish the unfinished as much as I do the finished.  I see the beauty in what was to be as much as what was.

But I know that I am little different in that.  So, my goal is to finish not only my projects, but theirs.  So for Christmas, I started around October pulling out my mother's and grandmother's (Carathers) unfinished projects and seeing if I could make quilts for my children.  I take after my grandmother in that there is an abundance of unfinished projects to chose from in her treasures.  My mother was more about finishing what she started, so I only had a few blocks that had been left over and one of her very last projects she was working on during her final days.

Mother's Unfinished - Adam's Quilt

My mother was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in July 2010.  As she began to take chemo and radiation, she became weaker and weaker.  Her favorite past time had always been to hand piece during her "resting" times during the day, usually late afternoons or evenings.  Even though she was weak from her treatments, she still picked up needle and thread and did a few things.  I know that she made me a set of placemats and a table runner for my daughter.  She pieced another set of placemats, in red, for her own table, but never got them quilted. She had planned for them to be her Christmas placemats.  Mother spent several days in the hospital in December and left us at the end of January 2011.

I took the placements and a few other pieces, left overs or unfinished, and laid out a quilt.  I sewed the placemats together and added some borders to get the quilt large enough for a quilt for my tall son.

Quilting this was nerve racking.  I kept thinking that I was going to mess up my mother's work.  I finally had to just forget about that and put it under the needle.  I want to improve my quilting, so I decided to do some different quilting techniques or patterns throughout the quilt.  I did circles and stippling and a mixture of writing and loops.

My mother signed all her quilts with the "cross L" symbol.  It represents that everything she did was for the Lord and her last name, Lewis.  It is also the cattle brand for our farm.  Recently my son, daughter & I got the symbol as tattoos.  So, of course, the symbol had to go into the quilt.  I "wrote" the words and symbol into one of the borders, "faith, the cross L, family".  I also embroidered the symbol on one corner block and added a tag my mother put in clothes she made for people (years ago) stating that it was made "especially for you by Frances Lewis".

I really thought it would have been the saddle that we gave Adam that had belonged to my father, that would have brought him to tears....but it was the quilt.

Grannie's Unfinished - Sally's Quilt

Grannie Carathers was almost 97 years old when she decided that she had lived long enough.  She lasted 2 months after my mother left us and then she joined her little girl in March 2011.  I guess it doesn't matter how old your children are, it's hard to live without them.

I have several boxes of unfinished projects of Grannie's.  She worked constantly, all day long, on her quilts.  Her quilting frame was only taken down during Christmas, so that the family could gather.  I have several of her journals and she would note on a daily basis "quilted a reach today".  It took me a while to figure out what that meant, then I realized she would quilt the length of her quilt frame (queen size, made by my grandfather) as far as her arm could "reach" each day, and then she would turn it or roll it forward.  As soon as she had a quilt finished, she had another one ready to go in.  She estimated that she had quilted over 500 quilts (hand quilting and hand piecing) in her life time.  This is how she brought in money for her family.  She sold almost every quilt she made and was commissioned to make quilts on a regular basis.  What quilts didn't sale, my mother would buy.  Grannie got to where she couldn't quilt any more several years ago.  She still tried to piece at least 30 minutes a day, usually longer.

It seemed fitting that I make Sally's quilts from Grannie's unfinished projects.  Grannie always wanted a little girl named "Sally" and even called me that until it confused my brothers what my name really was.  It was a surprise to her that I named my daughter "Sally".  The two of them always had a special connection and seem to have similar interests in all things arts.

Grannie had already appliqued 4 large blocks with the 8-petal flower design and had a bag of petals ironed or basted/turned under ready to applique.  The problem was finding domestic material to make two more blocks that matched the other blocks.  I'm not sure when Grannie made her blocks, but the fabrics all look to be of the 1960's era and for all we know, were made during that time frame.

In the midst of all the items that came to me after Grannie left us, was a single pillow case.  It had bouillon flowers along the trim and some simple embroidery and thread weaving in the stitches.  The case had been folded for many years and the exposed area had some age spots.  The case was also very worn, tearing easily where someone had once laid their head.  But the fabric matched exactly with that of the blocks and was the same width.  I cut the back of the pillow case to make one block.  For the other block, I cut the edges of the pillowcase and sewed them together, leaving the embroidery work.  When did we stop putting so much detail into the pillow cases!?

 

Grannie did the top 4 blocks and I did the bottom two.  I also appliqued the centers of the flowers on each one.  

For the border, in Grannie's sewing basket, I found all these 4-patch blocks.  There was enough to do two borders, I only have to make a few extra out of her vintage stash of fabric.  The solid border was fabric from my mother's stash.

In that same sewing basket was a cutting from one of my grandfather's uniforms.  There was barely enough fabric to turn under, but I appliqued it on one of the corner blocks.  Grannie also had a signature that she used on all her ceramic work, a windmill.  She was a Texas girl and always called it home even though she moved to Tennessee when her children were very young.  I embroidered her signature on the same corner block.

Again, wanting to improve my quilting techniques, I tried something new for me, over-all stippling, around the flowers.

It went really fast and was very easy.  I got nervous about the flowers, again, not wanting to mess up my grandmother's work, but I closed my eyes and moved the needle to the center of each flower and quilted a swirl and some type of leaf design in each petal.  Doesn't the back always look better?

I did some loops and leaves in the borders and then "wrote" in the outer border.

I might have seen some tears in Sally's eyes too.

So...that makes 6 quilts I've done since October.

Appliqued the "umbrellas" on Matt's quilt.

Then I did a couple of small things:  the barn and a small Christmas quilt for my daddy's friend, Ms. Mary.  The barn was for my family's dirty Christmas present.  It got stolen a few times.  My nephew, Michael ended up with it and plans to put it in his semi-truck for a touch of home while he's traveling.

Last, but not least, I put the white border on this hexagon quilt that a friend gave me and quilted it for her.  I cleaned up the edges and then just added the white corners.  She had given me a box full of vintage unfinished projects and asked only that I make her something from them.  This was all hand pieced.  Can you imagine?!

 I've always said that every quilt has a story and these were the stories with this year's quilts.  Grannie always said that your dreams will come true the first night you sleep under a new quilt.  Sally has added that the quilt isn't yours until you cry under it.

My prayer is that each person will have great dreams and happy tears.

Oh...I almost forgot!  In 2011 our family had several quilts in the Hickman County Quilt Show, TN.  The guild makes a book of all the quilts each year.  They just released the book for 2011 and my family is represented greatly.  I did a slide show and the details of who everyone is and how they are connected to me is in the details.  Enjoy.

The Gifts

I kid you not, my grandmother would start in January making Christmas gifts for the family of over 30.  Everybody always got something handmade.  I only remember one time getting money from her and Papa for Christmas and that was so that I could buy a paint set.  She told me she had to get started early so that she could get them all done.

I usually start about October!

But I've had so much fun making things and getting them ready.  Most everything I'm doing for gifts is using vintage tops or unfinished projects and finishing them.  I did make my son-in-law a small Christmas stocking to match the one I made for my daughter several years ago.  I was informed by her that he needed a larger one to match the one that my grandmother had made for when she was little.  I would definitely need to start in January for that!

Her stocking has the little rabbits on it.  I traced off the basic size for Matt's, found a cross-stitch pattern with a pretty little tree with snow and made his stocking.  They are only big enough to put a wad of cash in, which they did not get this year!

This vintage quilt top is slowly being turned into:

 this!  I'm still trying to figure out how to finish it.  I think that I'll simply square it up with some white corners and try to find a matching red for a border and binding.  I've never worked with hexagons before so if you have advice on how to finish this, please let me know.

 

I have this one ready to go into the machine, but I can't show it yet.  Little eyes might be watching!

 

As a group project, my daughter had me hand applique these red and white designs onto a solid black piece.  The pattern is actually a dogwood pattern...I know, you probably don't see it, do you?

The pattern called for the three pieces pictured below.  Each section either had white tips or red tips and then when placed correctly, it made this block.  In the picture of the pink quilt, you can see the dogwood flower is actually made up of the large solid colors (pink).  Sally saw the umbrella and thought of a game her husband plays on his XBox.  We really did try to make it like this, with all the blocks made from the pieces of the blocks, but it wasn't coming out smooth.  So I decided to just applique all the red and white pieces on, after making the design.  That is when the quilt went from this layout like the pink quilt, to all the umbrellas falling.

 Then she is quilting art from the game, Resident Evil.

  

  

Above the quilted girl are quilted birds flying around her and the outline of the title of the game.  She's working on a grid in white now in the area where the umbrella designs are.  Her quilting is so cool and she does it so fast.  I think it took her about 2 hours to draw off the girl and quilt her.  I know, it's not to everyone's taste, but I think it will be perfect for Matt.  That's what making quilts for gifts is all about.  Finding something that you know the person will like and you will enjoy working on.

Our family gets together every Christmas day.  It's a little easier on us but not the kids now.  We don't have to try and get to all the grandparents' house, but now they do or the in-laws.  We used to draw names and then everyone got all the children (still in high school) gifts.  All those kids are grown now and we only have two young ones, so we started playing dirty Christmas.  I'm sure there is a dollar amount somewhere, but for me, there's no way to put a dollar amount on something handmade and I make my stuff.

I had some Christmas fabrics that I bought just a 1/4 yard of each a while ago.  I saw a simple block design that I had wanted to try out on the internet and so I made a lap quilt as my dirty Christmas gift.  I'm going to do another post on it and some of the pitfalls that I stumbled over while putting it together.  But this morning I got the binding on and it shouldn't take me too long to whip it down tonight.

 

The gift that my husband will be bringing for dirty Christmas involves this lady.  That's all I have to say about that right now!!!  Spoilers!

I really believe what Grannie enjoyed the most about the gifts of Christmas was all the time spent thinking about the person she was making it for and how they would use it.  In her own way, it may have been how she prayed over her family throughout the year, as she worked on those gifts.