Blocks

Next Tuesday we're having a reunion of our Civil War Diary Quilt group at "de Sampler" in Haarlem. Some of our group have finished quilttops. It will take at least another year and a half for me to get there, so for now, I have pinned my blocks to a bedsheet... it will have to do for the course. G.

Biscornu

My camera had some problems focussing on this cross stitch project, so it took me a while to post it. Were M. and I. had it finished long before Christmas, I was just in time to hang it in the tree. Here's my second biscornu. And as it is Christmas Eve, I won't be spending much more time behind my sewing machine the next couple of days, so Merry Christmas! G.

Skirt for R.

I. and I bought this fabric ( a fleece) for just 3 euro's and cut it at the Stoffenspektakel in half! I. told me she had some problems with the pattern. The Burda probably made it for little girls with enomous hips, but thanks to I.'s warning I could take it in for R. and she has a new cuddly skirt. G.

Civil War Diary Quilt - Just Can't Get Enough

We hadn't given ourselves more homework blocks, so I returned to the first row. I'm really in the Civil War Quilt mood, and just can't get enough of making blocks. Í've almost finished the first row!
Dark Gloom

Rachel's Frustration (finally a "normal block, that is, non paper piecing...)

Battle of Springfield

Alvin McClure (This is my lucky week, two blocks for piecing). G.

Civil War Homework

After taking the sleigh to the supermarket for the groceries (it's far too slippery outside to use my bike), I laid down these blocks in the snow to take a picture. I was supposed to do these blocks in October, but I haven't had time to do them until now. This is the last block in the book, called My Diary, My Records. G.
Feverish Excitement

Fasting and Knitting.

Think Too Little of My Blessings.

Cape

I bought a meter of fleece for a few euro's and made it into a cape for little miss T. in one evening. What a great sewing project! G.

Partytime

No comment

Dressed up for Christmas

The girls had their Christmas dinner at school last night. They were all dressed up in their new dresses. I finished the dress for little Miss T. just in time. G.

Wreath number two

I decided to make another wreath for outside too. In a few days I'll be putting the letters "N.O.E.L." in again. G.

RagTime for the last time

M. took my quilt to the laundrette, yesterday, so now I finally have my own quilt!! G.

My first quilt

This quilt was the first one I every had. It was made by a friend of my parents from the U.S. and all my kids have slept under it. Now my niece uses it for her nap when she's at my place. It's such a lovely quilt and I am so very happy with it. I wish Mrs. P. could see for herself how much we love her handwork! G.

Wreath

This is a whole new kind of wreath for me. I can't stop kissing everyone under the mistletoe. G.

Zwarte Piet

The pictures aren't very good, but anyone who knows me, knows why I had to publish these... If I ever see another piece of gold ribbon, I will scream. G.

Quilt Exhibition in Hoofddorp

I lived in Hoofddorp for four years, but had never noticed this little church. The local quiltgroup (21 ladies) organizes a quilt exhibition every three years, so I was lucky to have heard of it!

When entering the church I noticed this masterpiece, a Dear Jane, which I photographed for I. and M., to give them inspiration for their quilts.

This one is called "My workroom" so cute with the small rotary cutters and other sewing appliances.

I can never walk past a quilt in Dutch fabrics of course.

This is a Sunbonnet Sue, but with a Dutch twist. The woman who made it told me she wanted to use our own Dutch holidays in this quilt, so she put in Sint Maarten for Halloween, and Sinterklaas (shoes by the fireplace) for Christmas. She also substituted the turkey being chased with a hatchet by a appletree.

The ladies inspire each other to start the same projects. I had so much fun playing hooky this morning! G.

Finished Doll

One very proud little girl. G.

R. on the sewing machine

As the stairs were being done this Wednesday, we had to stay downstairs all day. R. made here own doll and started a dress for the doll too. Liselotje will be so very pretty. G.

The last of the summer fabrics..

with a legging and a t-shirt it's even wearable for the fall too. G.

Off to Cuba...

Back in a couple of weeks.

M.

Fabric for Sashings & Background

Starting my Civil War Diary Quilt last year I planned to make all sashings a different shade of white as well as using different fabrics for the cornerstones. Last couple of weeks this plan was freaking me out... I had not been able to find enough whites I liked and I realised I could not attach the sashings as I go. So time for Plan B. I like the ecru fabric I used in Feverish Excitement... luckily I'd bought it not so long ago... and I remembered where I'd bought it.



Phoned the shop - Quilterspalet in The Hague - at 16.45 on a Saturday afternoon. Do you still have this fabric?? Evy believed she had.... Picked it up during my lunchbreak on Tuesday. And guess what I love it!! And G. approves as well.
The top picture shows my background fabric on the left. Nearly there fabric wise... only the border left to choose... and still about 70 blocks to make...

Evy also mentioned the NorthSea Quilters have different options for the Civil War Diary Quilt. An allover pattern, quilting per block (obviously the most expensive option). But also quilt-in-the-ditch around each block. This would stabilize the quilt and would allow you to quilt the individual blocks... you could even attach the binding first and then quilt each block by hand.... and the quilt would look finished.
Mmm... although I only recently discovered I might not be as opposed to handpiecing as I always claimed to be... quilting CWDQ by hand... I'll think about it.
M.

One never knows...

Feverish Excitement

First homework block.

M.

Stoffenspektakel

This is my treasure from a whole weekend of fabric hunting, first the Stoffenmarkt in Hoofddorp and then the Stoffenspektakel in Vijfhuizen. What a blast! I started cutting the same evening! I should be able to keep myself busy for the next few weeks... G.

Regiment Landed

M.

United No Longer

Hopefully back in Civil War Quilt mood...

M.

Bookmarker

This is the hardanger bookmarker I made this summer. G.

Ragtime Weekend

This has been a weekend of sewing till you drop... Friday I made these rows. (I added little pieces of paper with the blockposition on each block, so I wouldn't destroy the carfully planned layout.)..

Saturday I sewed all the rows together and on Sunday I finished by sewing around the quilt. I think I'm in for a lot of nights on the couch with scissors. G.

Civil War Blocks for September

A Union of Name

Oath of Allegiance (We didn't have the pattern for this one, but I followed I.'s advice and made a copy of the picture in the book, turning it into my paper piecing block. I try to make one extra block each month, so I will finish with 50 by June.)

More Pigs

Beauregard's Narrow Escape (I. had warned me for this block. It was impossible to keep the lines straight, and the block turned out smaller than the 6,5 inched it should have been.)G.

Inspiration Part Two

I. showed me her Civil War blocks for this month, and she inspired me to start my homework right away. Here's "Mr. Harrison's Pigs" the first of our four homework blocks. G.

Inspiration

The whole family joined in, in moving the blocks for my Ragtimequilt around. We all think this is the best combination. G.