Design Wall Monday 9.15.2025

The 3.5 inch dive continues...

This time I am using a combination of the following cuts: 3.5 inch squares, 3.5 x 6.5 inch bricks, 6.5 inch squares, 3.5 x 6.5 inch background, 3.5 x 9.5 inch background, 3.5 inch x WOF background and 5.0 x WOF background.

I had orginally downloaded this pattern many years ago but unfortunately, it didn't make the move. I must have moved it around the sewing room for 5+ years and finally thought that I would never make it...

pattern: Here is a Pinterest link I found that tells more about this quilt.

EDIT:   This quilt is call 'Brick-a-Brack'

Here is the fabric draw for a green/white version of this quilt.

I decided to make the inner portion slighter larger.

It seems like I unpicked and re-sewed the inner portion a number of times until I decided to leave it as...

Sharing today with Judy at Design Wall Monday.

SoScrappy Saturday 9.13.2025

Today is the second Saturday of September of the colors light blue and light green. I was away from the studio the first week of September so I am presenting to you my Happy Blocks, in light blue. I had just enough of the light blue to make these 5 blocks. It appears that I have 'found' my animal stash of 4.5 inch cut blocks.

pattern: MaryJ's Happy Blocks

Sharing today with SoScrappy Saturday.

Finish or NOT Friday 9.12.2025

 I finished the VA lap quilts! Bernice will be so happy to receive not one but two!

Lap quilt #1 was made with the 4.5 inch squares that were in my baggie.

pattern: 4.5 inch cut squares, set 12 x 12 to finish at 48 x 48 inches

panto: serpentine

Lap quilt #2 was made with leftover 4.5 inch squares from the baggie plus a little from my stash.

pattern: 4.5 inch cut squares, set 12 x 12 to finish at 48 x 48

panto: serpentine

Sharing today with Alycia at Finish or NOT Friday and 

Kelly at My Quilt Infatuation's NTT.

WIP Wednesday 9.10.2025

I'm getting back into sewing mode!

I finished sewing the first VA quilt for my friend Bernice. She says 'they' are very strict and the quilts are to be 48 x 48.

Instead of giving Bernice back a few leftover squares, I went into my stash to make another VA lap quilt. I had left the 2 patches pieced and had to iron them.

I then sewed the 2's into 4's.

I tried to keep a little better organization to the scraps and sewed this one into a flimsy.

I did play a few rounds of 'bobbin chicken' and LOST. I also played 'batting chicken' and LOST. There will be NO buying of lottery tickets today! :)

Sharing today with The Inquiring Quilter's Wait Loss Wednesday.

Design Wall Monday 9.8.2025

Our third and final campground in Gaylord, Michigan. Saturday was 48F and rainy so we broke camp and headed home. This was Friday before the rain.

My FIL decided to gift my son a few of his truck/tractor/car models he has collected through the years. We packed them into the Wrangler and it filled it up! Hubby decided to just stopped along DS's road to deliver the models. I thought the Menard's parking lot would be better but I was out voted!

After a late lunch/early dinner, we arrived home with plenty of sunlight to unload the motorhome. Sunday was our day to clean the motorhome/ Wrangler/ laundry/ grocery shop/ mow.

Home again home again jiggity jig!

Onto the sewing room...

As I was waiting to leave for vacation, I sewed together a few four patches for my friend Bernice. She is collecting quilts for the local VA and her quilts need to be 48 x 48...no deviation! She supplied a baggie of 4.5 inch squares.

I sewed into two's...

...then four's and now I need to join all the squares together.

But wait...hubby still wasn't ready to leave. So instead of handing back a few squares, I dug into my stash. I found a few already cut and then cut a few more.

But wait...first I need to go to Ann Arbor and pick up Baby (my piecing machine). She was at the spa while I was trolling around Upper Lower Michigan and the UP. 

Sharing today with Judy at Design Wall Monday.

Finish or NOT Friday 9.5.2025

Thursday September 4, 2025 saw us traveling around the UP of Michigan.

Our first stop was Benny the Beard Fisher. He's located on private property, Northwoods Outfitters in Germfask, Michigan. He was pretty cool and he is my first Thomas Dambo Troll. Here is a link to my Google search that shows many sites for more information on Thomas Dambo and his troll sculptures.

We then went north to Grand Marais, Michigan. We stopped at the beach. We did walk out to the water but 'Mother Superior' (Lake Superior - her nickname at Northern Michigan University) was very angry and we opted to eat lunch in the Jeep.

We followed the scenic drive west and stopped at the Log Slide Lookout. I do believe this is part of the Pictured Rocks.

As we made our way East back to St. Ignace, I also noticed the Lake Michigan was kicking up waves. I took this picture somewhere along US 2 West.

After supper, we visited the Bridge View Park again because it was darker. :) I took this picture right before the headlights turned off on the Jeep. I thought it was kinda cool. :)

Now onto the quilting...

I did indeed quilt down the Thick Sticks quilt and got it bound! It's now part of the 3.5 inch Trunk Show...

I went on the wild side and chose red for the binding...

pattern: Lisa Sutherland's Thick Sticks

panto: serpentine

Sharing today with Alycia's Finish or NOT Friday and

Kelly at My Quilt Infatuation's NTT.

WIP Wednesday 9.3.2025

We've made our way to campsite #2, over the Mackinac Bridge to St. Ignace, Michigan.

We arrived early afternoon, so we headed out to Sault St. Marie, Michigan. Hubby wanted to see the Soo Locks and we were fortunate that there was a freighter using the locks. Silly  me, I thought the locks were like a traffic light with freighters lining up to go through. Wrong! The American Dream out of Wilmington, Delaware was the fourth and last freighter to use the locks yesterday.

The American Dream almost through the lock.

A sight seeing tour boat entering the locks.

This is the Visitor Center from across the street. The viewing platform is in the background, behind the Visitor Center. The Soo Locks are maintained and run by the US Army Corps of Engineers. You can read about the Locks here, if interested.

Now onto the sewing and quilting...

I did sew the Thick Sticks quilt into a flimsy. I just placed the blocks on the design wall as they were made and tried to spread out the fabrics a bit. I stuck with the red centers place vertically and the blue centers, horizontally. I feel it gives more of a basketweave effect to the quilt.

This quilt pattern calls for single border and that's what I did!

pattern: Thick Sticks by Lisa Sutherland

Sharing today with The Inquiring Quilter's Wait Loss Wednesday.

Design Wall Monday 9.1.2025

Happy Design Wall Monday from our home away from home! We are Day 4 at our current campsite in Frederic, Michigan between Grayling and Gaylord.

On our way into Gaylord, the little town of Waters, Michigan was setting up for their Labor Day Parade. I was able to take a picture of the flag but not the Oscar Meyer Weiner Mobile we passed on the road!

Onto my sewing before I left the studio!

CarolC, our FB QOV Working Stars Admin, called the Lisa Sutherland pattern Thick Sticks as our September project. So I dived right into my 3.5 inch strip stash. This is my fabric pull.

I'm strip piecing this one and here are a few blocks on the design wall.

Sharing today with Judy at Design Wall Monday.