Making While in KC

From September 28 to October 9, I was in Kansas City. I stayed with our daughter, and gave almost full-time attention to my dad who was in a rehab center. I'm glad to say my two siblings, BIL, and I were able to return Dad to assisted living last week.

Being away without a computer made it difficult to write a blog post, or read and comment on blogs I follow. I'll correct that this weekend.

Before leaving, and anticipating down time with Dad and evening TV time with family, I determined I'd travel with several projects. One of them was my Inner City hand-piecing project.

I arranged all the blocks I've pieced on the design wall, positioning darker value blocks along the perimeter with a swath of lighter colored blocks through the center. You might notice I used prints for some of the inside blocks. I have filled-in that one missing block. 

Then I carefully removed several columns of blocks, marking their position so I could begin hand-piecing. The little I accomplished was done mostly while sitting at a Southwest Airlines gate. Only most of the first two columns are joined, but it's a start. 

You might rightly guess that I filled a large suitcase for my 12 day visit. Clothes for two seasons (summer and fall) and yarn took up space and weighed 44 pounds. Yes, each way I had to pay $35 extra to check a bag. 

After much referencing of the "Crochet Lacy Motif Top" instructions and different crochet stitches, I think I've mastered and memorized how to crochet these medallions! I have happily crocheted 34 of the 65 needed for the top.

In the evenings, watching TV with family, I round loom knitted. These two dolls - Tiny Doll (on the left) and Comfort Doll (on the right) - came off my 24-peg loom, and are ready to be donated. I still think they're precious. 

Since I'd used-up my last cone of Sugar and Cream cotton yarn, I bought another one at WalMart in Olathe, Kansas. I knit two dish clothes while there, and gave away both of them - one to Dad's occupational therapist, and the other for my SIL. 

It's good to be at home again to spend time with my sewing machine. First on my list is piecing a backing for the Filmstrip Quilt. 

Needless to say, right now I'm not in Houston, Texas attending the International Quilt Festival. However, a couple friends from Central Florida MQG are there, and kindly shared pictures of Feelin' Groovy, my maximalist quilt that's in the exhibit Modern Quilts: A Twist on Tradition. 

I specifically asked these friends to take a picture of Feelin' Groovy with its neighbor. That's Christa Watson's @christaquilts quilt to the left of mine. 

Also, the International Quilt Festival posted pictures of Feelin' Groovy to Facebook (I'm not on Facebook) and Instagram. I've enjoyed reading the comments, including "Is there a pattern?" Ha, ha. No way. 

While in Kansas City, I made two large batches of salsa using a couple hundred (I'm not kidding!) grape tomatoes from our daughter's one tomato plant. With two teenaged boys, salsa didn't last long!

Today we went to farmer's market and bought Tennessee tomatoes (the ones grown in Florida are not good) so I could make salsa one more time, also using most of a banana pepper, green onions, cilantro, and the juice of two fresh-squeezed limes. I discovered that dipping salsa with Tostitos Crispy Rounds is the perfect yummy combo.  

Linda

Yarn-y Things

Recently inspired by a crocheted top made by my Instagram friend, Debbie @bluebellridgehandworks I was prompted to buy Bernat Softee Cotton yarn to make my own.

This is Debbie's lovely pink "Crochet Lacy Motif Top," a free pattern from Yarnspirations. 

My top will be cream-colored. 

I'm struggling through a few of the crochet terms -  Tr2, CL3, and hdc - but have worked out each by watching YouTube videos.

I made the test block using the suggested H hook and the mean-to-be 4½" square turned out 4" square. I'll be crocheting with a J hook. 

The last project I crocheted was a ripple-patterned Moorland afghan that I finished in August 2020. I use it almost nightly, when sitting directly under the ceiling fan watching TV.

Since I've never crocheted clothing, this could be challenging. Perhaps by the time I've made 65 motifs, and 6 half motifs, I will have it worked out!

"Tiny Dolls" (YouTube video here) continue to charm me, so when I have a couple hours of sit-in-my-comfy-chair time, I round loom knit a doll. Each is knit on a 24-peg round loom and finishes at about 9" tall. 

I can make one from memory now, and they don't take long - maybe two hours, max. It's fun to see how variegated yarns give each one a unique look. All of these yarns are "I Love This Yarn" from Hobby Lobby. I use Cluster Stuff filling, also from Hobby Lobby, which is fluffier than polyester fiberfill.

When I showed my dolls to friends at Big Cypress Quilters, I heard many "They're so cute!" and even saw my friend Julia giving one a cuddle and rock. Precious. 

I'm working on round loom knitted toddler hats too. These are made on a 36-peg loom, and specifically knitted with double-strands of super-soft yarn for children undergoing cancer treatments. I'm using this Knit this hat with me! YouTube video,

I will donate hats and dolls to a local organization called "Nicole's House." Until I can get to a Boomer Loomers meeting to do that, I am especially enjoying having the dolls around.

Whenever my hands aren't otherwise occupied, I continue to mindlessly knit dish cloths.

In March I began knitting dish cloths from a cone of Sugar 'n Cream from WalMart. When I complete a dishcloth, I make a tic inside the cone.  

So I got about 14 and ⅓ dishcloths from a yarn cone. Since I keep giving away dishcloths, and my back stock of finished ones is low, it's time to restock yarn! 

Linda

End of September: Yardage Tracking, Books Read, and a Quilt Finish

After August's abysmal fabric output (.69 yards - sheesh), I am patting myself on the back for a more productive September. 

Incoming fabric totaling ¾ yard is for a modified version of a Clarissa Clutch that I'm pattern testing for a friend. The bright print will be the bag exterior; the tone-on-tone white print (it has Christian crosses on it) will be the interior. This picture is of my shop purchase including interfacing and machine needles. 

More than 10 yards used - out of my cupboards! - is a satisfying total. I'm counting it as good!

Those 10 yards included making the 65" X 70" Filmstrip Quilt top. (See previous blog post.)

I also finished this charity quilt. Between the scrappy pieced quilt top, and the pieced backing, making this 49" X 61" quilt used 4.2 yards of fabric. 

I quilted it with an all-over swirl hook design (see the design here, on Esther's I Patch and Quilt website), and used a diagonal black and white stripe for binding.

After making it with Big Cypress Quilter during an along, I learned the pattern is free on the Moda website. It's a jelly roll design called A Garden for Harper. My version looks much different because I didn't use a jelly roll, and I didn't arrange blocks as shown in the pattern.

This will be a nice donation to Children's Home Society of Florida. 

I also pieced eight more Posh Penelope blocks, using 2½ more yards of fabric. Whew, but these are tedious to make! Lots of steps for each block, so I've learned that assembly, factory-style, is the best way to tackle them.

At the rate of eight blocks a month (I need 16 more blocks) I should get this finished before year's end. 

Book Recommendations

I listened to 10 audiobooks in September. 

These are the scores I gave each, with 5.0 being the highest. 

• 4.5 - All We Thought We Knew, Michelle Shocklee
• 4.3 - I See You've Called in Dead, John Kenney
• 4.3 - If I Were You, Lynn Austin
• 4.2 - She Didn't See It Coming, Shari Lapena
• 4.1 - Hidden Nature, Nora Roberts
• 4.0 - The Girl I Was, Jeneva Rose
• 4.0 - The Lawyer and the Laundress, Christine Hill Suntz
• 4.0 - The Inn at Hart's Haven, Patricia Davids
• 4.0 - You Belong Here, Megan Miranda
• 3.4 - Martin Misunderstood, Karin Slaughter

All We Thought We Knew is a story that jumps between the mother's history in 1942, during WWII in Tennessee, working at a military base/illegal aliens camp, and 1969 when her daughter, Maggie, has returned to the family horse farm because her mother is dying. It's a good story with US military actions running through it.

I See You’ve Called in Dead is a humorous read alongside nuggets of thoughtful truths about our attitudes toward death. The premise is that an obit writer composes his own outlandish obituary on his employer’s syndicated news site, and inadvertently publishes it. So begins his experience being dead in a company that can’t fire him until the company technology makes him “undead,” and his own introspection into death by attending the funerals of strangers.

Just as soon as I swear off books on the topic of WW II, I find another one I really like. If I Were You is about Audrey, born into England’s aristocracy, and Eve whose mother is Audrey’s mother’s personal maid - upper class versus working class. The girls are the same age, and each admires what the other has - money, and confident courage. They become unlikely friends, enlisting to become wartime ambulance drivers. Years later, Audrey learns Eve has gone to the US, and lied to Audrey’s in-laws, claiming she (Eve) is their daughter-in-law. Eve steals Audrey’s identity. I found myself sympathetic to both women. I also appreciated the author’s inclusion of several character’s conversations about faith and Jesus. Not one swear word in this book.! 👍🏼 Also, a minor character in the story is Linda. I think this is the first book I’ve ever listened to that uses my name. 

She Didn’t See It Coming is a good mystery thriller. I had no clue who the killer was, and I fell for letting the author lead me to the wrong person. I can’t get my head around how an author can come up with all the misleading information, facts, and convoluted character storylines that make for a good murder mystery. 

About a couple other titles…

I’ll just say that the Lawyer and the Laundress was a pleasant, but predictable story.

Same for The Inn at Hart’s Haven about a pregnant young woman who runs away and hides in an Amish community. Childhood memories of visiting her Amish grandparents makes her determined to stay and become one of them. 

Karin Slaughter’s book is a short story, a little more than a two hour listen. All I can say is, disappointing, for an author of her stature. (She wrote all the “Will Trent” books.) I think this was supposed to be satire, but it didn’t work for me. 

I hope a couple of these books will appeal to you. Linda

JAX QuiltFest

Though I attended QuiltFest JAX in 2024 (Jacksonville, Florida) this year I did not attend the show which was last weekend. 

I entered two quilts in this non-juried show, both in the modern category.

My friend Candi, who is also the quilt show chair, sent me a picture of Party Time! hanging. This is a quilt made through two different improv workshops, in 2023 and 2024, with Cindy Grisdella.

Having seen me post Instagram pictures of Party Time! in progress, in February while at QuiltCon Phoenix, Cindy asked me for permission to include Party Time! in her new book. It's soon-to-be-released: Freehand Curve Quilts: Improv Techniques for Creative Play and Bold Expression. What an honor for me! 

What was also fun was seeing Turnabout hanging at the show. This is the appliqué and big stitch hand-quilted piece I designed and made earlier this spring for our Big Cypress Quilters Paint Chip Challenge.

Do you see it with a ribbon? It's for "Judge's Recommendation."

The quilt show judge, Sandy Gard, had nothing but complimentary things to say about both quilts. But the positives that put a big grin on my face were about Turnabout:

• All elements of your design are thoughtfully put together to create a magnificent piece.
• All techniques are exemplary.
• Big stitch is amazing.

Wowsa! I'm accustomed to less complimentary remarks about binding, or machine quilting. This sure makes my day!

I like how the commercially-made ribbon was enhanced with fabric.

I also enjoyed the ways my friends from Central Florida MQG recognized Turnabout! These are pictures they shared with me. 

Sandi and Gwen

Dee and Barb

Sharon

Thank you friends for making me feel special. I know the best people! Linda

Well That Was Fun!

My Scanfil Thread blog giveaway closed Sunday, and I'm happy to share that I have a winner.

Though only 34 people commented, according to Blogger 4918 people viewed the blog post!

I'd guess that many blog-readers were from countries outside the US and Canada, so they didn't comment. 

To pick the winner, I cut up identical sizes of scrap paper, wrote everyone's names - include the "name" of one Anonymous commenter...

...folded them in half, and put them all in a basket.

Hubs drew the first name. Believe it or not, it was "Anonymous." I'm so sorry, whoever you are!

He drew a second name, and my local friend, Donna @donnapquilts is the winner. She selected the three-pack called Stormy Greys. 

It was nice of Scanfil to let me host this giveaway, and introduce many of you to a new thread to try. 

While the giveaway was open, I worked on my Filmstrip Quilt. I cut another 31 yard fabric reel - 1½"-wide strips sewn end to end. 

I continued to piece with Scanfil thread, starching and pressing open each seam as I went.

I finished the Filmstrip Quilt top Sunday afternoon. Do you like it?

It finished at 65" X 70", and used 106 yards of 1½" wide fabric.

Not being a mathematician, I worked out that the 5" difference in the dimensions means that the 5½"-long strip I started with.... that however long that first piece is becomes the difference between the quilt's width and height. Don't I feel smart?!

It was fun to host this giveaway, and fun to work on such a scrap-busting quilt. My September fabric-tracking outgoing total is going to be very satisfying! This quilt top used approximately 3⅞ yards! Linda

Thread Giveaway!

BLOG GIVEAWAY CLOSED

Do you remember the good old gays of Blogger, when you came across a giveaway every month? Well, it's been much too long since I hosted a blog giveaway, and am delighted to offer one now.  

Scanfil Thread Company has graciously offered to give away, to one of my blog-readers, a three-spool set of their wonderful thread. 

I can say "wonderful" with sincerity because I have begun using Scanfil myself since discovering it at the company's vendor booth at QuiltCon 2025 in Phoenix. 

Scanfil Thread Company

Scanfil is made in the Netherlands by a family-owned company that began in 1970.

Scanfil is organic cotton thread.

Scanfil 50-weight 2-ply is fine, light-weight, strong, and is my favorite thread for piecing.

I've been using it to piece my scrappy Filmstrip Quilt. 

My piecing stitches are so fine! (Bernina 2.5 stitch length.)

I especially appreciate that Scanfil thread doesn't pigtail around my sewing machine needle (like another brand). 

A happy bonus is having this used-up wood spool. Can I get a refill? Ha, ha! I'll be keeping these spools with eyes peeled for a project in which to use them. 

While I've only purchased the 500-yard spools (thus far), I've got my eye on a 5000 yard cone (or two).

5000-yard cone shown: color Safari, #4853

Scanfil also makes a 30-weight, 2-ply thread that I definitely want to try for domestic machine quilting. 

The Giveaway

• Everyone in the United States and Canada is eligible to enter. (Apologies to blog-readers in Australia, New Zealand, United Kingdom, Switzerland, Germany, and France.)

• Comments/entries open Thursday, September 18 through Sunday, September 21.

• One three-spool set will be sent to the winner. Choose a color trio AND the size you'd like!

BLOG GIVEAWAY CLOSED

• Tell me your views about thread. For example:

• What makes you buy the thread you do? 
• Strength? Fineness? Durability? Color options?
• What do you most use thread for?
• Piecing a quilt? Quilting? Clothes sewing? Doll-making? Handwork? All the above?! 

• How do I reach you?

• Many commenters are "anonymous," or "noreply-commenter" so I don't know who you are, or how to communicate with you.
• Be sure I know who you are, and/or how to email you.

Scanfil is offering a discount to my blog-readers who are first-time buyers.

Pick 12 spools of thread. 

Use code WELCOME2FREE to receive two of those spools for free! 

SHOP HERE

Best wishes, friends! You're all winners in my book! Linda

BLOG GIVEAWAY CLOSED