Nine Patches

Nine Patches are such a simple quilt, but I love them!  I have finished three more blocks for my uncle's prayer quilt.  I cannot sit for long at the machine still because my knee still bothers me some.  I'm thinking I like the blocks with just the blue and cream better then the ones with blue on white used for cream.  The rest will be just blue and cream.

I was also able to cut a lot more squares to use.  I found some plaid and stripes which are great for a man's quilt!

That brings my total up to six so far.  About four ladies offered to help me make a block or more.  Thank you very much.
For more information on this prayer quilt, go here:

Missy

New Prayer Quilt Needed and a Tutorial

Hello my friends!  I need help with another prayer quilt.  Since I have moved to MO I do not have a quilting group now to help me make prayer quilts (I'm still looking!) so I really appreciate any help I get from ya'll!  This quilt is for my Uncle Johnny Hobgood.  Over the past few weeks he was diagnosed with throat cancer (they think it may be from the inhalers he has used for the past 50 years).  He does not smoke or drink.  After his pet scan, the doctors realized it has gone into his bones and it is already stage 4!  My mom says that it is going to take a miracle for him to go into remission.  He is only 55 years old, very young for this to happen.  They started chemo and radiation this week which will go for six weeks.  I would like for him to have this quilt as he starts feeling worse during these procedures.  If you can help me make some blocks for his quilt I would appreciate it.  Leave me a message and I will email you my address.  I know it is short notice but I would like the blocks around June18th, this will give me time to make any additional blocks that is needed to balance out the quilt and get it quilted.

The quilt is going to be blue and cream 12 inch finished nine patch, 12 1/2 inch unfinished.  I know most of you know how to make them, but here is a tutorial on how to make it and which way to press your seams.

Start with 4 1/2 inch blocks.  Lay them out alternating cream and blue.  I am counting the blue on cream as a cream since it is a light colored block.

 As you can see here, I sewed the first two blocks in each row together.

 Always press towards the dark color or blue in this case.

 Finish sewing your rows together.

 Then sew the three rows together and press towards the row with two blues.  This will help all of the blocks to nestle together.

 Watch out for your cat's fuzzy tail!  He somehow got it caught in one of the straight pins.

 Brother and sister (Oreo and Cupcake) have to be close to me while I am sewing!

 I am using my hand crank since I can't use my treadle until my knee heals more.

 I am making the blocks in alternating colors so that when I sew them together they will still match up blue and cream.  That is why I have to wait to make all of my blocks until I see which color variance is needed the most.

This block will have my signature penguin material in it!

 It is a scrappy nine patch and I am using solids and prints mixed together.  I really like that effect.  I am using some calicoes, I just ask that there is nothing too girly please.  I have some gorgeous blue fabric with roses on it but it was not appropriate for this quilt.

Thank you in advance to anyone who can help!

Remember, June 18 and leave me a comment if you can help.  I've had some people reply lately that are no reply bloggers and I have no way of contacting them, so if in doubt - leave your email address.

If you cannot help with a block please pray for Uncle Johnny because that is what he really needs right now - a miracle.  If something was to happen and he does not make it, I want this quilt to be a blessing to my Aunt Debbie.  Please also be in prayer for her.

I am on a hunt for a hat this weekend to send him for when he starts losing his hair.

Missy

June Goals

It is time to talk abut my June goals!  Wait, did I say June?  Really?  Already?  I think as you get older time flies a lot faster.  Remember as children it took FOREVER for important events to happen (like birthdays and Christmas)?  Okay, let's get back to the subject on hand!

My goal is to get this rocker (which I introduced ya'll to last week) recovered finally!  I actually decided to move it back into the house.  With all of the rain around here I was afraid it was going to get ruined.  I put this rocking chair out on the porch instead.

 I had totally forgotten that I had bought some home decor fabric for this chair back before we moved from TX seven months ago!  I pulled it back out and it is perfect for my living room, which I am trying to have a theme of grey and turquoise in.  I'll put a different fabric on each side so that it will be reversible.

 My other goal is to get 10 of my scrappy trip around the world blocks sewn together.  I unpicked them and have them ready to go, sitting in a tray.  Pippi decided the tray was a great place to sleep!

 Here it is, all ready to go!

To recap, my goal is to make 10 blocks.  That should be doable!
I changed my goal after finding out about my uncle having stage 4 cancer and am putting his prayer quilt at the top of my priorities.  That is why my goal is now only getting ten blocks done, the rocking chair will still be there once I get my uncle's quilt done!

I wanted to also tell you about a bloggy friend whose daughter is trying to adopt a deaf little boy from China.  Her daughter is trying to raise money by selling necklaces.  It is very expensive to adopt, so please help her!  Her goal is to sell 150 necklaces by Friday.  Of course, any necklaces sold after Friday will still help the cause.  She is also having a contest so you can win your own necklace!  Please read more about it here:  http://confessionsofafabricaddict.blogspot.com/  I hope you can help her out!

I hope you have a great week!

Missy

Book Review!

I just finished a book by one of my favorite authors!  Undetected by Dee Henderson.  It is a really good book!  I think I have almost everyone of her books!  She is a contemporary author that always has some kind of suspense and romance in it.
Undetected is about Commander Mark Bishop.  He is in the Navy but has a very special job as captain of a Boomer submarine.  I really learned a lot about submarines and their role in peace time from this book.
The book is also about super smart Gina Gray.  Her brother is also a submarine captain which has her very interested in how to keep submarines safer.  She developed cross sonar to help and has many more ideas.  I learned a lot about sonar and how submarines "see" under water with it.
This is a very good book and I would recommend reading it but it was not one of my favorites of her books.  The developing relationship between Gina and Mark was very "wordy" and exploring emotions through conversation through the entire book.  I just don't really think people really talk that way unless they are psychiatrists.  But I could be wrong.
Here is a trailer from youtube about the book.  This scene is taken from the book.


There are characters from Unspoken in this book, but you do not need to read that book to understand this one.

Here is chapter one:  http://www.deehenderson.com/undetected.html



I hope you enjoy the book!

Missy

I got this book from Bethany House publishers to write a review and give my honest opinion.

May Finishes

 My goal for this month was to finish March April and May's blocks for the Quilt Doodle BOM 2014.

 I had gotten behind with moving and trying to get things done for my new house.  I used my material that was super cheap because there were spots on it that was not supposed to be there, but they look great on the trees!  It looks like snow on the branches!

 The above block really needs to be trimmed up.

Tiger

 Here are my trees on either side of my cabin from February.

 Here is April's block.  As ya'll know I hurt my knee two weeks and was not able to sit at my sewing machine until a few days ago, but only for small times before my knee would start hurting.

 I am almost finished, but at 9:45, the block I messed up and the fact my knee was really hurting - I gave up.  It's pretty close though!  I'll finish it tomorrow, no problems!

Of course I had help!

Custard

Cupcake

Did you finish your monthly goal?  I am really not very dissapointed because looking back, I did finish a lot this month, before I got hurt!
Missy

Yarn Play - Feline Friday

 My kittens found the box of yarn.  Oreo pulls a ball out and carries it around the house.

 Of course, his sisters want to play too!

 They even wrapped it around the kitchen table and chairs!

 Chris is fixing that ball of yarn to make it a toy for them to play with.

Please excuse the clutter, with my knee things are kind of messy.  The good knees is I am staring to be able to bend it now.

Missy

Front Porch Furniture

I've been slowly trying to make my front porch look nice on a very limited budget.  It is a screened in front porch that my cats love.

I bought two teal Adirondack chairs that match the trim on my house.

 My shadow looks funny!

I could not believe Wal Mart had chairs the same color as my house!

My husband painted a dark green plastic bench I had.  I wanted yellow!  Yellow makes me happy!

 I bought it for $10 many years ago!  You can tell Cupcake likes it!

I bout this bistro table for $15 a couple of months ago and had my husband paint the brown top yellow to match.

Sorry about the glare from the sun!  Oreo thought he would help with the glare!

Now I need to re-ulphoster the glider rocking chair to match.
I was thinking of this material to help tone down the bright colors.

It has teal/turquoise, burnt orange, and dark yellow in it.  Do you think it will match?

 I also need an outdoor rug, and I will be happy with my front porch!

Give me your opinions on that material please, the glider is my next project!

Thank you!
Missy

New Purse!

I won a new purse Katili Made.  It was during the Sew Mama Sew Giveaway.  Isn't it adorable?  I just love it!
I'm slowly able to sit at my sewing machine a little more each day.  Praise the Lord I have a hand crank because it was my right knee I hurt and I'm still having trouble bending it.

Missy

Antique Quilt

I won an old quilt top at a raffle.  I am very excited about it and one day plan on finishing it.

 For right now it is hanging in my quilting room.

 I love looking at all of the old fabrics in it. I have no idea how old this quilt is.

 You can tell she just used whatever she had and did not pay any attention to what "matched"

 I'm pretty sure there a feed sacks and material from the 50's maybe?

 I was thinking the red and blue below was 50's or 60's

 But is that blue on the left 30's?  and the white looks like feed sacks?

My husband does not like scrappy quilts like this, but I told him it was a part of history!

Any clues about my quilt you want to share?

Missy