Hands 2 Help Signup Time

Sarah at Confessions of a Fabric Addict has announced that it's time to sign up for Hands 2 Help.  I've done this for the last couple years and it's a great chance to finish and send some charity quilts.  This year there are three excellent charities to choose from, and Sarah always has lots of prizes and guest bloggers along the way to make it more fun for all of us.  Be sure to go check it out if you are interested.  The signup time to get a chance to win a prize goes through tomorrow night, but you can still sign up after that.  Quilts are not due to be sent until June 1, so you've got time to finish one.  I've been making some charity quilts as the winter wore on, so I think I'm ready for this!

Country Threads UFO Challenge for March was #4, which for me was the Primitive Gatherings 2013 Freebie Block of the Month.  It's done and hanging on the wall.  I had it finished except for quilting and binding.  I'm not sure what happened, but I didn't have much fabric left for the binding, so this one got a really skinny binding.   I liked the red fabric, though, so I wanted to use it.  Maybe I was supposed to bind in the tan, because I had a fair amount of that left.  Anyway, it's done - I think this is the first time I've ever gotten one completely done before the next year's BOM started.  It usually starts in June, so I've got two months to do something else before it shows up!

This mat has been in my workbasket for a long time, so I got it out and finished it up.

This is Oval Flower Mat, also by Primitive Gatherings.  I really like it, but it's really big and I don't have a great spot for it, so I think that's why it has languished in an unfinished state.  Maybe I need to buy some new furniture so I have a place to display it!

One other UFO I have finished this month is this moose quilt.  I made this quilt top several years ago to teach a class on Quilt In A Day's Flying Geese rulers (which work really well).  The brown fabric is a Holly Taylor Northwoods print with moose, bears and trees.  I finished it up with a meander and star pattern, so this is ready to be sent off to someone.  I think this may be one of my Hands 2 Help quilts this year.

The brown fabric in this quilt is really pretty - it's cotton, but it looks like suede and has a very rich look to it.  This quilt finished at about 70"x80", so it's a nice lap size.

Winter is slowly going, but we still have snow on the ground and highs only in the 30s and 40s each day.  I'm so ready for a 60 degree day.  I guess all this winter weather leads to great productivity in the sewing room, though!  The snow has melted enough so that I can see how much damage the voles got up to this winter, so I'm going to have to trade quilting for lawn repair in a couple months.

The Silver Lining

The silver lining of all the winter weather we've been having (and continue to have - it's only 32 today) is that I'm forced to stay inside and work on my projects!  This month I've gotten out some spring projects and finished them.

This Easter redwork pillow was a free pattern from Kaaren at The Painted Quilt awhile back, and I had the stitchery done, so I finally got it made into a pillow in time to display this year.  I love how it turned out.  Kaaren has lots of fun free patterns - if you aren't familiar with her blog, it's worth your time to check it out!  She has a new spring pattern up now.

Last year I won a giveaway from Buttermilk Basin.  There were two items in the giveaway, and I got the towel finished.

This rabbit does have an eye, but it's black and doesn't show up very well in the picture.  The rabbit is wool, on a pretty spring towel.  I started the other project I won, but it isn't quite finished yet.

It's been way too cold to go out shopping, so I've been shopping in my sewing room cabinets.  I'm amazed at what I'm finding!  This chick table mat kit was one of my finds, so I made it for spring.  Who knows what else I have hidden away that I've forgotten about!  The stores are probably missing me, but I think I could keep busy for years on what I've already bought.

And I've been working on the blocks from the Tone It Down quilt in American Patchwork and Quilting.  All the blocks are done now and set together, but I don't have a recent picture.  The pattern shows up a lot better once the blocks are set together.  I like how this turned out, but it's a little small for a bed, so I think I'll have to add a border or two, so it's not quite done yet.

The Country Threads UFO Challenge number this month was #4, which is my Primitive Gatherings Summer Freebie 2013 quilt, so I'm in the middle of quilting that and hope to have it finished yet this month.  I love these challenges - it really helps me to focus on one project!

My friend Donna at Brynwood Needleworks is having a 5th blog anniversary giveaway, so hop over to her blog and sign up. I really enjoy her blog.  Donna used to have a store here, and I was her customer, and then she was my customer later when I had a store.  Now we're long-distance friends who get together to go quilt shopping once a year.  It's a fun way to keep in touch!