Bicyling... err, Quilting Again

Until it was time to begin quilting my latest quilt - the Paint Chip Challenge quilt I've named Cipher - I didn't realize how long it's been since I quilted! When I began to set up my Bernina 770QE for quilting, I couldn't find my free motion quilting (FMQ) foot - the transparent one that's foot #29. After looking among stored sewing machine feet and in other usual places, I thought to check my Bernina 440QE machine. There it was. It made me realized that the last time I used that foot was demonstrating FMQ when I taught a workshop last September 24! I haven't quilted a quilt since before then! How did that happen?!

So when I started quilting this quilt, I wondered how long it would take until I felt comfortable at it. Well happily, it was no time at all! 

I liken FMQ to riding a bicycle. When you first begin to ride a two-wheeled bike, you practice. By repeatedly trying, you learn how to balance and simultaneously pedal. Perhaps there's a tip-over or fall, but you begin to get the hang of it. Remember the exhilaration of riding freely? Being able to go wherever you wished? And even now, if you haven't bicycled for years you can get back on a bike and remember what to do. You might be a little wobbly at first, but you quickly remember how to find that balance and pedaling rhythm.

And oh my... how fun it is! Feel the wind in your face? Remember the delicious freedom and joy it brings? 

It's exactly like that with quilting. FMQ feels like that. Though walking foot quilting doesn't bring me the same joy, I do that too when it suits a quilt, as is the case with this quilt.

I began with with walking foot quilting to define and continue the visual curves started by partial bias tape curves. Feeling bold, I used 28-weight black thread to emphasize those curves. My Bernina stitch length is set at 3.2 for walking foot quilting. 

Then the happy part! I lowered the feed dogs, lessened the tension (to ensure the light green bobbin thread didn't pull up and show on the quilt top), put on the #29 FMQ foot, and off I went - circles, swirled circles, and wishbones!

I changed the foot to the Bernina #72 ruler quilting foot, and with a ruler quilting straight edge ruler (Westalee brand, backed with skate board tape), filled in angular spaces with straight line quilting.

This is my preferred method for quilting straight lines because I don't have to continually rotate the quilt to follow a straight path. 

You've probably noticed many thread tails. Typically, I prefer to tie and bury those as I go, but since Big Cypress Quilters meet for an open sew on Tuesday, I thought that time could be perfectly spent knotting and thread-burying while visiting with friends. I'll be using my favorite: 1) tweezers to tie the knots; 2) Sench side-threading needles to bury threads; and 3) new LDH curved blade scissors to snip threads. The scissors are lightweight, and work perfectly to clip threads close to the quilt top without nicking fabric. 

I'm more than halfway finished machine quilting. When that's done I'll add big stitch hand quilting using black Wonderfil Eleganza size-8 perle cotton. (For those who want to know, I ordered Eleganza from an Etsy shop. Two balls of perle cotton were $5.60 and shipping was $5. Ergh.) With two weeks until the Paint Chip Challenge deadline, Cipher will be a finish right down to the wire!

My not-at-the-machine time has been spent knitting. Though I've still been making Tiny Dolls, and finishing a round loom knitted poncho for myself, I came across a free pattern for a single-piece, rectangle-shaped knitted poncho. The YouTube video is here. I like this poncho design because it can be worn as a boat neck or V-neck.

I'm making the poncho for a Christmas gift and am using two skeins of Yarn Bee (by Hobby Lobby) super chunky #6 coconut-colored yarn. The knitting pattern is simple - perfect to work on during TV-watching time. Have you been watching The Count of Monte Cristo 8-part TV series on Masterpiece? It's fabulous! I think I need to read the book. 

While golf-carting to line dancing, I stopped to take a picture, thinking you'd enjoy seeing our local wildlife. Can you spot him? 

A 'gator along the bank of a pond... a pond that's becoming shallower each day. Thus far in 2026, our rainfall total is short 13" (79cm), and on Saturday, April 18 we broke a temperature record with a new high of 91℉ (32.8℃).  

And it's only April. Linda

Honoring Dad

On Friday, April 10, 16 family members gathered to inter the cremains of Dad who passed away November 5, 2025 at the age 95.

Though we miss him terribly, we are at peace because we know he was ready to go and be reunited with our Mother who died 23 years ago. 

Each of us was touched by the beautiful military ceremony for Dad who was a Marine Corps veteran. Two Marines solemnly unfurled an American flag and remained at attention while a bugler played taps, followed by an honor guard firing three rifles.

The flag was carefully refolded and presented to my brother with a folder and document from the US government signed by our president.

My brother was also presented with a small sack containing nine shell casings that represent "duty, honor, and country."  

Now, at Leavenworth National Cemetery in Leavenworth, Kansas, Mother and Dad are together again, and united with our Lord Jesus Christ through the resurrection of the dead.

Leavenworth is a lovely, peaceful cemetery. The stone building at the top of the hill plays carillon music, among the tunes being the Marines' hymn.  

The best part of the five-day trip was spending time with family, including our two teenaged grandsons. If you've been reading my blog for a number of years, you've seen each of these boys, Tay and Aesa, when they were newborns - Tay born in Australia; Aesa born in Kansas City. They're very handsome young men now. 💕

I spent a good portion of 40 hours of car time hand-piecing, and hand-appliquing.

Two more columns of hand-pieced Inner City blocks are now joined. 

I also made a good start on Jo Avery's "Dream Flower Posy Hoop Wallhanging" pattern from the February/March issue of Homespun magazine (Australia publication found in my digital public library's Cloud Library app). 

Jo's design @joaverystitch is on the left, a screen shot from Instagram. Mine is on the right. I'm appliquing Fableism and gradated cottons to a linen background. 

I think Dad would appreciate this blog post. He was a loyal blog follower/reader, and when we talked every week would often comment about something I'd posted. I'm glad you're where you wanted to be, Dad. It was good to be with family; it's good to be home again. Linda

Paint Chip Challenge Quilt Top and Back

With my paint chip challenge quilt due May 5, I've pushed myself to the "it's time to make a quilt sandwich" stage. 

This is the quilt top you may have seen in an earlier blog post, when it was 60" X 72". 

I printed the quilt top photo to test how I wanted to slash and re-piece the top. By the way, I Googled cutting up a quilt top and the term for this is "slash quilting." 

The whole quilt top has been slashed and resewn nine times. It's now about 58" X 61". 

I think the disparate curves and angles make the design much more interesting, and my imagination has been piqued about designs to quilt. Mostly I've looked at the abruptly stopped bias tape curves and thought to free motion quilt to continue to the curve... and then, maybe fill in the space with big stitch hand quilting. I'd like to quilt with black perle cotton, but I don't have a lick of black in my perle cotton stash, nor is there any local place to buy Wonderfil or Aurifil. Will see.

Continuing to use stash, I pieced a quilt back that's 61" X 71". 

It was interesting to unearth two pieces of fabric purchased in other countries. The pindot from Australia was bought in 2009 when I was last there. The print from Brazil was a gift from hubs, brought back from that country in 2001 (25 years ago!) when he was there for six weeks on business with John Deere. I'm delighted about using these in this quilt back.

If you're unable to read what's written in bias tape, I'm okay with that. The black and white stripe camouflages the letters that are in Greek. 

What is says is "Jesus is Lord." Linda ✝

Making

I've been sewing! My latest creations are cotton Twist Front Headbands following the Youtube video by Let's Make it Academy. 

I thought I needed these because I've been letting my hair grow. It's been since November that I've had a haircut. While I'm liking the curls on the back of my head...

...my bangs are straight - gray hair has begun growing-in straight.

I'd like to let my bangs grow so as to be able to pull them back but the growing out part is difficult because I don't like hair on my forehead. So I made the headbands, well-aware they're very1950's-looking. 

I modified cutting instructions to make my headband a little narrower. I'm documenting those dimensions here in case I want to reference them to later make more headbands.

Twist Front Headband

Supplies

• 8" of ¾" or ½"-wide elastic
• 2 rectangles, 5" X 15" for twist top (pattern calls for 6" X 15")
• 1 rectangle, 2" X 15" for elastic cover 

Continuing to make Tiny Dolls on a 24-peg round loom, I learned another lesson. After a week-long break, I thought I'd made another doll from memory using scrap yarn recently bought at a garage sale. 

That 14" "tiny" doll on the right is the result! Ha, ha! After finishing it, I realized I'd knitted an E-wrap rather than the U-wrap called for in the pattern. A Google search explains that an E-wrap is a loosE stitch; a U-wrap is a tight stitch. I won't make that mistake again! 

I also experimented with a different color yarn for skin tone. I think the light taupe color, on the left doll, is okay but I'd like to find a milky chocolate color. 

I've started the second panel for my Seed Stitch Poncho. I have only one unused skein of yarn left, so I hope it's enough. 

On Wednesday, April 1, from our house that's 105 miles from Cape Canaveral, we were able to see the launch of Artemis II. The four-person crew is traveling around the moon and back over 10 days. 

In the first pic, you can see the ship just below the clouds. 

Then, it cleared the clouds.

It was visible as a pinprick for a couple minutes. Exhilarating to see from here. I can only imagine what it was like for people who were closer. Several friends asked, so I'll tell you: No, we weren't able to hear anything.

This is my most recent picture of Twistee Treat, an ice cream stand that's going in nearby and that I can't wait to patronize! It's good to see what's been done - the concrete driveway (there's a drive-up window on the left), and outdoor seating. The exterior, including the roof, still needs painting... and sprinkles! I don't know when it will open, but I'm ready!

Linda

End of March

End of March... on April Fool's Day? That seems about right for how things have been going around here. 😀

I don't have much good to report about fabric use in March. I experienced a necessary influx of yardage to work on my paint chip challenge. 

All 10½ yards that came in was Painter's Palette purchased from Keepsake Quilting.

This is the 60" X 72" paint chip challenge quilt top thus far which account for 3⅓ of the yards used. I've been adding black and white striped bias tape, in three different widths. I know the top looks like nothing, but I have another step planned. I intend to slash the quilt top in several places, then reposition and resew. Yikes! I'm uncertain about what that will look like, but I know it can't remain as-is. I plan to print the photo and cut up the paper version before actually cutting the quilt top. 

I also counted as Out Yardage the Cielo top I made (see last post) using the ice cream cone print. Here's how I figured it... I bought that 1½ yards in February and counted it in February as In Yardage. Then, in March, I made the top, but calcuated it as 1⅓ yards of Out Yardage. That's because some of the odd-shaped leftover bits are now among my print scraps. Seems right, don't you think? 

The remaining small amount of fabric used was as lining and pockets for a Sunshine Crossbody Pouch. (I don't count selvedges as yardage used.) This bag - my second time making the pattern - turned out so much better than the first. I'm sure it's because I relocated D-rings to the top of the bag (rather than in the side seams), and along with SF 101 I used a foam stabilizier in each side. 

The orange pocket at the top, with a vinyl window, is for my rec center ID card. 

I also added a slip pocket to the interior. My FlourishingPalms label is on the left.

This is the best-sized purse for me to carry. 

To restore my fabric stash to its February level, I need to do a lot of sewing to use-up the almost extra 5½ yards I bought.  (Sigh.)

Book Recommendations

Due to end-of-February busy-ness with QuiltCon and teaching in Boca Raton, I never shared six February audiobooks. Scores are out of a possible 5.0.

Just a few reviews...

Ground Zero by Alan Gratz is wonderful book if you're in the mood to relive September 11, 2001. It's a rough listen, but very well-done. From the perspective of a 9 year-old boy who's in the World Trade Center with his dad, a restaurant chef, it's an excellent portrayal of what happened that day. Alongside the boy's experience is the story of an 11 year-old girl in present day terrorist-filled, war-torn Afghanistan. The book gives a thought-provoking look into cirsumstances strikingly similar for each of these young people. 

Steal Like an Artist by Austin Kleon is a must-read for anyone who thinks they're not creative. This short 37-page book (I read as an ebook) is packed with encouraging truths for all of us who have ever thought "I don't have an original idea in my body." Wrong! This is a book to read for a creative lift, and again and again when you're feeling at all discouraged about your creativity.

I'm happy to say that when I recommended the book to quiltmaking friends, it was add to our Central Florida MQG library.  

Here are seven March listens. 

If it Rains by Jennifer L. Wright takes place in Oklahoma during the 1935 dust bowl. A smart-mouthed teen, Kathryn (living with a club foot) comes of age in poverty and desperation. Her older sister, Melissa marries; her dad and stepmother decide to sell the family farm and move. The last thing Kathryn wants to do is leave. Using a dual narrative method (alternating between two characters) the author guides readers through Kathryn's story and Melissa's experiences as a new wife with money and an abusive husband. It's a well-told story of how it must have felt to live during such a difficult time. 

The Knapdale Murders by Daniel Sellers is a who-done-it story that takes place on the western edge of Scotland, along the seashore. There's a small village, lots of locals who know one another, and a female detective investigator recently arrived from Glasgow, trying to prove herself. The town's busybody - an annoying troublemaker - has been found dead, run over by a tractor. It's up to DI Anna Vaughn and the local detective constable to find the killer.

I thought this was a very entertaining book. The narrator has a wonderful, thick Scottish accent. I'll caution you too. If you need TV subtitles to watch British TV, you might wish for audiobook "subtitles" to listen to this one!  

I hope this book is the start of a series. 

Fredrik Backman has done it again - in a good way - with My Friends, a story about an 18 year-old teen who's recently left a group home and is trying to find her way with nothing and no one. In an alternating timeline - 25 years earlier - are four adolescents growing up in difficult circumstances. What ties the teen and adolescents is a famous painting, the story behind how it came to be, and its current value to the world and one individual to whom it was gifted. 

The Time Hop Coffee Shop by Phaedra Patrick is a fantasy story about Greta Perks (love the play with the name) who, with her husband and young daughter, once featured in Maple Gold Coffee TV commercials. With her celebrity fading, Greta is now separated from her husband and struggling to understand her teenaged daughter. Feeling lost, Greta finds an obscure coffee shop, where the proprietress creates a special brew for Greta who gets her wish to visit and live in the Maple Gold town. Ultimately, she must decide whether to remain there, or return to face the present.

I thoroughly enjoyed this imaginary coffee experience, and the whole book had me craving a good cuppa!

A Force of Nature by Jane Harper, is another great book by this Australia author. If you haven't yet read a Jane Harper book, you must! But then, I do love to hear an Aussie accent.

This story takes place in the fictional Giralang Ranges when two corporate groups - five men and five women - are sent out on a team-building bush trek. The men return within the designated time frame. Six hours later only four women return. Where's Alice? Federal Police Investigator Aaron Falk and his partner are sent from Melbourne to the Giralang to interview the returned, injured and bedraggled women and men, and help searchers find out what has become of Alice. 

I hope I've given you info about a few titles that might interest you.

Until my next post, I'll be here, trying to use-up more fabric and listening to more audiobooks. Linda